Hard Bitten - Chloe Neill [38]
His upper lip curled, but another vamp in his knot pulled him back and into whatever argument they’d been having.
“I have to admit, this isn’t exactly what I expected.”
I looked around the space and noticed the plastic had been peeled back at one end of the room, and the opening led to a balcony. “Let’s try out there,” I suggested. “If humans are here, they’re going to want to take in the view.”
Jonah nodded his agreement and we maneuvered our way outside. The balcony was empty of furniture—but full of humans.
“Still not exactly what I expected,” he muttered.
They were sprinkled here and there, mostly women, probably under twenty-five or so. Like the vampires, the girls wore everything from party dresses and heels to goth ensembles with short skirts and big boots. One girl, a blonde who was a bit taller and curvier than the rest, wore a tiara with white streamers and a pink satin sash across her chest. When the crowd cleared, I could see BRIDE written across it in glittery letters. The girl beside her held her hand, both of them grinning in anticipation.
As nonchalantly as we could, we walked to the edge of the balcony, where a railing had been installed. The lake was spread on one side of us, the city on the other. Jonah slid an arm around my waist, and we continued the guise of two lovers enjoying a prebloodletting chat.
“A would-be bride looking for a final premarital adventure?” I said quietly.
“Quite possibly. They may be fully aware of what they’re getting into. Check the wristbands.”
I gave the girls another look. Around each of their wrists was a red silicone wristband. “What about them?”
“The bands mark them as vampire sympathizers. The ones who still think we’re dark and delicious.”
Like high-cocoa chocolate, I thought. “Even as the rest of the city begins to turn against us?”
“Apparently. I support the support, although a plastic bracelet doesn’t exactly scream ‘long-term political allies.’ ” He shrugged. “But here they are, and as much as Scott and Morgan may deplore it, drinking from humans isn’t a sin.”
“Brave words for a non-Cadogan vampire.”
Jonah humphed. “I stand by my statement. In any event, we wait until we see something amiss—and then we move in.”
I smiled up at him, then tugged playfully on a lock of his auburn hair, playing the part in which I’d been cast. “Works for me.”
He grinned, and the look was effective enough that it made even my hardened heart trip a bit. “And I thought you’d be stubborn and difficult to work with.”
This time, I gave him a pinch on the arm I hope looked playful—and not spiteful. “In case you’ve forgotten, Ethan Sullivan trained me. And in case you didn’t know, Catcher Bell schooled me in sword craft. I was raised on ‘difficult to work with.’ ”
He chuckled. “Then you’re forgiven.”
“So magnanimous.”
He put his hand on his heart like a man confessing love. “That’s the nature of RG service.”
I gave him a quick pat on the cheek. “Darling, I’ll just have to take your word for it.”
We wandered around the balcony for a while, fingers intertwined, occasionally sharing strategically furtive whispers. If this was a real rave, there was a lot less drum-and-bass and many fewer glow-in-the-dark necklaces than I’d have expected. But pills and powders were still passed around, and there was enough glamour in the air that my skin crawled with it, my neck beginning to ache from my constantly shaking off the peculiar tickle.
We kept an eye on the humans, and from our perch hundreds of feet above the city, we watched the play take shape. Vampires moved in and around the sprinkling of humans, plying them with alcohol and glamour. The vamps were clearly in touch with their predatory instincts—and they acted on them. Once glasses of champagne were passed out, the humans were separated and divided, then escorted, one by one, back into the penthouse. They were probably unaware they’d been singled