Bloodguilty Read Free Page A

furniture visible behind her where she wasn't wrapped in a white robe.
    It was her pale blue lips that clinched it for Casimir: she was a snow maiden, and very far from home. He couldn't imagine it would be comfortable, having her icy blood in his system, any more than she would be comfortable in the warm room. He bowed his head to her, and she lowered her eyelashes in response. Hearing footsteps, he turned to see Adeline entering from a small side door.
    "Beautiful, isn't she?" Adeline asked, nodding to the snow maiden.
    "She is, but I'd think she'd be too cold to want to sleep with," Casimir said. He took the bill from Adeline's worn hands, opening the leather folder to see the datapad inside. It itemized his expenses, and he pursed his lips; the Jewel Box was definitely not a cheap meal. He swiped his card through the reader and signed on the screen with the electronic pen.
    Adeline shrugged. "I would think so too, but I'm not going to argue with a paying customer. There are things in this city even colder than her."
    He looked at the snow maiden; her expression was placid. Her kind were slow to anger but didn't like to be held prisoner. She wouldn't be in this city very long, and she would leave a trail of frozen bodies in her wake. Even a kiss from an angry snow maiden could literally freeze a man's blood. He mirrored Adeline's shrug and handed back the folder. "By the way, I wanted to ask, do you know of other vampires here?"
    Her expression darkened. "There is a small group here. A family, or whatever you call yourselves. One of them came here and drained Garnet, one of my boys, nearly to death. I had no idea he was a vampire; he didn't tell me he was planning on taking blood."
    "What happened to him?" Casimir asked.
    "To Garnet? He recovered, after a lot of rest. You might have seen him when you came in. The vampire? While he was asleep, we staked him out in front of the building and let the 'family' come and get him. I told them that if they didn't pay a heavy damage fee, the vampire's head was going to stay behind."
    Well, they definitely knew how to deal with vampires here. He made a mental note not anger Adeline. "Do you know how many there are?"
    She shook her head. "Are you thinking to join up with them?"
    "I'm just passing through. Thank you, and please thank Beryl for me. She was lovely." He gave another respectful nod to the snow maiden and walked out into the darkness.
    It was an hour or two until dawn. Despite what the old stories said, sunlight wouldn't burn him alive. He could walk around during the day, but there was no advantage to it; the light was harsh to his eyes, and any blood he swallowed during the daylight would make him feel sick.
    Casimir walked back to the same place where he had seen both the monster and Mikki. There was only a fleshy burned mess where the creature had been, and he looked around it. No sign of his knife. It must have dissolved, like the skin of his hand.
    That reminded him to look at it. It would be easier to examine under a light, but it hurt quite a bit less now, he could see the dark red had brightened to a healthier pink. He imagined that by the next sunset, it would be completely healed.
    He saw movement to his right and turned his head to see a lean profile standing just inside of the nearby alley. "You might as well show yourself. I can see you," he called quietly.
    For a moment, it looked like the other person was going to move further away, but he stepped into view, still back by the mouth of the alley. "Were you looking for me?" Mikki asked.
    "As a matter of fact, yes, but I thought you'd be asleep now." Casimir moved towards him carefully; he had a feeling that if he startled Mikki, he would bolt. "I wanted to say thank you."
    Mikki's thin shoulders rose and fell. "You're not the first idiot I've saved. Doubt you'll be the last, either."
    "Still, I'm an appreciative idiot." He stopped an arm's length away, looking at Mikki's face. His eyes were so dark they were