“How did you…”
She held up her hand. “Not now. You need to hurry up. I have a bad feeling that the night’s about to turn into a bloodbath.” She had fastened a rope to a nook in the tree and held it out to them. “I’ll wait down here until you’re all secured up there.”
“I’ll wait with you,” Harry offered.
“I’ll be fine. You guys need to get a move on. Keep your weapons close and use your night vision goggles.”
The odor of impending doom hung heavy in the air and she wanted the men out of the way when she had to fight these beings. When the last man was up in the tree, she yanked the rope a few times and it was pulled up. Now she had to find another lookout point. Somewhere close, but not close enough to give away the location of the men. This time of the night the jungle was a little quieter. The curious capuchin monkeys were asleep and only the soundless nocturnal creatures were hunting in the undergrowth. She was sizing up a tree, scouting it for a lookout, when she heard it. She quickly cloaked herself as she pressed up against the tree trunk. It was a soft shuffle, like something being dragged on the jungle floor. Listening closely, she could make out the same noise in two more locations. That was not a sound she could identify and she had deciphered over hundreds of sounds when she had spent the night in the jungle for just that purpose. The sounds were closing in on her position and she considered leading them away from the men. But she couldn’t do that if she didn’t know what it was that was stalking them.
The sounds came to an abrupt halt. Now there was the rustling of leaves and heavy footfalls. She frowned. What kind of animal could make those sounds? She was again confused when the dragging sounds started again. She was so incredibly relieved to be stuck in this situation with soldiers. They knew to be quiet and she appreciated that. They were anyway so high up that they could barely see what was happening on the jungle floor.
She rolled her eyes when she sensed another presence nearby. A vampire. The same vampire who had been stalking her in the town. As if she didn’t have enough on her hands already. The presence grew closer and closer until she was almost upon her. Syria studied the woman as she walked right past her, her eyes piercing the darkness. With her face turned away, she couldn’t make a clear identification. But that didn’t matter. You didn’t follow someone around unless it was with nefarious intentions in mind. Just as Syria had made up her mind to incapacitate the vampire, the dense foliage parted.
A strange, lizard-like creature stepped out, its beady eyes zeroing in on the blonde vampire. His scaly face pulled into something that resembled a smile; the act eerily familiar.
Chuey!
XII
Tahlia walked around the room, her eyes wide in disbelief. Jemima stood in the center, watching her. After a while, Tahlia turned to look at Jemima.
“Are these…?”
“Yes, they are all of you.”
Tahlia walked over to one particular painting. All the paintings displayed body parts and shadowy curves. They were simply exquisite. “Is this how you see me?”
The heels of Jemima’s boots sounded loud in the hollow room as she came to stand next to Tahlia to look at the painting. It showed the underside of a breast with a tiny baby hand pressed against the nipple. “Yes.”
Smiling, Tahlia moved to the next one. She was laying on her stomach, a slender hand with red tipped nails grabbing a handful of her derriere. Tahlia felt a sliver of desire gathering in the pit of her stomach. She avoided looking at Jemima, lest the other woman see it in her eyes. The next painting showed a shoulder with scratches and teeth marks. She swallowed hard and looked at Jemima, this time not caring if her want was clear in her eyes.
“How come I didn’t know of this exhibition?”
“I told you about it,” Jemima murmured, her pupils dilated. “…you were distracted at the time.”
Tahlia raked her brain and found the memory. What was the purpose of a long existence, if one had a spotty memory? Yes, she remembered. She had to leave for a trip to Canada with Paloma to inspect a series of inexplicable vampire-like murders in a remote town there. Jemima had awakened with ravenous need and even though it had made Tahlia late, she couldn’t resist her wife’s charms.
“You seem to always catch me at the most inappropriate times.”
Jemima smiled as she took Tahlia’s hand. “That’s the best time, my darling.”
A soft footfall brought the director of the gallery to their side. “We are flooded with requests and offers for the pieces.” Gloria deVries was the daughter of a human Consortium member. Her father, an expert art restoration specialist, was a longtime friend of Jemima’s and as a toddler, Gloria had grown up running down the gallery’s hallways. “Are you sure they’re not for sale?”
Jemima smiled as she shook her head. “Not everything in life has a price tag, dear Ria.”
The woman glanced at Tahlia and blushed. “It will break our clients’ hearts, but I understand. “If you have a few minutes, there are some things I need to discuss with you.”
Jemima gave Tahlia a warm look. “I won’t be long.” She followed Gloria in the direction of the offices. “Have you managed to book the two artists you told me about?”
“Yes, both said…” The conversation faded as they entered the admin section of the gallery. Tahlia returned her attention to the paintings. The entire exhibition was quite risqué. No wonder they had a warning sign outside. Tahlia cocked her head as she inspected another painting.
“What do you think? If you were to buy one of these, which would it be?” she asked quietly.
The newcomer came to stand next to her. They studied the paintings together. “It’s a difficult choice to make, but I would go for that one.” She pointed at the one with the baby’s hand on her breast. “It’s sexy, but at the same time conveys a great deal of maternal love.”
“Good choice. I like that one, too.” Tahlia turned to face the woman. “Now tell me,” her eyes growing sharp. “What brings you here, Nimiri?”
†
The air seemed to stand still as Chuey and the blonde vampire faced off. Syria didn’t want to give her presence away just yet. This standoff could be quite enlightening. Particularly with regards to who the vampire was and why she had been following Syria. Chuey stretched his neck, the scales rattling as they scraped off each other. He looked a few inches taller than his normal height, which still made the vampire taller than him.
“You smell like the other one. Who are you?” Chuey’s words were heavily slurred as he asked the question around a nine-inch long, black tongue. That was why, even in human form, his speech was slightly garbled, Syria noted.
“Someone who despises bullies,” the vampire snapped as she settled into a threatening stance. “Who are you?”
Chuey tried to laugh. Idiot! Everyone knows that reptiles can’t laugh. It sounded more like he was choking on his own tongue.
“I’m your worst nightmare.”
“Oh,” the vampire moved so her back was not pointed at the dark jungle anymore. Smart girl. Anything that came at her, would have to do so in the clearing. She seemed to have been well-trained. “We’ll see about that, lizard.”
Chuey’s tongue rolled out quickly before it snapped back in his mouth. “I’m not lizard. I’m El Comedor.”
Syria rolled her eyes at that. The Eater? How original. The blonde vampire snorted at that and Chuey took a threatening step closer. She was baiting him and the pompous idiot was falling for that.
“I will eat your dead heart out of your chest for laughing at me,” Chuey said in a tone that was gaining a higher pitch.
“You have to admit, that as far as nicknames go, lizard, yours is by far the lamest.”
Chuey had had enough. He charged at the vampire, but just before he reached her, three huge Komodo dragons broke through the greenery and attacked her. Friend or foe, two vampires against these creatures were better than one. She dropped her cloaking and intercepted Chuey. His eyes registered surprise
at her sudden appearance. She extended her arm and caught him high up in the neck. The momentum of his charge did the rest. He flipped through the air and landed with a thud on his face. She didn’t have long to savor the moment, for his powerful tail slammed into her stomach, tossing her a few feet away. She quickly shot to her feet. Teeth, tail and claws. Good, she knew what to look out for now. Chuey was up and this time he looked more than ready for her. Syria used preternatural speed and popped up behind him. She stepped on his tail and landed a hard punch to the back of his skull. She quickly moved away as he fell forward. The ensuing battle behind her sounded fierce and she turned to see that although the vampire was holding her own pretty well, she had taken quite a few knocks. Syria joined her and tackled the nearest lizard by delivering a hard kick to its head. Dazed, the creature stumbled on wobbly legs and Syria moved over to the next one. The two had managed to somehow wrestle the vampire to the ground. She held one away from snapping at her throat, while she was kicking at the other one.
Syria grabbed the creature that was on top of the vampire and tossed it into the foliage. She turned back to the vampire, but the woman quickly rolled to her feet.
“Behind you.”
She turned, but Chuey was too close already. His claws slammed into her side and he lifted her off her feet. Blood gushed from the wound. A side effect of the ‘daylight juice’, as Inger liked to call it. It had the same effect as a blood thinner. It wasn’t looking good for her. High on adrenaline, Syria knew it would be a while before the pain kicked it. She decided to make the best of a really bad situation. She shook her hand out and when her own claws were unsheathed, she raked hers down his face and his grip loosened. As she slid to the ground, with the last strength she could muster, she punched Chuey hard in the stomach. The creature’s eyes shot wide and a rivulet of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth as he stumbled backward.
“Hey! Syria! Can you stand?” The voice sounded far away. She turned her head and met the surprising calm blue eyes of the blonde. “You’re not going to die on me. I won’t be cheated out of my revenge.” A bleeding wrist was pressed against her lips. “Come on, drink!”
Syria latched onto the wrist. She had heard enough to make her curious, even in her semi-delirious state. She sank her fangs into the pale skin and drank. Too soon, the wrist was wrenched away, but Syria had everything she needed. Her guilt eased a bit. She looked at the woman with gentle eyes.
“You’re Aljoshua’s daughter. His daughter from the heart, since you didn’t share his blood.”
The blonde blinked. “Yes, how do…” She snapped her mouth closed. “Later. We can’t talk here. Where are your men?”
Syria looked around. Chuey lay a few feet away, still making choking sounds. “They’re not far. But you need to take them across the river for me. To safety.”
“We can do that together,” the blonde said sharply as she pulled Syria to her feet.
Syria shook her head. “I need more blood. I shouldn’t be around them.”
The other woman glared at her. “Strange, how you didn’t have the same qualms when it came to me.”
“I had no other choice, Lake.” She saw the woman stiffen. “Yes, I found out your name, because I wanted to remember you.”
The blue eyes frosted over. “Well, that doesn’t mean anything.”
“It does to me. When we have the time, I would like to talk to you. Tell you everything, but you need to take them away from here. Please. I need to find an animal or something to feed on.”
The blonde’s eyes were a solid red. “I want my revenge, Syria.”
“And I promise you’ll have it. The men are over in that tree.” She stumbled off into the jungle without a backward glance, her beast ravenous.
†
Nimiri looked at Jemima with wide eyes. “When I said you smelled different, I wasn’t expecting this.”
Jemima grinned as she kissed her daughter’s apple red cheek. “Yep, it is what it is. I’m food now.”
“And you’re okay with that?” Nimiri asked with a small grin.
“Not particularly, no.” She looked at Nimiri. “I loved being a vampire. It has a lot of advantages.”
Nimiri shook her head. She had experienced a lot of things in her life, some she couldn’t explain. But this topped them all. A vampire becoming human again. She wondered what Tahlia’s take was on this.
“And the queen?”
“What about her?” Jemima asked as she deftly removed the diaper from her daughter. “Please, pass me the powder.” Nimiri handed her the powder. “You wonder how she’s taking this.”
“Yes.”
“I’m not sure. She hasn’t said anything to me yet.”
Nimiri blinked. “You mean this is a new thing.”
“Twenty-six hours, to be exact.” She held the baby out to Nimiri. “Here, hold her.”
Still reeling from the unexpected news about Jemima’s transformation, she wasn’t sure she was ready to hold the baby. She could drop her and it wouldn’t bode well for her to drop the daughter of the vampire queen and the soul mate of her own Prime. She began to shake her head.
“I won’t have that. You said it yourself that you were tasked to watch over her in Leonara’s absence. Now, hold her.”
“What if I drop her?” The baby was hanging in the air, staring at her with a peculiar expression in her eyes. A disturbingly mature look for a nine-month old. “Anyway, she doesn’t seem to like me.”
“I didn’t hear her say anything.”
Dragon’s bones. The last time she had touched a baby was such a long time ago. She tore her gaze away from the child’s near-hypnotic glare. “I assure you, she doesn’t want me to touch her.”
“She always looks like that. She’s Tahlia’s child,” Jemima threw over her shoulder as she gathered the soiled diaper for disposal.
No pressure, huh. She hesitantly reached out and grasped the baby under her armpits. The blue eyes studied her closely.
“Hold her against your body. Babies like that.”
Nimiri carefully pulled the baby against her chest and she was stunned by the heat that came off the small body. It felt wonderful. She didn’t know what came over her, but she gently pressed a kiss to the soft head. Almost immediately, her body was infused with a delicious heat and she looked into the eyes of the baby. They were warm and twinkling.
“See, I told you that you wouldn’t drop her.” Jemima came closer and rubbed her daughter’s back. The next moment, Aria let out a piercing cry that startled both Jemima and Nimiri. Nimiri immediately held the baby out to Jemima, who cradled Aria against her chest, making soft noises to calm the baby.
“Jemima, I think...”
“She likes you,” Jemima said quickly as she kissed the crying baby’s cheek. “Maybe she just got startled by something.”
“She’s bleeding, Jemima.”
“What?!” Jemima looked at her and Nimiri held up her bloody hands. “Oh no! Please, no! Tahlia!” She examined the baby and Nimiri cringed at the mixture of alarm and anguish on the woman’s face when she pulled up the small blood-soaked vest. The tender, white skin was marked by four deep claw marks and they were bleeding sluggishly.
Jemima’s face was wet with tears as she looked up at Nimiri. “My baby, Nimiri. Please find Tahlia.”
Before Nimiri could move a muscle, the Queen materialized before them. Her eyes blazing blood red as she picked up her daughter and held her against her. The baby quieted and looked at Tahlia with wide, wet eyes. Tahlia kissed the wet lids and exposing the baby’s side, licked over the wounds. Nimiri watched, stupefied. She had seen wonders, but her eyes almost bulged out when the wounds began to close. The dark woman turned to Nimiri.
“Get a message to Rupert. I want a second jet ready to leave in an hour. Then, tell everyone to bring their babies to the lounge.”
†
The river spread wide and although not visible, the presence of caiman and piranhas was easy to make out. Jonas tur
ned to the group. There was no way they could cross without a boat. “We need to go back and get a boat.”
“You wait here, while…”
“Someone’s coming.” He pointed to the river where two canoes came into sight. “We could ask to use their boats.” They all moved into the dark. The canoes reached the bank and five heavily armed soldiers got out. A blonde woman remained in the boat.
“Follow the invisible ink trail to the lodge.”
The men didn’t move. “Where is Syria?”
“She stayed behind, but asked me to bring you here.”
“How sure are we you didn’t do something to her? Because if you…”
“You’ve seen the body of the creature. She was pursuing another one.”
The man’s hand tightened on his weapon. “We’ll be back for her. Tell her that.” He turned, but stopped again. “Could you take care of her until we return?”
There was a long hesitation. “I’ll try.”
“That’s all we ask. See you soon.” They disappeared into the night, walking right past the four of them. When the men were gone, the vampires stepped out of the shadows. The blonde vampire was still sitting in the boat. She looked up when they approached and quickly jumped to her feet.
“Milord?” When she noticed Pierre, she bowed her head in his direction. “What…what brings you here?”
“Greetings, Lake. It’s been months since I last saw you for training.” He stepped into the unoccupied canoe. “As for our presence, we’re here to find one of our own.”
“A Royal?” Lake asked carefully and Jonas looked at her sharply.
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