26

"I would have thought the childe would have more sense," Corliss says with a sniff. "She's spent too much time away from the Court. Perhaps I should have taken a firmer hand with her. Thank you for informing me, Mekuztli. Your honesty is greatly appreciated." She looks over a sheet of paper on her desk for a few silent seconds before returning her attention to you. "Two missions, two childer. As my eldest is currently absent, you may choose and the remaining assignment will go to Lucca."

She holds up her index finger. "First, if the Prince meant to leave the city in secret, it's likely he would take the sewers—he's far too recognizable. Many Blue Bloods would never consider such a thing, but Arundel never held himself above us Nosferatu. I need you or Lucca to visit the Primogen, Bouchard, in his lair. Question him—gently—about any unusual activity he may have learned about in his domain."

Corliss holds up another finger. "Second, I need one of you to speak to one of our elder Ventrue at her estate. Vivian Maier was the last of us to meet with Arundel according to the Prince's personal agenda. Anything she can tell us about that night could be vital to discovering the Prince's location."

You set off immediately, discretely accessing the sewer system through an alley several blocks removed from Eden Corliss's office building that you know is close to the Sewer Rat's domain. You look up at the grime-encrusted ceiling as you descend the ladder, managing to spot one of the tiny, well-disguised cameras your clanmates utilize to track guests, both welcome and unwelcome. You have little doubt that it has already scanned you and verified your identity. The security precautions bring up a question you're surprised Corliss hadn't addressed: If Arundel disappeared through the sewers, wouldn't there have been a record of him passing through? As Seneschal, she could have easily looked up the records from the last few weeks. Or does the Prince have his own personal ways of entering and exiting this subterranean labyrinth that no one else knows about?

You've grown intimately familiar with the sewers over the decades of your un-life, as your disfigured appearance often necessitates travel underground. There were times where you resented the secrecy—slogging through the sewers while other Kindred mingle with kine up above—but you'd grown to appreciate your domain and the privacy it affords you. The benefits are tangible and even the stench no longer gives you pause. You let Uuntezazk out of your pouch and he scurries along beside you, stretching his scrawny legs, claws clicking on the concrete.

Knowledge of the sewer comes in handy when tracking down particular locations that might give other vampires issues, and you find yourself outside the Primogen's lair in excellent time. You hear movement within—a voice muttering to itself—and you decide to wait for a moment on the threshold. Moments later, the door opens, revealing, not Bouchard, but a short, squat goblin of a creature, hands clutching a sheaf of paperwork.

"Shawn!" you exclaim. The goblin-like Nosferatu stops muttering to himself and looks up at you with beady brown eyes. His face is red with splashes of advanced acne, large boils, and an unnaturally long, protruding nose. You can't help but wonder what he's doing here, especially after hearing about his dispute with Bouchard concerning the clan's dominance over modern technology. "Is Bouchard in?" you ask. "I need to speak with him."

"The boss stepped out for a moment," Shawn says, his eyes darting this way and that furtively. "Head on inside. He should return presently."