Page 58 of Livewire Witch

It distracts me from the sudden tension in the room, like someone’s let all the air out at once. Only once I turn my mind back to go over what he’s just said, do I react.

‘What?”

Zeph fills us in on the details of what he and Silver overheard. Once he’s done, Dante is gripping the coffee table he’s still perched on, looking like he might snap it right in two.

“Hold on. You’re saying that there are vampires in this city that are drugging people with magic infused drugs, draining their bodies dry, and then gaining a power boost?” Fabian asks.

“That’s what it sounded like to us.”

“And they want to cause mayhem in the city to prove that they’re the only people powerful enough to rule the city?”

“Mhm.”

“And one of these vampires was the guy that sold me the tainted blood. He planned all along for me to be cursed, so that I could unknowingly be part of their little plan?”

“Yes.”

Fabian plops down on the sofa beside Silver, looking exhausted. “What a fucking mess. Do you think the Archarcans have any idea of what’s going on?”

Zeph shrugs. “They might suspect something.”

“Maybe they’ve heard some whispers, and that’s why they’re looking for a new liaison.”

“It also might explain some of the shit currently going down in our district. If the vamps sowing distrust in the way things arecurrently running in the city, that might spread to our district too. It sounded like they already have a bunch of ways they might manipulate Felix.”

“Not like that’s difficult,” I mutter, earning me a nod of agreement from Zeph and an exasperated huff from Fabian. Shit, it’s like my friends have been body swapped.

“This is a good thing, though. Right?” I say, the words coming out before I can stop them.

“At least if the vamps are behind Fabian’s curse, and they’re trying to fuck up the district, and the Archarcan’s are at least vaguely aware of their plans to take over the city, it means all our current issues have the same root cause. We fix that, then we’re gravy.”

“Your brain, man,” Zeph mutters to me. “It must be quite some place.”

He’s not wrong. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings that all seem to vie for attention at once. But sometimes, I get moments of absolute clarity.

Just like now.

“We’re all on the same team here,” I say. “We’re against Team Bad Vamp. None of us want these assholes cursing people and killing a bunch of others as collateral damage.”

Dante pushes himself up to standing and I get the sense he’s done with this conversation. “I think it might be time for you all to leave. I’m glad you’re feeling better, Silver. Let’s try not to make this too much of a habit.”

“Hold up, man,” I say, holding one hand up as if that’s going to help things. The guy is looking even more tightly wound after Zeph’s revelation, and I can’t say I’m surprised. I can’t imagine it’s a good feeling to hear that your own people are hoping to tear the city down so they can take a place at the top.

Or maybe it stings that he seemingly had no idea.

Dante’s gritting his teeth again, so I quickly blurt out my latest thoughts. “Before you kick us out, I have an idea. Silver and Zeph can describe the vampires that they saw today, and I can create an illusion based on their descriptions. Kind of like a walking, talking composite sketch. You can then see whether you recognize them or not.”

I figure it’s a way I can be useful, but the way Dante’s looking at me right now is less than friendly.

“That sounds like a great idea, Roscoe,” Silver says softly.

I don’t miss the way Dante’s tight features soften as they land on her, or how stilted his nod of agreement is. Finally, he nods and I fight a grin.

My first task as part of Team No Bad Vamp No...

No, that's not catchy enough. My first task as part of Team Anti Bad Vamp is green-lit.

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