family.”
Son of a priest, she was a good actress. She could have made a fortune on the stage. He leaned back and studied her. “I don’t know.” Actually, he did. He’d do it because it was a chance to regain everything he’d lost. “I need some kind of proof.”
She reached up and opened the locket around her neck, then lifted the portrait so he could better see it.
Sophia. A tiny part of him felt ill.
Tatiana raised the portrait higher. “On Sophia’s good name, I promise I will do nothing to harm you.”
He refused to look at the picture. Couldn’t, really. Instead, he stood and pushed past her to walk to the other side of the room. “I’ll do it, but on my terms.”
“Like what?” She actually sounded relieved.
He stopped beside his reading chair. At least twelve swords and sixteen daggers were mounted within arm’s reach. He turned slowly, contemplating his options. Maybe he’d test her. “I want some good-faith money. Whatever you have on you.”
Her mouth opened slightly. “I don’t usually travel with money.”
He crossed his arms. “You came here to persuade me to work for you and didn’t bring any money. Did you think I was going to help you out of the goodness of my heart?”
“No, I—”
He held out his hand. “Give me the locket.”
Her eyes rounded. “What?” She snapped the locket closed, pressing it against her heart. “No.”
“No locket, no agreement.” He told himself he wanted it because it was the thing she held most dear, not because it contained a picture of his only child.
Reluctantly, she unfastened the clasp and let it fall loose into her hand. She took a few slow steps toward him and held it out. “You had better kill Lilith.”
“And you had better not lie to me.” He closed the locket in his hand. “Again.”
Octavian was working out beautifully, even better than Lola had anticipated. He seemed to know what she needed before she knew herself.
He looked up from typing the last of her notes into his tablet. “Anything else, Madam Mayor?”
“No, that’s it. What else is on my agenda?”
“There’s a report from the police chief about a couple of murders, but I took the liberty of skimming it and there’s no new information, so I filed it. I hope that was all right.” He looked at her, waiting for her approval.
She nodded. “That’s fine.” She checked her watch. “Seems we’re done early.”
He smiled. “I strive to be efficient. Would you like to see if any new e-mails have come in?”
“Not in the slightest.” What she wanted was to loosen him up with a few drinks, and then see what she could find out about the ancient ones that might help her recover her granddaughter. So far, he’d been vague about what he knew of them. Almost scared to talk about them. “There are a few hours left before the sun comes up. How about we take the rest of the night off and have some fun?”
“Like what?”
She winked and said, “Follow me.”
Half an hour later, the two of them and Luke Havoc stood in front of Seven. She leaned toward Octavian. “I’ve been here once before, but I was human then and didn’t get to enjoy it. I have a feeling it’ll be a very different experience now.”
He seemed curious about the surrounding crowd. “This place is pretty popular, I take it.”
“The taxes alone pay city hall’s electric bill.”
A bouncer opened the rope for them and welcomed them in. “Good evening, Madam Mayor. Have a good time.”
Inside, they entered through a gorgeous pair of red double doors painted with crouching gold dragons. Through those doors and they were in the thick of the club.
A server came up to them almost immediately. She did a kind of half-curtsy that Lola found amusing. “What’s your pleasure this evening? Which of our sins would you like to enjoy?”
Lola glanced at the doorways stationed along the perimeter of the club. Through the crowd of dancers, servers, and comarre, she could make out the words Vanity, Envy, Sloth, Wrath, Lust, Gluttony, and Greed above each door. She looked to Octavian. “Which one should we try?”
He pointed toward Greed. “What goes on in there?”
The server glanced back to see where he was pointing, then smiled. “Games of chance, sir.”
He laughed and spoke to the mayor. “What do you say to a little gambling?”
She hooked her arm through his. Whatever he wanted to do was fine with her. She wanted him happy. “Let’s break the house.”
As she soon discovered, Octavian’s talents extended past his office skills. In just a few hands of Baccarat, he’d won a tidy sum. His celebratory mood helped him down nearly a bottle and a half of the club’s best champagne. Lola had done her best to sip hers and keep her head, but even with her vampire tolerance she was starting to feel a buzz. It was almost like the alcohol served at Seven was stronger.
She pointed at the growing pile of chips at Octavian’s side. “You know what you should do with those?”
“What?” He leaned into her as he turned, booze sweet on his breath.
“You should buy yourself one of those.” She gestured to a passing comarre. “I got Hector here, you know.”
“That,” he said heavily, “is a great idea.” He stood a little straighter. “Where do we buy one? Whom do we talk to?”
Their server came up to them. “Do you need something, sir?”
“Yes. I want to buy a comarre.”
“Very good, sir. The croupier will hold your chips until you’re ready to play again or cash them out for you.”
“Cash them out. I want to spend the money on a comarre.”
“Excellent. If you’ll just follow me.” She led them through the gilded chain-mail curtain of Envy, then through another set of doors that were entirely gold-leafed.
The room inside was done in white with touches of gold and red. The heavy thump of the club’s music filtered through, but it was so muted it seemed very distant. Luke stood just inside the door. He looked enormously bored with the whole evening. The server rang a small crystal bell, then turned to them. “Would you like another bottle of champagne while you wait?”
“Absolutely,” Octavian answered.
Good, Lola thought. More champagne and a quiet place to talk. Just the setup she’d hoped for. “Luke, would you give us a few minutes alone?”
He nodded. “I’ll be outside.” He held the door for the server, then left after her.
Octavian settled onto a white silk sofa. He leaned into it, spreading his arms over the back. “This is quite the place.”
She sat beside him. “Yes, it is. Did you have anything like this where you came from?”
“Not really. Most nobles like to entertain in their homes.” He drained his glass. “Fantastic parties.” He sighed wistfully. “You can’t imagine.”
“Did the ancients ever come to those parties?”
The longing left his face quickly. “What?”
Soft, shushing footsteps interrupted them and a beautiful Japanese woman entered the room. Her face bore the hard angles of a noble vampire. She bowed before she spoke. “I am Katsumi Tanaka. I run the comarre operations here at Seven.” She nodded at Lola. “Madam Mayor, welcome. I don’t believe I’ve met your friend.”
“This is my assistant, Octavian Petrescu.”
Katsumi’s smile faltered for a moment and her gaze widened on Octavian like she knew him, and then she blinked it away and smiled. “Another noble. How wonderful. Welcome, Octavian. Are you new to the city?”
“Yes.” He crossed his arms. “Is that a problem?”
