Dating for Demons (Book 3: Half-blood vampire series)

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

PIPER

I’d promised Carl I would see him before he took off so I headed in that direction when I left Psi Phi House. But I was in a mood. I spent my free time going to self-defense class and re- searching Undead issues all because my best friend was a self-centered cheerleader turned vampire and the only thing that changed about her during the attack was her breathing status. She was so full of herself sometimes, it drove me nuts. I tried to shake off the mood when I got to Carl’s apartment.

“I have something for you,” he said to me after I arrived. I raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Like I haven’t heard that one before.”

I swear, he almost blushed. It was fun teasing Carl. He was Thomas’s best friend and a dedicated Vampire Investigator. He could be so serious at times, but he also had a very dry sense of humor. He was a mixed bag.

“Ha, very funny. What I have for you is a window of opportunity. And get your mind out of the gutter, it’s not that kind of opportunity. You Breathers are all alike. Just one thing on your minds.”

“You big tease.” I pouted. “And don’t call me a Breather. You know how I hate that,” I added, only slightly serious. Yeah, I hated the term “Breather” since it was considered an insult by the vampire community, but Carl always used it as more of an endearment.

He ignored me and continued, “I have for you a gift of such magnitude, you will be forever in my debt.” He rubbed his hands together like a villain in the old movies.

“You’re loaning me your apartment while you’re in New York?” I perked up at the idea of using his bachelor pad as my own while he was doing a transfer assignment on the East Coast.

 “I said I had a gift, not that I was delusional,” he replied dryly, effectively dampening my enthusiasm.

I plopped down on the bar stool. “Oh, fine. What is it, then?”

He walked around the bar and pulled a manila envelope out of the drawer. He slid it across the counter toward me.

“Giving me my walking papers? Did you have them notarized?”

“Just open it, smart-ass.”

I tore the envelope open with my short thumbnail, quickly checking the black polish for chips before dumping the envelope’s contents onto the counter.

A key, a swipe card and a folded piece of paper.

“Gee, however will I be able to repay you?” I said woodenly, not understanding his gift.

He picked up the key. “This opens the basement door to the vampire archives.” He showed me the slide card. “This opens the front door after hours and this”—he waved the paper in my direction—“is the Tribunal Security schedule for a special delivery.”

I looked at him blankly.

He sighed in exasperation. “If you look at the schedule, you will notice that the library will be unoccupied for two hours. No one, living or otherwise, will be in the library during that time. There is a new display I think you will find very interesting.” He looked at me meaningfully.

“Oh!” I sat up straighter, finally catching his meaning. Carl was giving me access to the ancient scripts in the library without Colby or any other vampire knowing about it.

I grabbed the paper from him and looked over the schedule carefully. “Won’t you get in trouble for this?”

“Only if you’re caught. You can manage to do this without getting caught, can’t you?” He made a threatening gesture to grab the paper out of my hand.