Real Vampires Get Lucky (31 page)

"I can't dwell on that stuff or I'll fall on a stake myself." Ray took a steadying breath. "I say we concentrate on the cool new stuff I can do." Ray winked at Flo and I thought she'd swoon. "Shape-shifting? Can I turn into anything I want? How does it work?"

"It's good defense, Caine, not a game we play." Richard, as usual, was Mr. Serious, but his hand was still firmly anchored around Flo's waist.

"Oh, come on, Richard. Didn't you and a group of other vampires do the bat thing over to Devil's Hole last month? A race. And who won?" Flo grinned because obviously this was a side of Richard he didn't usually advertise.

"You were in on that race? Damian told me there were a dozen vampires involved. He said some serious money changed hands and that the winning time was impressive. You set a new record." Jerry got up. "What's to drink in there, Gloriana? I don't like that Bloodthirsty you're so hooked on. I don't feel like it's doing it for me."

"There's some Fangtastic left." I didn't tell him that Will had sent me that Bloodthirsty. Jerry would just start in on a gripe about how Will needed to be saving his money to pay his debts. I frowned down at my Bloodthirsty. Not doing it? Maybe it wasn't giving me a real energy rush, but it was so delicious. It was fairly expensive, but I kept getting e-mails with money-saving coupons. I was definitely ordering more.

"You really turn into bats? Like they do in those horror movies we used to watch all the time?" Nate was practically jumping up and down. "Teach Ray to do that. I'd pay money to see that."

"I don't want to be a bat." Ray grinned at Valdez. "I want to be a black cat. A huge black cat. So big I'll scare the shit out of this bad boy."

"Good luck with that. You'll have to be too big to fit into this
apartment."
Valdez sat and scratched behind his ear.
"And I
could still whip your ass."

"Wanna bet?" Ray grinned.

Flo clapped. "I have a hundred dollars that says Ray can make Valdez run out of the room first." Oh, did I want to get in on this. But I'd already bet on one thing recently. I'd won a pair of sandals from Flo and still felt guilty. Was I on a slippery slope to getting hooked on gambling again? I started to open my mouth, then shut it. Jerry was backing Valdez. Richard and Nathan had decided the two were probably about evenly matched, but wanted to see the form Ray would take, if he could do it at all.

"Okay, Ray, since Flo doesn't think I can do it, let me try to teach you to shape-shift. As Richard said and even Jerry has told me a few hundred times, it's good defense." I smiled at my lover.

"She actually listened to me."

"Of course. I always listen when it's not issued as an order. Now, Ray, if a vampire hunter-" I saw Nathan's eyes widen. "Yes, Nathan, there are people out there who know about us and are determined to drive us into extinction." I sighed. "Anyway, if one of those hunters comes after you with a wooden stake, you'll want to escape. So you can shift into another form that flies or is small enough for you to hide quickly."

"Cool." Ray looked down at his sweater. "Do I need to undress or stay like this?"

"Get naked, of course." Flo grinned at Richard.

"No, Ray, you can stay dressed." I poked Flo. "It's weird, but you can shift, fly to Devil's Hole, shift back, and you'll still be wearing whatever you had on when you left, right down to your Gucci loafers."

"That
is
weird, especially if you start out in Nikes." Ray grinned at Flo. "Nice try, Florence. Better luck next time. Okay, what's first?"

"First get a clear picture in your mind of what you want to be. See it in your mind. I mean,
really
see it. Feel it in your body. If you want to be a giant black cat, feel the fur, your claws, stretch out your legs and arch your back." I stepped back and so did every other vampire in the room. I'd made a mistake by not having Ray move to an empty spot to start this. Of course in my small living room, an empty spot was about two feet by two feet.

We all gawked at what took shape in front of us. The chairs flipped over backward and even Valdez moved out of the way. Obviously Ray had changed his mind about what to become. Nathan ran to the kitchen, peeking around the doorway at his best friend. Jerry and Richard lounged next to the door, their admiring gazes making it clear that they'd never expected a novice to pull off such a stunning shift. Flo clapped her hands and danced around, moving some of our breakables out of the way, including the Israel Caine crystal egg on stand with the likeness of his face etched on the side that we'd ordered from the Franklin Mint. I pulled back the couch and shoved the coffee table to the wall.

"Ray, is
this
what you wanted to be?"

Twenty

Ray's answer was a roar that made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Claws at least four inches long reached out to lift strands of my blond hair. I forced myself to stand for it, but it wasn't easy. Brown fur drifted down to settle on the carpet.

"You're shedding all over everything. Somehow I have a feeling you and Nathan are
Star Wars
fans." I turned in time to see Valdez creep toward the hall doorway. "Where are you going, pup? This is one of the good guys."

"You sure?"

Just then there was another roar and Ray beat his chest and stomped his way toward Valdez, playing up his character. Since obviously Ray wasn't attacking
me
, my dog apparently felt like he could leave the scene and did with all speed.

"You sniveling coward! Don't you know-what's his name, Glory?" Jerry paid Flo with a hundred-dollar bill.

"Chewbacca."

"Right. Chewbacca. I say you could have taken him."

I grinned. "I think Valdez was just surprised. Now, Ray, here comes the fun part. You're going to have to shift back to yourself." I really hated this part but didn't say it out loud. Other vampires shifted all the time without my hang-ups. Nathan still stood in the kitchen doorway, armed with a knife and fork. I wanted to make a joke, something along the lines of did he plan to chew on Chewbacca, but pity won. Poor Nathan. I'm sure he felt like he'd fallen down the rabbit hole. Maybe it would be kinder to whammy him and make him forget he'd ever seen any of this. I'd have to ask Ray about that later. Ray obviously wasn't ready to change back. He'd followed Valdez down the hall and was making threatening gestures in my bedroom. Valdez had taken refuge behind the long skirts in my closet.

"Enough. You get that brown fur all over my velvet skirts and I'll send you the dry cleaning bill." I whacked Ray with a book, and he decided Nathan needed to see him up close and personal. He chased his friend from the kitchen, still making those unique sounds Chewbacca makes, more a loud moan than a roar, I guess. Finally Nathan locked himself in the bathroom.

"Ray, get a grip. Come here. You've got to imagine yourself back in your own body. Just like you always are. Israel Caine, rock star. Got it?"

And Ray was there again. With the magic of shape-shifting, Israel Caine was in my living room, the only remnants of Chewbacca a drift of brown fur on my area rug, couch and my dress, damn it.

Valdez emerged from the closet, hanging his head.
"Okay, I'm ashamed. I just didn't expect that. Once I'm out of this dog
deal, I'm definitely expanding my repertoire."

Jerry shook his head. "You
should
be ashamed. You'd better not cut and run like that when Glory is in real danger."

"No fair, Jerry, you know Valdez has taken arrows meant for me. He knew we were just playing." I patted his head. "But you really should have kept him away from my velvets, Valdez. That fur!"

"I know, Glory. Bad dog!"
Valdez shook himself.
"That stuff itches too."

"Not from where I was standing. That was totally cool. Maybe not everything vampire is going to be horrible." Ray looked around.

"I guess I'd better go drag Nathan out of the bathroom."

"Wait. Are you sure we shouldn't just whammy him and save his sanity? This has been an awful lot for Nathan to take in tonight, Ray." I glanced at Jerry. "We probably should have put off the shape-shifting for another night."

"He'll be okay, he's strong and pretty open-minded. Obviously." Ray grinned. "Hey, he's been my manager for ten years. Vampires? What's the big deal?"

Flo and I exchanged looks. Chapter twelve in the unauthorized biography
Life on the Road
. Yes, maybe Nathan was used to some pretty off-the-wall things, but wild parties and tour bus drag races were nothing compared to shape-shifting and fangs.

"Think about it, Ray."

"Forget it. He's my best friend. He's got to know everything. But I do need to spend more time with him. I'm going back to the hotel. I'll be okay with Buster and Sam."

It was clear that Ray still didn't have a clue what dangers he faced in his new life. "Get real, Ray. Lucky's staying in that hotel too. No, you won't be okay there. You sure weren't before." I glanced at Jerry and he nodded. "Jerry and I will leave and you can visit with Nathan here."

"We're leaving too. You can have the entire apartment to yourselves." Richard silenced Flo with a look when she seemed inclined to protest.

Knowing my roommate, she'd make him pay for that macho order later. As it was, she made a big deal out of polishing the crystal egg and placing it just so on its stand in the middle of our, okay, Israel Caine shrine.

"There you go, then. Sleep in my room tomorrow. Nathan can stay in the hotel by himself or sleep in Flo's bed, but he's used to mortal hours. I'm sure he'll need to take care of some of your business then anyway. From now on you're going to be strictly asleep all day, awake all night. I'll go home with Jerry. If that's okay with you, Jerry?"

"Of course it is. But something will have to be worked out for Ray eventually. He's right that this apartment is too small. He'll want his own place. Perhaps we can find him a paranormal bodyguard. Like you have Valdez. I even have someone in mind."

"Sounds like a plan." Ray shook hands with Jerry. "Thanks. I know that picture in the tabloids had to have been aggravating, but I'm sure Glory told you there is absolutely nothing between us."

"Thank you, Ray, for clarifying that." Yes, indeed, let's put up a billboard. Israel Caine does not want Gloriana St. Clair. I just held on to Jerry's arm and smiled like I could care less what Ray thought. Ah, I'm sorry they didn't have the Oscars when I was on the stage.

Nathan had come out of the bathroom. "You know, I've been wanting to ask you about that. If Lucky Carver is the one who made you a vampire, Ray, how come Glory here seems to be taking all the responsibility for you?"

"Good question." Ray said it, but Jerry, Flo and Richard also looked interested in my answer.

"Lucky dumped him on me. Had him tossed naked in my bed in the middle of the freakin' day." Flo sighed and Richard gave her a stern look. "What? It's romantic." Now it was Jerry's turn to look stern. "Oh, get over it. You'd both like to wake up with the present of a beautiful"-she winked at Ray-"naked woman in your bed. Admit it."

"She has a point." Richard grinned at Jerry. "You send me a blonde for Christmas, and I'll send you a brunette." Jerry laughed and held out his hand. "Done."

"Yeah, yeah. You're both hilarious." I felt Valdez press against me. "Valdez can tell you we were both in shock. Israel Caine, now vampire." My eyes filled, and I turned to Nathan. "It's a horrible crime and Lucky had written a note
bragging
about it."

"I get that." Nathan said it, but I doubted he really and truly did. "But why'd she pick you to drop Ray on?"

"I'd turned her vampire in the first place. To save her life. And I'd made a big deal out of feeling responsible for her, wanting to mentor her, to put it in business terms." Nathan nodded.

I really didn't feel like going through the whole story again so I gave Nathan a short version. "So you see, Nathan, I unleashed Lucky on the world. She figured if I was so hot to mentor someone, here was my chance. And Israel Caine! I mean, I've always loved Ray's music, his singing. And he was naked! Helpless." I looked at him and got teary again. Flo nodded and clutched that crystal egg to her breast again. I had a feeling she was about to burst into the chorus of "My One True Love" so I rushed on. "Jerry, quit glowering at me. It's like that thing you had for Marilyn Monroe back in the day."

"I did not." He glanced at Richard. "Well, what man didn't, I ask you." Male nods all around.

"So you see I couldn't leave Ray to fend for himself. He wouldn't have lasted past his first sunrise." I felt a hand on my shoulder. Ray stood close and, for the first time since I'd found him in my bed, I saw a genuine smile on his handsome face.

"I guess I owe you thanks, don't I?"

"Some people might say so." I wasn't about to make this easy for him.

"Gloriana is a kind-hearted person, Caine. She'd do as much for any stray." Jerry maneuvered me away from Ray toward the door. On the way he snagged my purse and my black shawl from the breakfast table in the kitchen.

"I guess we're going now." I smiled as Jerry opened the door.

"We're leaving Valdez here. He can supervise the cleanup." Jerry made it clear that this would be on Ray and his friend. I glanced at Valdez. Since we'd been given twenty-four hours, I figured we could wait another night to leave our next blackmail payment. It wouldn't hurt to have a look around the drop zone though. "Someone needs to walk Valdez."

"No kidding. How about it, Flo?"
Valdez picked up his leash and dropped it at her feet.
"What say we take a quick trip to
that park across the street? You can hit the swings while I do my thing."

"Sure, doggy. Richard, you can push me. I like to go high." Florence made a face. "No swinging when I was a little girl. We wore these stiff dresses, long and . . . Well, forget that. I never tell my age." She picked up the leash and clipped it on Valdez's collar. Jerry looked at Richard. "I'll call you later, Richard. Lucky Carver has got to be brought under control or escorted out of the city." Then we were out in the hall. I sighed as we passed Lacy's silent apartment and wondered how Will and his knockers were getting along.