At nine-thirty, two Hummer limousines arrived at the agency with ten men. Austin figured they were the undead competition, but found it odd that the small chemist gave them anklets, too. The fifteen men climbed into the limousines for the short ride to Raleigh Place. Austin noted the vampires didn't react like they normally did around humans. No sniffing, no hungry glances.
Conversation was sparse on the short trip. No one wanted to reveal a weakness to another competitor. When they stopped in front of Raleigh Place, the vampire named Maggie greeted them and escorted them up to the penthouse. The huge foyer was empty. Maggie arranged the men in three rows on the staircase, the top row standing on the landing. She told them to wait, then headed down a hallway. The men exchanged nervous glances, though none of them spoke or acknowledged they were nervous.
Soon, a cameraman came rushing down the hallway. He ran up the stairs and shot close-ups of each man. Austin couldn't see Darcy anywhere. Then, he heard footsteps and feminine voices. The women were coming. Another cameraman was ahead of them, walking backwards. The male vampire, Gregori, was leading a group of five women. The judges, most likely. One of the ladies was the purple-haired Vanda, but the other four females were unknown. And strangely dressed.
They had to be really old.
Austin leaned forward to see further down the hallway. Yes, there she was. Way behind the others.
Darcy was coming with the vampire Maggie. He leaned forward some more and nearly lost his balance. Thank God he was standing next to the railing, or he would have tumbled down the stairs.
Damn, she looked good. She looked more than good.
When she entered the foyer, her gaze wandered over all the contestants, then rested on him. He nodded his head slightly and smiled. She looked away. Austin kept his gaze on her, hoping she would glance his way again. But the longer he watched her, the more he realized she was looking everywhere but at him.
"Gentlemen, welcome to The Sexiest Man on Earth."
Austin switched his gaze to the speaker.
"My name is Gregori, and I'll be your host." He motioned toward a female vampire. "Maggie will be your hostess."
Austin glanced back at Darcy, wondering what kind of relationship she had with this Gregori. Was he hosting the show as a favor to her?
"The five judges for this contest are standing before you," Gregori continued. "May I introduce Princess Joanna, Maria Consuela, Lady Pamela, Cora Lee, and Vanda."
Vanda waved. The other ladies curtsied. Austin glanced back at Darcy, wondering how Jong she was going to ignore him.
"Fifteen of you have arrived," Gregori announced, "but only ten of you will remain. Our lady judges have already voted five of you off the show. But first, a word from our sponsor."
There was a silent pause. The male competitors exchanged glances. Austin figured this was a commercial break for Vampire Fusion Cuisine.
"Welcome back." Gregori smiled at a nearby camera. "It's time to learn which five men will be going home tonight. They are," he paused for dramatic effect, "Tadayoshi, Derek, Harsha,
Ferdinand, and Seth. Gentlemen, you must take your leave. The limousines are waiting for you. As for the rest of you—your luggage will arrive shortly. Maggie and I will see you to your rooms.
Congratulations and welcome."
As Austin shook hands with Seth, he felt relief that there would be one less human in the penthouse to protect. He glanced down at the foyer and saw that the five vampire judges had left. So had Darcy and the cameramen. Shoot, that was it? Apparently, they were done for the night.
The limo drivers brought all the luggage into the foyer, and the men descended the stairs to collect their bags. The five losers for the night left with the limo drivers.
Maggie escorted Austin and five other contestants to the east wing of the penthouse. She pointed out the kitchen, fitness room, and sauna. "There are three bedrooms on this side. You'll need to share rooms." She looked at a clipboard she was carrying. "I have Reginald and Pierre in one room, Garth and George together, and Nicholas and Adam together."
Austin exchanged a relieved look with Garrett. Thank God they didn't have to share rooms with a vampire.
"Where is the director's office?" Austin asked.
"Darcy's in the pool house." Maggie gave him a curious look. "Why? Is there a problem?"
"No, not at all." He silently cursed as he lugged his bag up the back stairs to the second floor. The pool house? Who the hell used a pool house for an office? He'd put a camera in the penthouse library, expecting that to be her office. He hadn't put any cameras in the damned pool house.
Maggie showed Reginald and Pierre to their room first. Then, she led the four humans to their rooms. Austin's bedroom was next door to Garrett's.
"The kitchen is fully stocked with drinks and snacks," Maggie explained. "A caterer will bring you hot meals each day. For security reasons, please do not go into any other bedrooms. You may leave the building as long as you're back in time for the show each evening. Since we will be recording at night, we are encouraging all contestants to sleep during the day."
Austin suppressed a laugh. Right, some of the contestants were dead during the day.
"We'll begin recording tomorrow night at eight P.M. in the library. Good night." With a final smile, Maggie left.
The men rolled their luggage into their bedrooms. Austin hefted his suitcase onto his bed and removed his laptop. He glanced at Nicholas. "I hope you don't mind if I use the desk."
"No, not at all." Nicholas dropped his bag on his bed. "I'm starving. Want to check out the kitchen?"
"Sorry, I've got some work to do. But don't let me stop you." Austin set his laptop on the desk.
"See ya later." Nicholas headed out the door.
Whew. Alone at last. Austin punched in the code for the hidden cameras he'd installed. He spotted a group of men on the west end of the penthouse. Gregori was showing contestants to their rooms.
They were probably all vampires. Gregori made his leave and headed for the main staircase. Where was he going? To see Darcy?
Austin felt a nasty twinge that he recognized as jealousy. And it didn't help that Darcy had set up her headquarters in the damned pool house where he didn't have a camera. Was she going to sleep there, too?
He switched his view to the camera in the foyer. Gregori had reached the bottom of the stairs and was headed for the portrait room. Austin switched to the portrait room. Shoot. Darcy was there.
That creepy Gregori was meeting her alone.
Darcy was removing a portrait from the wall, probably one of the rejects for the night. She carried the portrait to the far corner of the room and set it on the floor, propped against the wall. She straightened suddenly, pivoting toward the door.
"Gregori!" She ran across the room. She gave him a hug and a peck on the cheek. "You were great!"
He was scum. Austin watched to see where the vampire placed his hands on Darcy. A brief touch on her shoulders. Austin decided to leave his wooden stakes in the suitcase for now.
"Thanks. It was fun." Gregori glanced at the portraits on the wall. "So you're removing the losers?"
"Yes." Darcy plucked a second portrait off the wall. "Can you get Derek's?"
"Sure." Gregori removed the painting and followed Darcy to the corner where she was stashing them. "I thought it was really embarrassing how racist the ladies are."
"It's awful! I'll have to do some very careful editing."
"Yeah. They're really stuck in the past." Gregori set down his painting. "But I think you handled them really well."