Cerulean Sins by Laurell K. Hamilton

third of our triumvirate of power; Ulfric to Jean-Claude’s Master of the City, and my necromancer. Richard was Jean-Claude’s animal to call, and I was his human servant, whether we liked it, or whether we didn’t. I also called Micah Callahan who was my Nimir-Raj and took care of all the shape-shifters when I was off doing other things. I was so often embroiled in other things, I needed the help. Micah was also my boyfriend, along with Jean-Claude. Neither of them seemed to mind, though it still made me uncomfortable. I was raised to believe that a girl didn’t date two people at once, at least not seriously.
    I got only machines, and left messages that were as succinct and calm as I could make them. How do you leave phone messages like this? “Hi, Micah, this is Anita, Musette has come to town early, invading Jean-Claude’s territory. Asher and I are driving to the Circus now, if you don’t hear from me by dawn, send help. But don’t come down to the Circus before that unless I call personally. The fewer people in the line of fire, the better.” I let Asher leave the message on Richard’s machine, sometimes he erased messages from me without listening to them. It depended on how bad a mood he was in that day. Though he’d dumped me, not the other way around, he acted like the wounded party and blamed me for everything. I gave him as wide a berth as I could, but there were times, like now, whenwe were probably going to have to work together to keep all our people alive and healthy. Survival took precedence over emotional pain. It had to. I hoped Richard remembered that.
    The Circus of the Damned was a combination of a live action drama with frightening themes; traditional, if macabre, circus performances; a carnival complete with rides, games, corn dogs, funnel cakes; and a side show that would give even me nightmares.
    Behind the Circus was dark and quiet. The calliope music that blared out front was a distant dream back here. Once upon a time I’d only come to the Circus to kill vampires. Now I used the employee parking lot. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
    I was actually a few steps from the Jeep, when I realized that Asher was still sitting in the car, immobile. I sighed and went back to the car. I had to tap on his window to get him to look at me. I half expected him to jump, but he didn’t. He just turned his face slowly towards me like someone in a nightmare who knows if they move too fast the monster will get them.
    I expected him to open the door, but he just stared at me. I took a deep breath and counted slowly. I did not have time to hold his emotional wounds closed. Jean-Claude, my sweetie, was down under the Circus, entertaining the bogeyman of vampire-kind. Asher had told me no harm had come to anyone, yet. But I wouldn’t actually believe it until I saw Jean-Claude, touched his hand. As much as I cared for Asher, I did not have time for this. None of us did.
    I opened the door for him. Still, he did not move. “Asher, don’t fall apart on me here. We need you tonight.”
    He shook his head. “You must know. Anita, Jean-Claude didn’t send me to you because I travel faster than anyone else. He sent me to get me away from her.”
    â€œAre you not supposed to go back in?” I asked.
    He shook his head again, all those golden waves swimming around his face. His eyes were their normal ice-blue in the dome light. “I am his témoin, his second, I must go back inside.”
    â€œThen you’re going to have to get out of the Jeep,” I said.
    He looked down at his hands, limp in his lap. “I know.” But he still didn’t move.
    I put one hand on the door and the other on the roof, leaning in towards him. “Asher . . . if you can’t do this, then fly to my house, hide in the basement, we’ve got an extra coffin.”
    He did look up then. There was anger in his face. “Let you go in