Page 64 of Visions in Blood
“Are they dead?”They’d seen us—our faces.
“Quite.Just stroll.It will take a minute or two before they sound an alarm.”
We were on our way to the exit, the lobby in sight, when a man raised an alarmed voice.
“There are murderers among us.”
Well, that was a bit melodramatic.And while some turned their heads, many either hadn’t heard, or for some unexplainable reason, didn’t seem to care.That might change before we reached the exit.
I grabbed Simone’s arm and pushed her toward the bar, stopping next to two men who appeared to be in a disagreement.Vile words were being thrown while arms swung widely to emphasize whatever point they were making, but their eyes weren’t glowing.I needed someone to help turn that tinder into a blaze.A few feet beyond them, a threesome, two men with a young woman, conversed as if they couldn’t hear the argument behind them.
I pulled Simone with me until we stood between the two groups, then glanced around, looking for inspiration.I found it in a six-foot floor vase.I leaned against it, but it was sturdier than it looked.
“Come here and push this over.”My whisper met shocked eyes.
“I will not damage priceless artifacts.”Simone planted her fists on her hips and gave me that look that said I was painting outside the lines again.I scanned the room.A group was starting to form around the area where the man had screamed.We couldn’t afford to get caught.There hadn’t been time to tell her about the file I’d taken.
“There are dozens that look just like it on this floor alone.And god knows how many they’ve collected around the world.I think one can be sacrificed for Devon’s mission.”
She hesitated, then glanced over her shoulder.Her eyes widened a split second, and I turned in time to spot Lorenzo storming over to the yelling man.Any moment, and he’d have the place locked down.
I sighed.“And Devon had such high hopes for his new House leader.”
Her eyes glowed a bright yellow, and I stepped back, pointing to the vase, beads of sweat sticking to my shirt.“Push it toward the guy behind the one waving his hands.”
“He hasn’t done anything.”
“Exactly.”
When she smiled, her fangs had dropped.“We’ll have words later.”
“Yeah, yeah, let’s just get out of here, then you can bitch at me the entire drive home.”
Simone barely nudged the vase and it teetered, the timing perfect with the vamps flailing arms as it smacked the man behind him, knocking him and the woman to the floor.His partner glanced at the trio and started to apologize, but in the next second, he was flying across the room, knocking over a table and several chairs when he landed.
That was the match that lit the tinder under a bored aristocracy.
I turned when Simone grabbed my arm, and I locked eyes with Erik, who stood on the table where their minibar had been.He grinned and waved cash at me—he’d obviously won the bet as to whether there’d be a fight.He nodded his gratitude before he stuffed the bills into a pocket then dove into the fighting.I saw a flash of Ulrik’s white hair before he slammed into two other vamps.
I was still smiling while we skirted the fray.If they had any intention of locking the doors before, it now appeared they just wanted everyone to leave before more priceless artifacts were damaged.I kept an eye out for Lorenzo, but he wasn’t anywhere to be seen.When we reached the foyer, Bella threw a cape over each of us and rushed us outside.
The sedan waited for us, and Bella opened the back door.I dove in first, Simone behind me, and I sucked in a large gulp of air, releasing it slowly, trying to slow the exhilaration of the getaway.Bella jumped in the front and barely closed her door before Jacques hit the gas, dodging around the other cars and keeping to a respectful speed until we exited the gate.
Turned out, our theft was a smash-and-grab after all, if you could call the four dead vamps and a fight the smash part of the plan.I hoped no one noticed the missing file for some time.And while we didn’t find the book, we didn’t leave any evidence that we’d been searching for it.
Jacques made several turns down backstreets until he hit the 405 north.With it being somewhere around two a.m., the freeway wasn’t void of vehicles, but there was plenty of room for Jacques to put the car in cruise for our race home.
Simone poured a scotch, then held the bottle up to me.
“Vodka.”
She complied without question, but before she handed me the glass, she said, “Tell me that wasn’t a waste of a priceless artifact.”
“If there’s a price Devon won’t pay to find a way to defeat Lorenzo, someone should fill me in.”I ignored the sharp glances the vamps in front gave me as I lifted my ass to tug the folder from my pants pocket.“I can’t read French, but something tells me Devon might be interested in this.”
She handed me the glass of chilled vodka, but her eyes had narrowed.When she didn’t take the folder, I had no doubt I’d gone too far.But honestly, what was the price of a stable vampire council compared to an old vase?
When she took the folder, I released an imperceptible breath that the danger had passed.Without looking at it, she stuck the folder in a leather satchel by her feet, sipped her scotch, then leaned back and closed her eyes.She could have been a stone statue of a regal heiress in repose.The only sign she was pleased was in the slight twitch of her lips.
