While the vamp called up her next victim, Isnapped my fingers under my best friend’s nose. “Taylor, wake up!Snap out of it.”
She blinked her big blue eyes and smiled atme in a dreamy way. “Addison? Are you still here?”
“Where else would I go?” I said grimly. “Iwas stuck here while you spilled your guts to the vamp. What wasall that shit about your love life, anyway? She had you acting likeyou’d been left at the altar and you haven’t even dated anyoneseriously in over a year.”
“She saw into me. Deep into my soul,” Taylormurmured dreamily. “I told her everything because I had to—it wasthe only way she could help me. And now I know what I must do to behealed.”
I really didn’t like the psychobabblecoming out of her black lipsticked mouth. Show or no show, I wantedto leave. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” I tugged at her armuntil she rose obediently and followed me out of the banquet hall,walking with a slow, measured tread like a zombie. All the way tothe exit, I was sure I could feel Celeste’s dark eyes on my backbut at least she didn’t say anything. I breathed a sigh of reliefwhen the doors shut behind us and began towing my best friendtoward the hotel lobby.
“You didn’t feel it, did you?” The voice wasclose, almost right in my ear.
“Excuse me?” I stopped my forward motion andlooked back in confusion. Standing right behind me was a black manwho looked to be somewhere in his sixties. He was wearing a rumpledbrown suit that looked like he’d been sleeping in it and his hairwas almost completely gray.
“That she-devil’s power. You weren’t feelingit—I was watching you so I know.”
“Why were you watching me?” I took astep back and Taylor moved with me, as obedient as a well behavedchild. I really needed to get her home and see if I couldbreak the weird trance she was in.
The man shrugged. “Recruitment. This is asgood a place to find non-glams as any in town.” He stuck out ahand. “Gerald Holmes. I work for the VAB—the Vampire AuditingBureau.”
“The what?” I asked, taking his hand byreflex. It was hard and callused and he pumped my own hand exactlytwice before letting go.
“Vampire Auditing Bureau,” he repeatedpatiently. “It’s a government agency.”
“What, like the FBI or the CIA?” I asked,fascinated despite myself.
He laughed. “Actually, we’re an offshoot ofthe FDA, don’t ask me why. But the point is, we’re always lookingfor new Auditors and you have what it takes.”
I shook my head. “Look, I’ve never evenheard of you or your agency and I don’t know what an, uh, Auditoris or does.”
“We keep track of the vamps. Make sure theyaren’t abusing their powers and glamming humans who don’t want tobe glammed. Without us, the entire country would be controlled bybloodsuckers.”
“That sounds like a worthy calling andeverything but I’m in grad school right now. So—sorry, notinterested.”
“What are you in school for?”
“English lit. I’m going to teach on thecollege level if I can ever finish my dissertation.”
“English lit, huh? Dracula. Nowthere’s a book you might want to look into.”
“Sorry, I’m more into Dickinson thanStoker.”
He looked me in the eye. “‘Because I couldnot stop for death, he kindly stopped for me.’ Death stopped foryour friend just now.”
“Look,” I said, trying not to feelexasperated. “I’m sorry but I really don’t have time to chat rightnow. I need to get her home.”
He looked into Taylor’s big blue eyes.“Yeah, that’s what I meant. She’s been glammed pretty good. Youbetter watch her for the next twenty-four hours.”
“Is that how long it takes to wear off?” Iasked, dismayed.
“Sometimes it never wears off,” he saiddarkly. “Depends on how susceptible your friend is to the glamourand how badly the vamp wants her.”
“Wants her? But why would Celestewant her?”
“Just look at her.” He gestured to thecatatonic Taylor. “Vamps are pretty people and they like otherpretty people. You ever seen an ugly vampire?”
“Well…no,” I admitted. “But I still don’tsee—”
“It’s all about sex,” he said harshly.“Those dead bastards only have two drives left—the drive to feedand the drive to fuck. That’s their entire existence.”
“So you’re saying they’re all id,” I said.“All desire and appetite and no restraint.”
“Exactly.” He nodded. “That’s where we comein. They can’t restrain themselves so we restrain them. You heardthe saying absolute power corrupts absolutely?”
I nodded. “Yeah, sure.”
“They’re too damn powerful. Anyone strongenough to dead-lift a semi and hypnotize most of the humanpopulation can do pretty much whatever he or she wants. We have tokeep on top of them or the whole world is screwed. Understand?”
“I do, yes.” I nodded. “I just, uh, I don’tknow that I’m the kind of person who could do that—keep on top ofthem, I mean.” In fact, it had never occurred to me that vampiresneeded controlling or watching. They were just tourist attractionsor Vegas lounge acts to me. Would you create a special governmentagency to police Siegfried and Roy or Wayne Newton? Despite myunease at what I’d witnessed just moments before, the whole ideaseemed vaguely ridiculous.
Gerald Holms gave me a hard look, as thoughhe knew what I was thinking. “You’re underestimating the vamps andyourself. You knew something wasn’t right in there and you got yourfriend away. But just think of all the folks that are still inthere, at that she-devil’s mercy.”
“They signed a waiver,” I pointed out.
“A waiver.” He made a face like the wordleft a bad taste in his mouth. “Yeah, the vamps have the damnlawyers in their pockets. Got all of us signing our lives away tothose bloodsuckers ‘til there’s not a damn thing we can do about itif somebody gets hurt.”
I could see what he was getting at but hispassionate speech was still falling into the category ofnot-my-problem. After all, I was just a
