“Let’s leave the rock star out of this, okay?” She waited and I decided she wanted me to nod or something.
“That’s a little hard to do, Lucky. You dropped him in my lap, remember? I may be your sire, but you’re his. Funny, but he’s not exactly looking to you for a bonding moment, is he? At least not without a stake in his hand.” I crossed my arms over my chest. I’d consider that fair warning. Bodyguards or not, Lucky was going to have to watch her back while she was in Austin. Once Ray found out she was here…? I didn’t want to imagine the confrontation between those two.
“Yeah, well, I knew you’d take good care of him. Who could miss the pile of Israel Caine memorabilia you had in your place? What did you call it? The shrine? I knew you’d be thrilled to play vamp mommy to that bad boy. Was I right?” She actually grinned at me.
“Oh, sure. I got to be his savior while he figured out he’d never see the sun again. You remember how you felt waking up with fangs? It was much, much worse for Ray. He didn’t even know vampires existed until he became one.” I grabbed her by the lapels of a suit that cost more than the sum total of my clothing budget for the year. “Get this straight, Lucky. It was hell pulling Ray through his transition. And he’s still not 100 percent into being a vampire. You RUINED. HIS. LIFE.”
“Tough. Shit.” She jerked my hands off her jacket and examined the cloth with a frown. “I gifted you with the man of your dreams, Glory, and don’t bother to deny it. Where’s the gratitude?”
I just shook my head. Obviously I was wasting my time trying to find this woman’s compassion.
“Just listen to my proposition. I’m not asking you to toss me a freebie. I learned at my father’s knee that you don’t get anything without paying for it.” Lucky was breathing hard so I guess I had gotten to her a little. Rookie. She didn’t remember that lung action wasn’t necessary for us.
I knew I should throw her out on her perfect ass right then and there. Instead, she must have noticed my hesitation and plowed ahead.
“Yes, I’ll pay. I remember that you were always hard up for cash. I’m sure if nothing else you’d like to update your wardrobe. That Transylvanian said I should get in touch with my sire. That you had a message for me. She was very specific. Psychic mumbo jumbo but I’ve learned to listen to it.” She put a fingernail in the middle of my stomach and shoved. “Back up before I call in my boys.”
“You’re serious about listening to a Transylvanian witch? They’re kooks, Lucky.” I did step back and threw her tablet at her. Interesting that this crone had obviously picked up on Lucky’s Siren blood. “Here’s a message: Get lost.”
“No. Pay attention, Glory. The really ancient Trans witches are powerful and have valuable knowledge that I paid to get.” She arched a brow at me. “Like I said, I’m willing to throw money around when I want something and I went over there needing to find out more about this vampire business.” She sighed and studied her nails. “Without a sire to guide me, what else could I do?”
“They obviously saw a sucker coming.” I grinned. “You just wasted a trip. And know this.” I got sober in a hurry. “If you pulled a stunt like turning Ray vamp today, the vampire council we’ve got now would terminate you.”
“They’re playing hardball? Radical.” Lucky didn’t look concerned. “Especially for Austin, home of the proudly weird.”
“It’s not an empty threat. They offed a vampire recently who turned a college student.” I sat on the table again.
“I stand warned. Now listen up. I bet, in spite of all this ‘poor Ray’ crap, I can get you interested in my little proposition.” Lucky smiled, sure of herself on this turf. “I am my father’s daughter. A verbal contract will do. You clue me in with stuff I need to know. About our blood. I called this doctor, Ian MacDonald, when I got here. He won’t tell me jack now except that he would like a sample of my blood. For some kind of experiment. Now you know I’m not just handing over something without an explanation.” Lucky shook her head. “But he just kept mum. Said any details would have to come from you. So here I am. I’ll give you fifty large to tell me what you should tell me for free, sire. Deal?”
“Fifty large. Is that fifty thousand?” I swallowed, the amount more than adequate to get me to Scotland. Damn her for tempting me.
“Yeah, Glory. American dollars, in case you didn’t know that part. Not euros or dinars. Is it a deal?” She held out her hand.
I thought about it. Hard. Could I be a sellout? But that money would buy all the plane tickets I needed to get overseas. Maybe I should give Jerry time, but with this much in my bank account I’d have options. Maybe I should tell her about the blood. Ian swore it might be addictive. It was what any sire owed a vampire they’d made.
“I have conditions. First, you stay the hell away from Ray.”
“No problem. I figure I got my licks in. But if he comes after me…? My boys don’t let anyone get near me with a stake. They don’t care who he is or how many Grammys he’s won. You might pass that word to your lover man.”
“He’s not—” I closed my eyes against the temptation her outstretched hand represented. This was wrong. I should let Jerry have the next century or so to lick his wounds, or maybe I could—
“Clock’s ticking, Glory. Don’t you owe me a little guidance? Why not make a chunk of change and do your duty at the same time?” Lucky dug into her purse again and pulled out a designer checkbook. “A thousand bucks to get this party started.” She filled out the check and signed it with a flourish then dropped it in my lap before settling back in her chair with a satisfied smile. “Come on, Glo, spill.”
I bit my lip as Lucky obviously tried to read my thoughts. Not gonna happen. If Lucky stayed in town and began loaning money or collecting debts, she was bound to pick up gossip. Aggie didn’t believe in keeping secrets and we hadn’t exactly bonded.
“One more condition. You leave town again. I don’t want you hanging around here where Ray can run into you.”
“Aw, gee. Thanks for the warm, fuzzy feelings.” Lucky showed her fangs. “Give me two weeks. I do have some business here. And I want specifics, not some generic story you make up to get rid of me. Ways to verify the facts. First, what’s up with our blood? What’s special about it? That check is a down payment. Are we doing this deal or not?”
Two weeks. An eternity or a mere blip when you live forever. I swallowed my guilt and held out my hand.
“Deal. You’d better not make me regret this, Lucky.” I sat on the table and crossed my legs. I hated to admit it, but Lucky had been right about my clothes. My long black skirt and saggy black sweater had suited my mood when I’d gotten dressed but they both needed to hit the charity gift bag sooner rather than later. I kicked at the table with my new black boots, the only stylish things I wore. Even my bra was old and comfy, stretched out and gray from too many washings and spins in a hot dryer.
“Great.” Lucky had her tablet in hand again, ready to write.
“Okay. About our blood. I started out life as a Siren. My blood is Siren blood and, even though Jerry made me a vampire, I still seem to have some Siren attributes.” I almost laughed at the look on Lucky’s face. “You’re not typing. Don’t you believe me?”
“If you’re going to make this into a joke, don’t expect to keep my money.” She tossed her things into that fabulous designer bag and jumped to her feet. I grabbed her arm before she could snatch that check.
“I wish it was a joke, Lucky. Read my mind. I’ll let you in this time. Or ask Dr. MacDonald. You can tell him to call me and I’ll give him permission to share the blood test results.” I sighed. “I recently had a horrific meeting with the Storm God, Achelous, and he confirmed the whole thing. Before I met Jerry and he turned me vampire, I was a Siren. One of those creatures who lure sailors and their ships onto the rocks with their song. I killed over a hundred thousand men before Achelous kicked me out of his harem for being too soft on my victims.”
“You’re serious.” Lucky looked me in the eyes. She was obviously reading my thoughts and checking my facts. “That is freaking awesome.”
I sagged back on the table. I should have known that Lucky would be impressed rather than repulsed. After all, look at her idea of revenge on an old boyfriend.
“Awesome? Are you kidding me? I have to live with the fact that my relationships with men aren’t because they truly love me but because I have this power over them.” I jumped when she moved closer and put her hands on my knees. “And the doctor claims my blood may even be addictive. He wants to market it as a drug, to enhance power and libido.” I really needed to shut up. Lucky looked like I’d handed her the keys to the kingdom.
“Are you listening to yourself?” She was intensity personified. “Glory, do you think you still have this fantastic power over men?”
I forced myself to shrug like this was no big deal, like it hadn’t caused my life to crash and burn.
“Apparently. I lost my memory of sitting on a rock, but seem to have kept some of the powers. Not sure exactly what yet. It’s all new to me.”
“Well, it’s the coolest thing I’ve ever heard. You can make men fall in love with you. Girlfriend, that is freaking amazing.” Lucky stepped back and sank onto her chair. “Could I have possibly inherited that Siren thing from you when you gave me your blood? This old woman in the Trans told me she could tell by the smell that a nonhuman had made me. I laughed it off, called her crazy. I mean vamps aren’t human, but used to be. Aw, shit, you know what I’m trying to say.” She closed her eyes and pressed her fingertips to her forehead. “Let me think.”
“About what?” But I was thinking too. Could this Siren power be hereditary? I’d had to give Lucky my blood to turn her. But I’d given my blood to Jerry during sex how many hundreds of times? And to Ray whenever he’d overdosed on alcohol. Even Rafe had needed to drink my blood once when he’d been wounded. Surely my Siren magic couldn’t be passed on so easily. Ian had discounted the possibility.