"So, Daniel," the vampire mused, "Vot iss it you think you can offer me?"
I waited 'til he'd finished chuckling; I had little choice, limb-bound as I was to a huge candle-lit altar.
"Power," I said, prolonging his chuckling fit, "and all I ask is that you make me immortal."
"But, Daniel, I haff all the power I need. The night belongzz to me!"
"Yes, but what about the daytime?" I countered, trying to hide my desperation.
"Vot good iss that ven I could neffer reffel in that power?"
He wanted something; I'd be dead already if not.
I had to guess what, tested, like many probable others before me.
"Safety, during daylight hours," I said, leveraging the longing in his last response.
"But my kingdom iss impregnable. A 'Reinfield' on guard vud garner more ssusspicion than already existsss."
That was two clues; was he purposefully dropping hints?
"What if someone — me, for example — could vet your victims during the day: high flyers, influencers, the deserving?" I asked.
He smirked; I was getting warmer. "Go on…" he said, suddenly wistful.
"Your feasting would no longer be limited to society's dregs: the winos, druggies, the bereft and pitiful," I said. "I could deliver you a, well, richer diet."
"You'd betray your peerzz to me for immortality?" he asked, knowing I would. "You should be ashamed."
I shrugged, as much as my bonds would allow, and asked, "When do I start?"
My bonds snapped, seemingly of their own volition.
"You haff von veek'ss trial," he said, disappearing through an imperceptible doorway. All that remained to prove he'd been there was the echoing, "Shut the door after you."
I guess I was hired, then. Time to start a recruitment drive of my own!
/end
© Jason Darrell, 2022
Image: Waldkunst, Pixabay
The Brief
Thanks for dropping by to read another of my bashes at flash fiction.
[Editor's note]: this was my first submission to Secret Attic. Sadly, it failed the brief:
- I used more than one of the prompts;
- I sent my submission a day late.
This 300-word short story was in response to Secret Attic's call for their Weekly Write competition (Week 47, 2021).
TL;DR:
- choose one from one of three lines of dialogue:
- use it exactly as per the prompt to create a piece of flash fiction;
- 300 words maximum;
- winning/selected pieces may be published in the subsequent Secret Attic booklet;
- unpublished works only.
You can find some of my earlier more successful entries (flash and longer short stories) in Secret Attic booklets:
Buying the booklets helps the site owners/judges (I am neither) maintain it, and provide a voice for indie authors that would otherwise go unheard.
Your support would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a million!
p.s.Fancy using some of my flash fiction in an anthology? Drop me a line at jasond1888 [at] gmail [dot] com to discuss. Thank you.
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