"If you're into that kind of thing."
Oh. My. God. This day was getting better and better. The image that surfaced was just… She cleared her throat. "Um, no. Thanks."
Valencia put a hand on her shoulder. The faint sound of the doorbell rang. "In all seriousness, if I were you I'd give it a try. You have more to lose if you don't."
Valencia left the room to get the door and Brianna took that time to sort through everything she had learned. No one had said being a vampire was a bad thing. There seemed to be no downside to the transition.
Except for the whole blood-drinking thing. Disgusting.
Ah, damn. What choice did she really have?
A slew of feminine voices came from the hallway. She looked up to see the three fanged sluts walk into the living room.
Great.
"So Ambrose is going to, like, turn you? You're going to love it."
All three were still dressed like sluts, but the threatening vibe was gone. She guessed they were just
protecting their territory the other night. Had it really only been a few days?
The girl with the long blonde hair sat next to her, and the redhead sat on her other side. The one with the pixie cut plopped into a sitting position on the floor in front of her.
She was trapped.
"I'm Carrie," the blonde said, holding her hand out. Brianna shook it. "And this is Trish and Nadine."
Trish was the one with the pixie cut. She smiled and Brianna saw her fangs. "Raum told us to come and talk to you. What do you want to know?"
Brianna scooted back into the couch. How thoughtful of Raum. Actually, where else could she get answers from such blunt vampires? "I don't know. I guess…what's it like?"
"So awesome—"
"—senses are amplified—"
"Sex is insane."
Brianna closed her eyes and shook her head. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Let's start off with Pixie. What is so awesome about being a vampire?"
Pixie perked up. "Pixie. I love the name." She ran a hand back and forth over her hair, causing it to look messy. "Well, I like being a vamp because I'll never age."
"That is such a plus."
"Oh yeah, no wrinkles!"
"No Depends for us."
Brianna turned to the blonde, rolling her eyes at the Depends comment. "Why is sex better?"
"I knew that'd get your interest." She winked at her. "All of your senses are heightened. Sense of smell, touch, hearing. You can move faster…get it? Faster. Harder."
"I get it." She wasn't so worried about her sexual appetite. Not when the man she wanted was currently being tortured for the next two millennia. At least she would still be alive when Asmodeus was released—not that she expected him to be happy to see her. "So you don't regret changing? How did it happen?"
The redhead spoke up. "Last year we went on a trip to Scotland. We got snatched up by a class D vamp. He nearly killed us. Class D vamps are the dumbest vampires. Ambrose turned us, since we would have died. He didn't want to, 'cause he generally doesn't like making more vampires, but he felt it his honor-bound duty. I guess he thinks all of the vampire's evil deeds reflect on him, because he was the first."
"Yeah, he's such a bleeding heart. But he's hot, so that's cool."
When they started talking about how they'd like to bang the ancient vampire, she quietly excused herself. When she walked into the kitchen Raum and Naberius were waiting for her. She fought past the lump in her throat. Becoming a vampire didn't seem all that bad. Not when she looked at the big picture. And it did give her hope for her child.
"All right, let's do it."
"Yeah, well, you're calling Ambrose back," Naberius said as he slid the phone across the table at her. He took a drag off his cigarette. "Slamming the phone down on him pissed him off and he's not someone you want to piss off. Especially since he's only trying to help."
Okay. Now she had to call the vampire and beg him to sink his fangs into her flesh. Piece of cake.
Next, please?
Michael dropped him in the third tier of the Abyss, after explaining he had to go back and retrieve the Demonic Book of Spells from Raum. The book would remain safe in his office. He'd also mentioned that Brianna had summoned him to speak to him about Asmodeus.
The thought of Brianna fighting for him gave him high hopes of their future together. The only thing that hung in the air was that Michael would not expand on what he meant by Brianna not being human by the time he got back to her realm.
As he settled on the mist he inhaled the invigorating air. He was used to smells and wind, not the void that currently surrounded him. Michael's office contained material things—chairs, desk, files. The third tier of the Abyss resembled Heaven. A virtual space of light and mist.