“Oh, um. Looking for an earring.”
“Whatever.” She waved the bottle of blue liquid. “I’ve come down with a cold. This is why I hate hosting the viewings. Every granny in the house wants to blubber all over my shoulder or make me shake their snotty hands. God.” She shivered and took a swig of the cold medicine. “Kristof’s second viewing is today. I have no idea why they wanted two when barely anyone showed up yesterday, but as long as they’re paying, I’m not questioning it.” She paused to deliver a wince-inducing scream sneeze. “Can you handle the second viewing, as well as your shift tonight? It’s four to six.”
“Yes, I can do that.”
Anything to get Larissa out of the room. Not to mention, if there was a lack of guests at the wake, she would like the chance to show some support to the grieving family. It’s what her father would have done.
“Great.” Larissa smiled and tilted her head, but with her red nose and puffy eyes, she kind of resembled the clown from every child’s nightmare. “Have you thought any more about selling?”
“Not yet, sorry. I’ve been a little distracted lately.”
The smile turned tight. “There’s a big world out there, you know. Much bigger than Coney Island, Ginny. You need to get out there and see it.”
Ginny didn’t know how to respond to that. Coney Island seemed a lot bigger and crazier than it ever had before.
“Well,” Larissa said haltingly into the silence. “I’m off to bed.”
“Feel better, Larissa.”
Her stepmother turned to leave, but stuck her head back in at the last second. “Oh and…” She chewed her lip, seeming conflicted. “Happy birthday.”
The door snicked shut.
Ginny sighed and sat up, watching as Roksana rolled back out from beneath the bed. “I could kill her?” Roksana suggested. “She’s already rotting on the inside. I’d be doing her a favor.”
“Do not kill my stepmother.”
“Great. Now I have to figure out a different birthday present.”
A laugh bubbled up in Ginny’s throat, her gaze straying to the clock. “How did I sleep so late?” She jumped to her feet and lunged for the closet. “I have to get dressed and prepare the visitation room. Put out the flowers and prayer cards…”
“Since you asked nicely, I will help you.”
Ginny raised an eyebrow at the slayer. “You just want to see a body.”
“It’s not fair,” Roksana whined. “When you kill a vampire, there is nothing but dust left over. Very anticlimactic.”
Ginny selected the one black dress in her closet, which she’d bought at Macy’s, then brought home and added a wide, satin belt and a flower on the right side of the collar. “Speaking of vampires, Elias went looking for you.”
“I don’t care,” Roksana snapped, tightening her blonde ponytail. “When? What did he say exactly?”
Sensing she’d stumbled upon an opportunity, Ginny tapped her chin. “I’m not sure I can recall exactly…”
“What is this?” The other woman narrowed her eyes. “Are you keeping information from me to be cagey?”
Ginny stripped off her dress from the night before and pulled on the black one, all too aware that she needed a shower as soon as the wake ended. “I’ll tell you what Elias did and said—” With some modifications. Probably best not to repeat the term reckless brat. “If you explain why you’re really here.”
Roksana inclined her head, visibly impressed. “This technique of yours might have worked if I cared about the bloodsucker looking for me.” She untucked a rectangular, gold object from her pocket and fanned her face with it. “He probably just wanted his credit card back. My new boots exceeded his spending limit.”
Ginny finished tying the bow on the back of her dress and swallowed hard, giving the slayer a meaningful look. “Please, I need to know Jonas is all right. We…there was a mishap last night and I’m worried about him.” Her fingers tremored, longing for the feel of his cool skin. “I’m worried about him never coming back.”
The slayer looked down at the ground, but not before Ginny caught her troubled expression. “Ginny, my calling is to protect humans. And I do not accomplish this by giving you what you want. Not this time.”
“He said mate. I think he called me his mate. What does that mean?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t help you there.” Roksana skirted around the bed and perched herself on the windowsill, throwing her legs over the side and dancing gracefully onto the fire escape. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”
She stood and stared at the fading silhouette her friend left behind, the foreboding in her stomach burning hotter. Something was wrong. What took place in her bedroom last night had been significant and she needed to find out what it was. But how? She’d been blindfolded during the trip to Jonas’s apartment. There was a chance she could retrace the turns and figure out how to get there, but intuition told her she’d have to shake Roksana in order to do it.