Page 31 of Death is Familiar

“Glad my hints made sense.” Jezebel, in plain clothes, sporting a rather large garment bag, was about as friendly as people came. Her curls bouncing freely, an infallible smile on her face, she gave me a single armed squeeze. “For the record, D, really hard to get ‘Coliseum’ into a sentence without drawing attention from the woman upstairs.”

“Only you could make that work,” I assured her. “Though it took me longer than it should’ve to figure out you wanted to meet at this amphitheater. Almost took us to Ritter Park.”

In addition to coding the location where we should meet, Jezebel had also indicated the time, tapping the number two when she handed me the business card. So, our run-in was not a chance encounter by any stretch of the imagination.

Todd cleared his throat to grab my attention. “Everything yesterday was an act?”

Well, the good news was I had less explaining to do. He caught on quickly. But that was a gift as much as it was a curse.

I smiled innocently at Todd, giving him the biggest toothy grin I could manage, as I stepped out of the way to make warmer introductions. “Jezebel, you’ve already met Agent Galt. Todd— Jezebel.”

They shook hands, and I ignored the glower Todd threw my way.

“Sorry for the version of me you met yesterday.” The three of us took a seat on one of the grassy ledges away from other prying eyes and ears as Jezebel spoke, “I don’t normally objectify people, but in there it’s part of my job description.” Literally.

Todd grumbled under his breath, a sound I now welcomed, as I translated on his behalf, “All good.”

“Sorry, I just...” Jez blinked considering her words. She patted Dog for support. “I guess I’m not sure how he’ll communicate at the gathering?”

“I’m very good at disappearing in a crowd.”

“Well aware,” I replied to Todd before turning to Jezebel. “And we’ve got that handled. Now, the truth, if you please, Jez.”

She exhaled with a burst. “I know them. All five of them.”

The hair on the back on my neck prickled. Todd straightened his posture.

Jezebel shook her head. “But no one would know they are missing. Not yet. I didn’t even know they were missing until you showed me the photos. And I have access to more than most.”

“Explain. Please.”

Jezebel didn’t need any translation for that one, she simply continued, “There was a fang ceremony a week ago. It was the last time we saw them. Each of their vamps got their fangs that night. So, we wouldn’t expect to see them for another week.”

“A fang ceremony? For their vamps, so they were what? Familiars?”

“Fang ceremonies are our highest honors. After fully fledged vamps get their new teeth, the ceremony acts as a venue for their first bite. And the first bite is always with the vamp’s familiar. It’s followed by a two-week period where the familiar goes radio silent. Like they are undergoing a change.”

“Names. Ask for the names… Please.”

“Can you confirm the names of the victims for us?”

“One step ahead of you.” Jez pulled a neatly folded list from her pocket, and handed it over. Todd and I recognized the five names from the debrief. We had confirmation. But beside each of the names was a dash with another name. “Pulled it from the registration data. They didn’t use those names with us though. Once you have familiar or vamp status, you choose a more… vampy name.”

“Like Jezebel?”

“Like Jezebel.” She smiled. “Anyway, I wrote them out for you. But only use their vamp names at the gathering, or no one will know who you are talking about.”

Mercy. Dorian. Celeste. Kian. Zayd. But there were two more names added at the bottom of the page.

“This is extremely helpful, Jez.” I shot a look at Todd, who concurred. “But why are there seven names here?”

“Could you check out…” Jez leaned in, lowering her voice to a whisper. “I think something similar happened in Lexington. Two familiars went missing a year ago. They were two of our looser cannons. When their vamps got fangs, they never came back. We learned they died, but never got the details.”

Todd pulled out his phone, and started tapping his keys, taking notes. He gave me a nod.

“We’ll look into it.”

Jez took a deep breath then visibly shuttered with relief. “Thank you. I mean it. Truly.”