"Amelie isn't in the business of worrying about inpiduals. " That, for Sam, was surprisingly bitter, especially when it came to Amelie. "She's using you the way she uses all humans. It's not personal, but it's not in your best interest, either. "
"Why? What is it you're not telling me?"
Sam looked at her for a long time, clearly trying to decide, and finally said, "Myrnin's had five apprentices in the past few years. Two of them were vampires. "
Claire blinked, surprised, as Sam got to his feet. "Five? What happened to them?"
"You're asking the right questions. Now ask the right people. "
He walked away. Claire gasped, grabbed her bag, and followed.
Over at the coffee bar, the two detectives were breaking the news to Eve. As Claire looked back, she saw the precise second that Eve realized her friend was dead. Even from across the room, it hurt to see the pain in her face, quickly masked and locked away. In Morganville, losing someone was something you got used to, Claire supposed.
God, this town sucked sometimes.
###
Sam had a car, a sleek dark-red sedan with dark-tinted windows.
It was parked in the underground garage beneath the U. C. , in a reserved spot marked SPONSORS ONLY, with a graphic of a sticker that had to appear in the corner of the windshield for the parking to be legal.
A sticker which Sam, of course, had. "So that means what, you donate money or something?"
Sam opened the passenger door for her, a bit of chivalry she wasn't really used to, and Claire climbed inside. "Not exactly, " he said. "Amelie gives them to vampires who have campus business. "
Once he was in the car, turning the key, Claire said, "You have campus business?"
"I teach night classes, " Sam said, and grinned. He looked about twelve, when he did that. She had the feeling it wasn't something vampires were into, looking that endearingly goofy. Maybe if they were, they'd be more popular with the local breathing population. "Sort of an outreach program. "