16
Eager little Blue Blood, isn't he?" Dove says.
Lettow glances at his second-in-command, then continues.
"Finally, your sire, Elin Olivecrona, is at a migrant camp in Sierra Blanca, Texas," Prince Lettow says. "I am aware of her involvement, and yours, in the excitement a few years ago." Lettow is referring to how your sire incited the old Prince of Tucson into launching a crusade of purification against his clan's old rivals, including the Rabble. "She has since returned to the Camarilla's good graces, since she provides much of the Southwest with blood. But her operation exists atop a mortal substructure that is profoundly politically unstable. Jasper Knowles's destruction will further destabilize that situation, and she needs to know how."
So that's where Olivecrona ended up after you parted ways.
Prince Lettow continues as you wonder what kind of program your sire has put together and how it differs from previous, similar schemes.
"Anyway, three deliveries, $1,000 each, and you are welcome to feed in Tucson and every city you visit for a year after finishing your final delivery," Lettow says. "Though you will have to abide by my rules for neonates here in Tucson. My man Alexander will explain once we're finished here. I also give you permission to own property and to create no more than one ghoul, though you may not Embrace new Kindred. And take this for emergencies. And only for emergencies." He hands you a prepaid flip phone and a baggie full of SIM cards. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must compose the letters you are to deliver."
The Prince moves to a writing desk under a ramada, leaving the pile of electronic devices and written correspondence, and gets to work composing his messages. You sit down nearby to disable the phone's GPS and get rid of everything that could be used to track you, leaving the device even more stripped down than it began.
There are more Kindred here now than when you first arrived; not just Dove, but another Nosferatu unrelated to Reremouse, an ecstatic-looking Toreador dripping with other people's sweat from the dance floor, Prince Lettow's Malkavian "oracle," and a few scummy-looking Ventrue in $3,000 suits, because this is the Camarilla and they come with the furniture. Lettow has a small army of blood slaves, but you learn from whispered gossip that none has proven worthy of the Embrace.
You give the Kindred, ghouls, and dead-eyed blood dolls the sort of lies they crave. These are Lettow's pets, trapped in the gilded cage of the Camarilla, and they enjoy stories of desperate escapes and sudden violence, which you can provide. But as they start to ask more detailed questions, you carefully back off. No use getting caught so soon.
Next
The Kindred here keep disappearing downstairs, but you're sure you're not allowed to feed in the Elysium. Your palms itch; you can't stay here. You need to see what this city has to offer.
As if sensing your mood, Alexander returns, his approach heralded by his reeking breath.
"I have spoken with the Prince, and he has given you permission to feed in his city tonight," he says. "After that, you must speak with me about arrangements.
"Tucson can be a difficult city, and you do not yet have a ride. For clubs, stay away from the country and western places. We all love a…what is it called? A jamboree, right, here in America? But they are claimed by others. And do not feed from the sleeping. The Ventrue of Prince Lettow's court must feed that way, and do not want competition. Otherwise, your needs can be met just north of here. There are clubs and alleys, drunks and prostitutes.
"You will be watched, of course. Do not dishonor the Prince."
You lean over the edge of the railing, looking down on Tucson. For years you've taken blood wherever you could, usually as payment for a job. But most vampires your age hunt, and most of them specialize. Before you became a courier, you, too, had a specialty. You think back to those years with Elin Olivecrona, before you drove the night roads to perpetuate your existence. You try to remember the skills you developed to feed…