Real Vampires Have More to Love (48 page)

“That’s good. That you have reliable witnesses.” Damian sat and leaned forward to stare at me.

“Blade was here too. And Valdez.” I sighed. It had been quite a night. Everyone who I loved. Who loved me. Jeremy Blade, Jerry, was the boyfriend and my sire, the vampire who’d turned me. Rafael Valdez was the shape-shifter who’d been my bodyguard until recently. I loved him too, and we’d gotten close, too close for it not to hurt my relationship with Blade.

“Glory, is Valdez still living here with you?” Damian looked around, like maybe Rafe would pop out of the back bedroom.

“Quit reading my mind. And, no, he has his own place now.” I’d asked him to move out in hopes that would prove to Jerry that I was serious about making our relationship work again.

“Then you have an extra bedroom and are living here all alone.” Damian stood, and I jumped up.

“Yes, but I don’t know what that has to do with you. You have a castle on a hill, for crying out loud.” I freaked for a moment. I’d never been afraid of Damian, but he was an ancient vampire and could overpower me without breaking a sweat. Of course he was a lover, usually, not a fighter. He looked at me and smiled. Oops, should have blocked my thoughts. He was still reading them and liked what he’d heard.

“Relax, Glory. I have a proposition for you, but it’s to help you get in good with the council. Nothing to do with lovemaking. Though if you want to pursue that thought . . . ” He was close in a heartbeat and had his hand on my shoulder. “You smell fresh from your shower and full of that Bulgarian synthetic.” He smiled and showed fang. “Did you know it’s made with real blood?”

“No. Make that a double no.” I straight-armed him, my hand on his broad chest. “What’s the proposition, Damian? The one not headed to my bedroom.”

“Ah, Glory. Someday.” He backed off and lounged on the couch so casually that I was convinced he’d never meant me to take the pass seriously. “I have a young vampire, a fledgling. She was turned by a vamp who has been disciplined and is no longer with us.” Damian’s face grew hard, and I was reminded that he could be a fighter when he wanted to be. “Anyway, she’s stuck now and not happy about it. I need to find a mentor for her, and you’ve proved you can handle that job. Like you did for Israel Caine.”

Another new vampire. I sat back in my chair. Yes, I’d mentored Ray, Israel Caine. But he’d been a rock star, my crush and still held a place in my heart. To take on some poor girl who’d been turned against her will . . . Well, it would sure prove to the council that Glory was a good person, willing to sacrifice. Because new vamps could be a pain in the butt. I sure didn’t want to leave Austin though.

I had a thriving business where I sold antiques and vintage clothing. And I had friends who’d turned into the kind of extended family I’d always craved. Of course Jerry was here too. I had to stay here to work on getting our relationship back on track.

“I’ll do it. When do I meet her?”

Damian grinned. “I knew you wouldn’t fail me. She’s right outside. I’m sure she was the source of that noise you heard.” He got up, unlocked my door and opened it. “Come in, Penny.”

I took one look at the girl who strode into my apartment with a scowl on her face and knew I had my work cut out for me. My sad-sack robe and wild hair were an aberration for me. I pride myself on never facing the public looking less than my best.

“Glory, meet Penny Patterson.”

“Hello, Penny.”

Penny just glared at me. Bad makeup, which is worse than no makeup at all. Hair that needed a decent cut and, please, a wash. Then there were the clothes. Penny and I have some of the same figure issues. Demon thing aside, had Damian brought her here to me because she carried too many pounds for her five-foot-tall frame? I sent him a glaring mental message, but he put out his hands and put on an innocent face, the picture of denial. Anyway, Penny was a little round, okay, a lot round, and she’d done the unthinkable—she’d worn horizontal stripes.

This girl needed me. And not just because she was now a vampire. She needed a wardrobe intervention and a make-over, stat. I turned to say something to Damian, but the man had slipped out while my back was turned and quietly closed the door.

“Well, Penny, looks like you’re stuck with me.” I smiled and gestured at her bulging backpack. “Is that all your stuff? Want me to show you to your bedroom?”

“Forget that.” Penny stepped close to me, a rookie mistake, and grabbed the lapels of my robe. “There’s only one thing I want from you.”

“Whoa, girlfriend.” I jerked her hands off my robe. “Rule number one. Back off the intensity.” I tried to read her mind. What the hell? How had this fledgling already learned to block her thoughts?

She smiled, a creepy smile, and looked me over. “You’ll learn that I’m a quick study. I’m nineteen, and I’ve already got three degrees from UT.”

“Three college degrees? At nineteen?” I knew UT was the University of Texas. I was turned vampire in 1604. Back when I’d been school age, I’d been lucky to learn basic letters. I’d had to teach myself what I knew today.

“Yeah. I’m a geek and a freak. Big whoop.” The smile had changed from creepy to a sad little twist.

I realized that this girl could be pretty if she’d let me guide her. She had nice auburn hair and skin that would be golden if she didn’t mask it with pale makeup. She sure didn’t need the black lipstick she’d decided went with being a vampire.

“Hey, being a brain
is
a big whoop. And your new vamp status isn’t all bad. Trust me on that.” I sat on the couch. “Now what is it you want from me? I’m going to be your mentor. I’ll do what I can to help you adjust to your new life.” I smiled and gestured at the chair across from me.

Penny sat, then leaned forward. Her eyes were a golden brown, and they did have an intelligence that saw too much. I put up a block. If Penny had already figured out how to block her thoughts, she was probably already reading others’ too.

“There’s just one thing that will make me happy right now, Glory. Damian said that’s your name, right?”

“Yes, it’s Gloriana St. Clair. I’m a four-hundred-plus-year-old vampire, Penny. I’ve had a few centuries to learn the ropes. So if there’s something you need, something you want to learn, I’m your gal.” I smiled, feeling all motherly, even though to look at me, I’m only twenty-three or thereabouts to Penny’s nineteen. Mortals would think we were sisters. Maybe I’d even introduce her as my sister from out of town. Yes, that would work. I realized Penny was waiting for me to focus on her, to give her my full attention. I finally did.

“Okay, Penny, what do you need?”

“Help me kill my sister.”