Vampire Debt - Supernatural Battle (Vampire Towers #2) - Kelly St. Clare Page 0,20
snicker, I drew out a high-waisted sleeve skirt and crop top for Josie, and dress shorts and blazer with a spangled top for Kelsea.
“Change,” I bellowed, clapping my hands. “We’re drinking wine tonight.”
“We’re drinking with you?” Kelsea called from the bathroom.
“Probably should have mentioned that part. Well, can you guys drink on guard duty? If not, I’d still like your company as I drink myself into oblivion.”
“It takes a lot of alcohol to get a Vissimo drunk,” Josie said. “I drank a bottle of absinth one time and felt a pleasant warmth in my stomach.”
“Right. That’s… something else. I guess a few wines won’t register.”
My nerves ramped up as the vampires changed their outfits. All the pieces were in place, I was certain. This wasn’t my first rodeo. I’d used this exact same ploy on my rich friends as a teen. That was about the time I came to understand the kind of people they were—or felt they had to be.
I wasn’t nervous my plan would fail. I was nervous it would point the finger at someone I liked. But this spy had killed twelve Vissimo, put me in a situation where I killed another being and nearly died myself, and forced me closer to Kyros than either of us ever intended to be.
They had a lot to answer for.
I checked Beast.
“Happy hour will start soon,” I said. “Shall we, ladies?”
Laurel was still standing. “Will this place have tequila shots like last time?”
I swept the trio with a shrewd look. If I had to guess, I’d say they were disappointed we weren’t really heading out to drink. Guess they didn’t get to party a lot.
Or at all.
“Yep, should do,” I said as we walked toward the elevator. “Their main focus will be wine though.”
“I like tequila,” Laurel announced, pushing the call button.
I laughed. “I second that, girl.”
Ding!
Kelsea and Josie stepped on, and I waved at them as the doors closed. Go time.
I held my finger to my lips for Laurel’s sake, and she merely dipped her head and then bodily picked me up.
“Where to?” she mouthed.
“End of hall,” I mouthed back.
On whisper-soft feet, Laurel snuck us down to the other end of the hall.
I opened the door as quietly as possible and she deposited me in front of the windows overlooking the street below.
More importantly, I had a view of Yellow Otter.
As silently as possible, I drew the binoculars out of my pack.
Laurel drew my notebook closer, crouching beside me.
She wrote:
Who do you suspect?
Pulling a face, I turned to the last page of the notebook and pointed at a list of fifteen names. On it were several vampires from Level 44, as well as one of Kyros’s seconds who didn’t seem to like me much, Angelica’s name, and a list of Indebted who’d been close to me before Clan Fyrlia’s ambush. None of my personal crew’s names were on there. There were others I’d considered. Since I was a human who’d exchanged blood with the crown prince of Sundulus, there could be jealous exes, friends of Kyros’s who were trying to rid him of the human problem. Perhaps I’d pissed someone or other off by securing so many houses—though I’d be surprised to find that was the case. This clan was united in their goal. They’d only ever congratulated me and tried to hang damn pictures of the secured houses in my office.
There was a chance I had the wrong people entirely, which meant I’d need to widen my net if this failed.
Laurel frowned at my scrawlings next to each person on the list.
She traced the sentence next to Angelica’s name. Will be in white car, not SUV.
Next, she traced the sentence next to Conrad’s name—Kyros’s disapproving second who constantly glowered at me in the cafeteria. Will enter through east door.
He’d been particularly annoyed when I’d followed him to Sister Sushi and mentioned I’d be going to Yellow Otter on Friday night with a few friends. I always liked to enter the side door because it led to a hidden section that was much more intimate.
Over the last several days, I’d told fifteen different people fifteen different variations on my trip to Yellow Otter.
Because I was certain of one thing.
The members of Clan Fyrlia’s royal family wanted me dead. I’d killed their youngest brother in self-defence. The fight between us was ruled as closed by an impartial clan, but unofficially, the Tonyi triplets—who I’d gathered did most of the dirty work for the other clan—would come for me.