Real Vampires Don't Diet (17 page)

"There are even stands in some of the markets selling stakes, crosses and vials of something called a vampire repellant. Whatever's in it reeks. It sure repelled me." Jerry laughed, but he didn't sound amused. "Superstitious nonsense."

"Sounds pretty serious. Be careful, Jerry. Drag Lily back here if you have to. And leave the weirdo boyfriend there." There was a knock on the back door that led to the alley. "I've got to go. Call me again soon. You're obviously better at figuring out the time difference than I am. Okay?"

"Sure. And, Gloriana, it's good that you're mentoring Caine," Jerry said grudgingly. "That's what these young vampires needed. A firm hand in the beginning. Just don't let him take advantage of you."

"I want him to get the right start. I'm glad you understand, Jerry." But would Jerry understand how Ray and I kept seeing each other naked or nearly so? A fist pounded on the back door again. "And, Jerry, I remember how you helped me get used to the vampire life. This is kind of payback."

Jerry groaned. "Gloriana, we spent your early days as vampire in bed. The only thing I taught you was the most erotic place to drink from. You wouldn't let Caine"

"No! That's your spot, no one else's." I swallowed, just thinking about it, and I knew Jerry was thinking about it too. I cleared my throat. "Someone's at the door, Jerry. I really have to go."

"All right. And I do understand your involvement with Caine but I don't have to like it. Take care, Gloriana. I'll be home as soon as I can. Good-bye." Jerry hung up.

Hmm. No "I love you." Well, not surprising. Such declarations weren't the norm with us. And the jealousy thing felt pretty good. Maybe Flo's shoes were safe from a blast with my water cannon. I laid the phone on the table and went to the back door.

"Who's there?"

"Greg Kaplan. Simon sent me. We heard you want to meet with him."

"Finally." Actually I dreaded a face-to-face with the King of the Energy Vampires. The last time we'd met I'd given him attitude. Truth be told, he scared the shit out of me. But it wasn't Simon Destiny standing in my alley, it was one of his minions, one I knew too well. Hated him, but wasn't scared of him. I blocked my thoughts and threw open the door. Surely I could handle an old boyfriend who'd joined the dark side. Valdez was only a scream away.

"Hi, Greg. I don't want to meet with Simon, but my boyfriend does."

"Blade? I find that hard to believe. He hates Simon as much as you do. I don't believe for a minute you're suddenly part of the EV fan club." Greg followed me into the storeroom. He and I had a history, most of it bad. Now he worked for the Energy Vampires as a gofer. I'm not sure why Simon kept giving him second chances. Greg was all about Greg and I knew he could be bought. Not that he was in
my
budget, but now I had Ray in my corner. A man with deep pockets. I turned to Greg with a smile.

"Blade and I are taking a break. He's in Europe. I'm with Israel Caine, the rock star. Simon knows that. He invited me to bring Ray out there sometime to the EV headquarters. Ray's hot to try the Vampire Viagra."

"You don't have to go out there to sample the VV." Greg pulled a packet of white pills from his jeans pocket. "Here's a free sample from Simon. He figured your rocker would be interested. Caine wants more, we'll e-mail him a price list." Greg grimaced. "Costs the earth, but I'm sure your guy can afford it."

I pretended to study the four pills. "Waste of money. Trust me, Ray needs no help in the sex department. But Will's been filling his head with stories. Ray's all about trying something new." I shrugged and tucked the baggy between my breasts. Greg tore his gaze from my cleavage. "If it's new highs he's after, you two should come out to headquarters. The VV isn't the only thing we've got going." Greg grinned. "We've got special guest quarters. You'd love it under the right circumstances. Though if I were you, I'd send Caine and stay the hell away from there. You've got to know Simon still hates your guts."

"The feeling's mutual. But surely he's willing to bury the hatchet if I have a boyfriend with money to burn. And Ray's definitely rolling in it." I tossed my hair, which snap, crackled and popped, then picked up my cell phone. "You got a number where I can reach Simon directly?"

"Not a chance. Go through me."

"Ray's used to VIP service, Greg. Not dealing with middlemen. And he'd want future deliveries brought out to the house. You're right, I'm in no hurry to revisit your outpost of hell." Greg knew I'd been out there before, to save Valdez when he'd been held for ransom. We'd both barely escaped with our lives and I'd humiliated Simon Destiny. One of my finer moments, but not something the King of the Energy Vampires would likely forgive and forget. Maybe I shouldn't go out there. At least not without some serious protection.

Valdez had come out barely alive, all his energy sucked out by the goddess Simon reported to. Seems there must be a sorority of evil goddesses down below. Simon's Honoria and Circe were probably sisters. Divine justice if Simon landed in Circe's lap. And what about Greg here? He had a charming smile, good looks and absolutely no conscience. Oh, yeah, he was definitely a good candidate. But how on earth were we going to get EVs from their compound deep in the hills of Austin to Lake Travis? I'd say they were at least fifty miles apart.

"Drugs I can deliver, but there are special facilities out there you've never seen, although I bet you've heard about them." Greg moved closer, but I backed up. "And not even Israel Caine is going to deal with Simon directly unless Simon decides it's okay. I'll take your request to him and see what he says."

It was a start. A drug delivery would get one of them to Ray's house. But once the first one disappeared, we'd be toast as far as the EVs were concerned. If we wanted Simon for Aggie, we needed a lure. Something he wanted badly enough to venture out of the safety of his compound, a compound guarded by a she-demon reportedly even worse than Circe on a bad day. Ray and I had to figure out what Simon valued above all else. A reconnaissance trip was in order. I'd just have to find the nerve to go out there again and figure a way to come back in one piece.

"I'm not saying Ray might not want to come see the place for himself, Greg, just that I don't trust Simon. You know why I feel that way. How do I know we'll come out of there alive?"

"Are you alive now?" Greg chuckled. "Vampire humor. Got to love it." He glanced at my serious face. "Or not." He tried to sling his arm around my shoulders, but I stepped out of reach. "Relax, Glory. Nothing's going to happen to your precious rock star. The guy's high profile. Simon can't afford to attract that kind of attention. And I'll bet you'll make sure everyone in the uptight and proper vampire community here knows when you and Caine go out there. Just make sure Simon knows you're really important to Caine, not just a temporary fling."

"Oh, we're tight. And you'd better believe I'll broadcast our whereabouts. As insurance." I managed a little smile. "If our first visit is successful, maybe we'll come back and bring some of those uptight and virtuous vampires with us. You'd be surprised at how loose they can get."

"Are you kidding?
You'd
be surprised at who you'll meet out there. Some of them are already on our VIP list as regulars." Greg chattered on about the joys of working for the Energy Vampires. I pretended to listen, still blocking my thoughts. This was exactly what I'd been hoping for. An opportunity to bring in an army with us. Though there was no way I could rationalize taking Valdez out there again.

"Okay, okay, Greg. Can the small talk. I've got the sample, now go."

"Fine. Try your Vamp Viagra." Greg sighed and put his hand over his heart. "You know what the idea of you and another man enjoying this stuff together is doing to me? I remember"

"Don't, Greg. I'm not interested in a history lesson from you." I walked to the back door and flung it open. "I'll expect to hear from Simon next time. Obviously you're only the delivery boy. Now take off." I practically shoved him out the door. Seem harsh? Yes, Greg and I had been together, but I don't remember one bit of it because, after it was over, he'd done the whammy on me. So he wouldn't have to deal with a bad breakup. Boy, did I hate the idea of chunks of my memory missing. The more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea of Greg going to Circe with Simon.

I opened the door to the shop and came face-to-face with Barry the PR guy and a group of reporters.

"Here she is now, fellas. Glory, sorry about lack of notice, but these guys are on a press junket and wanted about five minutes of your time. To ask you about your relationship with Israel Caine. How about a few pictures? Let's go outside and get one in front of that cool neon sign with the name of the shop."

Before I even had time to redo my lipstick, I was herded outside, posed in front of the sign, my glass windows and door, then ushered back inside.

"Just a few questions, people. It's late." Barry had set up a mini press conference in front of the vampire mural.

"Where'd the fascination with vampires come from, Ms. St. Clair? Like the mural behind you. Is Ray into this scene with you?" This from a reporter representing an entertainment magazine. She was dressed in the latest style, very hip, very expensive. I really admired the eggplant leather handbag she had slung over one shoulder.

"There is no
scene.
Actually a vamp was a kind of femme fatale back in the 1920s."

"Seems odd then to paint a blood-sucking vampire on the wall." The woman was determined to press the issue.

"A friend did it as a joke and we do get a lot of Goths in here."

"Why're you open twenty-four hours a day?" Another reporter, from a music Web site. "Cool, though. The whole Sixth Street scene is cool."

"I love the Sixth Street vibe and the twenty-four-hour thing is part of it. Ray enjoys it too. He's a night owl like I am. We have that in common."

"You're not his usual type, are you? Does it bother you to be compared to his former girlfriends like Heidi or Margo?" Superthin supermodels. I gritted my teeth, my fangs itching to do a little ripping and tearing. This reporter was from a woman's magazine that was obviously trending toward edgy. The covers usually featured waiflike starlets who wouldn't eat a slice of bread, but probably put assorted substances up their elegant noses on a daily basis.

"Study Ray's background and you'll see he enjoys all kinds of women. All sizes, shapes, colors." I shrugged. "Personally I'd hate to live on lettuce leaves and bottled water all the time. And"I leaned closer, like I was about to impart a juicy tidbit"honestly, you don't have much energy when you starve yourself, if you know what I mean. You need a lot of it to keep up with Ray." I grinned and threw back my shoulders. There were dozens of camera clicks.

"You've got a fan club, you know. A MySpace page dedicated to Save the Blueberry, complete with blogs and message boards. It's all over the Internet." The reporter busily tapped into her PDA.

"Yes. It's the coolest thing that some people have been so supportive when the tabloids" I made a face. "I won't deny I was hurt at first. Ray just shrugs it off. But I've always been a private person. Anyway, I had on a blue outfit for my first outing with Ray. The tabloids couldn't quit talking about my plus-size blueberries. I can tell you are all
real
journalists so you won't be asking me my bra size. Isn't it amazing what some people fixate on?" I looked down. Black sweater. "Anyway, tonight I guess you could call them blackberries. What can a girl do? I have assets and know how to use them. Ray doesn't complain." Obviously ready for a subject change, Valdez woofed and ambled up to stand next to me.

"What's with the dog?" The man from the music Web site.

"Protection. Being open late can get a little dicey. It's nice to have him around, and he has good instincts when it comes to people." As if to prove that, Valdez sniffed around and began to growl in front of a large man with a khaki messenger bag.

"Not a drug-sniffing dog, is he?"

Everyone laughed.

"No, but if you brought a sandwich, he wants half." More laughter.

"There's a video on YouTube of you with fangs drinking blood. I bet you attracted a weird crowd that night. I still don't get the vampire fixation." This reporter, from a Houston daily newspaper, was back on the vampire theme.

"Oh, come on. I told you. It's all a joke. That was part of a marketing campaign. To go with the mural. Sure some weirdos came out, but they also boosted my Christmas sales. The 'blood' was tomato juice. Customers got a kick out of it. If I'd known him then, I'm sure even Ray would have shown up in a Dracula cape, just for the hell of it." I looked down at my twentysomething body, in clothes that any woman my age would be happy to wear to work or out for a drink. Probably not the boots. They were pinching my toes and I couldn't wait to
get
them off.

"Check me out. Do I look like a vampire? Seriously?" I batted my eyelashes and made eye contact all around. The reporters studied me for a second, then there was general laughter. Oh, yes, we were having a fine time. Have I mentioned that I'm great at blending? Still, all this talk of vampires was making me nervous. My clerk knew it too. Brianna dragged a cardboard box out from behind the counter.

"Here are some souvenirs from that night. Help yourself." She handed each reporter a set of plastic fangs. "Glory is a genius when it comes to advertising. See? Here's the flyer to go with the fake fangs. 'Sink your teeth into some great vintage fashions at Vintage Vamp's Emporium on Austin's historic Sixth Street.' "

"Thanks, Brianna." I gave her a grateful smile. I politely refused several shouted requests to put in a set of fangs for some picture taking.

"How do you feel about Caine's close association with Sienna Star? Are you going with him to the Grammys?" This from a female reporter whose badge tagged her from a woman's magazine I admired. I also admired her Prada suit and black suede pumps. I gave her a big smile, really glad to be off vampires.

"I like Sienna. She and Ray make beautiful music together. But that's all. We're friends. She was just telling me about her vacation with Ian Pembrook." I took a breath. Jeez, Ray and I should have discussed the Grammy thing. Barry saw my hesitation. "Great question, Gretchen. Ray told me he hopes to lure Glory to the Grammys, but she'll have to figure out her work schedule. The lady's got her own career. Look around. I don't imagine this shop runs itself, does it, Glory?"