Real Vampires: Glory Does Vegas

by Bartlett, Gerry

  “My soul is still my own. I think we all, if we’re ancient vampires, with the way we had to survive long ago, have much to answer for. Do you agree?” Alex focused on Jerry.

  “Aye. I have done things that I’m sure will eventually make me roast in Hell. But Glory is not like me. She made a mistake getting involved with this demon and regrets it.” Jerry held onto me, always trying to protect me. “What do you know? Can you help my lady?”

  I wiggled out of Jerry’s arms and grabbed Alex’s hand. “Please. You have no idea how desperate I am. If I sell my soul, I…” I felt my knees go weak. “Well, I know I just can’t do it. Please, help me.”

  “All right. For a lovely lady.” Alex smirked at Jeremiah and held my elbow, helping me take a seat in front of his dressing table mirror. It was for show. Neither of us reflected there. “Did this demon have a name?”

  “Davenport.” I couldn’t stop shaking. Was Alex really going to help me?

  “Hmm. I don’t know him. He may be new, trying to prove himself with this.” He glanced at Harry. “That could make this more difficult.”

  “He did seem very determined.” I knew all eyes were on me. I’d been such a fool, asking a demon for anything. But then he had sought me out, hadn’t he? Stalked me. Why? Would I ever get an answer?

  Alex took my hands. “Did he ask you what you valued most?” He stared into my eyes when I nodded and fought fresh tears. “What did you say?”

  “Jeremiah.” I heard my lover swear in Gaelic. Could he really be surprised? If a demon asked him what he valued most, I felt sure it would be my name on his lips, not his sword or his good name or even his family. He was ever at odds with his parents.

  “You’re right. While I don’t know this particular demon, I’m sure he’s like all of them, full of malice and determined to cause pain. He’ll be coming after your man.” He glanced back at the group. “Your sire?”

  “Yes. We have been together for over four-hundred years.” I looked at Jeremiah, sure my heart was in my eyes.

  “Gloriana.” Jerry shook his head. “You shouldn’t–”

  “She said it, what’s done cannot be undone. It’s a strong bond. That in itself will be hard for a demon to break. So that’s good news.” Anderston tapped his chin, thinking. “Why did you owe him? What did he do for you?”

  “He stopped a friend from gambling, made her quit completely and very suddenly. It was ruining her life!” I couldn’t resist looking around the room for support. What I got was pity from my friends and anger from my lover. “He also paid off her debts.” I stared down at my lap, pleating my pretty red dress with my nervous fingers.

  “Are you mad? You made a demon do a good deed for one of your friends? You asked nothing for yourself?” Alex walked around the room after I shook my head. “Did you hear that, Harry? This is all about her helping another. God would certainly be willing to intervene here. Don’t you think?”

  “Yes, indeed. Holy water. That’s the ticket.” Harry began to rummage through a duffle bag in one corner of the room. “Bible too.” He turned to look at me. “Don’t suppose you go to church, do you, girl?”

  “No, but I’ll start praying right now, start going this Sunday if that will help. It’s not that I don’t believe. I have a hole in my memory. . . It’s a long story. But if asking God for help is the ticket, too, then I’m ready to jump on that train.” I was finally hopeful.

  “Harry?” Maggie spoke. “How do you know about this?”

  “I was a priest once upon a time. Before I met my pal Alex here.” He brought out a worn Bible and a bottle with a cork in it. “Here’s some holy water and my own Bible. I’ll want it back once the deed is done. Let me mark some passages that’ll get that demon on his way back to Hell.”

  “Harry and I have been together for more than fifty years. He’s saved me more than once and not just from demons.” Alex’s face softened. “I would turn him in a minute if he’d agree to be with me forever.”

  “Become a blood sucker? No thank you. I like my steak and eggs too much for that, my dear.” Harry smiled at his friend.

  I reached for the holy water. “I’ll need more instructions. Davenport is horrible. He’s threatening to ruin the blood tasting we’re having at the Velvet Slipper. I don’t suppose you know about it.”

  “Everyone knows about it, my dear.” Anderston smiled. “I thought about making an appearance. Do you think your guests would be amused? By a trick or two?”

  I didn’t have to pause to think. “That would be amazing. Come. I’ll put you on the guest list.”

  Harry held out the Bible. “I’ve marked a few passages with bits of paper. Say those words and shower him with holy water. But first go to a church and pray. Hold the Bible and ask God to help you. If you are truly a good person and the favor you asked for was in good faith, for a good reason, then God will help you. I believe that with all my heart.” Harry smiled and touched the top of my head before he murmured some words in a language I thought might be Latin. “Believing is the key. Can you do it?”

  “Yes, yes I can.” I clutched the Bible to my chest. Whatever Harry had said made me tingle from the top of my head down through my body. “Thank you . I already feel better. Like I have hope.”

  “Oh, you should. I can tell when someone is good and you obviously had good intentions.” Harry looked at his fingers. “There’s something else at work here. Did you tell me everything?”

  “Power. The demon kept talking about my power.” I looked down at my own hand. “I discovered I can shoot sparks, like electricity, from my fingers if I concentrate.”

  Harry and Alex exchanged looks while my friends exclaimed.

  “Gloriana, can you really?” Jerry turned me to face him.

  “Yes, Jeremiah. I made a slot machine blow up.” I leaned against him, my knees weak. “I also used that power to send a mortal running who’d been bothering us at the apartment.”

  “Demons are drawn to power.” Harry frowned. “Still, do as I said and you can defeat him. But next time you have a problem, solve it yourself. Don’t ask a demon for help. Otherwise, Alex can tell you there can be hell to pay.”

  “Don’t remind me.” Anderston waved us away. “Go. Harry and I will see you at the Velvet Slipper on Halloween night. I won’t bring the pigeons. They make such a mess. Harry fusses about it.”

  “Right you are.” Harry took the Bible and slipped it and the holy water into a bag and handed them to me.

  We left while Harry and Alex were arguing about the pigeons.

  “That took most of our night but I think it was worth it.” Jerry kept his arm around me as we walked down to the parking garage. “Do you really feel better?”

  “Sure.” I couldn’t wait to tell Valdez what I’d learned. Connie had texted me that Dennis had some ideas too. Davenport had misjudged me. I wasn’t going down without a fight.

  “This evening was fun. Don’t let more decades go by without a get-together, guys.” Fergus and Maggie settled in the back seat of the luxury car Jeremiah had rented. He drove, of course. I put the bag between my feet and finally relaxed. We weren’t that far from their hotel, but we didn’t want to walk and I had cramped their style when it came to shape-shifting and flying. Yes, I got pitying looks from them but that didn’t make me suddenly sprout wings, did it?

  “I’d like to see you shoot sparks from your fingertips.” Jerry pulled out into traffic on a side street. He was entering the Strip when an eighteen-wheeler suddenly came out of nowhere and hit us broadside.

  Screams—mine?—metal tearing, brakes squealing while I was flung against the door next to me. My head slammed into the glass, before we landed with a horrifying crash into a brick wall. The car accordioned into a smoking mess. I was sure all of us had been flung about like rag dolls. Did we have on seatbelts? Immortal vampires?

  I couldn’t see. Couldn’t move. My head felt flattened where it rested against the cracked passenger side window. Blood ran into my eyes. When I tried to
wipe it away with my right arm, I screamed. Trapped, my arm was trapped against the door. I used my left arm to wipe away the blood and shove aside an air bag until I finally saw… Jerry! He lay sprawled on the hood of the car. He’d been hurled through the shattered windshield, a broken toy, prostrate on the smoking metal. He wasn’t moving.

  Moans from the back seat. Maggie and Fergus. Gods, I prayed they were all right. Couldn’t turn my head to look. My neck. No, my back. Had to get to Jerry. I screamed again when I used my left arm to push up. Heal. I needed to heal. Blood. Needed… help. Where?

  The truck that had hit us backed up with a screech of torn metal and sped away. The driver must not be hurt. Wait. Where was he going? Help us. We needed help.

  “Aw, does the little vampire feel bad?” Davenport ripped away the remains of the shattered windshield and tossed it aside. He stared at me with a smile. “Want me to fix you?”

  “You! You did this!” It wasn’t a question. I bit back more screams as I leaned toward him. Holy water. I reached for the floor. Felt for it with my foot. Not…there. Every bone in my body felt broken. “Why?”

  “You think I didn’t know what you were planning? Asking everyone you knew how to get rid of a demon.” He grabbed my other arm, twisting it while I fought not to scream. He would like that. I finally swam back to consciousness when he released me.

  “I’ll beat you yet,” I croaked, barely above a whisper, but I know he heard me.

  He hissed, a sound straight from Hell. “You owe me! Don’t try to cheat the Devil, Gloriana St. Clair.”

  Footsteps were running towards us and Davenport disappeared. Alex and Harry peered at me through the window.

  “Dear God in Heaven. Don’t move. We’re calling for help.” Harry had a cell phone in his hand.

  “Not yet.” Alex waved over someone. “You there. Give me your arm.” He pushed the man into Harry’s arms. “Close your eyes, Glory, I’m breaking this side window.” Glass breaking. “Open your eyes. Take this.” He handed me the stranger’s wrist. “Drink.”

  I didn’t hesitate with a mortal’s arm in my face.

  “Hurry, he can’t feel a thing.” Alex stared at me. “More are coming. This is going to take some fancy magic.” He left the man’s side after he saw me bite into the man’s wrist.

  Could the man afford to lose blood? I couldn’t worry about that. I drank. I had to heal and heal fast. I was vaguely aware of Harry and Alex talking to people. Harry turned Jeremiah’s head and placed a mortal wrist against Jerry’s mouth. Could he drink?

  I closed my eyes and kept drinking, feeling strength return to my broken limbs. The pain brought tears to my eyes. I dropped the wrist when the car moved suddenly.

  “Gods!” I held onto the crushed dashboard and looked over to see Fergus, Harry and Alex pulling the car away from the building. Fergus. One of his arms hung uselessly by his side. Where was Maggie?

  “We’re opening your door now. This will hurt.” Harry’s voice calmed me until the screech of metal tearing shocked me into falling out of the car. “Glory, can you hear me?”

  “I, I am going to be sick.” I leaned over and threw up on the pavement. Thank the gods I felt air on my face and the nausea disappeared as fast as it had come. Strange that I had felt that at all. Then again, the blood I’d just taken had been strange too. I saw the man who’d given me his wrist sitting in the parking garage, a bottle of juice in his hand. Harry picked me up and laid me on the pavement.

  “Sorry about that man’s blood. We realized after we chose him that he’d been using drugs. I’ll get you a new donor right now.” Harry frowned when a police car pulled up. “Well, this one will be drug free.” He walked up to the officer and began talking. Then he led a policeman to me, his sleeve rolled up. He’d obviously been mesmerized.

  “Harry? I didn’t know shifters could do that.” Then I took that nice clean wrist and bit into it. B negative. Very nice. I drank and my limbs began to heal more rapidly. My arm that had been crushed against the door tingled as the fresh blood did its magic. I moved my fingers first, then my wrist. My ankle had been broken, but now I could feel it healing as bones knit together. I heard the cop’s radio going off from where he wore it on his belt. He ignored it, staring blissfully into the space above my head.

  Sirens filled the air. Someone had called an ambulance. This time it was Alex who took the two paramedics and placed them with Jerry and Maggie. Fergus must have pulled his wife from the wreckage. He was talking to her as she lay on the pavement. I could see her moving but carefully, as if she too had broken bones.

  A crowd had gathered and Alex was busy mesmerizing all of them. This was the performance of his life and I could tell he was actually enjoying it. When I finally let go of the policeman’s arm, I gently pushed him away and got to my feet. I was weak and wobbly as I walked around the sad wreckage of what had been a very fine automobile. I was desperate to get to Jeremiah’s side. Damn Davenport. I was even more determined now to not only outsmart him, but to make him pay.

  “Gloriana. Are you all right?” Jeremiah released the paramedic’s arm and sat up very carefully. “We were hit. The truck came out of nowhere.” He rubbed his face. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I’m healing. This was not your fault, Jerry.” I sat next to him and carefully brushed chunks of glass out of his hair. “My God, you were thrown through the windshield.”

  He looked back at the car. “I swear, that driver hit us deliberately. It makes no sense.”

  “Sure it does, if you’re a demon.” I leaned against him, still weak and scared. “He wanted to kill you, Jeremiah. To hurt me. I’m the one who’s sorry.” I knew the demon would be back. When? Where? I felt that nausea again. This time it wasn’t from tainted blood. It was pure terror.

  I had to defeat the demon or sell my soul. Those were my choices. I closed my eyes, refusing to look at the horrific scene again. If I’d learned nothing else from this, I’d learned that, immortal or not, even vampires should wear seatbelts. Seeing Jerry lying on the hood of that car would haunt me forever.

  29

  “ H alloween night is perfect for this.” Adela Schmidt was obviously very pleased with the arrangements. She might have made her money in Europe, but she was looking forward to seeing what Dom would bring together for the other territories. Luca clearly was more interested in Connie and her costume. She made a very sexy cave woman.

  “I detect a theme tonight, Glory. You look lovely. And there’s to be a singer?” Luca zeroed in on Marlene, setting up next to the stage.

  Luca was right. The servers and singer had all decided to dress as if straight from a Flintstones cartoon. Dennis strutted his stuff bare-chested in a loin cloth. He had Adela’s interest as he brought her a glass of her favorite premium synthetic. I wore an off-the-shoulder costume that showed a lot of skin. The tiger print was our common denominator. Connie’s costume dipped low enough to show the tops of her breasts. When she bent over to serve drinks, the customers would get an eyeful. We were all in it for the tips.

  “Yes, Marlene Davies will sing. Later, we’ll have a famous magician perform a few tricks. Maybe you’ve heard of him, The Great Anderston?”

  “Yes, yes indeed!” Luca waved Connie over. “Why I am most impressed. Most impressed.” He smiled at Connie. “Dear Connie, could you bring me a glass of the Brazilian champagne? I’m dying to try it.”

  “Certainly, sir.” She hurried away.

  “I could have served you, Luca.” I was a little frustrated. The rich Romanian obviously saw me as part of management, not a server. Was I going to miss out on tips altogether?

  “My dear, I will make sure you get a bonus after this night is over.” Luca took my hand. “Your work for Dominic has not gone unnoticed by my wife and myself.” He nodded toward where shape-shifters were checking in the guests and a burly vampire was even giving them a sniff test. We didn’t want demons or werewolves slipping in among the guests.

  “We like Dom and he has certainly done
a fine job organizing the bidding, but I can see your fine hand in these arrangements.” Luca waved his hand around the room. “A man like Dominic would never have thought of the décor or the entertainment. Both will help the clients relax and enjoy our products.”

  “Why, thank you, Luca.” I didn’t mention that he’d read my mind, which I didn’t appreciate. I had to be more careful around him. “I hope you noticed that the Brazilians aren’t here. They wanted to be, but we persuaded them to let us handle things.” I pulled my hand from his. “That will give you a decided advantage when it comes to talking about your own products.”

  “Yes, it will.” He looked around the room. “I see more guests are arriving. Cleopatra is lovely.”

  “She is a friend of mine. Be careful, her husband is jealous. They are the Turnbulls. They can certainly afford to invest in a franchise. Talk to them.”

  “With the famous Turnbull Shape-shifters?” When I nodded, Luca hurried to greet them.

  The room was filling and I was happy to see Jerry arrive with his own shape-shifter in tow. Sherie joined Valdez against the wall. The more vampires in the club, the harder it would be to control things. I had just managed to make my way to my lover when I felt the air change in the room. A cool breeze? No, my imagination. Because the next person to arrive wasn’t a demon, no, it was Robert MacDonald with his own entourage.

  “I knew he was coming, but it still makes my blood boil to see him here.” Jerry gripped his sword.

  “Don’t you dare start something.” I held onto his sword arm. He looked wonderful in his kilt with the sword strapped on. I’m sure the security at the door had tried to rid him of it but he’d never give it up. Robert had worn his own kilt and sword. It was like a slap in the face to Jerry.

  “Who’s that with him?” Jerry looked down at my hand until I let go.

  “Odette. She’s a vampire who lives here in town. I like her.” I moved to his other side. “I’m sure you remember that I like Robert as well. Whatever old disputes you have with the man need to be put aside tonight. We need to make this evening a success. I’ve worked hard on it.”