“Are you going to be comfortable in those shoes?” asked Jeff. “I hear there’s a good bit of walking on this tour.”
Nadia looked down at her feet and said, “Oh, sure. They’re as comfortable as any.”
Jeff laughed and shook his head. “If you say so. We should have invited your brother along tonight.”
Nadia chuckled and said, “Good luck with that one. My workaholic brother wouldn’t be able to pry himself away from working long enough to enjoy it. He does the bookkeeping and payroll for all three bars, and he micromanages everything. As for After Dark, all I do is get onstage and talk and sing. He does everything else. He’s the businessman, and I’m the entertainer.”
“Apparently, it’s paying off. He seems very successful.”
“Yep. He is, but he never stops. I don’t know how his wife puts up with it. I guess working with him is the key to success in that marriage.”
Jeff smiled and said, “I’m sure your father is proud of both of you. Have you talked to him recently?”
Nadia’s mind began to race. Here we go. I should have known he was going to ask. Jeff believes my father’s disappearance was foul play, and he’s not going to let up until he finds out the truth. Keep it together, Nadia. There’s no way Jeff is going to find out that my brother is really my father, my father is a vampire, and I’m a vampire too. Keep your cool. “Yes, earlier this evening.” Not a lie, she told herself. I just talked to him at Vampyr.
“Where is he living now?”
She shrugged her shoulders and said, “Well, he moves around all the time. He never stays in one place too long.”
“Where was he tonight when you talked to him?” asked Jeff, appearing confused.
“Um. You know, I didn’t ask, and he didn’t say. I mean, what’s the point? I can’t keep up with him. Just hearing his voice and knowing he’s okay is about all we can ask for.”
The tour guide showed up just in time to save Nadia from having to answer any more of Jeff’s grilling questions. She noticed his attire and thought, what the fuck?
He blended in with the night dressed in all black with black boots, but that was about all he had in common with a real vampire.
His face was powdered white with dark red lipstick, guyliner, and red and black eyeshadow smeared around his eyes under disheveled chin length black hair parted in the middle. She wondered if he was trying to look like a mortal’s image of a vampire or just doing his best Alice Cooper impersonation.
His exaggerated fangs appeared to be held in with dental putty. The yellow contact lens just looked weird. The long black cape he was wearing made him look like the poster boy for a costume shop. She covered her mouth with her hand and chuckled. Riley noticed and knew why she was amused.
The tour guide gathered everyone together to introduce himself and give the itinerary for the evening. “My darlings, may I have your attention, please. I’m Sebastien, and I’ll be your tour guide tonight. Now I know you’re all looking at me and wondering if I’m a vampire. Well, let me say this, if I were, I wouldn’t tell anyone. If I were a vampire, I could be as old as this building that goes back to 1806, but you could never tell by looking at me because vampires don’t age.”
“If he’s a vampire, I’m a mermaid,” mumbled Nadia under her breath.
Riley heard her and covered her mouth stifling a giggle.
Their first stop was the old Ursuline Convent on Chartres Street; the oldest building in the Mississippi River Valley. The building no longer functions as a convent, and it is currently the home of the Archdiocesan archives. Sebastien went on to relay one of New Orleans’ most frightening vampire legends; the story of the Ursuline nuns and the casket girls.
“In 1728, the casket girls were sent by the King of France to marry the French settlers and populate the swamp called La Nouvelle Orléans.
“The gentlemen in La Nouvelle Orléans, at that time, were pirates, scoundrels, murderers, and thieves; prisoners who had been exiled and promised if they reformed in Louisiana, they could return to France.
“Some say the girls were prostitutes, and some say they were orphans. When the fille à la cassette arrived in La Nouvelle Orléans, they each brought with them one chest shaped like a coffin containing their trousseau. The girls were brought to the Ursuline convent to live among the nuns until they were married. Deckhands followed them carrying their cassettes, and they were stored in the attic until the girls found a husband.
“After the arrival of the fille à la cassette, no one could explain why the mortality rate increased substantially, especially infant mortality. Later, when the girls got ready to marry, nobody could explain why the caskets were found empty.
“Fear of what the girls may have smuggled into La Nouvelle Orléans brought the Archdiocese to the convent to investigate. As a result of the investigation, the convent attic was sealed off, and the attic shutters were sealed shut with eight thousand nails; all blessed by the pope in Rome.
“Many believe the girls smuggled vampires into La Nouvelle Orléans in the caskets, and they remain sealed in the attic to this day. Sometimes the shutters fly open late at night, and mist can be seen escaping when the vampires come out to feed.”
Nadia let out a laugh.
Sebastien narrowed his eyes at her. “Do you think this is funny?”
Nadia shrugged and said, “Do you think giving vampires a bad name is funny?”
“What does that mean?” asked Sebastien.
Riley stood next to Nadia in shock wondering what she was getting ready to say. Certainly, she isn’t going to announce to everyone on the tour that she’s a real vampire.
“Well, think about it,” said Nadia. “You’re saying the casket girls smuggled vampires into New Orleans when they came over to marry the colonists. First of all, if a vampire wanted to get to New Orleans from France, he could get here all on his own in less time than it takes to fly from here to New York in an airplane. No self-respecting vampire is going to spend months at sea in a chest that looks like a coffin.
“Second, if the caskets were locked in the attic with the vampires in them, where were the vampires when it came time to open them? If the vampires were not in the caskets or the attic when they opened the chests, apparently they had gotten away. If they had escaped, why would they come back to the attic?
“If the vampires were no longer in the attic, there would be no need to seal it shut with thousands of blessed nails. But you’re saying the vampires are locked in the attic on top of the convent, of all places, and they can’t get out. But they actually can get out because somehow they morph into some kind of mist that can slip through the cracks and come out of the attic at night. But, for some strange, stupid reason, after they feed, they go back to the attic that they’re trying so desperately to figure out how to escape from. In two hundred and fifty years they haven’t figured out how to break through the wooden shutters that seal them in. Oh wait, they have figured it out, but they keep going back to their attic prison. They must not be very smart.”
Sebastien had never had anyone challenge his narration before, so he wasn’t sure how to handle the situation. “I see. Well, Miss …”
“It’s Mrs., Mrs. Devereaux.”
“Well, Mrs. Devereaux, maybe you should conduct the tour since you seem to know so much more than I do about vampires,” said Sebastien sarcastically.
“Maybe I should, but that’s what you get paid to do. I’ll keep my mouth shut for the rest of the tour, but don’t be offended if I can’t help but find some of these stories funny.”
Sebastien gave her a condescending look and continued with his narration. As the tour progressed, they explored other landmarks while Sebastien explained the legend of the infamous vampire, Jacques St. Germaine, and told the tale of the notorious Carter Brothers.
Nadia began to become intrigued by Sebastien. She wondered if he possibly knew something about real vampires even though the stories he’s telling the tourists are just that.
The
tour concluded at Jean LaFitte’s Bar where it began. Sebastien thanked everyone and passed out discount coupons to use on their next visit before telling his satisfied guests goodnight.
Nadia watched him as he walked down the street to a gay bar in the next block on Bourbon called The Purple Dragon. She flashed a mischievous smile thinking til we meet again, Sebastien, and that may be sooner than you think.
Jeff and Laurie planned to go back to the hotel bar for cocktails. Nadia was starved for blood and needed a drink to warm her.
Riley had a date with Tristan and was getting antsy about leaving, but she didn’t want her parents to suspect she had a date. “Mom and Dad, Nadia and I are going to go to a couple of bars. I’ll be home later.”
“All right,” said Jeff. “You two be careful.”
As Nadia was adjusting her purse on her shoulder, she swung her hand and accidentally brushed Jeff’s arm with her palm. He noticed her hand was like ice. She could tell by the expression on his face that he noticed. She looked at him and said, “Sorry, cold can.” He smiled but remembered she was within his view the entire night and he hadn’t seen her drink anything. He wondered how a human could feel so cold in the middle of August. A puzzled Jeff took his wife’s hand, and they walked toward Chartres Street while Nadia and Riley headed up Bourbon.
“How did things go with Tristan last night?” asked Nadia.
“It went well. We have a date tonight. I’m meeting him at Midnight Oasis. Quinn was right about the bite marks deterring vampires. When I displayed them, they couldn’t get away fast enough. You were right about being confident. Philip was kind of an asshole, but I showed him who was boss.”
Nadia laughed and said, “Good for you. I’m glad things are progressing. I’m going back to Vampyr. I need a drink, and I’m going for a live one in Vampyr alley.”
“Why not just have a drink in the Midnight Oasis alley?”
“The blood at Vampyr is much tastier,” said Nadia. “Different clientele.”
RILEY ENTERED MIDNIGHT OASIS. Philip noticed her as she was coming in. She sat at the bar and pulled out her cell phone. Philip approached her and leaned on the bar. “Well, if it ain’t Quinn’s mistress. Whatcha doing, two-timin him with Tristan?”
She smiled and said, “No.”
“Do you want me to call Tristan for you tonight?”
“No. I called him myself, but thank you for offering.”
Tristan entered and sat next to Riley. He looked at her and smiled. “Did you do anything fun tonight?”
“I did. I went on a vampire tour with my parents and Nadia.”
Tristan cracked up at the thought of Nadia playing tourist. “Nadia went on a vampire tour?”
“Oh yes. The poor tour guide. I think he’s probably looking for a new job right now.”
Tristan laughed. “Yep, I can believe that. Everything is flowing smoothly tonight, so I thought maybe we could do something fun. How adventurous are you?”
She looked at him wondering what he had in mind. “I love adventure.”
With a look of mischief in his eyes, he said, “You’re not afraid of heights, are you?”
Curious about what he had planned, she replied, “N-o-o-o-o. W-h-y?”
“Because I have a surprise, and I think you’ll like it.” He stood up and took her hand helping her up. He pulled a blindfold from his pocket.
“What’s that for?”
“It’s to make sure you don’t ruin the surprise by opening your eyes too soon.” He secured it over her eyes tying it in the back of her head. He slid his arms around her waist and said, “Do you trust me?”
“Is there some reason why I should?” she asked, playfully.
“I did save your life,” he answered, lightheartedly.
“Yes, well, I guess that’s reason enough.”
“Good, because I have something amazing and spectacular to show you. All you have to do is hang on to me.”
No problem with that, she thought. He slid his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. The sensation of flying combined with Tristan clinging to her felt like floating on a cloud at high speed. She felt free as a bird floating through the air in Tristan’s arms. Soon she felt the ground beneath her feet, and they were standing still. When he removed the blindfold, her jaw dropped. She couldn’t believe her eyes. It was just the two of them standing on the top observation deck of the Empire State Building in New York City.
She looked around in utter amazement. “Oh, my gosh. It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen the entire city of New York at night like this. It’s breathtakingly gorgeous.” She looked at him and said, “How did you do that? I’m afraid to ask how we got here.” She noticed there were no other people around. “Why are we the only ones here?”
He looked into her eyes and said, “We’re the only ones here because it’s closed for the night. We got in because I hypnotized the security guard. He can’t see us.”
Amazed at what vampires can do, she said, “I see. I’m impressed.”
“If you’re wondering why we’re here, it’s because I haven’t kissed you yet. I brought you here because you’re a special lady, and I wanted our first kiss to be someplace spectacular and memorable.”
“So you brought me all the way to Manhattan. Why?”
He smiled and said, “Because I’m a vampire and I can.”
She laughed and said, “That’s a good reason, I guess. You definitely get an A+ for romance.”
He took her in his arms gazing into her eyes. His hand slid behind her head, and their lips drifted together meeting in a lingering, intense kiss. He withdrew as their kisses began to get more passionate.
She smiled looking into his eyes and said, “I think you may have succeeded with spectacular and memorable. It’s all that and more. The view is magnificent.”
They looked out on the city and miles and miles of lights in awe before he lifted her up. Within a few minutes, she felt her feet touch the ground in front of Midnight Oasis. Still locked in an embrace, she said, “Tristan, that has to be the most incredible date I’ve ever been on. I’ve been to New York many times, but I’ve never seen it like that.”
He smiled at her and said, “I’m glad you enjoyed it. Next time we’ll do the city of lights.”
He couldn’t possibly mean what I think he means. “The city of lights? Is that as in Paris, the city of lights?”
He laughed and said, “That’s the one. Have you ever been?”
“Once years ago. I don’t remember it well. I’d love to go back there with you.”
He shrugged and said, “Then we’ll go.”
“Really! Just like that,” she said snapping her fingers.
He nodded and said, “Just like that. My mother has an apartment in Paris, but she’s never there, so we can stay a couple of nights if you want.”
“Wow. Okay. Yes, let’s do it.”
He opened the door to his apartment, and they entered. He slid his arm around her and pulled her close. He led her to his bedroom and pulled her into a steamy kiss. She unbuttoned his shirt and glided it over his shoulders. His hands slid under her top raising it over her head. He unzipped her shorts sliding them off along with her scanty panties. She unzipped his jeans, and he stepped out of them.
He sat on the bed pulling her down next to him kissing her. The scent of her blood tempted him. As long as she had Quinn’s marks, he felt certain no other vampire would bother her. “Would you mind if I take a little of your blood?”
She smiled and said, “It’s fine. It’s the best part.” His lips moved down to her shoulder. His fangs sunk into her flesh releasing droplets of blood. He drank from the wound, as he moved on top of her. Passion consumed her as waves of pleasure claimed her. She wondered, could this be love?
NADIA ENTERED THE PURPLE DRAGON. She saw Sebastien sitting at the bar and noticed his beer was almost empty. She approached him and took the empty stool next to him. “Hello, Sebastien.”
He lowered his eyebrows squi
nting his eyes at the last person he wanted or expected to see. “Oh, it’s you. Mrs. Deveraux, the girl from the tour. This must be my lucky day.”
Nadia chuckled and said, “Call me Nadia.” She motioned for the bartender to bring him another beer. The bartender opened it and placed it in front of him. Not sure what to make of her kind gesture, he asked, “Is there some reason you’re buying me a beer?”
She shrugged and said, “Call it a peace offering. I’m sorry I got carried away and challenged your narration. You did a great job. It’s just that I know better, and I may find those stories a little offensive. I guess I should expect that if I’m going to go on a vampire tour.”
He faced her and smiled. “It’s okay. What else can I expect from an actual vampire?”
That remark threw Nadia for a loop. How could he know that? “What, you knew?”
“I spotted you right away.”
She gave him a blank stare and said, “Okay, maybe you did figure me out right away, but if you know about real vampires, why are you feeding the tourists all that garbage? You know none of that’s true.”
Sebastien sipped his beer and said, “No, but it’s more fun. Think about it. They’re intrigued by New Orleans and the legends surrounding this old, haunted city. They want spine-chilling stories and spooky memories to go home and tell their friends. My business is to entertain them and give them what they want.”
“Maybe so, but it’s that kind of thing that forces vampires to have to live in secret. Let’s face it; vampires have a much worse reputation than we deserve. It’s not fair. We have so many restrictions on what we can and can’t do because of humanity’s perception of us, and it’s all because of stories like that.”
“I’m sorry. I know what you’re saying is true but look at it this way. Mortals don’t want to hear about vampires that are ordinary people other than their diet. They want to be scared. That’s why they pay to hear about all the legends and frightening things. Nothing personal, but they might find actual vampires a little boring.”
Sex, Blood, Rock 'N' Roll, and Vampyr (The Bloodline Series Book 1) Page 9
