1. Your Price Is What?!

1

YOUR PRICE IS WHAT?!

Wren checked his wallet for the fifth time that day, then stuck his hand deep into the couch cushions.

Nope, still no spare change.

You would think, for a mansion as huge as this, that someone would've left some coins around. But nope. None of the couches was secretly harboring money, and there wasn't any under the furniture, either.

Wren had already looked.

He sighed and turned to seven-month-old Steffie, who'd torn a gash through the plush blue cushions. She crammed some couch stuffing into her mouth and chewed happily.

"Steffie," Wren yelped. He stuck his fingers into her mouth to retrieve the stuffing, except she hiccupped.

The stuffing went up in flames.

Wren yanked his fingers out just in time. The stuffing turned into soggy piles of ash, and he pulled out a clean rag to scrub it out of her mouth.

Luckily they weren't in public. Fire-breathing babies were very uncommon, and a safety risk. Especially Steffie.

"This isn't our house," he chided gently as he gave her one of her own toys to gnaw on. "We can't just destroy other people's couches."

Wren froze as he remembered too late: In these mansions, the walls had ears. Even though he'd said it all in a whisper, chances were, Blade's butler had heard him anyway.

"I'm repairing the couch," he said hurriedly.

He sat Steffie in his lap and called his magic to his fingertips, carefully tracing runes on either side of the rip. Moments later, the runes shimmered and disappeared.

The torn edges wove themselves back together.

Wren sagged back into the couch, his limbs heavy now. At least the repair didn't consume too much magic. Mom had said he had the potential to be as powerful as she was, but...

Ever since he'd accidentally set fire to his bed when he was seven, he could only cast a few simple spells before he depleted his energy. She said he just needed to learn to trust himself again, before he could unlock the rest of his magic.

He missed her an awful lot, suddenly.

Like he always did, he swept those feelings aside because now wasn't a good time to mope. Mom's old spell book was back at his apartment, along with hers and Dad's other things. Family heirlooms.

Wren really needed to retrieve them before he lost his chance. He had three weeks before rent was due again, before his landlord began throwing his things out.

Just that the apartment was three states away.

He had no money for transport, much less shelter on the way there. And he had no protection from anyone who might try to steal Steffie from him.

Don't think about it, he told himself. There's no point worrying when you can't do anything.

Voices sounded. Wren looked up just as two people came down the grand staircase—Blade with one arm wrapped protectively around Joey, Joey with the biggest smile on his face.

Wren swallowed and turned back to Steffie, forcing a smile to his lips. "Hey, sweetheart," he murmured. "Are you hungry yet?"

Steffie babbled and grabbed his finger, trying to chew on it.

"Wren!" Joey bounded down the stairs. His belly was round, his T-shirt stretched around it. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I..." Wren gnawed on his lip. Asking Joey and Blade for help was out of the question. Even though he'd been friends with Joey for ten years, he didn't want to drag them out of Cartfalls with him. Joey was pregnant, and they had baby Katie to care for. He would figure something out.

An idea flickered into his mind.

It wasn't a great idea, but it was the only one he had.

"Do you know where Fang works?" Wren blurted.

Joey gave him a knowing smile. "Yeah, he works at the Center, with Valor and Samsen. Blade can give you a ride there."

"I—" Wren scrubbed his suddenly-sweaty palms on his pants. "I d-don't... need to see him immediately."

"It'll save you from moping, won't it?" Joey sat down next to him and pulled him into a one-armed hug. "C'mon. Let's have some breakfast, and we'll get your butt over to Fang's."

Wren blushed.

Fang was... big. Strong. Powerful and handsome. Wren had only seen him around a couple of times, but it was enough to make him nervous around that man.

Would Fang even agree to help him?

Joey dragged him to the breakfast table, where he barely managed to swallow some milk. He bummed formula off Joey, fed Steffie, and changed her diapers.

Joey and Blade looked so happy sitting with each other, talking quietly and exchanging kisses. And Wren just felt so lonely.

"I don't know if this is a good idea," he said to Joey as they approached Blade's police car.

"It'll go fine," Joey said, fondly exasperated.

But Wren couldn't stop worrying. Most days, he was a ball of anxiety squished into a human shape.

"A doctor might help," Joey added kindly.

Maybe when Wren actually had money.

Before Joey could say anything else, Wren ducked into the passenger seat of the squad car, cradling Steffie close in her spelled backpack.

The drive to the Center passed quickly. Or maybe it was just speedy because Wren was nervous.

They were suddenly in front of the single-story building that was the Center, with nice landscaping in front of it, and Wren had to make himself calm down.

"Fang won't hurt you," Blade said soothingly. "He may be a new friend of ours, but we've checked his background and references."

Well, the worst thing Fang could do was turn Wren down. But with the little crush that Wren had on him, it would still really suck.

"Thank you for the ride," Wren mumbled.

"Would you like me to stick around to drive you home?"

Wren shook his head. He was already taking up too much of Blade's time. "No, but thank you."

He stumbled with Steffie through the double glass doors.

"Welcome to the Center! Are you here for a blood dona—Wren?"

Wren glanced up to find a familiar dark-haired, pale-skinned man looking at him in surprise. Joey's friend. Vampire. "Samsen?"

"That's me! What brings you here today?" Samsen's smile grew warmer. He was small in stature like Wren, so he didn't worsen Wren's anxiety.

"I, um... Is Fang in?"

"Yeah, would you like to see him? I'll check if he's busy right now."

Oh gods, oh gods. He's here. Wren twisted his fingers together and nodded mutely.

Sam squeezed Wren's arm gently. "He won't bite," he whispered, pausing. "Unless you ask."

Wren's face burned. "I-I, um. That's n-not what I..."

Samsen grinned and led him through the building, to the plainer rooms in the back. He tucked Wren into an empty office. "Wait here."

It was early in the day. The Center had barely opened, and there weren't many people in the public-facing areas right now. Keyboards tapped in the back offices, voices murmured, and a coffee machine whirred in the pantry. It all sounded so... normal.

But there were also magical things in here, little bits of energy that belonged to random objects. When he focused, Wren saw the energy as different-colored lights, fainter around objects with weaker energy, and brighter around sources of stronger magic. Like the wards around certain rooms. Those were probably to guard against unauthorized entry from the public.

Samsen popped back into the office, smiling brightly. "He's ready to see you."

Wren's heart thundered. He wiped his hands on his pants again, and tottered after Samsen.

They stopped in front of a door with a nameplate that read Fang Cedargrove . Samsen knocked twice.

"Good luck," he whispered, giving Wren a quick hug. Then he opened the door, and nudged Wren in.

Fang cut an imposing figure behind his large desk. He had striking green-grey eyes like a misty forest, lush dark hair, and artful stubble that accentuated his strong jaw. His broad shoulders filled his suit jacket, biceps stretching their sleeves, and his pecs were so ample that they strained the buttons of his shirt. Wren's mouth went dry.

At the sight of Wren, Fang got to his feet, his eyebrows arching. "Wren? What brings you here today?"

He knows my name.

Wren's breath stuttered. He'd never had Fang's attention all to himself. During the other times they'd been in the same place, their friends had been present; Fang with Blade's group, Wren with Joey's.

Why would Fang give Wren any of his time? He had more important people to deal with.

Samsen shut the door, sealing them into the same office.

Wren's heart pounded. Fang's gaze dropped to his chest.

"Take a seat." Fang gestured at the cushioned wooden chair on the other side of his desk.

Wren crossed the office stiffly, his entire body buzzing. He was just so aware of this man. "Um."

"Sit."

Wren sat, a flush creeping up his neck. Fang was still watching him.

"What do you need?"

"I-I need help," Wren blurted.

At that, Fang's attention sharpened. "Is someone threatening you?"

"Not right now. It's just..." Wren cupped Steffie's head protectively through her backpack. He forced himself to sit straighter and took a deep breath. "I just—I need someone to take me to Colorado."

"What for?"

"I need to retrieve some things from my apartment. But... But Steffie's not normal. It's dangerous for us to go alone."

Fang heard the things he wasn't saying. His gaze dropped to the backpack that Wren was wearing against his chest. "You want me to go with you."

Wren squirmed. "If it's not too much trouble."

"Is there a deadline?"

"Sometime within the next three weeks. Preferably sooner than later."

Slowly, Fang said, "This would require me to take time off my schedule, very suddenly. It involves driving for several hours across three states, gas, and at least two nights in a motel room."

Wren wrung his hands. He couldn't even think about how much that would cost. "Y-yeah, and I, um..."

"You...?"

"I can't pay you," Wren blurted miserably. "I have no money for any of this."

That was the biggest thing. He was asking a lot without knowing how he was going to repay Fang at the end of the trip.

Fang watched him for a long moment, his attention waking every nerve under Wren's skin. He sat back in his chair and linked his fingers thoughtfully across his abdomen.

"I have a price." Fang's voice dipped, rumbling so pleasantly that shivers raced down Wren's spine. Before Wren could open his mouth, Fang continued, "I don't want you to pay me with money."

"I can, um, do spells?" Wren winced. "Simple ones. But you can just hire someone more powerful..."

"Not spells." Fang stood, strolling around to Wren's side of the desk.

There was something about Fang's energy. It hummed and sparked across the air between them; he wasn't completely human.

In fact, there was a dangerous, barely-restrained wildness about him that made Wren wet.

Fang stopped next to Wren's chair, towering over him. He raked his gaze up and down Wren's body. "You will be able to afford this. Your only decision is whether or not you'll accept."

Wren gulped. "Wh-what is your price?"

Fang leaned in and caught the armrests of Wren's chair, turning the entire thing so Wren faced him. As though Wren didn't weigh an ounce. And he pressed closer, caging Wren with his sheer size. "My price is to watch you. Whenever I want, however I want. Especially when you have no clothes on."