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I scowled. It was such a Buddy thing to say.
“Yes,” I answered before Alcántara had a chance to. “This little thing will do her job. ”
He laughed a goofy, chortling laugh, and it reaffirmed my instant dislike. I wondered what kind of dirt he had on Alcántara, or Alcántara on him, that kept him alive and stationed on an enemy island. Too bad I wouldn’t have time to ask that story.
He stood hands on hips, looking more like he was in a locker room than on an island crawling with malevolent undead. “So, Master Al gave you the rundown?”
Master Al? I nodded, mesmerized by his not having full-grown fangs.
“Servants keep their eyes down around here,” he continued. “So just play dumb, lie low, and listen. ”
I’d grown up keeping my eyes down—lying low was second nature to me. “Check, check, and check. ”
“Find out where Carden is,” Alcántara said, taking over the conversation. “That is all. Do not do anything yourself. Do not call attention to yourself. If they discover you, they will destroy McClo
ud. ”
And slice and dice me into Drew-kabobs, but I seemed to be the only one concerned by that point. “I understand. ”
But Mr. Football didn’t sound convinced. He slid a backpack from his shoulder and tossed it to me. “Here’s your uniform. ”
I peeked inside. It was a dress. I frowned. “I guess I can holster my stars under this. ”
Buddy tsked. “No, chica. You’ve gotta nail this without your toys. These vamps may not be into electric lights or heat, but they sure do have metal detectors all over the damned place. ”
“I can do my job without weapons,” I said with more bravado than real courage.
“You’d better. You’re our only chance. We won’t get another shot like this any time soon. ”
I did not like being on the receiving end of Buddy’s attitude. “What about you? Why can’t you find McCloud? Seems like you have an in. ”
Alcántara answered for him. “It’s impossible for those who are Vampire to roam through the monastery undetected. Like senses like. They would sniff him out, and once discovered, he’d only raise suspicion. Trainee Lee isn’t powerful enough to be a party to the Synod’s proceedings. ”
Trainee Lee. I bit my cheek not to snicker at the lame name. Buddy was much better.
“Anyway,” Buddy Lee said with a dopey shrug, “I’m only a Trainee. We’re like mushrooms, you know—kept in the dark and fed shit. ”
I raised my brows, wondering where they’d found this one. “Classy. ”
I could tell by Alcántara’s pursed mouth he agreed with me. But I guess Buddy was too valuable to scold. I was dying to know that story.
But, instead, I went deeper into the cave, so deep I could barely see in the dark, to change into my disguise. Alcántara was old-fashioned, but still, there were two of them and one of me, and I felt vulnerable and exposed. Not to mention cold. It was freezing, with the wind gusting off the water. I stripped and dressed as quickly as I could, my hands trembling with cold and their clumsily rapid movements.
It was easy enough to sort out the uniform in the darkness, the thing was so simple. Just a flannel dress with a floor-length skirt as loose as the bodice was tight. I had to suck in to zip it up the side—the woman he’d stolen it from must’ve been miniscule. Naturally, it was gray, and I wondered what it was vampires had against color. The finishing touches were a pair of thick, scratchy woolen hose, my hair tugged back in a bun, and a white cap on top. A white apron topped the whole thing. I felt like a Quaker.
But I guess Buddy had a thing for simple, because when I emerged, he gave me and my snug bodice a cockeyed grin. His tone was sarcastic, but his eyes were approving. “Hot. ”
I was about to jump down his throat when Alcántara beat me to it. The vampire practically flew across the cave to him—one minute he stood against the wall, and the next he was in Buddy’s face.
When Alcántara stepped away, I saw the Trainee held his hands clutched over his cheek. Blood was dripping down his jaw, dribbling onto his collar and turning the brown material black. “Dude,” he mumbled.
Alcántara folded his hands behind his back, speaking calmly. “Cuidado, boy. You will honor Acari Drew. Look upon her with respect, or the next time it will be your eyes. ”
I watched the boy wipe blood from his face—me, the girl who’d just been defended by a vampire.
It was unnerving and frightening, but it was kind of a rush, too. The feeling I got was that Alcántara honored me, in an old-fashioned, chivalric sort of way.
I held my shoulders back, standing tall. I wasn’t an adolescent like Buddy. I was on a mission.
