Sucks to Be Me

by Painter, Kristen

  She nodded. “We need to talk, but I’m guessing this needs to be taken care of first.”

  “It does,” Donna answered. “But it’s my business. I’ll handle it.”

  “Well, do it later. We need to talk now.”

  Donna’s explanation of who Big Tony was clearly hadn’t made an impression on Claudette. Or she didn’t care. Either way, there was no putting him off so easily.

  He flicked his gaze at Claudette. “Look, sweetheart, I don’t know who you are, and I don’t care. I got business with Donna. That comes first. You girls can have your chitchat later.”

  “Girls?” Claudette glared at Big Tony like he was an insect that had dared her not to step on him. After her withering glance, she turned to Donna. “I don’t know or care what’s going on, but I’m your sire. I’m supposed to help with these kinds of things. You want me to kill him?”

  “Whoa.” Tony immediately reached for his side, no doubt for the gun tucked in his belt, but Claudette was faster.

  She reached him before his hand crossed his navel, taking him by the throat with one hand. Then she held him slightly off the ground. “You don’t amuse me, human.”

  The toes of his polished black loafers just touched the ground. He barely managed to squeak out, “What the—”

  “No killing,” Donna said. That would be harder to explain to Rico. He’d probably frown on Big Tony’s premature death, seeing as how the mob boss could end up singing like a canary once the FBI started making arrests. “I didn’t think that was allowed anyway. But it would be nice if someone could make him tell the truth. Any chance you can do that?”

  A look came over Claudette that was a mix of self-satisfaction and watch this. Instantly, she lowered Big Tony to the ground and faced him so she could look into his eyes. “You’re going to answer some questions for us.”

  There was something lyrical about her voice suddenly. A quality that made it impossible to ignore.

  Big Tony seemed to feel the same way. Maybe more so. His eyes rounded, his pupils growing larger as his jaw slackened. He nodded.

  “What do you want to know?” Claudette asked.

  Donna spoke up instantly. “The truth about the drop-off. Did he set me up to be killed?”

  “Did you set Donna up at the drop-off to be killed?”

  “Not killed,” he muttered. “Kidnapped.”

  The word sent a shockwave through Donna, even though she’d thought at first that that’s what the men had planned. The first guy had seemed like he was trying to shove her into the trunk. She joined Claudette, standing at her side. “Why did you want me kidnapped?”

  “Why did you want Donna kidnapped?” Claudette repeated.

  “Because I suspect she’s talking to the feds. I wanted to find out for sure.”

  Donna’s hand went to her crucifix again. “Why did he think that? Who told him? Never mind, don’t ask him that yet. Ask him what was in the duffel bag for the drop-off.”

  “What was in the duffel bag for the drop-off?”

  “Fifty Gs. Payment for the job.”

  “Payment for who?” Claudette asked on her own.

  “The guys.”

  “Names,” Claudette said.

  “Good,” Donna said.

  “Al, Turo, and Sam.”

  Those were the right names, and two of those guys she’d accidentally killed. Donna shook her head, trying not to think about that right now. If there had been money in the bag, then who replaced it with newspaper? Vinnie? He’d delivered it. Didn’t mean he’d been the only one with access to it, though.

  Claudette looked at her. “Are we done here?”

  “No. Ask him why he thinks I’m talking to the feds.”

  Claudette sighed and made eye contact with Big Tony again. “Why do you think Donna is talking to the feds?”

  “Joe thought she was. Thought she was going to flip, send us all up.”

  Donna grimaced. She’d had no idea Joe’d suspected her. Not even an inkling. “One more question. Ask him who else had contact with the duffel bag besides him and Vinnie.”

  Claudette barely contained her boredom. “Who had contact with the duffel bag besides you and Vinnie?”

  “No one,” Tony said. “It was in my office until I handed it off to Vinnie.”

  Which meant Lucinda could have gotten to it. Or possibly one of Tony’s other lunks, if they were around. But Lucinda was looking pretty good.

  Un-freakin’-believable.

  “We done now?” Claudette asked.

  “Yes.” Donna was fuming. Could Lucinda be behind this? It was certainly a possibility. She’d like to get Claudette and Lucinda together. See what the old battle-ax had to say for herself then. “You can let him go now.”

  “Good.” Claudette kept staring into Big Tony’s eyes. “You’re going to forget me, our entire conversation, and why you came here in the first place. What you will remember is that you desperately need to get home and that Donna is not talking to the feds and that she should be left alone. Do you understand?”

  He nodded. “Go home. Leave Donna alone. She’s not talking to the feds.”

  “Good boy.” She released him. And disappeared. Or she’d gone gnat sized.

  Big Tony blinked at Donna. Then he looked around like he had no idea where he was.

  “Thanks for stopping by to check on me,” Donna said. “But I really need to go in and get to bed. It’s very late, and I’m sure Lucinda will be wondering where you are. Probably worrying herself silly already.”

  “Uh, right.” He looked relieved to find out what he’d been doing. Then he seemed to remember who he was, and his chest puffed up. “Lucinda only worries about what I tell her to worry about. You take care now.”

  “You too.”

  He got in his car and drove off.

  Donna watched him, shaking her head. If only Claudette hadn’t—

  “Now,” Claudette said as she walked out of the shadows again. “Why haven’t you reached out to me? If you think you can do this alone, that little incident should prove otherwise.”

  “What are you talking about? I’ve been calling for you mentally, like you said to do, since the day after you first showed up. Three times already. You’re the one who hasn’t responded. You also didn’t tell me you’re the vampire governor of this state.”

  “I don’t usually reveal that right away for personal reasons.” Claudette’s gaze narrowed. “But let’s be clear, I come when my children call for me. I haven’t heard anything from you.”

  “That’s not my fault.” Donna crossed her arms again. She was not taking the blame for this. “Maybe your hearing is going.”

  Claudette frowned. “Try it now, while I’m standing here.”

  “Fine.” Donna spoke her sire’s name in her head. Calling Claudette. Come in, Claudette. Can you hear me, Claudette? “Well?”

  “Nothing. Maybe you’re not doing it right. Are you using my name?”

  “Yes. I just said it three times in my head. How else would I call for you? How could I possibly be doing it wrong?”

  “I don’t know, but it’s not working. That’s very odd. Maybe that crucifix is messing up the signal.”

  “Sure, that’s what it is. Jesus doesn’t want me talking to you.” Donna rolled her eyes, although maybe that was true. “Hang on.” She took her necklace off and set it on the trunk of the car. Claudette, Claudette, Claudette. “Anything?”

  “Nothing. At least we know it’s not the crucifix.”

  “And at least you’re finally here.” She put the necklace back on. “I do appreciate the help with Big Tony. Perfect timing. I really need to learn that glamouring thing.” She decided to leave out the part about praying for intervention. “Why don’t you come in so we can talk?”

  “Fine. And the glamouring takes time and practice.”

  “Good to know.” Donna opened her car door, pressed the visor button to open the garage door, and headed inside. She could move the car in after Claudette was
gone.

  Claudette followed.

  Donna turned the alarm off as soon as they were inside, then flipped on some lights and went into the kitchen. “Can I get you anything? A glass of wine, maybe? We can sit in the living room then.”

  Claudette hung by the kitchen’s entrance. “No, but speaking of, what are you doing for sustenance? I can tell you’ve made the transition, so I know you’ve had blood.”

  “About that…” Donna decided wine sounded good. She poured herself a large glass of Pinot Noir and walked past Claudette to reach the living room. She settled on the couch, kicking her shoes off before tucking her feet underneath her and taking a long sip of her wine.

  It wasn’t Pierce’s blood, but it was good.

  Claudette wandered in. “Well, what about it?” She sat in one of the chairs facing the sofa, crossing one long leg over the other.

  Donna sighed. “I’m pretty sure I did something I wasn’t supposed to.”

  “Which is?”

  “The day after you were here, I had a visitor.” Donna stared into her wine. “Not a nice guy. Basically broke into my house. Threatened to do some pretty awful things to me. I got mad. And I was hungry. So—”

  “Tell me you just bit him.”

  Lucky came running in and jumped up on the couch. Donna scratched his head with her free hand. “Not exactly.”

  “You didn’t.” Claudette’s rounded eyes and gaping mouth spoke volumes.

  “If you mean that I didn’t drain him to death, then sorry, but yeah, that’s exactly what I did. I absolutely didn’t mean to. I couldn’t control myself. The hunger just took over.”

  Claudette closed her eyes and appeared to be calming herself. Or trying to. When she opened them again, her jaw was tight and the tendons in her neck stood out. “That is a violation of the highest—I warned you about that.”

  “Unfortunately, I don’t think you did exactly. You never came right out and said the hunger would make me accidentally kill someone.”

  Claudette got up from her seat to pace the room. “That’s why I can’t hear you. This isn’t good. You broke the psychic tether between us.”

  “By draining him dry?”

  Claudette whipped around, eyes gleaming the way Donna had seen hers react during high emotion. Claudette was obviously mad. “Yes. There are consequences for such actions.”

  “Like what?” Donna knew all about consequences.

  “I shouldn’t even tell you this, because you’ll probably think it’s some kind of supernatural windfall, but chances are good you’ll end up with a bonus power because of this.”

  “And that’s a bad thing?”

  “Yes. It can be.” She stomped toward the piano. “That’s why the council outlawed such killings centuries ago.”

  “The Immortus Concilio?”

  Claudette stopped pacing. “Yes. How do you know about them?”

  “I went to the First Fangs Club tonight. That group provided a wealth of information. That’s how I found out about you being governor.”

  Claudette looked slightly green. “You didn’t tell them what you did, did you? That you killed a man accidentally?”

  “No, it didn’t come up.”

  She exhaled, hand on the baby grand. “Good.”

  “Listen, I didn’t know. And I certainly didn’t intend to kill this guy, but he threatened me with physical violence. He wasn’t a good person. A Russian gangster, actually.”

  “That could play in your favor. Still, the council may not think that’s enough of a reason.”

  “Why would they think anything about it unless you tell them?”

  “These things have a way of getting found out.” Claudette looked around with the slightest bit of panic about her, nostrils flaring. “I don’t smell anything. What did you do with the body?”

  Chapter Twenty-five

  “Do you think I have it tucked behind the sofa?” Donna’s brow furrowed at Claudette’s insinuation. How dumb did she think Donna was? Maybe that was better left unanswered. “A friend took care of it.”

  Claudette arrowed in on Donna again. “What kind of friends do you have that take care of dead bodies for you? Oh wait, you’re married to the mob. I forgot. Do they know you’re a vampire? Can they keep their mouths shut?”

  She really hadn’t been paying attention when Donna introduced her to Big Tony. “I am no longer married to the mob, thank you very much. And yes, my friend knows. And yes, he can keep his mouth shut. He’s a werewolf, so—”

  “How are you already friends with a werewolf?”

  “Can you sit down?” Donna took a much-needed gulp of wine. “You’re making me nervous, which is ruining the nice buzz I got from Pierce.”

  Claudette blinked at her. “You drank from another human this evening? Did you kill him too?”

  “Yes. And no. He was a donor at Redline. All perfectly aboveboard. It’s a vampire bar in the city where you can—”

  “I know what Redline is.” She plopped into a chair like the fight had been taken out of her. She rubbed at her brow. “So you’ve just completed your transition, but you’ve already made your first kill, become friends with a werewolf, and had your first donor at a blood bar.” She threw her hands up. “I’m not sure what you need me for.”

  “I still have a lot of questions.” Claudette had also been very handy with Big Tony. “Speaking of, how do I learn to do that thing you did outside? The whole Wonder Woman Lasso of Truth thing? Because that would really come in handy.”

  “Practice. It’s a power that builds with time. You have to keep eye contact and hold them in thrall.” Claudette shook her head slowly, like things weren’t processing all that quickly. “I have some questions too. The werewolf who took care of the body, is he trustworthy? Are you sleeping with him?”

  “Very trustworthy. He’s FBI. And whoa, no. Why would you ask that?”

  Claudette’s lazy smile spoke volumes. “The werewolf-vampire relationship has long been a rather charged one. For whatever reason, we seem to be very attracted to one another. Maybe because we’re pretty high up on the supernatural food chain, and that makes us compatible, but I think it’s also because werewolves mate for life with their own kind, so they tend to avoid serious same-species relationships until they’re ready to settle down. Until that time, they often seek out vampire partners. I know it’s probably counter to most of what you’ve learned from Hollywood and books, but trust me. Every vampire should have a werewolf partner once in her life.”

  Donna sat there, speechless.

  Claudette seemed amused by that. “How did you meet your wolf?”

  Rico certainly wasn’t Donna’s wolf, but she answered anyway. “I’ve been working with him to put my husband and his criminal family away. He’s the fed that Big Tony thought I might be talking to. I am. I have been. My husband was right. But I had no clue Joe was wise to that.”

  Claudette leaned forward, her gaze clouded with confusion. “So your husband’s family really is Mafia?”

  “Late husband. That’s whose grave I was at the night you saved me. And yes, they’re Mafia. Did you think I was kidding? Big-time crime family. The man in my driveway was the head of it, Big Tony Villachi. My former brother-in-law.” Donna swallowed another sip of wine. It wasn’t having any effect, proving Pierce right about her new tolerance for alcohol. “I’ve wanted to get away from them for years. Rico, the FBI werewolf, was my out. He was building a case, and I was going to turn state’s evidence in exchange for going into WITSEC.”

  “So what happened? Who killed your husband?”

  “Fate. Karma. God. I don’t know, but he was in a car accident. It was perfect, really. I got my way out and didn’t have to leave everything behind to do it. I have two kids. Grown, but that doesn’t mean I wanted out of their lives. I have a sister I love very much too. Going into witness protection was an incredibly hard decision, but I thought it was the best way to protect them.”

  Claudette nodded. “But now you don’t have
to?”

  “I hope I don’t have to go into hiding now, but I’m still working with Rico to put the Villachis away.” Lucky curled up at her side. “That’s why he’s so willing to help me. He needs me. And I need him. I won’t really feel safe until Big Tony and his crew are locked up. Especially now that I know Big Tony tried to kidnap me. Which probably would have led to me getting whacked.”

  Claudette sat back. “You had a very complicated human life.”

  “Had? Just because I became a vampire doesn’t mean it suddenly got simple. In fact, becoming a vampire only made things more difficult.” She untucked her feet and stretched them out to rest on the coffee table.

  “You need an assistant.”

  Donna’s mind went to Pierce as she looked at Claudette. “You mean, like, live-in human help?”

  “Yes. If you can afford it. Most vampires with some age can, but…” She glanced around. “I’m assuming you can, too, based on this house and the Mercedes you drive.”

  “I have some money, yes, but that seems like such a strange thing to do.”

  “Do you have a gardener? A maid service? Someone who treats your house for pests? It’s not that much different.”

  “Yeah, but I’m not having sex with any of those people.”

  Claudette’s brow furrowed. “Who said anything about sex?”

  Donna shrugged. “I don’t know. It just seemed like… The donor at the bar tonight? He seemed pretty interested in that kind of setup, but I got the impression he’d expect more. Like, that kind of more.”

  “Some do. Some don’t. It’s all about ground rules.” She smiled slowly, like she was about to reveal a great truth. “Remember, we are vampires. Superior to humans. Naturally, there are those who will fear us, and they should. We are killing machines.”

  Donna had already killed more than she’d ever intended.

  “But,” Claudette went on, “there are also those who revere us and want to worship us.”

  That was definitely Pierce.

  “Find one of them to assist you, and your life will be infinitely easier. Of course, you’ll have to pay them. And they don’t all want money. That’s why you need to set rules up front.”