by Holly Hook
Or that they won't suffer Carl's fate, whatever that was.
Silvia and I wait together on my couch, and I'm careful not to wrinkle my dress. “I wish I could go with you,” she says.
“It's a hard party to get into,” I tell her. “Trust me, even though Jeremy's going to be there the whole time, and I'm apparently marked, this is still dangerous.” Maybe the dangers have just changed. Instead of being someone no one would miss if killed, maybe now I'm someone who everyone will want.
Who the hell wouldn't want me for my new connection to the First Son?
At last, at nine-thirty, there's a gentle, but stern knock on my apartment door.
Silvia and I spring up.
And I answer, keeping my shoulders back.
“Ember Vonk,” the man says on the other side. “I'll be driving you to your destination.”
The driver, of course, is human. The middle-aged man in the tuxedo looks at me as if he's sorry I'm going to this event. He must have heard about what Jeremy did.
“Thank you,” I say, careful not to look too eager or scared. I slowly step out of the apartment with Silvia, and I lock it behind me.
“Good luck,” she says, that helpless look in her eyes blooming again.
“Follow me,” the driver says. “My name is Ed, and I'll be taking you to and away from the party. I have the clearance to take you directly to the main entrance.”
My heart flutters. Again, I ask myself what the hell I've done, and what the hell I think I'm doing. And if my parents find out about this, I'll no longer be a member of the family.
I won't even be able to go home to go to college. Shit, damned if I do and damned if I don't.
There is a limo waiting at the curb, and traffic slowly crawls past as the last of the day's light dies. I wonder if this is my last time seeing any sunlight at all. When Ed opens the back door for me, I find the seat empty. In fact, I'm the only one in this stretch car, which feels large and empty as Ed gets us rolling through downtown.
I gulp as the government buildings get closer and closer. My heart races and I feel like I'm about to pass out. And just as we're approaching the National Mall, the limo turns and we find ourselves on another street. We stop at a metal barricade with guards, both human and vampire, who motion Ed forward for ID.
Ed obeys. “I have Ember Vonk.”
The guard, a vampire man in black, comes over to stare at me. He motions for me to roll down the window, and I do, uncomfortable in my red, tight-fitting dress. Then he sniffs and looks me over, probably for weapons. “Ah. Jeremy Haywood's claimed.” A nasty grin splits his face and the tips of his fangs are visible. “I heard he chose a fiery one.”
I don't dare say a word. This is not a place where I'm an equal. And I won't be one unless they turn me.
Then he motions for me to roll the window back up, and I figure it out after fumbling with the fancy controls. Everyone's heard about me. Shit. I can't do this.
“Are you okay, Ember?” Ed asks.
He has more concern for me than anyone at that party will have. I gulp and admit it. “I'm far from okay.”
“This is tough. I've driven many claimed guests in my time,” he admits. “It never gets easier, and it's a tough position to be in considering this is something that only high-ranking vampires do.”
“Any sage advice?” I like Ed. He's gentle and what I imagine fatherly would be.
Outside, the guards are opening the gate to what I'm guessing is Pennsylvania Avenue. The vast grounds of the White House stretch out behind a tall, wrought-iron fence. A fountain of glitters and trees hide my inevitable destination.
“Stay close to Jeremy at all times,” he says. “And you will at least have his protection. When vampires make claims, they do not do so lightly. He will meet you at the main entrance.”
“I will do.” My heart thumps at the thought. How can I be so excited and so terrified at the same time?
We slowly pull to another gate, with more guards, and as we do, the grounds of the White House spread out on the other side of the fence. The mansion is lit up in all its glory, and there are already limos waiting to drop off their occupants at the front doors.
Ed says nothing as the guards at the front wave him forward, and we pull onto the grounds, onto a C-shaped driveway that goes right up under the overhang of the front doors.
I'm going to pass out.
I watch as limo after limo drops off well-dressed couples, most of them vampires but a few of them human, and finally, after what feels like an agonizing fifteen minutes, we reach the steps.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
There are steps leading to glass doors, and beyond them is a grand entryway with a chandelier. One of the double doors opens, and Jeremy emerges, donning a wicked grin and a sleek black suit. Nathan and another agent stand behind him.
He wastes no time. Jeremy opens the limo door before Ed can say a word, and he stands there, holding out his arm. “Out,” he orders.
I gulp. It's back to the asshole act and unless we find private space, it's going to be the asshole act all night, on top of me being a tamed trophy girl. But I get out, stretching out before--
Don't think about it.
This is just a dream.
Jeremy takes my elbow and pulls me close to him. The world spins as I eye the black concrete under my feet, and then the white steps leading up to--
Without thanking Ed, Jeremy turns around and leads me to the doors. We pass under a large, hanging light that casts a yellow glow down on us, and then we enter, um, Jeremy's place.
Jeremy's place Jeremy's place Jeremy's place...
He tightens his elbow around mine to where I have to bite in a protest, and I see why. The grand entryway is full of paintings, pottery, and marble. Vampires and some well-dressed humans who must have the dough to donate tons of money to Haywood stand around and mingle in tight groups. A server carries around blood goblets, not bothering to hide them from the human guests, and a woman in a well-tailored, white suit that almost blends in with the cream décor stands under the chandelier. She has her hands folded in front of her, and a perfect blond perm straight from the 1940s. Her veined eyes train on us as her porcelain skin shines under the soft light.
And Jeremy is walking me straight towards her. I've seen her before. My parents refer to her as, well...
“Tonya Haywood,” I breathe before I have a Freudian slip and utter one of their favorite insults.
Formerly another claimed woman.
Like me.
And now she's--
“This is my mother,” Jeremy says.
The First Lady.
“Ah. So this is Ember Vonk,” she says, drawing close. I stare into her hazel, red-lined eyes I realize do not match Jeremy's. She has long fingernails, painted silver, and she brings them up to caress my chin. They feel like little razors drifting across the vulnerable flesh. One wrong move, and I could bleed out on the floor.
I shudder, and she smiles.
But that's the reaction they want.
“Nice to meet you,” I force, which only widens her smile. Up close, Tonya Haywood is not the old-fashioned, Leave It To Beaver wife she portrays herself as on TV. She's a predator, just like the rest of them, and my place is still on the bottom until someone chooses me to join their family.
At last, she lets me go. “I expected more out of this one.” She speaks to Jeremy as if I'm an object she just unwrapped.
Yes. He's going with the, I tamed the Amazon approach.
“Oh, trust me. She won’t disappoint,” Jeremy says, pulling me closer.
And he sweeps me further into his place.
Once we've cleared the main entryway where more people are coming in, I find myself in a small, red sitting room with more paintings on the wall. No one's here, and even Jeremy's guards seem to be absent at the moment.
And Jeremy takes my arms. “Don't look so defeated right away.”
I nod. “I won't.” Of course that won't make sense.
<
br /> “Stay in character,” he tells me. “We need a natural progression. That's how it works.”
He sounds like a director. “Does...does your mother want to turn me?” I hiss once I check the room to ensure that no one's with us. Low, refined chatter floats in through the huge, open doorway. A placard on the fancy, doily covered table tells me we're in the Red Room.
Jeremy shakes his head. “Another family will try to choose you. And that will be to get closer to mine.”
I gulp. So I was right about that. It's no wonder Jeremy didn't want to protect me in this way. And I knew it, deep down, before he even said it. I've removed one type of target only to put another on my back.
“Now what?” I ask.
“We have to mingle,” Jeremy says with a frown. “I'll try to get us away if we have a chance. But first, we have to do this. I know. Fun, fun.” Then he fakes a smile and extends his arm.
Jeremy takes my arm and morphs back into King Asshole as soon as we enter the hallway again and rejoin all the people. Jeremy slowly parades me around the place as guards linger around the periphery, standing at corners and watching us through sunglasses. I can't suppress my shudder, but I keep in character. I keep my chin up high and defiant, like I'm supposed to, and I manage a couple of glares at who might be corporate donors. A middle-aged human man. A human couple who stick on each other like pieces of licorice and make conversation with a vampire couple, throwing around numbers and talk about investments. Mine's bigger than yours. Ugh. The rich are the same, regardless of species.
We find ourselves in a long, cream-colored room that could be a ballroom if it wasn't for the carpet. There's a piano sitting near a wall and several other vampires are standing near it, sipping blood goblets. At least Tonya isn't here.
“This,” Jeremy explains, “is the East Room.”
“It's...open?” I ask.
“Ah. Is this Jeremy Haywood?”
Jeremy whirls me around as if I'm an accessory and I bristle. I know he's helping me to stay in character, but already my mood is plunging. We face two vampire men, both looking no older than their mid-twenties, but that one carries a pocket watch betrays the fact that he's much older. They must be brothers, maybe twins, judging from their black hair and strong cheekbones.
“Why, yes,” he says, puffing out his chest. “I am.”
I make a face at the two vamps, one of whom has a blood goblet. But I've gotten used to the sight by now, and the shock factor has worn off. Something inside of me has turned into ice.
“And this specimen?” the first man asks, flicking his gaze to me.
“Ember Vonk. I have claimed her,” Jeremy says, pulling me closer. I sense I'm not to speak, but I work my jaw as if I want to. My heart pounds.
“Feisty,” the second man adds. “She could be an asset.”
“Only for those who are deserving,” Jeremy says, sweeping me away and across the room. Then he lowers his voice to a growl. “Those men are the co-founders of Merrican, a health insurance company.” He speaks loud enough for them to hear, and not without an undertone of disgust.
I gulp as I silently thank him. The vamps are drooling over their chance to get into the Haywood family already. Death was one threat.
And this...
It's worse. It's far worse. And I signed up for it, knowing it would happen. Maybe some sick part of me didn't believe it until now, or I got too enthralled by Jeremy and this chance to make a difference by getting to--
President Haywood.
He stands on the other side of the East Room, flanked by two Secret Service agents as he speaks to another man. He has his dark hair swept to the side and every feature, as usual, is perfect. Haywood rocks a dark mustache that belongs in the fifties, the same way Tonya's hairdo comes from decades past. He looks like a well-shaven demon in his suit, though I know he was born in the Great Depression like his wife. Born human and then turned.
I shudder.
My plan.
Ember, do this.
It can't get worse than this. Can it?
“You are going to meet my father,” Jeremy says, pulling me closer.
I can't resist as he pulls me in the piano's direction and I drag my feet. That's where Benjamin Haywood is standing. Then panic takes over, shaking me and screaming. I can't look at him. I look around for any distraction I can use to stop Jeremy without blowing our cover, and then I spot Zara and Beatrice lingering in the archway that leads to another room, and I elbow Jeremy.
“Ember,” he growls.
“They're here,” I hiss without moving my lips.
He slows. “Shit. The Heart Party. Some of them always show up. I bet they're here to report something to TNH News. It’s always their plan to find something.”
Beatrice glares at me from the corner of her eye while Zara speaks with another woman. She must smell Jeremy's scent on me. And now what's left for her? Revenge.
She can’t kill me now without raining death on herself, so she must be here to take revenge on the Haywood family.
I don't dare to agree with Jeremy in public. “Well, maybe you deserve it,” I say loud enough for anyone nearby to hear.
“Know your place, Ember.” Then Jeremy leans forward and sniffs as President Haywood continues to speak to the other man.
Zara turns away from us to speak to someone else further in the doorway, and then Jeremy whirls me back around so fast that my head spins.
“In fact, I need to explain to you your place,” he says as he marches me away from Haywood and the others in the East Room, and then the entire place seems to blur as he pulls me down another corridor and then to another set of double doors.
Outside, there's a lit courtyard boxed in by two long rows of flowers, with dozens of tables set up under the lights and a podium for a speech. Two guards stationed at the doors follow him as he pulls me out under the night sky. They follow behind him as he pulls me further into the courtyard. I'm thinking it’s the Rose Garden, judging from all the roses and neatly trimmed trees. Besides the guards, no one is out here yet other than a few servers arranging plates on the tables along with programs.
“Sir,” a guard says. “Dinner does not begin until two-thirty.” They're both vampires, and it's obvious they don't approve of Jeremy's move.
Jeremy whirls, dragging me with him. “I realize that. But my claimed woman needs to know the rules around here. I'm speaking with her in private. Lead me to a safe location.”
I can't even ask him why he whisked me out of the East Room so quickly. Did he see something? Is Beatrice still a major threat, other than going to TNH News to get revenge? Or is Jeremy doing this just to be a jerk to her? I like that last explanation, though there's tension in the way Jeremy keeps his arm wrapped around my elbow.
“Yes, sir. The area is secure, but you are to be inside during this time. Your father needs you to make your appearance.”
We can't trust all the guards. Carl proved that. I look them up and down, careful not to make it obvious, though the vampire agents seem to sense everything.
Jeremy contorts his face into that of a monster. “I must speak to Ember alone.”
I try to pull away again. His eyes are redder than I've ever seen them, and for a second, I wonder if even his twisted kindness is a mask. Then he gazes at my neck, and one guard nods.
“I understand, sir, but stay within the confines of the garden.”
Am I in for another bite? Despite the makeup over my wounds, and the disinfectant I've applied, the site burns as if remembering the small injection of his blood. Jeremy projects power as he stares down the guards meant to protect him and restrict his life into a vice of marble and tinted windows. “I will,” he growls, as if the guards are wrong to question him.
And then he hauls me away to the other end of the garden, which runs along the long, white corridor of Jeremy's place. At last, we stand so that I can just see the lit rear columns of the residence, and Jeremy flashes not a glare, but a smile.
“Good
job. That is what you need to do, at least for now. The claimed always fight, at first. We never claim the weak.”
“Then why bring me out here to say that?” I ask.
Jeremy screws up his face. “Beatrice was there.”
There's something else. “Don't you want to rub this in her face?” I ask, glad we have some space. The guards watch us from the far side of the garden, but Jeremy doesn't seem concerned. He hikes up his shoulders like he's pissed, but they can't see his face.
“I do, but I can't move too quickly, either,” he says. “Trust me, I dream of it every day. And do you want to know why I confronted you when you were talking about starting a new party?”
I swallow and breathe in. The air smells faintly of roses, and we're mostly alone out here. Of course, we can't make out, not with all the windows along the corridor that anyone can see out of. Only dominance lives here, not trust or love. But Jeremy is a gorgeous dark angel standing here and holding me in place, and I can forget where I am as I look at him.
“Why was that?”
Jeremy leans close to me and smiles. “Because I, and some others, are. But if the other elites find out, it will be the end of us. We can fix this entire system. I know we can win.”
My jaw drops. “You're serious.”
“You deserve to know, now that I've claimed you. It's the least I can do to make up for being a complete asshole.” He winks. “Of course, I enjoy playing the asshole role. I never got to do that much in my previous life.”
“Who are you?” I blurt.
Jeremy's eyes soften, though he keeps his shoulders up. “You wouldn't believe me if I told you.”
“Um, look at what my life has turned into. I think I will.” My heart thuds. Jeremy must not look the way he did before. His human identity lives on only because he dodged his kill. But he has a crease around his eyes that I swear I've seen somewhere...and that shade of green, though now caged in the red lines of vampirism, triggers a deep longing within me.
Jeremy frowns. “When they turn us, our human identities die. We're not allowed to speak of them again.”
