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in surprise, raising an eyebrow at the
others as he did so.
    “They can’t hear us or see us speaking. What’s your name? Why
are you here?”
    I started a mumbling nonsense chant for the benefit of my clients,
waving the incense importantly around me, waiting for the vampire to speak. After
a suspicious pause, he did.
    “My name is Acayo. I’m here because I was stupid enough to
be captured. Are you sure they can’t hear us?”
    “Positive.” I glanced at them nervously despite having total
confidence in my spell, but neither looked anything but bored with my chanting.
“How did you break my ward?”
    He smiled at me slightly but his expression had an edge to
it. “Help me and I’ll tell you.”
    I brushed that off for the moment. “What do they want from
you?”
    “What humans always want. The secret to being vampire.”
    I was so surprised I stopped chanting for a moment and
stared at him. I hadn’t realized there were people out there who actually wanted to become a vampire. Real vampires didn’t have much in common with the ones
portrayed in literature. They kept themselves very secret. I knew relying on
the popular myths when dealing with them would likely get you killed but I
didn’t know much more than that. And I was a member of the magical
community. I wondered who my clients were, that they knew of vampires and could
catch one. Catch one and then hire a witch to control it.
    Acayo coughed, and I realized I’d just been staring at him
and my clients were starting to shift restlessly. I dropped the incense and
raised my hands above my head, clapping them together loudly. I intoned a few
Latin phrases and then entered the first circle solemnly. Obviously reassured,
Ryan and the tall one seemed to relax, and Acayo raised an eyebrow at me, the
corner of his mouth lifting.
    “Nice performance,” he told me, amusement coloring his tone
even through his tension.
    I shrugged back at him, trying to ignore how good he looked
and stay focused on the problem at hand. “Hey, it works. You don’t want to make
them vampires?”
    “Hell no, I don’t want to make them vampires. Look at them. They’re
monsters. That’s the last sort of human I’d ever turn. And they are just
underlings. Their masters are way worse. And believe me, you don’t want to see
them if they get what they want. Help me.”
    I continued pacing in my circle as I considered his request.
I thought about Ryan’s snakelike eyes and shuddered as I imagined him with a
vampire’s power. No doubt his masters would indeed be worse. I pondered my
options frantically. I could just say it didn’t work. But even though Ryan had said
I’d be paid—whether I succeeded or failed—I was starting to get the impression
that failure wasn’t an option. I didn’t think he’d be pleased with me and I had
a feeling I didn’t want to face an unhappy Ryan. On the other hand, I wasn’t
sure he’d let me leave even if he got what he wanted. To give myself a bit of
time, I clapped again, intoned more Latin, and moved inward another circle.
    “How much do they know about you?” I asked him, thinking
quickly.
    “Not too much, I don’t think. They got lucky capturing me. Why?”
    “So you could work magic then? There’s no reason why you
couldn’t?”
    “I could…although I can’t. I wasn’t born with the power to
work spells and it’s not something you get automatically when you become a vamp,”
he replied, snarling the words out at me with one eye cast on his captors. “What
are you thinking?”
    I considered my idea before answering. Vampires were
certainly dangerous but they weren’t animals. They had a high sense of honor. Most
supernatural creatures—witches included—lived together under a sort of uneasy
truce. We’d all taken turns being hunted and killed by normal people throughout
history and as a result, we had something in common, a shared identity, so to
speak. If I helped him, I was relatively sure I wouldn’t be in