Real Vampires Live Large (27 page)

Freddy squeezed his mother's hand. “But you didn't.”

“Of course not. Simon miscalculated when he chose me as his brood mare. Once my enchantment with him wore off, I saw how cruel he could be. I ran away before Frederick was born. And married Count von Repsdorf who was old and desperate for an heir. He loved me and was very kind.” CiCi had a sad smile. “But he died soon after Frederick was born, set upon by footpads. Simon's work, I'm sure of it.”

“But Simon didn't claim his child then?” I couldn't keep my mouth shut. What a story!

“I was terrified that he would, but Simon wasn't really interested in a baby, only in the man Frederick would become, the vampire he would become. So Simon bided his time.” A tear ran down CiCi's cheek. “When Frederick turned, I had to become vampire as well. I couldn't leave my child alone to live forever with such a father.”

“I'm sorry, Mother.”

CiCi smiled at her son. “No regrets. But I don't want any of you to underestimate Simon. He's very powerful. And ruthless. Even then he was involved with the EVs, a mere follower, not yet on the council. He has worked his way up in the group.” She swept the room with an intense gaze and no one looked away. “Frederick and I have managed to live our own lives for centuries, but periodically Simon approaches Frederick again. I think he is almost proud that his son is not easily swayed to follow in his footsteps. But he is convinced Frederick should join the EVs. If you know anything about them, then you know they will do anything for Honoria, their . . . demon.” CiCi shuddered.

“See? I was right to be worried. We need to get Flo away from him.” I sent CiCi a mental sympathy card.

“Yes, indeed. The man works tirelessly to please Honoria. Who do you think invented this”—CiCi wrinkled her elegant nose—“Vampire Viagra?”

“You can't be serious.” Di gave Damian a sideways glance. They had a history, pretty hot to hear her tell it. But Damian had fidelity issues. Enough said. “Vampires don't need Viagra. At least not one I've ever slept with.”

“Of course not, my dear.” Bela glided closer. “Not unless they had an unfortunate accident before they were turned.”

“Born vampires like me
never
have performance issues.” Will bumped against Diana. “When I get through with this gig, we can hook up and I'll prove it.”

“Uh . . .” Diana's glance shouted
save me!

I just shrugged. When she saw Will in human form, she'd probably be more than happy to give him a spin on her pillow top. He had Mara's beauty and a masculine build I'd just recently been reminded rated a ten on the yummy meter. I looked down to where his tail brushed against me. Even his dog form was cute. Not that I'd ever be interested.

Will wasn't through. “With made vampires”—he sniffed in Bela's direction—“performance is a crap shoot.”

I swear I was getting a muzzle for my number two dog.

“Are you implying—” Bela's fangs were suddenly huge in his dead white face. Did he have on
lipstick
?

Valdez jumped between them.
“Are you going to waste your time on a dog?”
He grinned and wagged his tail.
“Obviously, this one's talking out of his ass. Look at him.”

Interesting. I'd never have suspected Valdez would lift a paw to protect Will. Then Valdez looked at me. Oh, yeah, he was doing this for me. Because he felt I needed backup. Hey, I appreciated it. I patted his head when he trotted back to my side.

The room filled with loud discussions and it quickly became obvious it was a made versus born standoff. We were about evenly divided. Valdez, being the only shifter, just stayed by my side and I was happy to rub his ears and watch the escalating arguments. At least I wasn't the cause this time. It was obvious born vamps considered themselves above us “made” types. No news there. Mara had drilled that into me from day one at the Campbell homestead.

Will was nose to nose with Bela again. “You want to make a bet on that? I got five hundred that says I can knock you flat on your ass even in this dog form.”

“Relax, you two. No pissing contests in CiCi's living room.” I jumped between them. Maybe not my smartest move, but I was surrounded by friends here.

“Can we get back to business?” Damian's raised voice silenced the crowd. “Richard, will you tell them what you know about the EVs and their work?” Damian looked around the room. “Richard has been on their trail for decades. He followed them here from Argentina.”

“Yes, I did.” Richard smiled apologetically at Freddy and CiCi. “The EVs will stop at nothing to get the power they need to make their drugs. The Vampire Viagra is the most lucrative, but not the only thing they make. The Demon Honoria has a full bag of tricks.”

“What else do they make?” God, could Diana be any more clueless? But I smiled at her because I had the same question. She'd just been faster with it.

“He's been working on a daylight drug. Last I knew, he hadn't succeeded.”

“Daylight drug. So a vampire could survive the sun's rays?” Now this was interesting. The Viagra thing didn't do it for me—hey, I'm hot enough without it—but to be able to feel the sun on my face for real . . .

“That's what he claims. But more than one vampire has been killed trying to use it.” Richard was beside me, his hand on my shoulder. “It doesn't work. Vampires have given him fortunes and then expired anyway.”

“That's harsh.” Will stayed close to Diana.

“But get this, Diana. The EVs take power from vampires to make their drugs. And they've been after me.” I almost fell back as every eye swung my way. Whoa! Nobody can do intense like a vampire.

“You!” Diana ran to my side. “What happened? Honey, are you all right?” Diana has a southern thing going on. Part of her charm. Will sure thought so. He edged closer and, if he put his shiny black nose under her skirt, it was going to be no shifting and generic dog food for a week. He got my mental message because he eased away from her and gave me a dirty look.

“I'm okay. But they sent someone to try to persuade me to come see them. Since I don't shape-shift, the EVs figure I have lots of stored power.” Would I be a greedy slut if I took a third glass of Fangtastic? To hell with it. I picked up a refill and sipped.

“Didn't Florence tell you that too?” Richard was serious on a stick.

“Yes. Simon taught her how to check a vamp's power level. I'm off the charts.” I felt Valdez push against my legs. “So I'm being careful. He won't get to me again.”

“Who came after you?” Diana was a good friend and she looked really worried.

“Greg Kaplan.” I grimaced. “We were . . . together years ago. Now he's hooked on the Vamp Viagra, so he does jobs for the EVs in exchange for the VV. If any of you know him, don't let Greg get anywhere near you. He'll try to lure you back for a little power draining.” There were a few nods. So maybe I wasn't the only one Greg had approached.

“And, folks, don't kid yourselves. After a session with the EVs, a vampire can be greatly weakened. No shifting. No preternatural speed.” Richard swept his gaze around the room.

“Hell, you'd be pretty defenseless.” Diana bit her lip.

“Exactly.” Richard nodded. “Frederick, you're Simon's son. And I don't doubt your being here is one reason he chose to come to Austin. Has he approached you to join the council since he got here? I've heard they have an opening. Apparently one of the EVs believed his own hype and met the sun with disastrous results.” Richard ignored CiCi's gasp and focused on Freddy.

Darling Freddy, who could make me laugh, was a wonderful friend and had the best mom in the world, didn't crack a smile. Everyone in the room but Freddy's mom and me stared at him like he'd morph into a creepy creature with a forked tongue at any moment.

“No, he hasn't approached me yet. This time.” Freddy looked at his mother. “And if he did, Mother, I'd tell him I'm not interested. Just like I have all the other times he's tried to play the ‘father' card. Why would I want to join a group that obeys a female demon?”

“Their secrets don't have to be used for evil, Frederick. If you joined them, you could—” Richard winced when CiCi grabbed his arm.

“No, I won't hear any more of this. Frederick will not be your spy. The EVs would kill him, Simon's son or not, if he betrayed them.” CiCi faced off with Richard. “Wage your own war, priest, and leave us out of this.”

Okay, now Diana was really goggle-eyed. Maybe not everyone knew Richard had been a priest once. Every woman in the room checked out his buff bod, nicely showcased in worn jeans and black T-shirt. He obviously hadn't taken anyone's confession in a long, long time.

“Very well. We'll keep Frederick's relationship with his father out of this.” Richard nodded. “But we have to do something. We know they want Gloriana, but any one of you might be powerful enough to interest them.”

That made things clear enough. And now I had to sit down. But I jumped up again immediately. The buzz from three glasses of Fangtastic will do that to you.

“I suppose they would trade power for the VV.” Will pressed on my other side. “Not that anyone in this room actually needs the stuff.”

“You don't have to need it, to want it.” Bela spoke up. “I tried it many years ago. Before it took on the trendy name.” He shrugged. “This Viagra craze is new. The EVs could enhance pleasure long before mortals realized they could do something about performance issues.”

“Why would you want it, if you don't need it?” Thank you, Diana. Now every vamp in the room was on the edge of his or her proverbial seat.

“It takes sex to a whole new level. For a man or a woman. I won't deny it's an unforgettable experience. I'd definitely try it again with the right woman.” Bela picked up Diana's hand and I wanted her to jerk it away. His lips brushed her palm and, hello, Damian was right there, between them, before I could blink.

"We get it, Ralph.”

Ralph? Bela Lugosi's name was Ralph? I hid a smile. There was nothing funny happening in this room. And nothing concrete being done about our problem either. At least we'd put these vampires on alert. Unfortunately, we'd probably also given them reason to run for the nearest VV supplier. I looked at Richard. He wasn't getting the cooperation he'd hoped for.

“The VV can be addictive, people, and is as expensive as hell. I think it's time to put these drug runners out of business for good. Or at least get them away from here. But I can't do it alone. I need your help. To find the EV headquarters for starters.” He nodded at several male vamps who maybe were thinking about jumping on the “run the EVs out of town” bandwagon. It was a start anyway. “I know you'll all spread the word to be careful to any vampire who couldn't be here tonight.”

“Are only vampires at risk? Can the EVs take power from other paranormals?” I was thinking about Lacy or even Valdez.

“They seem to prefer vampires. I don't know if they've taken power from a shifter. But I suppose it's possible.”

“They'll have to catch me first.”
Valdez showed some teeth.

“We'll be careful.” I rubbed the dog's ear. “What do you want us to do, Richard? Maybe if we all promise not to buy from the EVs, they'll move on.” I checked the crowd for reaction. Hmm. Not exactly a groundswell of support. Addictive drug or not, a vamp, always sensual anyway, would hate to pass up a chance at better sex. The EVs were obviously sitting on a gold mine.

“Hoo-kay.” I'd had about all the vamp togetherness I could take. Even with top drawer refreshments. These meetings weren't that great without Flo and Blade.

Richard frowned and looked around the room. When no one stepped forward with an “annihilate the EVs” plan, he nodded. “I guess this meeting was a waste of time. But I thought I owed all of you fair warning.”

“Some of us appreciate it, Richard.” Damian exchanged hard looks with some of the men. “Ignore this information at your own risk. Richard and I intend to proceed with or without your help. I hope you'll think about how you would feel without your power. Remember, drugs can make anyone careless. We enjoy Austin and intend to stay here. Anyone risking our lifestyle will be dealt with.”

That threat was clear enough. I felt antsy, ready to get out of there. Too many vamps together must create a hell of a power surge. Could the EVs sense it? Could they be surrounding the house right now?

“If you need to meet again, meet somewhere else.” CiCi must have felt the same way I did. “Damian, they can come to your castle, can't they? You have such excellent security.”

“Of course.” Damian exchanged looks with Richard. “But I see no reason to meet again. Not unless more of you step up.”

I put my hand on Richard's arm. “You two be careful. You can't take on these EVs by yourself. And while Flo didn't take
your
power pulse, I bet both of you've got more than enough to interest the EVs.”

Richard squeezed my hand. “I haven't lived this long by being careless, Gloriana. I will do what I can to keep all of us safe.” He smiled at me and I got a nice warm feeling in the pit of my stomach.

“You and Damian won't have to do this alone.” Frederick stepped forward. “I'll help you, Richard. Stay. Sit down with me. I want to know more about my father's organization. ”

“Thanks.” Richard clapped Frederick on the shoulder, instantly forgetting all about me.

“Damian, will you take me home?” I turned to Damian who, in typical Damian fashion, had morphed from fearless EV fighter to Casanova, to flirt with Diana.