"Every one of them can afford it." Jerry grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the stairs. We were laughing and were about to step into the cold night air when I stopped.

"Wait!" I could hear whispers right outside the door and eased it shut again. "Paparazzi." I wound my shawl around my hair and across the bottom of my face. "Think they'll recognize me now?" My voice was muffled.

"Let's go." Jerry tucked some of my hair under the shawl. "If they do take a picture, I'll handle it." I shuddered to think what that meant. We stepped outside, endured the scrutiny of a few photographers who quickly lost interest, then headed down the sidewalk. As soon as we were out of earshot, I pulled the shawl away from my mouth and grinned up at Jerry.

"If they only knew what a photo op they just missed. Two vampires out for an evening."

"I'd rather not see myself on the cover of a tabloid. Let's leave that to Caine, shall we?" Jerry pulled my hand to his lips. "Let's get out of here."

"Can we take my car? I know it's not as pretty as the Mercedes, but I'm afraid the battery's going to go dead if it just sits there much longer." I pulled Jerry toward the alley. "Besides, it has an enormous cargo area. The backseat folds away and I have blankets in the back. We could have a veritable orgy in my Suburban."

"You don't have to ask me twice."

Jerry stopped at the entrance to the alley. We were always cautious back here, the scene of more than just Lucky's attack. At least the lights were working, but there was a group gathered near the back door to my shop. More paparazzi? Nope. Only my shop and Mugs and Muffins had doors into the alley. And it was Monday night. Shop closed. So there was no reason for anyone to be back here unless they had a car parked here. All I saw was my Suburban. This group had no business being back here. Jerry was putting me behind him and reaching for a knife when I heard a familiar laugh.

Lucky.

Twenty-One

"What on earth is she doing back here?"

"I'd say she's found herself some followers. Keep your eyes open, Gloriana. There are quite a few mortals here and not all of them are harmless."

"Thanks." I stepped away from Jerry to give us both room to maneuver. "Lucky, oh, and Etienne." I didn't think we had any reason to fear them, but I wasn't about to let my guard down. "What brings you to my alley? And who is this with you?" There were several black-clad Goths gazing at Lucky admiringly. Their spiky hair matched her wig. She'd opted for bright red stripes in hers. But Lucky couldn't bring herself to go for the dead white makeup and black lipstick. She'd already gotten tired of the all black wardrobe. Her only other concession to Goth was the thigh-high boots decorated with chains. She was showing off her fangs though.

"I have groupies, Glory. Don't you love it?" She waved at the five people clustered around her. "Etienne, show Glory and Blade your tattoos."

Jerry nodded at Etienne. "Tattoos?"

"I do a penance. To prove my, uh, love." Etienne rolled up his sleeve. "This is the one I'll show you. I had to get two. The other one is for Lucky's eyes only. Hurt like hell. Which made my woman very happy." Etienne glanced at Lucky.

"Payback's a bitch, isn't it, Etienne?" Lucky was sniffing one of her Goths' wrists. "Was this one the A?"

"Yes, my dear."

I checked out Etienne's bicep. " 'I heart Lucky.' Not very original, but I guess it's the thought that counts." I kept my eyes on the mortals. Glassy eyes, and there was still a joint being passed from hand to hand.

"Etienne, I want to try something more exotic this time." Lucky smiled at me. "I've had A and B from this one and that one." She pointed to a man and a woman with a long nail that had been painted a sparkling black. "Go higher in the alphabet. Is there something in a Por a Q?"

"Doesn't work that way." I inhaled and put my hand on a young man's shoulder. "This guy's high-octane because he's been drinking tequila shots along with his weed. You want to experiment, take a sip of that." I hated that she wanted to drink from mortals, but if I tried to stop her, she'd just move her action to another location. Maybe a few bad drinks would cure her of the urge. This guy's juice should give her the mother of all headaches.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jerry grabbed Lucky when she proceeded to pull the man to her and sink her teeth into his neck right there in front of everyone.

She didn't answer, just kept taking gulps until Jerry forced her to let go without ripping the poor man's throat open.

"Christ, Etienne, didn't you teach her any discretion?" Jerry looked into the victim's eyes and put him under the whammy.

"I tried. Lucky doesn't take orders." Etienne turned and began taking care of the other mortals until all of them were statues. "Now, Lucky, you can take your time, drink from whoever you wish. But you must be sure none of them panic and decide to escape and tell the police what you are doing."

"And take it somewhere a little more private." I glanced at my Suburban. "Like where you're not blocking in my car. And away from this light behind my shop." I grabbed Lucky's arm, and she wobbled. Ho. Tequila and weed. How did she like that combo?

"What di-difference does it make? They won't merember." Lucky leaned against my bumper, which was filthy. I had the pleasure of seeing a smudge on her leopard-print trench coat.

"But anyone could walk past. Stop and call for help. Like on their cell phone?" I know I wanted that reward, but at the moment, I almost hoped the hit man would finish her off. This was damned dangerous for all of us, but especially for me. Again, behind my freakin' shop, next to my freakin' car and, yes, I was freakin' out.

"Calm down, Gloriana. I'll take care of this." Etienne started to lead Lucky toward the shadows at the far end of the alley.

"Wait." She jerked away from Etienne. "I have to show Glory something. How I finally figured out the makeup thing." Lucky dug in her purse, another Birkin bag, this one black. Daddy must have sent her a new one. "See? I use this digital camera every time I do something. I take a pic quick." She giggled. "I mean a quick pic. Anyway, then I can see what I'm doing. It's just like using a mirror." She slung her purse over her shoulder again, staggering under the weight.

"You're just a genius, aren't you, Lucky?" Actually, it was pretty clever. And I'd use my own camera phone in an emergency from now on. "Now get out of my alley before I throw you out."

"I'm sorry, Glory. Sometimes I forget you saved my life. I don't want to get you in trouble." She teared up. "You ever need anything, anything, you come to the Carvarellis. Don't you forget it." She peered into the darkness, stumbling in her high-heeled boots. "Etienne, where the hell are you?"

He'd led the group, who had followed him like sheep, to a dark area at the end of the alley. "Coming, love bunny." He took her arm and looked back at us. "She makes me call her that." Lucky glared at him. "Which is très bien, of course." I waited until they were out of sight. "Can you believe that woman and her Goth groupies?" I stomped over to the car and unlocked the door. "You'd better drive, Jerry. I might accidentally run over something or some one, I'm so mad." Jerry put his hand on my shoulder and turned me to face him. "Relax. I have a little surprise for you in the hills. Would you like that?"

"A surprise?" Jerry always did know how to lift my mood. And my skirt. He unwrapped my dress so that he could see my pink bra again. He really liked it. It plunged so low it was hardly a bra at all. Don't you love Victoria's Secret catalogs?

"Hop in and we'll be there in fifteen minutes. Can you wait that long?"

I rubbed against him. As usual, his body reacted with enthusiasm. "Can you?"

"If you'll just sit there in the other seat and let me see you in nothing but those lacy things, I could enjoy the wait." So of course I shucked the dress, threw the shawl down on the cold leather seat and played with the seat belt so it wouldn't spoil his view while he started what proved to be a reluctant engine.

"Where are we going?" I'd managed to stay quiet exactly, I glanced at the dashboard clock, seven minutes. Almost a record for me but I had a lot on my mind.

"You'll see. I hope you like it." The car lurched as we swung off the highway onto a gravel road. No, my car doesn't have fourwheel drive. I'm not exactly into off-roading. The Suburban is ages old and I'd bought it used because it was cheap and could hold a lot of stuff and pull a trailer. You know vampires have to move on every few decades when we don't show normal signs of aging. It's not as often as it used to be thanks to the excuses of miracle creams and plastic surgery. More quiet time. I felt like I had to prove to Jerry that I could be a restful companion. Not always a chatterbox. Hey, I watch Dr. Phil and shows like that. I guess our relationship lasts because we've taken frequent breaks. Some of them have lasted decades.

"Any news on Lily?" You knew I couldn't just be quiet. Or smart. But this whole secret-baby thing was a big deal. Jerry was Mr. Responsibility-I was proof of that. He was bound to be hell-bent on finding out the truth about this "daughter."

"I think I may have a lead. And I'll definitely be getting our DNA tested once I find her. I'll not take Mara's word on this. Does that make you feel better?"

"It should make you feel better." High road. Oh, yes. Thank you whichever show I'd learned that one from. And I'm not such a selfish bitch that I didn't want Jerry to have a child of his own. "Where do you think she is?"

"Last news is from Europe. I hope to talk to Igor at the Winter Solstice Ball. He knows everyone over there. She may be staying with some of his many relatives."

"Good. And speaking of the ball." Oh, great, Gloriana. Jump from serious life-altering-event talk to trivia. "I mean, we might as well enjoy our last night before you take off to search for your daughter."