by Chloe Garner
“Never seen that before,” Tommy said.
“Shut up, Tommy,” Ricky answered, shoving him again. Tommy shoved Ricky back, and Tina shook her head.
“I just don’t want you guys getting the wrong idea, or not being informed, before we go.”
“Ma said we could get as much as we wanted,” Ricky said. “That true?”
Tina nodded.
“Right up to the point that you shut the place down,” she said. Ricky grinned, winking at Tommy.
“Think we could manage it, Tommy?”
Tommy laughed and elbowed him, and Tina looked back at Vince, who gave her a sedate nod.
Whatever they were, it wasn’t just plain teenage boys. Vince wasn’t a fool.
“All right,” Tina said. “Let’s go get this done, then.”
“Rally,” Tommy said.
“Rally,” Ricky answered.
Vince nodded again.
“Rally,” he agreed.
Tina was glad that she’d brought down her own keys.
She didn’t like presuming and driving around in Tell’s car without him, but there was no way both of the Mendez boys would have fit in his car. They barely fit in Tina’s, and she could feel the engine struggle under the load as she backed out of her parking spot.
“So what do you do?” Ricky asked her as she put the car in gear and left the parking garage. She texted Hunter to ask if he’d set up the feed with Kirsten; she wasn’t going to get an opportunity to, with the boys in the car, but she let him know that she had hired on backup.
“I work for Tell,” she said. “The man who owns the penthouse.”
“What does he do?” Tommy asked.
“He’s a detective,” Tina said.
“Aw, rally,” Ricky said. “You ever seen a dead body?”
“Yes,” Tina said. “I don’t recommend it.”
“Shut up, Tommy,” Ricky said. “Have you ever met a famous person?”
“Nope,” Tina said. Her phone buzzed and she put it on her lap to read at the next red light. “You guys have a brand you favor for food?”
“Buzzy’s,” Ricky said.
“Buzzy’s,” Tommy echoed.
“All right,” Tina said. “I’m headed to Wentworth Mall, so if you guys want to find one on the way back from there, that works for me.”
She remembered to check her rearview, but it was still relatively early in the evening, and there was a lot of traffic out. No telling who was supposed to be back there and who wasn’t.
You’re booked. Glad you have backup. Tell says you ought to like the Mendez boys.
Tina wondered what that meant, as it could mean so very many things, but there was no telling. She put her phone away and looked in her rearview again, trying to make out individual cars over the headlights.
“Fine,” she sighed. “Ricky, you got your mirror over there?”
“You want me to move it?” he asked.
“I’m going to drive around the block. Help me see if anyone is following us.”
“Rally,” Tommy whispered.
Tina turned, and Ricky nodded.
“Three of ‘em turned with you,” he said.
“Keep watching,” Tina said. Tommy turned around in the back seat to watch, as well, and Tina made it up another block and turned again. Two lefts in a row. No one should follow her through that by coincidence.
Right?
“That one,” Ricky said with some excitement. “The second one back. He turned the first time, too.”
Tina looked back at Tommy.
“Can you see anything about the driver?” she asked.
“Two of them in the car,” Tommy said.
Tina pulled over and the car rolled up behind her.
Drive away fast?
“You want to go have a conversation with them?” Tina asked. Ricky grinned wide.
“Can I pull ‘em out the car and beat them against the building, ma’am?” he asked.
“Only if they try to do it to you first,” Tina said.
She trusted Vince.
Did she trust him this much?
“Can I go, too?” Tommy asked. Tina realized he was asking Ricky, not her.
“All right,” Ricky said, getting out of the car. The seat actually rocked underneath her as he got out, and then back the other way as Tommy got out the other side.
Trust Vince.
Tina opened her own door, leaning against the car in case an actual fight happened - no way she was letting two teenage boys fight her battle without her - and she tipped her head to look at the two men in the car. She recognized him.
The Order.
Human.
She smiled as Ricky approached the car and the two men stared at him.
Man, the two brothers were big.
The car pulled off of the curb and squealed away, and Ricky looked after them with real disappointment.
“You know ‘em, ma’am?” he asked.
“I do,” she said. “And they had every reason to be terrified of you two. You boys like ice cream?”
She bought ice cream on the way to the mall, sending Tommy in with forty dollars in cash. He didn’t give her any change, handing several tubs of custom-churn ice cream to Ricky as he got back in. Tina raised an eyebrow.
“Vince wasn’t kidding,” she said, and Ricky shook his head, happy.
“No, ma’am,” he said.
“Hope you don’t spoil your appetite,” Tina said faux-ominously as Tommy’s hand reappeared from the back seat with a spoon.
It was almost worth the cost of the whole trip, just to sit and watch Ricky eat. She’d never seen anyone eat so efficiently nor so gleefully.
“How does your mom afford you?” Tina asked, tipping her head.
“We’re Glibs, ma’am,” Ricky said. “We eat a lot more than you do, sure, but we can go a long time between meals if we have to.”
“Eat it while it’s there,” Tommy said around a mouthful of ice cream in the back seat. Tina shook her head, bemused, and started the car.
She did two more maneuvers on the way to the mall to make sure that no one was following, then she pulled up to the sole car in the parking lot out by itself and parked. A young man got out of the car, leaning against it as she turned off the engine of her own car. She smiled.
It was just too easy.
He smiled back.
She got out and closed the door, hearing every word of the conversation Ricky and Tommy had after the door closed.
“I remember you,” she said. “You’re going to be a doctor.”
The young man grinned at her.
“Tony,” he said, offering her a handshake. She tipped her head and smiled, leaving his hand there in midair.
“You hit on me, last time,” she said.
“You’re freaking hot,” he answered. “I’d never go behind Kirsten’s back, but if you wanted regulars, I’d be the first one to volunteer.”
She smiled wider.
Oh, he made her hungry.
Smart. It wasn’t that he was in med school. It was the way his eyes weren’t playing a game the way so many of them did. His words weren’t playful, they weren’t teasing, they weren’t scripted.
“I’ll think about it,” she said.
“Kind of late for a last-minute feed, isn’t it?” Tina asked. He shrugged.
“I study all hours, anyway,” he said. “A lot of the guys have stuff going on at night, want to schedule in advance. I get to pick my clients because I can go do anything for twenty or thirty minutes, as long as I’m not in class.”
“Residency’s going to be hard on you,” she said, and he snorted.
“That’s what they keep telling me. You know doctors?”
“Had a cousin,” Tina said. He frowned, and she shrugged. It was her secret to tell or not. “I was human last Christmas.”
His eyes bugged.
“That’s right,” he said. “You were really new. I’d love to talk to you about… everything.”
/> She dropped her chin.
“How do you feel about being involved in potentially life-threatening research?”
“Life… saving?” he asked, and she shook her head.
“Well, no, it is life-saving, but the guys don’t want me to touch it, because vampires are going to try to kill me over it.”
He frowned playfully then licked his lips and grinned.
“Have I mentioned that I’m an adrenaline junkie?”
She nodded, wheels turning.
“I need someone who can… read scans and decipher tests for me,” she said. “I could leave you out of the really important stuff, if you wanted.”
“I’m not a lab tech,” he said. “I want to be a surgeon.”
“Of course you do,” Tina said, parroting something she’d heard her cousin say. She laughed. “Sorry.”
“Of course I do,” Tony answered, friendly enough. “I’m an adrenaline junkie with student loans.”
“You don’t make enough doing this?” Tina asked, and Tony laughed.
“Do you know how much medical school costs?”
“Well, I’ll pay you for your time. Anything you see that I wouldn’t is worth it.”
“I want to know what we’re doing,” Tony said. “Otherwise I won’t know what to look for.”
She nodded slowly.
“Give me your address and I’ll mail you a phone.”
“I have a phone,” he said, and she shook her head.
“Not a good enough one,” she answered. His eyebrows went up and his grin spread.
“That much of an adventure, huh?”
She nodded.
“We’ll keep going through Kirsten for feeding, if you want to do it. I don’t want to bite the hand that feeds me… So to speak.”
He nodded.
“You going to tell me anything tonight?”
Tina shook her head.
“I’ve got civilians in the car,” she said. “And I’ve got the ears to hear every word they say. I don’t know how much they can hear of us.”
Tony tipped to the side, looking into the car at Tommy.
“Is that ice cream?” he asked. Tina nodded.
“I’m paying them in food.”
He raised an eyebrow then shook his head.
“Well, I guess I should get back to studying.”
He tipped his head to the side, an invitation, and she smiled, sucking on her lower lip for a moment.
“I’ll be in touch,” she said, stepping up chest to chest against him and putting her hand around the other side of his neck. His skin was hot against hers and his breath stopped. She paused, letting herself enjoy the scent of him for a moment, and he put his arm around her waist.
His heartbeat had spiked, and he gasped one more breath, and she let her fangs drop, biting the spot there on his neck where the artery was throbbing faster and faster. His hand closed on her shirt and she fed. She felt him lose his balance and tip back against the car again, and she just let herself fall against him, holding his head steady. His grip on her shirt never slacked and his other hand came up to press his fingers into her ribs.
She could feel everything, hear everything, smell everything in the cold winter night, the stars overhead, the two teenage boys sniggering in the car behind her. Her fangs receded and she let her head fall back, just savoring, then she stood up.
“Are you okay?” she asked. He had his head back on the car.
“Usually do that sitting down,” he said. “Just got light-headed. It’ll pass. I’ve got juice in the car.”
“Quite the pro,” she said. “Should I stay with you for a few minutes?”
He shook his head, taking his keys out of his pocket.
“I check in with Kirsten that the feed went right, and then again when I get home,” he said. “She’s got it covered. Full-service.”
He reached into his back pocket and took out a wallet, handing her a business card.
“You’re actually living at this address?” she asked, and he nodded.
“Yeah. They’re for applying for grant programs and like that.”
She nodded, tucking the card away.
“I’ll be in touch soon. I’m going to need as much help as I can get over the next few days, especially.”
“Uh huh,” he said, rubbing his neck where she’d bit him. The fang punctures had closed over almost immediately, and he touched the skin there like he was remembering more than like it was sore.
“Right,” he said, shaking his head. “Right. I need to go study. Unless you want me to follow you home instead.”
She laughed.
“Not an option,” she said. “I’ll be in touch. Study hard.”
He shrugged.
“Can’t blame me for trying,” he said. He unlocked his car and walked around to the driver’s side to get in. Tina got back in her car and looked over at Ricky.
“Buzzy’s?” she asked.
The ice cream was gone.
“Buzzy’s,” he agreed.
“Rally,” Tommy said.
The food only just fit in the car without resorting to the trunk.
Two of everything for Tell - she took him at his word - and then all of everything for the Mendez brothers, Glibs. Once more, the two boys dug in and there was no additional conversation the rest of the way back. Tina went up to get a trash bag from Vince to help the boys load everything into it, then she went back down to the car to find a way to carry all of the bits and pieces of Tell’s order with just the ten fingers every normal vampire had to work with. She had to set them down on the floor in the elevator to work her keycard.
“So?” Hunter asked as she used her feet to coach all of the food off of the elevator in order to let it go again.
“Those boys can eat,” Tina answered. “How is Tell?”
“Doing better,” Tell said. She leaned out to see him in the kitchen, raiding the fridge. “You brought everything?”
“Everything on the menu,” Tina said. “You’re going to laugh when you see the bill. Glibs can eat.”
“Yeah, I know about that,” he said, coming to paw through the bags until he found one that caught his fancy. He trotted back to the kitchen with it.
“This would be great with mayonnaise,” he commented. Tina stuck out her tongue.
“You have any issues?” Hunter asked. She nodded.
“His, not yours. The Order was tailing me. I recognized the guys. Don’t know if they know I’m a vampire, but they weren’t prepared when those two sides of beef got out of the car and walked back to them.”
Hunter laughed.
“I wish I could have seen that.”
She nodded.
“It was great. Like somebody had squeezed them really hard to make their eyes pop out. They ran off and gave up following me, but they’ll know I’m coming back here again.”
Tell appeared again, chewing.
“They will,” he said. “Though I wonder how they got this address.”
“I do, too,” Tina said. “I want to go digging into Kyle’s background again, in between samples on you.”
“And setting up your medbay,” Tell said, shaking his head. “First two shipments showed up tonight. Vince had his guys up and down for the last thirty minutes, getting the boxes up in that elevator.”
“No freight elevator up here,” Tina agreed. “How did you get all of the furniture in?”
“Windows,” he said, indicating with his pinky. “Before they were glass windows.”
She shook her head.
“Hope you’re happy with your decisions.”
“Black is permanently in style,” Hunter said. “Believe me on this. The bits and pieces you can swap out, but black is always in.”
She smiled, going to sit on her knees on one of the couches and resting her arms on the back of it. Hunter came to sit down next to her, sitting up to lean his shoulder against hers and nip at the back of her neck. She twisted away from him, just to be able to see him.
&
nbsp; “What’s got into you?” she asked.
“You smell like blood,” he answered.
She held his eye for another moment, amused.
“Right,” she said, settling back in against the back of the couch as he ran his nose along her hairline. “So, the guy who showed up tonight, I’ve met him before.”
“Not surprising,” Tell said through his mouthful of food. “Kirsten has humans she rewards for their reliability, and there aren’t that many of them to begin with.”
“He’s a medical student,” Tina said. Tell shrugged. Hunter bit her again.
“Yup, they have big bills and not much time to moonlight,” Tell said.
“Will you stop,” Tina said, twisting her head to the side again at Hunter as he wound her hair around his hand and kissed the muscle at the back of her neck. Her head dipped for a moment and he laughed into her hair.
“Nope,” he said quietly. She glowered at him pointlessly and turned back to Tell.
“I’m going to get him to help me with the medical side of the testing,” she said.
“No,” Tell said.
“Already done,” Tina said. “I haven’t decided if I’m going to tell him what I’m doing or not, but he’s in, and I’m doing it.”
“Do I need to emphasize to you again how dangerous this is?” Tell asked, putting his hands down and swallowing. “You’re going to get yourself killed, and you’re hard to kill. He just washes up in a streambed somewhere and they never figure out how or why.”
“I’m going to mail him a phone, and I’m going to get my own new phone, and I’m only going to talk to him on it. I’ll send him any images or data that I want him to look at by mail.”
Tell narrowed his eyes.
“I’ve taught you too well,” he said. “That should work.”
She nodded.
“So long as no one ever manages to pull an address off of what I’m sending to him,” she said. “So I’ll have to be careful about that.”
Tell pursed his lips and shook his head.
“Just give it to Vince,” he said. “Better that way. He’s already got the paths to get our stuff into the human mailing system without it being exposed.”
Tina nodded.
“Done.”
He shook his head.
“I don’t like him having that kind of knowledge in his head,” he said, and Tina shook her head.
