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“That sounds too good to be true. So it probably is.”
I shook my head. “No. I have it all worked out. Easy-peasy.”
Luc walked around the vampire, but not too close. “I think he’s going to bite.” What an expression.
“I’m serious. No joke.”
“Why me?”
“You’re the only vampire I know.”
He laughed. He was lacking in what I would have thought of as vampire attire. He looked like, well, an artist in his loose denim, plain white T-shirt, and a long, lightweight jacket over it. His combat boots were the only vampire-esq thing about him. And his long dark hair. Oh, and his pale face. And fangs. He smiled, showing them. “Okay. I’ll go along, but if there’s a catch, youbetter tell me now.” And his expression filled with the promise of violence and death.
“N-No catch. I mean, I’m not sure it will work. The whole exchange of life essence part. I don’t know exactly how that works, but if you’re willing to try, this could be a pretty good gig for you.”
“I’ll try. But what’s in it for you?”
“Let’s just say I’m brokering the deal.”
“What exactly does that mean? Why are you doing this?”
I held my hands up.
“Austin. I don’t know you. I don’t trust you. This could be a trap. So, either you tell me something believable here or get the fuck out of my shop.”
“No need to cuss. Gees. Okay. I owe him money.”
“Him who?”
Now Luc was looking at me instead of the vampire. I had to help him, and this was the way to do it. I took a deep breath before answering. “Carlos Marcello.” And then I cringed, waiting for his response.
“Carlos…TheCarlos Marcello?”
“Yes. I owe him a lot of money, and if this works, he wipes the slate clean. He gets the vital life essence he needs, and you get the blood you need. Win-win-win.” I slid my hands together, back and forth. “Like I said. Easy-peasy.”
“It should work, but it still doesn’t tell me why you’re doing this.”
“I told you why. Clean slate.”
“Eh…if it was only the debt, you would get out of town. Run. What gives?”
I sighed. It felt like I was giving up my secrets to everyone, and to be honest, they were Luc’s secrets as much as mine. I turned to him and lifted an eyebrow. He nodded.
“Fine. It’s Luc. I need to help him. You remember my spirit friend?”
“How does this help him?” What a difficult vampire. Maybe I should have laid out the whole story from the beginning.
“We have a path to his restoration. Lady Geneviève has agreed if we can find the right payment. So I need Marcello off my back so we can figure that part out.”
“Sometimes payments are more than money, more than you think you’re giving. Be careful what you bargain for.”
“Thank you. We’re bargaining for Luc’s life. So…” I held my hands up. What wouldn’t I give for him? I hardly knew him. But I was in pretty deep already. I liked everything about Luc. He was stylish, cool, and talented. His soul felt good. And I had never had that kind of good in my life. After all of this was over, he would probably figure out what a shitty person I was and ditch me, but until then, I would do whatever I could.
“Okay. Let’s go see Mr. Marcello.”
Thankfully, Sloane had a car. A little, tiny electric vehicle that we barely fit into. But it was better than walking all the way back to the Garden District.
I pointed out the house. “Woah. I guess you weren’t kidding, were you?”
