“Of a typical call? I thought you were in a committed relationship.”
“Not a call. Just let me hear your orgasm act. It is just acting, right?”
“Of course. I’ll tell you what, I’ll trade. I need to know the ingredient in your wine that cures vampirism.”
“Oh, Morgaine… I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Well, for one thing, it would be bad for business, but even more importantly, it’s impossible to duplicate.”
Morgaine’s hopes sank like the Titanic. “Really? Are you sure?”
“Quite sure.”
Morgaine mustered up her resolve. She couldn’t give up on Sly that easily. Maybe if she got a hold of a bottle or two, she could reverse engineer it.
“So, how much do you charge per bottle?”
“It’s pretty expensive. I doubt you’d be able to afford it if your business isn’t doing well. How well off is your boyfriend?”
Morgaine groaned. “Worse off than me.”
"Really? That's unusual for a vampire. We're usually stinkin' rich since we learn ways to accumulate wealth over the centuries. Does he have a gambling problem?"
"Oh, no. Nothing like that. Actually, he's quite young in your terms. He lives simply and considers crime-fighting his contribution to society. There are precious few jobs for the absolute nocturnal."
"Ain't that the truth. So, he probably has to take advantage of others to get what he needs. Be careful, Morgaine. I wouldn't want to hear he’s using you."
"I'm sure he isn't. We've been friends for years. If he was going to do that, it would have happened by now."
“I’m sorry to hear he has financial problems, but isn't his maker helping him?"
"That's another problem. His maker is an asshole. He killed Sly's wife, and he almost prevented his daughter from being born during the attack. That's a long story. Let's just say, his maker is after him for his own selfish reasons, and Sly will never forgive him for what he did."
"Understandable. Well, chances are... Sly is his name?”
“Short for Sylvestro.”
“Ah, well don’t worry. He'll find a way to make some cash. Then with some smart investments..."
"That's why we were hoping you'd tell us what the secret ingredient is. My cousin knows how to make moonshine and we've set up a still. Sly figured he could sell it for more if we could adapt your recipe and instead of making wine, we'd make whiskey. He can still just tend the still and sell it as is."
"Smart. Unfortunately, it won’t work. But I wish him the best of luck. Hey, since you brought up the idea of bargaining, maybe you can trade your talent as a witch for a case of my private stock. I have a little problem, but you may need to come to New York to handle it.”
Fear sliced through Morgaine. “New…New York?”
“Yeah, that’s why I’m offering an entire case of Vampire Vintage for it. I know it’s inconvenient.”
Inconvenient? That’s an understatement. With this friggin’ Agoraphobia, it’s damn near impossible!
“Morgaine? Are you there?”
“Uh, yeah. Why would I have to come to New York?”Please, Goddess, let him be wrong! Let it be something I can do from here!
“I need you to remove a curse from my warehouse. A vampire who practices black magic managed to get in and hex the place. I’ve had all kinds of workplace accidents and there’s nothing stopping him from coming in again. Do you know how to undo all that?”
“A whole case, huh?”
