He pulled her so close that he spoke into her hair. “Selene was a masquerada, one of the few I had met in the States. I assumed the others had taken on masques and gotten the fuck out, if they were able. Some were not strong enough to take on a white person’s masque and it doomed them.”
“You didn’t go.”
“I stayed to find my kin and Selene was there to help those in the slave quarters. I didn’t blame the ones who escaped.”
After a kiss on her forehead, he continued. “Selene saw who I was and took me under her wing. She wanted me to stay with her to help the others. I hadn’t shifted in decades.”
“You hadn’t?”
“If I hadn’t been a masquerada, the other Irawo wouldn’t have wanted to bring me down. I was the reason—it was the reason—my brother’s line had been annihilated. Shifting was the last thing I wanted to do.”
“Selene helped you.”
“She made me understand we are not to blame for the evil of others. When she died, it was a dark day, but Eric entered my life. The war started. I fought. I escaped and came north.”
Estelle laid her hand on his chest, feeling the slow heartbeat. She started counting automatically.
“We have slower heart rates than vampires,” he said.
Was he changing the subject? She wanted to know more but it was his story to tell. She couldn’t demand details from such a painful time to satisfy her curiosity. “Ours are fast to deal with metabolizing blood.”
He caught her hand in his. “How do you get yours here? Blood, I mean.”
Of all topics, why had he decided on that one? “Oh, you know. Here and there.”
“Do you feed from people?” He moved to his side, so he was looking at her.
“I have, but right now I use capsules. It’s not great, but does the trick. Can we stop talking about it?”
“Why?”
She breathed in deep, letting the heavy iron scent of his blood fill her nose. It was gorgeous, that smell, like every delicious tidbit in the world. Arcane blood was like cocaine honey. Her tongue poked against her fangs.
“It’s hard.” Her voice was rough. “I do best when I don’t think about it. It’s a craving and talking about it makes it terrible.” With Stephan here, the thought of feeding on another—an intimate moment—was impossible.
“You could feed from me.”
“What?” Her voice cracked and despite herself, she stared at the pulse in his throat, so steady and tempting under that delicate skin. She could drink there, close to his mouth, listening to his moans. Or lower, from the artery in his inner thigh. Or even his wrist. With a single movement, she squeezed her eyes shut and buried her face in the pillow, her hands in fists. Tender, strong hands on her shoulders pulled her up.
“You need the strength, don’t you?” His voice was steady and his heartbeat hadn’t changed. “You’ve assured me it doesn’t hurt.”
“It doesn’t.” Whether it was luck or evolution, a vampire’s bite was intensely pleasurable. Like most of her compatriots, she’d allowed herself to be bitten when she was younger, curious about how it felt for those she feed from. Even now, decades later, she could recall with perfect clarity the intense anticipation as her partner had leaned over her, her eyes intense on Estelle’s throat, and the sharp fangs digging so slightly into that full lower lip. The moment of penetration had been pleasure mixed with a pain that was instantly forgotten as languorous waves of bliss moved out from the single point on her throat. She’d hardly been able to move after, her partner laughing as she closed Estelle’s punctures.
To do that to Stephan. To have him at her mercy. Part of the lure of feeding was the knowledge of power. Estelle had power—too much of it, too much authority—but it had none of the personal edge that she felt knowing she could bring her prey to the brink of death and then tip them over.
Or not.
Stephan pulled off his shirt and pushed the sheet down and simply looked at her.
All that skin.
All that blood.
How could she refuse?
* * * *
Stephan didn’t know why it was so important to have Estelle feed from him. Perhaps to distract him. All night he’d wanted nothing but her. Her voice. Her touch. It filled him until he could barely stand it. She was everything he wanted and tomorrow…it was the same feeling he had going into battle, as though he was about to lose all he held dear and needed to absorb as much as possible.
Her vampire self, the part of her that made her what she was, remained mysterious. He’d never seen her feed the way she needed to, and in his mind that was almost a more intimate moment to share than what had happened on the beach.
Also, he was really fucking curious.
“You’re sure?” Estelle stared at his bare throat with undisguised longing.
“Yes.”
The word wasn’t even completely out of his mouth when she was on him, her lips soft against his neck and her breath hot. She tilted his head back and nuzzled into him.
Wait, was this the right…
Too late. Estelle struck, her fangs like heated steel. There was pain but underneath was a deep pleasure that short-circuited his brain. Stephan felt his back arch, his cock harden, but he could barely think. Every bit of his focus was on his neck.
It was over soon, far too soon. Estelle licked his neck, and through the fog in his mind he knew that she was sealing the punctures.
“Are you okay?” She loomed over him, brownish hair tickling his cheek.
Okay? He couldn’t talk but was that bad? Aftershocks of ecstasy continued to ricochet through him.
Estelle made a humming noise and sank down next to him. “That was incredible,” she said. “Your blood. It was like…” she shook her head as though words failed her.
“Glad,” he managed to say. “Glad good.”
She rolled off the bed and returned with a glass of water that he managed to bring to his lips without dropping. “Humans?”
She smiled. “We tamp it down for them so the experience isn’t as intense overall. For them or us.”
He struggled to sit up. “It’s good for you?”
Her eyes went misty. “Oh, yeah. It’s good for me.”
Estelle did look more animated, he thought, finally able to control the shaking of his hands. Was this weakness or an aftereffect? How much had she taken? Before he could ask, Estelle sighed and lay down beside him, her hand on his chest and her cheek on his shoulder. She was warmer than usual.
“Thank you,” she said. Her voice was distant and when he glanced back down, she was already asleep, a little smile on her lips.
Chapter 24
When morning came, Stephan woke to a brand-new Estelle. This was Estelle the seneschal, the one he could see ordering her troops into battle and fighting in their midst. Her expression was somber but she smiled when she saw he was awake.
“I was about to wake you,” she said. “The work agency opens at nine.”
“Got it.” He was up and ready in minutes. He’d take on his new masque in his room. Estelle stood near the window, her light brown hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. “Good luck.”
She gave him a small salute but didn’t smile. “Ditto.”
Once back in his room, Stephan gazed out the window, trying to pinpoint the location of the resort. He’d checked over his masque and was pleased. He was Chad, an American college dropout who was “finding himself.” It gave him an excuse for not being familiar with local customs and some leeway for gaffes. He was fluent in Spanish as well as multiple other languages, but he toned it down for Chad.
It didn’t take long for him to get to the agency and put in his work request. He assumed he’d have more opportunity with a good skill rather than presenting himself as a jack-of-all-trades. Looked like he was right: general maintenance had few openin
gs but his exaggerated plumbing skills were in demand. His Spanish was passable, the lady at the desk told him. “We have a place at the Hilton. One of their men is sick.”
They’d planned for this, since the chances of getting the exact placement he wanted was slim. He took the printed slip, smiled and left for the Dawning resort, where he waved the paper, muttered about the agency and was waved right in. Thank God there were vampires staffing the security booth. The fewer masquerada he had to hide from the better.
Sol de Playa, the Dawning resort, was like almost every other he’d been in. There was a central lobby building, open to the elements, with a low-rise tower to the east. A similar complex stood to the west, and both buildings were situated on the beach. Lawns, green with a dusty layer of dried grass, were dotted with palm trees. People in sarongs and shorts were visible through the open lobby, walking down to the beach area.
You’re not a guest. You’re Chad, here for a new experience and kind of dumb.
A pink stucco alley snaked along the outer building. That looked like the service entrance. Stephan followed it and saw the people in matching clothes. He wandered over.
“You lost?” One of the maids, dressed in a neat light blue uniform, took a break from pushing the heavy housekeeping cart. She spoke in Spanish.
“Agency sent me over for a job? I’m Chad?” Good. His intonations were perfect.
She waved her hand. “Whatever. Go report down to Juana. She’ll get you started.”
“Hey, man, thanks. I mean, gracias señora.”
The maid was already shoving the cart back down the service hall. Stephan went the way she pointed and found himself in a large room lit by fluorescent lights. Men and women sprawled in the ragged chairs and couches, smoking and eating. They fell silent as he arrived.
Stephan might feel awkward with all those eyes on him, but Chad was a guy who felt at home anywhere. A stranger was a friend you haven’t met! He waved. “Hey, I’m looking for Juana? I’m, like, from the agency, here for work?”
Everyone went back to what they were doing, except for one man who pointed at an office in the corner. Stephan gave him a big smile and waved again, blinking the tears back from the smoke. He’d never smoked, even in the midcentury tobacco heydays, and hated the smell.
He knocked on the faded, dented door. “¿Que?” barked a woman’s voice.
Stephan opened it, his papers at the ready. “Ma’am? I’m Chad. The agency sent me for the maintenance job.”
The woman—Juana—was arcana. Shit. He didn’t expect that. Stephan made sure to keep his expression hopeful and zen, very Chad-like. What was she? Thank God, not a masquerada, who might be able to rumble him as a compatriot. He’d almost say vampire, but there was an intensity about her that reminded him of…
Agata. He gave her nails a surreptitious check and found that telltale pointed thickness, despite the nail polish and filing. Juana was lithu.
She snatched his papers. “What? I didn’t call for a replacement.”
Best to stay quiet. Earnest but a bit puzzled.
“You idiot.” She slammed the papers down on the desk. “This isn’t the fucking Hilton. You’re at the wrong hotel.”
“What?” He craned his head forward to peer at the sheet. “Whoa. Where am I?”
“Sol de Playa.”
“Oh.” Stephan rocked back on his heels. “I’m really sorry. I must have misheard. I’ve been working real hard on my Spanish, ma’am, and they didn’t say anything at the gate when I checked in.”
She muttered about useless security, then paused. “Wait. You’re a plumber.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Juana glanced at the ceiling as she considered this. “Well, since you’re here, we might as well get some work out of you. I’ll tell the agency we’ll take your contract. Same pay but you sleep here. We have dorms for our staff.”
“Sleep here?” he echoed.
“We run a tight operation,” Juana said. “We need staff here around the clock.”
“No, ma’am, I mean, yes ma’am. It sounds great.”
“Get your uniform and report to Antonio.” She lost interest in him immediately.
Excellent.
He was in.
* * * *
By day three, Estelle had to admit that her idea wasn’t working. She’d done her best to find some arcana to befriend but with zero success.
Stephan was already in. He’d called briefly to say that he was working, and that’s all she’d heard from him. She glared down at her bed. She wasn’t sleeping well, either.
Bitter, she walked out to the beachside bar, looking to drown her sorrows in a cerveza. It was full of people having a pre-dinner drink, so she took a place at the bar and made idle conversation with the bartender until it became too busy. She ordered another drink and opened her paperback. She was about five pages into her book and three sips into her drink when a woman’s voice piped up beside her.
“Oh, I loved that book!”
Estelle looked up to see a woman smiling at her. A vampire, and one she’d seen around for the past few days. Estelle lowered her mental shields enough to make contact with the woman, who smiled. She spoke aloud and Estelle knew it was because she was too weak to maintain a mental connection.
Thank God.
“I thought you were one of us,” the woman murmured. “I’m Pearl.”
“Janet.”
“Nice to meet you. Were you looking for the Sol de Playa?”
It was that easy. Well, not really. Pearl confided over dinner that her job was to sweep Cancun to look for lost souls, those who had heard of the Dawning but hadn’t been able to locate them.
Pearl was talkative and extremely disillusioned with all elements of arcane life that were not related to the Dawning. Estelle had difficulty holding her tongue at some points and did her best to nod and agree wherever possible.
“We’ve been told the seneschal is so weak a lithu was named to guide her,” confided Pearl. “Madden says that’s what happens when corruption takes over. You know that Estelle bribed Wavena? Madden was supposed to be named seneschal.”
Estelle looked properly aghast. “No!”
“Yes!” Pearl leaned forward, her necklace dragging through her salsa. “You know what else?”
“What?”
“Estelle is secretly married to the masquerada ambassador.” Her lip curled. “A masquerada.”
This was almost too much but the waiter came by to remove the plates and gave Estelle enough time to get herself under control.
“I always suspected that kind of thing,” she said. “Do you know Madden well?”
Pearl laughed. “Sure, I do. He runs the Dawning, after all. I see him all the time.”
This time Estelle didn’t have to feign her shock. “You do?”
The Dawning woman nodded. “He’s our leader. Sol de Playa isn’t his headquarters—”
“Headquarters?”
“Oh, you’ll hear about that. But he’s here quite a bit to help Tomas.”
“Who’s Tomas?”
“A masquerada but one of the good ones. He runs Sol de Playa.”
Tom. It had to be Tom. Tom wasn’t dead. Estelle quelled the need to jump up and call Stephan. Perhaps he’d already seen him there. Was Tom undercover? Had Yangzei taken control of his mind? A sliver of doubt slid into her thoughts. Tom always seemed loyal but what if he’d changed his mind? What if he was tired of serving Eric?
“What’s he like?” That was a reasonable question. Pearl wouldn’t get suspicious of that.
Pearl shivered. “Dangerous. He’s, I don’t know, sort of cold. Emotionless.” Remembering she was supposed to be a Dawning cheerleader, she chirped, “Still, a really good guy! Great leader.”
If Tom was there, Estelle would need to make sure she stayed out of his way
. Her new look wasn’t enough to fool a man who’d known her. Shit. They’d planned for Tom being here, but as a prisoner, not the man in charge. Under the table, she wiped her suddenly clammy hands on her skirt.
She could only pray Madden didn’t make any visits.
Bad luck, this. Well, there was nothing to be done about it. If she got in—when she got in—she’d have to stay under the radar.
“I heard that the taken ones are brought there.” Estelle risked a reference to the missing.
Pearl raised her eyebrows. “The taken?”
Might as well bluff it out. “The ones the Dawning takes. That’s what the rumors say.” This was true, at least.
There was a long silence and Pearl gazed at her as though taking Estelle’s measure. “There are a few. Some go north.”
“Ah.” Best to leave it at that. It wouldn’t work to be too interested.
They talked long into the night. Estelle laughed at Pearl’s jokes and made sure to keep her glass topped up but she couldn’t find out much more information. At the end of the night, Pearl slipped her a blue card.
“Come see us in the morning,” she slurred as Estelle poured her into a cab. “You can stay at the Sol de Playa. Learn more.”
Estelle fingered the edges of the card as she watched Pearl drive away. Was this a legit invite? Were they testing her? How had they really found her? It had taken days, but was it too easy?
Whatever it was, it was too good an opportunity to pass up. Tomorrow, she’d be at the Sol de Playa bright and early.
She smiled and went back to her room. She was in.
Chapter 25
It was day four and Stephan was not pleased with what he’d learned.
Tom was here. Rather, Tomas. He’d heard the name but hadn’t made the connection until he’d seen a figure cross the hotel’s courtyard with Tom’s unmistakable stride. Stephan kept his head down, praying that he was out of Tom’s sensing distance, and continued to fiddle with the pipe he was working on. One thing that had been in his favor was that arcana, like people on vacation everywhere, never bothered to look at the maintenance staff. So far all of the masquerada he’d passed, if they had assumed the aura was emanating from some other guest. No one had challenged him at all.
Masked Longing Page 18