I nod sadly. "You said something similar when she was just a baby."
"Yes. And you wanted to give her a chance to see who she turned out to be." He pats me on the shoulder." I'm sorry I have to put it that way. I just think we have to get a hold of all thefir epower we can. Let's try to track down Kalika today. If we find her, and we live,then we'll go talk to Dr. Seter. Hell listen. It's just a question of how far you have to go to persuade him."
"Is there anything I can dofor you,Mother?"There is pain in my voice as I speak next." This child is special, there can be no question about that. But to me, Kalika,even if she is evil, is special as well." My head hangs heavy. "I don't know whether to pray for success or failure."
7
A local realtor informs me that there are only a dozen places in Los Angeles that fit my description of a tall apartment building with a large pool. The one with the largest pool is in Century City, at Century City Park East. Seymour and I decide to go there first. The place is exclusive, with twin towers that rise twenty stories into the sky. There is valet parking,a gym, and a tennis court beside the wonderful pool. I let the valet take the car, but I don't immediately head for the woman at the reception area.
"I appreciate what you said about this being a trap," I say to Seymour, who insisted on coming so that he could serve as lookout. "But the chancesare she doesn't know we're here. I don't want to walk in and request her by name."
"Chances are she's working under a different name. Did you bring a picture of her?"
"Yes. I have several of herto ken when she was fully grown.But I don't want to tip our hand. If we quiz the woman at the desk,and show herK alika's picture, she may tellK alika someone was lookingfor her. These people are trained to do that. I would rather check out the underground garage first If Kalika has a car, it will probably be newand I should be able to smell her on it."
"She could be out," Seymour says.
"It is a possibility. But I want to do this first."
So we head underground. We're dressed properly, like rich sophisticates, so no one pays any attention to us. On the second garage level a new white Mercedes catches my eye. From where I am standing,forty feet away, I don't smell my daughter. Yet there is something about the car that draws my attention. I wonder if the vehicle is emitting vibrations. Certainly my daughter has a very powerful aura.
A moment later we have our hands on the car.
"If this is hers," Seymour says,"she has good taste."
"I need to smell the interior," I say.
Seymour points to a tiny flashing red light inside. "Don't set off the alarm."
"I see it," I mutter as I flex my palms over the driver's side window. Very slowly I begin to push the window down. A crack appears and I letgo and stick my nose dose to it. There is a faint musky odor, which, according to the Vedas, is Kali's smell. But I don't need my knowledge of the Vedas to remember what my own daughter smells like. The odor fills me with nostalgia for her, but I don't know why. Ray and my darling daughter never allowed us to have a normal family life. He was a ghost and she was a demon. I glance at Seymour. "This belongs to her."
He is not as happy as he was a moment ago. He may not remember the stake through his back,but he was there whenK alika opened Eric's throat. I carefully push the window back up and wipe away the faint impressions my palms have made on the glass.
"We'd better get out of here," he says.
I study the number at the front of the parking spot."Eighteen twenty-one. It must be her suite number. We need to stake out this building."
"Not down here," he says quickly.
"No. We'll cross the street to the high-rise office building and find an empty office that has a view of the valet parking area.When she leaves, I'll break into herco ndo and search it."
He swallows."Do we have to do that?"
"You don't have to do anything.I'll do it."
"But then you'll think I'm a coward."
"I know you're a coward," I lie.
He is insulted."Is that why you won't sleep with me?"
"No. It's because you're still a nerd.Let's get across the street."
Back outside we cross Olympic Boulevard and enter one of the triangular towers that overlooks the condo towers. This commercial building has forty floors,twice what the condo towers have. A glance at the office listings in the main lobby tells me that 3450 and 3670 and 3810 and 2520 are empty. I steer Seymour toward the elevator. We are alone as we rise up to the thirty-sixth floor.
"Maybe she never goes out," he says."We could wait all day for her to leave."
"You're free to go to a movie if you like."
"That's not fair.Yo u're a vampire. You don't have to fear her the way I do."
"You will recall that last time I tried to attack her on the Santa Monica Pier, she grabbed my foot before I could touch her and snapped my ankle." I shake my head."She can kill me as easily as she can kill you, if she chooses."
"But you do think a bullet in the head or in the heart will stop her?"
"Who really knows?"
Suite 3670 appears empty. I listen at the door for a moment before breaking the lock,stepping inside, and closing the door behind us. Suite 3670 directly overlooks the condo towers. We have a clear view of the valet area.If Kalika comes down and asks for her car, or simply gets it herself, we will know. Briefly I scan the portion of the eighteenth floor that faces us. It is possible I can see1821, but I can't tell without examining the interior of the building or seeing a floor plan.Yet all of theco ndos on that floor have closed vertical blinds, so even if I was staring directly at her place, it would do me little good.
Seymour and I sit down on the floor and take up the watch. Actually, it is only my eyes that are of any use. This high up, Seymour wouldn't recognize his own mother if she came out of the building across the street.
An hour goes by. Seymour gets hungry and goes for a sandwich. While he is gone I see a beautiful young woman with long dark hair come out of theco ndo tower. She hands the parking valet a dollar after he brings up her shiny white Mercedes. I am staring at the Dark Mother, the scourge of Suzama's prophecies,my own daughter.
"Kalika," I whisper to the glass. "What do you want?"