Real Vampires Live Large (35 page)

“I've got it, Gloriana.” Richard's mother pressed a wad of cash into the woman's hand. “Please. Accept a donation for the group. For future desserts.”

“Wow. Thanks.” The dazed woman's eyes widened when she realized what she held. “Next week I'll order chocolate cake. That's the group's favorite. Just don't let the dog in here. I've heard chocolate is bad for dogs.”

“Of course. The dog should stay in the car, shouldn't he?” Sarah gave Richard a speaking look and he dragged Valdez out the door.

“Ready to go?” Flo was by my side.

“I really need to wash my hands.” I headed for the door clearly marked “Ladies” near the back wall.

Once inside, I dabbed at pink and white frosting until I finally gave up and just licked my fingers. Delicious.

“What a disaster.” Flo pushed inside, then looked around the bathroom to make sure we were alone while I washed my hands. “Those people were giving you the evil eye out there.”

“Yeah. Wonder if there's another church with night services. I'm afraid we'll be blackballed after this.” I dried my hands on a paper towel then stared at the large mirror in front of me. Of course I wasn't seeing either one of us.

“Glory?” Flo put her hand on my shoulder.

“Valdez. What's wrong with him? Do you think he really left that message?”

“Only if Blade told him to.” Flo reached up and pulled a piece of cake out of my hair. She sniffed, then dropped it in the trash can.

The very possibility hit me like a body blow. “What? And then Blade said ‘Let them eat cake'?” I rubbed at a spot on my skirt. “Did you see the mess Valdez just made? Our Valdez knows we try to keep a low profile.” I gave up on the skirt.

“But, Glory, if Valdez didn't leave that message, who did? And why?”

“Someone's pulling my chain, Flo. Who and why? One guess.”

“Here we go again. Simon, always Simon.” Flo put her hands on her hips. “I won't hear this.”

“Are you sure that dog is your bodyguard?” Sarah Mainwaring swept into the room, white frosting paw prints on her skirt. “Richard says Valdez is not himself.”

“He's right. This is totally out of character.” I wasn't just
worried
about my dog. I was getting frantic. Sure, we'd been surrounded by people, but he was acting like a . . . dog. I handed Sarah a paper towel. “Thanks, Sarah, for taking care of the cake. I insist on reimbursing you.”

“Forget it. I'm quite able to afford it. Who knows? Maybe I'll check out the singles group myself some Sunday night.” Sarah smiled at me, turning at Flo's barely stifled snicker. “Perhaps you should try it as well, Florence. Richard seems to feel that your current ‘friend' is an unsavory character. ” Sarah wet the paper towel and carefully dabbed at her skirt.

Flo jerked her chin up. “I can't imagine why you care who I see, Sarah.”

“I don't, of course. But Richard has shared his concerns about the company you've been keeping.” Sarah sniffed. “Not that it should be his concern.”

Flo muttered something in Italian. Sarah muttered something back in the same language and I stepped between them.

“Maybe you
should
ask Simon about Valdez. If he wants to get my attention, Flo, taking out one of my guards would be a heck of a start.”

Flo turned her back on Sarah. “You always blame Simon for everything. Maybe Jeremiah tires of you. That she-devil Mara has probably been throwing herself at him. You should shape-shift. Go after your man, if you want to keep him.”

“Gee, say what you think, why don't you?” This was my best friend? Where was the support? But then I'd done nothing but slam Simon since Flo had started going out with him. Maybe it was time for me to get smart, use some psychology. I put my hand on her shoulder.

“You're my role model, Flo. I don't see you chasing after a man to keep him. Am I right?”

“Of course.” Flo's eyes shimmered and I thought she might be working up to shed a tear or two. “I'm sorry I bitched at you about this. It's just that I'm worried about Valdez too. The phone call. Then going so crazy. This is not
our
Valdez. Something's wrong with him. And if Simon did this—” Tears gone, she clenched her fists and turned to face Sarah again. “I'll find out if Simon had anything to do with this. And if he did, he'll make things right. I'm sure of it.” Flo turned back to me. “Will you be okay, Glory, if I leave you now?”

“Sure.” Flo was going to confront Simon? Was this a good idea? What if he punished her like he'd punished Greg Kaplan? “But, Flo, be careful.” We stepped out of the bathroom and I looked around. The place was clean again, and didn't that make me feel guilty? It was deserted, but I could hear laughter coming from the Twilight Room.

Sarah frowned down at her damp skirt. “I'm late for my book club and, after wading through that boring literary novel, I'm not going to miss it. Richard can give you my telephone number, Gloriana. Call me sometime and we'll talk.”

“Book club?” Flo and I stared after her as she breezed out the door.

“Of course. Lady Sarah Mainwaring has a club for everything. ” Flo shook her head. “That woman's a barracuda, Glory. She'll take a chunk out of you if she thinks you're hurting her baby boy.”

I laughed. Now that I had my dog back, a dog who'd probably just been indulging his food obsession, I felt like I could deal with anything.

“Come on, Flo. Richard doesn't strike me as a mama's boy.” The idea of Richard being anyone's baby boy was ludicrous.

“Maybe not. But Sarah can afford to spring for a few cakes. While Richard goes around saving the world from bad vampires, who do you think pays the bills? She has an investment club too.” Flo sighed. “Look at you. Your dress is a disaster.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I'd better not have cake in my hair.”

“You don't. What about my hair?” Not that I really cared. For once how I looked meant zilch. Flo knew it too. She put her own dress at risk to give me a hug.

“You look good considering what you've just been through. The dog has much to answer for. But if Simon did something to him . . .”

“Don't go throwing around accusations, Flo.” I grabbed her arm. “Be careful how you handle Simon. He's got some powerful stuff going on out there. He ever mention Honoria?”

“Another woman?” Flo laughed. “Of course not. Relax, Glory. I've been handling men for centuries.” Flo pulled a lipstick from her purse and expertly reapplied it. “I will get the truth from him.” She winked. “One way or another.”

“No VV tonight?” I know, I know. I'm not her mother. But I have a little experience with addiction. And my best bud was showing some signs . . .

“I said I would do without it, didn't I?” She sighed. “I don't like seeing you worried about Jeremiah. Do you really think he would just dump you? Get real, Glory. And for Mara, the ice queen? That woman would freeze a man's balls off.”

Hmm. If Blade
had
dumped me for Mara, I hoped his balls spent eternity in permafrost. My stomach rumbled and I didn't think it was from icing. None of this added up. No way did Valdez leave that message. Someone else had to have done it. Otherwise, why was there still a black Labradoodle outside waiting for me?

“I think it
was
a prank. Someone's trying to upset me. The last time we talked, Jerry and I were getting along very well.” Like orgasmically well.

“Now you make sense. No silly doubts about Jeremiah. He adores you.” Flo looked down at my skirt and frowned. “I'll miss this church. Nice people. I think I saw a vampire in the singles group too.” She pulled open the door and headed out.

I followed her. Richard stood outside the door, a subdued Valdez beside him. A few people still talked nearby, single smokers who wanted a last drag before they went inside to mix and mingle.

“Bad dog. You know how to stay.” I said this for our audience. “Let's go. No treat for you tonight.”

“You'll be lucky if he doesn't toss his cookies, I mean cake, when he's in the car.” The smokers laughed.

“Sorry for ruining social hour, folks. I'd better get this dog home.” I took the leash from Richard and pulled Valdez along to the car. When we got there, Richard opened the back door and Valdez hopped in to settle beside a snoring Will.

I grabbed Richard's arm. “Did Valdez talk to you while I was inside?”

“No. And I tried to send him a mental message, but he either ignored it or didn't understand it.”

“Didn't understand . . . ?” My stomach rolled over. I opened the back door again, picked up Valdez's head and stared into his brown eyes. “Valdez! Say something.”

Nothing. Not even a whimper. He did lick my fingers though, as if hoping for some more frosting. I grabbed both his ears and stared harder, like I could
make
him respond. “Please, puppy. Say something. Anything. Call me Blondie.”

He just shook his head like he was ready for me to let him go if I wasn't going to pet him. I released him and turned to Richard.

“What the hell is wrong with my dog?”

Twenty-two

We were back at my place before I remembered to tell Richard about Flo's meeting with Simon in the park.

“This is huge, Glory. Maybe we can catch him alone.”

“What are you going to do to him, Richard? Try to take him out?” In other words, stake him. I shuddered just thinking about it. I knew Simon was a bad man, but killing any vampire seemed almost sacrilegious to me. And Flo. Would she ever forgive me for sending the troops in after her lover? I hoped once she'd had time to think about how she'd been acting, she'd realize she'd needed to move on.

“You think I'm being too tough on him? Roll Valdez over, Glory.” Richard stared down at my pair of dogs, both snoring near the door.

“What do you mean?”

“Look at his tummy, Glory. See if the reason he won't talk is because he
can't
.” Richard didn't wait. He knelt down and rolled a snoozing Valdez over until we could see his swollen stomach. Sure enough there were two angry red marks on his belly.

I gasped. “You think—”

“That an EV did this? Yes, I do. I'd say that while you were in church and Will was nose deep in whiskey someone conveniently put in front of him, Valdez had an encounter with Simon or another EV and he obviously lost the fight and his power.”

I sat down hard on the floor and rubbed Valdez's tummy. “You mean—”

“I mean right now Valdez is just a dog. Not a shape-shifter. Unless there's some way for the EVs to reverse the process, Valdez may never be able to shift again.”

I leaned over and rubbed my face against the dog's soft fur. He smiled and licked a tear from my face. I breathed in his scent, a scent I knew as well as my own.

“Damn it. I knew there was something wrong with Valdez when he didn't ask for ice cream with his cake.”

Richard smiled and patted my shoulder. “He would, wouldn't he?” He left me sitting there and started to work his phone, calling on fellow vamps and making plans to ambush Simon at the park.

“I'm going, Glory.” Richard dropped a kiss on the top of my head. Yeah, I was still on the floor, Valdez's head in my lap.

“Wait. Simon has to be behind Valdez's condition. If there's any hope of getting my dog restored to his old pain-in -the-butt self, Simon or Honoria holds the key.”

“I can't promise not to destroy Simon if I get the chance, Glory. I've been after him for a long time.” He rubbed Valdez's ear. “Maybe Valdez will recover his power on his own. Eventually.” Richard looked at me and wiped away a tear that had leaked down my cheek. “I know you love him. I'll do what I can to find out how to fix this.”

“Thanks.” I held on to his hand for a moment. “I know what getting Simon means to you. Do what you have to.”

He stood, tall, powerful and determined. If he got a chance at Simon, he'd take it. And Valdez . . . ? He would have cheered Richard on.

I sat there on the floor for a long time after Richard left, stroking Valdez's soft fur. An EV had done this. Which meant Jerry hadn't dumped me after all. I was so relieved I would have laughed, if I hadn't felt more like crying. Was there any hope of getting the old Valdez back? I had to find out.

The phone rang. I got up and pulled my cell phone out of my purse. I glanced at the caller ID and caught my breath. Blade.

"Hello.”

“Gloriana, what the hell is going on there? Why do you think I called Valdez off?” Jerry was shouting, like maybe I couldn't hear him across the ocean. Or like maybe he was really upset.

“Valdez is here. I found him. But he or someone left a message that you'd called him off. Because you'd hooked up with Mara. Which is allowed, of course. We do our own thing when we're apart, always have.” I took a breath and looked at Valdez, snoring softly by the door. The old Valdez would have been up at the first notes of “Phantom of the Opera,” my ring tone. He'd have been listening in, like that was in his job description. He really was just a nosy . . . I sobbed.

“Son of a bitch! Gloriana, tell me everything. And I'm not hooked up with anyone. I'm living like a monk outside a clinic in Switzerland so I can watch Westwood. He's more vulnerable here, outside of his own place.”

“Good.” I took a watery breath. A monk, huh? Good news for me, bad for Mara. “I mean, you should stay there. That bastard is a threat to every vampire.” If Simon was allowed to just suck power from anyone or thing he wanted, then
he
was an enormous threat too. God, when did my life get so
complicated
?