I understood the draw of the blood. I was beginning to get hungry. We were nearing the end of the evening, and it had been hours since I’d eaten . . . or had blood. The smell was becoming undeniably delicious, so I gnawed on my lip to stay focused, the sharp sting of pain pushing back the hunger. As was so often the case, this wasn’t the time or the place.
I guided Sarah through the vampires now rushing toward the blood, her arm over my shoulder, my arm around her waist. We weren’t exactly graceful, but we got closer to the door and the edge of chaos.
And chaos had definitely erupted.
The room became a hurricane of violence as vampires stepped and crawled over one another to get to the blood. One angry vampire spurred a brawl with another, and that brawl pushed its way into someone else’s conversation, which angered those vampires, as well. The violence traveled like a virus through the room, spreading as it made contact. And as the violence increased, so did the magic—spilling into the air and making the vampires even more predatory than they already had been.
“I thought you might need the cavalry.”
I looked to my right, relieved to find Jonah at my side again. “Took you long enough. Thanks for the distraction.”
“You’re welcome. I didn’t exactly expect you to have pulled a blade and kidnapped a human.”
He glanced at Sarah. “What happened?”
“Don’t know. Drugs? Glamour? I’m not sure.
Either way, we need to get her out of here.”
“I’m right behind you,” he said with a nod, and we made our way to the elevators.
The doors were open when we got there; I helped Sarah inside while Jonah mashed buttons until the doors closed, muting the sounds of fighting behind us. I slipped the dagger back into my boot.
It wasn’t until we were halfway down the building again that I let out the breath I’d been holding. I glanced over at Sarah. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “I’m okay. But all those other people in there. We need to get them out, too.”
Jonah and I exchanged a glance.
“Maybe you could call the police?” she asked.
“Tell them about the party, and when they come, they can get the rest of the humans out?”
Jonah looked back at me. “If the cops come . .
.”
I nodded, understanding his concern. If it took cops to shut this thing down, we’d be swimming in bad press and right back in the mayor’s office —assuming Tate hadn’t already issued Ethan’s warrant.
But maybe we didn’t need the cops. Maybe we just needed the fear of the cops. . . .
“We can beat them to it,” I said as the elevator doors opened again. “Help her outside. I’ll meet you there in a minute.”
We shifted positions at Sarah’s side, and while they shuffled to the front door, I hustled to the security desk. The guard’s gaze followed Jonah and Sarah out the front door, his hand on the walkie-talkie on his desk.
“Hey,” I said when I reached it, drawing his attention to me. “We just got a call—the cops are on their way to the top floor. You better head upstairs and make sure they clear out, or there’s sure to be arrests and a gigantic mess. I know you don’t want that in the papers tomorrow. Your, um, fanged clientele won’t be happy about it.”
The guard nodded with understanding, then picked up his walkie, turned a knob, and asked for backup. I hoped he had enough of it—and maybe some vampire repellent while he was at it.
I left him to his preparations, gulping in fresh, untainted air when I made it outside again. I watched Jonah and Sarah hobble across the street to a small square of green. He helped Sarah to a wrought iron bench; I stayed where I was until I was sure my mind was clear and my hunger was under control.
A minute or two later, I crossed the street.
“Evacuation in progress,” I told Jonah, then crouched down in front of Sarah. “How are you feeling?”
She nodded. “I’m okay. Just really, really embarrassed.” She pressed a hand to her stomach. Whatever haze had silenced her passed, and she began to sob in earnest.
Jonah and I exchanged an uncomfortable glance.
“Sarah,” I softly said. “Can you tell us what happened? How did you end up there?”
“I heard vamps were having this party.” She rubbed a hand beneath her nose. “I thought, oh, vampires, that could be fun, you know? At first it was okay. But then—I don’t know. The tension in the room got kind of high, and then I started to feel really weird, and I sat down on the floor. I could see them out of the corners of my eyes.
They’d move around and take a look at me, like they were trying to see if I was ready.”
“Ready?” I asked.
“Ready to give blood?” She shuddered and sighed. “And then you came along.” She shook her head. “I’m just really embarrassed. I shouldn’t have been there. I shouldn’t have gone.” She looked up at me. “I really want to go home. Do you think you could find me a cab?”
“On it,” Jonah said, stepping back to the road to scan for passing cabs. It was late, but we were still within a couple of blocks of Michigan, so it wasn’t completely unlikely that we’d find one.
As he moved away, I looked down at Sarah again. “Sarah, how did you find out about the party?”
She blushed and looked away.
“It would really help us if you could tell me. It might help us put a stop to these parties.”
She sighed, then nodded. “My girlfriend and I were out at a bar—one of those vampire bars?
We met a guy there.”
“Do you know which vampire bar?”
“Temple?”
My stomach sank. That was the Cadogan bar.
“Go on.”
“So, I went outside to get some fresh air—there were a lot of people in there—and there was a guy outside. He said a party was happening and we’d have a good time. My friend, Brit, didn’t want to go, but I wanted to, you know, see what it was about.”
So Sarah had gotten info about the rave at Temple Bar, and Jonah had found the phone at Benson’s. That meant the folks who frequented the bars also knew about the raves. Ethan was going to be pissed about that one.
“The guy you talked to—what did he look like?”
“Oh, um, he was kinda short. Older. Dark hair.