She stood in the entryway, looking trendy yet ethereal inhigh-waisted jeans and a cropped baby-blue sweater that juxtaposed her flaming red hair gorgeously. The changeover to vampirism had been very kind to her, though she’d also been stunning as a human.
“Damn, Liz, did you fly over h-here?” I asked with a hiccup.
“Have you been drinking?”
“Yep.” I gestured for her to come in. “Want me to pour you one? It’s merlot, your favorite.”
She quirked a brow. “How drunkareyou?”
As she took a seat at the dining room table, I went into the kitchen to open another bottle of wine, then stopped in my tracks. “Duh! Sometimes I forget,” I said, smacking my forehead. “Want some blood?”
“I want you to tell me what this is all about. What’s the big emergency?” Liz sat up in the chair and tucked a leg under her butt. She looked around. “Where’s Robert?”
I hadn’t told her anything over the phone, except that I needed her. Liz was good like that, willing to help with no questions asked.
Our friendship had endured some ups and downs when I’d first gotten involved in the world of vampires, mainly because I’d been sworn to silence about the existence of them. Back then, she was still human, so it had been a frustrating time for me, carrying around such a big secret that I couldn’t even share with my best friend. Now that Liz was a vampire herself, our bond was stronger than ever.
I went to the fridge to get her some blood. Reading the labels on the sides of the bottles, I said over my shoulder, “I’ve got a thirty-something runner or a twenty-something ballerina.”
Vampires bought blood the same way humans bought different roasts of coffee. No two mortals tasted the same, according to Robert.
“Whatever you’ve got is fine,” she said, waving a hand. “You’re killing me! Sit down and tell me what’s happening.”
To sober up, I eschewed pouring more wine for myself and grabbed an energy drink from the human fridge. Some couples had his and her bathrooms; Robert and I had human and vampire refrigerators.
I poured Liz some of the ballerina and then joined her at the table. I took several gulps of the energy drink, the caffeine cutting through my buzz like a meat cleaver. Before Liz lost her mind with impatience, I outlined all that had happened, starting with Nick’s bloodbath at the fountain and ending with Robert’s disappearance.
Liz was usually an unshakable individual. Now, she gawked at me with her mouth hanging open like she was trying to catch flies.
“Okay, wow,” she said. “Wow.”
I nodded. “What a shitshow, right?”
“That’s a lot to process.” She took a sip of blood. “Let’s start with Nick. Are yousurehe’s dead?”
“Yes, I’m sure,” I said with strained patience. “I saw thempull his head out of a goddamn fountain!”
“I’m not glad he’s dead, but would it make me a terrible vamp if I said I’m happy Nick finally got what was coming to him?” she asked, sucking on her bottom lip.
I could hardly blame her for holding a grudge. The break-in he’d participated in with the VGO thugshadresulted in her husband being hospitalized. Liz had never been a fan of Nick. After that, though, she’d hated him.
On the same note, she also loathed the VGO, though she knew better than to entertain any thoughts of retaliation. She also understood why I’d struck a deal with them, since the alternative would have resulted in my death. Vampires, if nothing else, were pragmatic.
“Who do you think did it?” Before I could answer she added, “So you know, it wasn’t me. I would havelikedto kill Nick, but I didn’t. You can ask Marlena; I was doing hair all night.”
“It didn’t even cross my mind, Liz.” I reached over and patted her hand. “What was the event?” Though I had no interest in returning to Dignitary to work as a decoy, I did occasionally miss the excitement and glamour that came with the job.
“Dignitary was overseeing a charity auction to benefit the preservation of gorillas in Congo. It was fun.”
Vampires carried a soft spot in their lifeless hearts for endangered creatures, perhaps because they were rare themselves. They were forever putting on galas to raise money for conservation and awareness. Robert and I had been to a couple—for Sumatran rhinos and red pandas.
“What did they auction off?” I asked.
“Themselves. It was for dates with bachelors and bachelorettes. Not, like, in a creepy or sexual way. It was innocent stuff, like going to the theatre or on a midnight cruise. They strutted down the runway hissing and shaking their asses while other vamps, and even a few humans, called out bids. It was pretty hilarious, actually, and they raised lots of money for a good cause.”
“Aw, I wish I could have been there to see that . . .” I shook my head, exasperated. “What are we doing? We need to focus! What am I going to do about Robert?”
Liz rubbed her cold hand along my back when I started crying in frustration. “It’s okay. We’ll sort it out,” she soothed.
