JК
Burnt Offerings :: Гамильтон Лорел
Страница: 44 из 286He was rebuilding himself into Jean-Claude, Master of the City. It was a shock to realize that there had been a change. It had been so gradual that I hadn't realized that with me, on our dates, he was different. I don't know if he was more himself or more what he thought I wanted him to be, but he was more "relaxed," less guarded. Watching him put on his public face while I sat across from him was almost depressing.
"Yvette loves the dead."
I frowned at him. "But she's a vampire. That's redundant."
He stared at me, and it wasn't a friendly look. "I will not sit here and debate with you, ma petite . You share my bed. If I were a zombie, you would not touch me."
"That's true." It took me a handful of seconds to understand what he'd just said. "Are you telling me that Yvette likes to have sex with zombies, real rotting corpses?"
"Among other things, yes."
I couldn't keep the disgust off my face. "Good Lord, that's. ." Words failed me. Then I found a word. "She's a necrophiliac."
"She will use a dead body if nothing else is available, but her true joy is the rotted animated corpse. She would find your talent most appealing, ma petite . You could raise her an unending stream of partners."
"I wouldn't raise the dead for her amusement."
"Not initially," he said.
"No, not under any circumstances."
"The council has a way of finding circumstances that can force you to do almost anything."
I watched his face and wished I could read it. But I understood. He was hiding from them, already. "How deep is the hole we're in?"
"Deep enough to bury us all, if the council chooses."
"Maybe I shouldn't have put the gun up," I said.
"Perhaps not," he said.
The check came. We paid. We left. I made a stop at the ladies' room on the way out and retrieved the gun. Jean-Claude took my car keys, so I wouldn't have to handle anything but the gun. It was a short walk from bathroom to door. Black gun against a black dress. Either no one noticed, or no one wanted to get involved. What else was new?
9
The parking lot was a dark expanse of shining blackness with pools of light spotlighting gleaming cars. Jaguars, Volvos, and Mercedes were the dominant species in the lot. I caught a glimpse of my Jeep at the far end of a line. I lost sight of it as we walked between the cars. Jean-Claude held my car keys cupped in his hand so they didn't rattle as he moved. We weren't holding hands, or anything else now. I had the Firestar in a two-handed grip, pointed at the ground, but ready.
"Yvette loves the dead."
I frowned at him. "But she's a vampire. That's redundant."
He stared at me, and it wasn't a friendly look. "I will not sit here and debate with you, ma petite . You share my bed. If I were a zombie, you would not touch me."
"That's true." It took me a handful of seconds to understand what he'd just said. "Are you telling me that Yvette likes to have sex with zombies, real rotting corpses?"
"Among other things, yes."
I couldn't keep the disgust off my face. "Good Lord, that's. ." Words failed me. Then I found a word. "She's a necrophiliac."
"She will use a dead body if nothing else is available, but her true joy is the rotted animated corpse. She would find your talent most appealing, ma petite . You could raise her an unending stream of partners."
"I wouldn't raise the dead for her amusement."
"Not initially," he said.
"No, not under any circumstances."
"The council has a way of finding circumstances that can force you to do almost anything."
I watched his face and wished I could read it. But I understood. He was hiding from them, already. "How deep is the hole we're in?"
"Deep enough to bury us all, if the council chooses."
"Maybe I shouldn't have put the gun up," I said.
"Perhaps not," he said.
The check came. We paid. We left. I made a stop at the ladies' room on the way out and retrieved the gun. Jean-Claude took my car keys, so I wouldn't have to handle anything but the gun. It was a short walk from bathroom to door. Black gun against a black dress. Either no one noticed, or no one wanted to get involved. What else was new?
9
The parking lot was a dark expanse of shining blackness with pools of light spotlighting gleaming cars. Jaguars, Volvos, and Mercedes were the dominant species in the lot. I caught a glimpse of my Jeep at the far end of a line. I lost sight of it as we walked between the cars. Jean-Claude held my car keys cupped in his hand so they didn't rattle as he moved. We weren't holding hands, or anything else now. I had the Firestar in a two-handed grip, pointed at the ground, but ready.