But that was before he knew anything else about them. Roman Draganesti was getting married. How could a demon fall in love? If they were evil, how come some of them were drinking blood from a bottle and taking jobs and watching soap operas on TV? The more he learned about them, the more human they seemed.
With a groan, he trudged off to bed. Maybe it would make more sense after some sleep.
He woke late Friday afternoon and ate a bowl of cereal while he finished watching the last of the videotapes. Darcy did a report on the birthday party of 103-year-old Mabel Brinkley from Brooklyn. Mabel had run a speakeasy in the 1920's and outlived six husbands. Her secret for longevity was a shot of Wild Turkey every day. Then, Darcy covered the cannoli-eating contest in Little Italy, the female impersonator beauty pageant in Queens and the funeral for poor Mabel when she passed away in the bed of a fifty-two-year-old Cuban dance instructor. Alas, Hector had specialized in the rhumba, but not in emergency resuscitation.
Austin always found himself smiling during Darcy's reports. Without a doubt, her boss had given her the worst stories, but she'd always pulled them off with cleverness and charm. No wonder everyone at the station had loved her.
With a surge of dismay, Austin realized the last videotape contained no reports starring Darcy. These were other reporters doing stories about her disappearance. They showed the vampire club and alley in Greenwich Village where she'd last been seen. They even focused their cameras on the dark splotch of blood on the ground. Darcy's blood.
A police spokesman confirmed that a large knife had been recovered from the scene, and the blood on the knife belonged to Darcy. Interviews with the kids inside the club were all similar. They believed she'd been attacked by a real vampire.
Austin jumped to his feet and paced around his apartment. He needed to get copies of the police reports. He needed to question her cameraman. Of course, the easiest way to get answers would be to ask Darcy herself, but that would blow his cover. How could she stand to live among vampires if she'd been attacked by one? And why would a vampire stab a woman instead of biting her? It didn't make any sense, dammit. And the thought of anyone stabbing Darcy with a knife made his blood boil.
The phone jangled, and he dashed for it, hoping it was Darcy.
"Hello, Austin. Enjoying your days off?" Emma asked.
"I guess." As if he knew how to take a day off.
"Well, I was wondering if you'd care to join me tonight in Central Park?"
She wanted to go hunting? As agitated as Austin was, a little action sounded good. And maybe they could capture a vampire who knew Shanna's whereabouts. "Yeah. I'll be there."
At midnight, he met Emma in Central Park by the entrance of the zoo, close to the gift shop. The revolver in his shoulder holster was loaded with silver bullets. They wouldn't kill a vampire, but they would sure hurt and slow him down. Slow him down enough that Austin could ask him a few questions. And just to be safe, Austin stuffed a few wooden stakes in the inside pocket of his lightweight jacket. Emma's wooden stakes were in the handbag slung over her shoulder.
They strolled north along the brick pathway.
"Garrett turned in his contract to Ms. Stein today," Emma spoke quietly as she scanned the grove of trees on the left. "Ms. Stein was concerned that you hadn't turned yours in yet."
Austin walked on her right, surveying the area to the right. "I turned it in last night at DVN."
"What?" Emma halted. "You went inside DVN at night?"
"Yeah. They hired me to do a show, so I figured I had a legitimate reason to go there. And I'm supposed to be ignorant about vampires, so why would I avoid the place? It seemed like an excellent opportunity to check them out."
"It was, but good heavens, Austin, it could have been dangerous. Did any of the vampires try to jump you?"
"No."
"Well, tell me more. What did the place look like?"
"It looked sorta... normal."
"What did you do?"
Austin shrugged. "I turned in my contract to the director of the reality show."
"What's his name? He's a vampire, right?"
"No, she's human. And her name is Darcy Newhart." Austin hesitated, then decided to confess. "She's the mystery woman."
Emma gasped. "The one you took a hundred photos of?" She laughed. "Oh, this is priceless. She's your director?"
"Yes."
"And you're sure she's human?"
"Yes. Definitely."
"How can you be so sure?"
"She had a chocolate drink on her desk. And she has a pulse."
"She let you feel her pulse?" Emma studied him closely. "You're still smitten with her, aren't you?"
More than ever. Austin kept walking. The pathway forked, and he gestured toward the left path that headed uphill. "Let's go this way."
Emma walked beside him. "How does she feel about you?"
He shrugged. He knew she felt desire for him, but she was reluctant to admit it. Or to admit that she was trapped in the vampire world.
"Have you snogged her yet?"
He made a face. "What's that? It sounds kinda nasty."
Emma snickered. "Oh, I'm sure it would be with you."
He shoved her on the shoulder.
With a laugh, she stumbled to the side. "I only asked if you'd kissed her."
"Ah." In that case, he had thoroughly snogged her. And it hadn't been at all nasty.
"Well?" Emma quickened her steps to keep up with him. "Did you kiss her?"
"I plead the Fifth."
"You did kiss her!"
"I didn't say that."
She snorted. "Pleading the Fifth is the same as admitting guilt."
"We're innocent until proven guilty here. You Brits have it backwards."
She grinned. "But I'm right, aren't I? You snogged her."
He kept walking.
"You should be careful, Austin. What do you really know about her other than the fact that she consorts with the enemy?"
"I'm doing some research on her. And besides, we have a... connection. I can get into her mind very easily, and believe me, there's nothing evil there."
"I hate to rain on your parade, but if she knows you're reading her mind, she could be manipulating what you see."
"She doesn't know I'm there. She's a complete innocent." Austin stopped and looked to the right. In the dim light, he could make out the shapes of trees and a large rock. "Speaking of innocents, did you hear someone cry out?"
"I'm not sure." Emma pivoted, scanning their surroundings.
Austin listened carefully, but could only hear the leaves stirring in the wind and Emma's excited breathing. He closed his eyes and concentrated. An attacker could easily muffle the cries of his victim, but the victim would still be screaming in his mind. One time in Eastern Europe, he had located a group of women and children in an underground torture chamber by tuning in on their silent cries of mental anguish.
Oh God, help me!
"Over there." Austin pointed to the large outcropping of granite. A woman was being attacked on the far side. He removed his revolver and motioned to Emma to go to the right. She took off quietly, pulling a wooden stake from her bag as she went.
He skirted the large boulder, then paused when he heard a feminine whimper. Great. It would be just his luck to pounce on a couple of lovers. He leaped clear of the rock, pointing his gun at them. Holy shit, this was the real thing. Two male vampires had a woman pinned against the rock. One was biting her neck; the other was yanking her pants down her legs. The bastards!
"Release her!" He approached slowly, his gun steady.
The second vampire let go of the woman's trousers and turned to glare at Austin. Leave us, mortal scum, and forget what you have seen.
Fortunately, the mental command of one vampire had little effect on Austin. He heard it and swept it aside. "I'm not leaving. You are. Permanently."
With a hiss, the vampire strode toward him. "How dare you defy me? You fool, you cannot stop us."
"Oh, yeah?" Austin noted the vampire had a Russian accent as he took aim and fired.
The vampire jerked. He grabbed his shoulder where blood oozed from the wound. His face contorted with pain. "What have you done?"
"I'm using silver bullets. They do sting a bit, don't they?"
The vampire growled and lunged forward.
Austin fired again, and the vampire slipped, falling to his knees.