He reared back. “Names?”
“Yes, names,” she said, enunciating sharply. “All one hundred of them.”
“Don’t have to give you their names.”
“If you claimed them as dependents, you absolutely would, Mr. Barrett, but as it stands, you cannot request a portion for a dependent. They must come themselves and put down their name to receive a share, as these good people are prepared to do.” She continued, “Everyone receives one bedroll and a certain amount in cash to purchase clothing at a secondhand shop or to hire one of our new tailors. All other goods are in reserve for those who wish to set up a business and have a proposal for said business. There are no ‘patches’ in the Ossuary anymore.”
Mr. Barrett bared his fangs at her and took a step forward. “You don’t want to cross me.”
“No, Mr. Barrett,” Genevieve said, eyes flashing. “You don’t want to crossme. The Ossuary is changing. Bullies who engage in petty turf wars no longer hold sway.” Aware of the eyes on her, she let her voice carry as she said, “We are very interested when we hear reports of exploitation, and those reports will be investigated, and they will be judged. Do not test me, Mr. Barrett.”
Barrett and his cronies looked around, weighing their odds. After all, there were six of them against three women. But the vampire onlookers were an unknown—and they were drifting away from them, leaving a conspicuous empty space around the toughs.
Genevieve narrowed her eyes. “I’ll give you a choice, Mr. Barrett. You can abide by the old way or the new way. According to the new way, you abide by the laws, you reside in harmony with your neighbors, you refrain from killing or turning humans, and we endeavor to make everyone’s existence fulfilling and profitable.”
He sneered. “And according to the old way?”
“According to the old way, you insult my wife, and I cut your head off, and no one blinks an eye,” Kendrick said. He appeared behind the knot of men, his sword slung over his shoulder and a stony look on his face.
The men jumped, pivoting to face him. He eyed them all with his yellow gaze. “Choose carefully.” He gestured between himself and Genevieve.
Barrett licked his lips. His eyes flicked back and forth, like a rat looking for an exit.
The slow stream of workers coming up behind Kendrick carrying building materials and tools turned the tide.
Barrett scowled and spat, abandoning the table and distribution point entirely. He stalked away with his bully boys hurrying after him.
“Good choice,” Kendrick rumbled. “If anyone would like to earn a night’s wages, we’re going to be shoring up sections of the Ossuary. If you’re interested, sign up with Marshall Cutter and follow me.”
As he passed by Genevieve, he shot her a quick smile.
“‘And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed,’” Genevieve murmured to herself towards the end of the night. She and Sparrow had decided to bring their census to the eastern warrens of the Ossuary, which were farthest from the social center and probably had received the least information regarding their changes.
Sparrow shifted the basket on her arm. “‘And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem: because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his espoused wife, who was with child.’”
Genevieve smiled fleetingly, a bittersweet melancholy in its wake.
There were so many more people pressed into the alcoves and corners of the underground tunnels than was healthy or safe. They had been sharing small comforts like candles and mending kits and spreading news of the available goods one could acquire as part of the census, as well as the industries vampires could apply for.
Some vampires they spoke to were overawed and shocked at the barest extension of kindness. Others scoffed and sneered like Mr. Barrett and his ilk. All the things Genevieve had feared—but no one offered them blatant disrespect. For every scoffer, there was someone else to rebuke the naysayer and tip their hats or curtsey to her and Sparrow.
“It is nearly four,” Sparrow pointed out, checking the pocket watch pinned to her waist.
“We can check another corridor,” Genevieve said. “We still have a few bundles left.”
“Rome wasn’t built in a day, you know,” Sparrow told her gently.
“I know. But I keep thinking, what if the person around the next corner is in dire need, and I turned around before I reached them?”
“That may be true, but if you sacrifice yourself in reaching them, what will the rest of the Ossuary do?” she pointed out.
Genevieve took a deep breath and sighed. “All right. But let’s go back a different route so we can speak to different people?”
Sparrow acknowledged that as fair.
On the return trip, after speaking to two vampires taking shelter in a sliver of rock all too reminiscent of a tomb, Genevieve remembered,There are yet all those who dwell in the cemeteries to survey.She winced. Perhaps Sparrow had been right to tell her to pace herself.
“Genevieve?”
