I blinked at Mallory, then Helen. "What's Cadogan House?"
Helen looked at me over the top of her horn-rimmed glasses. "That's the House that you'll be Commended into. One of Chicago's three vampire Houses—Navarre, Cadogan, Grey. Only the Master of each House has the privilege of turning new vampires. You were turned by Cadogan's Master—"
"Ethan Sullivan," Mallory finished.
Helen nodded approvingly. "That's right."
I lifted brows at Mallory.
"Internet," she said. "You'd be amazed."
"Ethan is the House's second Master. He followed Peter Cadogan into the dark, so to speak."
If only Masters could turn new vampires, this Ethan Sullivan must have been the vamp in the quad, the one who bit me during round two.
"This House," I began. "I'm, what, in a vampire sorority or something?"
Helen shook her head. "It's more complicated than that. All legitimate vampires in the world are affiliated with one House or other. There are currently twelve Houses in the United States; Cadogan is the fourth-oldest among those." Helen sat up even straighter, so I took a wild guess that she was also a flag-flying member of Cadogan House.
Helen handed me the book, which must have weighed ten pounds. I centered it in my lap, distributing the mass.
"You won't need to memorize the rules, of course, but you'll want to read the introductory sections and have at least a passing familiarity with the content. And of course you can refer to the text if you have specific questions. Make sure to read about the Commendation."
"What's the Commendation?"
"The initiation ceremony. You'll become an official member of the House, and you'll take your oaths to Ethan and the rest of the Cadogan vampires. And speaking of, payments typically begin two weeks after take the oath is taken."
I blinked. "Payments?"
She gave me one of those over-the-glasses looks. "Your salary, dear."
I laughed nervously, the sound strangled. "I don't need a salary. I'm a student. Teaching assistant. Stipend." I was three years into my graduate work, three chapters into my dissertation on romantic medieval literature.
Helen frowned. "Dear, you can't go back to school. The university doesn't admit vampires as students, and they certainly don't employ them. Title VII doesn't cover us yet. We went ahead and removed you, just to avoid the squabble, so you won't have to worry about—"
My pulse thudded in my ears. "What do you mean, you removed me?"
Her expression softened. "Merit, you're a vampire. A Cadogan Initiate. You can't go back to that life."
I was out the door before she was done talking, her voice echoing behind me as I rushed to the first-floor bedroom that served as our office. I wiggled the mouse to wake my computer, brought up a Web browser, and logged into the university server. The system recognized me, and my stomach unclenched in relief.
Then I brought up my records.
Two days ago, my status had been changed. I was listed as "Not Enrolled."
The world shifted.
I went back to the living room, my voice wavering as I fought through the quickly rising panic, and faced Helen. "What did you do? You had no right to take me out of school!"
Helen turned back to her satchel and pulled out a sheath of paper, her manner irritatingly calm. "Because Ethan feels your circumstances are . . . particular, you'll receive your salary from the House within the next ten business days. We've already arranged the direct deposit. The Commendation is scheduled on your seventh day, six days from now. You will appear when commanded. At the ceremony, Ethan will assign your position of service within the House." She smiled at me. "Perhaps something in public relations, given your family's connections to the city."
"Oh, lady. Wrong move, bringing up the parents," Mallory muttered.
She was right. It was exactly the wrong thing to say, my parents being one of my least favorite topics. But it was at least jarring enough to wake me from my daze. "I think we're done here," I told her. "It's time for you to leave."
Helen winged up an eyebrow. "It's not your house."
Brave of her to piss off the new vampire. But we were on my turf now, and I had allies.