henri dunn 01 - immortality cure Read Online Free PDF Page B

gone there since the Cure, before tonight—and was extra careful to keep both of their names to myself. Caz’s preternaturally bright green eyes bored into me like lasers. I’d waited too long to respond, which was enough answer for him.
    “You should be honest with me, Henri,” he said softly, the French accent losing some its potency and becoming a normal, less theatrical accent. “You know I will not blame you for taking the life of someone who wronged you so.”
    “I didn’t kill him,” I said firmly.
    “If you say so,” Cazimir said, smiling faintly. It bothered me enough to protest again, but he held his hand to cut off my ranting. “As I said, none of our kind will blame you for destroying anyone who played a part in what was done to you. I only want to ensure that you’ve destroyed the poison.”
    “Poison?”
    “The Cure. Immortality is precious.” The accent thickened again, along with his dramatic air. “I do not give it to those I think too weak to handle it. And if they prove to be unworthy, they have no right to return to their old lives. That is the risk they take. A Cure is an abomination.”
    “I seem to recall you calling me an abomination.”
    He waved his hand again. “I was scared. You know well enough what fear does to our kind. We are not accustomed to it. But know this, Henri Dunn. I am your friend. And you do not have as many of those among my kind as you might think.”
    His kind. Deliberately stating he didn’t consider me one of them anymore. I shuddered, ice trickling down my spine. “Well, thanks for letting me know I’m not winning Vampire Prom Queen this year.”
    Cazimir let out a sigh.
    “What do you want? Payment for using the incinerator?”
    He smiled at that, with lots of fang. I pressed my tongue to my own dull incisors automatically. “I want you to promise me that if you have not destroyed whatever remains of this Cure yet, you will do so immediately. That is what I want in payment.”
    I could have lied, but he probably would have known I was lying. Besides, if Cazimir or one of his vampire friends wanted to refuse to let me go and kill me now while they had the chance, letting him know the Cure was still in the world wouldn’t hurt my cause.
    “Fine. I’ll destroy it. As soon as I track it down.” Except for one vial, which I’d use to bribe a Weeper into turning me back. The Blood for the Antiblood. Seemed like a good deal to me.
    “Track it down?”
    “I told you, I didn’t kill him. And whoever did stole some of the Cure. So if you happen to know of any vampires sulking around the city lately looking for the serum, now would be a super helpful time to tell me.”
    Cazimir looked like he’d rather swallow rocks than consider the possibility another vampire might want the Cure, but he was much older than I was, and he’d ruled many self-made vampire courts. He knew how often new vampires regretted their choice, and how many more met the sun or jumped onto a pyre to end it. “You know I don’t consort with such unsavory people.”
    I shrugged and stood. “All right, then. If you hear about another vampire turning human, call me. And maybe don’t kill them until I get a chance to ask them some questions, okay? I have a murder to solve.”
    I walked to the door with my fists balled, trying very hard—and failing—to steady my frantic heartbeat. Every part of my human brain wanted to get the hell away from the monster in the room, and no amount of me telling it that showing fear to a vampire was a very bad idea seemed to help.
    But he didn’t fly across the room with his vampire speed to stop me or have his mortal guards block the front door. He let me go. His guards pulled my car around for me like some kind of valet service (apparently they had parked it in their lot to spare me a parking ticket; go figure). I’d have to check the thing for bugs or tracking devices when I got home, but otherwise, I was out. I’d survived Cazimir’s Factory of