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He took it from her fingers, frowned at it, and then ripped open the back flap. Inside was a folded card of the same expensive cream paper, with raised black printing. Shane looked at it for a long second, then put it back in the envelope and handed it back to Eve. "Burn it," he said.
And then he went upstairs.
Eve lost no time digging the card out, and since she did, Claire didn't feel too guilty about reading over her shoulder.
You have been summoned to attend a masked ball and feast to celebrate the arrival of Elder Bishop, on Saturday the twentieth of October, at the Elders' Council Hall at the hour of midnight.
You will attend at the invitation of the lady Ysandre, and are required to accompany her at her pleasure.
"Who's Ysandre?" Eve asked.
Claire was too busy worrying about the phrase at her pleasure.
They located Sam Glass at Common Grounds, sitting and talking with two others Claire didn't recognize, but Eve clearly did, from the nods they exchanged. Humans, because they were wearing bracelets. They said their good-byes and cleared the chairs for Eve and Claire.
Sam looked a lot like Michael - a little older, maybe, with a slightly wider chin. He had red hair to Michael's bright gold, but a similar build and height.
That had nearly gotten him killed, not so long ago, when he'd taken a stake meant for Michael. He still looked drawn, Claire thought - tired, too. But his smile was genuine as he nodded his greeting. "Ladies, " he said. "It's good to see you. Eve, I didn't think you'd ever come in here again, not voluntarily. "
"Believe me, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't," she said, and tapped dark purple fingernails on the scarred table in agitation. "Do you know where Michael is?"
Sam's ginger eyebrows rose. "He's not at work?"
"He left last night, didn't say where he was going. We haven't seen him, and he's not at work. So? Ideas?"
"Nothing good," Sam said, and sat back in his chair. "Does he have his car?"
"Yeah, as far as I know. Why?"
"GPS. All of our cars are trackable."
"Wow, good to know in case I ever go into the grand-theft-auto business around here," Eve said. "Who's got the supersecret-spy tracking gear, and how do I get my hands on it?"
"You don't," Sam said. "I'll take care of it."
"Soon?"
"As soon as I can."
"But I need to find him! What if he's - " Eve leaned even closer, dropping her voice to a whisper. "What if someone has him?"
"Who?"
"Bishop!"
Sam's eyes widened, and all over the coffee shop, other heads snapped up. Mostly vampires, Claire thought, who knew the name, or at least knew of it. And who could hear a whisper across a crowded room.
"Quiet," Sam said. "Eve, stay out of it. It's nothing for any of you to get involved in. It's our business."
"It's our business, too. The guy was in our house. He threatened us, all of us," Eve said. "Can't you find out right now? Because otherwise I'm going to call up Homeland Security and tell them that we've got a whole bunch of terrorists skulking around in the dark."
"You wouldn't."
"Oh, I so would. With glee. And I'd tell them to bring tanning beds and conduct interviews at noon out in the parking lot."
Sam shook his head. "Eve - "
Eve slammed her hand down on the table. It sounded like a gunshot, and every head turned in their direction. "I'm not kidding, Sam!"
"Yes, you are," he said, deliberately quiet. "Because if you were serious, you would be making a threat against people who control the destiny of your next heartbeat, and that would be very, very stupid. Now, say you'll let me handle this."
Eve's dark eyes didn't blink. "Is this about Bishop? Why is he here? What's he doing? Why are you so scared of him?"
Sam stood up, and there was something remote and cold about him just then. Something that reminded Claire, very strongly, that he was a vampire first.
"Go home," he said. "I'll find Michael. I doubt he's in any trouble, and I doubt it has anything to do with Bishop."
Eve stood up, too, and for the first time, Claire saw her as an adult - a woman, facing him on equal terms.
"You'd better be right," she said softly. "Because if anything happens to Michael, that won't be the end of it. I swear to that."
Sam watched them all the way out of the coffee shop. So did everyone else. Some of them looked worried; some looked gleeful. Some looked angry.
But nobody ignored the two of them as they left. Nobody. And that was . . . unsettling.
They got in the car, and Eve started it up without a word. Claire finally ventured a question. "Where are we going?"
"Home," Eve said. "I'm giving Sam a chance to keep his word."
That, Claire thought, was going to involve Eve chewing the corners off the walls and pacing holes in the floor. And Claire had absolutely no idea what to do to help her.
But that was basically what friends were for . . . to be there to keep you from doing the crazy.
They'd been home for exactly one hour when the phone rang. Shane was sitting next to the phone - he'd appropriated the place, because he was worried Eve would keep picking up the receiver to check the line - and answered on the first chime. "Glass House," he said, and listened. Claire watched every muscle in his body go tense and still. "Go screw yourself."
And he hung up.
Claire and Eve both gaped at him. "What the hell - ?" Eve blurted, and lunged for the phone. She flicked the contact switch.
"Star sixty-nine," Claire suggested. "Shane - who was it?"
He didn't answer. He crossed his arms over his chest. Eve frantically punched in the code. "It's ringing, " she said - and then, like Shane, she went still.
She sank down in a chair.
"Should've left it alone," Shane said.
Eve closed her eyes, and her shoulders slumped. "Yeah, I'm here," she said tightly. "What is it, Jason?"
Claire caught Shane's look, and she must have seemed suspiciously in the know, because he frowned at her. "Have you seen him?" Shane asked.
Truth, or lie? "Yes," Claire said, even though that definitely wasn't the path of least resistance. "I saw him yesterday morning on the way to school. He said he wanted to talk to Eve."
Oh, that look. It could have melted steel. "And you forgot about chatting with the local serial killer? Sweet, Claire. Very smart."
"I didn't forget. I - never mind." There was no explaining the vibe she had gotten from Jason, not to Shane, whose most vivid memories of the little creep had to do with Jason sinking a knife into his guts. "I'm sorry. I should have told you."
