13

You already know all the reasons," Julian said. "This work will destroy us, one way or another. We need money, Menas Blackburn. That's the ugly truth. All my brilliance and all your… um, you know how to fix cars, I think. Anyway, all of that won't help us if we don't have a couple thousand bucks and some convincing IDs, will it? But if we can get that—just that—we can get away from all this. I'll even buy a new car and let you keep the Tracker. But we need money."

A hot desert wind whipped Julian's black hair around his head as he counted the gallons of water. The Camarilla gave you a job they considered necessary, even vital. Desperate migrants stumbled through this part of the desert, fleeing violence in Mexico and Central America for the promise of a better life in the States. Without water, many died. Aid groups dropped water and supplies for the migrants.

The year before, the Camarilla had infiltrated and supplanted one of those aid groups, replacing their members with…you and Julian. Your job: position the water above the scattered lairs of the Nosferatu elder, the one known only as Reremouse. The victims he claimed would give him enough blood to prevent his full awakening.

"This sucks," Julian said as you checked the GPS coordinates on your Garmin. "I mean, I know what we are. I know what we do to survive. But this is just so…so stupid! It's inefficient and wasteful. This was how the world ran two or three centuries ago, Menas Blackburn, before anyone invented flowcharts or assembly lines."