"Flo, honey, step away from the mirror." I walked up behind her and grasped her shoulders.
"Look at us, Glory." She smiled at our reflections. "We are beautiful, no?"
"Yes, you are, anyway. But this is the Devil's handiwork. These guys are trying to lure you over to the dark side. What would Richard say?" I tried to pull her back but she wasn't budging and she ignored what I'd said completely.
"I think I look old. Do you have any idea how many hundreds of years it has been since I've seen myself? I had forgotten . . ." She leaned forward, peering intently at her teeth, her fangs. "This is not good. I must get some of those whitening strips, I think."
"Flo, listen to me. This is a slippery slope." I looked around but Cary and Spyte had disappeared, obviously sure that they'd laid the groundwork. I was afraid they were right.
"You must come to my house. See my new closet. After the band and the dancing." She finally dragged her eyes from the mirror. "See, the diavolos are gone. It is a little gift. I don't know why they are toying with me and I don't care. If they can see through me, they must know I am not going to do anything for them. Ever. But, in the meantime, they gave both of us a reflection. We can enjoy it and not feel guilty." She grinned and bounced on her weird metal shoes. "I am happy. We will go to my house and see ourselves in the three-way mirror. Just wait."
I followed Flo upstairs, amazed that she could chatter with the men and fool even her husband into thinking that everything was normal. Demons never did anything without expecting payback. If Flo thought she could just enjoy her reflection and not suffer for it? Well, I could tell her there was no way in hell that was happening.
It took some doing, but we got the guys settled into Richard's man cave in front of his big-screen TV and a car race before Flo and I headed upstairs to see her closet. This was the first time I'd been to Flo and Richard's new house and I was impressed. It was obviously expensive, on a hilltop with a spectacular view of the lights of the city.
"Damian found it for us. You know my brother owns houses everywhere in Austin. He sold it to Ricardo for a good price." Flo was practically running as she headed upstairs. "This is the master bedroom." She threw open double doors. A king-size bed dominated the large space. There was a terrace and balcony off the bedroom to take advantage of that view, but I could see automatic blackout drapes that would close at sunrise.
"It's gorgeous." I wasn't lying. The cream and gold room was decorated with fine antiques, and an Oriental rug covered most of the hardwood floor. My fingers itched to touch some of the lacquered boxes that rested on the long dresser, not to mention the jade and ivory carvings displayed in a tall shelving unit.
"The pretty pieces from the Orient are Ricardo's. He's collected for centuries. One of his hobbies. I had no idea when I married him that he had so much in storage." Flo threw this information over her shoulder as she hurried to another set of double doors. "There's a decadent bathroom over there with a Jacuzzi tub, steam shower, you name it, and a closet I gave to Richard." She sighed and paused for dramatic effect. "But this is mine, all mine." She threw open the doors.
My jaw dropped. What had obviously been a good-size bedroom was now a walk-in closet painted in shades of cream and turquoise. It had shelves for purses and shoes with racks for dresses, pants and blouses. A dozen drawers were closed but labeled and I could see that she had many for lingerie, scarves and belts.
Flo had made a beeline for the three-way mirror at the end of the room. It was flanked by large windows with their own blackout drapes.
"Look at me. Ah, scissors." She pulled out a shallow drawer filled with every kind of manicure accessory and found a pair of sharp scissors. "Will you cut off the thread? Carefully, of course. I have to go back to the men wearing this same dress."
"Sure. Stand still." I said this because Flo was so hyped on adrenaline, she was practically vibrating. I clipped the offending thread, then handed