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He shrugs. “Both. Get a nice rich boyfriend?”

“Ew.”

He laughs.

When the phone finally gets through its pixelated startup animation, the message reads, “I could use your help tonight – C”

Rich girlfriend?

“With?” I type back. By now, I was really hoping I’d have a proper, at least semi-legal job, not only because I’m worried these jobs are going to get me in legal trouble but because every time I’m with Celeste, the vampire in me seems to take over with a vengeance. I’d hoped that I could get it under control – instead, it seems to grow more unruly every day.

I fiddle with my Pokemon phone charm while trying to follow the plot of Mav’s show from across the room and without audio.

“I need some backup muscle,” she writes. Then, moments later, “I’ll pick you up at six.”

Mav lowers his phone. “Who the hell are you texting?”

“Nobody.”

“Then why are you smiling?” Mav wriggles his eyebrows. “Tell me thisnobodyis the rich lover who’s getting you a new phone?”

Embarrassed to realize he’s right about the smiling, I stick my tongue out. “I happen to like this phone. Social media is bad for you anyway.”

To Celeste, I simply write, “Ok.”

***

Meeting at six proves to be difficult because I can’t leave the house while it’s still light out – and I still haven’t told Celeste where I live. Maybe if she didn’t live like a Victorian noble I wouldn’t have felt the need to keep hiding that I live in the absolute worst part of Tartarus in a building that may or may not currently be in violation of the Building Code.

This means that by the time I walk around the corner – almost skidding – to where I’ve pretended to live, Celeste is already parked there. Though, this time, in a different car. When I open the door to the most expensive looking vehicle in the neighbourhood, I’m surprised to find her sitting on the passenger side upfront.

She turns back to me with one eyebrow raised. “Let me guess, you lied about where you live.”

I blush. “Well… stranger danger and all that. You don’t need to know where I live.”

She shrugs. When I slide into the backseat, the woman in the driver’s seat grins at me in the rearvision mirror – friendly but slightly unnerving on account of the fact that her mouth is filled with hundreds of sharp, pointy teeth. Long, silver curls roll over her shoulders. She’s beautiful in a terrifying way – a siren? “I’m Mel.”

“Deni,” I say, unnecessarily short. For some bizarre reason, I wanted Celeste to be alone.

Through the mirror, I can see her raise a questioning eyebrow at Celeste. “Fraternizing with the enemy, I see.”

Celeste sighs. “It’s certainly useful to have someone immortal on staff.”

I cross my arms, a little embarrassed that they’re talking about me. “You work together?”

“Sometimes,” Mel replies as she pulls into the street. “Though I have to warn you, Celeste is an incredibly dubious employer.”

Celeste scoffs and they both chuckle, laughing at a joke I’m not a part of. This only stokes the surprisingly hot embers in my chest.Stop being ridiculous,I tell myself.

Our drive takes us over the highway, bypassing Apshodel to get to Elysium. It’s not a particularly long trip and shortened even further because Mel drives like she’s determined to kill us all, honking at anyone who dares obey the law of traffic. She swears an ungodly amount, though she never seems seriously angry – not that the people in the other cars would notice by the way she floors the gas. By the time we come to a stop in a narrow sidestreet, my hands have left sweaty imprints on the edge of my seat, my feet pressing imaginary breaks underneath the backrest in front. Celeste seems amused and throws Mel a tender glance. I catch myself scowling.

While walking up the sidewalk, Celeste explains, “I’m meeting someone who wants to buy some antiques from my collection. Because of the history of persecution for witchcraft, a lot of the knowledge that was used to create these devices has been lost. Even partially functional ones are incredibly valuable.”

Mel sighs. “Boring! Let me know when it’s time to get the guns out.”

“I think it’s interesting,” I say.

“No you don’t,” Mel replies, putting her hand on my shoulder and leaning in towards me. “You thinkCelesteis interesting.”