the guy whod told her about the party. The one whose name theyd used to get inside. Claire? he asked. Wow. You look great!
He looked less geeky now, more edgy, with spiked black hair and vampire-style makeup. Claire wondered uneasily how many actual vampires were infiltrating this party tonight. Not a pleasant thought. Ohhi, Ian! Eve was scanning the room, and as Claire glanced at her, Eve shook her head and mimed going to the next room. Claire begged her not to go, at least with her eyes, but the thick makeup probably disguised her desperation.
Im so glad you came! Ian said. He hardly had to raise his voice at all to be heard over the roar; he just had that kind of voice, and plus, it was a blessedly dull roar in here. Can I get you some punch?
Umdo you have anything thats not, you know?
Right, yeah. How about some water?
Water would be wonderful. Where the hell was Eve? Shed ducked behind two tall guys and now Claire couldnt see her, and she felt alone and very vulnerable just standing here in her fake Goth getup, and God, this makeup itched; how did Eve stand it? Claire wanted a shower, wanted to scrub her face clean, and wanted to put on plain jeans and a plain T-shirt and never be adventurous again.
Shane. Think about Shane. She felt an uncomfortable twist of guilt that shed ever let him slip out of her thoughts, even for a minute.
Ian came back with a bottle of water, the top already off. Here you go, he said, and handed it over. He was drinking water, too, not the punch stuff. Crazy, huh?
Crazy, she agreed. In a town full of vampires, this was just about the craziest idea she could imagine, putting a bunch of drunk, horny college kids in a place where vampires could blend right in. Did you see where my friend went?
Girls, Ian sighed. Always travel in packs. Yeah, she went into the library. Come on.
Claire gulped water as she followed him, stepping carefully over the legs of several people whod decided the kitchen floor looked like a good place to sit down for a chat. And oh God, what was that couple in the corner doing? She blushed under the makeup and looked quickly away, focusing on the back of Ians neck. Hed missed a spot on the makeup. It looked pink.
The next room had people, too, but not quite as many as the kitchen and it was practically deserted compared to the dance room. Library was a generous word. It had books, but not as many as Claire would have thought, and most of them were old textbooks. Some were being defaced by people wielding black markers and pens, giggling with one another over the results.
No sign of Eve.
Huh, Ian said. Hang on. He went to ask a question of another guy, taller, dressed in a silky-looking black shirt open halfway down to reveal a strong, muscular chest. It took a while. Claire swigged more water, grateful for the moisture because even the library was steaming hot, and almost wiped at her face before she remembered the careful makeup job.
There was no sign of Sam in this room, either. While Ian was talking, Claire went over to one of the girls defacing books. She looked vaguely familiarmaybe somebody from chemistry? Anna something?
HiAnna? It must have been right; the girl looked up. Have you seen Sam? Red hairmaybe wearing a brown leather jacket? Although he had to have taken it off, in this heat. Blue eyes?
Oh, sure. Sam. Hes upstairs somewhere. Anna went back to her book sabotage, which seemed to involve drawing devils and pitchforks. Upstairs. Claire needed to get upstairs, but most importantly, she needed to find Eve. Fast.
Ian came back. She went upstairs, he said. Shes looking for a guy named Sam, right?
Yeah, Claire said. Would you mind if?
No, sure, Ill go with you. He looked at the drained bottle in Claires hand. Want some more?
She nodded. He grabbed a bottle from an ice-filled cooler and handed it over. She cracked the seal and took another life-giving mouthful as Ian led the way to the stairs.
The heat was making her feel slow and disconnected. She wanted to pour the cold water over her face, but realized just in timeagainabout the makeup. Stupid makeup.
The stairs seemed to go on forever, and it was like dancing around land mines; people were sitting on just about every step, some