Page 22 of Bite Me
I raised my eyebrows. “Interesting.” I’d dealt with show business royalty before, but Helen and Pierce werethegolden couple. They had been stable for at least five years, and their image was spotless, which was no small feat. With Pierce being a vampire, they faced more public scrutiny than anybody else—there were still plenty of staunch conservatives on both sides who loved to watch interspecies relationships crash and burn, my own mother being Exhibit A. I was curious about what crisis Helen and Pierce might be facing.Huh. I could still get excited about my job sometimes. Who knew?
“Take Benedict Perkins. Due to his history, he has a…” Anthony fluttered his fingers in a nondescript gesture, apparently searching for a word. “…a special sensitivity that I think would be a good fit.”
Anthony’s cold tone irked me. I fumbled for something to say that wouldn’t come off as accusing him of callousness. “The unfortunate case of Eddie’s mother must have equipped a bright guy like him with valuable skills. I doubt he’d think the experience was worth it, though. It must have been awful seeing his world falling apart like that.”
Anthony blinked as if I’d spoken a different language. Empathy seemed a bit foreign to him—an idea he had to study in order to grasp the basic principles. But he seemed to like Eddie, which showed both good taste and sense. “He has always been professional. A remarkable young man.”
Yeah, Anthony either didn’t pick up on my careful reproach or chose to ignore it.
“He says you handpicked him for the team,” I said. “That’s unusual for a junior position.”
Anthony glanced around my office distractedly. “Are you leaving? Come with me, and we can talk. I’m already late for dinner.”
I grabbed my laptop and shoved it in my bag. “I don’t want to keep you.”
He waved off my remark as he walked down the hall toward the elevators. I hurried to catch up.
“Eddie applied for an internship,” he began, “but Frank would have dismissed him without giving him an interview. He only brought it up with me as an interesting anecdote because of the connection to Julia Perkins.”
“She’d already been sentenced by then?”
“Seven years. Deservedly, if you ask me. Such an extensive fraud scheme over so many years.” He tsked. “And if she hadn’t been greedy toward the end, she might have gotten away with it.”
“Why did you decide to take Eddie on? This is notmyopinion, but I imagine some people would see him as a liability in this business.”
We stepped into the car, and Anthony pushed the lower garage button. I needed to get to the entrance level, but I wasn’t in any hurry. I could go with Anthony, then ride back up.
He glanced at me with a raised eyebrow. “Yes, he could be a liability. Or an extraordinary asset. A man with his background and inside knowledge of the elite but with nothing left to lose, highly motivated to work against the misfortune he’d been dealt… Such a man could bring a unique skill set to the firm. I got curious and checked the media coverage. After he fell from the highest one percent to the bottom, everyone expected him to be in pieces. But the way Eddie handled himself during his mother’s arrest and trial was outstanding. Despite the pressure he was under, his grades were impeccable, and he acquired glowing personal recommendations from several of his teachers. I met with him, and he left enough of an impression that I offered him the internship. He’s proven me right. I employed him without hesitation when his internship ended.”
“He’s that good?” I loved hearing the animated praise, especially from a cold man like Anthony. Eddie was a rare gem in more ways than one. I probably shouldn’t dig deeper to find out why I already felt protective about him.
“The boy has a brilliant mind, a stable moral compass, and the strongest professional ethics. It’s rare among his generation. He’s on his way to becoming the youngest senior strategist we’ve had. Bring him with you tomorrow and see for yourself.”
“I will.”
I wondered if Anthony knew about Eddie’s sexuality—not that it should matter, but someone from Anthony’s generation might still have an opinion. I was trying to think of a way to ask without outing Eddie when the elevator stopped. Anthony ducked out with a brusque goodbye and strode off.
I rode back up to the main reception and got out onto the street. The business district was full of people rushing home from work. As I walked, the human crowd parted for me instinctively. After sunset, the city gained contrast and rich colors. I tried to imagine how it seemed to human eyes, all washed out and gray. I’d seen paintings like that. To my eyes, darkness was never truly dark; it was when I could finally see clearly. I breathed with relief, soaking up the life of the falling night.
Here and there, I caught a pair of golden eyes and nodded in acknowledgment. The vampire population in this city was the largest in the country. It had its perks. The people here were used to us, and I could blend in more easily.
My mind kept circling back to Eddie. Beautiful, shy, brilliant Eddie.
For the past few days, I’d been watching him at work. The better I got to know him, the more I berated myself for wanting to feed from him. But like a wasp trapped behind a window, I kept hitting the same invisible barrier.
To the blood drinker in me, Eddie was the single most tempting prey. My instincts yelled at me to get closer, to coax, threaten, and seduce. I could corner him in my office or follow him home. I could sweet-talk him into offering me his throat. One little bite, and he’d melt against me.
My species spent the better part of the past millennium trying to find a peaceful way to cohabitate with humans. The law now equated a non-consensual vampire bite with sexual assault. But I didn’t need those reminders to know that seducing Eddie would be a heinous thing to do.
A part of me wished I had never tasted his blood. My hunger grew every day, though, and sooner or later, I would have to feed.
From someone else.
* * *
Eddie had compiled a folder on Helen Snyder and Pierce Black—their relationship history, current media presence, recent publicity—it was all there, comprehensive and to the point. He must have worked long into the night to pull that off.
I was familiar with Fowles & Tito’s regular methods, and we had a short meeting in the morning to prepare. There wasn’t much we could do beforehand, though, since we had no idea what had prompted Helen and Pierce to book the consultation.
