Bloodlines

by Drew D'Amato

  “Judas gave us rules to live by, and everyone went along with it, even Radu. But that all changed the day I discovered Nosophoros sucking out the blood of a baby in August of 1666. It was virgin blood, the sweetest one, and he pleaded with me to not tell Judas. He said this was the best blood to drink and we were missing out living by his rules. I made him think I would say nothing, but I told Judas as soon as I could.

  “Judas did not hesitate. When Nosophoros came home, Judas killed him himself with a torch. Then something happened. The two other vampires Nosophoros made became human again. They lost their powers. Our family had now been cut in half. Those two vampires asked Judas to make them a vampire again, but Judas refused. He wanted nothing to do with anything associated with Nosophoros. In fact he was so enraged, that he asked Radu and me to kill them both. We did.

  “A few days later when Radu and I were alone he proposed something. If we killed Judas we should become human again. We were both sick of living this way. I worried about the apocalypse, the role Judas might play. Radu thought of it this way: Judas was warned to not let the world know of him or it would bring the Apocalypse. How could his death let the world know of him? And he only assumed he would play a role in the End of Days, it was not told to him from the angel. Radu thought that if we killed him it would be a win-win. Judas didn’t have to suffer forever on earth, while also not betraying his penance and we get to be humans again. So I agreed.

  “One of my first actions as a vampire was to go back to my castle and take that sword Hunyadi gave me. I told you it helped remind me of being a human. I carried it with me throughout all my years of being a vampire. This was what we used to kill Judas. When the time was right I distracted Judas and Radu stabbed him in the heart through the back. He actually looked thankful to me before he disappeared. Vampires do not leave bodies.

  “We waited to see if anything changed. I flew up in the air and realized our plan did not work. We were stuck in this life. As master vampires we could not be made human again by killing the prime vampire.

  “I was disappointed, Radu was jubilant. I asked what he was so happy about, we were still vampires. And then I learned his true intention, and regretted never learning the codex.

  “‘You fool,’ he said. ‘There’s a passage in the Dark Bible that tells how to make a vampire human again. The Templars had figured it out. All we needed was a holy man. We could have had our brother Vlad do it for us years ago if we asked him. You would have known that had you bothered to learn the codex and read the Dark Bible yourself.’

  “I asked him why our brother Vlad never told me. ‘I told him I had asked you if you wanted to be a human again, and you said no,’ Radu said as he laughed. He had betrayed me one more time. My brother Vlad thought I was happy to be a vampire, and never brought the idea up himself. Radu had manipulated all of this.

  “Radu never wanted to become a human again. He liked living as a vampire, he just didn’t like living under someone else’s rule. He figured with Judas dead now, we didn’t have to fear him coming after us if we got too big, and we didn’t have to fear the warning about bringing the Apocalypse if the world knew of vampires.

  “He said, ‘That was just if the world knew about Judas, because then no one could doubt Christianity, but the world knowing about vampires is a different story. There is nothing holding us back brother. Let us now rule this little world.’

  “I refused. We had been evil for too long. I did not want to rule like that anymore. In being over 200 years old I had learned remorse. Radu hadn’t. When he learned I wouldn’t go along, he realized he no longer had any need for me. He tried to kill me with my own sword. We fought with our powers and I managed to take back my sword, along with the Dark Bible, and the Blood of the Betrayer. I searched him out with my sword in hand but he had escaped. But not before he declared the start of our war.

  “He swore from that night on, a war would rage between the two of us. He would make more vampires and hunt me down, and would not stop until I was dead. I had to get away from him, and more importantly, I had to build up a family, an army.

  “I sailed out on a boat over the Dead Sea. It was a risk I had to take as I made my way back toward Europe. I encased the Dark Bible and the Blood in a coffer—this airtight container. I didn’t want to destroy it, but I did not want any vampire to be able to get their hands on it, especially Radu. I threw it overboard and let it sink in the running water. This is the coffer that has recently been discovered.

  “When I reached Europe I continued to move west, all the way to the New World—the farthest from him that I could get, and finally settled in Philadelphia. It was a scary trip, all that time over the water, but again, a risk I had to take.”

  “So now you are at war with him?”

  “Yes, Europe is his territory, America is mine. We have fought this war for centuries. When our war was declared that day it became a race of who could acquire more vampires on their side, a form of arms race. We both started making vampire soldiers. We have a hierarchy amongst us. Every fifty years since the fall of 1762, as The French and Indian War was winding down, we have had these autumn face-to-face meetings to see if the two sides can reach an agreement, in the hopes that one side can see the other’s point of view. During our last meeting it was understood that we will never reach an agreement and all bets were off. He tried to kill me. My men and I escaped and thought we killed him. When I came to you, Father, I thought he was dead, I thought this war might have been over. It isn’t.

  “Not until Radu is dead can I become a human. There will be no need for vampires then. As long as he is alive I cannot give up my fight for the good of the human race. I cannot leave it to the humans to kill him, he is too strong. I have to destroy him first. If I don’t fight him, Radu will rule the world in no time.”

  “So what do you want me to do?”

  “I want you to understand that I do not want this power, but I cannot give it up until Radu is dead. I am on the side of the humans. You say I am not merciful, but I have spent the last three hundred and fifty years trying to save the world from the wrath of Radu. If I joined with him nothing could stop us. You didn’t think I was merciful, but now you must see my whole existence is about mercy. I am fighting to save people who do not even know I exist.”

  “I have misjudged you, I am sorry.”

  “I wasn’t expecting anything else from you for a first impression.” Vlad walked over to Pacami. Pacami stood up.

  “I consider you a friend now Father. As a friend, trust in me and my mission. I have to destroy Radu first. I cannot promise when it will happen, but once it does, I will want you to make me a human again.”

  Pacami nodded in understanding. In Vlad’s eyes Pacami saw the truth—the fate of the human race rested on the shoulders of a vampire.

  THIRTEEN

  1

  Malachi got to Vlad’s mansion the next day around one in the afternoon. He was flanked by Michael and Jericho as he rode up the elevator to Vlad’s office.

  “Malachi, how was the flight?” Vlad asked from his desk when the three of them entered.

  “Never flying like that again. One of those Twilight movies played on the trip to Chicago. Hey guys, when did us vampires become gay?”

  “Backstreet Boys with fangs,” Jericho said. “It’s what the kids love.”

  “No shit, this young girl coming back home from college was all into it.”

  “And?” Michael asked.

  “She introduced me to the storyline, and I introduced her to mile high club.”

  Jericho and Michael laughed.

  “Now, when are we going to kill this son of a bitch?” Malachi asked.

  “Soon. We are going to his place,” Vlad said.

  “What, did we get our hands on a missle or something?”

  “Attacking from the outside will do nothing. He and his men sleep in the dirt in a cave underneath the house. We have to go inside and take him out.”

  “But we will be huma
ns?”

  “We only need to kill one of them. Then the rest of them will all die in their dirt graves. He is the head for most of his vampires, that’s why he didn’t lose as much as we did at the last meeting.”

  “Speaking of heads,” Michael interjected. “Since we now know that Radu is indeed alive, let’s bring back the other men. They are dying to join the cause.”

  “They are dying to have the power back, make no mistake,” Vlad said sternly.

  “Whatever the reason, what good is there in not having them?”

  “Because we do not need a large army anymore. For years we have fought this war of attrition and it has gotten us nowhere. We’re going for the kill now. A small team, with myself included, will end this once and for all. He is not afraid to attack our houses. Why should he? As a human he did not have a policeman killed because he entered his castle without being invited in. That was my sin and now our curse. If he ever finds my place, he is going in.”

  “He doesn’t know yet master,” Malachi said. “They wanted that info from me and I told them nothing. I assure you there is nothing in my place that will lead them to your whereabouts.”

  “True, but there are other men out there who want to be vampires again—more than they care about which side wins this war.”

  “So that is more of a reason to get them back before they can be persuaded,” Michael said.

  “No, we must move fast, but no more vampires. The coffer has been found. Once Radu is dead, and the Dark Bible is in my possession, we will become human again.”

  A shock settled over the room. Besides Jericho, this was the first time any of them had heard about this plan, and even he didn’t take it too seriously that day they got the Ferrari. Vlad waited to hear any objection. Michael had one, but looked at Malachi. Malachi’s eyes warned him not to say anything. Vlad was right about his men. They all loved the power of being a vampire—except Vlad. The war and the party might both soon be over. They both looked at Jericho hoping he would say some kind of objection. If anyone could say anything, he could. Vlad noticed their stares at his second in command.

  “Jericho, do you have anything to say?”

  “We have to be sure Radu is home when we get there.”

  What a great soldier. He never questioned why to do something, but just asked what to do. He did not take his eyes off the mission, the war. He was the only vampire aside from Vlad who had a wife and children before he joined the dark side. Like Vlad, Jericho too had people waiting for him in heaven. It was time to move on.

  “Excellent point. I haven’t come up with anything yet.”

  “We cannot try to trap him. If he expects us, he will have his defenses up.”

  “But what kind of defenses could he have during the day?”

  “Anything, hired guns, we will just be humans too. We have to give him a reason to be there, without looking suspicious.”

  The room brainstormed for an idea. Nothing came to anyone.

  “We have to stake it out somehow,” Jericho said. “We have to be sure.”

  “A plan like this is complicated,” Malachi added.

  Vlad was quiet in thought.

  “Well master whatever you decide, but let’s not be impulsive,” Michael said.

  “Agreed. Hey, where are you going?” Vlad looked up to see Michael making his way out of the room.

  “I don’t think we are going to come up with anything now. I was going to call the other vampires of the house to tell them of Malachi’s arrival.”

  “Okay, and Michael, don’t tell any of the ex-vampires that Radu is still alive. In fact, tell them we know for a fact that Radu is dead, the war is over, and I will not be making any new vampires, but I am forever in their debt. Radu may search them out, but we don’t need to give them any reason to search him out.”

  “Yes, master.”

  The three of them started to walk out. Vlad asked Malachi to stay, and Jericho instinctively stayed also.

  “Malachi, how are you on ID’s?” Vlad asked.

  “Not good. When I escaped I only had three on me, and one of them was the substantial one I used to buy my house and put everything else in that name.”

  “Throw that one away.”

  “I already did. I flushed it down a toilet in O’Hare. I also flushed down the disposable one that I used to get from Key West to Chicago. Now I just have one disposable ID I used to get from Chicago to L.A. I’m more upset over the millions I lost in all my random accounts.”

  “Well, don’t worry about money. At least there is not a paper trail leading you back to here. But you are going to need more ID’s. The one you have with you now you can use when we go to Europe. But the way that will probably go, you going to have to get rid of it once there. Jericho, take Malachi to our man Morris.”

  “Of course, master.”

  2

  Morris lived in a well guarded apartment in Chinatown. Four deadbolts on the door, an alarm system, and a big black bodyguard named Curtis. Luckily for the vampires, Morris was not able to install surveillance cameras outside the apartment. Otherwise the vampires would have no explanation for their absence on screen.

  Curtis greeted them at the door. He had heavy platinum jewelry around his neck and a mean stare on him, even though he had met Jericho countless times before. Curtis thought he could easily take Jericho, and Jericho allowed him to believe that.

  The main room of the apartment was not a living room or a dining room of any sort. Instead, metal shelving covered the walls loaded with a bunch of electro gadgets that Jericho had no idea what their use was. He knew some of the equipment was used to make the cell phones the vampires gave him untraceable, and unable to be triangulated. Guns were also on some of the shelves and Jericho understood those perfectly.

  Morris, a Russian with long, black hair, but bald on top, and a mustache/goat tee combo came out from the back room wearing a purple robe and boxers. He had a smile on his face, and a cigarette in his hand. Vlad and his men were his favorite customers, even though he had no idea why they needed so many IDs—and so many guns.

  “Jericho, you bring new business for me?” he said in his thick Russian accent.

  “Yes, my friend here needs an ID,” Jericho said as he shook the Russian’s hand.

  “Substantial or disposable?”

  Jericho looked at Malachi. “Disposable for now. He won’t be buying a house anytime soon.”

  “Okay, good, good. Should I assume you do not want an actual picture of him, like all your other ones, no?”

  “Yes, no pictures.” Vlad had persuaded Morris years ago as to why they didn’t want to use their own photos for the IDs. Morris warned him that it would effect the credibility of his work, but Vlad stressed they feared that if anyone got a hold of their ID’s, they would then have an actual visual identification of them. They wanted to be as far off the grid as possible; and they would rather have some double taking the picture and use some graphic technology to make it more believable, than photos of themselves on file. With the digital recognition software out there Morris understood. Morris never questioned him on it again.

  Morris sized up Malachi. “Six foot three, yes. Brown hair, brown eyes. I think I have someone in mind—”

  “That’s not necessary,” Jericho interrupted. “He has an ID already, if you can scan that photo and use it.”

  “Yes, I can. Good, good. Makes everything easier. Good. I will need the ID for a few days, is that a problem?”

  “No, not at all.” Jericho looked at Malachi. After a beat Malachi caught on and got the ID out of his wallet.

  “Okay, this will just take a few days. What identifications do you need exactly?”

  “Just enough to travel with. Driver’s licence, passport.”

  “No problem.” Morris handed Malachi’s fake ID to Curtis who went and put it somewhere in the back room. Morris stared at Malachi again. “I aready have a name for you. George Patterson.” He extended his arms out and had a smile, like he wa
s talking about a name about to be on a marquee.

  “Sure Morris,” Jericho said, and took out a wad of cash from his pocket. “Regular price.”

  “Well, I don’t need a double, but it’s not like I already have his photo on file like I have with yours so it will still be a little more.”

  “Morris, all you’re going to do is scan it.”

  “Never question an artist about his craft. I will have to crop it and make some changes. Sooooo, 50,000 more.”

  “What the fuck, you Russians?”

  “We are tough people. Consider America lucky we were communists for so long and not competing with you in capitalism.”

  “Yeah, how’s that free market going for you now?”

  “I am here, so not so good.”

  Jericho counted out 125,000 in one thousand dollar bills and handed them to Morris.

  “You’re still getting only half now.”

  Morris took the money and went over to a bill counter on the main desk in the middle of the room. He nodded when it came out right on.

  “And so I have half of it right here. Give me a few days. The state motor vehicle department just installed a new firewall that they think is impreganable. It’s just an annoyance, but it takes ten hours alone to crack.”

  “No problem we are not going anywhere soon.”

  “Good, good. I will call you when ready.”