Read Online Vamped by Lucienne Diver - Free Book Online

had just switched places and evidently everyone was already where he or she was supposed to be. Except me. I pressed my ear up against Melli’s office door.
    “—the hell are you doing here?” I heard Mellisande hiss.
    Okay, maybe not just me.
    “You’re not happy to see me? It is not a special treat?” There was something noxious about that voice. It wasn’t all Crypt Keeper dark and spooky, but high and thin … yet masculine, and completely lacking in anything resembling innocence. It was the kind of voice that led children away with candy, never to be seen again.
    “Always,” she was quick to insist. “But you … here … ”
    I see you , a voice said in my head, making me jump nearly out of my skin. The words seemed to beat against my brain like a thousand moths dashing themselves against a bright light.
    At the same time the voice inside the room said, “But the action is here. All the pretty, pretty morsels under one roof. And the council … ah, the council … ”
    “What about them?” Melli asked, sounding impatient but afraid to quite show it. Interesting. “If you’ve told them anything—”
    “You’ll what? Kill me?” He laughed and it was madness, threatening to spread if it went on for too long. I was totally sure I’d be hearing it in my nightmares. “As I recall, you have already tried that.”
    “You came for a reason,” Melli reminded him.
    “Yes.” He paused, and I imagined it was simply to make Melli crazy. I could almost like the guy for that. “But all you need to know is that the council is nearly at your door.”
    She was speechless for a moment. “Then I need to prepare.” I heard curtains rustle, a window being lifted and thought that the first thing I’d do if I took over would be to soundproof my inner sanctum. “You’ll see yourself out?” she asked.
    “So … you’ll be in my debt?” he asked slyly. It was no answer, but she didn’t seem to realize it.
    “I’ll send your usual payment. Expect delivery tomorrow.”
    There was a smacking of lips that totally skeeved me out.
    “Yes,” he said, “I will.”
    I couldn’t tell what happened next. There was a sound—maybe the guy jumping over the window sill—and then the click-click of Melli’s spiked heels coming my way.
    My heart nearly restarted in panic. I was sure the door to the office swung inward, which would give me no cover. Quickly I spun away and tried the next door, but it was locked and I was out of time.
    Melli appeared in the hallway, and I waited for her to look my way and the ax to fall, but she never did. She walked so quickly toward the front of the house that I thought (okay, hoped) she’d break a heel.
    I rushed to catch the office door before it closed, in case it was autolock, and nearly broke a nail doing it. I didn’t have that many good ones left! Maybe Marcy’d have a home manicure kit or even just a file. Yeah, and maybe I could stab Thing One in the heart with it for turning her against me.
    Come morsel. Here pretty pretty pretty. Just a little closer . I was already half inside the door when I froze, but it was not soon enough. Claws flashed out of nowhere and grabbed me by the shoulders. Next thing I knew, I was half off my feet and being dragged across the room, straight into the heavy gold curtains. It had all happened so fast. Unnaturally fast. The dust of the curtains made me choke and my eyes water, but that was the least of my worries. I looked up past the talons digging into my shoulders and into the face of the boogeyman. Bloodshot eyes stared into mine with the manic gleam of insanity, and the features were just … wrong. He had all the right parts—two arms, two legs, nose, mouth, ears—all the appearance of humanity, and yet … they were off, like the difference between jade and jadeite, all reconstructed and molded into a new form. Gave me the heebie jeebies.
    And then he reached out with a black, pointed tongue to lick my nose.
    “Ewww!” I cringed away