William (Echoes of Ossiria #1)

by Vivian Lane

  I shook her. “Enough of your riddles, woman! Tell me where Annabelle is!”

  She just stared into my eyes, not looking the least bit frightened by my beastly behavior. “Answer my question, please, William.”

  “Yes. Anything. I would do anything.” I let go, bracing my arms either side of her head instead. “Do you know where my sister is?”

  “Not yet, but I can help you find her, if you let me.”

  It was only another game. I rocked back into my seat. “How?” I asked tiredly.

  Her eyes were bright. “The world is more fantastic than you realize, William. There are powers and forces beyond your present reckoning, but I can introduce you.”

  “And then what?”

  “You will have the power to bring your sister home, and more.” The woman was mad.

  “Why do you try to tempt me with the impossible? Does it amuse you?”

  “Oh! Poor William…I was called to your pain, don’t you see? I want to help you. Or would you rather waste away, alone and impotent? You are too young to give up on life so easily.”

  “You know nothing of my life.”

  “I have seen enough. Imagine for a moment that I speak the truth. Isn’t it better to take a risk than leave your beloved sister suffering out there in the cold?”

  “Scotland Yard seems to think she is already dead.”

  She scoffed. “Does your heart agree?”

  Did I believe deep down in the heart of my soul? I knew what loss felt like with Mother, the certain knowledge she was no longer on Earth, and there had never been that with Annabelle. Mother never gave up hope that she would one day return to us. I hadn’t been as optimistic, but part of me never wanted to shut the door on my little sister. There just hadn’t been a trail to follow. Was it really possible to find her after all this time?

  “No,” I whispered.

  “Excellent! We’re going to have an adventure.”

  “Miss Cassandra, I did not agree to go anywhere with you. I will allow you to help me by providing information regarding my sister’s whereabouts and that is all.”

  She sighed and told me the name of a hotel she was residing at. The carriage finally stopped at my home and I exited with all the haste politeness would allow. Once inside with all the locks turned, I could finally breathe.

  “Sir, are you alright?” Jasper asked. “You look a might pale.”

  “Fine. Never better. Just in a rush to get out of these wet things.”

  “Certainly, sir. I’ll have your chambers toasty warm in no time.”

  “Thank you, Jasper. Esther? Tea, please.”

  “Yes, sir,” she called.

  I went upstairs after handing Jasper my coat, hat, and gloves. I wasn’t too badly soaked, in truth, but most of my clothing needed to be set out to dry. My fireplace was already glowing in anticipation of my return home and the heat felt delicious to my toes.

  What a strange evening. Perhaps I should stay home for a while, or escape to the countryside. The woman’s promises were alluring, but she was obviously mentally unwell. Or a con woman looking to swindle me. She’d probably read about Annabelle’s kidnapping in a newspaper and hoped I would be easy prey.

  A knock on the door, then, “Sir?”

  “Come in, Esther.” I finished knotting my robe as she carried in a tray of tea things.

  “There’s a little supper for you, too, sir. Warm you right up.”

  “Thank you.”

  She curtsied and left.

  Morning’s arrival was a relief. Things always seemed clearer in the light of day, and I hadn’t slept well. Mind made up, I wrote a letter stating I would not be using Miss Cassandra’s services and if she did indeed possess information on my sister’s whereabouts, she could address it to the detective in charge of the case. Further attempts to contact me in person would constitute harassment and the authorities would be notified. A messenger took it to her hotel first thing.

  Chapter Eight

  I felt…strange. There was a loud scratching sound coming from somewhere. And voices. My limbs felt too heavy. And I was ravenous.

  I opened my eyes to a dark room. “Where…?”

  “Easy now,” a woman said, then a glass was held to my lips. A thick and warm liquid filled my mouth and I gulped it down.

  The sharp pangs of hunger dulled to a quiet rumble.

  “Better?”

  “Yes…what…where…?” My mind couldn’t quite catch up to my circumstances.

  “You’re in my hotel room, William. I am going to help you achieve all you desire.”

  “Cassandra?”

  “How did I get here? How long ago?”

  She petted my hair. “I brought you here last night. How do you feel?”

  “Odd. Hungry. Why is there no light?”

  She snapped her fingers. I heard a man’s footsteps, then an oil lamp was lit. Were they always this bright? “It takes a moment to adjust, William. Would you like another glass?”

  My stomach growled. How embarrassing. “Yes, please.” Another glass was held to my lips in an instant. I drank greedily.

  “What do you remember?” she asked.

  “Going to a concert…then the rain, and your carriage. We exchanged words and I went home. Why?”

  She sat on the…oh, a bed. Oh dear. I was propped up by pillows. “Think again, William, and see clearly.”

  “Do you know where my sister is?”

  “Not yet, but I can help you find her, if you let me.”

  It was only another game. I rocked back into my seat. “How?” I asked tiredly.

  Her eyes were bright. “The world is more fantastic than you realize, William. There are powers and forces beyond your present reckoning, but I can introduce you.”

  “And then what?”

  “You will have the power to bring your sister home, and more.” The woman was mad.

  “Why do you try to tempt me with the impossible? Does it amuse you?”

  “Oh! Poor William…I was called to your pain, don’t you see? I want to help you. Or would you rather waste away, alone and impotent? You are too young to give up on life so easily.”

  “You know nothing of my life.”

  “I have seen enough. Imagine for a moment that I speak the truth. Isn’t it better to take a risk than leave your beloved sister suffering out there in the cold?”

  “Scotland Yard seems to think she is already dead.”

  She scoffed. “Does your heart agree?”

  “No,” I whispered.

  “Excellent! We’re going to have an adventure.”

  “Miss Cass—”

  She moved faster than any being had a right to and locked gazes with me. “No more arguments, William. I am going to release your potential.” Then she yanked my head to the side and there was an intense searing pain in my neck.

  “I didn’t make it home?” I said.

  “No, William. During the transition, the mind gives us a memory we can easily accept until we are ready for the truth.”

  With dread, I asked, “What truth?”

  “That we have become more. Become other. You, my dear William, are a vampire.”

  I laughed. How could I not? “Don’t be absurd, madam. This game of yours has lasted long enough—” Her face changed. Changed. Golden irises and extended incisors and canine teeth. I scrambled off the other side of the bed. “This is a trick! You drugged me!”

  She blinked slowly and looked like Cassandra again. “Look in the mirror, William.” There was a large mirror above a vanity table. “Look!”

  I edged over to face it and stumbled back from my reflection. My eyes were the same yellow hers had been a second before. “My God…”

  “It’s alright. Breathe.”

  “Am I dead?”

  She smiled. “Not quite. I have much to teach you, but first you must accept what you’ve become.”

  “Why?” I stared at her.

  “This is the only way you will get Annabelle back.”<
br />
  “How do you know about my sister?”

  “You read of seers, oracles, in literature, yes?”

  “Of course.”

  “I see things. I think I always have, but the transformation unlocked my gift. When I said I was called to your pain, I spoke the truth. I saw you, and now you’re here. I asked if you would do anything to see Annabelle again, if you would die for her, because of this.”

  I knew. I was different. But a feeling of dread suggested this came with terrible consequences. “Is this permanent?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can I go home?”

  “Do you have servants?”

  “Of course.”

  “Then you will kill them.”

  “What? Never!”

  “It won’t be your choice, William. The hunger is an instinct that overwhelms reason when you are new to this state of being. If they matter to you at all, you must ask them to leave the house while you gather your things. But you will soon understand that mortals are fragile and fleeting, and few are terribly missed.”

  “I will not!”

  She patted my arm. “You will. We are not part of their world, and we must eat.”

  “It is easy enough to visit a butcher.”

  “Animal blood will make you weak. Too weak to find Annabelle.” She suddenly pinned me to the bed. “Adapt or perish, William.”

  I couldn’t move her. “How is a woman this strong?”

  She grinned. “One of many gifts, childe. I am older than you think and I made you.” A flash of movement and she stood in the doorway. “Now, are you ready to learn?”

  “If you will return my possessions.” I’d wakened without my coat, jacket, gloves, or hat.

  “Certainly, sir.” She led the way into the parlor. “Welcome to the night, William.”

  Chapter Nine

  1986

  I remembered talking to Catherine. How sweet she’d been.

  Helpful.

  Concerned about me.

  It wasn’t the natural order of things between a human and a vampire. On the street, she would’ve been merely another meal.

  I hadn’t been as drunk as I let on, but I still woke up with a bad taste in my mouth and a headache. Rolling out of bed, I realized I never ate the night before. That would explain why I felt out of sorts. “Don’t get to know your food,” I muttered, heading for the shower.

  I didn’t do soft feelings.

  So, I liked the human. Wasn’t the end of the world, was it? Could be the end of my business, but that wouldn’t be the end of the world, either.

  Two choices: turn the girl over to Tallis, or let her sneak off with enough dosh to get to London in one piece. Her contract only made us responsible for the girl’s well-being if she was on the premises. It was up to the Great Idiot to collect her if she was out on her own.

  I was tempted to wish her good luck and wash my hands of the whole thing.

  And why was that? When had I ever avoided trouble? It certainly wasn’t out of fear of Tallis. The money didn’t matter. It was…

  “Ah, hell, figure it out later.”

  I wrapped a towel around my waist, then worked a bit of gel into my hair, smoothing it down with a comb. Grabbed a packet of O-neg out of the mini-fridge and heated it in the microwave. I’d just sunk fangs into the bag when there was a knock on the door.

  “Enter.”

  The door opened slowly, part way. “Only me. I wanted to see how you were.” It was Catherine.

  “In or out, love. You’re lettin’ in a draft.” I squeezed the last of the blood into a glass.

  She slipped inside. “Ooops, sorry! Oh…” She stopped and blushed, averting her eyes. “I-I didn’t expect you to be…um…”

  I smirked, watching her stammer through her embarrassment, and couldn’t resist teasing her. “Two minutes sooner, and you’d have caught me wandering around starkers, so I’d say your timing is perfect, Miss Mitchell…unless you wanted to catch a peek?”

  “No! I mean, not that you aren’t worthy of peeking at, if one planned to do so, but that so wasn’t my plan, and, um, oh God… I’m gonna go.” She turned around, only to find me blocking the door.

  “So soon? I thought you had a question for me,” I purred, stalking her.

  “Eeep!”

  I took gentle hold of her arms.

  “What are you doing?”

  And pushed her down to sit. “You were about to run into a chair.” I picked up the crystal tumbler again. “Head’s fine, by the way. Just need my breakfast.”

  “Good! That’s…good…”

  “What day is it?”

  She thought for a second. “Friday?”

  “Mm, excellent. I’m thinking, you’ve read about demons, but you’ve hardly seen any. We need an outing.”

  “You and me?”

  I shook my head. “Everyone! Been too long cooped up in the house and such.” I paused to make notes on a pad on the desk.”

  “Uh, where?” She dropped her eyes to her lap when the towel loosened on my hips.

  “Demon bar or club, wherever we see first. Alicia can make a few contacts…” I said absently, and made a couple more jots on the paper, folded it, and turned around to hand it to her. “Here, take this down to Alicia so she can get started.”

  Catherine had stood, resolutely keeping her eyes at shoulder level.

  “What?”

  “Uh, William…”

  I looked down, then behind me, and noticed the towel had caught on the desk chair. Rolled my eyes. “Oh, for heaven’s sake…get out of here.”

  Her blush deepened. She briefly met my eyes, then sprinted from the room.

  Scowling, I flicked my erection and swallowed the last of the blood. “See what you did,” I scolded my lower brain, and walked to the closet.

  Word spread quickly amongst the girls that I was sponsoring a night out.

  When Catherine came downstairs in jeans, a sweater, and sensible boots, I vetoed the outfit immediately. “You’re not going to a club like that! Go put on something appropriate!”

  “It’s cold outside!”

  “So? You can’t go into a demon bar looking like that. It screams ‘lunch’.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her hip at an angle. “Well, then I’m not going!”

  “Sorry, not an option. You’re going, and you’re going to change clothes now.”

  She remained defiant. “No.”

  The tendon in my jaw twitching, I charged up the two steps to tower over her. “Get your fucking skinny ass up those stairs now and do what I bloody tell you.”

  She lifted her chin. “No. I’m not a piece of meat, yours or anyone else’s. You want me to go; I’m going like this, or not at all.”

  I nodded, then hoisted her over my shoulder and charged up the stairs two at a time.

  “William! Put me down, you Neanderthal!”

  “Only if you quit acting like a spoiled brat.”

  She wasn’t going to go easily, and squirmed and kicked, pounding my back with her fists. I dropped her on the first landing when she finally managed to kick me in the balls. She took advantage of landing on her back to kick the side of my knee with her heel. I dropped to one knee as she got up and ran down the hallway toward the back stairs.

  I pushed the pain away and took off after her. The knee grit and shifted as I put weight on it. “Errgh…Catherine, will you stop? This is bloody stupid. Everybody’s waiting.”

  She stopped and turned around at the end of the hall. “You’re the one who insisted I change clothes and tried to drag me upstairs. We could be on the road by now.” She turned the corner, heading for the back stairs.

  “I’m going to tan that pretty little ass if you don’t get back here and do as you’re told!”

  Around the corner, and she wasn’t there. Where would…ah!

  I pulled her out of hiding by her sweater, but the struggle wasn’t over. I was pissed off, but I didn’t want to damage her permanently, so
I wasn’t using full strength, and she was a slippery little thing.

  We came to a stalemate, her back hitting the wall as she pressed a sliver of wood against my t-shirt over my heart. I glanced down at the pointy object, then at her defiant glare. “Clever girl,” I murmured. “Dust me now, and you have your freedom.”

  Could practically see the options running through her mind. 1) Plunge the stake through my heart and get the hell out of Dodge. Alicia wouldn’t stop her. 2) Drop the stake and be at my mercy, whatever I planned to do to punish her.

  Being an impatient sort, I opened door number three.

  I kissed her, leaning forward enough to press my lips to hers, the point of the stake making a dent in my shirt and skin. All she had to do was push and I’d be dead, but…

  Her arms wrapped around my neck, instead. I growled into her mouth and pressed her body against the wall.

  My hands were on her waist. She jumped up to wrap her legs around my hips. I plunged my tongue into her mouth, grinding my erection against her quim. She was so warm, so unguarded.

  I’d turned a key and somehow unlocked the passionate woman inside the girl. The way she sucked on my tongue when I tried to pull it back, how she pressed her breasts against my chest whenever I shifted my hips a certain way, the little whimpers she made each time I pressed her against the wall again. Her right hand clutched the back of my neck, her nails slightly digging into my nape, the stake somewhere on the floor. Her left hand clung to my coat. She wasn’t afraid I would drop her—she wanted to keep me close. It was a heady thought, and god, I wanted to rip her clothes off and have her right here—

  “Ahem.”

  We froze, waiting for the sound to have been a fluke. Imagined.

  “Yes, I’m still here,” Alicia said, rolling her eyes. “The girls were getting antsy. Should we go without you?”

  Catherine slid her legs down my body and hid her face in my coat. I cleared my throat and turned to Alicia. “We’ll be right there.”

  Alicia shrugged and teleported away.

  Catherine sidled away from me and started walking to the stairs.

  “Love…”

  “Don’t. It was a fluke. I’m going to straighten up, and I’ll meet you at the car.” She ran the rest of the way down toward the bathroom by the kitchen.