Giselle nodded at the bottle. “You just bought a fifth of who the hell knows what from a trampy vampire. Did it ever occur to you that she might want to poison you or maybe make you her slave?”

Coop frowned. “Kristen wouldn’t do that. She’s a nice girl. And I’m sure it’s against company policy.”

“Plus, you’re all coked up. You’re no use to me now questioning people.”

“Trust me, I was no use before. At least now I don’t want to run screaming back to the car.”

“Fine,” said Giselle. “We’re going into that bar over there. I’m going to show Babylon’s photo around and you’re going to be good and not bother the nice people, all right?”

Coop squinted at the sign over the door. “Týden Divu. I can’t even pronounce that. Is it a vampire bar? Because if it is, I’m going to need more Vin.”

Giselle shook her head. “Don’t worry. It’s an everybody bar. Just keep your mouth shut. And no more drinking.”

“Got it.”

“Let’s go.” When she turned, he opened the bottle, took a swig, and followed her.

Coop had to give Jinx Town credit for one thing. None of the bars had doormen checking IDs. I guess if you get this far, not only can you drink, you deserve a drink. Coop thought about taking another nip, but he’d promised Giselle and already felt a little guilty about the first one. He didn’t like having her mad at him, and he was getting irritated at himself for giving a damn. This is just a job, he reminded himself. I’m the con and she’s the guard. Period. He went into the bar with her, trying to be neutral but still feeling too buzzed to be sure he was doing it right.