Max’s eyes flashed, but Guy cut him off.

“Enough. Max knows what I think.” Guy cut a look his way. “If Jess can pull it off, all the power to her, but Cabals don’t give away free educations. As long as she knows that, and she’s careful…” He shrugged. “Maybe it’ll work out.”

He passed around the pizza box as Jaz and Tony grabbed a second beer, and I could tell the conversation was going to shift away from Cabals.

“So if you work for a Cabal, they’ll pay for college?” I asked.

“Uh-uh.” Guy wagged a finger at Max. “See what you started?”

“Hey, I didn’t start—”

“Yes,” Guy said, twisting to face me. “A Cabal will pay for your degree, in return for years of indentured servitude slaving in their cubicles. If you decide you don’t want to have Mommy and Daddy pay for your education, then we’ll talk about extending your stay. You’d be better off earning your tuition here than getting yourself indebted to a Cabal. Working for me is a whole lot safer.”

“And funner,” Jaz said.

Sonny put his head in his hands and groaned.

“As you can see, there’s at least one gang member who’ll never leave me for college.” Guy put his elbows on the table, leaning toward me. “Seriously, Faith, Cabal life isn’t a route you want to take. Max’s girlfriend—sorry, friend—is a shaman. They’re a dime a dozen. If she’s careful, she can probably quit after a few years, no hard feelings, no bounty for her scalp. But an Expisco half-demon?” He shook his head. “If they get you, they’ll never let you go. Employee for life.”

“But if I’m so valuable, they’d pay me accordingly, right?”

“Have you got a price in mind? Proper compensation for your freedom? Your free will? Because that’s what they’ll demand. Yes, they’ll pay—they’ll pay for you as a commodity, not as a human being, because to them, that’s all you—”

“Oh, God, please, no.” Tony dropped his head to the table, then looked over at me. “You had to get him started, didn’t you?”

Guy pegged him in the head with a bottle cap. “Okay, okay. It’s Rodriguez’s celebration. No more talk of Cabals. That’s an order. You’ve got exactly ten minutes to goof off, then we need to get down to business and talk about tonight.” To me, he added, “If you want to continue this conversation, today’s a write-off, but grab me tomorrow. Don’t even consider Cabal employment until you’ve talked to me, okay?”

“I will.”