by Thea Dane
She emerged from the bathroom in her pajamas and a towel wrapped around her damp hair. Her phone lit up with a new voicemail. It was from Uncle Isaiah. She dialed his number.
He answered on the second ring. “V, your friend Natasha called. She said you got attacked by a vampire tonight.”
Leave it to Nat to rat on her to her family and treat her like she was a ten year-old kid sister. “Yeah, it’s been a rough night. I had a run-in with one of the Bloodbound. He found me underground.” She told him why she was beneath Briar City and how she sensed the vampire lurking there. “He wasn’t going to leave me alone so I ended up having to stake him.”
“Good. You had practice for the real thing.”
She almost dropped the phone. “You’re happy I got attacked? I was hoping you’d be more sympathetic. I almost fell over from being poisoned tonight from that new drug some vamps shoot up before they feed.”
“Of course I’m not happy you got hurt. After what happened to your brother, your aunt and I worried something like this could reoccur.”
“I misunderstood, then.”
“The important thing is, you learned a lesson. You need to step up your slay game.”
“What?” Violetta realized she spoke too soon.
“You heard me. That’s sloppy work you did tonight.”
She didn’t know how to respond, whether to be annoyed, hurt, or simply shake her head and admit that her uncle was right. “The vampires have gotten more sophisticated in the way they guard their hideouts. I’m going to need more antidote. Nat ran out after she used it on me tonight.”
“Your aunt just made a fresh batch. Stop by later today and get it.”
“Can you have the courier deliver it to me like you did the other supplies? I need to sleep and I’ll be busy all night at work.”
“You sound like one of those snooty bigshots now.” Aunt Jessie’s voice cut in on the other line. She sounded like she was across the room. Her uncle had the phone on speaker. “Is it a work policy that you can’t see your own family anymore?”
“Auntie, it’s not like that. I really do have a bunch of stuff I have to work on.”
“V, your aunt wants to see you,” her uncle stressed. “Why don’t you want to come home?”
Violetta clutched her forehead. They were actually doing this tonight. “You wanted me to get the job, right? I infiltrated Lee’s headquarters and I have to play the role of assistant. Now it sounds like you’re mad at me for doing it.”
“Young lady, don’t you dare talk to me and your aunt—”
Her uncle’s voice got cut off midsentence. Lee was calling on the other line. “Hey, I gotta go.” The phone gave her the choice to either answer Lee’s call or send it to voicemail. Violetta didn’t know whether to feel relieved he gave her an excuse to end the call with her aunt and uncle or scared to see what he wanted. “Hello.” She made her voice calm and steady.
“I know it’s after hours for us. I had to call you. Something just came up.”
Her lungs became paralyzed. Gods have mercy, if Lee managed to find out already what she did to one of his vampire brethren.... If she had just been a little faster, if her instincts were more finely tuned....
“Are you there?”
“I’m here.” She switched the phone to her other ear and got on the bed. “Just had to find a quiet place.” She rested on her back and focused on slowing and controlling her voice. Lee wasn’t a dummy. If he suspected the slightest variance in her voice and demeanor, he could discover she was hiding something. Then it’d all be over, her life included. “You said something came up?”
“I neglected to tell you before you left the office last week. I’ve been nominated for one of the annual Briar City Key Citizen awards. It’s very last minute. The awards dinner is tonight.”
Phew. He called about business. Violetta reached into her work tote for her planner. She thumbed through to get to the agenda. “Let’s see. You have a meeting at six this evening. I could probably pick up your suit from the cleaners before the event if you need me to.”
“That’s not what I’m calling to ask. I need a date for the awards dinner. Are you going to busy tonight at the office?”
She closed the thick planner and heard it thump when it fell off the bed. Holy crap, did he really just ask her to go to the awards dinner with him as his date? Of course, with Lee, nothing was ever truly a question. He made statements he expected people to either affirm or come up with a good reason for why they disagreed. “I could free up my evening.”
“I appreciate it.” She heard the light amused tone in his otherwise dark baritone. So much for her giving a sophisticated answer. He didn’t fall for it. “We need to be there at eight. It’s black tie. I can pick you up at seven-thirty.”
Was she actually going to do this? “This is going to sound a little embarrassing. I don’t think I have anything to wear.”
“No worries. It’ll get it taken care of. See you tonight.”
She stared at her phone for several minutes after the call, still caught off guard that he asked her to this awards thing. Then she opened her internet browser to search the details for the event.
It was going to be at the convention center, right across the street from the Briar City Theater, and so close to where she killed a vampire tonight. She hoped she didn’t leave a trail below the theater or the curtain was going to go down on her.
Chapter Six
Lee got off the phone with Violetta and went to look out the large balcony window of his penthouse suite above his office space. He managed to get her as his date. That was a relief. He didn’t want to go to yet another drawn out human ceremony this time of year, but even more so, he didn’t want to attend it alone. Then he’d have to make inane small talk with the commissioner and smile at the same tired jokes he heard before from members of the city council.
Violetta had a knack for engaging people. She actually seemed to enjoy it. He had no issue taking her and watching her charm people with her smile and cute little laugh.
His mind shifted to how she presented below the neck. He pictured those long legs and lush curves draped under a sleek dress. That was enough to help him forget how tedious this event was going to be.
His phone rang. The captain of the Bloodbound Guard was calling. Maybe he heard something about Felix. “This is Lee.”
“Sir, you have to come below the theater. One of ours was slain.”
He turned away from the window. “Who?”
The guard’s voice became quiet and grim. “Trevor Nilsson.”
Lee paused in genuine surprise. Trevor was one of the elite guards sent to keep humans and shifters from coming into the underground space. The young man was also from an old vampire family just like him. “I’m on my way.”
He grabbed his wool coat and went to the elevator inside the penthouse suite.
He drove to the theater, where several guards waited for him. One was the proprietor of the theater, a vampire who lived in Briar City for fifty years. Lee went inside with them. He turned down a hall to find the secret door leading to the basement and then underground.
“This way, sir.”
He let the proprietor lead the way down to Briar City’s underground network of sewers and subway tunnels. The air hung damp and cold. He smelled dirt and the distant smell of engine oil from the rail trains. Beneath the common scents of the underground one smell hit his nostrils immediately. It was the overly sweet scent of dead blood.
The proprietor rounded a corner and the smell got stronger. Lee detected lingering traces of vampiric energy belonging to one of the Bloodbound nobles. It was fading. Seven feet ahead lay Trevor, third in line to become vampire lord of Briar City. A wooden stake stuck out from the chest of his open leather jacket. His shirt was stained red. Behind his head, his blood spattered the lower half of the wall.
“There’s a slayer in the city.” The proprietor motioned towards the stake. “Another guard came to the area an hour ago an
d found him this way.”
Lee crouched to look at the body. “He couldn’t have been killed more than a few hours ago. The slayer must have fled the scene before the other guard reached him.” He glanced at the bruises on Trevor’s hands and then studied his face. His eyes were still open. His mouth was open and fangs bared. The teeth were stained with blood. “Looks like Trevor fought hard.”
“The slayer had to be strong.”
“Or simply scared and underestimated Trevor.”
“What do you mean, sir?”
“Look around. Most slayers try to be quick about killing. This one was messy, like he was in a hurry to get away.”
The proprietor rubbed the bridge of his nose. “This slayer didn’t leave behind a scent.”
“I heard they have a new solution they spray on themselves to disguise their scent from us.” Lee got closer to the blood on Trevor’s face and sniffed. He detected a faint, sweet aroma. The blood was human, and enticing. But it told him nothing about the owner’s identity. He saw a mark on Trevor’s neck and pulled down the collar. A black design of a skull with dripping fangs was tattooed on his neck. “What’s this?”
The other guards got closer to see. The captain shook his head. “This is my first time seeing it. Guards have to blend in. It’s against the code for us to have tattoos above the collarbone.”
“Trevor had to know that. This tattoo must have significant meaning. Find out what.” Lee rose to his full height. “Take his body to the Murray funeral home. The co-owner is one of us. He’ll make sure Trevor’s body is cared for until arrangements are made.”
The proprietor nodded. “What will you do?”
Lee understood the question meant more than one thing. “I’m going to inform Trevor’s relatives. Then I’m going to find out who did this and see that justice is done.”
The guards and the proprietor all nodded their agreement.
Ten minutes later, Lee was back in the car, driving on the way to the home of Trevor’s next of kin. He looked out at the yellow moon through the tinted windows.
He was mad at himself. While he was busy looking off at the sky and thinking about Violetta’s legs earlier, Trevor’s slayer walked the streets. He called the slayer messy. He was just as bad for letting his dick get him distracted. He had the responsibility to avenge the Bloodbound by finding and executing Trevor’s killer. That would be his first order of business at the coronation.
That is, if he couldn’t get his hands on the slayer before Christmas Eve.
VIOLETTA WOKE UP AT six in the evening. Even with adjusting to her new schedule, this was the first time she slept so late in the day. It must have been yet another side effect of the antidote.
She patted her arm where it still ached. She peeled back the bandage. Nat’s healing herbs worked. The wound looked much better, though the bite marks were still angry red and ultra visible. Good thing it was winter and she could wear long sleeves.
She sat up in bed and regretted it in an instant when the ache from her arm ping-ponged to her head. She closed her eyes to give herself a few seconds to recuperate. When she opened them, she considered herself stable enough to get out of bed.
After scrubbing a bitter taste from her mouth with minty fresh toothpaste, she wandered into the kitchen to make coffee. While the machine percolated, she texted her family. Can’t make it today. Running behind schedule. She had an hour and ten minutes to get to the office. There was no way she could get dressed and hop on a train to get to the other side of town and be at work on time. It looked like her family was going to be disappointed in her again.
A knock came from the door as Violetta poured coffee into a mug. Debbie already left for work. She wasn’t expecting any visitors.
She answered the door. Before her stood a slim older woman with the waistline of a supermodel and the posh demeanor of a fashion magazine editor. Her hair was ash blonde. Big designer sunglasses covered half her face. She carried a garment bag in one hand. “Miss Violetta Sharpe?” Her voice was heavily accented. Violetta guessed Russian.
“Yes, that’s me.” She pulled her bathrobe over her pajamas, self-conscious in front of the mysterious woman decked in a black trench coat and matching leather stiletto boots.
“I’m Lana Milkov, stylist and couture designer.”
“You’re the Lana Milkov? I see your clothes everywhere.”
The woman looked her up and down. “You attend events with my celebrity clients?”
“No. I see your clothes on celebrities in the magazines and on TV.”
“Ah, I thought so. Mr. Desmond sent me to help you for the awards dinner tonight.” She stepped to one side, revealing two suitcases behind her.
Violetta had completely forgotten about the dinner. “Come in.” She helped her with the suitcases. “Do you want coffee?”
“I don’t drink coffee. Only kombucha.” Lana unzipped the garment bag. “Mr. Desmond likes you in red. Choose a dress, please.”
Lee liked her in red? She had no idea he paid attention to the color of her clothes. Did she ever wear red to work or did he simply decide it was her color?
“Miss Sharpe, you need to choose one of the two.” Lana appeared in a hurry to do her job and get out of the humble apartment. She jiggled the two dress hangers, one on each hand. Both cocktail dresses were extremely sexy. The one in her left had had spaghetti straps and a short hemline. The other dress was the same length, but had long sleeves and a plunging neckline.
Violetta remembered her arm. Under no circumstances could Lee see the bite marks. “That one.” She pointed to the long-sleeved dress.
“This is from my winter collection.” Lana draped the dress over a kitchen chair.
Violetta assessed it. “It looks a size too small.”
Lana cast a critical eye on her hips. “I brought extra firm shapewear in the suitcase.”
“No thanks.” She bit back a stinging retort as she snatched the dress. “I’ll get into it just fine.”
“These are the shoes and earrings that go with the dress.” Lana unzipped the second suitcase and pulled out a pair of dark bronze Louboutin heels and a set of ruby earrings. Violetta mouthed the word wow when she saw the circle of tiny diamonds surrounding each ruby. “Do you want help with makeup?”
She told Lana no. “I’m not a big makeup girl. I think I have some pink or brown lipstick under the bathroom sink.”
Lana sighed. “If you’re going with a nude lip, at least pair it with a bold eye.” The designer handed her a sealed eye makeup kit. It looked like the expensive stuff she saw YouTubers playing around with. She’d have to watch a tutorial to even know which one of the three brushes to use first.
Lana returned the other dress to the garment bag. “I’ll let Mr. Desmond know you’ll be ready for him in half an hour. He’s picking you up in his car.” She saw herself out of the apartment.
Violetta’s stomach growled but she only drank coffee. Anything else and she might not be able to get into the dress. She took it off the rack and gave it a good inspection. Not only did have a plunging neckline, but it had a plunging back, too. She shimmied into the dress and felt a draft from behind.
She went to the bathroom mirror and twisted to see just how much of her skin was exposed from the neck down to where the small of her back met the curve of her rear. Whoa. Good thing her chest was small enough to go braless, although she didn’t want to leave the apartment with no skivvies.
She padded to her bedroom and dug through her underwear drawer until she found a seamless thong panty. She wore it once a year ago when she went out on a hot date that turned out to be ice cold. The guy ended up ghosting her for another girl in her college math class. The idiot even posted an Instagram pic of the two of them when he was supposed to be meeting her at the club.
Get all the petty out of your head. She coached herself while getting the underwear on over her hips. You’re on another date now with a guy who’s sexier and more powerful times a thousand.
Should she call it a date? Lee did, even though the awards dinner was business-related. And why was she still calling him sexy? She couldn’t think of him that way, especially since he was a vampire and she was going to slay him.
She considered taking her kit along. Where would she hide it in the handkerchief she was wearing? Besides, this was a night for being his arm candy. Schmoozing not slaying. Not tonight, but soon.
Violetta found her little evening clutch bag that hardly ever saw the dark of night since she graduated undergrad. She swiped a sheer coat of nude lipstick on before tossing the tube into her bag along with some mints, her ID, twenty bucks, and apartment key. She debated using the fancy eyeshadow kit Lana left behind and then decided to pass. With her lack of eyeliner precision, she’d wind up with raccoon eyes instead of the seductive smoky look.
Why was she so focused on her appearance? It was just part of her job to attend this event. She already went with one of the dresses Lee wanted her to wear. She didn’t need to worry about putting eight pounds of makeup on her face for him, too.
Violetta went to the kitchen and stuck her feet in the heels. The top of her head grazed the kitchen chandelier. Her feet looked great in those Louboutins but would they hold her up all night or send her crashing down in a massive wardrobe malfunction? Her anxious thoughts were interrupted by another knock on the door. Her neck tingled.
“Violetta?” Lee’s voice sounded.
She opened it to find him dressed in a smoke grey cashmere coat that was open to reveal his signature black suit. His dark hair was combed neatly and formed a bit of a wave. “Hi, there. I was going to meet you in the parking lot.”
A frown formed along his kissable lips. “That’s hardly a place for my date to wait for me. Especially when you look like that.”
A rush of heat claimed her face and spread down to her body. “Let me grab my coat from the closet.”