Suzanne McLeod - The Sweet Scent of Blood

‘An invitation from the Earl, no less.’ She offered the silver slab back, then as I was about to take it, snatched it up out of my reach. ‘Why settle for second-best?’—she stroked a long finger down her missing cleavage—‘when I could make you a much better offer.’

Giving a loud sigh, I held my hand out.

‘As you wish.’ She dropped the silver into my hand.

I pocketed it, and strode towards the entrance.

‘You really should consider it.’ She fell into step next to me. ‘Or rather, consider me . Something as delightful as you deserves to be relished , like the finest dessert, licked and nibbled and sucked’—her voice lowered as she gave me a fang-filled grin—‘and eaten right up, one glorious mouthful at a time.’

Ignoring her, I halted inside the foyer near the semi-circle of ticket booths. The small Monitor goblins manning them were perched on jacked-up barstools. They were only eighteen inches tall, so they needed the boost—not that their size made any difference to their ability to sense magic, of course. The one nearest me, his powder-blue dreads swinging, briefly turned his black wraparounds in my direction while sliding a triple-jointed finger down his nose. I returned the greeting. Then he carefully stamped the back of his lilac-haired customer’s hand with a blue ink heart the size of a fifty-pence piece and waved the woman away. She wandered off through the crowd, handbag swinging from her arm, and into the gift shop.

The vamps had more than one way to bleed you dry.

Rio circled behind me like a restless shark. ‘Welcome to the Blue Heart, delicious sidhe.’ She trailed a finger down my cheek.

A shiver of induced excitement slithered down my spine. Mesma.

I stepped away from her and the sensation faded as soon as she no longer touched me. Mentally I downgraded her. She might call the Earl second-best, but in reality she was much further down the pile.

She laughed, the husky sound vibrating through the air, and the people milling about all stopped, their eyes drawn to her. She spread her arms wide and turned a slow circle, breathing in the scents of the excited clubbers.

‘Oh, such a response,’ she shivered. ‘Aren’t humans wonderful? ’ She cocked her head to one side, looked down at me. ‘Here’s hoping your visit is as exciting’—she winked a large lavender eye—‘as I desire.’

‘Don’t get your hopes up,’ I said, adding sweetly, ‘I would so hate to ruin your evening.’

‘You are going to be such fun.’ She shook a blue-tipped finger at me and the glint in her eyes turned more predatory. ‘So I’ll make you a promise, my sweet little sidhe: for your first night at the Blue Heart, there will be entertainment such as you will never forget.’

‘ Please , don’t put yourself out on my account.’ I gave an indifferent wave. ‘I’m not here to do the tourist thing.’

‘Oh, but you must—’ Her animated expression closed up as she looked over my shoulder.

I turned and saw the Earl. The flop of blond hair remained the same, but he’d ditched the ‘boating at Henley’ look and gone instead for a navy lounge suit with a pale blue shirt open at the throat, the double cuffs linked with heart-shaped sapphires the size of a thumbnail. His top pocket sported a silk handkerchief the same colour as his shirt. He exuded ‘relaxed man-about-town’ charisma, but as he strolled towards Rio and me the azure of his eyes shone colder and sharper than the sapphires at his wrists. Something told me he and Rio were not the best of blood-buddies, even though the Earl had been the one to Gift her.

‘Genevieve, what a great pleasure to see you again.’ He gave me a wide smile that somehow managed not to show his fangs, a practice a lot of the old vamps still followed. ‘I am delighted you chose to accept my invitation. I do hope you haven’t been waiting long.’

‘I haven’t been waiting at all.’

Rio gave a snide little chuckle.

‘How wonderful.’ He held out his arm to me. ‘My dear, I shall escort you. I would not want you to get lost’—he looked at Rio—‘or waylaid during your time with us.’

Pouting again, Rio sidled up to him and wrapped both hands round his arm, then turned to face me. She topped him by almost a head. ‘What a shame. I was just about to show our little sidhe round. I’m sure she would enjoy that much more.’

‘Another time, maybe, Rio.’ The Earl gave me a gracious smile. ‘Ms Taylor is here at my invitation tonight.’

She plucked his handkerchief from his pocket, patted it between her breasts. ‘Perhaps we might entertain her together?’ she purred. ‘That would be fun.’

The Earl’s smile didn’t change. ‘I believe not.’

It was a like watching a big kid poking a snake with a stick, and I really wasn’t interested in being anywhere within striking distance. I started to step away, but between lifting my foot and putting it down, the air around me ... shifted . I had a moment’s disorientation; pressure popped at the back of my head, then I blinked hard and stared in front of me.

Fuck.

Rio was gone. The Earl was still standing there as though he hadn’t moved, but the handkerchief was back in his pocket and his smile held a glint of satisfaction.

The Earl had done the same freaky time-pause thing as in the police station. It gave me a hollow feeling in my gut. ‘Annoying you, was she?’ I asked.

He inclined his head. ‘I prefer to spend my time in your company, my dear.’ He offered me his arm again. ‘Shall we?’

‘I’m not sure that’s such a great idea—I mean, I really don’t think bronzes are my thing, y’know? And that is why you invited me, isn’t it?’

‘Of course,’ he said without missing a beat, ‘but first I must compliment you.’ He reached out and took my hands. ‘You look absolutely charming, Genevieve. Such beauty as yours is a pleasure to behold and refreshes the heart.’ He smiled, his expression highly amused. ‘Although maybe in my case, I should say it could refresh ... well, other parts of me.’

Surprised, I laughed. The Earl hadn’t seemed the type for innuendos. ‘Well, at least you’re honest about it.’

‘Trite as it may seem,’ he bowed over my hand, then turned it and pressed a kiss into the palm, ‘I have always found honesty to be the best policy.’

A light flashed to the side of us as he raised his head. ‘But forgive me, I get ahead of myself. I feel we should perhaps get to know each other before indulging in such intimacies.’

Sounded good. Of course, that statement was all about definitions, wasn’t it?

‘Uh-huh.’ I gave him a half-smile, my attention snagged by another flash: a Japanese tourist brandishing a miniature camera.

The Earl tucked my hand into his bent arm. ‘Sadly, not everyone today is of the same opinion. The whole world rushes past faster and faster, and people appear to be unable or unwilling to consider the long-term consequences of their actions, wishing only to gratify immediate desires.’

‘Those desires seem to be gratifying a lot of your vamps just now.’

‘It takes time and experience to truly understand what the future holds, and what is necessary to keep it secure.’ He sighed, patted my hand. ‘The young are unable to understand that our planet is suffering through their cavalier use of its glorious bounty.’

‘Uh-huh.’ Great, just what I needed: a green vampire, lecturing me on the evils of the world.

‘We hope to educate them, not just on the larger environmental—’

There was another flash and the Earl’s hand on mine tensed, annoyance flickering across his face. Then a vampire dressed in house uniform—navy trousers and silver-striped navy shirt—appeared next to the tourist and took her arm, removing her camera from her unresisting hold.