to Blay's?»
Shouldn't I change?
«You can borrow some of his clothes. You have to look good for ZeroSum.»
Lash came out of nowhere, like a sucker punch. «So you're going downtown, John? Maybe I'll
see you there, buddy.»
With a nasty-ass grin, he sauntered off, his body to be coiled, his muscular shoulders rolling like
he was headed into a fight. Or wanted to be.
«Sounds like you want a date, Lash,» Qhuinn barked. «Good deal, 'cause you keep that shit up,
you're going to get fucked, buddy.»
Lash stopped and glanced back, the lights from overhead pouring down over him. «Hey, Qhuinn,
tell your father I said hi. He always did like me better than you. Then again, I match.»
Lash tapped beside his eye with his middle finger and kept going.
In his wake, Qhuinn's face closed up, just went straight to statue.
Blay put his hand on the back of the guy's neck. «Listen, give us forty-five minutes at my house,
k? Then you come pick us up.»
Qhuinn didn't respond right away, and when he finally did his voice was low. «Yeah. No
problem. Will you excuse me for a sec?»
Qhuinn dropped his books and walked back to the locker room. As the door eased shut, John
signed, Lash's and Qhuinn's families are tight?
«The two of them are first cousins. Their fathers are brothers.»
John frowned. What's up with Lash pointing to his eye?
«Don't worry about-«
John gripped the guy's forearm. Tell me.
Blay rubbed his red hair like he was trying to rustle up a response. «Okay… it's like… Qhuinn's
dad is a big deal in the glymera, right? And so's his mom. And the glymera doesn't do defects.»
This was said as if it explained everything. I don't get it. What's wrong with his eye?
«One's blue. One's green. Because they aren't the same color, Qhuinn's never going to get
mated… and, you know, his father's been embarrassed by him all his life. Not a good sitch, and
that's why we're always at my house. He needs to get away from his parents.» Blay looked at the
locker room door as if he could see through it to his friend. «The only reason they haven't kicked
him out is because they were hoping the transition might clear it up. That's why he got to use
someone like Marna. She has very good blood, and I think the plan was that it would help.»
It didn't.
«Nope. They're probably going to ask him to leave at some point. I've already got a room ready
for him, but I doubt he'd use it. Lot of pride. Rightfully so.»
John had a horrible thought. How did he get the bruise? The one on his face after his transition?
At that moment the locker room door opened and Qhuinn came out with a solid smile in place.
«Shall we, gentlemen?» As he picked up his books, his bravado was back. «Let's bounce before
the good ones are taken at the club.»
Blay clapped the guy on the shoulder. «Lead on, maestro.»
As they headed for the underground parking lot, Qhuinn was in front, Blay behind, John in the
middle.
As Qhuinn disappeared up the bus's steps, John tapped Blay on the shoulder.
It was his father, wasn't it?
Blay hesitated. Then nodded once.
Chapter Eighteen
Okay, this was either cool as hell or scary as fuck. As Jane walked along, it was like she was
going through an underground tunnel in a Jerry Bruckheimer movie. This setup was straight out
of high-budget Hollywood: steel, dimly lit from inset fluorescent lights, infinitely long. At any
minute Bruce Willis circa 1980 was going to come running by on his bare feet wearing a ratty
muscle shirt and a machine gun.
She glanced up at the fluorescent panels in the ceiling, then down to the polished metal floor.
She was willing to bet that if she took a drill to the walls they'd be half a foot thick. Man, these
guys had money. Big money. More than you could get if you were dealing prescription drugs on
the black market or servicing coke, crack, and crank addictions. This was government-scale
money, suggesting vampires weren't just another species; they were another civilization.
As the three of them went along, she was surprised they'd left her unrestrained. Then again, the
patient and his buddy were armed with guns-
«No.» The patient shook his head at her. «You're not in cuffs because you won't run.»
Jane's mouth about fell open. «Don't read my mind.»
«Sorry. I didn't mean to, it just happened.»
She cleared her throat, trying not to measure how great he looked standing up. Dressed in Black
Watch plaid pajama bottoms and a black muscle shirt, he was moving slowly, but with a lethal
confidence that was a knockout.
What had they