I pushed the letter toward Reg. The rest of it detailed our overeager feeding on a teenage boy and the shame we supposedly felt over risking exposure for our kind. It did not explain how tasty this particular boy was and how all vampires got a little carried away sometimes without being punished and that the Elders only used this as an excuse to exile us for being young. Reg assured me that adding those details would not help our case.

“I wish I could remember all the bylaws regarding appeals,” Reg said, tapping his calligraphy pen against his lips.

“They didn’t spell all that out for you at your trial?” Sal asked.

Reg and I responded in unison. “What trial?”

“Reg confessed,” I added.

“And had I not, they would have pulled the memories from our minds anyway,” Reg said. “I thought a guilty plea might at least show some goodwill and regret.”

Sal snorted. “Goodwill. Guess you see how far that got you.”

“Well, what do you suggest, then?” I asked.

“Me? I suggest you stay human.” He held the piece of wood at eye level, squinting as he inspected his work. “But if you’re set on an appeal, you’ll need a sponsor.”

“What kind of sponsor?” Reg asked.

“A representative from one of the clans to stand for you. It’s a minimum requirement for appeal. No sponsor, no dice. Best bet is to get someone from your own house.”

“Yeah, right,” I muttered.

Reg and I had asked every last member of the Bone Clan, from House Drake to House Archibald, to testify to our good character, in hopes of receiving a lighter sentence. Every last one had refused. If they weren’t willing to help us when we had been kin, I highly doubted they would help us now that we were mere mortals.

So much for family.

“But technically, the sponsor doesn’t have to be Bone Clan?” Reg asked.

Sal shook his head. “Any vamp will do.”

Reg fidgeted with his pen and inkpot. “So, we look to the other clans.”

I wrinkled my nose. “But nobody likes us.”

“That’s because the Bones are elitist,” Sal said. “Can’t go around looking down on everyone, then expect them to come to your rescue.”

I sat up stiff in my chair. “Excuse me, but we are not elitist. Some vampires are just better than others.”

Reg cleared his throat. “What Charlie means to say is that the Bone Clan has been wise over the centuries about cultivating and carefully maintaining wealth and does not feel it should be responsible for the financial support of other clanships.”

Well, that wasn’t exactly what I meant to say, but close enough. I narrowed my eyes, daring Sal to argue, but he didn’t. He just ran his blade down the edge of his stake-like fence post, shaving off a thin curl of wood.