"Nothing!" Mr. Bacchus yelled. "We start over again and repeat the whole damned schedule. It's pathetic! The midnight hour should be our greatest show ever, the piece de resistance. But we have… nothing." He trudged back to his desk.

Darcy took a deep breath. This was her chance to show her true worth. "You need a new show, but not another soap opera."

"That's right." Mr. Bacchus paced behind his desk. "Maybe a cop show. A vampire cop. We could call it Blood and Disorder. That would be different. What do you think we should do?"

Gulp. She racked her brain. What had been the rage before her world had fallen apart? "How about a reality show?"

He whirled around to face her. "I like it! What could be more real than vampires? But what would be the premise?"

Her mind went completely blank. Damn. She sat in a chair and arranged her portfolio across her lap to buy herself some time. A reality show. What was real? The harem's new dilemma? "How about an expelled harem in need of a new master?"

"Not bad." Mr. Bacchus nodded. "Damned good, actually. Hey, wasn't Draganesti's harem just kicked out?"

"Yes. Corky did a feature about it on Live with the Undead." But none of the ladies had participated. It was too humiliating.

"You know, some of those harem ladies are famous. Could you get them to do the show?"

"I–I believe so."

"You know Draganesti really well, right?" Mr. Bacchus's mouth twisted with a knowing smirk.

"Could you get him to rent us a big, fancy penthouse for the show? You know, one of those glitzy ones with a swimming pool on the roof."

"I–I suppose." Maybe Gregori could figure something out.

"It's gotta have a hot tub. Can't have a reality show without a hot tub."