“Don't ever call me a piece of tail again, Madge, darling.”
Rochelle was laughing silently, her considerable bosom shaking like dark brown jello. Harvey stood straight-faced. If he had so much as smiled, I think Madge would have hurt him. His eyes were very shiny, but there was no hint of a smile.
A door opened and closed down the hall, farther into the house. A woman stepped into the room. She was around fifty, or maybe a hard forty. Very blonde hair framed a plump face. Even money the blonde came out of a bottle. Plump little hands glittered with rings, real stones. A long, black negligee swept the floor, complete with an open lace robe. The flat black of the negligee was kind to her figure, but not kind enough. She was overweight and there was no hiding it. She looked like a PTA member, a Girl Scout leader, a cookie baker, someone's mother. And there she stood in the doorway, staring at Phillip.
She let out a little squeal and came running towards him. I got out of the way before I was crushed in the stampede. Phillip had just enough time to brace himself before she flung her considerable weight into his arms. For a minute I thought he was going to fall backwards into the floor with her on top, but his back straightened, his legs tensed, and he righted them both.
Strong Phillip, able to lift overweight nymphomaniacs with both hands.
Harvey said, “This is Crystal.”
Crystal was kissing Phillip's chest, chubby, homey little hands trying to pull his shirt out of his pants so she could touch his bare flesh. She was like a cheerful little puppy in heat.
Phillip was trying to discourage her without much success. He gave me a long glance. And I remembered what he had said, that he had stopped coming to these parties. Was this why? Crystal and her like? Madge of the sharp fingernails? I had forced him to bring me, but in doing so, I had forced him to bring himself.
If you thought of it that way, it was my fault Phillip was here. Damn, I owed him.
I patted the woman's cheek, softly. She blinked at me, and I wondered if she was nearsighted. “Crystal,” I said. I smiled my best angelic smile. “Crystal, I don't mean to be rude, but you're pawing my date.”
Her mouth fell open; her pale eyes bugged out. “Date,” she squeaked. “No one has dates at a party.”
“Well, I'm new to the parties. I don't know the rules yet. But where I come from, one woman does not grope another woman's date. At least wait until I turn my back, okay?”
Crystal's lower lip trembled. Her eyes began to fill with tears. I had been gentle, kind even, and she was still going to cry. What I was she doing here with these people?
Madge came and put her arm around Crystal and led the woman away. Madge was making soothing noises and patting her black silken arms.
Rochelle said, “Very cold.” She walked away from me towards a liquor cabinet that was against one wall.
Harvey had also left, following Madge and Crystal without so much as a backwards glance.
You'd think I'd kicked a puppy. Phillip let out a long breath and set down on the couch. He clasped his hands in front of him, between his knees. I sat down next to him, tucking my skirt down over my legs.
“I don't think I can do this,” he whispered.
I touched his arm. He was trembling, a constant shaking that I didn't like at all. I hadn't realized what it would cost him to come tonight, but I was beginning to find out.
“We can go,” I said.
He turned very slowly and stared at me. “What do you mean?”
“I mean we can go.”
“You'd leave now without finding out anything because I'm having problems?” he asked.
“Let's just say I like you better as the overconfident flirt. You keep acting like a real person, and you'll have me all confused. We can go if you can't handle it.”
He took a deep breath and let it out, then shook himself like a dog coming out of water. “I can do it. If I have a choice, I can do it.”
It was my turn to stare. “Why didn't you have a choice before?”
He looked away. “I just felt like I had to bring you if you wanted to come.”
“No, dammit, that wasn't what you meant at all.” I touched his face and forced him to look at me. “Someone gave you orders to come see me the other day, didn't they? It wasn't just to find out about Jean-Claude, was it?”
His eyes were wide, and I could feel his pulse under my fingers. “What are you afraid of, Phillip? Who's giving you orders?”
“Anita, please, I can't.”
My hand dropped to my lap. “What are your orders, Phillip?”
He swallowed, and I watched his throat work. “I'm to keep you safe here, that's all.” His pulse was jumping under the bruised bite in his neck. He licked his lips, not seductive, nervous. He was lying to me. The trick was, how much of a lie and what about?
I heard Madge's voice coming up the hall, all cheerful seduction. Such a good hostess. She escorted two people into the room. One was a woman with short auburn hair and too much eye makeup, like green chalk smeared above her eyes. The second was Edward, smiling, at his charming best, with his arm around Madge's bare waist. She gave a rich, throaty laugh as he whispered something to her.
I froze, for a second. It was so unexpected that I just froze. If he had pulled out a gun, he could have killed me while I sat with my mouth hanging open. What the hell was he doing here?
Madge led him and the woman towards the bar. He glanced back at me over her shoulder and gave me a delicate smile that left his blue eyes empty as a doll's.
I knew my twenty-four hours were not up. I knew that. Edward had decided to come looking for Nikolaos. Had he followed us? Had he listened to Phillip's message on my machine?
“What's wrong?” Phillip asked.
“What's wrong?” I said. “You are taking orders from somebody, probably a vampire … “ I finished the statement silently in my head: And Death has just waltzed in the door to play freak while he searches for Nikolaos. There was only one reason Edward searched for a particular vampire. He meant to kill her, if he could.
The assassin might finally have met his match. I had thought I wanted to be around when Edward finally lost. I wanted to see what prey was too large for Death to conquer. I had seen this prey, up close and personal. If Edward and Nikolaos met and she even suspected that I had a hand in it … shit. Shit, shit, shit!
I should turn Edward in. He had threatened me, and he would carry it out. He would torture me to get information. What did I owe him? But I couldn't do it, wouldn't do it. A human being does not turn another human being over to the monsters. Not for any reason.
Monica had broken that rule, and I despised her for it. I think I was the closest thing Edward had to a real friend. A person who knows who and what you are and likes you anyway. I did like him, despite or because of what he was. Even though I knew he'd kill me if it worked out that way? Yes, even though. It didn't make much sense when you looked at it that way. But I couldn't worry about Edward's morality. The only person I had to face in the mirror was me. The only moral dilemma I could solve was my own.