“Still doesn’t explain why you look like a sixteen-year-old kid,” I muttered.
A tiny light, no bigger than a hair, nipped at my leg. It felt like a vicious pinch.
“You don’t need to know,” he told me, drawing himself up to his full height and giving me another glare.
Guess he was a little sensitive about how young he looked.
“You owe me fifty years of service for failing to meet your part of our arrangement.” The cracking in his voice ruined his attempt at intimidation.
I’d been afraid that was coming. I had planned to talk with Jerry to clarify what would happen if the recipient was dead before delivery could be made before speaking with the sorcerer again.
“Guy was dead when I got there.” I’d just have to figure this out myself. He couldn’t hold me to the contract if the guy was already dead.
“Impossible.”
It didn’t seem like he was talking to me. Instead, he stared off into space, the fingers of one hand tapping against his chin.
“Went to the bar like you asked. Even snuck in the back entrance when they said he wasn’t there. I smelled blood, and when I went to investigate I found your guy lying on the ground, dead, with a vampire crouched over him.”
That brought his attention back to me. The room became silent as he sunk back into thought. I waited.
“This is the absolute worst possible scenario,” he muttered.
I wondered what he’d hoped to accomplish with his package. Had it been the reason the recipient was killed? Or was it just a weird coincidence?
“Alright, give it to me.”
I looked at him blankly.
“Give what to you?”
“My package,” he said impatiently.
“Um. I don’t have it.”
I’d left it and my messenger bag behind when I escaped from the werewolves.
The air pressure built and little arcs of dark green light darted through the air. I pressed myself against the basement wall. I did not want to get hit by one of those things again. Once had been enough.
“I need that package.” His voice went deep and eerie like he was speaking from a great distance and yet right next to me at the same time. Power throbbed through every word.
“Your package is safe. It’s still in my bag.”
The power lifted a little and backed off. It wasn’t much, but at least I could breathe again.
“What is to stop someone from simply going through the bag and taking what’s there?”
“It’s keyed to me. They’ve already tried and couldn’t get through. It’s safe until we get my bag back,” I told him.
The green light faded until just a few fairy lights darted around his hands.
“Looks like we are at an impasse,” he said. “You failed in the task I gave you, and worse, you left my item behind to save your own skin. This is not the type of service I expect from someone from Hermes Courier Service.”
He had me there. Jerry was going to be furious over the cluster fuck of last night. I might have had ground to stand on if I’d managed to snag the bag on my way out.
“What are we to do about this?” he asked.
I eyed him. Although he had a serious look on his face, I could tell he was just seconds away from cackling like some two-bit storybook villain.
