Page 93 of Tin God

A sauna? Interesting.

To the right, he saw five containers that all looked like they were wearing a fresh coat of paint. There were lit walkways that led from one to the next, raised containers spilling over with plants in the winter, which meant they had to be heated. The air was full of the scent of pine, not from the forest around them but from strategically placed stations along the walkways that pumped fragrance into the environment.

It was as luxurious as a five-star hotel, but it was floating.

Carwyn walked quickly and silently toward the containers, curious if they were what he thought. He put his ear to one and heard movement, so he quickly moved to the next.

Two vampires in the stern of the ship, one in a container. That was three at least.

He glanced at the door and saw that each of the containers was numbered.

Number three is going to want that blood fresh…

The memory of the chef’s barking voice matched the number on the container where someone was stirring.

Carwyn moved to container five, the last of the containers that was sitting at the back of the deck. He put his ear to the side, listening for movement.

Nothing.

Trying the door, he discovered it was locked, but he twisted his wrist to the side with a sharp crack and the knob came loose, dangling on the freshly painted door. He pushed his fingers inside the lock mechanism and pulled the pieces out, crushing them in his hand before he tossed them overboard.

Carwyn pushed the door in and blinked, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the pitch-darkness There was a lamp near the door, and he reached for it, closing the door before he switched it on.

A low light filled the container, and Carwyn could see exactly why the chef had been barking orders.

While they were industrial on the outside, these containers had been converted into luxuriously appointed small apartments, complete with a living area, a kitchenette and bar, and a door at the back that likely led to another reinforced sleeping compartment for daytime.

Carwyn walked to a marble-topped desk in the corner to pick up a gold-leaf piece of stationery with an engraved elephant at the top of the page, painted in sky blue. The name Henri Paulson was written at the top, and under that name was a single line.

Welcome to Blå Havn, the beginning of a new world.

“A new world, eh?” He flipped over the page, but there was nothing else. There was, however, a leather portfolio sitting to the right, and when he opened it, he saw a menu of services not unlike a room service guide at a luxury resort.

There was a guide to the ship, including a map that showed where the sauna, the spa, the library, and the entertainment rooms were. After that, there was aMenutab he flipped open.

“Caviar,” he murmured. “Oysters. Lobster and salmon, of course.”

Under a light menu of human food were more offerings to tempt the vampire palate. A list of blood-wines and fresh and preserved blood. Exotic blood like caribou and moose had a note that advance order was necessary.

He flipped to the next page and saw a menu of humans on staff, including pictures and a note that sexual favors were included with all meals upon request.

And then two lines under that:Complete live meals arranged by ship’s porter.

Complete. Live. Meals.

What the fuck did a complete meal mean? Carwyn could guess, and it was enough to make his blood boil.

He flipped through the staff pictures, looking for the face of a cheerful blond woman he’d seen on a cell phone screen wearing a blue striped shirt and a red scarf, but she wasn’t in the directory. Either Christy the chef had been taken to another boat that Paulson owned or she was dead.

Unfortunately, with things like complete live meals on the menu, the chances of Christy being alive after so many weeks were slim.

He quickly searched the rest of the container, but the back room had a combination lock, and he didn’t have the time. He grabbed the leather portfolio along with a clump of papers in a folder that was shoved in a desk drawer and headed back toward the door.

Carwyn opened it and came face-to-face with a mustached guard whose eyes went wide.

The vampire opened his mouth, but before he could shout, Carwyn rammed his fist into the man’s face, knocking him across the walkway and into the container opposite the one he’d just searched.

The guard thunked against the steel wall before he slid to the ground and rolled to the side. In seconds he was back on his feet, and Carwyn had to make the quick decision whether he was going to put the guard out of commission or run.

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