I gave the girls another look. Around each of their wrists was a red silicone wristband. "What about them?"
"The bands mark them as vampire sympathizers. The ones who still think we're dark and delicious."
Like high-cocoa chocolate, I thought. "Even as the rest of the city begins to turn against us?"
"Apparently. I support the support, although a plastic bracelet doesn't exactly scream 'long-term political allies.' " He shrugged. "But here they are, and as much as Scott and Morgan may deplore it, drinking from humans isn't a sin."
"Brave words for a non-Cadogan vampire."
Jonah humphed. "I stand by my statement. In any event, we wait until we see something amiss - and then we move in."
I smiled up at him, then tugged playfully on a lock of his auburn hair, playing the part in which I'd been cast. "Works for me."
He grinned, and the look was effective enough that it made even my hardened heart trip a bit.
"And I thought you'd be stubborn and difficult to work with."
This time, I gave him a pinch on the arm I hope looked playful - and not spiteful. "In case you've forgotten, Ethan Sullivan trained me. And in case you didn't know, Catcher Bell schooled me in sword craft. I was raised on 'difficult to work with.' "
He chuckled. "Then you're forgiven."
"So magnanimous."
He put his hand on his heart like a man confessing love. "That's the nature of RG service."
I gave him a quick pat on the cheek. "Darling, I'll just have to take your word for it."
We wandered around the balcony for a while, fingers intertwined, occasionally sharing strategically furtive whispers. If this was a real rave, there was a lot less drum-and-bass and many fewer glow-in-the-dark necklaces than I'd have expected. But pills and powders were still passed around, and there was enough glamour in the air that my skin crawled with it, my neck beginning to ache from my constantly shaking off the peculiar tickle.
We kept an eye on the humans, and from our perch hundreds of feet above the city, we watched the play take shape. Vampires moved in and around the sprinkling of humans, plying them with alcohol and glamour. The vamps were clearly in touch with their predatory instincts - and they acted on them. Once glasses of champagne were passed out, the humans were separated and divided, then escorted, one by one, back into the penthouse. They were probably unaware they'd been singled out like calves from a herd.
On the other hand, we hadn't seen anything that looked remotely like crazed violence. This party was definitely bigger than prior raves, but it wasn't exactly the free-for-all Mr. Jackson had described.
When a tall, dark-haired vamp took one of the goth girls by the hand and led her back through the plastic, Jonah nudged me. "Let's head inside.
I'll take her, make sure things stay aboveboard.
You keep an eye on the rest of them."
"Will do," I said, ignoring the flutter in my stomach when he kissed my hand and walked back into the room.
I followed him, and I'll admit it: my boy troubles aside, I could appreciate a fine walk on Grey House vampire.
Unfortunately, I'd been doing just that when I found myself surrounded.
Chapter Eight
THE ART OF WAR
It started with a bump, an obviously drunk female vamp stumbling backward. We were inside the would-be penthouse again when she ran into me, pushing me into two guys at my back.
She glanced cattily at me. "Sorry."
"No problem," I said with a tight smile. But when I turned around to apologize to the guys I'd run into, they were even less thrilled.
They were both vamps, both average-looking, both in button-down shirts and jeans, one slightly taller than the other. The taller vamp had dark hair; the shorter one was a blond. They boxed me in, close enough that I could smell their cheap cologne and the faint tang of blood that surrounded them. They'd taken blood recently - but from someone in the room?
I started with politeness. "Sorry. I got bumped."
"Yeah, well, watch where the f**k you're going."
Okay, bit of an overreaction, but we were at a party with a lot of people. Could be they'd been stepped on before and were sick of the crowd.
I smiled lightly. "Sure thing."
The blond guy grabbed my elbow. "That doesn't sound like much of an apology, you know. It doesn't sound like you were truly sorry for running into us."
Was this guy serious? I'd barely bumped him.
I pulled my arm away. "Again, sorry." I glanced casually around, checking both for Jonah and any sign of the girls, but the crowd seemed to have thickened, and neither was in sight. For the first time, I actually wished I'd been with Ethan instead of Jonah. At least he and I could have communicated telepathically.
"I don't appreciate your attitude," the blond guy said.
"I'm sorry?" I offered. "I was just trying to get out of your way." While batting my eyelashes, I looked him over, hoping to find some clue of House affiliation. But there was no medal, no jersey. Out of luck on that front.
"You know the password?" he asked.
"Um, temptress," I said, boredom in my voice.
"I'm going to find my date." I turned to step away from the guys and toward the part of the room Jonah had headed into, but the vampires anticipated the move. The dark-haired one moved in front to block me, while the blond one took up point at my back.
"That's not all of it," mumbled the dark-haired guy.
The other one narrowed his gaze. His eyes were in the same shape as the fanged vamp I'd seen earlier - his pupils pinpricks of black amid a sea of silver. These guys were seriously vamped out tonight. Was that a side effect of all the magic in the air? Did my eyes look like that right now?
"What's the other half of the password?" he demanded.
My stomach went cold. Even if Jonah's text message had offered up the rest of the password, I had no clue what it was. I figured offering the wrong word was only going to piss them off more. It was time to bluff, and since I was dressed for the part, I opted to play party girl.
I wrapped a strand of beads around my finger and leaned forward. "You guys don't seriously need the other half of the password from me, right? My boyfriend was the one who talked to the security dude. Have you seen him anywhere? Reddish hair. Really tall?"
"Everyone's responsible for the password," the dark-haired guy said. "If you don't know it, you don't belong here." I waited until he turned back to me to check his eyes: same as the other two. Completely silvered out, but the pupils constricted like the vamps were staring down the sun.