"I'm in," Michael said, and took a manful bite of spaghetti. Claire wondered if it burned him. "I think if I'm with you, there's no way she can keep us out. Vampire VIP status. Might as well be good for something."
Shane looked at him, and for a second there was that warmth that Claire missed so much, but then it was gone again, and the wall was back firmly in place between the two of them.
"Must be nice," he said. "We should all go, if it's going to ruin Monica's night."
The finished the rest of the meal in uncomfortable silence. Claire realized that she kept thinking about that red velvet box sitting upstairs in her room, and struggled not to look guilty. Probably didn't succeed. She caught Michael watching her with a strange intensity; whether he was picking up on her discomfort or still wondering about why she didn't jump at the chance to go to Monica's party.
She ate too fast, cleaned her dishes, and dashed upstairs with a mumbled excuse about homework. Well, it wasn't like they weren't used to her studying. It was Shane's turn for dishes, so that would keep him busy for a while ....
The box was right where she'd left it, sitting on the dresser. She grabbed it, put her back against the wall, and slid down to a cross-legged sitting position as she weighed the box in her hand.
"You're wondering whether or not to wear it," Amelie said, and Claire yelped in surprise. The elegant older vampire, completely at her ease, was seated in the antique old velvet chair in the corner, her hands folded primly in her lap. She looked like a painting, not a person; there was something about her — now more than ever — that seemed antique and cold as marble.
Claire scrambled to her feet, feeling stupid about it, but you just didn't sit like that in Amelie's presence. Amelie acknowledged the courtesy with a graceful nod, but didn't otherwise move.
"I apologize for surprising you, Claire, but I needed to speak with you alone," she said.
"How can you get in here? I mean, this is our house, aren't vampires ... ?"
"Prevented from entry? Not into another vampire's home, and even were you all human, this house ultimately belongs to me. I built it, as I built all of the Founder Houses. The house knows me, and so I need no permissions to enter." Amelie's eyes glinted in the dark. "Does that disturb you?"
Claire swallowed and didn't answer. "What did you want?"
Amelie raised one long, slender finger and pointed at the velvet box in Claire's hand. "I want you to put that on."
"But — "
"I am not asking. I am instructing."
Claire shivered, because although Amelie's voice stayed level, it sounded ... hard. She opened the box and shook the bracelet out. It felt heavy and warm in her hand, and she peered at it carefully.
There wasn't a catch, but it was clearly too small to fit over her hand. "I don't know how — "
She saw a flash in her peripheral vision, and by the time she looked up, Amelie was taking the bracelet out of her palm, and cold strong fingers were holding her arm.
"It's made for you," Amelie said. "Hold still. Unlike the bracelets most of the other children wear, yours cannot be removed. The contract you signed gives me this right, do you understand?"
"But — no, I don't want — "
Too late. Amelie moved, and the bracelet seemed to pass through Claire's skin and bone, and settle heavy around her wrist. Claire tried to yank free, but there was no way, not as strong as Amelie was. Amelie smiled and held her still for another second, just to make the point, before she let go. Claire turned the bracelet frantically, pressing, looking for the trick.
It looked seamless, and it wasn't coming off.
"It must be done this way, the old way," Amelie said. "This bracelet will save your life, Claire. Mark me. It is a favor I have given rarely in my life. You should be grateful."
Grateful? Claire felt like a dog on a leash, and she hated it. She glared at Amelie, and the vampire's smile intensified. She couldn't really say it brightened — there was something in it that undermined the whole concept of comfort.
"Perhaps you'll be grateful at a later date," Amelie said, and raised her eyebrows. "Very well. I'll leave you now. No doubt you have studies."
"How am I supposed to hide this from my friends?" Claire blurted, as the vampire walked toward the door.
"You aren't," Amelie said, and opened the door without unlocking it. "Don't forget. You should be well-prepared for Myrnin tomorrow." She stepped out into the hall and closed it behind her. Claire lunged forward and turned the knob, but it refused to open. By the time she twisted the thumb-lock and swung it back, Amelie was gone. The hall was empty. Claire stood there, listening to the clatter of dishes from downstairs, the distant laughter, and wanted to cry.
She scrubbed at her eyes, took a deep breath, and went to her desk to try to study.
###
It was a busy day of classes, quizzes, and discussion groups, and Claire was grateful for the afternoon break when it finally arrived. She felt stupid, dressed in her long-sleeved tee, but it was the only thing she had that could hide the bracelet, and she desperately wanted to hide it. So far, so good. Eve hadn't noticed, Shane hadn't been awake they'd left for school. No sign of Michael, either. She'd gotten desperate last night and tried a couple of ways to break it — scissors, then a pair of rusty old bolt-cutters from the basement — but she broke the blade on the scissors, and the bolt-cutters were clumsy and slid right off the metal. She couldn't do it alone, and she couldn't ask for help.
Can't hide it forever.
Well, she could try.
Claire headed for the U.C. and the coffee bar, and she found Eve harassed, pink-cheeked under the rice powder makeup, all alone behind the counter. "Where's Amy?" Claire asked, and handed over three dollars for a mocha. "I thought she was working all week?"
"Yeah, no kidding, me too. I called my boss, but he's sick and so's Kim, so it's just me today. Not enough coffee in the world to make this easy." Eve blew hair from her sweaty forehead and zipped over to the espresso machine, where she pulled shots. "Ever have one of those dreams where you're running and everybody else is standing still, but you can't catch up?"
"No," Claire said. "Usually mine are about being naked in class."
Eve grinned. "For that, you get a free caramel shot. Go sit down. I don't need you hovering like the rest of these vultures."
Claire claimed a study desk and spread out her books, got her mocha when Eve called her name, and yawned as she cracked open Last Will and Testament again. She'd spent most of the night memorizing the symbols, but they were tricky. She'd gotten all of the Egyptian ones down, but these were a whole lot less straightforward, and she had the sense that Myrnin wouldn't be too forgiving of mistakes.
A shadow fell over her book. She looked up and saw Detective Travis Lowe, and his partner, Joe Hess, standing close behind him. She knew both of them pretty well; they'd helped her during that crazy time when Shane's dad had been skulking around Morganville, trying to kill vampires (and succeeding). They didn't wear bracelets, and they weren't Protected; as she understood it, they'd earned some kind of special status. She wasn't sure how they'd managed that, but it had to be something really brave.
"Morning, Claire," Hess said, and pulled up a chair. Lowe did the same. They weren't all that similar in body types — Hess was tall and kind of wiry, with a long face; Lowe was chubby and balding. But the expressions in their eyes were identical — careful, hidden, wary. "How have you been?"
"Fine," she said, and resisted the nearly overwhelming urge to touch her bracelet, fiddle with it. She looked from one to the other, feeling less secure all the time. "What's going on? Is something wrong?"
"Yeah," Lowe said. "You could say that. Look, Claire, there's — I'm sorry to tell you this, but there was a dead girl out back of your house. She was found this morning by the trash collectors."