The elevator doors opened out onto a short corridor, at the end of which was a set of carved-wood double doors. Rafe walked up and rang the bell.
In short order the door was answered by Darcy, the queen’s live-in maid.
“Oh, hello, Mr. Rafe,” she said, giving him a sunny smile that warmed her youthful features. She was a bit young to be caring for the day-to-day needs of the queen, but she did her job admirably well and Simone liked her a great deal.
“Rafe! What are you doing here on this cold, wintry night?” Simone herself greeted him as she breezed into the anteroom from the living area.
Simone, the queen of the energy vampires, was a sophisticate of the highest order. She was about five feet ten, had long, beautiful legs and a slim carriage which was held in a very correct posture. She had curves that were right for her build, and long, glorious red hair that went halfway down her back. This was one of the rare occasions when she was wearing it down. She wore light makeup, just enough to accent without overdoing it, giving her a fresh-faced appearance. She looked young, in her late twenties, yet was old enough in her airs to be taken seriously. Rafe had learned long ago not to underestimate her. Though her ocean green eyes were often smiling, she could become stern and serious at the drop of a hat.
“Simone,” he greeted her, taking her outstretched hands in his and kissing her on both of her smooth porcelain cheeks. Hers was a china white beauty, set off by the flame of her hair. There was nary a freckle to be found. “How are you?”
“I am very well,” she said with a winning smile. “I love the snow, even if it does make hunting more difficult.”
“Winter makes hunting more difficult,” he corrected her. “It’s hard to get past all those clothing layers to find the back of the neck.”
“Don’t I know it. Come. Come inside. I was just discussing you with Tomas and—”
“I really shouldn’t stay. I was only coming to report to you before heading to bed.”
“Heading to bed? Fresh off a hunt? It’ll take you hours to wind down. Come spend the evening with us.”
She had a point. Feeding provided a high of sorts, and it would be quite some time before he would come down from it. With a smile he nodded, and she gave him an expression of satisfaction in return. Darcy was taking his coat the next instant and he made his way into the penthouse’s enormous living area. The penthouse took up the entire top floor, the space a piece of premium real estate worth millions in the Manhattan housing market. The living area was nestled in the northwest corner of the building, providing two walls of glass windows looking down onto the Manhattan skyline, the lights twinkling both near and far. On a clear day you could see the rivers and Central Park from these windows. Now all you could see was darkness, lights, and falling snow.
Even so, it gave you a feeling of the vastness of the world beyond, and the humble understanding that your place in the universe was minuscule compared to all that was out there. At least, that was how their queen described it. She said the view kept her humble. Remembering that always made him smile.
“So tell me,” Simone said as she moved to one of the modern white couches and perched on the arm of it. “What have you been up to besides hunting? I have not seen you today but for a few moments. Has anything interesting happened?”
Immediately he thought of Renee. He thought of how much energy she had packed into her. He thought of how easy their conversation had been, even though he’d had to tell only half-truths about himself. Actually, he hadn’t exactly lied; he’d just omitted details. For instance, he was an attaché for his government—just not for the Portuguese government. He had let her draw her own conclusion and had not corrected her.
Usually it was easy to lie and omit. He had been doing so for decades. It was second nature at this point and necessary if he was going to move through a human world. But for some reason he had felt regret about having to mislead Renee.
It was ridiculous, he scolded himself. She was just a woman. A human woman. A source of food and information. He shouldn’t attach anything more to her than that.
“I met with Racine and Farrel today,” he said, deciding at the last minute to keep his dinner with Renee all to himself. Other e-vamps wouldn’t understand his fascination with a human woman. Hell, he didn’t understand it himself. And there was no need to report anything about it since he had no new information to impart.
“And what did they have to say?”
“Well, Racine mentioned that the London vampires are very much on board with the new treaty, and Farrel assured me the same was true of the Berlin vampires.”
“But you don’t trust them?” she asked, sensing his hesitation.
“I trust that they are out for their own interests. This treaty has to benefit them or they will have no interest in it.”
“I think it does benefit them. If we banded together, organized ourselves better, and trusted one another more we could eradicate the threat of the sycophants once and for all.” She frowned with frustration. “I mean, don’t they understand what’s at stake here? Don’t they all? We are in danger of being outnumbered by the sycophants. The sycophants trafficking in drugs and humans must stop. It affects humans as well as us. And we need to protect humans. Clean resources are few and far between as it is.”
“You’re preaching to the choir. I have my regulars that I know I can get clean energy from, but I’m constantly searching for more clean sources and they aren’t very easy to find—even in a metropolitan area like this. At least, there are areas of the city where healthy living is a way of life, but still…And that is to say nothing of when we travel—when we go to places where the population is slimmer and the choices are few. Sycophants compete for these clean sources as well, even though they also indiscriminately take from unclean sources and don’t care if they kill in the process of taking.”
“It is a delicate balancing act to take only so much and leave our resources to recover well,” Simone said. “An act sycophants do not care about. They just rove about in packs, descending on innocents and passing them between one another until the innocent is drained dry and left to die. It’s unconscionable. It makes me sick just to think of it.”
“I know. I know this is a sensitive topic for you,” Rafe said soothingly, reaching out to cover her hand with his, giving it a warm squeeze.
“It should be a sensitive topic for us all. The time for turning a blind eye is over.”
“And it will be. Have faith, Simone. This treaty is the beginning of a new age of peace and understanding between the cities of e-vamps both here and abroad. Each of the princes of those cities must answer to you, my beautiful queen. They will come to the table or they will pay the consequences.”
“Then it will be vampire against vampire and I do not want that.”
“You must hold firm, Simone. You can’t let the princes walk all over you.”
“I know that,” she said, sighing wearily. “I only wish it didn’t have to be such a contest of wills all of the time.”
“As do I. But one day there will be unification. One day all of the princes will fall in line and we will all stop fighting amongst ourselves and focus on the true enemy. That is what this treaty does. And for every signature we gain, we move one step closer to taking out the sycophants entirely.”
“Let’s talk of other things,” Simone said with sudden brightness, her smile strained as she tried to force them onto lighter topics. Her worry over her people was vast and constant, but she functioned well in spite of it. “Tell me, how is your love life?”
He laughed. “Nonexistent,” he said. Again, he did not mention his intriguing dinner. There could never be anything between an e-vamp and a human. It would be like dating your food.
Wouldn’t it?
“Why is that? Why cannot you or I or the dozen or so men and women I am surrounded by daily find love? Are we so cold?”
“Not cold. Jaded perhaps. But what are you talking about? Ramon and Elena have been togeth
er for a decade at least.”
“True. But I don’t count them because they bicker so constantly. I think they have fallen out of love with each other and only stay together because they are afraid to be alone. I don’t blame them. It is quite lonely this way.”
“Nonsense. You and I are surrounded by people constantly. Especially you.”
“You can be lonely in a crowded room,” she said wistfully.
“I suppose that’s true. Then why don’t you find someone? Surely there is someone who strikes your fancy?”
“Mmm, maybe as a lover. I have those I exercise my passions with quite regularly.” She gave him a broad wink. “But no one special. Maybe I’m meant to be alone. It is the weight a political crown must carry.”
“Nonsense. Being alone is a choice. You just can’t find someone you trust your heart to. I don’t judge you. I am the same way. But it is worse for you because you have so much more to lose if things don’t work out well.”
“It’s true. I must learn to trust more. As should you.”
“I am inherently skeptical. It comes with the territory of my job. I negotiate these finer details of peace, but I don’t trust they will always be accepted and adhered to.”
“It is your job to extend trust,” she scolded him. “It is Danton and his crew’s job to bring attention to those who renege on the treaties we set in place.”
“Perhaps it’s time I changed jobs then,” he said softly. “I find I am not as optimistic as I once was…or as I should be.”
“I am sorry to hear that,” she replied with a concerned frown. “You are a valuable asset to our team of negotiators, Rafe.”
“I know,” he said, trying on a supportive smile. “But perhaps I will be of better use to you elsewhere.”
“No. You do not need to have faith that the laws will be upheld in order to do your job well. You need only to enjoy the negotiation and the win,” she said.
“I do enjoy that,” he admitted. “I love to argue. I love the victory of winning an argument. But I have little passion for who I am arguing with and still less faith in them. I think that’s important.”
“How long have you been feeling like this? Why haven’t you said anything to me before?”
“I guess I had not realized the depth at which it was concerning me until just now. Suddenly voicing it makes it feel all the more true and real.” He reached out and took her hand. He kissed her knuckles warmly and with intensity. “Don’t worry. I won’t leave you hanging. I won’t leave until after the treaty is signed by all of the vampire principalities.”
“We grow closer every day. The ceremony is mere days away. Princes from all over the world will be arriving shortly. I will need you more than ever.”
“I will be here,” he promised with a smile. “There is one other thing I need to report before going to bed tonight.” He responded to her cocked brow by giving her a very detailed accounting of the attack on him. With each word her frown grew deeper and her eyes grew stormier. Simone always took sycophant attacks personally.
“Do you think you were singled out on purpose?” she asked.
“No. I’m pretty sure it was just a stray.”
“Even so you’d have thought he would have sensed your power and left you alone.”
“He was pretty powerful himself. Perhaps he was just cocky. Anyway, he’s been dealt with, but I thought you should know.”
“Thank you, yes. I am glad you told me.”
“Now, as much as I love to spend time with you, I think I should be going. We’ll talk more tomorrow, all right?”
“All right. We’ll take a meeting first thing. I don’t have my calendar, but call Darcy. She will fit you in.”
“I’ll make sure of it. We have to review some of the arrangements for the summit as well. We have a meeting in the afternoon with Aarón and the security forces. We have a few things to go over still.”
“Double-checking as always,” she said, giving him a fond smile. “What would I do without you?”
“You’ll never be without me. I will always serve you in one capacity or another, my queen. Be assured of that. I am wholly devoted to you.”
“Thank you for that, Rafe. It means a great deal to me. I will see you tomorrow.”
Rafe moved forward and kissed her on her cheek, and then he left her apartment.
He lived only a floor below her, his own apartment taking up the full northeast corner of the building. During the morning the sun would shine so brightly it was energizing and delightful. But tomorrow promised to be overcast and snowing. Tomorrow he would be looking down on a winter cityscape. For now, he went to bed.
He lay there for quite a while, gazing up into the darkness of his bedroom, thinking of many things. But his last thought before falling asleep was of a petite blonde with bright eyes and a keen sense of the world. Before he fell asleep he knew he would be finding her tomorrow.
Chapter 5
It was the ringing phone that roused Renee from the deepest slumber of her life. She sat up in bed, wholly disoriented, as the phone continued to ring. The covers were tangled about her legs, and the first thing she noticed was that she had fallen asleep in her T-shirt and underwear. The next thing she noticed was a pervading weakness that seemed to be riding down the length of her body. She was tired even though she had apparently slept quite deeply. Perhaps, she thought, she was coming down with something.
She struggled out of bed and managed to catch her cellphone before it went to voicemail.
“Hello?”
“OMG hello! You never called me to tell me you got in safe last night! I’ve been calling and texting for hours! I even banged on your door! Didn’t you hear me? I was about to call the cops!”
“Hi, Em,” she said, sighing as she settled down on a barstool at her kitchen counter. She really needed to sit down. Emily was lucky she’d even woken up. She tipped her phone and glanced at it, seeing the string of messages from Emily. She didn’t read them since Emily was right there on the line.
“ ‘Hi, Em,’ she says.” Emily squeaked, “I’ve been worried sick.”
“I’m sorry, Em. I don’t know what happened. I must have been so tired I forgot to call. But you know I can take care of myself.”
“You’re not naked with him are you? He was hot. That picture you sent me…he was smoking. Is he Latin? He looks Latin.”
“He’s Portuguese.”
“How’s his English? Wait. Scratch that. How’s his French?”
“Em!”
“Don’t tell me you didn’t kiss him! Or did you kiss him a lot? Is he still there?”
“He is not still here,” she said with a laugh. “You know I don’t sleep with a guy on a first date.”
“There are exceptions to every rule. For instance, the rule where you’d never go out with a complete stranger.”
Yes, well, she had definitely broken that rule last night, Renee conceded.
“His French is…”
She thought back to their kiss good night. She remembered the heat of it. The depth. The way she had melted against him. She remembered the warm slip of his tongue against hers and how it had stimulated every last living cell in her body. But that was all she remembered. After that she had nothing. She didn’t remember saying goodbye. She didn’t remember going up the stairs to her apartment and she didn’t remember going to bed or why she had gone to sleep without putting on her pajamas first.
“His French is mind-blowing,” she answered Emily frankly with a long drawn-out sigh of pleasure.
“Oh. Wow. Has he called you yet? Have you infected his every waking thought?”
“He hasn’t called me. I…I didn’t give him my number.”
“You didn’t give him your number? Why not? Did he have bad body odor? Crooked teeth? They didn’t look crooked in his photo. Did he push too hard for more than just a kiss?”
“No. He was perfect. Absolutely perfect.”
“Then why didn’t you give him your number?�
� Emily whined.
“Because he gave me his. He left it in my hands whether I would call him or not.”
“Oh. Well, that’s very gentlemanly of him. It must be a Portuguese thing. And are you going to call him?”
“Yes,” Renee said with a secret smile for herself. “I’m going to call him.”
“Woohoo!” Emily whooped on the other end of the phone “Finally! Your love life has been nonexistent for way too long. It wasn’t just a dry spell, it was a frickin’ desert!”
“Emily!” Renee scolded with a laugh.
“So is he tall? He looked tall. Tall, dark, and handsome.”
“Yes, he is all of those. And well-mannered and well-spoken. If not for his accent you wouldn’t know he hadn’t been born here. It’s very faint though. Just enough of one to make him seem exotic.”
“Oh, he sounds divine!” Emily said with a longing sigh.
“Well…he is divine,” Renee said with another smile. She loved Emily and her unbridled enthusiasm. She always reminded Renee to keep having fun, no matter what.
“So when are you going to call him?” Emily asked.
“Oh. I don’t know. When can I call him that won’t seem too eager?”
“Nonsense. No one worries about that anymore. And anyway you don’t want to wait too long or he’ll think you aren’t interested.”
“Ugh. This is the part I hate about dating. The part where people play games.”
“It’s not playing a game. Not if you don’t want it to be. Just pick up the phone sometime this afternoon and thank him for taking you out last night. Then you ask him out again. Simple. It’s the ABC’s of dating.”
“You make it sound so simple, Em. But it’s actually quite complicated. I mean…there’s got to be something wrong with him. Something I’m not seeing.”
“Something you’ll only discover once you’ve dated him a few times,” Emily said. “In the meantime, just enjoy yourself.”
“I suppose you are right. No sense looking for trouble. I’ll just go about my normal life and see what happens.”
“See? I give good advice sometimes.”
“All the time,” Renee said fondly. “Anyway, it was just a meal. I barely had any makeup on so I looked like a train wreck. I’m sure I didn’t make a very good impression on him. He probably thinks I talk too much about myself.”
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