He cut me off. “Okay, fine. I said that wrong. Why would supernatural species that can pass for human be the only ones able to survive the extermination efforts of the vampires? They’re immortal and crazy strong.” He gave an unimpressed shrug. “And the Royals can be out in the sunshine, even though the rest of their parasitic kind can’t. Bully for them! They’re just like the rest of us, less than, actually—nothing special.”
I didn’t respond. My brain was doing a mix of shutting down and flipping from one thought to the next too fast to even begin to register.
Schwint gave my shoulders another squeeze. “I don’t get what the big deal is.”
“The big deal?” I paused as some of my synapses started connecting. “The big deal is, if these fish can survive, then who’s to say there’s not tons more species that survived, but we just don’t know about them. Trolls, elves, phoenix, uni—” I stopped myself before I could finish, the boy flashing through my mind.
He laughed, misunderstanding my expression. “That look of hope on your face was pretty adorable, my little warlock. Unicorns?”
I crossed my arms defensively. “Well, why not? If these things are still alive.”
He laughed again and kissed my cheek. “I’m not saying they don’t exist. I just think it’s cute how much you want them to. My little unicorn-loving warlock.”
“Still, I don’t get how this could be. How could all these things still exist and nobody know about them?”
“Just because you don’t know about them, or witches don’t know about them, doesn’t mean they don’t exist or that others don’t know they exist. Fairies know.”
My voice rose in excitement. “You know what other species still exist?”
“We know some.” He gave me a cautious warning. “I’m not saying unicorns exist, but they might. We know of enough that exist to believe that there’s plenty more out there that we just aren’t aware of.”
“Like what?”
He looked at me like he was getting ready to explain Santa Claus to a little kid, but I didn’t care. This was too big. Too big to even begin to understand the implications. “Well, trolls, for one. I’ve seen them, though I wish I hadn’t. Nasty fuckers. I’ve heard about elves but never seen any. I’m not sure about phoenixes. I’ve also heard about—”
I interrupted, taking a step toward the tanks once more. “But why are they here? And out in the open? Trading mythical creatures has always been illegal, let alone in plain sight of humans.”
Another laugh. “For being so deliciously filthy in bed, Finn, you surely are an innocent. This is the Square. What’s going to happen here? Who do you think enforces the laws?”
It was like asking a Jesus question in Sunday school. “The Vampire Cathedral.”
“Yeah, and how do you think the Square stays in operation when it breaks about every law we have? Do you really think the Royals aren’t aware of all that goes on in the Square and in all its ilk over the world? You do know there are other Squares, right? Just with different names and such?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I thought they were all kept secret.”
He gave me a narrowed glare. “Really? You’re smarter than that. Secret enough that the Royals wouldn’t know about it, but you, who didn’t even know about these”—he motioned toward the wall of fish—“can find it on your own?”
Putting it like that did make it seem rather obvious. “So, the Royals know about places like the Square. Okay, that makes sense, putting it the way you did. How could they not?” I did a full circle, taking in the rest of Gifts, looking out the front windows to what I could see of the Square. Everything looked different with this revelation. In some ways, it seemed less secret, less risky, not wondering what might happen if the Royals found out. In other ways, it made it darker, more evil. If the Cathedral knows of it and lets it happen… Vampires’ evil is second only to demons’. “So, if the Royals know about the Square, why are they letting it continue?”
He paused, giving me a look like he was waiting for me to catch up. When I didn’t, he sighed and continued, “Who do you think funds this place?”
Again the synapses were slow to fire, or at least slow to connect. “You mean…” I looked around again. “You mean the Vampire Cathedral is behind all of this?”
He nodded slowly, like I’d just asked if two plus two was four.
“I don’t know what to do with that information.” I’d always felt the Royals’ threat, but it seemed far away. Granted, Costa Rica, where they were located, wasn’t that far away in terms of actual miles, but far enough away it wasn’t as if they needed daily consideration. To know that they were, in essence, here in San Diego, that I was in the midst of them and had been for months, made my blood run cold.
Schwint stretched out his hand and rested it on my shoulder. “Are you okay? You look like you’re about to turn and run.”
“Shouldn’t I?” I ripped my gaze from the surroundings and focused intently on him. “Shouldn’t you? Nothing good comes from vampires. Nothing!”
“Don’t you think you’re being a little bit racist?”
“Racist?”
“Okay, maybe not racist… speciesist?”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s not even a real thing.”
