It’s hard to make a vampire talk when they don’t feel the upper hand. And, as Grandfather used to say, this works both ways. Bloodsuckers become chatty either when their own power intoxicates them or when someone else’s power breaks them in half.

This one wasn’t broken yet. Brought down to three limbs, sure, but not broken. And he didn’t try to run! Was it the kerosene blaze behind him that held him back? Or was he a fledgling vampire? Maybe he’d started believing in his own strength, still clinging to illusions and having never faced a worthy opponent. To someone who didn’t know better, I might have seemed like just such a foe. That’s what I was counting on. Close combat wasn’t for me.

Bloodsuckers are disturbingly resilient, almost impossibly so. As I ran, I chambered another round and fired from the hip, unloading the shot into the bastard’s stomach. The vampire doubled over. I chambered the next round, closed the distance a little, and fired at his chest, but somehow the bloodsucker dodged and lunged at me, pushing off the ground with his hands and his uninjured leg.

There wasn’t time to work the bolt. I switched my grip on the rifle, grabbing it by the barrel, and swung upward like a golf club, aiming to strike the side of his head with the stock.

The Enfield shuddered under the impact of his clawed hand, which barely missed tearing it from my grasp. The vampire’s leap overshot its mark, and I wasn’t standing still either, but he sprang upright on his good leg, thrusting a hand toward my jacket.

I widened the distance just in time. These creatures aren’t as strong as shifters, whose grip can crush bone, but even so, it would have been enough to end me. If not for his injured leg, half a step closer and he would’ve caught me.

I swung the Enfield again, aiming the stock at his good leg, but before the blow could gain momentum, I let go with my right hand and reached for my pistol.

The vampire crouched and grabbed the stock before the strike landed. He yanked the rifle toward himself, and I let go with my left hand. Without resistance, the bloodsucker fell backward onto the ground but quickly sat up, pointed the rifle at me, and pulled the trigger to no avail.

His right hand jerked toward the bolt, but I had already drawn my pistol, aimed, and fired. The bullet, enchanted for armor-piercing, tore through his right shoulder joint. His hand fell away from the bolt and dangled like a whip.

The vampire snarled in pain and rage, switching the rifle to his left hand. Even with only one good arm, he had enough strength to swing it like a club, but I didn’t give him the chance. Carefully aiming, I shot through his left shoulder joint.

A regular bullet didn’t go all the way through, but it forced him to drop the rifle.

The situation had improved, but I couldn’t forget the creature’s insane regeneration. To be safe, I fired four more shots, shattering his elbows and wrists. Only then did I back away to a safe distance, refreshed the ointment on my forehead, pulled a pack of cartridges from my bag, and began quickly reloading the empty magazine.

“Ladies,” I called out.

Ellie leapt from the third-floor window, making a lightning-quick dash in true shifter style, and appeared beside me. She was carrying a coil of rope, but I shook my head.

“Drop that for now. Take the rifle, cycle the bolt, and press the barrel to his head. If he so much as twitches, shoot him,” I ordered. “And you, my dear friend, lie on your stomach.”

The vampire’s blood-filled eyes glinted as he growled, “I’ll drink your blood!”

Did my position not seem dominating enough to him? I aimed the pistol at his last intact limb and fired the only round left in the chamber. No point leaving it there – It was bad safety practice anyway.

“On your stomach!”

Whimpering from the pain, the bloodsucker rolled onto his stomach but didn’t stop running his mouth. Grandfather was right – It really does loosen their tongues.

“You have no idea who you’re messing with! My brothers and sisters will hunt you down! They’ll gut your entire family!”

Not a loner, then… I stifled a yawn and inserted a fresh magazine into the pistol. It wasn’t exactly good news, but it wasn’t the end of the world, either. At least I’d fought an overconfident fledgling. First, because I wouldn’t have stood a chance against an experienced vampire, and second, because they wouldn’t have made such rookie mistakes.

“Am I supposed to be scared? Of whom? You’re more pitiful than anything else – you just make me feel contempt and pity.”

Unexpectedly, the vampire fell silent. A shame. I’d hoped he’d actually try to scare me by dropping the names of his relatives. Ideally, even his father’s name. If he’d done that, I could’ve taken him to his father instead of the police. The nest would disown him – he was too much of a liability. And that would’ve greatly minimized any negative consequences for me.

Finella burst out of the building, and I pointed her toward the fire.

“Boys,” I called and gestured to the Sparrow brothers, while pulling out my dagger. I pried the key off the tray, unlocked the cage holding the terrified child, and pointed to the open window I’d just descended from. “You can stay there for the night.”

A few minutes later, Knuckles was covering the kerosene puddles with sand he’d prepared in advance, while Finella ensured he didn’t miss a single ember. The vampire remained silent, and I didn’t want to interrogate him here.

I asked Knuckles and Finella to handle tying him up. Using a fire sorcerer as a torch might’ve been an over-the-top move, but my mind was elsewhere.

My first solo hunt had left a bitter aftertaste. So many mistakes, so much overconfidence, and sheer dumb luck. Bollocks – luck was the only reason I was still alive!

How?! How had the idea of facing an unknown beast head-on even occurred to me? Why did I assume it would try to run? And what if it had been a werewolf? Well, fine, werewolves don’t like fire – I’d prepared for that. I might’ve gotten burned, but I’d have survived.

But my face? Why hadn’t I thought about wearing a mask? I’d put myself and the girls at risk. This was going to come back to haunt me – If not with the bloodsucker…

A gunshot rang out.

I instantly drew my pistol and aimed it toward the sound.

The vampire lay with a bullet hole in his head, while Ellie stood over him, trembling.

Shock was frozen on the faces of both Finella and Knuckles. A few large drops of foreign brain matter slowly slid down the boy’s face as he stopped, trying to realize if there still was any need to tie the vampire’s hands.

“H-he twitched!” the shifter girl stammered.

I smacked my forehead with my left hand and tiredly rubbed my face. I wanted to say a lot, most of it unfit for a lady’s ears. But the truth was, there was no point blaming Ellie. This mistake was on me. I should’ve known better than to trust her with a gun.

“In our current situation,” I said, “tying him up is no longer necessary.”

“I-I didn’t mean to…” Ellie whimpered, on the verge of tears. She was a city girl, probably had never even seen how chickens are slaughtered.

“Do you feel sorry for him? A bloodsucker who went off the rails and killed children?”

Ellie let out a loud sob and froze. I’d struck the right chord in her soul.

“Or were you planning to scold him and let him go after all this?”

“What were you planning to do with him?” the shifter girl asked.

“Take him to the nest so his father could deal with him. But now that’s irrelevant. Knuckles, load the body into the trunk.”

Ellie drifted into a strange semi-trance and couldn’t seem to snap out of it. I sent her to fetch Cap and Talbot, though I could’ve just called for them myself.

“How old are you?” Finella suddenly asked.

“Seventeen.”

“How do you manage to stay so calm?” Finella asked. “I’m a year older than you, I’ve also been trained as a fighter, and I can barely… Look, even Clint is shaking.”

“I’m not shaking!” Knuckles snapped, but Finella waved him off and repeated her question.

“How?”

I don’t know what compelled me, but I answered honestly, saying what was in my heart.

“I was raised by a very wise grandfather, supported by decent people. And I try to be at least a little like them.”

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“Family?” Finella asked. I nodded. She sighed bitterly.

“I only have my brother. But he’s a decent person too!”

“Lucky you!” Knuckles sighed enviously. Well, of course, his father wasn’t exactly someone you’d want to emulate.

“Wasn’t your mother a good person?”

“She was!” he answered sharply.

“Then you also have an example to follow. Speaking of examples, Fin, can you keep an eye on Ellie?”

“Don’t worry, she’ll be fine.”

“Then we’ll drop you off at home.”

“And the body?”

“You don’t want to know.”

Finella didn’t press the matter.

We dropped the girls off in the Old City. Finella took Ellie to her place, and we headed for the remote pier at Smuggler’s Bay. Talbot nearly fainted when he saw what was in the trunk. The scoundrel tried to bolt, so we had to scare him again. I left the job of intimidating him to Cap. For that, we handed him the revolver we’d taken from the Hunchback, making sure to unload it first. Lesson learned from recent mistakes.

The good thing about vampire corpses is that they don’t bleed. Knuckles and I completely stripped it, going through every piece of clothing, but found not a single piece of jewelry, paper, or anything that could lead us to a clue. Evidently, this creature did have a brain and had prepared for its nighttime outings more thoroughly than I’d expected.

We dragged the body to the edge of the pier, tied a rock from the shore to its feet, and dropped it into the water. We double-checked the clothes before burning them on the beach. I wasn’t under any illusions, but it should buy us a few quiet days. Similar thoughts seemed to cross Knuckles’ mind as the fire crackled.

“A favor in return,” he asked. “When and what? My brother and I need to split before the bloodsuckers catch us. And honestly, you should do the same.”

“I’m staying.”

I understood the risk, but I didn’t see another option – I’d left too many traces behind. The chain of events set off by my mistakes was only beginning. At least two people knew my real name. One of them was a government official. He struck me as a steadfast man, and everything would depend on who asked him about me and how. Harry was simpler – he’d practically isolated himself from the world.

Now that was an idea.

For the Sparrow brothers, staying in the city really was dangerous unless it was in a magic-fortified mansion under the supposed protection of His Worship himself. Harry had clearly been bored and had let his house fall into disrepair. Two hardworking boys might come in handy for him – If they were hardworking. The taste of easy money stolen from someone’s pocket has a way of killing people’s desire to work.

“How do you feel about honest work?” I asked Knuckles.

“What kind of work?”

“Whatever needs to be done: dusting, sweeping the floor, washing dishes, cleaning toilets.”

I added the last part intentionally, remembering how the older folks used to talk about the disgust criminals felt toward such work. Those who embraced the rotten thief’s code saw cleaning toilets as beneath their dignity – as if people with their lifestyle could even have dignity.

“Cleaning toilets? That’s the favor you’re asking in return?”

I thought about saying “no,” but instead, I replied differently.

“Yes.”

“For how long?”

“A year. Every day.”

“They’ll at least feed us, right?” Knuckles grumbled.

“Of course.”

“The debt is mine,” declared the older brother. “Don’t drag the kid into this crap.”

“So, you agree?”

“Do I have a bloody choice?!” Knuckles snapped.

“There’s always a choice,” I countered. “The options just might not look very different.”

“I promised the girls I’d straighten up.”

“That’s worthy of respect.”

Knuckles flinched as though I’d spat in his face, clenched his fists, but held himself back.

“I’ll keep my word, but I won’t stand for humiliation!” he warned.

“I wouldn’t even think of it. I genuinely mean what I said. I only mentioned cleaning toilets to gauge what you’d agree to. So, what do you think about working as household staff? If the master agrees, no one will dare lay a finger on you in that house. Let’s be upfront – I’m no angel. I still have business in this city, and you might come in handy for it. I want to keep you close so I can call in that favor when needed.”

“What kind of house is this, where even vampires…”

“A wizard’s house. He’s currently absorbed in a long-term project and hasn’t left the mansion in ages. Competitors have been trying to interfere and have scared off all the staff. There’s no protection outside the gates, but inside, you’ll be entirely safe. The downside? You’ll mostly have to eat the awful potatoes he grows in the garden.”

“That’s the least of my worries,” Knuckles waved dismissively. “Food isn’t exactly gourmet in the slums. What’s his name?”

“Harry Smith.”

“Sledgehammer Harry? We’re in!”

“You agreed quickly…”

“The guy’s got a reputation!” Knuckles said with conviction.

“Perfect.” I scraped together the coins in my pocket, coming up with a pound and three pence. “Now, focus. Where can we buy some good bacon at this hour? It would put him in the right mood.”

“With that kind of money? Nowhere. Besides, didn’t you say he only eats potatoes… Oh, fine! Got a knife?”

“What for?”

“I’ve got a tenner sewn into my collar. For a rainy day.”

I used my dagger to cut the ten-pound note from Knuckles’ collar, and we went shopping for meat and grains in Pubset. For the Hunchback’s old revolver, Patrick from the Commode made some calls to a butcher and a grocer he knew. The butcher bled us dry immediately, asking eleven pounds for a pork haunch that had caught my eye and two pounds of bacon.

Knuckles scratched his head, then cut open his brother’s collar and pulled out a sibling to his own tenner. We bought the haunch, bacon, two dozen eggs, a sack of grain, and a crate of canned food, spending every last penny.

Talbot dropped us off at the mansion well past midnight. We quickly unloaded the carefully sorted supplies and slipped through the gate before the Fairburn goons showed up.

After walking a few meters into the park, I stopped the brothers, smeared Third Eye ointment on my forehead, slung the haunch over my shoulder, tucked the package of bacon under my arm, and ran to the house.

“Harry!” I yelled as soon as I stepped through the door.

“Stop shouting!” growled the surly wizard. “Who did you bring?”

“New servants.”

“And what the hell do I need them for… Is that a haunch? Pork?”

“And here’s some bacon.”

Harry noticeably swallowed but didn’t move from his spot, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“What’s the occasion?”

“A bribe for hiring. There are two boys, brothers, homeless. Hear them out, and in the morning, if you don’t like them, kick them out. It’s a complicated situation, not one you can figure out right away. In the meantime, put a frying pan on for the bacon, and I’ll fetch the eggs. Should I bring the boys in?”

“Bring them, but they don’t come inside. Wait on the porch.”

A few minutes later, I returned to the nervous pair. I pulled out a tin of ointment from my bag since the supply in my ring had run out, and smeared it on their foreheads.

“This will let you see traps. Look over there – fire runes trap. It’s bright. Do you see it?”

“Yes,” Cap answered immediately.

Knuckles stayed silent for a while, long enough for me to think the ointment wasn’t working on him.

“Looks like nonsense to me. Like a red puddle or something.”

I was about to reply, but Cap beat me to it, describing the rune in precise detail.

“There are three rings of bright red symbols.”

“I just see a smudged puddle,” Knuckles muttered.

“That’s enough,” I said. “Just remember – they’re dangerous. A red one will burn you alive, a gray one will drown you, and a white one kills instantly.”

“He’s a maniac!” Knuckles said, almost admiringly.

Getting him into the house turned out to be a challenge. He could see the bright runes, but the dark ones were completely invisible to him. Luckily, Cap kept an eye on his brother and made sure he didn’t lose any limbs.

At the porch, Harry didn’t hold us up for long. He recited a few spells from a book, checked the food and items we’d brought, and invited us into the kitchen.

While bacon sizzled in a frying pan and the Sparrow brothers practically drooled, I leisurely recounted the day’s “adventures.”

“So,” Harry summarized, “you killed a vampire, dragged into this the only sister of Blind Fire and the daughter of Bison, and then brought me two petty thieves instead of servants because you hope to use them later?”

“I don’t know who Bison or Blind Fire are, I only plan to use the older one, and otherwise – yes, that’s correct.”

“You’re just like your uncle,” Harry said with a snort.

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment,” the wizard waved dismissively and transferred the last pair of eggs onto a fourth plate. “Now then, you little devils.”

Harry set down the wooden spatula, extended his hands, and performed the same trick on the brothers as he had on me during our first meeting. The boys shot out of their chairs, flipped mid-air, and hung upside down. Cap’s cap fell off, revealing a streak of gray hair, and a pair of lead knuckles tumbled out of Knuckles’ pockets.

“I grew up poor myself,” Harry said. “There were times I stole too – when my family was starving, and there wasn’t enough work. But I started working properly, like a man should, when I was ten. By twelve, I’d set my sights on becoming a wizard, and I opened my Third Eye at thirty. My first spell was sheep shearing. So don’t expect any pity from me! You’ll work hard, and I’ll judge you harshly. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” the brothers said in unison.

“Do you wish to decline?”

“No, sir!” Knuckles barked, with Cap echoing him.

Harry waved his hands again, and the boys flipped upright and were set gently back on the floor.

“I won’t pay much. The younger one gets half a pound a week, the older one – one pound. Food’s on me.” Harry placed plates of eggs and bacon in front of the boys. “How much did you pay for all this? Well?”

Knuckles glanced at me uncertainly.

“I’m your employer,” Harry reminded him. “You answer to me!”

“Twenty-one pounds three pence,” Knuckles muttered.

“I’ll return it tomorrow,” Harry said.

“No need,” I interjected. “Consider it my thanks.”

“You said it was a bribe,” Harry pointed out.

“Not from them, for them,” I corrected.

“The whole moral lesson goes downhill!” Harry grumbled.

“Sorry about that.”

I returned the money to the boys as soon as I got to my own stash.