Pirates of Manhattan

Chapter 2: Powder and Arms

London. Friday, October 12, 2007.

Rowena did a double-take from her position in a secluded nook. Why was Gemma at a rock club? The demigoddess didn't normally feast on pop musicians, especially when they were vampires.

Rowena retreated into the shadows. She'd had a premonition to visit Cora and Suhani. Once more, her gift steered her correctly. She watched from the recesses of a booth as Gemma approached the two lasses.

Rowena had met them by chance while shopping at a boutique on Carnaby Street. The two didn't seem like the other vampires she was familiar with, sparking her curiosity. They'd been gratifyingly easy to approach. Over a few drinks at a nearby pub, she'd deftly cemented a friendship with them.

Who wouldn't feel for the poor lasses? They'd been turned by a rock musician. Shortly afterward, he was killed by those pompous do-gooders, the Men of Letters. Cora and Suhani were the only surviving members of his nest. Rowena decided on the spot to befriend them. You never knew when having vampires in your back pocket could be useful.

She hadn't realized Gemma was also acquainted with them. Astrena—cursed be her cold-blooded heart—considered herself the queen of vampires and witches—something Rowena vehemently disputed. Astrena was nothing but trouble. And her sisters weren't any better. Sucking the life force out of mortals ... could there be anything creepier? She discovered Astrena's true colors after the goddess destroyed Oscar Wilde, and Gemma wasn't any better although much less powerful.

What with Astrena banished, Rowena had assumed Gemma was semi-retired. Why else would she live in Devon?

Had she hatched a plot to bring back her soul-sucking goddess? Well, not so fast, hussy.

After Gemma exited the rock club, Rowena waited for several minutes before making her approach. By then, Cora and Suhani were bubbling with excitement as if they'd been asked to be companions of the Doctor.

"Rowena, you'll never believe what just happened!" Suhani exclaimed. "We're being sent to America! We're to visit a pure-blood prince!"

"Maybe he'll let us stay!" Cora said excitedly. "We're to be the vanguard of a new world order."

"How fabulous for you! You must tell me all about it," Rowena said, pretending to rejoice with them. She hadn't been to the Colonies since the tragic end of Nikola Tesla. Was it time for a revisit?

The next day in New Orleans.

Sara strolled arm-in-arm with Neal along Bourbon Street in the French Quarter. She could hear snatches of jazz as they passed the numerous clubs lining the street. This was a delayed birthday celebration since she'd been away on a case on the actual day.

Neal had picked a charming boutique hotel on a quiet side street for their weekend getaway. They'd spent the day exploring the antique galleries on Royal Street. During Neal's first visit to New Orleans, he'd been plagued by a cursed doubloon and abducted by vampires. He'd promised her this time would be much more relaxing.

And thanks to Travis, even Peter wouldn't need to worry. Travis had invented a device that could detect vampires. He called it a heartometer but Neal nicknamed it iFang. The principle was simple. Vampires had inhumanly slow heart rates. Anyone possessing the targeted frequency range triggered an alert. Neal had brought it along for beta testing, making a joke out of it. A problem with iFang was that the vampire had to be within twenty feet, and by then it could be too late to do much good.

Not that she was concerned. She'd never confronted a vampire, but she already had her plan in place—run for the hills. In New Orleans, she'd need to modify that to the nearest church since any hills were far away. One potential issue was that she didn't know if vampires could enter a church. Yet another subject to discuss with Dean and Sam the next time she saw them.