Fuckyeah, I do it.
It works on some shifters, a little, but not on others. I really don’t push that, though. I don’t want them knowing I can do it. I have everything with that situation balanced delicately enough as it is. I don’t want them thinking I’m more on the vampires’ side than on theirs. Garrett Green and his mate, Amber, know I am immune to the thrall, but they don’t know the extent of what I can do. They’ve also agreed to keep that secret.
If Amber’s seen what I can do in one of her visions, she hasn’t admitted it to me.
A little after ten, I’m taking a turn behind the bar on the main floor when I do a double-take. Because, son of a bitch, it looks like Tiberius is leading actor Gareth David-Lloyd across the club and toward the back hallway.
Helloooo, Sweetie.
I mean, yeah, we’ve had VIPs in here before, even several A-list celebs. Ironically, Lucius doesn’t want too many of them gracing the club’s doorstep. He wants the place hopping every night, but on a local level and not attracting paparazzi or crazy crowds. A low-key, steady success that is sustainable and doesn’t draw any of the bad kind of attention.
Also, Lucius doesn’t want a celebrity accidentally getting harmed while or immediately after being here. Usually, he personally takes them in hand, and before they leave, they’re given a gentle mental nudge not to return or talk about the club to people. Not a mind wipe, because in the case of a celebrity that might trigger more questions than can be comfortably dealt with.
But IantofuckingJones?
My heart skips a little.Torchwoodis one of my favorite shows. Normally, I keep my chill, but I havegotto meet that man before he leaves tonight, actor or not.
I quickly lose track of them because I take a couple of orders and start mixing drinks.
Since I’m focused, that’s why I flinch when Selene suddenly whispers in my ear.
“Play the name tag game again.Hewants to be amused.”
The “who” wanting to be amused doesn’t need clarification—her king. I also don’t bother turning. I know she can hear me just fine, even as I whisper in reply, “Who with?”
“You’ll know.” By the time I glance behind me, she’s little more than a white-haired blur heading for the back hallway.
I shiver.Holy crap, I’m going to meet IantofuckingJones!
And maybe make enough extra to pay my auto insurance early, too.
Maybe I can have him autograph the C-note I win from him and then get it framed.
Worth it!
Despite trying to pay attention and keep an eye on the opening to the hallway, a bachelorette party arrives, and I spend the next fifteen minutes mixing drinks for already drunk women. Several vampires mill around, sensing easy pickings, and I barely manage not to roll my eyes.
Lucius has a hard rule—no harming humans in the club, and no deaths in the club. Unless it comes from his hand or by his direction, of course.
But nohumandeaths on the premises. Or shifters, preferably. Not caused by vampires, anyway. Deaths mean possible attention from the police, and that’s bad for business for a variety of reasons.
Once the drunk bachelorette party has their first round and is happy, I’m aware of being watched. Nothing unusual there because I get hit on several times a night, mostly by humans but also by the occasional vamp who doesn’t know me.
This feels…different. Like a prickly feeling between my shoulder blades.
I turn and wipe down the bar, but what I’m really doing is sweeping the room with my gaze. The dance floor is hopping. The people at the bar are currently sated. The lounge…
There. I spot Lucius and Selene, and Ianto is with them. I wasn’t paying super-close attention before. It cannotreally be the actor.
Can it?
I’m just gonna call him Ianto until I know his real name, and maybe even after.
The more I focus, disappointment trickles in. He probably can’t be the actor because he’s a vampire. I know that much now. Because as I remember the way he moved when he walked through the first time, and now from focusing on where he’s sitting, I can isolate him.
No heartbeat, and he’s not breathing when he’s not talking. I was too gobsmacked earlier to let common sense take over.
The whole isolation thing is another talent that’s not human that I can do quite well, but I’m not a vampire, and I’m not a shifter.
