Page 83 of A Shade of Myself
“Exactly.”
“Regardless,” I said, “sides seem like a simplistic reduction.”
“Is it?” He hit a button on a sleek remote control. You could have knocked me over with a feather when the distinctive rumble of Johnny Cash came on. “Did you expect traditional Japanese music?”
I waved a finger around his lightweight charcoal pants and asymmetrical white linen shirt, the sleeves rolled up to expose his tanned forearms. It was simply but elegantly made from quality fabrics. “That would be a simplistic reduction. Based on evidence, I’d guess something minimalist like Philip Glass.”
“I do like his music.” Yoshi surveyed me lazily, furthering the impression of a deadly jungle cat about to swipe at me with a paw. “Why did you want to see Zev? Maybe I can help you.”
“I need help tracking down a missing Ohrist. It’s for Tatiana’s client.” I drank some more wine.
“You think a vampire is behind it?” There was an edge under the silky tone.
“No. Someone or something has cast an illusion to make a family forget one of the daughters. It’s either an Ohrist, possibly the missing woman herself, or a demon. Hence why I’m asking you.”
Yoshi held up the wine bottle, but I shook my head. “I’ll do it,” he said, “but you’ll have to do something in exchange.”
“I figured. What?” My magic coiled into a hard pulsing knot deep in my gut, and I curled my hands around the wineglass.
He flexed the hand that had held the bottle, a tight wince flashing over his face. Was he injured? “Kill Topher.”
I jerked, sloshing alcohol onto the bar top.
The vamp’s calm expression didn’t change as he wiped it up, but he took his eyes off me, giving me a brief respite in having to keep up appearances.
“Absolutely not,” I said.
“Why not?” He glanced up, but I had my pleasantly interested expression firmly in place. “You killed Lindsey.”
My first vampire death. I didn’t regret it exactly, since it had been her or me, but I wasn’t jonesing to make it a regular occurrence. Besides, after all I’d done to save Topher Sharma, I wasn’t about to hasten his demise.
If I said no outright, Yoshi could refuse to help me. Let’s see. Tatiana’s last employee, Max, had been killed by a vampire named Kirk whom Yoshi had been sent to hunt down. That gave me an idea.
“No problem,” I said. “I’ll just follow the example you set with Kirk.”
Yoshi shot me a puzzled look.
“I’ll wait, like you did with Max. You remember him, right? The man you stood there and let Kirk murder instead of intervening seconds earlier to kill Kirk and save Max’s life? Hmm.” I drummed my fingertips on the bar. “Waiting fifty years sounds good. Do we have a deal?”
Yoshi slapped a hand down on the bar with a delighted expression. “The kitten finally shows her claws. And if I stipulated it had to be done immediately?”
“Forget it.”
“Convincing the Sharmas to let Topher be turned wasn’t a way of earning their gratitude, was it? And you won’t sacrifice him now to gain something more valuable.” He pursed his lips thoughtfully.
“Unlike some,” I said icily, “who don’t care who they kill or who condone murder when they could have prevented it, I don’t take murder lightly.”
“Now that’s a simplistic reduction,” he said.
“I can’t wait to hear how.” I propped my elbow on the bar.
“It all comes back to sides and how choosing one isn’t as simple as you make it out to be.” I must not have looked impressed enough at his explanation because his lips quirked. “Think of it like this then. It’s about how your truth affects things around you and whether it aligns.”
“Even though I was mistaken about who the demon was, the Succubus allowed me to cross because the truth of my actual goal, to help an Ohrist, aligned with Carpe Demon’s mission statement?”
Yoshi held up his glass in cheers. “The missing woman? I can find her. Or whatever of her there is to be found, but if you’re on Topher’s side, then I won’t. And that means going to the Lonestars or Carpe Demon. You’ve been hired to do a job and Tatiana prizes her professional reputational above all else. So, tell me, Miriam, which side takes priority? Which truth? The one that values life, even Topher’s? Or the one that doesn’t conflict with Tatiana and your duty to this case?”
“What’s your problem with Topher? He can’t be such a pain in the ass that you want him dead.”
