“Are you trying to tell me that you were not working with Clive?”
“Of course I was! So was Alex, you big fat bonehead.” She points to a shadowy figure standing next to a tall pine tree.
Alex waves but keeps a safe distance.
Lula goes on, “How the hell else were we going to find out exactly who was in on all this? I mean…duh!”
“A little too convenient a story, Lula,” I say.
“Hold on. You really don’t believe me?” She points behind her. “Alex and I just killed all of the men waiting to take you out. And let us not forget that Clive’s plan was absolutely ridiculous. He never could have won against fifteen thousand of us and seven billion humans. You of all people should be able to figure that one out.”
“I did. I thought his plan was quite mad, but that did not mean he was not going to try to pull it off.” I am also still unsure if Lula is telling the truth. “Or that you were not helping.”
“Michael, seriously?” Lula huffs. “I put my ass on the line by pretending to be part of Clive’s little coup. So did Alex. And we had to stick with it until we had every single name of the families, soldiers, and generals who’ve been helping him.”
“Then why not tell me? Why keep me in the dark?” I ask, feeling bitter to the core.
Lula throws her hands in the air. “How could I? Clive had big plans for you, and if you knew, you wouldn’t have played along. He would have figured out someone ratted, and I would be the first person he’d suspect.”
“I almost lost Miriam, Lula. We were attacked by his men.”
“Yeah, well,” she shrugs, “I’m sorry about that, but I knew you could handle yourself, and I had to finish what I started. Of course, you just had to start throwing curveballs by mucking up Clive’s plans with your battle-cry, rallying emails, which pissed him off, by the way.”
I listen and want to believe her, but I am too angry. She should have told me. She should have trusted me.
Lula adds, “But I swear, Michael, the minute Alex and I heard Clive was coming after you personally, we were on our way. We even got a hold of Nice and told him what was really going on so he’d help take out Clive. God knows we’re not strong enough to do it. It’s why Alex convinced Clive to free him in the first place.”
“You freed Nice?” I ask.
“Alex did. I suggested it, of course. We told Clive that Nice could help lure you to Blackpool since Otto failed. But really, we couldn’t risk something happening to the only vampire capable of killing Clive when the time came.”
So that’s why Nice was set free. And he wasn’t in cahoots with Clive. Obviously, this doesn’t explain why he’s gone nuts and thinks Miriam belongs to him.
“Michael, you have to believe me,” Lula pleads. “No, wait. Screw that. I’m not going to beg. You do what you like, you stubborn, ungrateful, old bag of vampire bones.”
Lula is being mean. She is telling the truth. I feel like a ton of frozen bricks have been lifted from my chest. And history has just repeated itself. I mistrust her. She saves my ass.
I am unsure where to start processing all of this, other than thanking Nice for saving Miriam. If it were not for him, she would be dead.
I turn my head to say thank you, but… “Where is Nice?” I look to my other side. “Where is Miriam?”
“Oh no.” Lula groans. “Nice! Get back here! I told you no!”
“What has he done with her? Told him no for what?” I feel the all too familiar dread roll through my stomach.
Lula hangs her head. “Motherbleeping butthead. He said he wanted her as his prize. He said he would have his Fanged Love wedding whether I liked it or not. I told him he could have it, just not with her.”
My entire world has gone from rage to relief back to rage again in the space of a few seconds.
“Don’t worry, Michael. I’m sure we’ll get her back. And I don’t think he’s going to hurt her, although—” Lula blows out a breath.
“What?”
“I think he’s going to make her into a vampire before he marries her. He said something about making the ceremony perfect, just like in the book.”
Dear God. “We must stop him.”
“We will. I promise we will.” Lula touches my arm. “We will find him.”
I want to believe her, but perhaps she is right. I am incapable of trust. Except with Miriam, who has become the center of my world. A world that’s just been stolen from me.
I am going to kill that vampire if it’s the last thing I do.
Nobody lays a finger on my librarian.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The fallout from Clive’s plan to undo three centuries of hard work and sacrifices has been mixed over the past few days. Some are hailing it as a proud moment for our people and are partying like crazy in New York City, Boston, Baltimore, and several other cities. We banded together and jumped on planes, trains, boats, and anything that moved, to rally behind our territories of the East Coast. Bottom line, when I called them to step up and forget the days of distrust among societies, they stepped up. A beautiful thing and a complete surprise to Clive. He underestimated our loyalty to each other. On the other side, people like myself are left wondering how to prevent this from happening again.
Yes, in the end, Clive and his supporters failed, but not before beheading the snake. They successfully kidnapped every single council member by using Clive’s contacts around the globe. And where were they taken? The catacombs. We learned that Nice was simply duped into believing he’d been taken to Blackpool. One of Clive’s red herrings, including trying to get me focused on marrying Miriam for her protection, all meant to distract us. Anyway, we found new pits in a cavern several blocks down from Miriam’s library. I should have known, because Nice mentioned his captors smelling like coconut curry. There are no restaurants anywhere near the location of the old pits. Turns out, though, there is a great little place for Thai food near the entrance to the catacombs. Very spicy pad Thai. So good.
It also turns out that half the council members did not kill themselves in order to make room for Nice’s toes. They had simply been moved after a second pit was completed. As I originally guessed, not one council member died—too important to throw away.
Now, with the names provided by Lula and Alex, the traitors from hundreds of territories across the globe are being hunted down and rounded up. We are unsure if the list is complete, but the ones we find will be made examples of by the international council and sentenced to death. Sadly, because of the ongoing victory festivities, I am still the official ruler and will remain king until everyone decides to go home and resume their duties. Swell.
As for Lula and me, I cannot claim that I have forgiven her lies, even if I understand them. She speaks of trust, yet when it comes to situations such as these, I’ve come to realize that it is Lula who does not trust me. Alex is no different. I have told her so, and now there is a wedge between us at a time when we should be supporting one another. Clive, our maker, is truly dead. And he’d planned to kill billions of people to remake this world into something that would have ultimately been a bigger mistake. No, humans cannot go on as they have, but there is still time to learn and correct their ways. If vampires can change, anyone can. I am proof of it.
I stand in my contemporary, two-story house in the upscale Hyde Park neighborhood of Cincinnati, staring out the window with a glass of scotch in my hand. I have missed my luxuries and home, but it pales in comparison to how much I miss Miriam. It’s been three days since Nice took her, and there are no signs of them anywhere. It is now up to me and my skills as a tracker to find her.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?” Lula asks, sitting on my soft leather couch a few feet away.
“No. I need you here, helping our societies to return to normalcy. I will find Mr. Nice on my own.”
“But two heads are better than one.”
I turn and give her a stern warning with my eyes. “As king, I am appointing y
ou the leader of the Arizona Society of Sunshine Love. Permanently.”
“Michael, come on! I know you’re mad at me, but—”
“But nothing,” I growl. “You will fly there tonight and look after Miriam’s library, too.”
“What? You want me to take your old job?”
“No.” I set down my drink and grab my bag of tricks. “I’m afraid that position belongs to me and always will.” I am the motherfucking librarian’s vampire assistant, and I am going to get her back.
I head for the door. “I’ll be in touch.”
TO BE CONTINUED…
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AUTHOR’S NOTE
Hello to all you NICE (hehe) people out there!
I hope you enjoyed the third “episode” and tell a vampire or two about the series. Keep reading for instructions on how to score a FREE signed bookmark.
Oh, and to all you super-NICE people who take the time to show the book-love and post reviews, THANK YOU! They are always appreciated and needed!
And thank you in advance for not posting spoilers. We got just a few last time (all with very good intentions), but boy, does it tick off the nocturnal bibliophiles! LOL! I saw a few fangs come out. Rarrr…
Also, just a quick reminder that the ending is NOT a true cliffhanger. This story is complete. MYSTERY SOLVED (*pats self on back*) with a setup for the next book. I guess it’s sort of a drop-off? Or…a cliffy? Maybe we can call it a cliff-a-cito! Hahaha…
I fear I might have to stop the series because too many people read the reviews that cite there’s a cliffhanger and think “Oh, it’s an incomplete book.” Then they don’t want to read it and a baby unicorn dies somewhere out in the world.
So save the unicorns! Don’t call it a cliffhanger. (Are you loving my logic here? Lol) But I believe people need their satisfaction AND something to look forward to in their TBR pile. I’m here to help! I’m like the sweet and sour of fiction candy. Or maybe I’m more of a carrot and stick? Who knows? But you get the point.
Book #1: Who killed Clive? SOLVED!
Book #2: Where did the five hundred vampires go? SOLVED!
Book #3: Can they locate the council before chaos breaks out? SOLVED!
Book #4: Will Michael find Miriam before Mr. Nice turns her into a vampire? I dunnooo…
But your support is so, so, so appreciated with the reviews and kind notes. I hope we can keep this series going for another 4–5 books? Let’s see!!
For updates, GO TO:
www.mimijean.net/the-librarians-vampire-assistant-4
FREE SIGNED BOOKMARKS!
For signed bookmarks, you know what to do, but just in case!
1. Send an email to [email protected] with your FULL NAME and SHIPPING ADDRESS (include country if outside the US). So sorry that you must do this for every book, but I do not keep readers’ personal info.
2. Wait for me to dig through my email mountain with a teaspoon.
3. If I do NOT reply to your request within four weeks, assume that Mr. Nice has found me again and put me back in his basement along with Miriam. Send a quick email to be sure so we can check to see where your goodies went.
4. If you POST A REVIEW, please DO mention it and provide a link/screenshot. If have extra goodies (like a Michael Vanderhorst fridge magnet), I just might throw one in. At the very least, you’ll get a BIG thank you from me and good karma points. LOL.
All right, my book lovers, that’s all for now. I’m off to work on The Boyfriend Collector #2 to see just how naughty a book I can write. (I so love a challenge.) Keep reading for a link to the songs Michael chose for this book, to see what’s in the pipeline, and my contact info.
HAPPY BOOK HOARDING!
With Love,
Mimi
P.S. → Check out Michael’s favorite song free on SPOTIFY
Or go straight to my profile and see all playlists
www.spotify.com/user/mimijeanpamfiloff
Acknowledgement
I doubt any of you read this section after 39 books (except for Pauline because she’s an awesome editor and knows there are typos hiding everywhere), but what the hey! You still deserve a warm, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookie because A) you put up with me and my crazy timelines and B) you really work hard. Su, Kylie, Latoya, Pauline, Paul, and the always moving, always go-go-going Dali!
To Seb, so proud of you! Woo-hoo! To my other dudes, I’m proud of you, too, I guess… LOL.
With Love,
Mimi
COMING SOON
MY PEN IS HUGE
Oh hell, yes! OHellNo, Book #5
“This is a man’s game, love. So step aside.”
My name is Leland Merrick and I’m a dedicated journalist—born, raised, and schooled in England. But don’t let the nice suits and accent fool you. There isn’t a muddy jungle I won’t crawl through, a freezing iceberg I won’t float on, or a scorching desert I won’t cross to get a sensational story. But bloody hell! What was I thinking?
My friend convinced me to take on an intern as a means of getting a free assistant. But this American exchange student I hired, Gisselle, was smart (and not so bad looking) and caught on to my scheme. Little did I know she was watching and learning all my tricks with the intention of becoming a real journalist. Now, everywhere I turn, the little minx is there in her sexy outfits, trying to distract me and steal my stories.
This time, I’ve got to throw her off my scent because I’ve come across the big one! The once-in-a-lifetime story people will be talking about for decades.
Besides, who does she think she is? The weight of my pen carries credibility, years of journalistic experience, and a knack for telling a good story. My pen is huge. She should take her little play-pen home and give up before I crush her.
FOR MORE:
www.mimijean.net/mypen.html
BOYFRIEND COLLECTOR, PART 2
Don’t miss the second part of this duet!
She’s a real-life Cinderella, searching for Mr. Right.
He’s not her Prince Charming, but wants to be!
FOR MORE:
www.mimijean.net/boyfriendcollector.html
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MIMI JEAN PAMFILOFF is a New York Times bestselling author who’s sold over one million books around the world. Although she obtained her MBA and worked for more than fifteen years in the corporate world, she believes that it’s never too late to come out of the romance closet and follow your dreams.
Mimi lives with her Latin lover hubby, two pirates-in-training (their boys), and their three spunky dragons (really, just very tiny dogs with big attitudes) Snowy, Mini, and Mack, in the vampire-unfriendly state of Arizona.
She hopes to make you laugh when you need it most and continues to pray daily that leather pants will make a big comeback for men.
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The Librarian’s Vampire Assistant, Book 3 Page 17