Page 7 of Eleazar

Or both.

“I’m going to take a wild guess and say that Eleazar didn’t give you full disclosure.”

“That’s vague.” Andrew wasn’t going to break his promise to keep his job and everything else a secret, but if Felix really had worked for Eleazar, then he must already know those secrets.

“Let me guess,” Felix said, leaning against the Rolls. Andrew wanted to tell him to get off of it, to not scratch the car, but he kept silent. “Eleazar told you not to wander the halls.”

Reluctantly, Andrew nodded.

“He probably gave you my old room, which has a secret passageway.”

Again, Andrew nodded.

“Bastard. That was my goddamn room. Do you know how long it took me to make it that damn comfortable?” Felix took a deep breath. “That’s not important. I have a better bedroom now.”

“Look, can you cut to the chase?” Andrew asked. “I have a ton of errands to run.”

Felix moved closer, leaning in before he whispered, “He doesn’t want you roaming the halls because one of his vampires might try to feed from you.”

Vampires. Had Felix just said vampires? Oh shit! Andrew had heard plenty of rumors around Ridgeway that vampires were real, but he’d dismissed the idea as insane. Could the rumors really be true? Had Andrew’s dream job turned into a nightmare?

“Eleazar is the oldest, most powerful vampire in the city, Andrew,” Felix said.

“Why are you telling me this?” There had to be some kind of motive. Maybe Felix was going to blackmail Andrew.

“The money is phenomenal, and Eleazar takes some getting used to, though he keeps his word and is a decent guy to work for, but I thought you shouldn’t be going into this blindly, and if he found out I was even talking to you, he’d have a goddam fit,” Felix said with a smirk.

Then the smirk died. “I grew up in that house. Eleazar had a brother named Zakrem. When humans started disappearing, being killed, it was discovered that Zakrem was behind it. Since Eleazar believes in balance, and he doesn’t want innocents harmed—which is rich coming from a vampire—he killed Zakrem.”

Andrew’s head was spinning. No wonder the house had felt dark and foreboding. It was filled with vampires. “Do you know Maximus?”

Felix snorted. “That shady fucker? Yeah, I know him, and you’d do well to stay away from him.”

“Do you know Sonny?”

Felix shook his head. “He must be new.”

“He cooks my meals for me.”

“Are you serious?” Felix narrowed his eyes. “I had to cook my own damn meals, and let me tell you, I suck at cooking.” He huffed. “That doesn’t matter. Anyway, watch your back. Like I said, Eleazar is decent to work for, though he has his moments of intimidation, and some of his coven are nice, but you’re surrounded by vampires, so never let your guard down.” His brows went up. “Oh, and one last thing. Human servants are never fed from, so if anyone tries, remind them of that rule.”

Andrew pressed his hand against the hood of the car. He wasn’t sure if he was going to pass out, and all he could do was nod.

“I didn’t come here to blow your mind,” Felix said. “I would seriously appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone about this conversation, especially Eleazar or his annoying second-in-command, Shayde. He’s loyal to Eleazar, to a damn fault. Anything you tell him will get back to Eleazar. Don’t even tell Sonny. He’s probably human, but since I don’t know him, I can’t say for sure.”

“Why did you tell me all of this?”

Something passed behind Felix’s blue eyes. “There’s bad blood between me and Eleazar now, but it hasn’t always been that way. I still care about him and don’t want anything to happen to him, but like I said, I thought you should know what you’re getting yourself into.”

“How do you know I won’t tell anyone that vampires are real?”

Vampires were real. Andrew was still trying to wrap his head around that fact.

“Because the money is outstanding and you’d be an idiot to tell anyone about their existence. One, even if some believed you, not a lot of people would. Second, if any vampire found out you spilled their secret, you wouldn’t last another night.”

“Ready?” Mr. Badass asked Felix.

“I just want to make sure Andrew isn’t going to pass out. He looks kind of pale.”

---