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“Yeah, but there wasn’t anyone around, like I said. Who the fuck am I hiding from? All the guests are in their rooms. If our guests were this well behaved, managing our hotel would be so much fuckin’ easier. Maybe we should lock our hotel doors at night.”
“We can’t lock guests in, it’s wrong.”
“Did you learn anything of use besides how to get free sandwiches?” Victor asked, striding back to the table.
“Actually, Fancy Fangs, I did.” Grinning, Zee sat forward, rested his elbows on the table, and devoured another tiny sandwich. “The chef said shit got weird a few weeks ago when a new and mysterious management took over.”
“Interesting.” Victor eyed the pile of plastic-wrapped sandwiches. “Did the chef further enlighten you as to who this management were?”
“He did, actually. He said he’d heard they all wore suits.”
“Vampires,” Victor and I said together.
“Nobody fuckin’ likes vampires.”
I recalled the strange coat-wearing person I’d seen in the foyer. “When we arrived, I spotted someone I thought might be a vampire in reception, but when he saw me he left.”
“Was he wearing a suit and projecting epic-asshole accountant vibes?”
“No, he had on a winter coat, which was why I wasn’t certain. But maybe my instincts were onto something.”
“As the vampire representative in this conversation, I feel I must point out that not all vampires wear suits.”
Both Zee and I stared at Victor, currently wearing a crumpled suit. The jacket was draped over a nearby chair.
“But they are all assholes,” Zee confirmed.
“Regrettably,” Victor sighed. “I find myself agreeing with that sweeping generalization.”
“So what happens when a bunch of suckers takes over a hotel full of Lost Ones and humans, then locks ’em in?”
“Nothing good,” Victor said. “Although . . . elemental powers are not generally a vampire’s forte, suggesting they are likely working with another Lost One.”
“So what you’re saying is, the suckers outsourced the murdering.” Zee leaned back. “Like you did that time a million years ago when you hired werewolves to kill that nice old defenseless dragon.”
“I doubt that dragon was nice or defenseless,” I clarified. “But yeah, Zee’s probably right. This could be vampires working with a sorcerer. Gideon Cain’s ego was the only thing preventing him from doing the same with Daisy, the vampire queen.”
“But why?” Victor asked. “What is their intention?”
“It’s vampires.” Zee flapped a hand. “Probably killing time in their long boring fucked-up lives.”
When Victor didn’t immediately deny it, I looked up, and sure enough he was nodding. “Zodiac may be correct,” he said. “Since the fall of the queens and the rise of an elected council, many vampires find themselves directionless. There is no war here, and no queen to serve. While many like myself wish to integrate into human society, there are others who prefer we enslave it . . . but some are also likely bored. Immortality can be exceedingly dull.”
“Bored bloodthirsty suckers running a hotel? Fuck, I would not wanna stay there. Kitten, remind me why you didn’t pack Shareen?”
“Yeah, uh . . . uhm . . . I probably should have done that.”
Victor picked up a dainty sandwich and began to methodically study its angles. “There are other Lost Ones staying at the hotel. Perhaps we should engage their aid?”
“We’d have to be careful not to reveal who we really are, though,” I reminded them. “If anyone posts about Reyzee on social media, Syros will see it.”
“Fuck your brother.”
“Indeed.”
“You gonna eat that sandwich or eye-fuck it some more?” Zee asked Victor.
Victor nibbled a small bite. “It is marginally better than satisfactory with an unusual hint of pepper.”
