Page 80 of Walking in Darkness

“I passed Stella on my way back here. She said she’s going to send somebody back with our meals since we have about two hours before we need to leave,” Kit said. “They should be here in a few moments.”

“Good.” Hudson patted the empty spot on the couch next to him. “Come, sit. While we wait, I wanted to go over who you’ll be seeing tonight.”

“That’d be really helpful,” Kit said. “Along with telling me what I’m supposed to wear tonight.”

“That’s the easy part,” Connie said. “Our dress code is black leather pants, black knee-high boots, and black shirts.”

“Well, I guess it’s a damn good thing I like leather as much as I like lace because I have all of that,” Kit said, frowning at Connie. “There’s a dress code?”

“It wouldn’t have been the end of the world if you didn’t have any of that. By the next meeting, you would have. And no, there isn’t a dress code per se,” Hudson said.

“But—” There was a knock at the door. “Hold that thought.” Connie answered the door, thanked Stella, then pushed a cart loaded with food inside. “Dinner is served.”

Hudson helped Connie unload the cart while Kit fixed them all something to drink, then they settled at the little dining area.

“Mmm, this is good. I love seafood,” Kit said, biting into the shrimp scampi. “So, what were you saying, Connie?”

“We were talking about how people dressed at this meeting. I was just saying that certain paranormals do dress in a certain way. For example, Kage and his clan always dress up—expensive suits and dresses. The vampires dress as if they’re going to a goth/Victorian/steampunk ball,” Connie said.

“I bet they look cool.”

“Their leader is Raven St. Clair. His title is Master of the City, and he is based downtown, near Kage’s penthouse,”Hudson said, taking a bite of his fish. “Dr. Frederick is part of Raven’s coven.”

“A group of vampires is a coven. Got it.”

“Then there’s the Cross River pack, which are werewolves,” Connie said, passing the rolls to Hudson. “Their territory is on the Eastern side of San DeLain. Their alpha is a lovely Asian woman named Li Li Kim, and her mate is Jerome Benton.”

“Is that unusual? I mean, having a female alpha?” Kit asked.

“It depends on the pack, really. Cross River is considered progressive. They normally also dress up like Kage and his clan. You refer to their leader as alpha,” Hudson said.

“Speaking of packs, another werewolf pack is the Crimson Fangs. They have a new alpha, and that is Axel Scheffler. Their territory is to the south of the city. Axel has ties to Kage,” Connie said.

“Which brings us to the daemons of San DeLain,” Hudson said. “Kage’s title is Elder, and his members are called a clan. His clan is mixed, meaning he accepts other paranormals besides daemons. They don’t have territory like we do. Kage owns the Grand at the Dominion, and that’s where his clan lives.”

“Isn’t that where Embers is located?” Kit asked.

“Yes. Kage owns that, along with other businesses,” Hudson said.

“There are also the gargoyles. Like us, they can’t change humans,” Connie said. “And they tend to be loners. Their leader is King Hereward Tywyll. He goes by Ward.”

“Oh. He’s a king? So, he’s royalty too?”

“I don’t know exactly,” Hudson admitted, taking a bite of his mashed potatoes. “It may just be a title that can be assumed by anybody.”

“Unlike dragons. They’re considered royalty because they’re born to the title,” Connie said. “I mean, as soon as you see a dragon in their natural form, you know if he or she is royalty or not because of their size and coloring.”

“Right. And no one really knows that much about the gargoyles,” Hudson added. “They live north of the city, and their land butts up against ours. Both dragons and gargoyles like the mountains.”

“I take it you and their king get along since you’re practically neighbors?” Kit asked, sipping his drink.

“Yes, fortunately,” Hudson said. “Next, we have the—”

“There’s more?” Kit rubbed his hands over his face. “Maybe I should’ve been taking notes. Oh, who am I kidding? There’s no way I’m going to remember all this.”

“You’ll learn it eventually, and we’ll be there to help you,” Connie said.

“Just don’t let me offend anybody,” Kit begged.

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