by K. F. Breene
I frowned, because they wouldn’t have seen much of my powers on display last night. I didn’t like the idea of vampires spying on me, even if they’d just looked at my records from the office. “Yes.”
“Might I also assume that you work entirely for yourself, and do not sell information to third parties?”
“To be honest, I’ve never been in the position to sell information, so I really have no idea.”
“Ah, but you have.” He smiled again, a thing of perfection. It almost made Darius look plain.
I squinted, trying to parse his remark. I’d dealt with a lot of sensitive cases, but none of them had imparted useful information. Often, the marks babbled about how they could enrich my life until I knocked them unconscious for some peace and quiet. I delivered them, signed some papers, and went about my day.
“I see,” he said, taking my silence as an answer. The vampire took a few graceful steps and lowered himself into one of the secondary thrones. His choice of a seat of lesser height and grandeur did nothing to diminish his regal appearance. Darius was sitting higher physically, but for reasons I couldn’t pinpoint, I knew he was lower in hierarchy. “We have a sensitive matter you might be able to help us with. But first, I must know. What is the smell, Reagan Somerset, which reaches many of the vampires in this vast chamber?” He looked around those gathered. “Strangely, the young ones are not affected similarly. Those of us who are older, however…” His gaze flicked into the shadows. I followed his look, but saw only empty space.
I needed to get me one of those sheets!
“Male and female alike, we are driven half mad with desire.” The vampire’s dark gaze hit me again, intelligence and fire. “You know your effect; I can see that. Tell me, what is it? I must know.”
“Perspiration and a little deodorant.” Or, in this case, a lot of deodorant working very hard.
A smile lifted his shapely lips. “You have secrets, Reagan, do you not?”
“All girls have secrets.”
“And so they do.” His manicured nails tapped the armrest. “You are filled to the brim with extremely potent magic. I can feel it, tickling my skin in the most pleasing of ways.”
“That’s swell,” I replied dryly.
“You are aroused. I can see it in your enlarged pupils. Smell it oozing off your body.”
“Ew. All due respect, please stop.”
“You will not act on it; I can see that. Does our nature repulse you, Reagan?”
I could tell he was playing games, trying to see what made me tick. It was starting to get on my nerves. If he wanted my sassiness to come out and play, I’d just cut right to it.
“Your nature annoys me.” I adjusted my sword. “Look, your…friend stole ten grand out of my hands last night, then added insult to injury by posting a job he knew I had to take. That’s some bullshit right there. Don’t further aggravate me by dancing around with sexual crap and asking stupid questions. While I wouldn’t make it out of here alive, I’d make sure you didn’t, either. If you don’t believe me, lob me a challenge.”
A feral sort of smile curled his lips. It was predatory, ruthless, and blood-chilling. Fangs were bared all around me, and the quiver of shifting forms crowded the room. Fear I couldn’t help iced my spine. I breathed through it, keeping my blood rich with oxygen. I’d move faster that way. Hit harder.
One thing was certain—this vampire was extremely important to their hierarchy, and they didn’t like me talking smack to him. That was good to know.
He stared at me in a way that made my bones wobble and knees threaten to knock. I stared back, trying to keep those issues from showing on my face.
He leaned back slowly.
As though someone had snapped their fingers, the intense pressure that had been squeezing me released from the room. Apparently I wouldn’t be dying today.
I barely kept from sighing in relief.
“What is it you need from me?” I asked in a loud, clear voice, amazingly not shaking.
“Why, your services, of course.” The vampire’s smile was back to pleasant, as though his joke was funny. He didn’t seem to mind that no one laughed. “We have a sensitive issue that requires the aid of a magical person. While we could enlist a number of mages, certain issues render us hesitant to do so.”
“Meaning, you have no idea who you can trust?”
His eyes crinkled at the corners. “Just so. You would be required to work with one of ours”—he nodded toward Darius—“and to visit an area of the Realm not many walk away from. The knowledge of such a place is only entrusted to a very few. Once you have seen it, you are tied to us, forever. If we ever suspect that you are not loyal, we will bleed you dry.”
He paused. The large chamber fell into silence.
I closed my mouth with a click. Despite this vampire’s unreal beauty, he wasn’t rainbows and sunshine.
“So…” I began, trying to formulate words around my desire to turn around and walk away. “Once I see this place, I’ll be watched by you, forever. Any hint of my not being a team player, including a small, drunken slip-up that would only mean something to you, would result in a pleasurable sort of death?”
“Ah. Our bite causes you pleasure. I thought I smelled human on you.”
“Yes. About my question?”
He spread his hands. “Please. We are reasonable. We will not watch you constantly. We will merely keep an eye on you to ensure our secret is safe.”
“And when you say loyal,” I went on, “are you implying that I’m supposed to be your cheerleader with all your crazy political stuff? Because I’m not about to stand up to the elves. No way. Nor do I want to be labeled a menace by the shifters in the Brink. More so than I am now, anyway.”
“Loyal to our secret, then. Darius will only reveal what is absolutely necessary regarding the case. Nothing more. You will be a protector of that truth. Your loyalty will be tied solely to…the inhabitants.”
Inhabitants?
“Right.” I drew the word out, hating my burning curiosity about what the vampires were hiding. It wasn’t worth my life or freedom. I needed to be sure about this decision.
“I need to mention that this bounty will be fraught with danger,” the vampire continued. “However, you will receive bonuses for every enemy of ours that you kill or turn over to us, to the tune of five thousand dollars. As a gesture of good faith, I will include the capture of your recent mark in that sum. This is in addition to, and paid separately from, the bounty we placed with your office.”
“Hmm.” They were holding money in front of me like a carrot to a donkey.
“Have no fear,” the vampire said. “Darius will be with you every moment. He is our strongest in combat and our most magically proficient. He’ll ensure you come to no harm.”
“Given what I saw, you will only occasionally be in grave peril,” Darius said, his voice deep and gruff compared to the music of the other vampire. I liked him better for it. It felt more human.
“Only occasionally? Well, that’s comforting,” I replied.
“Yes, I have heard you are exceptionally capable.” The other vampire nodded at me.
I couldn’t tell if he’d caught my sarcasm or not.
“So…to sum up.” I braced my hands on my hips. “Taking this job will earn me a bunch of money, but I’ll have a vampire mark burned into my skin, I’ll have to hang out with Mr. Arrogant twenty-four-seven, and there will be at least a few situations that might kill me.”
The unnamed vampire smiled. “Who doesn’t love a challenge?”
I blew out a breath. “Well, listen, the danger I could handle. The money I would gladly take. I might even consent to ignoring Darius’s presence for an extended period of time, since he’s nice to look at. But the prospect of future ties to vampires make this a no-go for me, sadly. You lot are fickle, nowhere near reasonable, despite your assertions, and not to be trifled with. I’d be a fool to tie myself to you, money or no. Thanks for the walk on the wild side, but I�
��ll be showing myself out.” I’d be trying to rob some gold while I did it, too.
I gave him a thumbs-up and stood. Before I could take a step, he said, “I will increase the bounty and buy you a house anywhere you choose. Choose a place in the Brink without property taxation, live among humans, and you’ll never have to work again. A slip-up to a human will be nothing, as you know. It is the magical community we are worried about.”
I tried to keep my feet moving, but they were pretty much rooted to the ground after that offer. It sounded like a dream. The problem was that vampires didn’t generally die, which meant I wouldn’t outlive them. Since I probably wouldn’t die either, at least for a very long time, I would eventually run out of money. That path led back to the bounty-hunting game and the magical community.
I shook my head. “Sounds great. But no, thanks. You can find someone else.”
“She is cautious,” the vampire said to Darius in a low hum. “You were correct—she’s perfect.”
“Nope. Not going to happen.” I made my way around the extremely expensive and probably stolen golden chair, scratching a little to see if any gold would flake off. What could I say, I was an opportunist. Behind, a wall of swampy vampires stood in my way. “Please have the decency to change back. I’m not used to this display of gross.”
“What will it take, human?” Darius asked.
“I’ve already said—I will not be tied to vampires.” I half turned back. The smaller chair sat vacant. “What the hell? Where’d the other guy go?”
“I can make it so you are not tied to us.” Darius rose and took a step forward, ignoring the questions.
“How?”
“I will keep from you that which is secret. First, you will study the entrance point of the secret place, but will venture no further. After that, we will head to the Brink. Your dealings with us will be limited to this contract.”
I squinted at him. “Why didn’t you make that offer in the beginning?”
“Forging bonds is in our interest. Doing that with fear of death has shown to work the best.”
“Clearly not, since you can’t trust mages.”
He blinked quickly, clearly surprised by my comment. Truth bomb!
“What about the money?” I asked, skeptical.
“How much more do you require?”
“Thirty grand.” It was a knee-jerk reaction. I’d really been asking if all that money was still on the table, but I wasn’t about to decline getting more. “But I will settle for another fifteen.”
He nodded.
Don’t do the happy dance. Don’t do the happy dance. Stop that foot from moving!
“No forced loyalty?” I reiterated.
“No. We will settle for a contractual relationship.”
“What about you?” I asked.
“What about me?”
“I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t want to be with you the whole time.”
“Of course you do.” His brow furrowed. “All female humans do, and many males.”
“Good gracious. How does the weight of that ego not crush your spine?” I shook my head in wonder. “But no, Mr. Suave, I don’t want your company all the time. In fact, I’d rather you give me directions and bugger off. I work best on my own.”
“Foolish,” he scoffed. “You would die in the first day. I will give you privacy for toiletries and other human functions. Will that ease your mind?”
“Wait.” I held up a hand. “You’re planning on being with me all the time? Like…in the same room?” I chuckled. “That’s not going to happen.”
“It’s settled, then.” He stalked toward me with an outstretched hand.
“You have a listening problem.” I hid my hand behind my back so he couldn’t grab and shake it. “I won’t be sharing rooms with you. When I’m off-duty, I’m off-duty.”
“Of course. Let us begin. Time is wasting.” He loomed over me with his hand held out. Granted, he was only a head taller, but it seemed like so much more, what with the broad shoulders and all the muscle.
I took a step back. “Tonight? Don’t I get time to sleep?”
“When you are ready to fall from exhaustion, I will give you something to revive you.”
“Not your blood, I hope.” I eyed his hand, which had changed position. He was no longer looking to shake, but now directing me to the side of the room as if the shake had already happened.
“I didn’t mean my blood, no, but I would be willing.”
“I’ll bet you would. A few swap-a-roos and you could leave that mark on me. I have no idea why you’re trying so hard. I’m the best bounty hunter in the area, but certainly not the best in the nation.”
“Vlad is eager for an alliance with you. Come.”
My legs went numb and I stumbled, no longer trying to stand my ground about the rooming situation. All I could focus on was that name.
“That was Vlad?” I whispered. Having Vlad’s attention was very bad news. Very bad. Probably the worst news of the day, actually.
“Yes. I relayed my experiences from our meeting yesterday. Naturally, he wanted a meeting of his own. His offer speaks volumes of his hopes for you.”
Pressure squeezed my chest. “I’m confused.”
“You are human, at least in part. That is to be expected.”
“This partnership between you and I isn’t going to work, I can already tell,” I said on autopilot. My lips were numb and my mind was blank.
Vlad was, quite possibly, the oldest living vampire in existence. He played with Brink nations like children played with toys. The guy was a constant, constant thorn in the elves’ side, and was whispered about in the magical community.
I’d almost turned him down. That would have been worse than agreeing to work for him. Probably.
I swallowed down the lump in my throat. Darius had said he wouldn’t tie me to the vampires. I had to make sure that was true.
We walked into a tunnel off the main hall. It looked more like an arched-ceilinged hall from another era. The walls resembled that of historical palaces, lined with candleholders and oil paintings wrapped in large, gaudy frames. The soft glow of candlelight illuminated the way.
“You guys have really put some work into this place,” I said, my voice a little strained. “This is great.” I ran my finger along the wall. Painted stone.
“Where did you think we lived, in a pit?” he scoffed. I didn’t mention that the appearance of their entryway was pretty close. “We had thought to welcome you with light.” He gestured to accentuate his comment. “Were you using magic to see in the darkness?”
“Yes?”
“You are lying. It seems you have a very rare ability.” He glanced back at me. “Only humans bonded to vampires have such an ability. Yet your name is not in our records.”
A mental light bulb blazed through my thoughts. Big C hadn’t been using magic after all—he must’ve been bonded to a vamp.
I grimaced as I eyed an interesting ivory plaque that hung on the wall. “What happens when a human bonded to a vampire is killed?”
“The killer is hunted down, questioned, and then justice is meted out. We protect those who are bonded to us.”
“You aren’t protecting them all that well,” I muttered. At his glance, I added, “If they’re being killed, I mean.”
“Our bonding practices are extremely selective.” We came upon a fork in the tunnel. On the left, the light cut out. Within the darkness moved shapes, graceful and languid, not hurrying. One was moving toward us and stopped, looking out. Waiting.
I wondered if she knew I could see her staring at me.
The soft glow of candlelight continued down the hallway to the right, where Darius led me.
“Each potentially bonded subject is scrutinized by a middle-level vampire or higher, for what they can offer us.” Darius gestured at the wall, silently drawing my eyes to an oil painting of a woman holding a girl. It was probably by a well-known artist, given how valuable everything looked and th
e fact that he was pointing it out. Not like I could tell. I didn’t speak art. “Only the very best, or very influential, are noticed. This is not limited to magical people—humans are bonded equally as often. The selection is then presented to three elders, who must approve of the union. Often the bond is denied. Those who are approved are then entered into our records. The vampire holds the responsibility of guarding their bonded.”
We reached another intersection in the hall, and Darius again led me right. “Magical people aren’t as guarded as thoroughly as humans, of course,” he continued, “since they are usually selected by their magical prowess. Powerful mages, or the leader of the east centaur pack, as examples.”
I hoped he didn’t hear my gulp. “So, does the individual vampire hunt down the perpetrator, or is there a team of you…”
“Whatever is necessary.”
“And, just out of scholarly curiosity, how long does it take for vampires to learn of their bond…person dying?”
“They feel it when it happens. Shortly thereafter, they will go about finding out who did the deed.”
“Ah.” It would seem I’d already tied myself to vampires. “Do any of you ever bond someone in secret?”
“Yes, of course. Often it is a pet, or a strategic move. When found, the vampire and bonded are both killed.”
“Ah, sure. Of course.” So there was hope that I’d killed an illegal bond-mate, and then would only have one vampire after me.
“While you are involved in this investigation, you are protected from the follow-through of these rules,” he said. “In that time, your bond-mate may apply for your bond. I am sure it would be accepted. When this investigation is complete, you will have nothing to worry about.”
He thought I was an illegal bond.
I huffed out a laugh. “I haven’t had any vampires hanging off my neck, I can assure you. Well…except for that one time, but I was college age. That doesn’t count.”
He stopped in front of an iron door with a large cross stenciled into it. After turning, he stared down into my eyes. I could tell he was trying to read me.