Part One:
Las Vegas
Chapter 1:
Masks, Lies, and Games
Cassandra wished the vampire would just shut up and take her to his suite already. The Vegas casino was noisy, smoky, and crammed with tourists pouring change into the penny slot machines. She needed to get the vampire away from the crowds and into a more secluded place so she could snatch the relic she had been hired to steal and kill him.
Besides, her feet were aching in her stiletto heels and the sleek red dress covering her lean, athletic body was starting to creep upward. Though she was dying to yank the sparkly material down over her muscular thighs, the vapid party girl she was portraying would do no such thing. To add to her discomfort, the vampire was a leg man. The cool, almost papery feel of his hand on her leg indicated that he needed to feed soon, and she hoped he would consider her the perfect meal. She squirmed a bit, hoping her mark would interpret her movement as arousal and not discomfort.
“You’re a good luck charm! Look! I just won again!” The vampire grinned, his hand sliding higher to just under the hem of her dress.
Faking an enthusiastic smile, she clapped her hands with glee. “Wow! You’re going to be rich, Asher!”
Laughing, the vampire caressed her thigh. The sensation made her skin crawl, but Cassandra kept a flirty smile on her face while she watched him shove more quarters into the slot machine. Her mark resembled a certain fictional vampire on a popular television show, but she could see his true face hidden beneath the vampire glamour. As the daughter of a vampire and a mortal, she had many of the powers of the vampire and not as many limitations. Because she was a dhamphir, Cassandra possessed the ability to see through vampire illusions. It was disconcerting being able to see the ruddy, pockmarked face of the vampire beneath the handsome visage he projected. The lush blond hair shimmered over his own colorless thin fringe that ringed a huge bald spot, and his eyes were not a piercing blue, but instead a muddy brown. Cassandra had to concentrate on not allowing the double image to throw her off her game. Anyone passing by them would see a beautiful young couple with gleaming blond hair and perfect bodies that were obviously in lust with each other.
The image was a complete lie.
It amused Cassandra.
Twirling a lock of her fake hair, she snuggled against the vampire as he watched the spinning numbers and images of the slot machine while she furtively observed the vampire’s human guards keeping watch on not only the casino, but also her ass. Which, of course, is what she had planned. A distracted guard was exactly what she wanted.
“See! I won again! You are a good luck charm, Britney!” The vampire pressed a kiss to her cheek. His lips were so cold. “My sweet blond goddess.”
She giggled vapidly.
Whereas she could see through the vampire’s glamour, he could not see through hers. Cassandra’s broker had secured a high quality witch spell for her. In the last two years not one vampire had been able to see through the false countenance until it was too late. The glamour spell Cassandra was wearing gave her the appearance of a young woman with long blond hair and the type of carefully sculpted and plumped up face favored by Hollywood D-listers and porn stars. To support the illusion of long hair, she wore clip-on extensions in her chin-length chestnut brown hair. The glamour hid her unusual eyes that altered color depending on her mood, a gift from her supernatural origins. A push-up bra managed to make her small breasts look voluminous. Of course, she also had a few extra items she would need later tucked into the lining of the lingerie.
Everything about her appearance was tailored to draw the attention of Leonard Klein, a former pharmacist who now went by the name Asher. Leonard served a powerful vampire out of Los Angeles who sold occult relics. Cassandra’s broker had dispatched her to grab the latest relic that Leonard was transporting to a client. His death was an added bonus as far as Cassandra was concerned. Leonard loved to leave pretty blond bodies in his wake. He had been a serial killer in his mortal life, but had never been caught. Whenever she was dealing with the criminal denizens of the supernatural world, she liked to know exactly who she was dealing with, for she had no compunctions about eliminating some of the more deadly monsters.
Leonard’s hand inched ever higher on her leg, but she had to refrain from her instinct to punch him in the face. Instead, she leaned closer to him, her arms draped around his neck. “Asher, I’m bored now. You won all that money. Let’s go upstairs and celebrate.”
It wasn’t the smile on his fake handsome face, but the sneer on his real face that made it difficult for Cassandra to maintain her playful, pouty expression.
“I think that’s a wonderful idea, Britney.” His hand slid under the hem of the dress.
Cassandra playfully twirled away from him, extending her hand in invitation. “Let’s go!”
He immediately took her hand and kissed it. “I have a feeling you’re insatiable,” Leonard said, his true face flushing with dark desire.
Flashing a wide grin, Cassandra said truthfully, “You have no idea.” She had deliberately not fed so that she would not only appear human to vampires, but also not register in their preternatural instincts as anything other than mortal. Being a dhamphir meant being able to subsist both on food and blood, but without it, just like a vampire, she was greatly weakened.
A pack of weary travelers wandered past them on their way to the check-in desk. The Stratosphere was on the far end of the strip, away from the newer, flashier casinos, but it was still a big draw with its gleaming white tower and observation deck. There was a no-man’s land between the older casino and the newer ones. Construction sites lined the boulevard and sported huge signs announcing new casinos with even more exciting attractions. Cassandra suspected that Leonard had deliberately picked the casino with the lower priced hotel rooms that would draw single young women of a certain economic status while providing a great dumping ground for their bodies just a short distance away.
Leonard looped one arm around her neck, dragging her against him. She could feel his power pushing on her mind, trying to force impressions of a hard, muscled body into her thoughts so she wouldn’t feel his doughy flesh and skinny frame. She pretended it worked, staring up at him rapturously. It was difficult to walk with his arm holding her against him, forcing her off balance, but she managed to keep from tripping in her red high heels with their shiny silver stilettos.
“I’m so glad I found you, Britney. I really thought I’d have a boring time in Vegas waiting for my flight out tomorrow night. But when I saw you at the bar, I just knew you were special.”
The vampire pushed lustful thoughts at her, trying to arouse her. Instead, he w
as making her a bit sick to her stomach. Everything about him from his nature to his voice was making her want to bash his face with her fists. Even his fake name, Asher, sounded like some terrible name from a paranormal romance novel. Her ex-girlfriend had always read the sorts of books with covers of the main character’s tramp stamp in clear view as she struck a pose in a leather outfit that would make Catwoman blush. Of course, her ex had also teased Cassandra greatly about her resembling the heroines in those novels. Cassandra had been both annoyed and slightly amused. She had never even told her ex about her true nature, or her side job. That her ex could see her as a kick ass supernatural heroine was somewhat of a compliment, though unnerving. Cassandra worked hard to look anything other than what she truly was when dealing with the monsters.
It was a very long walk to the elevators. Teetering on her high heels, Cassandra was relieved that Leonard’s guards strode in front of them, clearing a path through the throng of revelers. A group of young women stared openly at Leonard, trying to ascertain if he was really the celebrity they suspected him to be. His disguise was a good indication that Leonard was not that clever in the end. It drew far too much attention. From the way the young women were behaving, it was clear that they would have made perfect victims for the vampire. Cassandra liked to think she was saving them from a terrible fate.
The banks of elevators had a horde of people gathered in front of them, clutching drinks or dragging luggage. The elevators only led up to certain blocks of floors, and Leonard’s guards wedged their way through the throng, managing to open a space before one of the elevators designated for the floor where Leonard’s suite was located. The two men looked remarkably alike with their shaved heads and expensive suits, though one was Hispanic and the other black. They had the same meaty face, square shoulders, and barrel chests.
“Asher, why do you have guards? Are you famous?” Cassandra asked, her fingers dancing over the collar of his blue silk shirt.
“I’m not famous. I just look like my famous cousin,” he lied boldly. “The guards are for my business. I’m important in my field of work. I deal in industry secrets.”
“Ooooh,” Cassandra said, exaggerating the word.
“I’m in computers,” Leonard continued to lie.
“Wow. Like that Apple guy?”
“Exactly.” Leonard smacked her ass playfully. “Just like him.”
Cassandra made a mental note of all the things she would like to do to Leonard when they were alone. None of which were particularly nice.
The elevator dinged open and they had to wait for the people packed inside to shuffle out. Leonard quickly steered her inside and the guards blocked the doors immediately. When a few tourists tried to push their way past the big men, they were shoved out. The doors closed and the elevator started its long climb. Leonard took advantage of the ride, nuzzling her neck, nipping her ear, and running his hands over her body. Cassandra endured it, giggled, and pretended to enjoy it.
Two years of modeling in Paris when she was a teenager had taught her just how lecherous men in positions of power could be and how they sometimes regarded beautiful women to be a perk of their status. Leonard was definitely one of those types. It had only taken her a few minutes to draw his attention and for him to assume she was his for the night.
When the doors opened, Cassandra giggled and playfully pushed him away. The faces of the cluster of people gathered in the corridor depicted a gamut of expressions from disgusted to intrigued. Leonard guided Cassandra past them, preening proudly beneath his glamour. Cassandra had to fight not to roll her eyes.
“Do you want to know something funny? I’m just staying here one day, so I didn’t get one of the bigger suites, but I did get the Romance Suite. Isn’t that perfect? It has a huge garden tub,” Leonard said, guiding her along the long corridor.
“Oh, wow! I love those! It’s like a little swimming pool!” Cassandra wondered if she could sound any dumber and decided to give it a whirl. “But why do they call it a garden tub if it doesn’t even have a garden? It just doesn’t make sense!”
“You’re exactly right! It doesn’t make sense,” Leonard agreed. “You’re such a smart girl.”
Cassandra smiled at him, thinking how he was such a dead man.