Read Online Vamps by Nancy A. Collins - Free Book Online Page A

into the room. “Will there be anything else, Master Victor?” he asked.
    â€œNo. You’re free to withdraw, Curtis.”
    â€œThank you, master,” the butler said, with more than a hint of relief in his voice as he closed the door, leaving Lilith alone with her father.
    Victor Todd turned from the flat-panel computer monitor on his desk to face his daughter. With his money and brooding good looks, he was easily one of the most desirable men in the jet set.
    â€œI trust you did not leave the house dressed like that, young lady?” He scowled.
    â€œNo, sir,” Lilith replied, her voice suddenly very small. “If you’re busy, I can come back later after I’ve changed clothes—”
    â€œThere’s no need for that. I was simply checking on some investments I made in the foreign exchange market. The euro is doing very well right now,” he said, self-satisfaction creeping into his voice despite his displeasure with his daughter. “Right now you and I need to talk. First I want to hear what you thought you were doing at the club last night; then you can explain how you ended up wearing that .”
    â€œYou know about what happened at the Belfry?” Lilith asked, stalling for time.
    â€œOf course I know!” he replied wearily. “I’m a co-owner of the club. You should know I have an interest in every vampire-friendly business in this city!”
    â€œWe were just having fun, that’s all.” Lilith dropped her eyes to the carpet. “It wasn’t just me—Tanith and Carmen bit him too.”
    â€œI don’t care what the others did or didn’t do,” Todd replied sternly. “They’re not my daughters—you are.”
    â€œYes, Father,” Lilith said glumly.
    â€œWhat possessed you to do something so reckless as to tap a human at the club in the first place? Never mind the security issues—did you even bother to considerwhether you’re ready to take responsibility for bringing unlife into this world?”
    â€œThat couldn’t possibly have happened,” Lilith said with a dismissive shrug. “I’m too young to create undead.”
    â€œMercifully, that is still the case. But it won’t be for much longer, Lilith. In the blink of an eye—another four years, five at the most—you’ll finish maturing into an adult. You’ll lose your ability to reflect, your aging process will slow to one tenth of a human’s, and your bite will transform those you feed on into undead….”
    â€œDaddy, do we have to go through the ‘bats and the bees’ talk right now?” Lilith groaned, rolling her eyes in embarrassment.
    â€œBetter we discuss the matter now, before it’s too late. I certainly can’t trust your mother to handle the situation, can I?”
    â€œNo, sir,” Lilith agreed.
    Lilith couldn’t remember the last time she had anything resembling a conversation with her mother. After spending over one hundred years trying desperately to conceive an heir for her husband, the former Irina Viesczy now spent as little time with her offspring and spouse as possible.
    â€œBringing undead into the world is serious business, Lili. They’ll serve you without qualm or complaintfor centuries. Odds are they’ll even ‘outlive’ you and end up being passed down to your own heirs when the time comes, like Bruno and Esmeralda and Curtis. All of them will gladly kill and die for you. After all, if you’re destroyed before you can pass along your bloodright—even to a usurper—they die as well. The undead are the true foundation on which power is based in our society.
    â€œRemember, it is better to have crypts full of undead than vaults full of gold. Why? Because the vampire with the biggest bloodright gets the gold. It’s that simple. But no matter how powerful I am, if you draw attention to us, you’ll have to answer