Free The Living and the Dead (Tyler G Book 3) by P. S. Power

With
Ginger, so this is the right place. We should get you a room. Normally
I'd help carry the bags, but... Well, re-growing my leg right now. Sorry about
that."
    The woman waved at him, and
smiled in a friendly fashion.
    "Oh, pish. Don't give it a
thought. I carried them here from the airport, I think I can make the stairs.
So, if you don't work as a servant here, which I could see being a very good
job, being such a grand place, how do you occupy your time?"
    He led her up the stairs, since
there was an empty room at the end of the hall that he, Calley and Ginger
shared. Probably up the stairs too.
    "Musician, among other
things. Keyboard, and singing. We have a band here. I also work in a bookstore.
Down this way?" He gestured, and hobbled after the woman, able to nearly
keep up, now that his foot was able to touch the ground. "Also, I head up
the Coalition of Nations. That's why I was out so late. Calley, the woman you
heard a bit ago? She's the local Shifter Ambassador."
    They got to the room, which was empty
and very large. It had its own bathroom as well. For his part, he stood in the
door, but after placing her bag down Marissa turned and waved for him to come
in.
    "So, you're that Tyler? Gartner, isn't it? That portion wasn't pointed out to me. I hope you
aren't offended by my dropping in like this? No doubt this is Lenore trying to
get me in trouble. I'd thought we'd parted friends, but you never know with
women. I do believe she thinks I have designs on her man friend. The Line
Walker?" That was name dropping it was clear, and she obviously knew that
he'd pick up on that one.
    Ty grinned.
    "Who doesn't? He's cute. Not
that I've gotten to do anything with him myself. He owns the bookstore I
work at?"
    "Oh? That does make
you well connected then, doesn't it? Not to be importune, but I couldn't help
but notice that you don't have a heartbeat. Are you perhaps one of the New
Vampires? No one mentioned that we were running the Coalition, though it's a
wonderful idea."
    He shook his head, and limped
over to one of the soft looking green chairs, sinking into it, as she did the
same, in the one across from him. So they could have a conversation.
    "I'm undead the hard way.
Resurrected by The Rotted. Basically her slave, though she doesn't make me do
that much, day to day. My adopted mother. So, read into that one what you
will?"
    He laid the cane across the arms
of the chair. That was probably a bit defensive on his part, since the Vampire
woman would have little to no desire to drink his blood, being that he didn't
have any life force to leech off of. That sounded mean in his mind, thinking
things like that, but it was just meant to be the truth. He had nothing in particular
that this woman would want. Not that killing him would actually get her.
    Not unless she was The Storm in
disguise. If that was the case it was a better one that Will the male feminist
had been. Not that he'd picked up on it until it was too late, meaning it had
been a good enough thing to trick him with. He just liked Marissa here better.
Probably because she was a woman, which seemed less threatening to him, even
though that was insane. The Vampire could rip him limb from limb. A thing he
might well survive. Will, the skinny Human man if he'd really been one, hadn't
represented a real threat to Ty. Not even considering that the first time
they'd met the man had managed to get him shot three times.
    It made an impact.
    Now this lady could have killed
him, true, but that danger was out in the open. The thing there was a question
of who she really was. As a Vampire she was powerful, and dangerous, but so was
The Storm. The difference was more along the lines of asking who wanted to harm
him then. Marissa had no reason to, if she was whom she claimed.
    He realized in a flash that he
didn't really know that. She'd given a name, and nothing more so far. Then, he
hadn't asked for her information, so she might not even be hiding
anything from him. It would be