Under Wraps

Chapter Three

I returned to my desk, the rapid beat of my heart having slowed to a near normal pace, my revelry in wild, gun-toting crime raids with Parker Hayes almost over. I plopped down on my chair and cracked open a Diet Coke, then dropped my head into my hands.

“Well?” The voice was cool and right next to my ear, and I almost jumped out of my skin.

“Holy crap, Nina, you should wear a bell or something!” I gripped my thundering heart with my hand, and Nina sat down on the edge of my desk, her long, milky-white legs dangling.

Nina is a vampire—a 167-year-old vampire—and my very best friend. She was turned in 1842 and before that was a twenty-nine-year-old foul-tempered Parisian heiress who climbed out her bedroom window one night to meet a dark-eyed stranger. Two months after that, Nina, the newly made vampire, caused the Massacre of Elphinstone’s Army. You could never tell it by looking at her, though. She’s just barely my height but supermodel-skinny with waist-length black hair, a little ski-jump nose, a heart-shaped red mouth … and fangs.

“Tell me everything and don’t leave out a single, juicy detail. He smelled good, didn’t he? Different”—Nina’s dark eyes scanned the ceiling—“not like your standard breather. It was like …”

“Smoke and toasted almonds and cocoa. Not that I really noticed,” I said quickly.

“So spill! You were gone for an age with Mr. Yummy Cop,” Nina said, lacing her fingers together and leaning into me.

“Actually”—I wiggled a file on demons in unincorporated San Mateo County out from under Nina’s butt—“he’s not a cop, he’s a detective.”

Nina licked her lips. “Even better.”

I reached into my desk drawer and shoved a Fiber One bar in her hand. “Eat this. You’re obviously starving.”

Nina glared at the Fiber One bar, fangs bared, and dropped it as though it were holy water. “Gross,” she said, wiping her hands on her dress.

I shrugged. “Sorry. It’s the best I could do. I don’t have any Plasma Pops here.”

Nina’s eyebrow twitched and she pursed her lips. “Stop stalling, start spilling.”

As much as I wanted to brag about my Sampson-Sophie-Hayes manwich, the details of the murder—and the bloodless, eyeless bodies—trumped my lust-o-meter, and I shivered.

“There’s a murderer in town,” I said.

Nina rolled her coal black eyes. “Big deal. There’s a million murderers in this town. Get to the cop.” She grinned. “Did he take off his shirt?”

“Nina! We were with Sampson.”

Her jaw dropped, her pointed incisors glistening. “Did Sampson take off his shirt?”

“No one took off their shirt!” I lowered my voice. “Like I said, there’s a murderer in the city and the PD is concerned it’s supernatural.”

Nina looked only slightly interested—although whether it was in my story or her cuticles I couldn’t tell. “You should check with the zombies. They can get so rowdy.”

I began stacking files and shoving them into my shoulder bag. “Nah, zombies are totally adherent.”

“When they’re on their first brain.” Nina jabbed at my files with one perfectly manicured cotton-candy pink fingernail. “What are you doing with those? Aren’t they confidential?”

“The PD wants Sampson to work with them, but he can’t. Too risky to be out after dark, especially if he’s examining crime scenes with that much blood.”

Nina licked her lips, and I pretended not to notice.

“So, I’m working with Detective Hayes on the case. Bringing in some of the files that we have. Thinking maybe we can locate the perp—I mean perpetrator—from some of our adherents. I figured we’d go through the relevant UDA files and see if there are any clues.”

I loved how detectivey I sounded.

Nina pressed her pale hands to her open mouth, her thin black eyebrows shooting up. “You’re kidding me!”

A little twitter of pride slipped through me, and I hid my smile behind a stack of file folders. “Really, Nina, it’s no big deal. The PD needed some help, and frankly, I’m the only one who can do it.”

How totally CSI am I?

“No big deal?” Nina hopped off my desk—her landing didn’t make a sound—and turned to me, her palms pressed against my file folders, pinning them to my desk. “You are going to be nose to nose with that hot cop for, for days, weeks, maybe months on end and it’s no big deal?”

I hadn’t thought of that.

Me and Parker Hayes, alone together for days, weeks, months on end? I imagined us head to head in his office working on the case, the Styrofoamed remains of our on-the-go dinner spread before us … huddled together in his squad car, rushing off to crime scenes … showering together, first thing in the morning…. My mouth went dry, and I found that I was twirling a long strand of red hair around my index finger—my number-one nervous tic. I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets.

“The detective isn’t that hot close up. And he’s certainly not all that hot about having me tag along, so I doubt we’ll be spending all that much time together anyway.”

So much for our morning shower.

“Still”—Nina’s cold eyes skimmed over me skeptically—“if you’re going to run into him again, you really should change your outfit.”

“I’m not going to change for him!” I said, indignant. “Besides, he’s already seen me once today. And,” I said, standing, “I look fine.”

Nine crossed her arms in front of her own midnight blue vintage Valentino wrap dress—vampires are total fashion whores—and shrugged.

“You do look fine,” she mused, “just so secretarial.”

I stood up and hauled my shoulder bag over one arm. “I’m an administrative assistant,” I spat.

“Fine,” Nina said, stretching out one long, lean leg and examining her newest pair of Jimmy Choos. “At least—” She dropped her foot and leaned into me, her dark lips ice cold as they skimmed my neck. She unbuttoned the top two buttons on my white blouse. “Show some skin.”

Nina cocked her head and smiled at me, then batted her eyelashes sweetly. I narrowed my eyes. “Now what?”

“Since I helped you, you want to help me?”

“Helped me?” I raised my eyebrows, then blew out a resigned sigh. “What do you need?”

Nina held up her thumb and forefinger. “Eensy weensy favor.”

I set my shoulder bag back on my desk, certain that Nina’s “eensy” was never anywhere near “weensy.”

“Oh, no. Every time you need a favor I end up trapped in a demonic vortex or on a blind date with a Minotaur.”

“The Nordstrom half-yearly sale is not a demonic vortex, and besides, you said you liked Keith!”

“He ate my purse!”

Nina held up her hands. “Okay, okay, it’s not a shopping excursion or a date, I swear.”

I narrowed my eyes. “On your undead soul?”

Nina raised a single brow.

“Damn it. Okay.” I sighed. “What do I have to do?”

“My nephew is going to be coming into town—”

“Nina! You have a nephew?” In all the years that Nina and I had been roommates and best friends, she had never spoken of her family. “You never mentioned a nephew!” I furrowed my brow and frowned. “Wait. How do you have a nephew?”

She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “The same way anyone else has a nephew.”

I blinked at her.

“I have—had—a younger sister, Agnes. Her son is Louis, my nephew.”

“But wouldn’t he be like …”

“One hundred and twelve. But perennially sixteen.”

“He’s a vampire then?”

Nina nodded, a flicker of sadness marring her perfect marble features. “Thanks to me.”

I waited for her to continue. She looked away, avoiding my gaze, and slumped against her desk.

“Agnes knew what had happened to me—what I had become. Right after I was changed, I left home, left my family. I had to. But almost twenty years later Agnes tracked me down. It was weird seeing her. She was my baby sister, but her hair was gray and her skin loose and here I was.” Nina shrugged her small shoulders, gestured to her eternally young facade. “She begged me to come home with her—her son, Louis, was sick. At that time, there was no cure for polio, no vaccines. It was a death sentence, or in the very best of situations, crippling. She begged me to change him.”

“She wanted you to kill her son?”

Nina’s eyes were fierce. “At that time, it was the only way to save him. I didn’t want to, but she was my sister. I had already caused her so much pain. I couldn’t watch her watch him die. It was excruciating to watch a mother—my sister—helplessly standing by while her son withered and just waited to die.”

“So you changed him?”

Nina nodded and smiled wistfully. “The polio was gone. Louis was strong again. He was going to live forever.”

I tried to smile. “Well, that’s nice that you were able to do that … for them.”

“Always nice to damn your family.”

“Nina—” I tried to be sympathetic, but she held up a silencing hand.

“So, the favor. He’s going to be here in San Francisco. Can he stay with us for a little while? He’s been having some trouble with the vamp family he’s been living with back East. They move around too much, are always dropping in with a new coven. I just think he needs some stability right now.”

“Yeah, of course he can stay with us.” What’s more stable than a vampire, her breather roommate, and a city with a psycho killer on the loose?

Nina grinned.

“Okay, it’s settled. Louis stays with us. Now I’ve got to meet Parker—” I tried to turn, but Nina put one cold hand on my forearm and batted those lashes again. I sighed. “Okay, Nina. What now?”

“Another eensy weensy—”

“Spit it out.”

“Can you pick him up from the Caltrain station? I would do it, but I’ve got so much work….”

I jutted out one hip. “You mean you have a date?”

Nina smiled sheepishly. “It just came up. I met him at Cala Foods….”

“Why do vampires need groceries? Oh, never mind. What time does his train come in?”

“Six thirty. Oh, Sophie, you’re the best!”

“I know. Wait, how am I going to recognize him?”

“He’s a vampire.”

I put my hands on my hips.

“And a teenager. He’ll be easy to spot, I promise. Besides, I told him what you looked like, so he’ll be keeping an eye out for you, too.” Nina hugged me to her. “Ooh, thanks again!” She turned on her heel and started for the door.

“Wait!” I said. “If this date just came up, why did you already tell Louis what I looked like?”

Nina’s smiling face remained unchanged. “How about I buy you a kitten?” she asked, dodging the issue.

“No,” I said, drawing out the word. “No kittens. Just be glad I like you. I’ll pick up Louis and he can stay with us as long as he likes.” I shrugged. “Besides, it might be fun having a kid around for a bit. Should we get some movies or something? Something for him to do? What do teenage boys like?”

Nina smiled. “Teenage girls. Anyway, Louis can entertain himself. He’s one hundred and twelve years old … and a little troubled.”

I felt my eyes bulge. How much more troubled can a vampire get?

“But he’s super, duper nice,” Nina said. “For a vampire. Thanks again!”

“Nina!”

She hurried for the door, holding up a yellow legal pad and pen. “Can’t talk, going to be late for my meeting. You’re such a doll, Soph, thanks! I totally owe you my afterlife!”

When I stepped out into the hall I was stopped when a fist full of drooping chocolate cosmos was rammed against my thigh. I paused, and Steve stepped out from behind the offending bouquet, a slick grin spread across his graying troll face, his yellowed, snaggle teeth exposed.

“These are for you.” Steve wagged the flowers in front of me, and I stooped down, plastered a smile on my face, and buried my nose in the chocolaty scent of the flowers. Anything to avoid the swamp-mud/aging-gym-sock smell of troll.

“Thanks, Steve,” I said. “But you know UDA clients are not supposed to be back here.” I pointed to the front office. “You’re supposed to stay behind the partition, remember?”

Steve shrugged. “Steve will always be where Sophie needs him to be.”

“That’s the thing, Steve. What I need is for you to be behind the partition.” I tucked the flowers in a clean mug I snatched from Nina’s desk while I held my breath. “I mean, I really appreciate the thought and that you like me and all….”

Steve wagged his head, his milky eyes big. “No, Steve doesn’t like Sophie.” His pointed tongue darted across thin, charcoal-colored lips. “Steve loves Sophie. Steve thinks that Sophie just may be Steve’s soul mate.”

I sighed. “Thank you. But you know you really can’t be popping up everywhere I am, Steve.” I looked both ways, sidestepping Lorraine, the witch/accounts receivable head, as she came barreling down the hall. “UDA has strict policies.”

Steve grinned again, tapping his chest. “That’s why Steve has an exclusive contract with UDA.” He made his hands into fists and rammed them onto his hips proudly.

I swallowed. “A contract? With UDA?”

“We’re furniture movers.”

I looked skeptically at Steve, his half-bald head barely clearing the top of my thigh. “Furniture movers, huh?”

Steve nodded, then inclined his head toward me. “So Steve can be close to Sophie all day long.”

I stepped back, working to avoid the moldy scent that wafted each time Steve moved. “Wow. Well, Steve. Good luck with that.” I patted my shoulder bag. “I’ve got some important business to take care of, somewhere that’s … not here. But I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around.”

He raised one caterpillar eyebrow hopefully. “Perhaps for lunch?”

“No.”

His other eyebrow went up. “Perhaps for a little wink wink, nudge nudge in the supply closet?”

“Good-bye, Steve.”

“Steve will be waiting for you, Sophie! Steve will always be here waiting for Sophie.”

I spun on my heel, trying my best to forget about Steve, standing three feet tall in the UDA hallway behind me, grinning salaciously, gray troll eyes staring me down.

I kept my head down, shrugged my bag over my shoulder, and hopped into the elevator with a hobgoblin and two pixies. We rode up in silence, three sets of eyes all fixed on the digital readout going backward. When the doors opened at the police station we shuffled out, exchanging positions with two female cops on their way to the garage. The dark-haired woman jostled against one of the pixies. I sucked in my breath as the pink-haired pixie flushed angrily and narrowed her eyes, but she stepped out without making a scene. As the doors slid closed, I heard the cop murmur, “I never know what to call them. Midgets? Little people?”

“I don’t know,” said the other. “Anyone under three feet tall gives me the creeps. My kids included. Do you want to get a latte?”