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I picked up the receiver to hear a low voice, almost a growl, on the other end. “Please summon Menol y to the phone.”
The accent gave him away. As did the power behind the accent. It didn’t matter whether my Cal er ID was blocked. I knew who was on the other end.
“Hel o, Roman. This is Menol y.”
“Ah, the girl remembers my voice. That delights me.” He let out a short laugh, and my stomach tied itself in knots. His voice was so rich, so strong, and even through the phone line he beckoned to me, reeling me in. “My maid relayed your message.”
Shivering, I forced myself to sit on the bed. Roman scared the hel out of me. He was an ancient vampire whom I’d met once, thanks to Sassy. He could have taken on Dredge and slapped him down with one hand. Calculating he was, and cool, and perfectly at home in his skin. And he wanted me to attend the midwinter Vampire’s Bal as his escort.
I hesitated. Roman was Sassy’s friend. How was I going to juggle what I wanted to ask him with her meltdown? I had to say something, though—I wasn’t about to play head games with the godfather of vampires. That would be a losing proposition.
“I need your help, if you’re wil ing to offer it.” There. Plain, simple, blunt.
He laughed again, his mirth rich and rol ing over me like delicious honey. “And what wil you offer me in return, I wonder? But first, you wil attend the bal with me as my escort?”
It might sound like a question, but behind the façade, it was a demand. I rol ed my eyes and decided what the hel —it couldn’t hurt. Nerissa wouldn’t be going anyway. It didn’t do to take breathers to a vampire soiree.
“Yes, I’d love to. Thank you. I assume formal dress?”
“Lovely, and yes. Pick out whatever you like and send the bil to me. I would be happy to buy your dress for you. A fur, if you like.”
Whoa. Dresses and fur coats on the first date? I started to say something, then bit my words back. Again, the whole power struggle thing was not something I wanted to get into. Yet. He could wipe me out with the blink of an eye, even though I had Dredge’s blood in me.
“Um . . . thank you, but I have dresses.”
“The offer stands. Now, what do you need my help with?”
I could hear the smirk behind the words and it ticked me off, but I kept my temper at bay. “We have a problem. I think we have a vampire serial kil er at work in the city. I need to put an end to it.”
A pause. Then, “And just what do you want me to do? Such matters don’t interest me. You wil find him, or you won’t. Chances are, sooner or later, you wil track him down and kil him. You’re too good at your job not to. And then it wil be over, for the time being, and you wil move on to another case.”
Somehow his confidence in me didn’t make me feel better. “Have you heard anything out of the ordinary? Someone new to the life who’s gone off balance?”
“A lot of vampires lose their way when they’re turned. They walk into the shadows and lose their sense of reason. Those of us who make it to an ancient age must repress our consciences while maintaining logic and reason.”
Something about the way he said that gave me the shivers. “I see. You do realize, this vampire is going to make life hard for al of us.”
“Agreed. While I don’t care about the humans on whom he feeds, he wil give us a bad name.
We live by the treaty to avoid al -out war, but not al vampires have agreed to it. Until the Regencies are set up, we won’t have an official ruling class approved by the government to enforce sanctions against aberrant behavior. Which brings me directly to a topic I wish to discuss: your friend Wade.”
Uh-oh. Wade was running for Regent against Terrance from the Fangtabula. Was Roman backing Terrance? I hoped not; it would tel me a lot more about him than I wanted to know.
Though I’d wiped Wade off my radar after he kicked me out of Vampires Anonymous, truth was, I hoped he’d win. At least he’d be a sane choice for the job. Terrance was trouble incarnate.
Roman cleared his throat and I could hear a whistle. He must be smoking one of his cigars.
Roman might be a hedonist, but he also refused to al ow his passions to rule his life. He was in control with a capital C.
“This matter directly impacts you. I have a job for you, Menol y.”
Great. Another person yanking on my coattails, and one whom I couldn’t afford to ignore. “What do you want us to do?” I glanced over at Erin. She was happily absorbed in another movie, oblivious to my conversation. I had the feeling Sassy limited her television.
“Us? Not us if you’re referring to your sisters, though if you need their help, I won’t object. This is a serious task. But I trust that you wil succeed. You are the only one I will trust for this matter, precisely because you aren’t part of the vampire politics swirling through the town right now.” He sobered, and behind the strength, I could hear a tinge of worry.
“What’s going on, Roman?” I blinked. Vampire politics was so not on my plate right now. We had enough worries now with Stacia Bonecrusher—a demon general—dead. When Shadow Wing realized she’d vanished like her predecessors, he’d send someone bigger and badder after us.
“The phone is no place to discuss this matter. Come to my place. Eight thirty tonight. We’l dine on the richest blood you’l ever taste—voluntarily harvested from my stable of beauties. And I wil tel you what I want of you.”
