"So?" A heavy stone settled in Austin's gut.
Garrett lowered his voice to a hushed whisper. "The ladies were not reflected. None of them were."
A chill skittered down Austin's back. Holy shit. "It… it's not positive proof. It could be a matter of the lighting, and where you were standing, and a bunch of other factors."
Garrett shrugged. "Maybe so, but I'm betting all three of them are… up the creek without a coffin."
Austin's stomach twinged. The coffee left a bitter taste in his mouth, and he set the cup down on a nearby table. It couldn't be true. "No, wait. Sean said a lady called this agency in the afternoon.
During daylight. That had to be Darcy." She had to be alive.
"May I have your attention, please?" Ms. Stein's voice rang out, and the room grew silent. "Five men have been selected for The Sexiest Man on Earth reality show. If you've been chosen, please remain here so I can give you your contracts."
While she paused, the atmosphere in the room sizzled with tension. Men loosened their ties. Fists clenched with anticipation. Fabio climbed up on a chair so he could see.
"Garth Manly," Ms. Stein announced with a satisfied smile aimed at Garrett. Her smile faded as she hurried down the rest of the list. "Adam Cartwright, Nicholas Poulos, George Martinez, and Seth Howard. Congratulations."
While the room buzzed with shouts of excitement and groans of defeat, Austin leaned toward
Garrett and whispered, "Call Sean. Tell him we're in."
Garrett nodded and pulled out his cell phone. Fabio hopped down from his chair with an angry grunt and waddled out the door. More disappointed men trudged out while the other three who were selected gathered around Ms. Stein. She gave them their paperwork, then strode toward Austin and Garrett.
Garrett completed his call to Sean and pocketed his phone.
"I suppose congratulations are in order." Ms. Stein regarded them sadly. "Here are your contracts."
"Thank you." Austin took his and glanced over it. "Ms. Stein, did you notice anything unusual about tonight?"
She made a sour face. "The whole evening was ridiculous. My character actors are very talented, but not at all suited for a contest called The Sexiest Man on Earth."
"What can you tell me about Miss Darcy?" Austin asked. "Is that her last name?"
"I really don't know." Ms. Stein stepped closer. "Is this DVN a legitimate network? I've never heard of them."
"They're legit. Been in business for over five years."
"Hmm." Ms. Stein frowned as she handed Garrett a contract. "They seemed a little odd to me."
"Yeah," Garrett agreed. "That purple hair was a bit much."
She waved a hand in dismissal. "I work with creative people all the time. I'm used to that. No, it was the way they kept…"
"What?" Austin pressed.
"Well." Ms Stein looked around, then lowered her voice. "At first, there were just two of them. But then, there were three. And when I peeked in just a moment ago, there were only two again. I never saw that purple-headed one come or go, did you?"
Austin exchanged a glance with Garrett. Obviously, the purple-haired Vanda Barkowski was teleporting, which meant she was definitely a vampire. "Don't worry about it, Ms. Stein. I'm sure there's a simple explanation."
She huffed. "I'm not stupid, Mr… Cartwright."
Garrett touched her shoulder. "Try not to let this upset you, ma'am. We have everything under control."
She smiled at Garrett. "Thank God our nation's security is in capable hands like yours."
But not mine? "I'll be going now." Austin nodded at Ms. Stein and Garrett. "Good night."
While Austin waited for an elevator, he punched in the number for information on his cell phone.
"Digital Video Network in Brooklyn." He removed a notepad from his jacket pocket and jotted down the number. "Thank you."
He waited 'til he was out of the building and walking down the busy sidewalk before he made the next call.
"This is DVN," a receptionist answered with a nasal voice. "If you're not digital, you can't be seen."
Well, that made sense… if you were undead. "That's a catchy phrase."
"It's lame, but I have to say it whenever I answer the phone. So, what do you want?"
"My name is… Damien, and I have a message here to call, let me see… shit, I can't make out this handwriting. Darcy something. She's the new director of that reality show."
"Oh, you mean Darcy Newhart?"
Bingo. "Yeah, that's it. Is she in?"
"Not at the moment." The receptionist paused. "She'll be here tomorrow night for sure. Are you going to audition?"
"Yeah, I thought I would."
"Well, open call is tomorrow night and Friday night, starting at ten o'clock. You'd better get here early. We're expecting a huge turnout."
"I'll do that. Thanks." Austin pocketed his phone. Darcy Newhart. He was making progress. He climbed into his car and drove to the office. Emma was there, going over police reports while DVN played on her computer screen.
He went straight to his desk and did a search on Darcy Newhart. A list of newspaper reports came up. He stared at the headlines, stunned. "Local Reporter Missing,"
"Where's Darcy?"
"Reporter feared Murdered."
Austin's fingers felt numb as he clicked on the first report. Date: October 31, 2001. Four years ago on Halloween. He'd been stationed in Prague during that time. Place: Fangs of Fortune Vampire
Club in Greenwich Village. A joint where kids pretended they were vampires. Some of the kids remembered seeing Darcy and her cameraman leave through the back exit. Darcy was never seen again.
This was bad. Austin clicked on the next report. Three days later, and Darcy was still missing. The cameraman had shown up, hiding at Battery Park and suffering from exposure. He'd been admitted to Shady Harbor Mental Hospital, babbling that Darcy had been abducted by vampires.
This was really bad. Austin's grip on the mouse tightened as he clicked on the last report. A picture of Darcy appeared on the screen. She looked the same as she did now, but then, as young as she was, four years might not make much of a difference. Two weeks had passed since she'd disappeared. Her body had never been found, but a bloody knife had been discovered outside the club, along with a pool of her blood. Authorities had decided she was most likely dead.
Dead? But that would mean she was now a vampire.
CHAPTER 5
Austin completed his research on Darcy Newhart.
She was born in San Diego, the oldest of three daughters. At the time of her disappearance, she was twenty-eight years old. Had she continued to age, or was she stuck at twenty-eight for all eternity?
He switched his investigation to her two companions. The name Vanda Barkowski came up with zilch, but he located a birth certificate for a Margaret Mary O'Brian in 1865. Her parents had emigrated from Ireland during the potato famine. Maggie was the eighth child of twelve, though only seven of them had lived past the age of ten. Poor girl had had a tough life. Hopefully, it was better for her now.
Holy zombies, what was he thinking? She was a vampire. Synthetic blood had only been around for eighteen years. She'd existed for a long time by attacking humans. He shouldn't be feeling any compassion for these monsters.
Sunshine shot through the window blinds, creating streaks of light across his desk. He wandered to the window to look out. The sidewalks were bustling with early morning commuters; the streets filled with delivery trucks and vans. And Darcy—was she watching the sunrise or was she hidden away, dead to the world?
He gathered up his notes and photos, then drove to the television station in Queens where Darcy had worked. After flashing his badge, he listened to the manager talk for an hour about Darcy.