Stevie’s brow creased. “Why would you do that?”
“Mack sent it to me. He didn’t realize. There was a middleman involved.”
Minka tapped the outside of her glass. “Why would they hire one of us?”
I swallowed a mouthful of ale. “They want to keep the job quiet. Another banner would involve too much red tape and require details they don’t want public.”
Kami smacked her lips after polishing off her ale. “Don’t want public? How important are these vampires?”
I grasped for an appropriate response. “They have a lot of employees and a lot of money. They don’t want the information to be used against them.”
There. That sounded reasonable.
Kami scrutinized me. “You’re leaving out the most important part.”
I cursed the day I ever met Kamikaze Marwin in a damp, rat-infested tunnel. “No, I’m not.”
Kami laughed. “You’re the worst liar.”
“She’s actually quite good,” Stevie said. “I wouldn’t suspect a thing if it weren’t for you.”
I shot Kami a pointed look.
“That’s only because you’re listening to her voice and not looking at her face,” Kami objected.
Minka folded her arms and regarded me. “If you’re involved in an assignment that could have repercussions for the rest of us, I think we’re entitled to know. In fact, I insist.”
She insisted? Now I was thoroughly annoyed.
I downed my drink and set the empty glass on the table. “I’m withholding that information for your own protection.”
Simon returned with a cloth to wipe down the table.
“Don’t you normally wait until we leave to do that?” Minka asked.
“I would, but then I won’t be able to hear London’s answer.”
My stare must’ve been sufficiently hard because he scuttled back behind the bar.
“I’ve been hired by House Lewis,” I whispered.
The table erupted with questions and possibly a few swear words.
“This makes no sense,” Stevie said. “Why would they hire you?”
“I told you. They want to keep the job quiet, which is why I didn’t want to tell you.”
“Did they make you sign a confidentiality agreement?” Minka asked.
“No, but they made it clear they expect me to keep my involvement quiet.” And the last thing I wanted to do was get on the wrong side of royal vampires.
“But we don’t work for vampires,” Stevie said.
“On principle, not on paper,” I reminded her. It was an unwritten rule.
“Exactly,” Stevie said. “So what happened to yours?”
I leveled her with a look. “Do you really see this as a choice?”
“London’s right,” Minka interjected. “If it this were a regular vampire, it would be easier. We can’t risk the wrath of the royal family. We’d lose our license to practice magic.”
“Or worse,” Kami added. “What’s the job?”
I sighed. I knew that would be the next question. “I can’t say.”
“Fair enough,” Stevie said. “I think the less we know, the better.”
“Gee, I’m so glad you agree with the way I intended to handle this from the outset until someone strong-armed me.” I glared at Kami.
Kami gave her head a hard shake. “I don’t like it.”
“Of course you don’t. She’s working for the worst of the worst,” Stevie said. “House Lewis didn’t seize power due to their cuddly natures.”
Kami finished her beer and poured another one. “Did you meet all of them?”
“No, but I met enough.” I couldn’t say too much without revealing Princess Davina’s situation.
Simon delivered two pies to the table and everyone pounced at once. I must’ve been hungrier than I realized because I didn’t even like kidney pie, but I ate a slice without objection or an effort to trade.
“Did they force you to drink blood?” Minka asked.
Kami’s nostrils flared in annoyance. “Why would they do that? She’s not a vampire.”
“Can you imagine meeting the Demon of House Duncan?” Minka shuddered. “I’ve seen him from a safe distance. I think he might be able to drain your blood with a single look.”
“I heard he can lift an entire building,” Stevie added.
I remembered the metal cocoon. “Anything’s possible,” I said, non-committal.
Stevie looked at me expectantly. “You met him?”
I pressed my fingers to my temples. This was exactly the scenario I hoped to avoid. “Like you said, the less you all know, the safer it is.”
Kami poured herself another drink from the pitcher. “I still don’t like it.”
“I don’t either, but what was the alternative? Say no to House Lewis? That would’ve gone down really well.”
Kami pressed her lips together. I understood her concern better than anybody, but I was backed into a corner and the only way out was to comply.
“I’ll do the job, collect payment, and sail off into the sunset.”
At the mention of sunset, everyone fell silent. We knew what the expression meant, but the only sunsets we’d ever seen were in photographs or artwork and they were spectacular. The intensity of the colors. The way the whole sky was illuminated. It seemed incredible that there was once a world where a sun rose and set every single day. The people alive then must’ve taken them for granted. I couldn’t imagine what it must’ve been like for that initial generation to wake up one day steeped in darkness. They must’ve expected the horror to eventually end.
They died still waiting.
“If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to ask,” Stevie said. “I know it’s meant to be a low-key operation, but I’m not about to let one of us get abused by vampires.”
“I have no intention of getting abused.” I could take care of myself in that regard, although I had to be more careful than usual.
“You know London won’t ask,” Kami said. “We’ll simply have to watch her for any sign of trouble.”
“No need for any stalkers,” I said. I already had one of those. Any more and it would turn into a parade.