“Hey, Ronan,” the dealer said. “Long time no see.”
“Pete. How’s it going?”
The man’s teeth flashed in a bright smile. “Same as always.”
Ronan placed a five dollar bill on the table in front of him.
Pete dealt a round of cards to the players, face down, and then dealt a card to himself, also face down.
Ronan lifted a corner of his card and Shannah saw that he had a ten of hearts.
She watched as the dealer dealt another round of cards. Ronan’s second card was the ace of spades. Two of the other men at the table won, the other man and the elderly woman lost.
It was a fast game. Ronan played several hands and won most of them.
“I’ve got a break coming up in a few minutes,” Pete said, shuffling the deck. “You gonna be around?”
Ronan nodded. Collecting his winnings, he put the chips in his pants’ pocket. “We’ll wait for you in the coffee shop.”
“Right.”
Shannah ordered a cup of coffee and a slice of lemon meringue pie. Ronan also ordered a cup of coffee.
“For appearance’s sake,” he explained when she looked at him curiously.
Pete arrived a few minutes later. He slid into the booth beside Ronan. “So,” he said, “who’s this pretty lady?”
“Pete, this is Shannah Davis. Shannah, this is Pete Sandoval.”
“Pleased to meet you,” she murmured automatically. She tried not to stare at him. Though she knew he was a vampire, he looked perfectly normal. But then, so did Ronan.
Grinning, Pete leaned forward and whispered, “Wanna see my fangs?”
Shannah’s cheeks grew hot. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to stare.”
“I wanted Shannah to meet a few of us,” Ronan said.
Pete sat back, one arm stretched across the top of the booth. “Any particular reason?”
“I’m trying to convince her to become one of us.”
“No sh…I mean, is that right?”
Ronan nodded.
“So,” Sandoval said, looking at Shannah, “what’s holding you back?”
“Several things,” she replied.
“Well, it is a big decision,” Sandoval remarked. “Most of the vampires I know were brought across against their will.”
“Were you?”
“Oh, yeah.” He shrugged. “I’m not sorry now, but it was a big adjustment in the beginning.” He laughed softly. “My folks had given me to the church. I was supposed to become a priest. One night and one bite put an end to all that.”
“I’m so sorry,” Shannah murmured.
“Hey, it was a long time ago. So, Ronan, my man, how long will you be here?”
“We haven’t decided yet.”
“Well, I’ll probably see you again before you leave. I’ve got to get back.” Sandoval smiled at Shannah. “A pleasure to meet you.”
“Thank you.”
Shannah watched Sandoval leave the coffee shop before asking, “How long has he been a vampire?”
“About six hundred years, I think.”
“And I thought you were old,” Shannah muttered dryly.
Ronan laughed. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
“Where are we going now?”
“To get a cab. There’s a club a few miles from here.”
“What kind of club?”
“A vampire club.”
She looked at him in disbelief. “You have your own club?”
“Come and see.”
The Sarcophagus—she thought it was a horrid name—was located on a dimly lit street in an older part of the city. Graffiti adorned the walls of the building. There were iron bars on the windows and the door. Were the bars to keep mortals out, she wondered morbidly, or to keep them from leaving if they accidentally strayed inside?
A man wearing black slacks, a black T-shirt and a long black cape lined in red satin answered Ronan’s knock. “Is she expecting you?” the man asked.
“No,” Ronan said, “but she’ll be glad to see me.”
“Wait here.”
The door closed in their faces. Moments later, it opened again.
“Come in,” the man said. “She’s waiting for you in her private booth.”
Muttering, “Thanks,” Ronan took Shannah by the hand and walked through the door. They went down a narrow entryway and passed through a curtain of black beads.
It was dark inside the club, so dark that Shannah could scarcely see Ronan even though he was right beside her. Candles provided what little light there was in the room. Several couples were dancing to slow, sultry music provided by a three-piece band. Other couples and singles sat at a long, curved bar, some with drinks in their hands. She wondered, morbidly, if they were drinking blood. Like Ronan and the man who had answered the door, just about everyone in the room wore black.
Still holding Shannah’s hand, Ronan skirted the dance floor until he came to a curtained booth in the back corner of the room.
A softly feminine voice bid them enter.
Shannah wondered how the occupant of the booth had known they were there. Her heart was pounding as Ronan parted the red velvet curtains and ushered her inside.
A young woman sat in the booth. The seat was black leather, the table looked like black marble.
But it was the girl who held Shannah’s attention. She was young, no more than fifteen or sixteen, with long yellow hair and dark brown eyes. Her skin was smooth and clear, almost luminous. She wore a tight-fitting red spandex top. Several gold bracelets glittered on her wrists.
“Please, sit down,” the young woman invited.
Shannah slid into the booth.
“Ronan,” the girl said. “It is good to see you here.”
“Valerie, it’s good to see you again.”
The girl held out a slender, well-manicured hand. “It has been far too long since your last visit to my city.”
Taking Valerie’s hand in his, Ronan made a courtly bow, then turned her hand over and kissed her palm.
Valerie smiled, displaying even white teeth. “And who is this?” she asked, glancing in Shannah’s direction.
“Valerie, this is Shannah. She’s a friend of mine,” he said, sliding into the seat beside her.
Valerie inclined her head in Shannah’s direction. “Welcome to the Sarcophagus, friend of Ronan.”
“Thank you.” Shannah clasped her hands in her lap, unnerved by the woman’s unblinking gaze and the unmistakable aura of power that surrounded her.
“So,” Valerie said, turning her gaze on Ronan once more, “what brings you here after such a long absence?”
“A yearning to be among those of my own kind,” he replied easily.
Valerie glanced at Shannah again. “I see. Have you forgotten that mortals are not welcome in this place?”
“No, but Shannah is curious about the way we live.”
“Indeed?” Valerie looked at Shannah more sharply. “And why is that?”
Shannah shrank back against the seat, unable to speak under the weight of the vampire’s gaze.
She had no doubt that Valerie could crush her with a thought.
“Valerie, let her alone,” Ronan said.
The young woman waved a graceful hand. “Very well, friend of Ronan, you may stay with my blessing. And you,” she said, speaking to Ronan, “I will expect you to come and see me again before you leave the city.”
With a curt nod, Ronan slid out of the booth, reached for Shannah’s hand, and helped her to her feet.
Skirting the dance floor, he found an empty table and they sat down.
“Who is she?” Shannah asked.
“Valerie? I guess you could say she’s the reigning vampire queen of Las Vegas.”
“But she…she’s just a girl. She can’t be more than what, sixteen?”
“Valerie looks young because she was only fourteen or fifteen when she was brought across, but that was over a thousand years ago.”
A thousand years! It was beyond incredible, Shannah thought. What would it be like to live that long? What did one do to pass the time? Surely, in a thousand years, a person would have seen and done everything there was to see and do. She tried to imagine what it would be like to be a teenager for a thousand years, then shook her head. What would it be like to be twenty-four forever, to never change? To never grow old. To never die…
“Don’t let her youthful appearance fool you,” Ronan said. “She’s a powerful vampire, perhaps the most powerful one in existence. So powerful that the sun no longer has the power to destroy her. This is her city. No vampire is allowed to remain here without her permission.”
“She seems to like you.”
“We’ve shared a few good times in the past.”
“What does that mean?”
“Just what I said.”
Shannah stared at him, afraid to ask what “vampire good times” might be.
A short time later, Ronan led her over to the bar where he introduced her to several men and women. He hadn’t told her they were vampires, but if what Valerie had said was true, they must be. She forced a smile and tried not to stare, stood quietly while Ronan talked to one of the men for a few minutes. She noticed that the vampires were all beautiful. Their skin was clear, their hair thick and lustrous, their teeth very white.
“Do you know all of these…people?” she asked as they moved away from the bar.
“No, not all of them.”
“Valerie said mortals aren’t welcome here. Does that mean everyone in here is a vampire, except me?”
He nodded. “Scared?”
She glanced around the room, noticing that more than one vampire was watching her intently.
She hoped it was only curiosity, although she couldn’t help feeling that they were looking at her as if wondering what she would taste like. “Do you blame me?”
“I guess not,” he said with a wry grin. “Would you like to dance?”