Free Dead and Everything (Eve Benson: Vampire Book 2) by P. S. Power Page A

school
teacher that was going to brook no misbehavior from his students.
    Eve
spoke then, because she was a moron.
    “Pick a
face to do the talking for us? That’s what the big corporations do. The government,
too. Actually get two of them. An older looking man, and a hot chic. That way
we can send different messages to the public. When we want woman and
housewives, or conservative men, to listen, send the guy, everyone else gets
the woman. Then each day we put out talking points in memos to all our people,
so that a single message will be going out. Out to all the embassies and
anywhere else where there are Vampires that might have to talk to the public.
That way we don’t have people in one area saying one thing, and someone else
going on about the exact opposite in a different location. To start with, I
think we should hit the fact that we mainly all love Jesus, apple pie, and
America, and then point out how much we do in secret in regards public service.
You know, all those food banks and the secret Santa shit we do each year?”
Which she didn’t think they did , but the people on the Council were all
smart enough to get the idea.
    Harland
made a soft hissing sound. It was all the rows of fang teeth that did it. It
was probably just him sighing.
    “So, do
you have recommendations for those roles? You could serve as the female
component, could you not?”
    It was
Bey who chuckled then.
    “She is most comely. Is that your intent, Miss Benson?”
    “No.”
She actually sounded a bit panicked at the idea. “ God no. I have too
foul a mouth, for one thing. Besides, we don’t want someone too good
looking. Then it will seem phony, and they won’t be taken seriously. We want
good looking, but not movie star quality.” She paused, then shrugged, “And yes ,
I know how that sounds. I think… honestly that we could use Lenore Hawthorn in
a pinch, but if we can get her, Maggie Sims would be my first choice. She’s as
stable a Vampire as I’ve ever seen, and if she isn’t the best actress I’ve ever
heard of it’s because I know too many Greater Demons.” Looking up she saw a
strained expression on Lenore’s face.
    She was
fighting a smile though.
    Eve
tilted her head. Okay, she had just implied that she was better looking
than the other woman was, and it was true, if only a little bit.
    Honestly
though, it was probably about her telling all of this to the Council, which did
seem funny, once she stopped to think about it. Who was she after all? Except
that she’d grown up watching television and had hung out around Greater
Demons, who had taught her some of these things over the years.
    “For
men… I have no clue. All the Vampire men that I’ve met look too young. We can
deal with that if we have to, but if someone knows a guy that looks about fifty
or so, who can talk without inserting a foot in his mouth every third line,
that would be best. I can keep an eye open, but no one is leaping to mind
here.” She looked at Edom, but a hot black man wasn’t going to work yet.
    Even if
it should . He was too young looking though.
    Some
names were called out, including female ones, though finally Harland cleared
his throat.
    “Thank
you for the suggestions Miss Benson. May we call on you later? This will
probably go on most of the night, and I’m sure you have other things to do?”
    She
laughed a bit, nodding.
    “I do have some restrooms to clean, actually. If possible you should have an
announcement for the public tomorrow. Basically just telling them that we’ve
always been here, and that the only difference now is that we can spread our
love and goodwill openly. That kind of thing?”
    Gene
snorted.
    “You
mean we should lie to them?”
    “That’s
the one, yep. Lie so well that everyone thinks we’re freaking Santa Claus and
the Easter Bunny rolled into one.”
    She was
able to get off the line after that, and expected a nice beating for what she’d
just said. She winced, but smiling at her, and