by E. M. Knight
“The Haven,” he mocks. “Is that what you call your coven now?”
“My coven is the Nocturna Animalia,” I proclaim, full of lofty pride. “I broke away from The Haven. I am no longer bound to it. Don’t insult me and pretend you haven’t heard of the largest coven in North America.” I look at his companions. “All vampires have!”
He tsks. “We live farther than most,” he tells me. His casual manner of speaking irks me. “But no, I have no need to insult your intelligence. You’re right, of course, that word of The Haven has reached even our distant ears. How could it not while we were protecting your Queen’s sister.”
“Morgan was an only child,” I hiss impatiently. “Whatever you think you know—”
“That is what she told you, isn’t it?” he asks. “Yes. I can see how it would be easier to spread the lie. But you know nothing of her true past.”
“And you do?” I challenge.
“Obviously. I know your name.”
“Give me yours.”
“Certainly,” he offers a mocking little bow. “I am called Chandler.” Then he rattles off the name of his companions. “Now it’s your turn. Cousin. Introduce those with you.”
I grunt in aggravation but give the names of my group. We’re putting on cordial airs, but it does not diminish the fact that his group is still very much in attack formation.
How much longer will it last? I wonder.
“Thank you for that kindness,” he says. “Back to the topic at hand. However much it pains me, you did just blunder into a great wrongdoing. You entered a sacred place that you were not allowed in. For that? You may have forfeit your very life.”
The other vampires close in on us. They go shoulder-to-shoulder, blocking our escape route entirely.
“Unless, of course,” Chandler continues, “you surrender and admit your sin.”
“We’re not playing by your twisted rules,” I growl. My group forms into a tight defensive circle. Smithson is in the middle because he is useless, bound as he is.
“You have one prisoner amongst you,” Chandler says. He looks at the leader of the Order. “I recognize him. He was the one who came here many years ago and desecrated this place. We let him live then, because it is what Cierra ordered.”
“You lie,” I say. “Cierra was asleep when he came. How could you claim you were here, that you let Smithson take her, because that was what she wanted? She was not even conscious during the time!”
“Another falsehood,” Chandler mutters. “How very sad. Shows how little you know of the world.”
He stops only a few feet before me. “Cierra,” he says softly, “gave birth to me. And I care very much about what happens to her. So when I see someone like you blustering around and desecrating very, very hallowed grounds… I consider it just cause for an execution.”
Right on cue, all nine of his vampires direct their influence at us. April, Liana, and Sylvia immediately wilt under the assault. Smithson and Victoria do a little better holding it off, but with both their strength drained, they manage only a feeble effort before succumbing.
I’m left standing. I try to block off the attack on my mind. I put up walls as strong as I can, but of course, against ten vampires I stand no chance. Not when they’ve cooperated their efforts.
“That’s better, isn’t it?” Chandler asks when my knees hit the ground. I glare up at him. My only chance now is to completely break out of the sphere of influence, and I can only do that if I were to attack.
But such a tactic would be suicide. What’s worse, I am no longer sure of the extent of my powers. Whatever intuitive trust I had in them is greatly diminished.
He takes my chin with one hand and jerks my head up. All sorts of rage flares within me at being treated like this. It’s utterly humiliating—especially before my fledglings!
In a way, this is worse than anything I suffered at the hands of Father. At least there I had no witness to my shame.
“Truth is,” Chandler continues, “I had every intention of ordering my vampires to kill whoever came out of this place. It is only our shared blood that gave me reason to pause and spare you. For now.”
He looks over his shoulder and gives a slight nod. His underlings rush forward and grab my companions. They shove a rag into each of their mouths and bind their wrists with silver.
The choice is taken out of my hands. I cannot let the Nocturna Animalia be treated that way!
I roar and rage up, breaking free of the influence. In a fury I fling myself at Chandler.
The attack does not even come close to harming him. He sidesteps the attempt contemptuously, then catches me by the shoulder and uses my momentum to fling me to the ground.
Laughter sounds from the others. A sick feeling of deja-vu washes over me. I’m reminded too much of an experience I had just like this in The Crypts. Father sneering over me. His vampires laughing as I groveled on the ground…
“Really, James,” Chandler says. “You should appreciate my mercy. I have a feeling you and I can still very much get along. But if you fight…?”
He aims a kick at me. I twist to my side and catch his foot with my hands.
But he simply uses his superior strength to use that as an anchor and fling me up, over him, high into the air.
I manage to right myself just before hitting the ground. I land, and, anger flowing, spring at him.
Again Chandler moves faster than a beam of light. He waits until the very last moment and then steps out of the way. My claws find nothing but air.
“My, how you disappoint me,” he says. “I would have hoped you to be more capable.” He shrugs. “Maybe there’s no point in my keeping you alive, after all. I don’t want somebody so pathetic weighing us down.”
That last insult does it. I don’t know what strength I channel, but I reach deep within myself and draw on a secondary reserve I didn’t know I possessed.
I spring at the innocent-faced vampire. A look of surprise flashes across his eyes when he finds me quicker than he thought. My claws sink into his shoulder. We both crash to the ground.
At any moment I’m aware that his group will step in and intervene. I don’t care. I’m operating at base instinct. I won’t let anybody insult me, not like that, not with my own coven within hearing range.
Chandler’s surprise quickly shifts to rage. Rage that is equal to mine. He grapples with me, his fangs coming out. He swipes at my neck, but I stay out of reach. My hands try to go for his heart but he’s equally quick on the defensive.
We’re evenly matched. The vampire who wins is the vampire who has luck on his side.
Luck, or nine committed lackeys, I think bitterly.
But as he and I roll together over the forest floor, each grappling for advantage, nobody interferes. A ticking clock at the back of my mind tells me this cannot last. I have only seconds, if that, before one of them—all of them?—grabs me and hauls me off.
So in a last, desperate effort, I put all of my will to crushing him. That angered, innocent face will haunt me forever if I fail.
My hands latch onto his body. He tries to fling them off, but my concentration is too great. With one immense effort I put everything I have, all my strength, all my power, all my will, into ripping out his horrible little heart.
And somehow… my hands break through. His hold on my wrists weakens just enough for me to drive down with suffocating force. My claws rip through his skin, tear through his ribs, and with a savage roar, I crush the heart and tear it free of his body.
Blood erupts from his chest like water from a punctured hose. His eyes widen in momentary shock.
And then his heart gives its final beat, and the life in his eyes winks out. His body goes limp below mine.
My chest heaves in heavy breaths from the battle. I force myself still and listen.
Silence. Nothing but the roar of adrenaline in my own ears. I feel nothing, not even the glory of victory, because I’m aware of how short-lived it’s going to be.
> Any second now his vampire friends will crash into me and destroy me like a twig in a tide. I’ve just killed their leader. They won’t simply let me get up and walk away.
But as one second passes… then stretches out into two, and then three… and nothing happens?
Well, that’s when I dare to actually slowly turn back.
All nine of Chandler’s companions are staring at me with a mix of trepidation and awe. They’ve released my coven members.
A tense moment passes when we simply look at each other.
An owl hoots off in the distance.
As if that’s the cue to action, each of the men immediately drop to one knee. They punch their right fist to their heart, thumping it three times.
Then they rise again, and the first amongst them speaks.
“We are bound by the old laws,” he says. “Chandler was our pack leader. Now that you’ve killed him, you take his place. We are yours to do with as you see fit.”
The shock from that declaration makes me slow to react. I look down at the deceased vampire, still trying to make sense of it all. There he lies, beneath me, that angelic face forever locked in its final form…
With a grunt of disgust I heave off him. I turn and face the rest.
“Pack, you say?” I wonder out loud. “I’ve never heard such a term used for vampires before. But hell… I’m not complaining.”
I bend down and wipe the blood on my hands on Chandler’s clothes. The first step I take toward the pack, they flinch like frightened children.
The whole dynamic fascinates me. Am I the alpha of their group, now that Chandler is gone? Is that what they mean?
Who ever heard of vampires behaving like this?
Carefully, I probe each of their strength. They are, to the one, stronger than I.
But they don’t know that yet. Not intuitively, not with me cloaked. For all of Chandler’s bluster about being able to deduce my strength, it got him precious little when push came to shove.
These vampires could just be cautious. Or maybe, just maybe, the pack law actually binds their allegiance.
In either case, I’d be a fool not to try using it to my advantage immediately.
“The first order of business, then,” I tell them, “Is untying my friends. Do it now.”
I steady my features well to hide the utter shock that comes when the pack vampires move to comply.
Victoria is the first to speak. “Well, James,” she says. “It looks like you’ve managed to expand the Nocturna Animalia after all.”
A slow grin spreads across my face.
“Yes,” I tell her thoughtfully. “It looks like I have.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Eleira
The stronghold
Raul looks glorious on the other side of the doorway. When I first felt a ripple of somebody on the other side, I had no way of knowing who it was… but intuition told me it was my man come for me.
He wastes no time making his presence known. He steps through and grabs me by the waist. He seals his lips to mine and devours my mouth with a hot, passionate kiss.
I let myself be taken by him. His body feels so solid when it’s flush against mine. Our desire for each other explodes into being. I lose myself in that moment, letting myself be swept up by the fairy tale tide.
Here, like this, when Raul kisses me, I can forget the rest of the world exists. I can forget all my problems. I can float on coattails of passion and for a precious moment just be a girl lost in her wildest dream, her most amazing fantasy.
To have a creature so beautiful, so elegant, so downright amazing, take an interest in me and shower me with his love is still something I cannot quite wrap my head around.
Eventually, he lets me go. He looks deep into my eyes. In a husky breath, he says, “Hi.”
“Hi,” I giggle.
And then I remember where we are, and the audience we have, and quickly take a step back to solidify the distance between us. I flatten the front of my clothes and try to put on a composed appearance before the others.
The flush in my cheeks doesn’t help at all.
I turn back and look at Felix, who is studying a knot in the oak of his desk, obviously giving us privacy.
But with what he’s told me, now is not the time for such propriety.
“Raul,” I say quickly. “Felix did something incredible. He has a goblet contra-torrial. We used it to feed Cassandra his blood. You made her, but she won’t be drawing power from you anymore. Your strength is safe. It won’t be sapped.”
Raul furrows his brow. “What do you mean, sapped?” He comes closer to me and puts a hand protectively around my waist. “I wasn’t in any danger.”
I shake my head. “You’re wrong. I didn’t know this. Felix just revealed it to me. But when a vampire converts a human, the fledgling steals power from the one who made him.”
Raul looks at the Royal Court member. “Is this what you’ve told her?”
Felix bows his head deeply in the affirmative. “It is as she says, my Prince.”
“Cut the niceties,” Raul barks. “I’ve never heard of this phenomenon before. Why would a vampire draw strength from his maker?”
Felix spreads his hands. “Where else would the power come from? All of us in The Haven know how to make fledglings. But The Queen forbids it, so few are aware of the risks.”
“Don’t get angry with him,” I tell Raul. “Everything he’s said is true. I saw Cassandra’s transformation before my own eyes. And you’re not weakened by it.”
“Of course I’m not,” Raul bristles. “We draw our strength from the vampiric essence. It is enhanced by regular feedings. It is how vampires prosper and grow. Human blood is what infuses us with strength. Not a sapping of the maker.”
Felix gives a tired smile. “Forgive me for being so blunt, but who taught you that?”
“It’s common knowledge,” Raul says. “Nobody taught me. It’s just what is.”
“No.” Felix shakes his head. “All that you know, all that most of The Haven vampires know, came from the Queen. We live in a reality warped by her propaganda. Remember how much longer I’ve been alive than her. I know what it was like before. I know more about our species than any other vampire in the coven.”
“I’m sorry if I’m a little skeptical.” Raul says drily. “I’ve never known you to be particularly outspoken.”
“I know how to bide my time,” Felix says. “It is a skill essential to survival under a complete monarch.”
“Don’t forget who you’re speaking to,” Raul warns. He takes an aggressive step toward Felix.
I pull him back by the arm. “Raul, he’s on our side,” I stress. “It’s just—”
He cuts me off mid-sentence. His eyes fall on me once more and then soften immediately.
“I’m just concerned about you,” he says. “We don’t have much time until the ceremony begins.”
“Where’d you run off to, anyway?” I ask. “What did Geordam tell you that was so important you left without a word?”
“Nothing,” he tells me. He hesitates for a moment and then speaks. “In truth, I needed an excuse for going outside, back to the treetop apartments. I thought I could find something there that might help me figure out what Mother intends with you tonight.”
“And?” I ask. “What did you find?”
Raul’s gaze flickers to Felix.
“…Nothing,” he says after an infinitesimal delay. “Nothing of significance to us, in either case.”
I can tell he doesn’t want to say more in the company of Felix.
The older vampire stands and walks around his desk to us. “I can understand if you don’t trust me,” he tells Raul. “Given our past history, I can’t hold it against you. But right now, I think we can both agree that Eleira’s navigation of the succession ceremony is of utmost importance. I am willing to put our differences aside until we get her through it. In truth, it’s all water under the bridge for me, anyway. I don’t hold
any judgment against you, Raul, no matter what you might think. Especially not with regards to Liana.”
Instantly Raul stiffens. “Don’t you say her name,” he warns under his breath.
Felix turns both hands up. “I meant no offense, my Prince, I assure you.”
“Right,” Raul scoffs. He turns to me. “When he says Liana—”
“It doesn’t matter,” I cut him off shortly. “I don’t care about what happened in the past. I mean, I do, but it’s not relevant now, is it? Felix has shown himself to be more than trustworthy in the hours I’ve spent with him. Unless you really have reason not to trust him…?”
Raul grunts and gives a rough shake of his head. “Felix has never proven himself disloyal,” he hedges. He barks a laugh. “In fact, he’s one of the few Royal Court vampires I feel completely comfortable having you alone with.”
“Thank you for that vote of confidence,” Felix says, with no small amount of dark humor.
That actually elicits a smile from Raul. “I’m sorry. I’m so used to being on the defensive with the Royal Court. Carter and Deanna’s recent antics haven’t instilled any greater confidence in me.”
“Of course, I understand,” Felix says. “But you must know that I never sided with them. I know the value of unity for our coven. That is the only path to prosperity for us. Eleira has a very unique opportunity to shape the future of the vampire world. She needs advisors. That is the highest calling I might profess for myself.”
“Felix knows who the Black Sorceress is,” I blurt out.
Raul stops and looks at me. “Who?”
“He says she’s…” my eyes go to the older vampire, who gives the smallest, affirmative nod.
“He says she’s Morgan’s sister,” I finish in a single breath.
Raul blinks. And then he laughs. “You’re kidding,” he says.
“No,” I exclaim, annoyed at how quickly he’d dismiss it.
“Mother has no siblings,” he tells me. “Are these the sorts of things he’s been filling your head with?”
“Again, forgive me for being presumptuous, but in this I am right,” Felix says. “You do not know your own family history, Raul, because much of it has been hidden from you. But remember that I’ve had nearly two hundred more years in the blood than our current Queen. She has a sibling. That sibling is Cierra. And she is the same witch who took possession of Eleira’s mind when she opened The Book of the Dead.”
