The Undead Kama Sutra Read Online Free PDF

investigator.”
    “Was Marissa here on a case?”
    Carmen looked flustered. “She didn’t mention it. She called last week and asked for a reservation to the resort. It was kinda sudden, but not too unusual.”
    “And you know her from where?”
    “We met when I was traveling through Minneapolis.” Carmen smiled at the memory. “She’s a wonderful chalice. It’ll be a shame if anything happened to her.”
    “Why would you suspect that? Maybe she ran into a friend and changed plans.”
    Carmen lost the smile. “She wasn’t the type to not let me know. I wouldn’t describe Marissa as flighty.”
    A missing chalice and an alien threat? Was there a connection? I wanted to share what the Araneum had offered but they had ordered that I keep the information secret.
    A series of black humps appeared on the horizon. Thorne pointed the Bayliner toward the largest one.
    “Houghton Island,” he said.
    As we approached, the island and its crown of trees looked like spiked teeth jutting from the water. The word “paradise” hardly came to mind—it looked like my ass was about to get bitten.

Chapter
6
    T horne slowed the Bayliner as we neared the island. A cluster of lights sparkled within the embrace of a lush bay. As we approached, the cluster became a row of burning torches arranged parallel to the shore, north to south. Farther up the beach, strings of electric bulbs in various colors lit the cabins of a small village. The glow of the torches and electric lights reflected off the beach sand and a small pier.
    Reggae music beat the night air from a simple pavilion on the far side of the cabins. Under the thatched roof of the pavilion, vampires and humans danced together, their orange and red auras mixing like swirls of candy.
    Carmen pulled off her cowboy boots and socks. Since we’d be walking on sand, I went barefoot as well.
    Thorne docked the Bayliner against the pier. Carmenwent below into the cabin and brought out the botánica package, which she handed to Thorne with instructions for him to bring it along. She and Jolie leaped from the boat and lashed the bowline to a wharf piling. I hopped onto the pier and started after them up the beach.
    A tall black man, stout as a tree trunk, wearing a tank top and baggy shorts, came from the cabins to meet us. His orange aura announced he was a vampire. And one that liked to eat, judging from his belly. A crop of nappy hair ringed his bald scalp, and a goatee and mustache circled his mouth. The reflection of the beach torches danced on his shiny forehead. He smelled like he’d been grilling fish.
    Carmen introduced me as a longtime friend from Colorado.
    The vampire’s name was Antoine, her business partner. Antoine gave a broad and welcoming smile. He hooked one arm around my shoulders and squeezed hard enough to make me gasp, “Pleasure’s mine.”
    Most black vampires looked anemic. Not Antoine. His complexion was as dark and shiny as waxed ebony. Evidently, he shared Carmen’s skin treatment.
    Antoine let go and we continued up the beach. Jolie jumped onto Antoine’s back and sat on his shoulders like she was riding in a rodeo.
    Carmen strode alongside Antoine. “Any word on the missing chalice?”
    Antoine sighed. “Nothing new on Key West. Any word from Miami?”
    “No.” Tendrils of anxiety snaked along the periphery of Carmen’s aura. She closed her eyes and brushed a hand through her hair.
    Jolie reached from her perch on Antoine’s shoulders and tapped her foot against Carmen’s back. “Chill. You’ve done all you can for now.” Jolie unsnapped her bikini top and twirled it like a pennant. “Time to party.”
    Her pointy breasts dared me to leap up and nuzzle them. But from what I’d seen of Jolie, she was as apt to kick my balls as to fondle them. So I stayed on the ground and kept my mouth shut.
    The four of us passed through the village. None of the lightbulbs matched. The cords had lumps of electrical tape where frays had been mended. The