Insatiable Read online

  Meena rolled her eyes. Okay. It was true some girls had turned up dead lately in a few city parks.

  But drained of their blood? Shoshona was taking vampire fever-which, yes, gripped the country, there was no denying that; it was obvious enough that even Consumer Dynamics Inc. was aware of it, and they were so oblivious to trends that they still thought having a MySpace page was cutting-edge-too far.

  “So let’s give the show a pulled-from-the-headlines feel,” Shoshona went on, “and have a vampire feed on the girls in Insatiable. Tabby’s friends. And let him brainwash Tabby, and let Tabby be his vampire bride.”

  Sy pointed at Shoshona. “Vampire bride,” he yelled. “I love it. Even better, CDI loves it!”

  Meena contemplated getting up, walking over to Sy’s office window, opening it, and jumping.

  “And you haven’t heard the pièce de résistance,” Shoshona said. “I can get Gregory Bane-”

  Sy gasped and leaned forward. “Yes?”

  Meena moaned and dropped her head into her hands. Gregory Bane played the vampire on Lust. There wasn’t a single person on earth who was sicker of Gregory Bane than Meena.

  And she’d never even met him.

  “-to get Stefan Dominic to read for the part of the vampire,” Shoshona went on.

  Sy, looking disappointed, sank back into his chair. “Who the hell is Stefan Dominic?” he barked.

  Shoshona smirked.

  “Only Gregory Bane’s best friend,” she said. “I mean, they go clubbing together practically every weekend. I know you’ve seen his picture with Gregory in Us Weekly, Sy. The press we’ll get from hiring him will be huge. I can’t believe no one’s snatched him up already. And the best thing? He has his SAG card, and he can come in this Friday to read with Taylor.” Shoshona looked like the cat who’d swallowed the canary. “I already talked to him about it. He goes to my gym.”

  Suddenly, Meena knew exactly why Shoshona was spending so much time on that treadmill. And it didn’t have anything to do with fitting into those Crewcuts.

  “There is no way,” Meena said, fighting for inner patience, “that Taylor”-Taylor Mackenzie was the actress who played Tabby-“is going to agree to play a vampire bride.”

  Taylor had recently gone on a macrobiotic diet and hired a personal trainer, shrinking herself down to Shoshona’s size. Although Taylor was delighted about this-and the attention the tabloids were paying to her because of it-she needed to watch out if she too didn’t want to end up in a coffin…something Meena had been trying to warn her about by leaving large deli sandwiches in her dressing room. Not exactly subtle, but the best Meena could do.

  “Tabby will like it if the network tells her to,” Shoshona said. “This is what ABN wants.”

  Meena was trying very hard not to grit her teeth. Her dentist had already chastised her for doing this in her sleep and prescribed her a mouth guard. Meena dreaded wearing it, because it wasn’t exactly the most romantic thing to show up wearing to bed. She looked like a hockey goalie.

  But it was that, the dentist said, or a new, less stressful job.

  And there were none of those to be found. At least not in television writing.

  And since Meena was currently sleeping alone, she guessed it didn’t matter what she looked like anyway.

  “Cheryl isn’t going to like it,” Meena warned them. Cheryl was the veteran actress who’d played Victoria Worthington Stone for the past thirty years. “You know she’s been hoping this is the year she’ll finally get that Emmy.”

  Thirty years, ten marriages, four miscarriages, one abortion, two murders, six kidnappings, and an evil twin later, and Cheryl Trent still had never won a single Daytime Emmy.

  It was a crime, in Meena’s opinion. Not just because Meena was one of Cheryl’s biggest fans and getting to write for her was the thrill of a lifetime, but because Cheryl was one of the nicest ladies Meena had ever met.

  And part of Meena’s plan, in the story line she’d submitted to Sy-but which he’d just passed over for Shoshona’s vampire plot-had been for Victoria Worthington Stone to fall for Tabby’s new boyfriend’s father, a bitter police chief Victoria was going to help reunite with his wayward son…giving Cheryl a sure shot at that golden statuette for which she so longed.

  But a vampire story line? No one was going to be handing out Emmies for that.

  “Yeah, well,” Shoshona said, narrowing her eyes at Meena, “Cheryl can cry me a river.”

  Meena’s jaw dropped. This was the thanks she got for having saved Shoshona’s butt so many times with her late scripts?

  Why had she even bothered?

  “I love it,” Sy said, snapping his fingers. “Run it past your aunt and uncle. I gotta go, I’ve got a meeting.” He stood up.

  “Sy,” Meena said. Her mouth felt dry.

  “What?” He looked annoyed.

  “Don’t…”

  There were so many things she wanted to say. Felt as if she had to say. For the good of her soul. For the good of the show. For the good of the country as a whole.

  Instead, she just said, “Don’t take Fifth. There’s congestion. I heard it on 1010 Wins. Have the cabbie take Park.”

  Sy’s face relaxed. “Thanks, Harper,” he said. “Finally, something useful out of you.” Then he turned and left the room.

  Meena swiveled her head to stare daggers at Shoshona.

  Not because she was irritated that she’d just saved Sy’s life-if he took Fifth, his cab would, indeed, meet with congestion that would so irritate him, he’d get out and walk, causing him to jaywalk injudiciously at Forty-seventh and be struck by a Fresh Direct truck-and he wasn’t the least bit grateful, but because she knew what “Run it past it your aunt and uncle” meant.

  It meant Shoshona had won.

  “Vampires,” Meena said. “Real original, Metzenbaum.”

  Shoshona stood up, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “Get over it, Harper. They’re everywhere. You can’t escape them.”

  She turned and walked out.

  And for the first time, Meena noticed the gem-encrusted dragon on the side of Shoshona’s tote.

  No. It couldn’t be.

  But it was.

  The Marc Jacobs tote Meena had secretly been lusting after for half a year but denying herself because it cost $5,000.

  And no way could Meena afford-or justify spending-that much money on a bag.

  And, all right, Shoshona had it in aquamarine, not the ruby red that would perfectly round out Meena’s wardrobe.

  But still.

  Meena stared after her, grinding her teeth.

  Now she was going to have no choice but to make an emergency run at lunch to CVS in order to restock her secret candy drawer.

  Chapter Seven

  12:00 P.M. EST, Tuesday, April 13

  Walmart parking lot

  Chattanooga, TN

  Alaric Wulf didn’t consider himself a snob. Far from it.

  If anyone back at the office ever bothered to ask-and, with the exception of his partner, Martin, none of those ingrates ever had-Alaric would have pointed out that for the first fifteen of his thirty-five years, he’d lived in abject poverty, eating only when his various stepfathers won enough money at the track, and then only if there was enough cash left over for food after his drug-addicted mother was done scoring.

  And so Alaric had chosen to live on the streets (and off his wits) in his native Zurich, until child services caught him and forced him go to a group home, where he’d been surprised to find himself much better cared for by strangers than he’d ever been by his own family.

  It was in the group home that Alaric had been brought to the attention of, and eventually recruited by, the Palatine Guard, thanks to what turned out to be a strong sword arm, unerring aim, an innate aptitude for languages, and the fact that nothing-not his stepfathers, social workers, priests who claimed to have the voice of God whispering in their ear, or blood-sucking vampires-intimidated (or impressed) him.

  Now Alaric
slept on eight-hundred-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets every night, drove an Audi R8, and routinely dined on favorite dishes like foie gras and duck confit. His suits were all Italian, and he wouldn’t have dreamed of donning a shirt that hadn’t been hand pressed. He enjoyed swimming a hundred laps, then sitting in the sauna every morning at the gym; had an active sex life with numerous attractive and cultured women who knew nothing of his background; collected Betty and Veronica comic books (which he had to have specially shipped to Rome from America at a not-unimpressive cost); and killed vampires for a living as part of a highly secretive military unit of the Vatican.

  Life was good…

  True, he had a lifestyle upon which most of his coworkers frowned. The majority of them, for instance, preferred to stay in local convents or rectories while traveling, while Alaric always checked into the finest hotel he could find…which he paid for himself, of course. Why not? He didn’t have any children or parents to support. Was it his fault that an early interest in investing (particularly in precious metals, specifically gold, which he couldn’t help noticing there seemed to be a great deal of around the Vatican) had made him his Zurich banker’s favorite client?

  Still, in no way did Alaric Wulf consider himself a snob. He could “rough it” like anyone else. He was, in fact, “roughing it” now.

  Sitting in his rental car outside a large discount retail establishment in Chattanooga-Chattanooga; what a name for a city!-Alaric watched as the lunchtime crowd flooded toward the store. A sketchy report from a pair of frantic parents had worked its way to his superiors at the Palatine Guard: A young woman who worked at this particular Walmart had been attacked by a vamp in this very parking lot on her way home from work one night. She still bore the telltale puncture wounds on her neck.

  The problem was that she insisted to her parents that the marks were not from an “attack” at all but were the result of a “love bite.”

  In other words, she adored her attacker.

  Of course, Alaric thought with his customary cynicism. They all do. Society had romanticized vampires to the point that many impressionable young women threw themselves at the actors who played vampires in movies and on television.

  Not that it was their fault. Women were genetically programmed to be attracted to powerful and good-looking men, men with a high testosterone level who would make good providers for their children, which was how vampires-rich, tall, strong, and handsome-were usually portrayed on film.

  Alaric wondered if women would feel quite the same about vampires if they could have seen his former partner Martin in the ICU after they’d tangled with the nest of vamps they’d found in that warehouse outside of Berlin. They’d torn half of Martin’s face off. He was still sucking his dinner through a straw.

  Fortunately, the demons had left him the use of his eyes, so he would still see the daughter he and his partner Karl had adopted-Alaric’s goddaughter, Simone-celebrate her fourth birthday.

  Thus Alaric’s dedication to his work.

  Of course, he’d been dedicated before that particular incident. How many other careers allowed you to use a sword? He could think of very few.

  And Alaric was very fond of his sword, Señor Sticky. The blade, unlike humans, did not lie. It didn’t cheat, and it didn’t discriminate…even if vampires were stupid. Especially American vampires. They hung out in places Alaric himself would never have gone, especially if he were immortal. Such as high schools. And Walmart.

  If Alaric were a vampire-and that was never going to happen, because if by some heinous accident of fate he were even bitten enough times for that to occur, Martin was under instructions to kill him instantly, no matter how much he fought-he’d step it up. Target, maybe.

  Alaric supposed vampires avoided Target because of the parking lot security cameras. (It was a myth that vampires wouldn’t show up in mirrors or on film. Certainly in the old days it had been true, when silver-backed mirrors and film had been the norm. But now that the world had gone digital-and mirrors were cheap-vampire reflections could be caught just like anyone else’s.) Alaric actually liked Target. They didn’t have Target in Rome. He’d bought a Goofy watch the last time he’d been in a Target. The other guards had made fun of him, but he liked his Goofy watch. It was old-fashioned and didn’t do anything but tell time.

  But sometimes all you needed was to know the time.

  Alaric’s cell phone buzzed, and he laid down his Betty and Veronica comic and fished the phone from his coat pocket, then read the text he’d received with interest.

  Manhattan. Reports of completely exsanguinated bodies. At least three dead. Alaric had to read the message twice to make sure he’d read it right.

  Exsanguinated bodies? There hadn’t been a vampire stupid enough actually to drain a body completely of blood in a century. At least not that Alaric knew of.

  Because that-unlike what this vamp was doing in Chattanooga-was murder, and not simply assault with a pair of fangs.

  And assault like that could never even be proven-not in a regular court of law-because the victim had given consent…due to mind control, of course.

  But only the Palatine and the girl’s parents would ever believe that.

  If some vamp was stupid enough actually to be murdering his victims, that could only mean one thing:

  The prince would be crawling out of whatever hole he’d been hiding in for the past century.

  He’d have to. He’d never allow something like this to jeopardize the safety of his minions.

  Alaric grinned. His week was looking a whole lot brighter.

  Suddenly, through the crowds, Alaric saw a uniformed Walmart employee coming his way, toward the car the girl’s parents had described as hers and that Alaric had carefully parked alongside.

  Sarah didn’t resemble the photo her parents had provided…at least, not anymore. Being a vamp’s personal blood donor could do that to a woman. Her formerly round cheeks were thin, and her uniform was hanging on her wasted frame. Her curly red hair had lost its bounce, and she was wearing a kerchief of some kind around her neck to hide the “love bite” her new friend had left behind during his last visit.

  She was so anemic, she didn’t even notice when Alaric got out of his car and stood there in front of her, a massive figure in the noonday sun, Señor Sticky carefully hidden-for now-in the folds of his trench coat. She just kept slurping on the large cup of soda she was holding.

  She needed all that soda, he supposed. She had to keep building up new plasma if she was going to be someone’s dinner tonight.

  “Sarah,” Alaric said quietly.

  She stopped short and finally looked up at him, her blue-eyed gaze listless.

  Now was the time to show her the sword. Sometimes it was the only thing that got through to them in their ardor-induced stupors.

  Alaric pushed back the folds of his coat.

  “Just tell me where he is, Sarah,” he said gently. “And I’ll let you live.”

  Chapter Eight

  2:00 P.M. EST, Tuesday, April 13

  ABN Building

  520 Madison Avenue

  New York, New York

  YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED…

  WHAT: A fancy dinner at our place, 910 Park Avenue, Apt. 11A

  WHEN: Thursday, April 15, at 7:30 P.M.

  WHY: Emil’s cousin, the prince, is in town!

  DRESS: Fancy! DRESS UP! This is your chance to meet real, old-fashioned royalty! Dig out your fanciest, sexiest, most expensive shoes and dresses and have fun! No need to feel down just because your husband won’t let you take the platinum card out for a spin! Shop your closet and we’ll see you on Thursday!

  xoxo Mary Lou

  Meena stared at her computer monitor.

  She was supposed to be working on the dialogue for next week’s explosive scene in which Tabby confronted her mother for sleeping with her riding instructor, Romero, on whom Tabby herself had a crush.

  But all she could think about was Shoshona’s promotion and he
r horrible vampire story line, which Fran and Stan had, of course, approved, agreeing with the network (who agreed with CDI) that it was going to make Insatiable more appealing to the all-important eighteen-to-forty-nine female demographic…which would in turn bring in more advertising money. Which would in turn get them all raises (the Insatiable writing staff had been under a pay freeze for more than a year).

  Then Mary Lou’s e-mail had popped into her in-box.

  And Meena lost all ability whatsoever to concentrate on anything else.

  Appalled, Meena forwarded the e-mail to her best friend, Leisha.

  “Who is this person?” Leisha called a few minutes later to ask.

  “My next-door neighbor Mary Lou,” Meena said, astonished that Leisha wouldn’t remember. She only complained about something Mary Lou had said or done every other day.

  “Oh, that’s right,” Leisha said. “The one you used to like until she started stalking you on the elevator every day-”

  “-trying to fix me up with every single guy she knows,” Meena finished for her, “after David and I broke up. Right. Plus, she keeps going on about how she traced her husband Emil’s ancestry back to Romanian royalty. She figured out he’s a count, which makes her a-”

  “Countess,” Leisha said. Meena could hear hair dryers buzzing in the background. Leisha worked as a stylist at a high-end salon in SoHo. “Wasn’t she the one on the co-op board of your building who wouldn’t let you and David buy the apartment at first because you weren’t married? But then when she found out you write for Insatiable, she changed her mind because she’s a big Victoria Worthington Stone fan?”

  “Yeah,” Meena said. She took a bite from the mini-Butterfinger she’d pulled from her secret snack drawer. “And she hates Jon but she pretends she doesn’t.”

  “What’s she hate your brother for?” Now Leisha sounded surprised.