---

Down in the cellar with the candles lit, he traces a circle around his ingenue's frame.

She regains conciousness naked on the pentagram. Tears in his eyes. The knife in hand. The offspring's body just a yard away. Gray and still. Motionless, not for long.

The son does not rise. Eyes still closed. There's not enough blood. The bounty is insufficient.

There is no bargain.

Teeth clank against the barrel.

The lord will deliver.

He'll accept this trade.