“So I’m supposed to, what, make goo-goo eyes at you and walk around like I’ve been partially lobotomized?”
He looked irritated. “That’s what a good thrall looks like, yeah. And if I could get one to work on you, believe me, I would. But as it is, you’re stuck acting. Think you can manage it?”
If he could get one to work on me
… Lily remembered that intense pull she’d felt toward Ty that first night, the fuzzy-brained compulsion to throw herself into his arms that had taken her completely by surprise. She guessed that was what he was talking about, along with the fact that she seemed able to throw it off, though barely, where he was concerned. Damien had tried and she’d felt nothing. What he’d done to her this morning probably counted as some sort of mild thrall, but he’d needed her full cooperation, and it had hardly been mind control. Still, she’d need to be on her guard. Just in case.
“If there’s one thing I can manage,” Lily said, “it’s acting.” It might not have been in her blood, but it had been a big part of her life for a lot of years. And not in a good way.
But though she would never admit it, a night spent fawning over Ty wouldn’t be much of a chore to manage. At all. She might even get to paw at him a little.
Oh, she was a sick, sick girl. Lily hunched her shoulders a little and sighed, which Ty seemed to take for resignation. That was fine with her.
“Come on, then,” he said. “It’s the next alley over.”
She started to follow. “Don’t worry about me,” she said. “I’m not that noticeable. I’ll blend.”
Ty didn’t look at her, but his voice was grim. “The hell you will.”
M
ABON WAS HIDDEN
out of necessity, and it was cheap because its patrons insisted it be and grungy because it always had been. The club’s only entrance was down a small alley, through a nondescript door. A flight of stairs led down to what had once been the basement of a sprawling old building from the turn of the century, and despite its questionable reputation, the place was always packed with vampires looking for one of two things: blood or trouble.
Often, the unwary found both.
Lily was plenty wary by the time she and Ty pushed open a heavy metal door and entered the cavernous, dimly lit club. He’d told her not to stare, but it was hard not to be a little shocked at first glance. No wonder he’d chuckled over the human wannabes up above. Because it looked to her like vampires, real ones, were far more apt to make wardrobe choices as unobtrusive as her own. There was only one noticeable difference between them and the rest of humanity: these people were freaking gorgeous.
Eyes that shimmered and glowed faintly in the half-light turned toward them as they walked in, full of little more than polite curiosity. Two bouncers, muscular and intimidating, lounged just inside the entrance. One wore a sleeveless T-shirt, and a tribal tattoo, intricate and beautiful, coiled all the way down his arm. His eyes, a luminous blue, flickered over Lily with interest, and she saw him take note of the ribbon around her neck.
“Evening, beautiful,” he said with a lazy half smile. “Welcome to Mabon.”
“She’s mine,” Ty growled beside her, drawing the bouncer’s attention away from her.
Lily flushed at the hot possession she heard in those words. No one had ever sounded that way when they’d talked about her. She kept her eyes on his face, hoping she looked enamored enough.
“Humph,” the bouncer grunted. “Bet she’s not by the end of the night. Your mark, stranger.”
She watched Ty’s jaw tighten, saw the dangerous flash in his eyes. “Since when does Mabon check for bloodline? All used to be welcome here. Has that changed?”
The bouncer just glared at him, and it was obvious he wasn’t budging, so Ty bared his mark with an angry little jerk of his hand. She saw the other man’s surprise—and more than a hint of displeasure.
“It hasn’t changed as long as you’re not here to make any trouble. Anura told us to start checking marks after a few ankh-wearing assholes came in a couple of weeks ago and made a lot of trouble for her—and us. Ptolemy aren’t welcome here right now.”
“I’m not Ptolemy,” Ty said flatly.
“No? Looks to me like they own you. And cats don’t
usually get to keep a
sura
like this unless they’ve been behaving real well for their masters.” The bouncer leaned in close, his voice dropping. “In fact, I’ve never seen a cat keep a
sura
at all. I know who you are, hunter. Tell your queen he’s not here, and go away.”
Lily’s heart began to pound as she felt the level of furious male testosterone go right through the roof. The other bouncer, who was just as huge as the one accosting them, was watching very closely. And she could see, out of the corner of her eye, that they were starting to generate some interest from some of the vampires near them.
Ty kept his voice just as low, and just as dangerous. “I don’t know who you think I’m looking for, but I’m not here on behalf of the queen. I came to see Anura, actually, for reasons that are personal and therefore none of your damned business. But if you’d prefer I make a scene, I assure you, I have no problem shedding some blood to get in, and it’s going to be yours. My reputation is well earned.”
They stared at each other for a long moment, and Lily worried that the bouncer wouldn’t back down, though she found she believed every word Ty said. But finally, she saw the bouncer’s shoulders relax as he stepped back. Still, his eyes were frigid.
“Fine. She’s dancing. But I’m warning you, if I catch wind you’re sniffing around for deserters, it’s your head. The Ptolemy have no power here,” he sneered. “The Dracul are in charge of Chicago, and they let the Empusae think they have a hand in running things, but all the Ptolemy can do is watch from a distance and dream about what they can’t have. No matter how much they want it.” His eyes shifted to Lily. “Take my advice, honey. Do
some flirting, trade up. You can do way better than some gutter cat, no matter whose skirts he gets to hide behind.”
Though she was sure that was going to be the last straw, that Ty would stand and fight (not that she would have blamed him), he merely dragged her into the club with little more than a threatening, feral growl at the bouncer, who leaned back against the wall, satisfied.
She gripped his arm, hard, trying to get his attention. When he didn’t so much as look at her, she moved in front of him, and remembering what he’d said about appearances, pressed herself against him so that she could look enamored while whispering furiously in his ear.
“What the hell was that about? Why did you let him talk to you like that?”
He slid his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. It was an intimate embrace, completely at odds with the anger she heard in his voice.
“Would you rather I’d ripped out his throat? I told you, Lily, things work differently here. I need to find Anura and find out what’s going on, if she’ll talk to me. Just stay close. And don’t look at anyone.”
He drew back with a warning look and then turned, grabbing her hand to lead her through the crowd.
It was telling, she thought, that he hadn’t even mentioned the fact that the bouncer had treated him with undisguised disgust. In fact, if she wasn’t mistaken, that wasn’t even what was bothering him about the encounter. He’d told her that his line were considered “gutterbloods,” but still, actually seeing it and Ty’s acceptance of it filled Lily with outrage. The only consolation was that the bouncer seemed to have a healthy amount of respect for Ty’s prowess, even if he had none for him as a fellow
vampire. Otherwise, she was pretty sure they’d both be back outside right now trying to decide on next steps.
As it was, Lily found herself getting her first look at a vampire’s idea of a good night out, and even though Ty had told her not to stare, she found it hard to do anything else.
It was decadent. She didn’t know how else to describe it. Somehow, a vast expanse of concrete basement had been turned into a den of ragged opulence and open debauchery. The floors had been covered in hardwood, which still gleamed despite years of feet and who knew what else on it. A massive circular bar dominated the center of the space, though Lily wasn’t certain she wanted to know what was dispensed into the heavy crystal goblets that hung suspended above the bartenders’ heads and that they continually plucked to fill with whatever was hidden behind the wall of people obscuring the counter from view. Music throbbed and pulsed, blending with the rise and fall of the many voices as the vampires chattered, flirted, and fought. And Lily was pretty sure she caught a glimpse of a dance floor at the far end of the room. It was almost funny: a club like this existing, unknown, in the middle of a neighborhood full of humans who seemed like they would be hunting for just such a place.
The walls were covered in silken fabric, shimmering in the light of hundreds of candles. They were everywhere, flickering in sconces, dancing on the tall, glass-topped tables scattered randomly about, making what should have been a dark, dank place seem to glow. Concrete pillars had been encased in wood, in marble. Gilt-edged mirrors reflected the feral eyes of the crowd. And though Lily found herself stunned by the place, it was the crowd that she couldn’t look away from.
At first glance, she’d thought they looked like beautiful mortals, some dressed impeccably, others in jeans. But to look for more than a few moments was to see the truth. Their eyes danced with light that had nothing to do with the candles, and each mouth that opened to speak, to laugh, to snarl, revealed a pair of shining fangs. Many wore clothing that bared their marks, and some seemed to have incorporated more tattoo work, as the bouncer had, to showcase and enhance the signs of their bloodlines. They moved like dancers, quick and graceful, and the collective sound of their voices was as musical as the song that throbbed sinuously throughout the room. And as far as throbbing went…
Ty squeezed her hand tightly and gave her a quick yank when he caught her gaping, wide-eyed, at two incredible-looking men sharing a pretty blonde who also had a ribbon at her throat. One was behind her, one in front, and both had their teeth in her neck. The blonde, however, didn’t seem to mind. Her eyes were closed, her face contorted with pleasure, and her skirt had been hiked up to accommodate—
“If you don’t want to be invited to join them, then quit bloody
looking
at them,” Ty growled in her ear. Lily could only swallow hard and nod. She managed to tear her eyes away, though she couldn’t seem to catch her breath. She’d had a taste of what that woman was feeling, she realized. But seeing that, seeing how it could be, imagining how it might be if Ty decided to push her up against the wall…
She stumbled a little as Ty dragged her forward, and she caught sight of another couple locked in a similarly erotic embrace. It didn’t seem to bother anyone; a few watched, casually interested, while most ignored. There
were no boundaries here, Lily realized, or at least not the same ones that applied in most parts of the human world.
Her chest suddenly felt tight, her skin too sensitive. And her palm, clutched in Ty’s hand, went slick with sweat and heat. Her entire life had been about control and, to a certain extent, denial. To be thrust into a place where it seemed to be encouraged, even celebrated, to have neither was more than a little overwhelming.
And surprisingly tempting.
The air smelled like incense and wax, and Lily wondered whether she’d ever be able to smell either again without being swamped by lust.
Then Ty’s breath was feathering her ear, sending hot little shivers over her skin, and she knew she wouldn’t.
“There,” he said. “I can see Anura, in the white, dancing. If she asks you anything, don’t answer—let me do the talking. Things have changed here. I’m just not sure how much.”
It struck Lily that Ty didn’t seem to be affected the way she had. If anything, he seemed more tense. She looked past him, into the crowd, and immediately saw the woman he meant. Lily got only a fleeting glimpse of a dark-haired beauty dancing with an abandon Lily had only ever dreamed of, before another voice sounded, dangerously close.
“Well, well,” murmured a voice into her ear. “How did a gutterblood ever get his teeth into you, beautiful? I think it’s time you moved up in the world.”
Lily stiffened. Tynan growled. She was fairly certain that the night had just gone completely to hell.
D
AMIEN
T
REMAINE LEANED
casually against the building not a block from Mabon, watching the stinking sea of humanity mill blindly around him. It had been so long since he had been one of them; he really had no memory of it. Oh, he could recall various things he had done, people he had known, places he had seen, but the memory of what it had truly meant to be human, to live and breathe with the knowledge of his own mortality, had vanished.
He would never be part of “good” vampire society, would always wear a mark that kept that from him. But he had worked for many of them and had picked up quite a few of their attitudes, particularly about the limited uses for mortals. And why not? The House of Shadows was its own sort of aristocracy, Damien reasoned. It could provide a good life, if not an easy one. And fortunately for the Shades like him who had built formidable reputations of their own, there was no possibility that they would be driven out or disappear.