DNA she passes on. Of course, it’s foolish nonsense. No one can predict the birth of something like me, no one can try to make one. I am an…original.”
Original.
What a strange concept. “You know, humans seek to protect what they deem to be a one of a kind.”
A corner of his lips kicked up. “I wonder what Vincent would say if I asked for protection.”
What to say? “I’m sorry.”
Simple, but it seemed…right.
He pulled in deeper into his room, and for a moment, it seemed as though he would shut the door in my face. But he stopped, one hand on the door. “For now, we’ll rest.”
“I don’t need to rest.”
“Then do what you do best,” he said.
I didn’t mean to be so objective, but some things had to be said. “I hunt vampires. We are in direct competition for prey.”
He leaned his forehead against the door, eyes closed, profile to me. “Indeed we are. I’ve thought about this, you know.”
I was almost too afraid to ask. “Tell me.”
But I still had to know.
“Figuratively speaking…” his voice trailed away and he opened his dark eyes. “We are on the same side.”
I shook my head. I am anything if not a realist. “For now. Don’t forget what happens when you’ve led me to Noir.”
He was silent and then laughed. “How could I?”
He closed the door and that was...that.
11
Night fell.
We left the house.
We chose to walk.
Camden was a small town, and the Lady Victoria Casino was not so far off, perhaps a couple of miles. But it was an unusually balmy, for a winter night and I appreciated the exercise.
Jason did not say a word, and neither did I.
Sounds of traffic, loud, blaring, obnoxious, reached us far before the main intersection and perhaps due to the weather, there were more people about than you’d expect in the middle of winter.
Or perhaps they responded to the siren call of the casino.
Bright, lurid, almost friendly, it beckoned to us and Jason stopped at the steps, one hand on my arm. “There is something you should know.”
I stopped, well aware of the two men in suits standing at the double doors, eyes shielded by glasses. It seemed like such a silly thing, to wear sunglasses in the middle of the night. But who was I to judge? “And that would be?”
He drew in a quick breath, brushed a hand down the long dark brown coat that matched the hue of his eyes. “We might…we might not be particularly welcome in this town.”
I spared a glance around the entrance, but it was just us, the security guards, and an elderly pair of ladies clutching large handbags, twin looks of determination on their faces as if not willing to step back out until they made a fortune. “Let’s go inside.”
His hands clenched. “There might be danger here.”
“Then I would rather it be inside where there are lots of people than here,” I said and as the two men opened the doors for the seniors, the roar of a steadily growing crowd, the sound of tinkling coins, wafted towards us like a long-forgotten melody.
He opened his mouth and then closed it again.
I took that as an affirmative and walked forward, still somewhat wary of the security guards who were both over six and a half feet tall and built like a brick house.
One of them, the one on my right held up an arm, barring my entrance.
“Might I inquire as to what you’ve got in the bag, madam?”
For the way they looked, this one sounded like he’d been raised in a boarding school, clipped accent and all. “I’m an art student.”
For some reason, “It’s a sword” never seemed to work.
His lips pursed. “I’m afraid I can’t let you on the premises before checking.”
Stuck before making my way in.
I could lie, but he would check and while I might’ve been able to take care of one guard, I wasn’t so sure about two of them. Not to mention, for the moment, Camden was our home. It didn’t seem like a good idea to start hurting people and get attention.
Jason put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed slightly, effortlessly pushing me back.
“Gentlemen,” he said, voice husky and almost breathy. “Perhaps we can come to some sort of…arrangement?”
His eyes never left the boarding school security guard, the slight smile never left his lips, and I watched the bodyguard pull off his sunglasses.
Pupils dilated to an almost obscene ratio, he shook his head slowly, lips working silently.
Glamour.
Jason was just one surprise after