Birth of a Killer (21 page)

“Aye,” Larten chuckled. “I know a few tricks too.” Still shuffling one-handed, he let an ace slip from the pack onto the table without pausing, then another, the third, and the fourth. He stopped and passed the pack to the man next to him. “But you have my word that I will not resort to trickery tonight. I will play fairly, and if I win, I will buy the most expensive drinks for everybody in the house.”

The men cheered, and a few of the ladies who were nearby came to sit close to Larten and admire his card skills. When he won his first hand, he passed a stack of coins to a beautifully dressed lady and told her to buy champagne for all of them.

“Now, there’s a man with style!” Tanish exclaimed, slapping Larten’s knee, delighted by this unexpected change in the previously solemn vampire. “You were slow to begin with, but I think you’re getting the hang of fine living now, aren’t you, my quick-handed friend?”

“Aye,” Larten smiled, settling down for a long night of wine, women, gambling, and whatever else came his way. “I think I might be cut out for this.”

Across the room, in a particularly dark corner, a small man heard the boast and lifted his head. He was smartly dressed in an unusual yellow suit, and he had white hair, rosy cheeks, and an amusingly styled pair of spectacles. From a distance he might have looked like a kindly grandfather, but up close nobody would have made such a mistake. There was something deeply unsettling about him, and although the tavern was busy, nobody drifted close to the short man’s table.

“Cut out for fine living?” the man in the yellow suit purred. He cocked his head and his eyes went
distant, as if he was looking at something a long way off. “Yes,” he whispered. “And cut out for more too, if I’m any judge. I have been spying on Tanish Eul for some time now, but I think I will be keeping my eye on you instead from this point on, Master Crepsley. Is it coincidence that our paths crossed tonight?” He grinned twistedly and stroked a heart-shaped watch that hung from his breast pocket. “Or is it
destiny
?”

To be continued…

A Living Nightmare BOOK 1

The Vampire’s Assistant BOOK 2

Tunnels of Blood BOOK 3

Vampire Mountain BOOK 4

Trials of Death BOOK 5

The Vampire Prince BOOK 6

Hunters of the Dusk BOOK 7

Allies of the Night BOOK 8

Killers of the Dawn BOOK 9

The Lake of Souls BOOK 10

Lord of the Shadows BOOK 11

Sons of Destiny BOOK 12

Lord Loss BOOK 1

Demon Thief BOOK 2

Slawter BOOK 3

Bec BOOK 4

Blood Beast BOOK 5

Demon Apocalypse BOOK 6

Death’s Shadow BOOK 7

Wolf Island BOOK 8

Dark Calling BOOK 9

Hell’s Heroes BOOK 10