say you are about to enjoy a little payback for disrespecting Miss Penny here." Jerry lifted Josh by his shirt and deposited him in front of Penny. "Do what you will, Penny. I certainly won't stop you."
"Jerry! I'm supposed to be mentoring Penny. 'What you will' sounds a little too much like carte blanche." I put my hand on Penny's shoulder. She was shaking.
"You think I'm going to kill him?" She managed a laugh. "As if."
"What? Kill me? No, hell no." Josh struggled but Jerry wasn't letting him go. When the fancy shirt ripped, Jer just shifted his grip to the man's arms, which made Josh screech.
"Settle down. It'll only hurt for a short while. Then . . . nothing. If you're lucky." Jerry smiled at me. "Gloriana, I believe you were given a description of hell recently. Will Josh here enjoy it?"
"Doubt it. Seems there are all kinds of upgrades. Fiery furnace is out. New tortures are in. The punishment fits the crime." I gave Josh a thorough head to toe. "Nice-looking. Demons will go for you. So I'd guess if you're an asshole in life . . . ? Well, I just don't want to think about what the lowlifes in hell would think you'd earned as your reward down there." I had no pity to spare for Josh as he began gulping back sobs.
"He was ashamed to be seen with me, Glory." Penny dropped her shoes and stepped into them, then turned to look at me, her eyes bleak. "That theater in a mall halfway across Austin? To a movie that none of his frat brothers would be caught dead seeing? It was all so no one would catch him with that fat girl he'd invited to the Ugly Chick party."
"No, I didn't mean it. I liked that movie. It was the only place it was still playing." Josh took a big, watery gulp of courage. "You want to go to the party? Let's go. You and me, right n-n-now."
"Too little, too late." Penny wheeled around and got in his face. "Listen to me, Joshua. I can read your thoughts. Get it? Yeah, I'm a genuine freak. Something you've never seen before. And something you won't remember after I get through with you." She glanced at me. "I haven't totally lost my mind, Glory."
"Good to know." I stayed out of this, pretty sure Penny was in control.
"F-f-freak?" Josh craned his neck, trying to get another look at Jerry's fangs. His eyes rolled back in his head and I thought he was going to faint, but he had more stones than I'd given him credit for. He gasped when he glanced back at Penny. Now she was letting her own fangs show and they were glistening in the moonlight.
"Yep, I'm a vampire. Newly made the night you dumped me out here." She poked him in his chest. "I drink blood and your type is extra delicious." She opened her purse, pulled out a timer, set it and handed it to me, then jerked his hand to her mouth and sank her fangs into the vein at his wrist.
"My God! My God!" Josh screamed and the sound echoed over the hilltop.
"Got to admit, he's taking this better than I would have thought," Jerry said conversationally.
"Yes, and Penny is keeping her head." I patted her on the back. "Good job, fledgling."
Josh stared at me wild-eyed. "This is not happening. Bad acid. Maybe one of the guys slipped something into my water bottle."
"Sure, Josh, that's it." I grinned and winked. "And that sucking sound Penny is making? That's a vampire version of a hickey on your wrist. You headed up here with the bright idea that you could make out with her, then take her home. Maybe take it all the way this time. Fat chicks have to be desperate. Am I right?"
"No. I offered to take her somewhere." He jerked when the timer buzzed.
Penny dropped his arm and raised her head, sighing with pleasure before she took the timer from me, opened her purse and dropped it in. Then she pulled out a wipe, tore it open and blotted the blood off her mouth.
"Delicious. What a shame this didn't work out. I was sure he'd make a good pet. But who needs this kind of douche bag for any purpose?" She glared at Josh. "Yes, he offered to take me somewhere. Let's see. Bowling at a lane on the other side of Austin. Or maybe we could hit a game