Ruby was in a good mood so she fluttered back and forth in front of him excitedly. "Yeah! You need somewhere to stick all the money I made for you today! Do you want to know how much? Do you? Do you? It's a lot; you'll be impressed!"

Her enthusiasm seemed to wake him up more fully. He smiled and said, "Sure. Tell me."

"$1.2 million, baby! Am I amazing or am I amazing?" she preened. "How much do you need, anyway? You never said."

Ash didn't seem as surprised as she thought he would. "That's great. Thanks, Ruby. And honestly…I'm not sure."

Ruby gaped at him. How could he not be sure?! Did he have any sort of plan for this money at all or was he winging it? She needed to know how much he needed so she could fulfill their deal and go their separate ways.

The fire fairies were a bit more rambunctious than she had bargained for so she wasn't sure she wanted to stay here long-term after all. And there really was no greenery in this barren place, which was depressing.

Maybe she could go on a tour around the country seeing as many national parks and forests as possible and drop by big cities now and then to try good food and make more money at high-end jewelers'. That could be fun. Fun and lonely but that was beside the point.

Ruby truly hadn't intended to pry into his business since Ash hadn't pried into hers but if he told her what he needed the money for it might give her a better idea of how much she still had to get. If she didn't have a concrete amount in mind this partners.h.i.+p would go on indefinitely.

Part of her wouldn't mind that because it was nice feeling like she had a friend. But she knew that it wasn't meant to last.

Both of them had things to do and their schedules really weren't compatible. Their alliance was always supposed to be temporary. She could go back and visit him occasionally using the deal as an excuse but that was it.

"Ash…can you tell me what you need the money for? You don't have to be specific but it might help me figure out how much you need," Ruby said gently.

He looked up at her with that haunted look in his eyes again. "I have rich and powerful enemies but I don't know exactly how rich. I need enough money that I can defeat them."

Wow. That was so much more personal information than she bargained for and it was still pretty vague. What kind of powerful enemies could a vampire have? Unless they were other vampires.

Was he running from his old coven after discovering some horrible secret about them? Or was he a traitor who wanted to protect himself from those he betrayed? Her imagination ran wild with possibilities.

It didn't really matter since Ruby had promised to help him no matter what. It wasn't like he was plotting world domination or anything.

"How many are there?" she asked plainly.

"Sixty-something. I'm not sure of their exact numbers. All I know is that they're powerful and are located somewhere in the forests of Was.h.i.+ngton State that will be nearly impossible to find," Ash said grimly as his eyes flashed with bloodl.u.s.t.

Nearly impossible to find…they were definitely other vampires. The blood barrier was the only spell Ruby ever heard of that could hide an entire lair. Had he really made it all the way down to the castle he now called home on foot from Was.h.i.+ngton?

Her heart ached for him. Whatever he went through to get here must have been really hard for him to be this upset. She had a suspicion it involved death somehow after she way he snapped at her for making light of dying.

Going up against that many vampires by himself was suicide. He would need a lot of help and that sort of help required capital. Tons of it.

Ruby wasn't about to let him die on her watch. She could stay here a few more weeks and try to summon a few more sacks of precious stones to make pricey jewelry with. At least then Ash would be able to hire himself some more physically capable allies.

Fairies were not fighters. Their wings were far too vulnerable for that; a downed fairy was a dead fairy.

"I can take care of that for you," she said firmly. "Give me a little more time and I'll make you rich enough to beat anyone."

Ash tilted his head, an unfathomable expression on his face. "Why would you do that for me?"

He seemed so lost and sad that Ruby instinctively reached out to grasp his hands. "Because you're my friend, Ash. And friends don't let friends do stupid things alone. I won't be able to go with you but I can make sure there are stronger people to take my place."

He suddenly stood and startled her by wrapping his arms around her back, being mindful of her wings. She could feel his fangs pressed up against her shoulder as he buried his face in it.

"Thank you," Ash said quietly. "For the record, I think of you as a friend too."

Her heart thudded in her chest. A friend. It was the first time someone told her they considered her that way. She might not be able to be herself around him but she knew he cared based on how carefully he treated her. That would have to be enough.

Part of Ruby wished that the moment could last forever but the other part of her was so embarra.s.sed by being hugged that she wanted it over with immediately. The only other person who has hugged her in decades was Flora.

She pulled away first, unable to meet his eyes. "We should get going. The elf I talked to earlier today is expecting us so we shouldn't make him wait."

Ash nodded and silently followed her out the door.

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