grasp on the donor structure in Royce’s house to know what she meant. Mouse was particularly picky about her donors, and absolutely would not force her hand on anyone, no matter how hungry she was. As Christoph was new, injured, looked like he’d been through hell, and didn’t have any visible bite marks, most likely that meant Mouse had laid claim to him. She’d always had a weak spot for the less fortunate, and tended to baby her donors the way some humans did with a favored pet.
While Clarisse wasn’t beyond a bit of the rough-and-tumble method herself, she was fairly certain that someone had probably tried their hand at the other one by now if he was on the second floor. If he was brand new, that meant he was sharing a room with Sebastian or Angus, or he was free game. Neither of them were particularly gentle or kindly to their donors beyond seeing that they wouldn’t keel over after the vampires took their fill. Plus they would’ve been bragging all night if Alec had given them rights to claim another donor all to themselves. That meant this Ashi fellow was free game for any vampire who had a mind to snatch a taste.
She wrinkled her nose, wondering how long it would be before word spread that there was an unclaimed donor in the house, how long he would be used in free-for-all feedings, and who would vie to have sole rights to him. No one would gainsay Mouse for taking one, and if John or Royce did the same, no one would think anything of it. Jessica was an excellent example, since she was one of Royce’s personal donors, leaving her off limits to everyone else in the house. It gave her a measure of prestige among the other donors, and every other vampire had a soft spot for her since she would be turned into one of their own as soon as she was ready to leave the mortal coil behind. Not to mention that she was so bloody nice and cheerful, it was impossible not to like her.
If the boy was smart, he’d look for a way to ingratiate himself to someone quick, or he’d find himself used and abused by the vampires in the house who didn’t mind taking what they wanted without any thought as to his feelings on the matter.
Hmm.
She might just have a look-see and a nip to see if it would be worth the bother of asking Royce for sole rights to the unclaimed one.
Analie sort of saw Clarisse extend her hand. It took three tries before Analie managed to grab the vampire’s hand and shake.
“Sorry,” Analie said sheepishly. “I can’t see you so great.”
“She can’t see you at all,” Christoph mumbled.
Clarisse shook her hand, giving voice to a girlish giggle that was so infectious and entirely un-vampire-y, it would be a wonder if Analie didn’t fall into fits of laughter herself. “Mayhaps we should look into getting’ ye some glasses, then!”
“I can see your shadow,” Analie specified. “Honestly, I don’t think checking on Ashi is necessary. He’s kind of a jerk and most likely he’ll just spaz out if you try to get anywhere near him.”
“John bit him and he damn near had a breakdown,” Christoph added.
“What did you mean by ‘making a claim’?” Analie asked.
Clarisse gave Christoph an amused, tolerant smile, reaching out to pat his knee like one might an old friend – or an old friend’s dog. “He’s hers now, lass. No one else will touch him, or try to take a nip.” Her smile widened a little, showing the tiniest hint of dainty fangs, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. She was trying not to be overheard by Mouse who she knew was likely hanging on their every word from her bedroom. “She’s a bit sensitive, lad, so be nice to her, and she’ll be very good to you. Do put out a bit though, she’s horribly shy about asking for what she wants.”
Those cheerful thoughts in mind, she rose to her feet, brushing her hands over silk pajamas that matched the color of her eyes. Her voice returned to the chipper tones she’d been speaking in before, sounding overly loud now that she was done whispering. “John’s never been the kindly sort. I’ll ‘ave Jessica give the poor lad a look and see if there’s anything left.”
Christoph was sure when Clarisse had said, “put out