Free Bloody Acquisitions (Fred Book 3) by Drew Hayes

obvious when she was trying to choose her words.
    “Because in this town, we’re safe.” Krystal walked back into the bathroom, pulling out her toiletries kit and grabbing a stick of deodorant. “Aside from the petty bullshit that any place has, there’s no real crime here. No outside threats, either. You probably got a hint of how strong Leeroy is, and his deputies are no joke. Boarback is peaceful. Fun, too. After the diner, if there’s time before sunrise, we’ll hike up to Cervain’s Lake. It’s so clear you can see the moon’s reflection like you’re looking into the sky.”
    Nice as that sounded, I still couldn’t help but feel like she was changing the subject, though from what, I had no idea. There was just something defensive about her excitement, like she was trying extra hard to sell me on how much she loved this place.
    “And during the day, we can take the tunnels around to check out the shops. They’ve got all kinds of unique items here, handmade, the stuff you’d have to special order in the outside world. Some of the craftsmen out here are incredible; we hire them as independent contractors for the Agency sometimes. Of course, given our reputation, not many take us up on it, even with all the perks doing contract work provides. Oh, and everything is parahuman owned, obviously. They get a pretty good deal on land and lodging out here, so it’s a big sell for starting local businesses.”
    At last, it all fell into place. There were many things about which Krystal would happily talk with neither prompting nor explanation, but the viability of starting a small business was not one of them. That was for my benefit, and I could only see one reason why she would bother to give me such information.
    “Krystal,” I said, walking over so that she could see me from the bathroom. “I do run my own company, you know. I’m perfectly aware of what a sales pitch sounds like.”
    The deodorant paused, all the confirmation I needed, then she let out a sigh and finished applying. Putting the cap back on the white chalky stick, she faced me, a rare solemn expression on her face. “This is a good town, Fred. Lots of parahumans with businesses who could use a talented accountant. Internet to let you work with your old clients. Nice, quiet people who want what you’ve always wanted: a normal, peaceful life.”
    “And no hunters suddenly showing up to try and kill me,” I added.
    “You think that’s why I’m trying to sell you on Boarback? Fred, that guy was a chump. If you’d had to, you could have taken him apart. He’s not—” Her words halted, and she looked away from me, just for a few seconds. “You know the vampire who made you, Quinn, was a real rat bastard, right?”
    “Seeing as he tried to kill all of us and successfully ripped your throat out, I won’t be jumping to his aid anytime soon,” I said.
    “Well, it turns out that he was also a real, territorial rat bastard. The reason we’ve seen so little vampire activity in Winslow is because it was considered Quinn’s, and he didn’t like to share. But word got out that he finally went too far and stepped against the Agency, so now he’s on the run. That means other vampires have begun moving back in, retaking the territory that Quinn used to hold. Places like Winslow.” Krystal walked over to the pants she’d traveled in and began digging through the pockets.
    “I don’t understand, is that why you want me to relocate? Fear of other vampires? You’ve gone out of your way to tell me that we’re not all bad, that you work with several who are good people. Why does more vampires coming to town automatically make you want to hide me away?”
    “Plenty of vampires
are
decent people,” Krystal replied, finally locating her phone and yanking it out from the pocket it was lodged in. “But you know who usually aren’t? The ones who go around seizing another vampire’s territory after he goes on the lamb. Those are the ambitious