“Brooks!” the female called as she rose to greet us. “You brought friends.”
“Hey, girl!” Brooks said, going in for a hug. When they were done, he turned and held out a hand.
“This is Sabina Kane and Adam Lazarus. They’re staying at Zen’s.”
Mac approached with a warm smile and an extended hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m MacKenzie Romulus. You can call me Mac.”
She moved to Adam just as her last name sunk in. “Wait, did you say Romulus?”
When she nodded, I continued. “You wouldn’t be related to Michael Romulus, would you?”
Her eyes brightened. “He’s my uncle.”
My mouth fell open. Hard to imagine the straitlaced Alpha of New York weres was related to a female who owned a dive bar in New Orleans. “What a coincidence,” I said. “I just saw him a few days ago.”
“I’ve been meaning to call him since I heard about the trouble in New York. Please tell me he wasn’t in the middle of all that.”
I cringed. “Actually, he was. He and his pack helped the Hekate Council when they were attacked by the Dominae.”
Her eyebrows knitted into a frown. “Is he okay?”
I nodded. “Your uncle’s hard to kill.” I didn’t mention the fact I’d tried it myself and failed. Luckily, Michael and I had moved past that conflict in time to team up against the Caste’s attack. “Didn’t get so much as a scratch. In fact, I probably owe him a dozen favors for saving my ass. He’s good people.”
She smiled and motioned to some seats in front of the desk. “Well, any friend of Uncle Mike’s is a friend of mine. Have a seat.”
“Actually, if y’all will excuse me?” Brooks cut in. “I need to get ready for my set.”
“Oh, that’s right,” Mac said. “Scoot.”
Brooks turned to go and then stopped. “Will you two stick around to see the show?”
I blinked. “You’re performing?”
Brooks smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”
I glanced at Adam to make sure he was cool with hanging out. He shrugged and nodded. “We wouldn’t miss it.”
When Brooks was gone, we all took seats around Mac’s desk. “So, Brooks said you needed some information about a missing mage?”
I nodded. “My sister. She was kidnapped by a vampire during the attack in New York.”
Mac paused in the middle of distributing beers around the room. “What makes you think she’s here?”
I hesitated. Mac might be Michael’s niece, but as far as I was concerned, no one could be trusted. So I skipped the part about kidnapping Tanith. “Let’s just say we’re going on a credible tip.”
Mac took a pull from her beer and sat back in her chair. “And how exactly do you think I can help?”
Mac’s directness made me like her even more. “Brooks said you had connections with the vamps here. Do you mind if I ask what exactly your connection is to them?”
She took her time answering. Pulling open a desk drawer, she withdrew a pack of American Spirits. After offering the pack to us and shrugging at our refusals, she used a pack of matches with the club’s name on them to light her cigarette. I tamped down my impatience. From what I’d seen of Mac so far, she was shrewd. She knew as much about us as we knew about her, which is to say not much. Only a fool would show all his cards now.
She blew out a chain of smoke rings before answering. “Let’s just say it’s in my best interest to have allies among all the dark races.”
“I’d imagine so, being so far away from your pack and all.” I was digging. For all I knew, she could have been the Alpha of a New Orleans pack. But something about the way she carried herself told me she was too much a rebel to follow any pack.
She took another drag. “Among other things.”
“We were hoping you might be able to tell us if there’s been chatter lately among the local vamps.”
She pursed her lips. “What kind of chatter?”
Adam leaned in. “Anything out of the ordinary. New vamps in town, changes in power structure. That kind of thing.”
“Now that you mention it,” Mac said. “I’ve been getting a feeling something’s coming. Can’t put my finger on it, but the vamps I know, well, lately some of them have been tense.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
She shrugged. “You have to understand, the vamps here are pretty disorganized and usually keep to small cliques. There’s turf spats every now and then, but with all the tourists there’s plenty to go around for everyone. But over the last few days the vamps I know have been acting kind of on edge, like they’re bracing themselves.”
“Any idea why?” I asked.
“Not a clue. Although I did hear one of them talking about some weird owl.”
Adam and I stilled and looked at each other. “Red eyes?” I asked.
Mac tilted her head. “Yeah. You know anything about that?”
“I might,” I evaded.
“Anyway, I guess this owl’s been hanging out around some of the vamps’ regular feeding grounds.”
“No one’s mentioned a new vamp in town?” Adam asked.
She shook her head. “If you tell who or what exactly you’re looking for, I could ask around.”
“Here’s the deal. I can’t tell you specifics. The less you’re directly involved, the safer you’ll be. Suffice it to say, though, the vamp we’re after is extremely dangerous.”
“Gotcha,” Mac said, her eyes meeting mine. Her expression indicated she respected the need to keep some cards close to my vest, too. “I’ll ask around. See if any of my contacts have anything to say.”
“We’d appreciate that.” I resisted my sudden urge to pump my fist in the air.
“Of course, in return for this favor, I’d ask one in return. To be called in at a future date.”
I looked at Adam. He nodded. “That sounds reasonable.”
Mac clapped her hands. “Well, now that that’s taken care of, why don’t we go grab some seats outside? The show’s starting in a few.”
* * *
Brooks wasn’t lying when he said the place would get crowded. I just hadn’t expected a bar owned by a werewolf to cater to mostly mortal clientele. The place reeked of dirt and Dixie beer. Not that I minded the beer. In fact, as we waited for the show to begin I helped myself to a few chugs.
Adam and I sat with Mac toward the back of the audience.
“So what kind of show is Brooks going to do exactly? Does he sing or something?”
Mac smiled. “He didn’t tell you?” When I shook my head, she laughed. “Let’s just say it falls into the ‘or something’ category.”
As if on cue, the lights dimmed and spotlights danced across the red curtain. Catcalls and hoots followed. I shrugged and took another sip of beer, feeling more relaxed. Adam and I still needed to discuss what to do next while we were waiting for Mac to come through with more info. But for the time being, I was content to sit back for a couple minutes and watch the show.
“Ladies and gents, welcome to Gender Bender night at Lagniappe’s,” the announcer called over the speaker. “Tonight we have a special treat for y’all. Everyone give a warm welcome to the Big Easy’s newest drag sensation— Miss Pussy Willow!”
As the audience went wild, Adam turned to me and mouthed, “Pussy Willow?”
I shrugged, mystified, and turned my attention back to the stage. The curtains parted and a vision appeared onstage with a flourish of pink feather boa and attitude. She wore a full-length purple sequined gown and six-inch stilettos. The cut-to-there slit revealed legs that would make a Rockette jealous. And to top it all off, a tiara twinkled from atop a Farrah Fawcett wig.
The female looked around the audience, searching for someone. When she saw Adam and me, she waggled her fingers and winked.
My mouth fell open and I hit Adam on the arm. “Oh, my gods, is that Brooks?”
He rubbed his arm and said, “No way.”
“Helloo, darlings!” Pussy Willow called. “Where y’at?”
While the audience ate up the banter, Mac leaned over. “Isn’t she great?”
Now that the initial shock had passed, I had to admit Brooks was looking pretty fierce. I nodded absently, my eyes riveted on Brooks/Pussy Willow vamping across the stage.
Mac leaned over and spoke into my ear. “Excuse me for a minute.”
I nodded absently, unable to pull my eyes from Brooks chatting up the audience. I felt a nudge at my elbow and looked up to see Adam staring pointedly at the front of the club. I followed his gaze and saw a redhead standing by the door. Her eyes scanned the dark place, obviously looking for someone. When she saw Mac, her expression brightened. Unlike Brooks, the new arrival wasn’t tucking anything but a pair of fangs.
While we watched, the vamp leaned in for a kiss, but Mac waylaid her with a shake of her head and a glance in our direction. The vamp frowned. Her eyes found mine and narrowed. I looked away instead of engaging in a stare off. The last thing I needed was to be recognized or seen as a threat to the local vamps.
Adam kept his eyes on the pair for me. “Mac’s taking her back to the office.”
Mac rushed the vampiress through the club, like she was worried about them being seen together. She closed the office door behind them.
Interesting.
“Think that’s her contact?” I said.
“I’d say it’s a safe—” Before he completed that thought, music blared through the club. The opening strains sounded familiar. But it wasn’t until Brooks lip-synched the opening lines to “I Touch Myself” that I spewed beer all over the floor.
I’d barely recovered when Brooks threaded the boa between her legs and gave her lower decks a good swabbing. She wadded the pink feathers into a ball and threw them. The boa hit Adam square in the chest before sliding into his lap. He stared down at the feathers the same way he might have if someone had thrown an actual boa constrictor at him.