Was I supposed to initiate the conversation? He had summoned me. Not the other way around.
“Blood,” the red head said suddenly.
I jerked, barely stopping myself from holding my hand up to my mouth and huffing. Did my breath stink? I’d brushed this morning but perhaps hadn’t taken as much time as I should have given the drama going on in my house. Some species in the supernatural world had a heightened sense of smell and could detect when you rushed your hygiene.
“Would you like me to get you a bottle of blood?” she enunciated slowly when I didn’t respond.
Oh. Jerry must have told her what I was. That was the second time in as many days that someone had ambushed me with the knowledge.
“No. I drank before I came.”
Her face didn’t shift expression, but it felt like she sniffed disdainfully.
Naw, I was being paranoid.
“Aileen,” Jerry rumbled, “how long have you been with us?”
Slightly thrown by the shift in topic but hoping the question would lead to me getting more responsibility and by extension more money, I answered, “Just under two years.”
“Twenty months and twelve days,” the woman inserted.
“That sounds about right,” I answered slowly.
If they knew down to the day, why bother asking the question?
“How do you like things so far?” Jerry leaned back in his chair, the leather creaking under his bulk.
I fumbled for an appropriate description. Somehow, I didn’t think either of the two would appreciate the word ‘ok’. “It’s interesting.”
Jerry tapped a folder in front of him. “Looks like you have a perfect record in your deliveries.”
I opened my mouth to respond but was cut off by the woman. “You cut it close last night.”
“Yes, there was an accident on Fifth.”
“We don’t need excuses,” Jerry said.
That was a familiar refrain from my days in the military. I almost let it pass, but I wasn’t in the military anymore. I didn’t have to play by its rules.
“It wasn’t an excuse; it was an explanation. As you can see from my record, I ended up making the delivery on time.”
Both stared blankly at me.
“Am I in trouble for something?” I asked.
“Should you be?” the woman asked.
I could feel my temper rising and took a deep breath. Anger made me hungry. Hunger made me dangerous. I was pretty sure Jerry could wipe the floor with me if it came down to it.
“I don’t know,” I said. “But it’s certainly starting to feel like it.”
“You’re not in trouble, Aileen,” Jerry assured me. “We’re just trying to determine if you’re qualified for a job with special circumstances.”
Intrigued, I asked, “What sort of job?”
“The kind where you don’t ask questions,” the woman said.
Ignoring her, I spoke to Jerry. “Why haven’t you reached out to one of your other couriers?”
