Page 137 of Taste of Blood

“I’m sitting on the roof of the building across from Thalium’s.”

“Anything to report?”

“Yeah. This guy is boring as fuck. He got up just after six this morning, took a phone call, then had a visitor about an hour later.”

“You get a look at him?”

“Sort of. Something familiar about him, but I can’t place it. He gave Thalium a piece of paper then left. He’s been sitting over there on his laptop ever since. How long do you want me to watch this guy?”

“Until we find something we can use.”

“And how can we do that with the Black Guild breathing down our necks? Look, I’m all for hanging onto our position in this city, but I don’t want to land myself in hot water with those guys.”

“Are you scared of them?” he taunts.

“Damn right I am. I don’t know anything about them. All I have is rumors I’ve heard, and none of them are pleasant.”

“Just keep on him.”

“I’ll hang out for a little while longer, but I haven’t fed since a bag of blood yesterday morning.”

He sighs. “How many times have I told you to take better care of yourself?”

“When the fuck do I have time to do that, Dante? I don’t feed, I don’t sleep. This Python thing is eating up my life. I need a fucking break.”

“Go feed then. And get some sleep. We’ll pick it up tomorrow.”

“Just as well. He’s not doing anything over there.”

After I hang up with Dante, I glance over at Thalium to make sure he’s still sitting on his laptop, then make my way down the stairs to the elevator. The concierge seems a little surprised to see me when I appear, but I leave before he has a chance to say anything.

When I get to my car, the first order of business is nourishment. I’m starting to feel my veins tightening up, which means I need to feed soon. It’s too early to troll the bars, but I need live blood. I decide to hit one of our own blood dens, this one close to the warehouse. It’s certainly not up to Lupercalia status, but blood is blood.

After I feed I go back to my apartment and take a shower then climb into bed to grab a nap. I’ll feel better after a couple of hours of sleep. I set an alarm and am out as soon as my head hits the pillow.

I’m awakened by my phone before my alarm goes off. Half asleep, I answer before I look at the screen.

“Cord?”

“Asher? What’s up?”

“I know you’re probably busy, but Elaine was just here. She’s found something new on Thalium. It has to do with that pharmaceutical company he bought.”

I sit up and rub my eyes, trying to will my brain to catch up with what he’s saying. “What about it?”

“I’d rather show you. Do you think you could stop by my place?”

“Yeah. Give me a few minutes.”

“Okay, I’ll see you when you get here.”

40: Asher

CORD ARRIVES JUST after ten o’clock with a haunted look in his eyes. “What’s wrong?” I ask before he even gets into the apartment.

“Can I get a drink?”

I lead him to the livingroom and grab a glass to pour him three fingers of Belvedere. When I hand it to him, he drains half of it before lowering himself to the couch. He sweeps his hand back through his hair and sighs heavily.