When the room fell silent, the mood shifted. Claude kept staring listlessly at the floor from his spot at the end of Gem’s bed. The reality hit us like a sledgehammer during the quiet moments. We got a chance to let it really sink in that we might never be our old selves again.
“Where’s Viktor?” Niko asked. “Why is everyone in here?”
Gem combed her fingers through her wavy hair and wrinkled her nose at the pale lavender frosting that she would be wearing forever. “Viktor’s wolf wanted out, so we left him in his bedroom alone. But then he kept barking at all the noise in the building. Some of those ladies in the hall are awfully loud.”
“Not as loud as the guy begging to be spanked,” Wyatt muttered. “I’d like to spank him with a baseball bat.”
From the center of the bed, Gem straightened the tulle on her dress. “Someone called the guy downstairs, and he stormed up here and pounded on Viktor’s door. When we heard keys jingling, we flew into the hallway to stop him.”
“By then it was too late,” Claude finished. “Viktor’s wolf latched onto the male’s arm and was giving it a hard shake. He kicked him.”
“Actually kicked him!” Gem’s violet eyes were fiery mad. “His poor wolf. He scampered down the hallway and into the elevator. Viktor would never kill a human, even a grouchy one.”
My brows arched. “They fixed the elevators? Had I known that, I wouldn’t have taken the stairs.”
Wyatt snorted. “The elevators are worse. They smell like vomit.”
“What happened after that?” I asked.
Claude leaned back on his hand. “Someone was coming out of the elevator just as his wolf ran in. Maybe he jumped on the buttons, or someone on a different floor might have summoned the elevator. The doors closed, and off he went.”
“So we split up and searched all the floors,” Gem continued. “Claude picked up his scent in the lobby and questioned a few people outside. Some lady saw his wolf run out. Claude went to track him, but he can’t flash around at Chitah speed in the daylight, so Blue volunteered to scout the area. The manager called animal control and reported the attack. He was steaming mad. We tried to explain that Viktor was a mixed breed and that nobody mentioned anything about pets when we checked in. He called someone to fill in his spot while he went to the hospital to get stitches or rabies shots. Viktor doesn’t have rabies! I hope that little troll gets an infection that spreads to his testicles and shrivels them up into tiny little peas.”
Wyatt glanced up. “That’s very specific. Isn’t it bad enough he got bit?”
“Serves him right.” Shepherd lit up a smoke and put the cigarettes back inside his white jacket. “You don’t go around kicking a wolf.”
Gem fell dramatically onto her back and stared at a water stain on the ceiling. “We agreed to stay here while Blue searches the area. Viktor wouldn’t want us splitting up and running all over town.”
“Is that where Christian is?” I asked. “Helping her look for Viktor?”
She lifted her palms with a shrug. “We haven’t seen him all morning. I don’t know what we’ll do if animal control has Viktor’s wolf. And what if he ran all the way back to Keystone?”
Shepherd flicked the ashes into an empty ashtray, and they disappeared a few seconds later. “This is why I fucking hate the human district. Too many rules. Too many people policing everyone. You two almost landed your asses in jail without Viktor to bail you out. We don’t have a way to contact each other, so for now we sit tight and stick together.”
I glanced around, thinking how ridiculous we looked in our party costumes. Wyatt especially. I reached down and scratched inside my boot. “I’d give anything to take these off.”
Wyatt twisted his mouth to the side. “I knew we couldn’t change clothes, but it didn’t dawn on me until last night that we can’t have sex.”
Everyone jerked their heads and looked at him.
Claude grimaced. “I don’t even want to ask how you discovered that.”
Wyatt tugged at his striped pants. “I can’t unfasten them, and they don’t have a zipper. Maybe if they were elastic, I’d be able to take it out and get a little action.” He sat up and looked at Shepherd. “See if you can take yours out.”
Shepherd stubbed out his cigarette, and it disappeared in the ashtray. “I’m not taking it out. If you don’t button it up, I’m going to tie your ass to the nearest hearse. You’ve been bleating like a goat all morning about food, but I’m drawing the line at your dick.”
Gem sat up. “If anyone takes anything out, I’ll never speak to you again.”
“This is ludicrous.” Wyatt stood in a huff and rounded the bed. “If I get out of this, I’m carrying french fries or cookies in my pockets instead of these stupid candies,” he muttered, grabbing a key and slamming the door on his way out. Moments later, Viktor’s door slammed shut, shaking a cheap picture on the wall behind me.
Wyatt had verbalized the frustration we were all feeling. This situation was bad enough, but it could also get infinitely worse. A few days without tasting food? Doable. But the idea of this lasting forever? Cursed to walk the earth but never indulge in the pleasures of life?
“Is anyone guarding Lenore?” I asked.
“What for? The female has her powers back.” Claude leaned back on his hands, exposing his bare chest. “I advised her to stay in her room since Viktor was gone, but she looked disgusted. Viktor feels an obligation to her, but it’s her choice what she decides to do. A Vampire is hardly one who needs protection.”
Lenore wasn’t going anywhere, of that I was certain. She wanted to keep Viktor in her clutches to make sure he didn’t stray.
