Mercy's Debt (Montgomery's Vampires Series Book One) by Sloan Archer

Mercy?”
    Stephano smiled. “Not at all.”
    “Okay, Mercy,” Michael said to me. “Keep your eyes on Stephano. Are you ready?”
    I focused my gaze on the boy , playing along. I expected him to stand on his toes and pretend to levitate, or bare his teeth and hiss at me over his invisible cape, the embodiment of every vampire cliché known to man. No matter what he did, of course I’d feign being utterly astounded by his great feat. Anything to get the hell out of there.
    “Yes,” I muttered. “I’m ready.”
    Michael nodded his head once, giving Stephano the go-ahead.
    A nd then Stephano was gone.
    “Where did he go?” I whispered.
    Michael and Marlena smiled, casually pointing skyward. I glanced up and let out a shriek. Stephano was lounging on the ceiling, his chin resting on his hands in a nonchalant pose.
    “Hi, Mercy,” he said. He looked down at me and winked, wriggling his fingers at me playfully.
    “Holy shit!” I screamed. I jumped up suddenly, knocking my chair over. It hit the coffee table with a whack, slopping my cappuccino over its side.
    I ran in the direction of the door, but didn’t get too far on my gelatinous legs. Seeing dozens of white flecks dancing before my eyes, I shook my head back and forth dazedly. Michael and Marlena ran to my side and eased me down onto the sofa. Michael placed a satin pillow behind my head. Marlena fanned my face with a magazine.
    “Do you think she believes us now?” Michael asked.
    I nodded my he ad once, shadows enveloping my view of the ceiling.

 
    SIX
     
    I came to minutes later, momentarily confused by the taupe ceiling above me. I nearly forgot where I was until I discovered the three sets of spectral eyes peering down at me anxiously.
    Michael was at my side in an instant. “Are you alright, dear?” he said. The doting grandmother was back.
    I sat up. “I’m fine. Really,” I said. “You took me by surprise is all.”
    Stephano and Marlena stared at me like I was a poisonous creature about to pounce.
    I still couldn’t process what I had just witnessed. I just couldn’t. I needed a moment to think.
    I sat in sile nce, taking a few cleansing breaths. Once I felt relatively whole again, I lifted the cup off the coffee table, gulping down what was left of my cappuccino. My three companions gaped at me in amazement.
    “Okay,” I said, pulling down the skirt of my dress. “Assuming that I haven’t lost my mind, and that I’m not hallucinating, let me try to get this straight. You three are… vampires?” I felt ridiculous even saying the word.
    Micha el nodded. “Yes, and-”
    I held up my hand and shushed him. Stephano let out a chuckle. This amused him, me silencing Michael.
    “Right. So, as I was saying, the three of you are vampires, you run a business for other vampires, and you want me to work for you as chaperone to these vampires. Is that right?”
    Michael and Marlena nodded. Stephan o smiled. “I like her,” he smirked. “She’s a spitfire.”
    Taking no notice of him, I continued. “What I don’t understand is what you need me for. Why would any vampire want to hang out with a human, if not to eat them?”
    “That’s a very good question, ” Marlena said. Her voice was one of a politician. “As you can imagine, vampires wish to continue going unnoticed. However, with the advent of technology like the internet and camera phones, it’s becoming more and more difficult for us to remain underground.”
    “Wait,” I interrupted. “How many of you are there?” I had so many questions that I wanted answered, now feeling more curious than scared.
    Marlena shrugged. “I honestly don’t know how many vampires there are in the world. I imagine that there are thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands.”
    “I don’t believe it,” I murmured.
    “Oh, believe it, Mercy,” Stephano chimed in. “We’re everywhere. Most humans don’t tend to notice us, as we can only come out after sunset.”
    “T hat whole bit about