Page 6 of Bishop's Flight
“And Erik was her sire?”
Carwyn nodded. “He had two children, Agnes Wong and Rose Di Marco. I don’t know who came first, Rose or Agnes, but they’ve been mated for over a hundred years now, and they’ve been running Las Vegas since Erik was killed.”
“I thought Vegas was known to be pretty well-run,” Lee said. “Small permanent immortal population, holiday escape for the mortal and the undead. Really safe, right?”
Brigid turned. “Ya know, some vampires are offended by the termundead?”
“Have you seen what you guys look like when you sleep?”
“Fair dues.” She turned back to the road. “I’ve heard the same things about Las Vegas. The vampire population there rarely causes trouble because no one wants to upset the status quo.”
“And they’d be correct,” Carwyn said. “A city that comes alive at night? Plentiful humans who are regularly intoxicated and rarely stay in the city for long? It’s the perfect feeding ground for vampires.”
“So who killed Erik?” Brigid asked. “Who killed Agnes and Rose’s sire?”
Carwyn smiled. “Agnes and Rose, of course.”
The Del Marco Casinowas one of the last remaining old establishments in a city that rarely valued the past. Newness was the lifeblood of Las Vegas, with old casinos and dated hotels razed to make room for bigger and better every year.
Brigid walked down Fremont Street, trying to get a feel for the history of the older part of town, but it was hard to put a finger on the undercurrents she was feeling.
Glee, debauchery, and suspicion. It was as if a glossy, superficial energy had been layered over a simmering underbelly of grime and addiction. As a human, heroin had controlled Brigid’s life, so she could easily recognize the frantic energy driven by craving. Here it was everywhere.
Sex, booze, and more than anything the incessant ringing of coins that signaled the ubiquitous presence of the casino. Slot machines were everywhere. In the petrol station, in the hairdressers, even in the loo.
“What is this place?” She swept her eyes from side to side. “I don’t understand it.”
“It’s…” Carwyn spread his arms. “It’s the Roman bacchanal. It’s Berlin before the war. It’s—”
“Spring break for grown-ups?” Lee looked around, nodding as he took it all in. “It’s interesting.”
Brigid watched a woman in a pink veil with a string of pink plastic penises run toward a public rubbish bin and vomit something that was also pink. “Interestingis one word for it.”
“Come on.” Carwyn tugged her along. “The Del Marco is just a couple of blocks away.”
The farther they walked from the bright lights and the deeper they retreated into the shadows, the more comfortable Brigid felt. The glossy was stripped away and the seedy came out to play.
Seedy she could deal with.
“We’re going to the service entrance of the casino?” She spotted delivery trucks parked in the alley behind a tower with bright gold letters emblazoned across the top. “Really rolling out the welcome, are they?”
Del Marco.
“This is the family door.” Carwyn kept one hand at the small of her back. “I was told to go this direction.”
Brigid knew Carwyn was correct when the blocky silhouette of a black Bentley rounded the corner and pulled up at the back. A guard hopped out of the passenger side and walked around to open the doors. Out of the sleek vehicle, an elegant man stood, sweeping his eyes around the alley and pausing when they got to Carwyn and Brigid.
The stranger took them both in, from Brigid’s black combat boots and black leggings to Carwyn’s cargo pants and flowered shirt.
Her mate lifted a hand and waved. “How'r'ye?”
Without a word, the vampire looked away and followed his guards inside the building.
“He’s right posh, isn’t he?” Brigid sniffed. “We’re lucky his eyes lingered upon us.”
“Very lucky indeed.” Carwyn was stifling laughter. “Come on, let’s go meet the ladies of Las Vegas.”
The reception roomof Agnes Wong and Rose Di Marco’s office looked like any other office space Brigid had ever seen, except the color scheme was distinctly more boudoir.
