Free Unbound by Jim C. Hines

contained within your blood, your memories and experiences, even your magic. For more than a hundred years, I’ve sampled kings and paupers, sea serpents and sorcerers. All blood has power. With mundane blood, I can heal my body, extend my life, and more. But the blood of a libriomancer is potent indeed.”
    I almost told him Gutenberg had locked my magic, so my blood was likely to be disappointing. But why undercut my own bargaining position? “What else?”
    “An equal amount of your dryad’s blood.”
    “No deal.” I tried and failed to keep the anger from my tone, but that only seemed to amuse him. “I can’t pay you what’s not mine to give. I’ll give you 400 milliliters of mine instead.”
    “I’ve tasted libriomancers before, but the dryad would be a new flavor. I’m told she’s book-born?” He nibbled a hangnail on his thumb. “Very well. What can you offer me in her place?”
    Without magic, it was a painfully short list. I assumed money wouldn’t interest him, and I didn’t have all that much anyway. I wondered if he’d ever tried siren blood. But I couldn’t in good conscience barter Euphemia’s blood any more than I could Lena’s.
    There was Smudge, resting in his cage behind the front desk. Though he probably wasn’t resting anymore. Hopefully Mahefa’s presence hadn’t upset Smudge enough to set him alight. The lack of shouting was a good sign.
    Smudge had been hurt last month, and the fluid from his wound looked and behaved much like kerosene. But I wasn’t about to jab a needle into him and let Mahefa have a taste.
    Mahefa’s eyes narrowed as the silence grew. A bead of blood swelled from his hangnail. His tongue flicked out to capture it. “How badly do you need this, Isaac?”
    “Lena isn’t a possession to be bargained.”
    Amusement lightened his reply. “That’s not what I’ve heard.”
    All things considered, it was probably a good thing I wasn’t armed. He watched me, obviously enjoying my struggle.
    “Shouldn’t this be Lena’s decision, not yours?” he pressed. “If you truly consider her a person, why are you making the choice for her?”
    I definitely wanted to shoot this guy. Yet there was truth to his barb. Was it my place to refuse on her behalf? Reluctantly, I said, “I could ask her.”
    “Excellent.” He wiped his thumb on his suit jacket. “Shall we?”
    “Right now?”
    He looked surprised. “I thought this was important.”
    “What about the third favor?”
    “All things in time.” He gestured toward the doorway.
    Dammit, Jennifer was going to kill me. I headed for her office, where she was sorting through budget paperwork. “I have an emergency I need to take care of.”
    “Another one?” she asked without looking up.
    “This is Mahefa. He’s my insurance adjuster. He’s finally getting around to assessing the damage to my house from last month.”
    “Your house looked fine the last time I drove past,” she said. “That would be two weeks ago, by the way. When you hadn’t called or come in for two days, I decided to swing by and make sure you weren’t dead.”
    Mahefa cleared his throat. “Isaac, would you like me to—”
    “No!” I didn’t know what powers he might have to manipulate minds, but I didn’t want any of them in my library. “Jennifer, I’ll make up the hours.”
    “No, you won’t.” Her shoulders slumped. With a sigh, she pushed her paperwork aside and focused her attention on me. “You’ve been with this library longer than I have, and you’re
good
at your job. One of the best people I have. When you’re
here
. I’ve tried to be flexible, and I’ve cut you as much slack as I could.
    “I was happy to fight to get you a full-time position, but this isn’t working. Even when you show up, your mind is elsewhere. I’m not the only one who’s noticed. I don’t want to be the bad guy, but I have to think of what’s best for the library, and for the staff as a whole.”
    “Are you
firing
me?”