by E G Bateman
Cora’s body had been exhausted when she’d had to pursue the little girl. It had been unfortunate that she’d had to race through the house and search all the rooms, only to lose the little shit. She’d barely managed to shove the ring into Amy’s mouth seconds before the blond boy came in.
Delphine turned from the mirror. She pulled the robe around her and walked along the hallway to the living room.
Almost soundless, she crept past the sleeping Betsy, walked to the kitchen, and drew a knife from the block. A thrill ran down her spine as she tested the blade. She returned to the living room and stood over Betsy, who remained asleep with a book in her lap. Until now, she had avoided looking directly at the woman before for fear she might give away that she had been aware of her surroundings. She stared at the long, lustrous, dark hair, full lips, and rounded breasts. This would be the perfect body. She would take this new body out and find new toys to play with.
Her mind made up, she aligned her finger with the other woman’s—not touching, but close. In one quick movement, as she had done as Cora with Amy, she slid the ring from her finger directly onto her new body’s.
Betsy’s eyes jerked open and in a moment, Delphine went from looking down at her to looking up at Amy. She smiled at the young blonde, whose face slackened as she gazed unseeingly into the distance. With a calm, unhurried motion, she stood, took the knife from the catatonic girl’s hand, and led her to bed.
She left the bedroom and was walking through the apartment when the door opened.
Dick entered and greeted her with a smile. “How’s Amy?”
With easy nonchalance, she picked the book up and hid the hand with the ring carefully beneath it as she settled into the chair and tucked the knife under her thigh. “I just checked on her. No change.”
“I’m going to visit Lorenzo. I’ll be back in time for dinner and I’ll take you somewhere nice with a jazz band.”
“That will be lovely.” She smiled. “Have a nice time with Lorenzo.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Betsy, you have a strange sense of humor.”
Delphine lifted the book and felt she’d made a mistake but had gotten away with it.
Once he’d left the apartment, she headed to the bedroom to change. The tight black dress she wore was perfect and she stood before the mirror to admire it a little longer. She heard the door again.
“Betsy?” said a man’s voice.
She slipped a gown on over the dress and peeked out to see the young, blond man. “Yes?”
“I’m popping out but I should only be an hour. Do you want anything?”
“No, thank you.” She smiled at the sound of the door closing.
Although a little impatient, she waited ten minutes before she stepped out and closed the door quietly.
Delphine knew these streets. Things had changed, of course, but not everything.
The bar was loud and she stepped to the counter and ordered a glass of rye whiskey. While she waited, she gazed around her. She turned to the mirror behind the bar and studied Betsy’s face, pleased that it showed none of the outrage she felt.
The barman poured the drink and quoted the price.
“Let me find that for you.” She smiled and opened the woman’s purse.
“Make that two, please, barman. I’ll get these.”
She turned at the sound of the deep melodious voice and looked into the eyes of the tall handsome black man. “Why, aren’t you…” Her gaze took him in, and she paused deliberately before she smiled. “Simply charming.” He lifted the drinks and she followed him to a table.
He smiled. “I’m Bobby. May I ask your name, beautiful woman?”
“I’m so pleased to meet you, Robert. I’m Delphine.”
“To the beautiful Delphine.” He held his glass up.
With a coy smile, she held her glass up. “And to the devastatingly handsome Bobby.”
They clinked glasses and drank.
The man leaned forward. “So, what do you do?”
“Do?” She was puzzled. For a moment, she wondered if he referred to her little entertainments.
“For a job,” he clarified.
“Oh, I see. Well, my friend Bobby, I create sculptures—of a kind.”
“Ah! An artist. Might I have seen any of your work?”
“Oh, a few pieces have been on display around the Quarter, recently. Who knows?” She laughed. “What do you…do?”
“I am in the Navy, ma’am. Speaking of which, I see some of my brothers-in-arms over there. Would you mind if I invite them to join us?”
Delphine looked at the bar and noticed two more muscular black men.
Ah! My friend Bobby is playing with me. Men. Then, now…they never really change. But I like to play too.
Betsy’s face split into a huge grin. “Bobby, I would be thrilled to meet your friends.”
Two other men joined them at the table.
“This is Darnell and Cole. Boys, this is Delphine. She’s an artist.”
Darnell sat and Cole went to get drinks. When he returned, she looked at each of them in turn.
The atmosphere had become predatory. She smiled, knowing these men were unaware of who was predator and who was prey.
“How interesting.” She leaned toward Bobby. “You have the finest arms I have ever seen.” She turned to Cole. “And you have the most beautiful eyes.” Finally, she gazed at the third man. “You have the loveliest lips. Are you gentlemen by any chance interested in sculpture? I find myself in need of new subjects.”
“We would be honored.” Bobby flashed quick glances at the other men.
“Let’s go to my place of residence, it’s rather small—embarrassingly so—but I’m sure we could continue our conversation there in private.” She couldn’t wait to get them home and fulfill her plan to make the perfect man.
Chapter Forty
Dick showed his teeth to enter the private bar. It wasn’t difficult to locate Lorenzo, who sat on a dais surrounded by half-naked women. He almost laughed. A young woman draped her arm over his and he noticed it was peppered with bite marks. He looked at the arm, then unsmilingly to her face. She stepped back.
The vampire was aware of the gazes fixed on him as he navigated the room. The small pockets of conversation around him had ceased.
He ordered a drink at the bar and turned. It wasn’t necessary to shout across the room as they were vampires and his quarry would hear. He leaned lazily on the bar. “Lorenzo, can I buy you a drink?”
Lorenzo looked up as though he hadn’t previously noticed him. He smiled disingenuously. “I’ll have what you’re having.”
Dick flicked a glance at the barman. “Another, please.” He smiled warmly at Lorenzo—he was an actor, after all. “Ice?”
The man flicked a hand. “As it comes.”
“Rohypnol?” He raised an eyebrow.
Lorenzo smiled wider and his teeth descended. “As it comes.”
The vampire took both drinks to an empty table in the middle of the room and sat. He placed the second next to the empty chair opposite him.
His quarry left the dais and appeared in the chair at vamp speed.
“I’m William. My friends call me—well, never mind. I don’t think we’ve met.”
The man’s mask slipped briefly and his eyes flickered with annoyance.
Dick pretended surprise. “We have met? My bad.”
Lorenzo flicked his hand in a dismissive gesture. “I was in the clan when Giovanni led it. You would have no reason to remember me.”
He leaned forward. “Lorenzo, I feel there’s an elephant in the room. A Peter-shaped elephant. Why on earth did you try to have me killed?”
“We run a tight ship here. I lead the largest and soon to be the only vampire clan in New Orleans. I expect visitors to present themselves within twenty-four hours of arrival. If they don’t, I take it as a personal insult and their lives are forfeit.” He threw his drink back. “Thank you for the drink. But your life is still forfeit.�
� In an instant, he was on his throne and the table was surrounded by six vampires.
Dick sighed and finished his drink. “Are you sure I can’t change your mind about this, Lorenzo?”
His quarry looked up with every appearance of having forgotten about him already. He looked at the vampires surrounding the table. “Why is he still here?”
The enforcers took a step forward but in the space of two seconds, three of them were headless. Their bodies thudded and began to desiccate.
The others turned in circles, looking for the threat, and Lorenzo stood as he shoved his naked donors aside.
A loud bang caught everyone’s attention. Lexi had allowed herself to become visible. She appeared at the bar and smacked her bloody katana onto the counter. “Hello, Lorenzo. I think we need to talk about your ship.”
In the moment when he saw Lexi, Lorenzo’s lips began to shift into a smile. This faded, however, when his brain caught up with what she had done. His jaw dropped. “But I thought Kindred—”
“You thought what?” she asked innocently.
A vampire near her rocketed toward her but froze about a foot away, paralyzed by a magical shield around her.
“Do you see what I’m talking about, Lorenzo? How is this respect?” She flicked her katana and the dead vampire dropped.
That’s the last of the magic.
“Tobey!” A young human blood donor screamed and threw herself at Lexi, who punched her in the face. The girl collapsed, unconscious, beside her desiccating friend.
“This crap will stop or we’ll back another clan.” She walked to the door and turned to the room to point at Dick, who followed her. “And he’s off-limits. Have I made myself clear?”
The vampire turned to her as they walked through the French Quarter. “So, it’s true. Kindred is backing a clan?”
She looked around as she walked. “He doesn’t have much of a poker face. When he saw me, his face went from joy to confusion to annoyance in a second. He definitely has a deal going with Kindred.”
Dick took a handkerchief from his pocket and blotted the bloodstains on his suit. “I haven’t personally read the Kindred rulebook, but I suspect cutting deals with factions isn’t in it.”
“Correct. Speaking of Kindred. Surely they’ll be back soon. I didn’t get very far in my investigation.”
“No, but you took a murderer off the streets and saved a few lives.” He sighed. “But you’re right. I think we’ve outstayed our welcome here.”
Lexi grimaced. “Scott will be annoyed with me. He hates it when I put my katana in the dimensional pocket without cleaning it first. That’s the problem with you vamps. I can’t wipe my blade on you to get the blood off because you instantly start turning to dust, which only makes it more of a mess.”
He looked at her with an eyebrow raised. “We’re sorry.”
She spun as a hand caught her shoulder. “Holy shit, Scott. I could have taken your head off.”
The sorcerer chuckled. “Aww. It’s cute you think you could do that.”
“What are you doing out?” She scanned the area warily. “Did Broullard pick Amy up already?”
He made his own study of the street as they spoke. “I’m looking for Betsy. She was going to watch Amy but when I went to check on them, Amy was asleep and Betsy was nowhere in sight.”
Dick looked immediately concerned. “Why didn’t you do a locator spell?”
“I tried.” He paused and clearly didn’t want to say the next part. “She’s not showing up.”
“Could—” Lexi asked but couldn’t complete the question.
Scott shook his head. “She’s not in Fae. I called Dolores.”
The vampire dragged his fingers over his scalp. “What did you use to locate her?”
The sorcerer dug in his pocket and held the object out. “Her wedding ring.”
Dick took it. “She never takes it off—never.”
Lexi started walking and snatched Scott’s hand to refill her magic reservoir. “Okay, let’s get back to the apartment. We’ll see if she’s returned, then we can fan out from there and cover more ground. Can Dolores join us? We shouldn’t leave Amy alone.”
They entered the building and found Broullard waiting outside their apartment door. “Tell me you have Amy. Her parents are going nuts.”
“We have her.” Scott opened the door to the front apartment and walked in. “Betsy?”
There was no response.
The cop did a double-take and stared at Dick. Clearly, he’d identified him as a vampire.
“Broullard, this is our neighbor, Dick. He’s lost his friend Betsy and we’re helping him locate her.”
“Detective. Lexi speaks very highly of you.” He shook the detective’s hand, unlocked the door to his apartment, and opened it.
“She does? Well, that’s great. I don’t mean to be rude, but—”
“What the actual fuck?” The vampire’s voice emerged as a squeak when he stepped into the apartment.
With a sigh, she waited at her door for a moment and was about to enter when Dick’s raised voice made her step into the hallway again. “Young man, if you don’t get out of here, I can guarantee there will be nothing left of any of you.”
A man’s voice responded. “I think that should be up to our lady friend.”
Lexi and Broullard glanced at each other. Two men bolted from the apartment and down the hall as though the devil himself were after them. A third was shoved through the door. He turned and squared up to the vampire. The cop coughed lightly and put his hand casually on his hip to reveal the police badge. The man saw it and allowed Dick to escort him along the hall.
He turned to him. “Seriously, dude, she’s kinda weird anyway.”
Scott signaled to Broullard. “I’ll take you to Amy.” He led the detective across the hall to the other apartment where Betsy leaned on the door, twirled her hair around a finger, and winked suggestively at the young man.
She stepped aside to let them in “There’s room inside for two more big ones.” She smiled at the detective.
Lexi stepped into her apartment with her eyebrows almost at her hairline. Wow!
Dick waited at the top of the stairway for a few seconds, then returned to her apartment. He marched around the room and threw his arms up. “Sailors. Three fucking sailors. Call Dolores.” He pointed toward their apartment. “She’s going to Fae—tonight.” He was almost hyperventilating.
She put a hand on his shoulder. “Dick, breathe. Or don’t. Honestly, I don’t know what’s best in this situation.”
Scott returned. “Betsy’s helping Broullard get Amy ready. When she’s dressed, I’ll try to bring her out of the catatonia.”
Relieved that this, at least, seemed to be close to resolution, she nodded. “When Amy and Broullard have gone, I want to do a locator spell with the key we got from Anne Bird. Let’s see if I can find what it opens before Kindred gets back.”
Scott inclined his head to indicate his agreement.
Dick took the ring out and put it on the table. “Why didn’t the locator work with her ring?”
The young sorcerer’s face went slack.
“What?” Lexi could feel a jolt of shock through their empathetic connection.
“The ring. Betsy’s wearing the ring.”
No one had to ask which ring. Suddenly, she was alone. Scott had disappeared and Dick had raced at vamp speed to the other apartment.
When she entered it, Scott crouched over Broullard who lay face-down with a carving knife in his back. “He’ll be okay. Go.” He pointed toward the bedroom.
She ran along the hallway. Dick sprawled on the floor with a silver letter opener in his chest. She couldn’t imagine how Delphine could have gotten the drop on a vampire.
Amy was still oblivious in the bed and Betsy—who was obviously Delphine—stood on the other side of the bed with an open pair of scissors to her own throat.
The possessed woman snarled. “Let me go or I’ll take your precious
Betsy with me.”
“What would be the point of that?” She shook her head and took a step forward.
“To break his heart.” Her smile was malicious as she glanced at the vampire.
She could only imagine how strong and fast the woman was now—strong enough and fast enough to take down a vampire. She touched the scar and said, “Sleep.”
Delphine remained standing and stared at her with a small smirk. “She’s already asleep, stupid.”
Shit! Where the hell is Scott?
Lexi sensed that she didn’t have long to act. She could only think of one course of action and didn’t like it. She took another step toward Delphine. “I can’t let you do this.” She put her hands up to show the woman she wasn’t armed.
The madwoman surged into an attack. The scissors lowered from Betsy’s throat and pointed at the new target. Instead of pushing her attacker back, Lexi pulled the woman toward her and they landed hard. The scissors plunged into her stomach, and Delphine grinned.
She flailed and screamed as she slapped ineffectually at the woman’s arms, while her assailant yanked the scissors out and held them over her.
Lexi tried to speak.
Delphine leaned closer. “What are you trying to say, honey?”
She drew in a ragged breath. “I got you…right where I want you.”
Her fingers closed around the necklace and she tugged hard. It snapped and slipped from Betsy’s neck.
The scissors fell when the arthritis in her eighty-year-old fingers made them too difficult to hold.
The woman screamed in horror. “No! What is this?”
Scott appeared behind her and pulled the ring from her hand.
“You took your time,” Lexi whispered.
“I was healing Broullard. I can’t be everywhere at once.”
“I bet you could.” Dick coughed and blood sprayed over his shirt. He wiped it and avoided the letter opener that still protruded from him. “Shit.”
Scott crouched and faced him but the vampire pushed him away. “See to her.”