“Sam,if you make my ice cream into a roller coaster, I will march outside and throw it into the ocean.” It had been four days since Sam had introduced me toHot Rod, and I was craving ice cream.
Of course Sam had taken our time together to mean I wanted to eat some weird creation of his.
“That’s rude!” Sam pushed my mint chocolate chip with chocolate sauce over to me.
“Don’t mess with my ice cream, then.” I placed a twenty on the counter and went to the booth in the far back.
“One day, Lukas Farren, I will get you to eat my art!”
I hummed. “I suppose that will be one thing you never get to cross off your bucket list, it seems.”
Natalie had mentioned, when she’d threatened me, that he had a bucket list, and I’d heard it mentioned before. Many humans had one, but I’d always thought it was for people who were older who wanted to get things done before they die. I’d have nothing to really put on one for me, but I did find Sam’s amusing.
“Challenge accepted!” he shouted at me and started helping the next patron.
As I sat there, enjoying my ice cream and people-watching, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I slid it out and saw Vincent’s name pop up.
“Vincent, what can I do for you?”
“Now, that is how you should greet me all the time.”
I grunted. “Why are you calling?”
“I can’t call to say hello?”
I was silent for a beat; his tone was off. “What’s going on, Vincent?”
He sighed. “The gala that’s in a couple of weeks…” He didn’t go on.
“What about it? I responded I’d be there; isn’t it required?” This was a yearly gala the council put on—their way of checking in on everyone. If you didn’t attend, a council member would visit you, and that wasn’t pleasant.
“Right. Well, did you see the email they sent this morning?”
Admittedly, I hadn’t checked my email in a few days. I had people who ran my companies; I was never needed.
“No.”
“They are requiring us to bring a plus-one.”
I dropped my spoon into my ice cream cup. “All vampires must be there; how are we to bring a plus one?” I whispered.
“A human.”
That was unorthodox. “Why?”
“I wondered the same thing, so I called and was told the council has concerns as to how some of us are integrating ourselves with humans.”
“Vincent, you and I have been integrating for hundreds of years. I can understand if a fledgling were struggling, but there hasn’t been a turning in a decade.” I kept my voice low so no one could hear.
“I think it’s a few they have worries over, and to not let them feel singled out, it’s now a requirement for all of us.”
I couldn’t understand how this was even going to work. We drank blood, and there’d been a blood fountain last year. Humans ate food. The only humans who were allowed to know of our existence were staff chosen by the council, and ones chosen to be our companions, and we were each only permitted to turn one human. In turn, that human (after at least one hundred years) could turn another human if the council granted it. Sires were the only ones allowed to turn humans unless a vampire found their eternal. Sires were chosen by the council; neither I nor Vincent had been chosen, and we had no desire to become sires. Regardless, if we found our eternals we would be allowed to change them without permission.
“This will be a disaster.”
“I’m sure they have it figured out, Lukas. I have someone I’m bringing; she’s a delight. Do you want me to bring someone for you?”
I looked up to where Sam was laughing at something a lady at the counter was saying.
