Zero Sum (39 page)

A short male pointed at her. “A Dealer?” he growled. “You brought a
Dealer
here?”

I struggled to maintain my feet. I should have never self-conduited that spell. It had left a trail of debris behind. That was one of the many reasons why Jules preferred circles. Now my psyche was an unstable mess. I needed a few minutes to center myself, and those were minutes I probably didn’t have.

Rei slid her foot forward and snarled. “Yield, yeoman.”

Some of the Nostophoros scurried back, but the vocal one didn’t budge.
 

“With all due respect, Lady Rei Acerba—we are not yours to command. Theodus’ orders are clear. We must guard this house from that
filth
.” I looked at the butchery around me. Filth? Me? Seriously?

The human pincushions that could still walk gathered up their clothing and hustled out of the room. Despite being drained of vital fluids, they could still smell trouble. I re-checked my balance. I couldn’t do much more than wobble, and no matter how strong Rei was, she couldn’t possibly take down ten of her peers. We were totally going to get jumped…Then a spark went off in my head. I looked at the vampires in front of us. If there was one thing I understood, it was gangs. Rei and I were outnumbered, but the vampires hadn’t attacked us yet. I could only think of one possible reason why: they were uncertain.
 

But why?

They probably could gage Rei’s strength—but what about my own? They had mistaken me for something called a Dealer. I had no idea what a Dealer was, but apparently they considered that creature both formidable and distasteful. My presence was making the vamps angry, but it was also making them hesitate.

My mind raced. Back at Elliot, Rei had referred to her home territories as “the Fiefs.” From what I had gathered in the last fifteen minutes, Rei’s people were organized into some sort of rigid hierarchy. These vamps viewed me as outside of that hierarchy. That wasn’t good. It probably made me fair game. It would only take them a few probing strikes to discover I had no mana, speed, or hidden bazookas in my trousers. Once they realized that I wasn’t much of a threat, I was screwed.
 

But what if they thought I was
inside
their hierarchy? The yeoman had called Rei a “lady.” That gave me something to work with. Back in the olden days, lords and ladies owned their subjects like lawnmowers and dishrags. And because their subjects were viewed as property, they were considered a part of said royal entity. An attack on a subject was considered an attack on their lordship. I wasn’t a vampire—but neither was that Trey guy. Trey was still serving Anna, despite his lack of fangs. I nodded to myself. If Anna had humans serving her, so could Rei. She was a lady, right? Ladies needed staff.
 

Crouching, Rei growled back at the other vamps (which was kinda cute when it wasn’t directed at you). I killed my smirk before it gave me away. I needed to demonstrate respect—a foreign concept, I’ll admit. Keeping my pace smooth and steady, I strode forward.

Did you know a growl can transition into a “huh?” Me neither.

Rising, Rei looked as surprised as everyone else. I walked right past her and stood off to her right. Forcing my posture loose, I focused my attention on the yeoman and let some of my mana leak out onto the floor. The tall man had given me some good pointers on the Art of Badass. I presumed the vamps weren’t stupid. I presumed they knew there were only two reasons for an opponent to waste firepower like that:

Option A: The opponent is unskilled and/or stupid.

Option B: The opponent doesn’t give a shit. The opponent has plenty of mana to spare. The opponent spends mana like billionaires spend Benjamins.

Predators like sure bets. My little display had raised the ante. I was suggesting that I was no limping fawn. I was suggesting that I was a Tyrannosaurus rex on steroids. Now the question posed to the vampires was whether or not they wanted to risk their semi-immortal asses calling my bluff. And I wasn’t done just yet. I turned to Rei and pulled something straight out of Sir Dirty Harry.

“Are they troubling you, milady? Shall I destroy them?”

An awkward moment ensued in which Rei tried very hard not to laugh.

The vamps looked at one another in confusion.

I nearly shat my pants.

“Tempting,” Rei answered coolly. “However, I would prefer to leave this consulate
intact
.” She’d picked up on my strategy with frightening speed. Now they had protocol to worry about.

“But, milady, we’re on the
top
floor. The collateral damage would be minim—”

“Silence,” she barked. I hoped I was the only one detecting the amusement in her voice.

The dark-haired yeoman cocked his head. He was still eyeing me like a snack. “Lady Rei Acerba, if the Dealer is truly yours, why did he mourn the sac’s demise?”

Sac? I near burst a vein. If I had enough mana…

But, my child, why limit yourself to mana?

My jaw tensed. That thing was back in my head.
 

In your head? Please. We are more like…what is the term you humans use nowadays? Ah, yes, roomies.

I brushed the extremely creepy voice aside. Killing these bastards hadn’t been that girl’s last wish. She’d wanted me to save her sister. Lives were at stake. My whole freakin’ city was at stake. This was no time for a pissing match.

“Mourned?” I looked at the yeoman with disdain. “Since when did mourning involve draining a sac of life? I merely extracted the information milady required. It was
your
lack of control that left me so little to work with.”

“And what information was that?” the yeoman asked. The mousy looking bastard looked angry, but the others looked a bit more uncertain. It struck me that gaining immortality must be a bit like hitting the lottery. Once you obtain it, you probably spend all your time worrying about losing it.

“None of your concern,” Rei answered sharply. “Come, magus.”

I bowed and fell into step beside her.

+

“Well, my minion, that certainly was reckless.”

“Sorry, milady.”

“I could grow accustomed to that,” Rei said with a smile. The three pints of blood in her belly seemed to have left her more chipper. She slung the cooler back and forth as we walked down the web of sidewalks leading back to our apartment. I wasn’t in such a great mood. I was wondering what that girl’s name was. I’d forgotten to ask her. Rei paused to look at me. She cocked her head and frowned. “Why are you so troubled?”

I grimaced. “Rei, to see that sort of thing…” Made me want to scream. Kill stuff. Hunt every last one of your kin down and burn them to cinders. “It hurt, Rei.”

“It…hurt?” Rei looked as though I had spoken in a foreign. “But the chattel were imported. You didn’t even know them.” I’d never really thought about why I sympathized with people I didn’t know. It just came…naturally.

“They weren’t my kin, but I saw pieces of my friends and family in them.”
 

Rei nodded, but I recognized that glassy-eyed expression. It was the look kids gave me when I tutored them in calculus.

“I don’t get it, Rei. I’ve seen you help people before. You helped the fencing team win nationals. You helped Monique work through her anger. You even gave me that heads-up before we got to Elliot—but sympathy? I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you display it. Do you have difficulty feeling pity?”

Rei stiffened. “I have read books. I have observed how beaters interact. I have watched how they comfort one another. How they mourn. I understand the concept.”

“But the actual
feeling
? Have you ever felt it?”

Rei shifted the cooler of human blood from one shoulder to the other. “I have felt the loss of those I know. I have felt their absence when they are gone. I care about my family. They are a part of me. We have relationships born of blood. I care for my acquaintances. Their existence enriches my life, and interacting with them gives me great pleasure. But, Dieter, I have never felt the need to wallow in another’s grief. What value could one find in that?” She smirked. “Besides, I suffer enough grief tending to your whims.”

I was taken aback. Rei thought feeling bad was
voluntary
?
 

“I don’t get it. How can that be? How can you not care?”

“How can I
not care?” Rei shook her head and chuckled. “Dieter, in the past minute—for reasons as varied as heart attacks and Were-maulings—one hundred humans have died across the globe. During the past day, 140,000 people have perished. So far this year, well over 50 million men and women have ceased to exist. These are statistical facts. They cannot be contested. So, my most sensitive companion, I ask you this: Have you mourned them? Has their collective agony driven you even once to tears?”

I bit my lip. “No. But I still feel bad they died.”

Rei cocked her head. “Do you
truly
feel bad for them—or are you merely parroting a concept? I do not mean to demean you, Dieter, but perhaps you are simply quicker at accepting others as your own.”

Rei had me totally flummoxed. I stood there looking stupid. What was I supposed to say to that?
 

A car whizzed by full of out-of-town revelers.

A dog started barking behind the cinderblock wall.

I wasn’t good at this. I never understood those books on philosophy.
 

“So why bother?” I asked. “If you can compartmentalize your feelings so well, why bother reaching out to anyone?”

Rei shrugged. She placed her hand against the cold cement and the angry dog settled. “Because I can?” She turned her face into the wind blowing in from the West. When she spoke again, her voice was small. “Dieter, must we be who we were born to be?” Her dark hair cast about behind her, and the faint scent of lavender wafted past me. I leaned against the wall and stared. Why would something so perfect want to change?

“Of course not, but since we’ve been partnered…Rei, I’ve wanted to see things break. I’ve wanted to be the one doing the breaking. How can you work against that?”

Rei leaned back against the wall. Her eyes had softened. “You cannot. You can only try and project those desires against something that deserves them.”

“And if you can’t find a worthy target?”

“Then you avoid anything you might hurt.”

“That’s why you tried to break the link. You believe you’ll harm anyone who gets too close to you.”

“I do not
believe
, Dieter. I know.”
 

And so did I. That vision from the train…

I looked at the tower looming above us. There was less than a week left.
 

“Are you talking about Nana?” I asked in tense whisper.

Rei’s head snapped towards me. “What did you just say?”

“I asked you about Nana. Is that who you are talking about?”

“Don’t say that name.” She took a step back. Her voice had become ragged. Her posture, sunken. “Where did you hear that—”

“When did she—” I Saw the blow before it came. It was half-assed and underpowered. I ducked away easily and skipped out of her reach. Rei was staring off into the distance, her eyes transfixed. I prepared a transmutation while she was distracted. I had no intention of hitting Rei, but pushing this topic was bound to get me bruised.

“How old were you?” I asked.

“Shut up,” she hissed.

“No. Tell me who—”

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” she screamed. I offered her my hand, but she lashed out at me instead. That was fine. I just needed to know head or belly. My Sight flared, signaling it was headed for my gut.
 

The punch was slow and sloppy. I could see the boiling panic in her eyes. I waited for it, caught the blow with my palm, and used the prepped transmutation Sheila had taught me to redirect the energy into a blast of air. Rei was extremely strong, but she was also extremely light. Her slight frame lurched backwards in the gale, and she tumbled head-over-heels. Her hair a tangled mess, she looked up at me from the ground.

“How old were you?” I asked again.

I shiver shook through her. “Eight. I was eight.”

Satisfied she wasn’t going to maul me, I grabbed Rei’s shoulder and pulled her up. Considering she could probably reach in and tear my heart out, it was amazing how light she was. I cleared the black mop from her face and gestured to the East. “Sun’s coming up soon. Let’s keep walking.”

“You’re the worst minion imaginable,” she grumbled.

“I’m not your minion. I’m your friend.” I hugged her. “Now don’t change the subject. How did it happen?”

“Why do you care?” She broke out of my grasp and picked up her cooler.

“Because it bothers you.”

“What kind of reason is that?”
 

I crossed my arms.

When she saw I wasn’t budging, Rei sighed. “Nana was my caretaker. She was a beater—although at the time, I didn’t know what that meant—and she was the youngest person I knew. She was the only one who would ever play with me…or touch me.”

“What about your parents?” I was surprised. Rei seemed to care for them deeply.

“Dieter, my kind are not good at affection. Nana was different. She was so warm and kind. She would listen when I talked. She would tell me stories. She could even make me laugh. The others…I never liked it when they laughed. But Nana’s laugh? I loved it. There was no sadness in it. No spite. No bitterness. Even though she was being held against her will, even though she knew what I was, Nana trusted me.” Rei’s jaw tensed. In a rough motion, she ran her fingers across her fangs and splattered her own blood across the ground. “Even though she knew these were growing in—she still trusted me.”
 

I reached out to her, but she shook her head and pulled away.
 

“Dieter, when we are young, things are different. We don’t have the same urges.”

“The bloodlust develops with age?”

“Indeed. That is why we use beaters to care for our young.”

“You mean…” I swallowed. “Stars above, Rei.”

“One day, as Nana and I were playing tag, I experienced a desire I had never felt before. I acted on it.”