“Bitey?” Len suggested, eyeing me with the air of someone who knew they’d walked into an insane asylum, but somehow hadn’t quite found the wherewithal to turn around and walk back out again.
I gestured at his nose. “I think it was the unexpected sight of blood that triggered him. I’m really sorry, Len.”
“Yeah, don’t mention it,” he said. “Oddly enough, it’s not even the worst thing that’s happened to me tonight.”
I left that alone, at least for now. “Are you sure you’re all right?” I asked, gesturing at his face.
He shrugged, keeping pressure on the paper towels. “It’s just a nosebleed, Z. Shit happens sometimes. It’ll stop in a minute.”
Though the words were casual, I was getting that jittery vibe off of him again. Unsure what to do with it—if anything—I just nodded and turned my focus to the dishes in the sink. Len leaned against the counter nearby.
“So, that guy’s your grandfather, huh?” he asked, eyes on the doorway through which Rans and Guthrie had disappeared. “He doesn’t really look old enough, you know.”
I shot him a sidelong glance. “He’s... well-preserved, I guess you could say. And, well—he’s sort of my grandfather, yes. It’s complicated.”
“Complicated?” Len asked, laying on the irony with a trowel. “Really? You’re shocking me over here, Z.”
“Ha,” I told him flatly. “The short version is that demons can’t actually... reproduce. Not on their own. So my sex-demon grandparent stole Guthrie’s DNA without his knowledge and used it to impregnate my grandmother.”
Len lowered the paper towels and dabbed at his nose with cautious movements as he frowned at me. “Stole his DNA? How does that work, then?”
“About the way you’d expect,” I replied in a dry tone.
He digested that for a moment, gingerly wiping at the blood on his face and shirt. “And now the guy’s a vampire.”
“Yup. And now he’s a vampire,” I agreed.
“No offense, but your family is whacked, Z. And I say that as someone who comes from a pretty jacked-up background myself.”
“Tell me about it.”
He tossed the red-stained towels in the trash and regarded me steadily.
“What?” I asked, feeling suddenly self-conscious.
Len drew breath to answer, but was interrupted by Rans and Guthrie’s return.
“Feeling better now, man?” he asked instead, eyeing Guthrie. “Sorry about flashing the red cape like that. I didn’t realize.”
Guthrie stared back at him for a long moment. He looked haggard, and I was once again wracked with guilt over what had happened to him. Over what we’d done to him.
“Can we just... not talk about it, please?” he said tightly. “You were right earlier. It would probably be best if you left.”
Rans lifted an eyebrow, looking back and forth between them. “No, it wouldn’t. In fact, now that you’re temporarily sated on the bagged stuff, Guthrie, this would be the ideal opportunity to introduce you to live meals. Len, mate, it looks like you’ve stopped leaking, at least. You don’t mind, do you?”
Guthrie stared at Rans like he’d grown a second head. “Rans, are you fucking kidding me? I just tried to go for the poor kid’s throat!”
Len just looked resigned. “Not a kid, gramps. Also standing right here.” He sighed. “Fine. Why the fuck not? It seems like an oddly appropriate end to the day I’ve just had.”
“Len,” I began, but he waved me off.
“It’s fine, Z.”
Rans lifted his chin approvingly. “That’s the spirit. Guthrie, get over here. I promise you won’t regret it. As B-negative goes, it’s quite a good vintage, really.”
Len gave him a flat stare. “Excellent iron levels, or so I’m told.”
“Oh, indeed,” Rans agreed, his tone complacent. He more or less dragged Guthrie into Len’s personal space, ignoring the way both of them tensed. “All right, then. Might as well ease you into a bit of vampiric mesmerism while we’re at it. Turn on those high beams and gaze deeply into his eyes, yadda yadda. Tell him not to be afraid, that he won’t feel any pain, blah, blah, blah; and once he’s under, I’ll walk you through feeding from the wrist.”
“What the hell is my life now,” Len muttered, not directing the words to anyone in particular.
Guthrie was holding himself very, very still. “Son, you can’t really be all right with this.”
Len cocked an eyebrow and jerked his chin toward Rans. Metal piercings glinted under the kitchen lights. “As much as it pains me, this asshole saved the life of someone important to me, gramps. And not to put too fine a point on it, after seeing that little performance earlier, I think I’d rather have you practice on me while he’s here watching over things, as opposed to you going after some random person in the street.”
“I knew there was a reason I liked you,” Rans said approvingly. “Right, Guthrie. Listen to that nice, steady heartbeat. Think about how good the blood will taste when it’s at human body temperature rather than straight out of a fridge.”
Guthrie’s eyes flared amethyst and zeroed in on Len, who stiffened and backed up a step despite his best efforts.
“Easy, there,” I said, putting a hand on his arm. “You can still refuse if you want to, but I promise Rans won’t let things get out of hand.”
Len blew out a breath. “I’m all right. Just get on with it. And I’d better not find out later that you made me cluck like a chicken or, I dunno, bark like a dog or something.”
Irritation flared in Guthrie’s expression, but his eyes didn’t dim. “Right now, I’d settle for you not talking.”
Len’s mouth snapped shut, his face going blank. I couldn’t help the small frisson that shivered through me at the undeniable evidence of Guthrie’s new powers. For his part, Guthrie watched the change in obvious surprise. His gaze flew to Rans, who urged his attention back to Len with a gesture.
“Just, er, relax,” Guthrie told him awkwardly. “And, uh... don’t be afraid.”
The jittery tension in Len’s body melted, and the look on his face could almost have been relief as he submitted
