Raven Mask (11 page)

“Tell me,” Lenorre said, and I was glad she’d diverted Eris’s attention. I pulled my feet under me, listening.

“One of my patrons at the club divulged information regarding a rumor of a new and ambitious vampire in town. You should be on your guard.”

Eris idly rolled her thumb across the arm of the chair. The dress she wore was midnight velvet, similar to the cloak she had been wearing, but where the cloak added an air of mystery, the dress clung to her skin, showing off her curves. She noticed me and smiled beautifully, flashing only a little bit of fang. I looked away again, trying to keep my curiosity to myself. Rosalin shouldn’t have told me Eris was a pro-domme. I was having a hard time keeping my mind from wandering.

Lenorre nodded solemnly, a lot calmer than I would have been. “As I had suspected. How did your patron hear of this rumor?”

“I am not certain. You know as well as I that most of my patrons are vamp-sluts. They’ll straddle the first pair of fangs they see.” She actually laughed.

“Vamp-slut,” I mumbled. “That’s a new one.”

“Not really,” Rosalin said. “There’s death-banger, fang-whore, blood-bitch, coffin-thumper, coffin-bunker, fang-fucker—”

“I get it. Are there any nice, politically correct terms?”

“A willing donor,” Eris said coyly.

“A fang-cushion?” Rosalin added.

“Apparently not. Forget I asked.”

“Only the pitiful ones get the bad nicknames,” Rosalin said.

“Pitiful?”

“Vamp-addicts,” she explained, “bite-junkies. You wouldn’t miss one if you saw one.”

“No,” Eris said softly, “they’re not easy to miss.”

I glanced from Eris to Rosalin.

Rosalin said, in all seriousness, “They resemble a pin cushion without the pins.”

“That’s lovely,” I said sarcastically, then asked Eris, “So one of your patrons told you about a new vamp in town?”

“Correct.”

I looked at Lenorre. Eris had started staring again. “What do we do?”

“We seek out the truth. If there is a new vampire in my territory, without my permission…”

“They’re in a shit-load of trouble.” Rosalin’s words were more blunt than Lenorre’s would’ve been, but they worked.

“Precisely.”

“It goes without saying you have my aid,” Eris said, her eyes on me.

“Good,” Lenorre said. “For we shall need it.”

“Why do you think I offered? I will see what further information I might obtain using my skills.”

Though I was curious, I didn’t ask what those skills were. Point for me.

Eris stood in a swish of velvet and declared, “The sun will rise soon.”

Lenorre rose gracefully to her feet. “I will have a room prepared for your stay.” She looked at Rosalin, who, as if knowing what to do, nodded and left the room. I resisted the urge to grab the arm of her shirt and say, “Don’t leave me.”

It took me a moment to realize Eris and Lenorre were staring at me. With the attention of two devastatingly beautiful vampires on me, I forced myself to sigh.

Chapter Fifteen

“Are you throwing one of your infamous Halloween parties this year?” Eris asked Lenorre. The four of us were sitting in the living room in the final hour before the sun rose. Although Eris’s room was ready, she hadn’t left for it yet, much to my disappointment. And relief, which pissed me off.

“I have considered it.”

“You haven’t made any plans?”

“When is Samhain?” I was trying to remember what day it was.

“Friday,” Lenorre told me.

“This Friday?” She nodded and I shook my head. “This schedule is really throwing off my sense of time.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Rosalin said.

“I haven’t been to work in how many days now?”

“I thought Rit was taking care of things?”

“She is, but it’s not fair for me to just dump everything in her lap. I’m going into the office for a few hours tomorrow. Or today. Whatever.”

“What do you do?” Eris asked, seeming genuinely interested.

“Work.”

She looked amused at my defiance.

“Kassandra is a preternatural investigator,” Lenorre said smoothly.

“That little business near the café?”

My office wasn’t little. It wasn’t anything fancy either. It was work, and as long as we brought in enough income to support ourselves, most everyone at the agency seemed to agree that the establishment was fine. Besides, I liked my little two-story business.

“I did not mean to insult you,” Eris stated.

“None taken. I don’t have size issues.”

“I would hope not. You are rather petite.”

I searched her face, trying to figure out if the comment was supposed to be a joke but couldn’t tell. “Your point?”

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“Why would it?”

“Some feel compelled to make up in attitude what they lack in physical size.”

“She does,” Rosalin noted.

“My attitude has less to do with my size and more to do with who I am.”

“You’d get an attitude with someone that talks down to you because of your stature, though, right?” Rosalin asked.

“I’d get an attitude with anyone who talks down to me for anything.” Before either she or Eris could say anything else I switched my attention to Lenorre. “Tell me about your infamous Samhain parties.”

Lenorre pulled her legs up into the seat. “I throw one every year.”

“Are you having one this year?”

“I have been thinking about it. Eris?”

“Yes?”

“What do you think of a masquerade?”

Eris looked thoughtful. “It’s a good idea.”

“I hate to ask,” I said, “but don’t you think you should give people more advance notice for the party?”

They looked at one another and Lenorre shook her head. “They will show up in costume either way.”

“The club is open on Halloween,” Eris said. “Most will wear costumes.”

“What about the vampires dressing in masquerade?” Rosalin asked. “They could float into the crowd, and the guests could get a shot at dancing with masked and mysterious vamps?”

Everyone looked at her. A soft blush rose to her cheeks. “Sorry, it was just an idea.”

“No,” Lenorre said. “It’s a very good idea.”

“Lenorre is right,” Eris said. “I like it. A patron doesn’t often get the opportunity to spend an evening dancing with a vampire.”

I was beginning to feel a bit like a fly on the wall. The club scene just didn’t do it for me. Lenorre decided to use Rosalin’s idea. Decked out in mysterious garb, the vampires would each pick a single date for the evening and work their magic. Not literally. Lenorre kept her charges under control. They were not to do anything illegal with their dates. They could present themselves with an air of mystery or use subtle seduction, but they were working. It was a job.

How many people would go home that night swooning or with a pierced vein? And how could Lenorre think about a party some days away when she had stray vampires hunting and turning teenagers in her territory? Tired, I closed my eyes and let my head rest against the back of the couch. I wanted to let go of death for a while—no more dead kids, no more hunting vampires, no more calls from the police saying they had found another body. But my world revolved around all of that. Lucky me.

“Kassandra.”

Their conversation had come to a halt.

I forced my eyes open, having started to doze off while they talked clothes and music.

Lenorre stood in front of me, offering her hand.

I took it, allowing her to help pull me to my feet. Eris stood and inclined her head, and Lenorre mirrored the gesture. In a sort of tired daze I made it to the bedroom. Once the double doors closed behind me, I started stripping, pulled on a pair of shorts and an oversized T-shirt, and went to brush my teeth.

Lenorre entered the bathroom while I was brushing. I met her reflection in the mirror.

“They could use their disguises to their advantage.” I spoke around my toothbrush. “Your place is the only vampire club in the city and, to any other vamp, probably good hunting grounds. We might be able to trap the strays without having to go find them.”

“True,” Lenorre said, propping her shoulder against the cabinet as she began to brush her teeth. “If they are so bold, then yes, my vampires will find them.” She was clearly deep in thought, so I stayed quiet as I finished my nightly routine. I didn’t want to talk about it either. It would be even better if I could get the thoughts to go away too.

We finished getting ready for bed in silence. Lenorre had her moments of unreal quietness, but right now I sensed she had a lot on her mind. I let her have her thoughts without prying. She was a Countess. Lady only knew what kind of good publicity the vampire killing would ruin for her. Not to mention that the public would have a massive freak-out if the news broke that crazy vampires were turning teenagers. It could cause chaos and might blow up into open season on vampires, protective laws or no. I crawled into bed, snuggling into the cool sheets.

Lenorre slid against me and I breathed a sigh of comfort and relief.

“We will find the vampires that hurt Timothy, Kassandra, and when we do, they will pay dearly.”

Her voice sounded lethal, but the arm she draped across my stomach was light and tentative. I took her hand, holding it close to my chest, and sank into the exquisite feel of her against me. “I know.”

I fell asleep before the sun rose and Lenorre died.

Chapter Sixteen

The bell chimed softly and June, my secretary, looked up from her desk, peeking over the plastic rims of her reading glasses. Her silk blouse was the color of sun coral. She was never happy when I left someone else in charge of the agency, whether it was she or Rit. June, an older woman, had one of those attitudes that people often mistook for rudeness. She wasn’t rude. Well, okay…sometimes she was, but I didn’t take it personally. June was just very blunt. She could rip the bullshit out of anyone before they got a chance to start with her. Which is why she did an excellent job.

“Well, well, well.” She didn’t look happy. “Where have you been?”

I stopped just inside the doorway, trying to balance the tray of coffee cups in my hands. “Good morning to you too. I brought coffee.”

I rested the carrier tray on my left hip, retrieving a cup. June opened her mouth, but before any words came out, I stopped her. “It’s decaf. I promise. Where’s Rit?”

“Where do you think she is? She’s where she always is. In her office. By the way, it’s noon, not morning.”

I was wondering why I hadn’t spiked her coffee with Prozac when Rit walked into the room. She was wearing a pair of navy blue slacks with a white button-up blouse that accented her thick waves of black hair. Though it usually fell around her shoulders, today it was pulled back into a tight ponytail that made her coffee-and-cream complexion with its cinnamon highlights glow.

I held out the cup of coffee to her as a sort of peace offering, a way of apologizing for dumping everything into her lap.

“Coffee?” I asked.

Her dark gaze flicked to the cup as she took it. “Extra shot?”

“Yeah.”

She gave me a concerned look. “Have you been all right?”

“I’m fine.” I climbed the stairs and walked toward my office with her.

“I’ve been a little worried. The last time we spoke you sounded like there’s a lot going on…” It was her way of asking what was happening in my life. Rit was polite and respected my privacy. She wouldn’t demand I tell her everything. If I brushed the comment off, she’d drop it.

I decided not to. “I’ve been working with the police on another case, and it’s eating a lot of my time. I’m sorry I really haven’t given either June or you an explanation.”

“Don’t worry about it. I know there’s a reason you asked me to take care of things here for a few days.”

I plopped into the seat behind my desk. “How’s business?”

Rit was quiet for several moments. I glanced up and noticed her watching me. “You’re not wearing a gun?”

I hadn’t bothered to stop by my apartment before coming to work. I still felt naked without the gun, but I refused to tuck it in my pants, and well, guns don’t go in pockets, and purses are a good way to lose one, ask any woman. Somehow, we’re capable of losing elephants in our purses. It’s like magic.

“No.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” she asked, again.

“I’m fine. My holster isn’t.”

“What happened?”

“The snap broke.”

I checked my desk calendar to see if June had written anything on it, but it was blank. Yay. The little full-moon symbol marked at the beginning of the month caught my attention. The last full moon, I’d gone out of town to shift like I did every full moon. Rosalin had told me I was welcome to go with the pack, along with Claire, a brand-new wolf she’d taken with her. The wolves gather on the night of the full moon to shift and run through the forest. In truth, we’re pack creatures. The only lone wolves are the ones that choose to be, or the ones that don’t have the connections to join a pack.