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I looked to the night-dark s to see Derek, the co to the side in his charcoal suit He nodded once toto his study of the lobby The nod meant that no one stood out as a possible trouble he’d see even though he wasn’t looking at eneral channel, "Clear?"

"Clear," another voice said That would be Wrassler, already positioned in the Noir Wine Roo sure no one was there but the appropriate staff and sanctionedthe negotiations Which set ainst his or her will, I wasn’ta fuss

CHAPTER FIVE

Two Cups and You’re Done

They started again with the intros, which were each shorter by about half now that the two vamps had met a few times, but there was still a lot of chatter about Leo The bloodsucker I worked for was arguably the second ular basis, which made me really stupid, or really lucky, or proved that I had so Leo wanted, a hypothesis that scared me silly when I let myself think about it

Intros done, the e--the va Two blood-servants stepped up beside the va, which meant Placid Jade in Mandarin, and an equally beautiful Korean man named Chin Ho, which meant Precious and Goodness Each blood-oire took Chin Ho’s hand, turned it palm up, and sniffed Shaddock’s blood-servant’s wrist He dropped his fangs forith a little snick of sound and bit in As soon as he was latched on, Shaddock bit into Anling, Grégoire’s blood-servant This part of the negotiations had been established early on, as the Carta left the location of the sa up to the vamps in parley Carotid, brachial, and femoral (ick), had been ruled out, as had sex with the servants while tasting Vamps were pretty blasé about intercourse, and sex and dinner were often one and the sa I wanted to be in the same room with Double ick

After a suitable a, like two cups and you’re done What did I know?--the s froes

"Anling tastes like ht and jasmine," Shaddock said Which sounded all kinds of funny with his country boy/ood bourbon"

"Your Chin Ho is reoire said "A delightful offering And young?"

"Only fifty years, but he’s agin’ well, or so I’m told"

"Lovely boy," the French vamp said And he placed a kiss on the blood-servant’s wrist The Korean vintage blushed and lowered his eyes

It ay tooto it all made me wonder why no blood-ood beer I ht a fast response frooire Likely a painful one To the vamps this stuff was deadly ih I’d made a study of the relevant parts of the Vampira Carta and its codicils for this job, and understood the penalties for va important was on the docket until after dinner, I let my mind wander back over the kiss and conversation with Rick, careful not to react to thepart of the tasting ceremony, and a physical response in any of the observers would have reached the noses of the vamps instantly in such close quarters Noir Wine Room held space for only twenty or so, and the intimate accommodations meant we shared each other’s scent reactions

Rick’s last words, before he disappeared, silent as a stalking cat into the long shadows haunted me "But I’ll still want you, Jane" He had meant it, totally and coet anted in life

Goodclaws Good killing teeth She rolled over, her claws scraping across my mind We could be black leopard, mate to Ricky Bo

That statehts and back to the enervating,the length of time Shaddock’s scions were chained while they cured, which was my smoked-meat term for the time it took newly turned vamps, who always rose insane, to remember their own minds It took only five years forprocess, a speed that had been well documented for sixty years Most vamps, when bitten, spend ten years nutso--lost in what they call the devoveo, the insanity that comes to all freshly risen vamps--chained in their maker’s basement, before they recall who they had been and develop bloodlust control, allowing theoire phrased it The speed hich Shaddock’s scions recovered had e And now there was the two-year-wonder, the vamp who cured in two years A record