Nathan wakes one evening to find a strange note in his mailbox. The handwritten invitation is to an exclusive vampire party, and promises all of his appetites will be fulfilled. Concerned that someone knows what he is, he attends the party and discovers that the invitation was left in innocence, but that the party's human host claims to be a vampire. Nathan can't allow the attention caused by such a claim to continue. Sitting alone at a table, Nathan finds Terra, an undercover detective who also wants to shut the party down. She's determined and attractive, but she obviously doesn't fit in with the crowd. Nathan proposes that they join forces, enjoying the fact that such a union takes them into the middle of an orgy. Terra's morality reminds Nathan of another woman from his past--a woman who changed him forever. Will Terra have the same effect?
The note left in Nathan's mailbox unnerved him at first. It wasn't the fact that it had been hand-delivered, or that someone had scrawled his name across the top that bothered him. It was the fact that it was an invitation to a vampire party.
He read it twice, then scanned the neighborhood for intruders. Everything was as he'd left it just before sunrise.
Except for the note.
After closing and locking the front door, Nathan carried the invitation to the kitchen, studying it as he walked. It was handwritten in white ink on black paper, and it smelled of cheap perfume.
The wording was worrisome. "Nathan Cotton, You have been specially picked. Bring this invitation to the Vampire Party, tonight at midnight, 1203 Wheaton Road. All your appetites will be fulfilled."
He took a plastic pint from the refrigerator, emptied it into a glass, and stood in the middle of the kitchen as he drank.
Who here knew what he was? Certainly no one who would tell. And he hadn't noticed any signs that there were vampires in the city interested in his activities or whereabouts, if he didn't count the note in his hand, that is.
After draining the last drop, he rinsed his glass as he puzzled over what to do. Could he take the chance that he might have been discovered?
If he had been discovered, this could be a trap.
Or maybe there really were others here that he hadn't yet located. If so, he needed to know who they were. Careless vampires drew attention, and he had no desire to get caught in their spotlights.
His only other option was to move on.
"No," he growled. Better to run the risk than to pack up again.
He placed the glass in the drain pan, then glanced down at the jeans he wore. Maybe this called for something less conspicuous. His wardrobe was full of black.
At one minute before midnight, in the oldest section of town Nathan found the warehouse on Wheaton Road that bore the address 1203. He stepped into the shadows across the street and watched. The only people with whom he shared the sidewalk were those who lived there, and they stared at him with guarded curiosity.
A taxi pulled up in front of the warehouse, and a man wearing a black cape glanced around before helping his date from the back of the vehicle. The woman had long black hair, and was wrapped in black and purple velvet. Arm in arm, they disappeared into an alley as the taxi sped away.
Within moments, another car stopped and three young women climbed out, giggling and stumbling on their high heels. All three wore very short skirts, skimpy blouses, and little else.
"This should be interesting," he whispered. With the invitation in hand, he crossed the street.
