Dead and Everything (Eve Benson: Vampire Book 2)

by P. S. Power

  Eve stopped at the front desk and nodded at him.

  “Marcus. Looking good, I see. Keep this up and we’ll have to go out one of these days. Do something fun.” She didn’t mean anything by it, but he rolled his eyes at her.

  “Sure. By that you mean making fun of me for being fat and ugly some more? I’m doing my best. I know that it isn’t enough. No one else thinks so either, so at least there’s that, right?”

  She took her own turn rolling her eyes.

  “Annnd you killed the mood. Stop being so down on yourself, dumbass. It takes time for people to see you for who you really are, and longer than that to turn yourself into someone hot enough for all the pretty girls to want. I was just complimenting you though, so really, chill out on the self-hate, will you? You’re doing well. Keep going. Still hitting the gym? It shows.”

  He nodded, “that and all the work around here. I swear, I never realized how much magic the embassy people had to do all the time. If I’m not doing up wards for widows, I’m volunteering at the hostel and working as a healer. That’s your fault though. Lyn Hartley keeps showing up to give me lessons. She’s good, I have to give her that. I saw her reattach a kid’s leg last month. Thirty minutes of pure work, and it was as good as new. Car accident.” There was a rather humble shrug then. “So, did you mean it about going out? I don’t really like you that much, but even just going to a movie with a girl that I don’t have to pay would help my image. Not that I pay for sex. I don’t. That means I haven’t been getting much.”

  She nearly laughed, since there were at least five succubae in the building at that moment. He had to know that though, so she didn’t point it out. If he wasn’t using one, or more, of them, then he had a reason for it.

  She reached out and touched his hand, which got him to tense just a tiny bit. At first she thought it might be the coolness of her skin, which could be shocking if you weren’t ready for it. She tended to be around room temperature, after all. When you expected a warm body and got that it seemed cold.

  “We can go and do that. I haven’t been to a movie in ages. Next week, maybe? If I don’t get called off to Russia. I hear there’s something going on there.” She didn’t elaborate, but took her hand back, trying not to seem like a major slut with the guy. He might not love her all that much, but the feeling really was mutual. He was a bit of a whining bitch most of the time as far as she could tell.

  She managed to get out of the room rather calmly, Eve thought.

  The thing was, when she first made skin on skin contact with him, for just the briefest of moments, Eve was nearly certain that she felt the same kind of tingle that she had with Darla, and Zack. Then it had stopped, sooner than it had with either of them, but that almost made the whole thing worse.

  Because Mark, her prior fatbeard, the one that she’d considered killing a dozen times, and nearly had, was almost certainly not a Mage at all.

  No, he was a Greater Demon.

  What that meant, or which one he was, she didn’t know.

  It was a good thing to find out, however.

  She did like that she was allowed to leave the room, and that she didn’t just die on the spot. That either meant she’d managed to fool the being, or, and this was far more likely, that it didn’t actually want her dead yet.

  Chapter fourteen

  Eve responded to the new idea, that Marcus was, and probably always had been, a Greater Demon, by doing the only sensible thing she could.

  Keeping Cormack awake, and making treats. Experimental ones that were, if not exactly stunning her with a brilliance that would astound herself if she could eat, at least different.

  She started with things that would work with coconut, but also managed to use all of that up, and then work her way into an avocado base.

  It meant keeping Cormack running, literally and figuratively, taking the Trollienkeine a constant stream of things as she made them, insisting that the groggy fellow take notes about what the giant beings said on the matter. They had really good noses, which meant they were pretty good tasters. The problem was that they needed to eat so much that they’d never learned to be picky about it like an American would be. They were given fat, sugar and fluff, and to them it meant they were eating a good thing. If she tried to serve them peanut butter and pickle flavored frozen yogurt they would have acted much the same way, she knew.

  That meant she needed to get Zack in on things, and, realizing that she was being a bit of a dork, not calling Mark on his Greater Demon bullshit, she took a tray of things over to him, too.

  He took one look at it, then shook his head. It didn’t even take him a half second to move from seeing the tray to getting the overall idea. That was really the thing that Greater Demons were all about, Eve knew. They might be powerful and impossible to kill for a regular Vampire like her, but they were all so smart that you really couldn’t outthink them either. It probably wasn’t even worth trying.

  Marcus gave her a grin that she thought might be what people would consider rueful.

  “I’m not sure if I should be sad that it took you this long to realize what I was, or if I should be happy that I managed it that well, given your background. You have had a bit more exposure to my kind than most. Oh, well… Here, I know, how about this? If you can guess who I am, then I’ll give you thirty thousand dollars. If on the other hand you fail, you have to put out with some naughty sexy times. What do you say?” He waited, his still round face too avid, clearly expecting her to say it was a deal.

  Like she was that mentally handicapped? Even compared to one of the Greater Demons, who were all super geniuses, no matter what they acted like, Eve wasn’t a moron. She was, if nothing else, smart enough not to fall into a trap that easily.

  Plus, there were only so many Greater Demons that she knew, and while it could be one of the others, most of them wouldn’t have tried to trick her like this. There were only three he could be anyway, and Eve would have probably gotten Keels right off, since they knew each other well enough. So it was most likely either Finias, who wouldn’t have needed to hide like that or the only other one of that kind she really knew. Well, him, or Ann, The Rotted. If it was her though, the raw crazy would have shown through already.

  “Fram, The Bold. Good to see you. Again, I guess? So, did you kill Marcus, or is this a long term game plan of yours, designed just to mess with me?” She waved at him, and got a snort in return. For a second she thought he was going to try and claim it wasn’t him, but there was just a head shake.

  “Damn. You always were smarter than you looked. Fine, I’ll have the funds transferred into your account. To answer your question though, I made up Marky Dork here about five years ago, and worked him into place around this area, so I could spy on Zack. He doesn’t know who I am, I don’t think. Then, I was on my guard about hiding from him, and my sexy little cuddle buddy, Darla. Not that I think I could fool her for all that long, if she were around me too much. She knows me far too well, and Zack is definitely special needs for one of us. Lyn… that’s been way harder to manage, and I think she got it already. On the nice side, she’s not a snitch.” Then the man in brown stared at her for a bit, and tried to give her a firm look.

  It was pretty good, but just didn’t match the face that well, which caused it to be ineffective on her. He got that one it seemed, and heaved a giant sigh.

  “So, what do you plan to do with this information? Blackmail? Extort me for sex?” The man ran a single hand down his still ample enough front, clearly joking, but not, at the very same time. It was… Kind of hot, really. Then, Greater Demons didn’t play by the same rules that everyone else did, so there was skill involved in it, even if she wasn’t able to understand how it worked.

  She nearly said nothing, not wanting to be caught in the middle of whatever the Greater Demons had planned. Fram was probably not in the loop, as far as the real plan went, but he’d know more than she did. From what both Darla and Keeley had told her, most of the Greater Demons thought of him
as a bit of a joke.

  He wasn’t a bad Demon, either in what he generally did, or in his ability to see reality, but he had a real blind spot, which Eve actually knew about. For some unknown reason he thought that doing well in Demon society was a big deal. It caused him to push and try to make himself important, with a bunch of beings that actually couldn’t care at all about that kind of thing. As far as Eve knew there was only one Greater Demon in all of reality that did care about that kind of thing, and he was standing in front of her, pretending to work for the Mages.

  Keeley was certain that if he ever learned to fix that, he’d be a real force to reckon with. Then, being insane, for one of them, meant he couldn’t see reality for what it really was all the time.

  That didn’t mean he was retarded though, as far as she went. To the others of his own kind he might be a joke, but even they couldn’t afford to push him too far. Less so than someone like Darla, at a guess. She might fight, if it made sense, but Fram might even if it didn’t. On the good side, he was still more sensible than a Vampire would have been in the same position. He’d do what made the most sense, in the end.

  No matter what that was.

  She tried to smile then. Even if being reasonable took work for her kind, there was no harm in using that idea, in the moment, was there? Her faking being reasonable was no worse than forcing a smile that she didn’t mean, was it?

  “How about this; we share information. With the understanding that you have a lot more than I do, and that it probably won’t be all that fair to you, getting the dribs and drabs that I come across? Then, odds are any little thing you learn from me will be a lot more useful to you than the other way around, so it might even out that way?” She watched him closely, but remembered to breathe and blink, so she wouldn’t be a statue glaring at him, as he stood behind the glass topped counter.

  After a few seconds, he nodded.

  “So, you won’t tell on me, as long as I share all my secrets with you?”

  That wasn’t what she’d said, which wasn’t lost on her. It was a trap then, wasn’t it?

  “No, I won’t tell on you, as long as you aren’t a threat to my other friends here. Or anywhere, but you get the idea that way. I mean a real threat, too, not just an annoyance. We’re all adults, and can handle our own business that way. This arrangement would be separate, but like I said. We share info and data. I have a similar one with Finias, so that might sweeten things, unless you two are sharing all the time too? Speaking of which I haven’t seen him in… Half a year. I should get in touch with him. Probably after I look up Becky Hoader. I have a lot of catching up to do. It’s amazing how out of touch being locked in a box can make you. On the good side you and I can pal around, and have a reason to, now that you aren’t a raping creepo that uses mind control on innocent women, I mean.”

  That got a laugh, one that was a bit too loud, “I am too! Don’t ever say that, Eve, or I won’t invite you to the best orgies. I’m, well, you actually know that one. Greater Demon, yadda-yadda, can’t trust me, don’t make a bargain or deal, all that cheese and chess playing stuff. To answer your question then, as long as you aren’t planning to blackmail me like an annoying cunt, then sure. I’ll play ball with you. We can date. You like anal, right? Vampires are the best at that, they hardly cry at all.”

  She snorted at him. He might be able to do anything he wanted to her, but she could choose to be afraid or not. It wouldn’t really help her out though, unless she was going to simply avoid him. That, at this current point, would mean running away.

  “Anal? I suppose I could get a strap-on for you. Jumbo size?”

  That got the man to wink.

  “That could be fun. I always did like that about you, Eve. So broken that you don’t even put up a fight when it comes to kinky sex. Will you respect me in the morning though, if I let you take my anal virginity like that? In this form, I mean. Poor Mark hasn’t had more than his own palm for far too long. I really pulled out the stops making him a bit of an outcast. Plus, the other things in the way.”

  She thought about that for a while, and had to nod, getting the basic premise, eventually. “Because the girls at the book shop would all catch on if you didn’t put out life energy, and Greater Demons always drink that in, right? Zack said something about that to me a couple of times.”

  “Unless we’re going to get a Human or Mage woman pregnant. Then we can put out enough energy to kindle life. The men can anyway. So, I might be able to fake it, for a while, but it wouldn’t be worth it just to get my rocks off a few times. Good, you can do that for me now. I’ve made a few passes at Lisa, but that thing with Warren actually impacted her a lot. Worse than Bob, even, and he’s straight. She’s sort of sensitive that way. Plus a lesbian. Not that I’m judging. I mean, I’ve done the all girl diet too. Still, she can shut off her emotions on the matter if it bugs her that much. What she’s doing isn’t really helping, and there are spells for that. I probably should have sat on Warren a little more closely in that regard, but it seemed harmless enough at the time. If it wasn’t for you meddling kids, Lisa and Bob wouldn’t even know about it now, so no one would have gotten hurt.”

  She nodded, deciding not to ask for particulars yet. Eve understood that he was saying he was behind the whole Warren thing, which meant that there was a lot more going on that she would have guessed at, otherwise.

  “Fine then. So, as long as you aren’t a threat to my friends, anywhere…” She stopped and then took a deep breath. “Except… the Greater Demon ones. I’m not getting in the middle there, but you know, if you can’t get along with Darla and the gang, you need to change what you’re doing. I mean that, too. But I won’t get involved. Do that though, and I won’t run my mouth about you. That will change if everyone figures it out, but that’s just common sense. Of course, Lenore knows now, so Zack will soon, I bet.” She glanced across the mall, and made eye contact with Lenore, who looked a bit stiff. Scared, rather than angry.

  Mark, who was really the Greater Demon Fram, known as The Bold, under all the trappings, smiled and waved to her from across the red brick expanse. Then he spoke to the Vampire woman directly, smiling the whole time.

  “Fine, let’s not tell him directly though? Even as his girlfriend it isn’t your job to rat me out. I’ll be good though. I’m not here to hurt anyone, just make sure that…” He stopped and looked around. “Well, I won’t say that here. Too many people know about me now anyway. Thanks for the snacks though. I suppose I have to pay for them all?”

  Eve thought about it and then shrugged.

  “We’ll let you trade for them? I need someone to taste test for me. We can meet in a few days and share info? I wasn’t kidding about possibly being called off to Russia. I’m the new lackey of the Council, I think. Gene is trying to kill me, but other than that it seems like an actual promotion.” She didn’t know that, but was still surprised when that got a tiny chuckle. At the same time Mark took one of the treats and started in on it.

  He pointed with his red, long handled, plastic spoon, after five bites.

  “This is good. You should try coconut marmalade. Not that it would sell, Americans being anti-marmalade bigots like they are, but it would be a good combination. So, we can do that. Meet up that is. Not fix the great hatred of marmalade. Here’s the first tidbit then. I can’t give you a direct name, because I don’t want a war right now, but Gene of the Vampire Council is working with a Greater Demon. Not one you know, but some of your friends do. Really though, I think his stiffy for you is just based on fear. You are a totally bad ass Vampire bitch, now. I have heard of others that were as strong out of the gate, but most of them were killed off pretty quick for it, so I can see why he might be considering the same for you.” He looked around and then leaned in. “Think he’d pay me, if I did it for him? Just bumped you off, and then demand some cash?”

  Eve got that he was trying to push her, to see if she’d get scared. The fact was though, that while she might not be able to beat a
Greater Demon in a fight, she might just be able to take him out, anyway. Demon Traps could work, she’d heard tell, and even if it meant dying, she might be able to get something like a magical nuke from Darla, and get him that way. Oh, she’d die, too, but not alone.

  That was powerful enough, for a starting point, wasn’t it? She wanted to not be abused in life. If she had to die in order to make that happen, then it was good enough, in the end. Unlike most people, she’d become a Vampire for the power, not the eternal life it promised.

  Fram straightened, and gave a nod, like he’d been reading her mind. Because of course he had been. She’d have been trying to do the same thing if it were a trick she could pull off, so why wouldn’t he?

  “Not bad. Here I’d been planning to cheat you out of that dough, too, because you can’t back up a credible threat against me. I guess I better rethink that one? Well, I expect a Christmas present next year then, if you have that kind of cash lying around. I’ll go call that in. Let me see… That should do it for now. I’ll write down an analysis of this stuff, and leave a paper over there on the front counter, when I go for the day?”

  She got the idea that she was being dismissed. Eve also couldn’t blame the guy. She was being more than a bit of a pain in the ass for him that day. Figuring out who he might be, and she didn’t think for a minute that him admitting it meant she was right, then making arrangements with him… Or her, as the case turned out to be. That was one of the really strange things about Greater Demons. They’d lie to you, but they didn’t really lie. They just told you parts of the truth and got you to make mistakes that way, rather than saying something that wasn’t the case. Most of the time, as far as she knew.

  For instance, this being hadn’t told her the he was Fram, just let her think that. She got the idea.

  Also, they didn’t actually break their deals or arrangements, not if you acted in good faith with them. Oh, you’d probably lose out in whatever the game was, in the long term, but they didn’t just say they’d do one thing then go against that directly. That was against the rules, she thought. They’d actually do a lot to keep their words, when it came down to it. It was the exact opposite of honorable behavior however.