could look good in a two-piece black spandex outfit, it was Rita. She was slender and sinuous with long reddish-brown hair. Her usual garb was silk and leather, and very little of it. This evening she had opted for more material, but the spandex left even less to the imagination. She was also sporting some new additions, a sparkling navel ring, and a brow piercing. Ari noticed two male wolves were keeping an interested eye on Rita. The bejeweled vamp was going to score tonight at more than pinball.
“Hey, Rita. Came to see my favorite vamp girl. Nice jewelry.”
“You like it?” Rita asked, wiggling her brow up and down. “Sexy, huh?” She turned her attention back to the game. “Did you hear Gordon and I split? He’s gotten all uppity since he started working at that club. You ever see him?”
“Now and then. If he’s so bad, why are you asking about him?”
“No reason. Just wondered.”
Ari could tell it was more than that. Rita was carrying a torch, but it wasn’t likely Gordon would be back. He had a new girlfriend. “I’ve seen him around,” Ari said, “but not to talk to. You have a fight?”
“Not really. He was picking at everything. My clothes. The way I talk. And he didn’t like me hanging out with my friends. Don’t think there was much he liked. Except the sex.” Rita grinned. “He liked that, all right.”
“Don’t they all?”
Rita ended her pinball game and sat down at the nearest table. Ari slipped into the seat across from her.
“So why you here, Ari? You didn’t come to talk about me and Gordon. That’s for sure.”
“No, but I’m sorry things didn’t work out. If I see Gordon, you want me to tell him anything?”
“You’d do that? Give him a message?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“Crap, I don’t know what I’d say. He thinks I’m a loser. Maybe he’s right.”
Rita wasn’t the greatest catch, but Ari hated to see her so down on herself. Her life had been hard enough. “You’re not a loser. You’ve done pretty well for yourself, considering how it started.”
“Do you really think so? That I’m doing OK?” Rita asked eagerly.
“I said it, didn’t I?”
Rita had been abandoned by her sire, an almost fatal occurrence. But Ari had taken her to a vampire shelter where they provided for her, until Rita learned enough skills to survive and find her own nest. In those first weeks, Ari had visited regularly and developed a soft spot for the young vamp. Rita had needed someone and, kind of like a baby chick, she’d imprinted on the first non-threatening face she saw. Ari had tried hard to re-direct her. Failing that, she’d accepted her responsibility and kept an eye on the younger woman. That included propping Rita’s ego on occasion.
Rita beamed at Ari. “Thanks for saying that.” She squirmed a little higher in her chair, crossed her legs and let one spike heel dangle. The corners of Rita’s mouth turned up, and she glanced around the room.
Recognizing the signs, Ari hid a smile. Rita was feeling a little snarkier after the small ego boost, and with Rita, feeling good meant she was ready to play. She’d soon have at least one of these dubious male specimens making a move. Ari decided it was time to get her questions answered. “Did you hear about the latest vampire murder?”
“Some hooker in the park?”
“Her name was Vanessa. A loner, I think. Did you know her?”
“Don’t think so. What’s she look like?”
“Taller than you. Big brown eyes. Long brown hair, reddish highlights. Worked for a guy named Jackson.”
“Wait a sec.” Rita sat forward, both feet hit the floor. “Could be Vani. She was really nice to me. At the shelter. She was new too.”
“Do you know where she lives?”
“You checked all the nests? Huh. Haven’t seen her since shelter days. Maybe they’ve got an address. Got to have one when you leave.” Rita looked doubtful. “But it’s been a while.”
“What do you remember about her?”
“Almost zilch. Vani never said much. Real nice but quiet. She wasn’t happy, hated being a vamp. I guess I’m not surprised she didn’t join a nest. She wanted her old life back.”
Yeah, well, there was no going back, only forward. For any of them.
Ari stood and laid a twenty on the table. “Have the next drink on me. I’ll tell Gordon I saw you—and that you’re doing great.”
Rita threw Ari a smile and raised her drink in a salute. Sisters in arms.
* * *
The New World Shelter