“Which would only be notable if her sex was different.” Giovanni smiled. “Nicely done, Tesoro.”

“So, we have his names for the four, which all indicate their origin... except for his friend.”

Giovanni paged through the notebook. “The Greek, the Numidian, the Aethiop, and ‘my dear friend.’”

Beatrice sighed. “I don’t want to make assumptions, because medieval Kufa was so diverse.”

He nodded. “It was in decline, in a political sense, during Geber’s lifetime, but it was an active center of learning and scholarship, so it could have been a friend from any number of backgrounds. Arab and Persian are the most likely, but many vampires were drawn to the Middle East during that period because there was so much going on.”

“He does use the medieval Persian word for ‘friend’ so that could be significant.”

Giovanni shook his head. “It could just as easily not be significant. All his personal journals were written in Persian. And if we are looking for your father’s contact in Rome, it could be less than helpful. Livia has always kept a very diverse court... well, diverse for a Roman.”

She cocked her head. “What do you mean?”

“She takes pride in having tokens from all areas of the Roman Empire, thinks it adds to the ‘imperial’ quality. Shows how magnanimous she is. So, all of these, Greek, Numidian, Ethiopian, any of these would be common in the Roman court. Nothing particularly notable there. We’ll have to wait and see who’s been keeping her company the last few years. It changes all the time with a few notable exceptions. Rome is probably the most ‘international’ of the European immortal courts.”

“But old. We’re looking for older vampires, for sure.”

He shrugged. “The experiments were conducted around 800 A.D.? We’re looking for four vampires over a thousand years old. In Rome, it’s not uncommon. Though the majority of the population is fairly young, there are so many older vampires who come and go that one of a thousand years would not stand out.”

She scowled. “Well, thanks for raining on my parade, Captain Sunshine.”

He chuckled and put the notebook down. “However, this is exceptional work, as always. I don’t tell you enough how brilliant you are.”

“No, you really don’t.”

Beatrice was still pretending to pout, so he pushed the notebooks aside to grab her hand and pull her toward him. “You’re brilliant... beautiful.”

“Yes, keep it coming,” she said, waving her other hand.

“Smart, sexy.” He pulled her to straddle his lap and began running his fingers along her spine, enjoying the shiver of excitement that rose between them. “Very sexy.”

“More,” she whispered, and Giovanni grinned, not sure whether she was talking about the compliments or the caresses.

“Thorough. Thoroughly lovely, that is...” His lips nibbled along her jawline as her hands tangled in his hair. “You’re just so...” He breathed out along her skin, causing her to shiver. “So...”

“What?” She panted as his fingers teased her.

He pulled back and traced his tongue along her lower lip. “You’re so... meticulous.” He drew the word out sensuously.

Finally, she giggled and tackled him to the bed.

“Giovanni Vecchio, you sure know how to seduce a woman.”

“No.” He rolled over and tucked her into his chest as his hands continued to tease. “I just know how to seduce you.”

Rome, Italy

It was after ten o’clock when they landed in Rome. The plane had touched down without incident, but Matt and Giovanni were both wary in the foreign territory. Luckily, neither was unfamiliar with the city; Matt had spent plenty of time in Rome, and for Giovanni, Rome was like a second home. His knowledge of it was trumped only by his knowledge of Florence, which had a very low vampire population. Rome, on the other hand, was teeming with the creatures.

They exited the plane, only to be met by a dark car that Matt had ordered. As planned, Beatrice stood guard over Dez and Ben, her watchful gaze sweeping around as Giovanni and Matt thoroughly checked the vehicle for any listening devices or explosives. He knew their arrival was expected, and Giovanni would take no chances with his family’s safety. Rome was a city with a long memory.

“Clear for bugs,” Matt said quietly.

“And I don’t sense any energy signatures or smell any explosives. Beatrice?” Beatrice, like most water vampires, had developed an extremely keen sense of smell.

“I don’t smell anything suspicious.”

“Excellent.” Giovanni walked over to the driver, shaking his hand and quickly asking him a few questions that reassured him the man had been sent by the usual car service he used in Rome. The five passengers squeezed into the small car as Matt sat in the front, directing the driver to Giovanni’s home near the Pantheon.

“How old is your house?” Ben asked as they sped through the streets. The driver swerved to avoid a horde of passing Vespas, and Giovanni could hear the man cursing under his breath. It was Friday night in Rome, and the streets were alive with activity.

“Wow,” Beatrice said. “And I thought New York was busy at night.”

“My home was built in the sixteenth century, Ben.”

“Wow, that’s old. It has bathrooms and stuff, right?”

He grinned. “Yes.”

“And I have my own room?”