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“I’ll consider it,” he finally said, but the bleak look in his eyes didn’t give me much hope.
Those humans were as good as dead.
13
“Are you ready for this, Jinx?”
My shadow familiar meowed softly in answer as the two of us stood in the shadow of an alleyway, staring at the building across the street. Aged brick, darkened with time and soot, made up the exterior, with heavy wooden beams crisscrossing at intervals. Large, wrought-metal lanterns flanked the entrance, their glow casting ominous shadows across the tavern's front. A hand-painted red sign hung above it, swinging slightly in the breeze, the words “The Red Tavern” painted across it in flowing script.
“You’re sure?” I asked as I rolled a vial of blood between my fingers. “I need you to be my eyes and ears in there tonight. You’re the only one I trust.”
Jinx purred and butted her head against my calf, assuring me she wasn’t going to up and vanish. Satisfied, I scooped her up in my arms, where she promptly dissolved into a puff of shadow that disappeared into one of my pockets. I could feel the weightof her diaphanous presence, soft and smoky and reassuring, as I stepped out of the alleyway and approached the tavern.
Eliza was so distraught after the events at the shipyard yesterday that I hadn’t asked her to accompany me. I didn’t think she even remembered agreeing to go. Besides, all I’d needed was the tavern’s location, which she had given me, and the human blood, which had been easy enough to procure from the Tower’s stores. Maximillian and his cohort always had a supply on hand, provided by the human servants in lieu of drinking directly from the vein. “It’s more humane, and more convenient,” Nyra had said when I’d asked her about it.
I approached the brutish-looking vampire bouncer standing by the heavy wooden door, who was large enough to give Lucius a run for his money. He wore an ill-fitting suit that strained against his broad shoulders, and looked like he swallowed humans whole for breakfast.
“Good evening,” I said in what I hoped was a pleasant tone.
“Payment,” he grunted in a deep voice, not bothering to return my greeting. I placed the vial of blood—one of five I’d brought with me—into his meaty palm, and he deftly popped the cork, then took a deep whiff. The scent must have satisfied him, because he replaced the stopper, then opened the door and waved me inside.
I stepped through the doorway and found myself in what could only be described as a den of iniquity. A haze of pipe smoke hung in the air along with the scents of sweat, blood, and alcohol, and the main room was packed to bursting, the round tables filled with vampires and humans alike as they engaged in intense card games or games of chance. Women wearing low-cut dresses that exposed their necks and cleavage wove betweenthe tables, bringing glasses of blood and alcohol to the waiting patrons, or in some cases, draping themselves in a vampire’s lap and offering their own necks. I glimpsed one of them leading a particularly amorous vampire up the staircase along the back wall of the room, who kept pawing at her skirts, and figured there were upstairs rooms for rent by the hour for customers who wanted more than just a swallow of blood.
“Yes!” a scrawny human crowed, leaping up from his chair and punching a fist in the air. He slapped his cards down on the table to reveal a winning hand, then reached for the pile of coins and blood vials in the center. The other players at the table grumbled good-naturedly, but one of the vampires snarled, baring his fangs as the human attempted to scrape his winnings over to his side of the table.
A bouncer was at the vampire’s side in an instant, one hand coming down hard on his shoulder. “Is there a problem?” he asked, a sinister threat in his tone.
The vampire froze, then turned his head to look up at the bouncer. Like the one outside, he was a massive male who looked fully capable of crushing the smaller vampire’s head between his hands. He probably didn’t even need both hands—one was more than enough.
“No,” he said. There was a hint of resentment in his tone, but his fear was stronger. “No problem at all.”
“Good.” The bouncer released his shoulder. “I’ll be watching.”
His warning hung in the air as he returned to his post against one of the walls. Hannah had mentioned that humans and vampires were equal here at The Red Tavern, but I hadn’t realized how strictly that was enforced here. It almost gaveme hope, until I remembered that once the human left, there was nothing stopping that vampire from tracking him down, murdering him, and taking those winnings for himself.
I hope it’s worth it,I thought, shaking my head as I moved toward the bar on the far-left side of the room. Round stools upholstered in red leather stood in a row along the length of a dark walnut bar counter, and behind it were two bartenders—one human, one vampire. The human served up regular cocktails made with hard liquors and herbs, while the vampire mixed up blood-laced concoctions. I watched the vampire sitting in front of him sip at a glass that smelled of vodka, blood, and pickle juice, and swallowed hard as he licked the bloody drink from his lips.
The vampire arched his black eyebrows as he caught me staring, then grinned and held the glass out to me. “Want to try?”
I shuddered. “No, thank you,” I said, taking a seat two spaces away from him.
He rolled his eyes. “You humans are so prudish,” he complained, tipping back his head so he could drain the contents of his glass. “Oh well, more for me.”
The human bartender saved me from having to come up with a response to that by leaning against the counter in front of me and offering a lopsided smile. “You look like you could use a drink,” he said, his blue eyes twinkling. He was boyishly handsome, with tanned skin and blonde hair typical of the aetherion race. The black sleeves of his button-up shirt were rolled up to reveal well-muscled forearms, and I caught a glimpse of scrolling ink peeking out from beneath his open collar.
“I definitely could,” I said, making a show of glancing around at the room before leaning in to whisper to him. “I think I’m going to need some liquid courage in me before I approach one of those tables.”
He chuckled. “Is this your first time here?”
“Is it that obvious?” I asked, giving him an embarrassed smile.
“Well, I think I’d remember if I saw someone as enchanting as you walk through the doors.” He gave me a flirtatious grin. “Now, what can I get you?”
“Something without bloodorpickle juice,” I said, wrinkling my nose in disgust.
The bartender laughed. “I think I can accommodate you,” he said. As he moved down the counter to make my drink, I felt Jinx slip out of my pocket, slinking down my leg in shadow form. She would investigate for me while I chatted up the bartender, then come back and alert me if there was anyone—or anything—in this place that was worth looking into.
“Crazy what happened at the airshipyard yesterday, isn’t it?” I asked casually while he poured ingredients into a shaker.
