Sin City Vampire Club

by Kristen Strassel

  “Of course I’ll talk to a lawyer. There’s a lot of money involved.” I couldn’t wrap my head around how much yet. Tristan’s personal wealth was warped by the fact he’d come from a filthy rich family. But he lived in a penthouse on the Strip, and we lived in a one-bedroom apartment ten miles outside of the heart of the action. He had nothing to lose and I had everything to gain. “This will change our lives.”

  “I’ve heard that before.” Rainey kneeled down, carefully closing each of her books. She gathered her accessories, dropping them into a velvet bag lined with silk. Rainey didn’t care about stuff in a materialistic sense, but she guarded these metaphysical items with everything she had. “Remember what happened last time? And the time before that? It always sounds good. They convince you you’ll get what you want. You never do, Holly. Each time you get hurt worse.”

  Rainey turned away from me, working faster now. I crawled off the couch, careful not to touch any of her stuff unless she wanted me to. It would be the same as sneezing on it.

  I attempted to wipe the tears from her cheek, but she turned away again. It would’ve hurt me if I didn’t expect it. “Don’t cry. It will be different this time.”

  “You say that every time, too.” She sniffled.

  “Tristan’s helped me before, and there was absolutely nothing in it for him. He connected me with Lennon when everyone else laughed at me. He didn’t have any idea how important that was. That I spent my whole life waiting for that moment. He’s been taken advantage of, too. He got tricked into turning into a vampire, and then he was used as collateral so Talis could profit from her failed property.”

  “I suppose you’re right.” She wiped her cheeks with the backs of her hands. “I don’t think Tristan will intentionally do anything to hurt you. Callie, on the other hand....”

  “Yeah.” She’d already taken out my father. “I wanted to set her on fire for that parting shot. If Blade has anything to do with this...” I mimicked her voice, but the meat of her threat twisted my insides. “I’m so close to getting my fire back. She knows something I don’t. That I need Blade. That little bitch is waiting for me to fail. Good thing she’ll be alive forever, because it’s not happening.”

  It was just one spark. I needed the ability to fully ignite on cue in front of a theater full of people. Night after night. That would take a lot more than a kiss from Blade. And that terrified me much more than any threat.

  “There’s got to be other ways for you to get it back, besides Blade. Rachel stole it, and she’s the one who’s holding it hostage—”

  “We tried that route already. She humiliated me. She attacked you.” That night ranked pretty high on the all-time worst list. “I know I can’t avoid dealing with her forever. But Blade is easier to work with.”

  “Because he thinks he’ll get you into his bed.” Rainey crossed her arms. “Again.”

  “I’m afraid of her, okay?” It hurt to admit that, even to Rainey. “I can’t let her think she’s got something I need. It will make her stronger.”

  Like hell I’d let anyone else lay claim to my success. That’s what Tristan was rallying against, with the contracts, and money going into everyone else’s pockets. It was too easy to pull the strings and take all the credit from the people on the front line. The ones who poured their blood, sweat, tears, and in my case, fire, into making a show happen. They came to see us. It was a power and a privilege.

  “What about Lennon?” Rainey asked. “She seemed interested in working with you, and I don’t think she’s got an agenda.”

  “No. She had a place in Vampirelandia long before she became one.”

  Rainey laughed. “Vampirelandia?”

  “Yeah. That’s what I call it in my head. It’s kind of like a fairy tale world where all your wildest dreams come true, or you step on a crack and free-fall straight into the waiting arms of Satan.” I shrugged.

  “I like it.”

  “Me too. Okay, so we have a plan in place. The dancing is no problem. I’m in the worst shape I can remember, so it will take me a while to get my stamina back. It’s just the fire.” I sighed. A plan wasn’t a solution.

  “If we have to put a spell on Blade so you can work with him, we’ll do it.” Rainey frowned, concentrating on the books that surrounded her like a fortress. “It’s worked a couple of times.”

  “It would take a pretty strong spell for you to project your power to him.” It was the best idea either of us had come up with. “Maybe Callie or Rachel would be easier. I worry a spell wouldn’t be enough with Blade.”

  I didn’t need to elaborate.

  “Holly.” She sighed. It couldn’t have been that much of a surprise. I’d been honest with her, even if I hadn’t been honest with myself.

  “Let me explain.” We’d been so focused on Gabriel and the angels last night—I couldn’t believe this was all basically one big long day broken up by the worst nap ever—that I didn’t have a chance to tell her about the fire. “The energy is overwhelming when I’m touching both of you. It’s almost like my powers were back. I thought I’d ignited. I think it’s because you both hold a piece of me. I need you both.”

  Her face darkened. “I don’t know if I can give you that.”

  “I haven’t asked for anything yet.”

  “You don’t have to.” She got up, carefully stepping over her treasures. “I’ve seen the way the two of you look at each other. And how Blade looks at you when he thinks no one’s watching. He wants you. And he doesn’t want to share you with anyone. Not me, and not Tristan Trevosier. He’s not willing to play second fiddle; he’s made himself clear many times. That’s what got him into trouble with Talis and Callie. Blade wants it all.”

  I curled my knees to my chest. I had no comeback. She was one hundred percent right. There was no way I could choose between Rainey, Blade, and the possibility of never performing as Holly Octane again. I looked up at her. Even with rumpled clothes and last night’s makeup, she was beautiful.

  “I love you.” It wasn’t enough. That was the problem.

  “I know you do. And I love you, too. Maybe that’s why I foolishly believe there’s a solution to this. But—“ I should’ve known that was coming. “That’s also why I worry so much about you. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that Gabriel paid me a personal visit last night. At first I thought it had to do with Blade’s shit show at Embrace. Now Tristan’s ready to give you the world on a silver platter. Gabriel’s a messenger.”

  “Maybe he can See vampires,” I said. Rainey could not, which frustrated the hell out of her ever since we lived in Las Vegas.

  “Wouldn’t that be like winning the lottery? He’s always given me more questions, and now we need answers.” Her eyes glazed over with a vision. “He’s coming.”

  “Now?” I jumped up, picking up forgotten pillows and blankets. Rainey would lose her mind if the house was a mess when Gabriel came to visit us.

  “Not right now, but soon.” Rainey grinned at my cleanup efforts. Housekeeping was not among my talents. “We’ll clean this up later. Let’s go to bed. To win this battle, we need clear minds.”

  I loved Rainey’s visions. They told me absolutely nothing yet everything I needed to know at the same time. “In bed this time.”

  “Yes. You snore.” She batted me with one of the pillows. “At least in bed I can get away from it.”

  “And you steal blankets.” I trailed after her, laughing.

  “I need them. I’m not as hot as you.” She grinned as she put the bed back together.

  “You’re way hotter than me.” I came up behind her. “Promise me the first night of the show you’ll wear those sparkly fishnets again. I want you sitting in the front row so I can see your skirt fall away from your thigh when you cross your legs.”

  I’d have no problem igniting if she did that.

  “Only if you make those high-waisted booty shorts part of one of your costumes.” She leaned back against me and I grinded my hips against her. I was anxi
ous to dance again. “Wear them with the striped thigh-highs and pasties.”

  “You like that outfit?” I asked. If she needed any convincing, I’d give her a private show. To make sure nothing went wrong when I stripped it away.

  “I love that outfit,” she purred.

  “You have yourself a deal.” I kissed her shoulder.

  We were too tired for anything but sleep. Too bad it refused to come. So many scenarios marched through my mind, from Gabriel stealing Rainey away from me, insisting I didn’t deserve her, to Blade luring me to work with him at his meat market. Something terrible occurred to me. I nudged Rainey. She was still awake, too.

  “What if Blade won’t work with us?” I asked. Rainey was as much a part of this as I was.

  “It’s a possibility you have to prepare for.” She rolled over and with only the light coming in from the parking lot, she looked dazed. Like I interrupted a vision. “The fire is inside you. And whatever will draw it out is inside you, too.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  EVERY MUSCLE IN MY body screamed. I didn’t have control over many things in this transaction, but I always had control over my body. I needed to make myself as strong as possible. The mind was a muscle, too. If I could mesmerize my intended audience with what I could do with my body, they’d give me what I wanted. It wasn’t the paying crowd that I was talking about—it was Tristan, Blade, and possibly Rachel.

  Ugh. I dreaded dealing with her.

  I didn’t have anything else to give her, but I didn’t think that would stop her from taking things. But that wasn’t the only reason I was afraid of Rachel. Cash created her—in a much different way than he created me. He’d brought her into the afterlife as a soldier in his battle against Talis, and she was displaced when the war was abruptly cancelled. I refused to believe the reports that Cash had simply abandoned her like an unwanted toy. That wasn’t how he worked. And if he did—that was even more dangerous. A spark of his madness left uncontrolled could destroy this city.

  Rachel had what I needed, and what scared me most of all was what I was willing to do to get it back. Cash claimed I killed my mother—in that life—during childbirth. Some may claim I had a hand in Cash’s demise as well. I wanted more than anything to be loved. Rachel was the only family I had left. It was possible that the only way to get what I needed from her was to destroy her.

  I couldn’t control Rachel; I could only control myself. So I joined a gym. I never had to do that before. I’d always been given a place to rehearse, but I had yet to sign on the dotted line, and I lay no claim to Sin City Vampire Club. Rainey dropped me off on the way to work and picked me up on the way home. At first I worried about people bothering me, but no one paid me any mind. Thousands of performers depended on their bodies for their livelihoods in this city. It was part of the job.

  I started each day with the cross fit class. I liked the variety and the mental challenge of never knowing what was coming next. I gave my muscles a chance to recover in the sauna, and then had a protein shake. That stuff was the physical equivalent of Rainey’s spell books. I spent the rest of the afternoon in the weight room and finished with yoga, giving myself another chance to strengthen my mind.

  Dancing wasn’t the problem. The rhythm would come when the music washed over me. It possessed my body and I knew exactly what to do with it. Spending most of the day in my own head, isolated by my headphones, I imagined the routines, and scribbled them in a notebook that I kept with me as I worked. I listened to my favorite music, jazzy numbers from the glory days of Vegas—my unattainable ideal. I mixed it up with Immortal Dilemma. Somehow I had to blend the two things together and make magic.

  I had very little contact with Tristan since the meeting, which scared the hell out of me. Every time I tried to talk to him I hit a brick wall named Callie. He may not have wanted to involve agents, managers, or lawyers in the planning stage, but he definitely had a keeper.

  “He’s working on it,” was all she said every time I called or emailed. “He’ll be in touch when he’s ready.”

  “I’m ready.” I’d had it, and I was determined to get him on the phone. “This venture is supposed to be equal.”

  Which meant no secrets. I was such a hypocrite. I wouldn’t be ready until I could ignite at the snap of my fingers. There had been no more sparks since Blade kissed me. I purposely avoided his phone calls while I trained, but it was only a matter of time before he took matters into his own hands.

  If he still wanted me.

  “It is equal.” Callie’s disappointment was tangible enough to make it a souvenir when the show opened. “We’ll call you.”

  “Hey.” I had to catch her before she hung up the phone. “Can I start practicing at the theater? Get a feel for the size of the stage? Then I’ll know what I need for the show.”

  We could get a pole anywhere in Vegas. Fire-proofing a big area like that took a little longer. But what I really needed was a commitment.

  She hesitated. “I suppose that makes sense. Let me check who we have on staff for security, and when they’ll be able to let you in. Do you need anything, or anybody there while you practice?”

  I wanted Lennon there, but I couldn’t tell Callie why without raising too many questions. I didn’t know what she knew about Lennon’s tie to Cash and me, besides she’d been dating him before he tried to destroy her. No vampire relationship ended with any let’s be friends bullshit. Honesty was brutal, and lies were worse.

  I would invite Lennon once my routines were rock solid. It wouldn’t take me long. I wanted to have something to awe her with so she could believe in her own abilities. Most importantly, I wanted her to be proud of me.

  “Not yet, but that could change as I develop the routines.” I came up with some crazy ideas that I jotted down in my little notebook. I used an orange pen. It hurt my eyes to read everything, but it made me think of my fire. My yoga instructors all insisted that positive energy would bring about the change I desired. Like Rainey, they were connected to a higher vibration. My supernatural connections were a little more down and dirty.

  “Let me know and I’ll make sure they’re there for you.” Okay, so Callie was on board with this. Which made me worry more about Tristan. Unless she was appeasing me to make him happy. “I’ll call you back and let you know when you can get into the theater.”

  “Thank you.” Asking for exactly what I needed worked. I didn’t leave it open-ended, relying on her to guess. A couple weeks ago, when I was still recovering, I wouldn’t have had the strength to do that.

  Rainey was on board with my training, too. It was eerie when the opposing forces in my life aligned behind one cause.

  “Is there anything I can help with?” I asked when I got off the phone.

  “Sure. You have choices. Mash the sweet potatoes or toss the salad.” She flipped the salmon. “This will be ready in about five minutes.”

  “I should be able to do both.” I grabbed the masher. “It smells so good.”

  “You must be starving,” she said, leaning back on counter while the fish sizzled in the skillet. “You look amazing, by the way.”

  “You see a difference?” I spun around, holding up the masher like a torch.

  “Yeah. Your muscles have definition again. You look like your old self.”

  That was exactly what I wanted to hear. I kissed her. “You’re not looking so bad yourself.”

  “I guess I’m dieting sympathetically.” She beamed at the compliment. “All my clothes are getting loose.”

  I loved Rainey’s soft curves, and I was greedy. I wanted to keep them. “You should come to yoga with me.” I kissed her again. So much for having the side dishes ready at the same time as the salmon. I wriggled my eyebrows. “It improves flexibility.”

  “I’ve noticed.” Her voice was husky as the timer went off. She slipped past me to take the salmon off the burner. “I take it your phone call went well.”

  “It did.” I got to work mashing the potatoes. “Callie
said I could practice my routines at the theater.”

  “That’s great.” Rainey brushed against me to grab plates. We didn’t get too fancy with dinner, serving directly from the cooking pots and on nice nights, we brought our food outside and watched the sun set over the Red Rock Mountains.

  “It’s time to get Blade involved,” I said as we sat on the deck. It wasn’t very big, but it fit a small table. I took a sip of tea to wash down the look of disgust on Rainey’s face. “He’ll come knocking when he wants me anyway. And I realized a very important thing.”

  “What’s that?” Rainey stabbed at her salad.

  “I asked for exactly what I wanted, and I got it. I usually hang around and wait for it to be offered. Vampires can read minds, which puts them at an advantage. But you know as well as I do that things get lost in translation. The direct approach works.”

  “Callie and Blade are hardly the same kind of vampire.”

  I pointed my fork at her. A piece of lettuce and a cherry tomato stuck to the tines. She grinned. “That’s where you’re wrong.” I put the fork in my mouth, chewing as I thought about how to best form my argument. “I think they’re exactly alike, and that’s why they hate each other so much.”

  “It is pretty painful to see your worst traits on display in another person.” She looked out at the mountains, chin in her hand. The dusk kissed her with soft shadows. “The only reason Callie has an advantage is she’s got money behind her. If it were a fair fight, she’d probably lose.”

  “Yeah.” Which made my plan even more risky. “Feeling up to a trip to Embrace tonight?”

  “Never.” She laughed. “But I’ll go because I refuse to let you go there by yourself.”

  I kicked her under the table. “I’m a big girl.”

  “And you’re practically glowing from all the training. No way I’d let you loose in there. You probably haven’t noticed the change in the energy in the city, but you will once we go back to—what do you call it? Vampire Ville?”