Kerrelyn Sparks - The Vampire with the Dragon Tattoo

Mr. Draganesti smiled. “My son asked me that, too. Would you like to go the party now? You might feel better if you have something to eat.”

“You have real food there?” Leah asked.

“There’s a bunch of food,” Dr. Lee answered. “And a giant birthday cake. Five layers, each one a different flavor. According to Tino, the chocolate one is the best.”

Mr. Draganesti snorted. “I’m sure he tasted each layer.”

“Of course.” Dr. Lee grinned. “When I saw him, he had a smear of chocolate icing on his nose.”

Leah took a deep breath. In spite of the seemingly normal cake conversation, she was still having trouble wrapping her mind around this. Vampires. Vampires with wives and children. How could that be possible? The chocolate cake sounded good, though.

She shook her head. “Mr. Draganesti—”

“Call me Roman.”

She gave him a wary look. Just don’t call me dinner . “Why am I here? What do you want from me?”

His eyebrows lifted. “Straight to the point. I like that. The truth is we find ourselves in a moral dilemma. We’ve always tried to protect mortals from bad vampires, but there’s one in China who’s giving us major grief. He goes by the name Master Han.”

“He’s mutating mortals and using them to fight his battles,” Dr. Lee added. “We need to defeat Master Han, but we don’t want to kill the mortals.”

“That’s big of you,” Leah muttered. “Where do I come in?”

“The mortals have been transformed at a genetic level,” Abby explained. “Since you’re an expert in that field, we were hoping you could find a way to change them back.”

Leah swallowed a pang of disappointment. She knew she was here on business, but for a few minutes, she had hoped that Abby wanted to be her friend. Her eyes burned. Here she was, surrounded by vampires, possibly in danger, and she was fretting over hurt feelings? How silly of her. But everyone always approached her with an agenda. They wanted her brain, her expertise, her learned opinion. No one ever saw her as a normal person to hang out with.

“I was looking forward to working with you.” Abby regarded her sadly. “And I hoped we could get to know each other.”

Did she really mean that? Leah stared at her. Did she know the loneliness of never fitting in?

“We’ll understand if you refuse,” Roman said. “But please give it some thought before you decide. If you can help us, you could possibly be saving the lives of over a thousand men.”

Over a thousand lives? That was not something she could turn away from easily. “I’ll think about it. But I need some time.”

“Of course.” Roman nodded. “You’ve had a lot thrown at you this evening.”

“But you’re doing great.” Dr. Lee smiled. “We can relax and enjoy the party now, okay?”

Relax with vampires? Leah glanced at the camera. Those watchful eyes she felt—did they belong to a vampire? Had he observed her like a lab mouse trying to find its way through a maze? Unfortunately, the evening wasn’t over, and she was still in the maze. One step away from a nervous breakdown. “I’d rather be alone with Abby right now.”

“We understand.” Roman stepped back to let her pass.

“Come on.” Abby headed for the door. “Let’s get some of that chocolate cake.”

“Damn, this is good.” Freemont forked a bite of cake into his mouth as he sauntered into the security office. “You guys don’t know what you’re missing.”

“About five thousand calories,” Gregori muttered.

Dougal eyed Freemont’s plate, loaded down with five slices of cake. So he was doing like Tino and trying all the flavors.

Grinning, Freemont set the plate on the desk. “I’m gonna make this cake my bitch.”

Angus snorted. “While ye’re doing that, keep an eye on the monitors. I’ll leave in a few minutes to update Emma on what’s happening. I think everything’s going verra well.”

Dougal wasn’t so sure about that. As he watched Leah walk down the corridor, he had a bad feeling she was one step away from full-fledged panic. Still, her head was held high and her back was straight. She was a courageous lass, showing fortitude as her safe world crumbled around her. She’d stood up to everyone in the lab, refusing to let them intimidate her. Her strength of character was impressive.

“Gregori, ye should go to the party,” Angus continued. “Flirt with yer wife and show Dr. Chin how charming ye can be.”

Gregori scoffed. “Is that an order?”

“Is it too much for ye to handle?” Angus asked.

“No.” Gregori gave him a wry look. “I’m always charming.”

“Good. Show the doctor how harmless we are. Meek as lambs, as Dougal puts it.” Angus’s eyes narrowed on Dougal. “Ye should go with him. She might feel better knowing who was behind the camera.”

Dougal winced. Each time she’d glanced at the camera with that defiant, reproachful look, his heart had squeezed in his chest. He knew in his soul that she had resented being observed while everything she held safe and secure had been stripped away from her.

He’d been torn the entire time. Part of him had wanted to turn away and give her the privacy she deserved. But a larger part had kept him glued to the screen, hoping somehow that his presence would lend her strength, that he could lessen her pain by sharing it. He knew too well the pain of losing everything.

He watched on the monitor as she crossed the foyer with Abby. He was still torn. His heart was thudding wildly at the thought of meeting her in person. She was the most intriguing woman he’d seen in centuries. But his mind was telling him to wait. She was hanging on by a thread. If it snapped, she would run and never come back. “I’m no’ sure she wants to meet any more Vamps for a while.”

“I’ll call Abby and see what she thinks.” Gregori opened the office door. “Come on, Dougal. Let’s party.”

“Remember,” Angus said, “we’re as meek as lambs.”

“And randy as goats,” Gregori added with a laugh. He slapped Dougal on the back. “Let’s go.”

Leah was greatly relieved to see that all the adult partygoers had gravitated to the far side of the room. They were so focused on opening presents and watching the children that they barely gave her and Abby any notice.

At the first refreshment table, she loaded cheese, crackers, and fruit onto a small plate while Abby poured two cups of punch. Popping a pineapple chunk into her mouth, she glanced warily at the crowd across the room. How many of them were vampires? And how on earth did vampires have babies? Did those pretty little children shoot fangs out on occasion and transform into bloodthirsty monsters?

Mommy, I just killed the nanny. Can I have a cookie?

With a shudder, her gaze shifted to the foyer. Maybe she should say she needed to go to the restroom, then she could sneak out the front door and call a cab. But it would take time for a cab to arrive. Could she slip past the guarded front gate, or would she have to climb the wall?

Would they let her leave? She knew their big secret. And they claimed to need her help.

“Here.” Abby passed her a cup of fruit punch.

Leah took a sip. “Is it true? If I help you, I could save over a thousand lives?”

Abby nodded. “We think so.” She drank some punch. “If you recall, there were three microscopes in the lab. The first one, the one you looked at, showed a blood sample from Gregori. The second one is from Roman’s son, Tino. And the third is from one of Master Han’s soldiers. You’re welcome to look at them whenever you’re ready.”

Leah sighed. “I’m afraid I’m not taking this very well.”