When the man slid down from the dumpster, his knees buckled, but he clung to the side until he was standing on his own. The killer moved into the frame, spun the man around, grabbed him by the neck, and pulled him to his mouth.
Horrified, I watched as the poor man stared straight ahead, showing a disturbing lack of alarm. Had he been put in a trance? Faster than I would have thought possible, the now dead man was being dropped to the ground. The killer turned toward the camera before leaping up and out of the frame.
Heart racing, I backed up to watch it again. When the killer turned toward the camera, I froze it. Vlad.
TEN
Scars for the Win
“Why is your heart racing?” Vlad’s dark eyes peered out at me from the corner.
Darling? Are you all right?
Not sure. There was another killing. I just came from there and checked the video Nerissa sent of the murder. It’s Vlad.
Do you know where Vlad is right now?
Yep. He’s staring at me from the corner of the den.
I’m coming.
No, you’re not. I’m fine. I went back to the dining room and opened the curtains. Vlad hissed in the corner. I invited Clive into my mind, so he could see what I was seeing. His brain felt sluggish, but I knew he was intent on the video in my hand.
I played it again.
Ask him where he went last night after we parted.
“Clive wants to know where you went last night after you all split up.”
“Why? And what’s on your phone that has your heart racing and Clive listening in?”
“Don’t be a dick. Just answer the question.” I didn’t want to believe it. I thought of Vlad as a friend. This didn’t make sense.
I don’t think that’s him, darling. The height looks off and the hair isn’t quite right. Play it again, just from when the killer arrives.
“I searched the piers,” Vlad responded. “There were some faint vampire trails, but they seemed to be normal feeding patterns in crowded, tourist-filled areas. Nothing the Guild needs to concern itself with.”
“And then what?” I pushed while hitting play again.
The flash.
He dropped from the roof. When we were there, we all heard something up there. I even went up to investigate, but I didn’t see or sense anything unusual.
What’s usual for a roof, I wondered.
He was slow to respond. The burst of energy he had felt at my heartbeat was disappearing. Birds. Lots of cats down there.
Yeah. I saw a cat on the roof too.
Wait. “Have you answered me yet?” I asked Vlad.
“I didn’t want to interrupt you plotting with Clive. Now tell me what is on your damn phone?”
“We’re not plotting and how do you even know he’s talking to me?”
“Your facial expressions always give it away. You need to work on that,” he replied, though I’d mostly stopped listening. There was too much going on.
Look, Clive said in my head. The hair is wrong. Vlad wears his hair in a short tail. This one’s hair is a few inches longer.
