by Kimbra Swain
“I was afraid one of the others had done it,” I said.
“Lydia took your blood when she kidnapped you. I drank it after I took it from her. I can only assume she intended to give it to Lorcan, which means she is only pretending to do my bidding,” he said.
“How long have you known that?” I asked.
“Since before I called you home,” he said.
The crowd took their seats. Richard and his son stepped up to the circle in the center of the room. Each one of the directions were marked with a compass point. My father and I stood at the South marker. Tierney and Lorcan stood at the North. The East marker was not occupied.
A rounded stone sat in the center of the circle. It was about 3-foot-tall with a small ledge close to the ground like a prayer bench. The entire stone sat on a grate to collect the blood of the leader, which the heir would drink.
My father had given me a full goblet of his blood, which would be exactly how much the heir to a throne would have to drink to take their inheritance. A blood inheritance.
I had already drunk mine. My father didn’t intend to live through this. I looked around the room at all of those who watched. Lydia sat in the front row next to her mother whose fingers where still stained red. Not with blood, because there were white and black stains too. Lydia’s mother had marked the wall at my apartment. She was in on it, too.
My eyes scanned the servants in the room. Many of them had stained hands as if they had all painted. I shot a look at Stanley and wiggled my fingers, then looked directly at the servants in the room who had matching painted fingers. He looked confused, then saw it. He touched his ear. I saw his mouth moving. He had a bug in his ear and was talking to his men.
When I looked up again, Tierney watched me. Silence fell over the room. She still looked afraid. I was sure she saw the same fear in me. I’d decided that I didn’t want to die. Not like this.
“In the days of the old ones, when a son took the place of his father, the father offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of his people. Richard Blackburn has led the people of the west for over one hundred and fifty years. His wealth has grown, and his servants and patrons believe him to be a fine Lord. His son, Richard Blackburn, II, will take his place as Lord of the Western Vampire Realm. The other factions must agree to this change. As Lord of the South, I accept Lord Blackburn’s son as his heir,” Father said, then looked to Lorcan.
“As Lord of the North and East, I accept Lord Blackburn’s son as heir,” Lorcan said.
“Lord Blackburn, present your sacrifice,” my father said. Lord Blackburn turned to his son, removed his sword, and handed it to Dickey.
Richard Blackburn stepped up to the stone, then knelt down placing his knees on the lower bench. “I have final words,” he said.
“By all means,” Father replied.
“As I take my last moments on this earth, I want to thank you, Father, for my long life.” It occurred to me that technically, Little Dick was my cousin. But so was Tierney. We were all adopted, but the thought did cross my mind. “I, also, want to thank the people of the West who have blessed my reign with their talents allowing all western vampires to prosper. I challenge those who remain to remember the reason we have laws. We are superior to humans, not only with physical differences and long life, but because we conduct ourselves in an orderly manner. Remember these things,” Richard said.
“Thank you, Lord Blackburn,” my father said. He didn’t seem sad. His son was about to die. I wondered if he would act differently if it were me. I think I knew that he would.
There were two wooden pegs on the sides of the altar. Richard held on to them as he laid his head on the top of the pillar.
“Richard Blackburn, your sacrifice will be remembered,” Father said, then stepped away from the circle, placing us in the aisle between some of our own people.
Tierney and her father stepped back, as well.
Little Dick positioned himself to bring the sword down on his father’s neck which placed him right in front of Lydia and her mother. He lifted the sword, and I saw the flash of the blade in Lydia’s mother’s hand.
“No!” I screamed, launching myself toward her. She stood and jammed the knife into Little Dick’s back. The sword clattered to the ground, as I tackled the woman. She dropped her knife, and it slid across the floor. Lord Blackburn jumped up from the altar and grabbed his son who began to sink to the ground. A stab wouldn’t kill him, but the long blade that Lydia pulled from her dress would decapitate him.
Screams filled the room as chaos erupted. Instead of striking out at Dickey, Lydia brought the blade down on Richard, severing his head cleanly from his neck. She turned to take a swing at my father who already had his sword in his hand. He deflected her blow.
Shots rang out. Stanley stood with a smoking gun just over my father’s shoulder. Lydia took two bullets in the neck and fell to the ground.
I heard Tierney scream as I wrestled with Lydia’s mother. Lorcan shoved her to the ground near me.
“Kill him,” he snarled, pulling out his sword.
Tierney picked up the knife that had slid across the floor. Little Dick howled in pain. Those not involved with the plot scattered, but I saw others in the room not moving. All of them held a blade of some sort.
“Kill them!” Lorcan screamed. The Renfields moved quickly to the guards around the room in attack mode.
One of them lunged for me, but before I could pull the gun from my pocket. Tierney stabbed him through the neck. Blood sprayed across her chest as the man sank to the ground.
“Kill her!” she screamed at me. I fought back the demon. Tierney tossed me the blade, and I jammed it into Lydia’s mother’s neck. She leaned back with dark blood bubbling out of her mouth.
Tierney jerked me off the floor as the Renfields continued to attack. I gave her the knife and the gun from my pocket.
“What am I going to do with this? I can’t shoot!”
“Tierney! Kill him!” her father yelled.
She flipped him off. He snarled and his claws elongated. His hands began to turn black.
I jerked her face to mine, releasing every seductive hormone I had in my body. She shook her head at me.
“Don’t do it,” she said.
“Tierney, run! Run for me. Get somewhere safe. Don’t look back,” I said.
She shook her head. “I can fight,” she whimpered, but her legs were already moving away from me.
“I know, but I want you to fight another day,” I said. “Now, run!”
She turned and sprinted out of the room with the other frenzied guests, taking my gun and the knife with her. I probably should have thought to ask for them back.
Shots rang out in the outer room, and I cringed, hoping I hadn’t sent her to her death.
Lorcan went after my father who did not meet the beast with his own. I didn’t understand why he didn’t transform. I darted toward him only to be tackled from behind. My cousin, Trey, whom we hadn’t dealt with laid on top of me. He pinned me to the ground with a knife to my throat.
“Don’t do this,” I said to him.
“You had everything, but you turned your back on it!” he yelled. “Everything I ever wanted. I can’t even get Becky to fuck me because I gave her to you.”
I kept waiting for Stanley to rescue me, but he was busy with Stella taking down the Renfields who continued their mindless efforts to take out all of my father’s guard. They were also killing other vampires who were trying to flee.
My father traded sword blows with Lorcan. Father was clearly overpowered because he wouldn’t let go of the demon.
“He’s weak,” Trey said, watching them. “Lord MacFarlane has taken me into his house where I am appreciated. I will marry his daughter.”
“Taking more of my sloppy seconds,” I quipped, as I wrestled with him. He held me down with little effort. The demon inside raged, but I held it back. “You can come home. Just stop this nonsense.”
“It’s too late for th
at Malik. Lorcan is right. Your father’s reign is over,” Trey said, lifting the knife to bring it down on me.
The thread snapped, and I erupted off the floor, throwing Trey into the chairs that once held the Western faction. He got to his feet. A Renfield lunged at me, but I buried my claws into his neck, ripping his head off from the bottom up. I felt stronger. I took my eyes off Trey, swiveling to my father who still fought with Lorcan.
“Father!” I yelled.
He didn’t take his eyes off the fight with Lorcan. I realized that when he’d given me his blood, it had weakened the demon, in order to strengthen me. I growled, then turned back to Trey who had taken my lack of attention as his chance to charge me. I dodged the blade, then spun around to face him as he tried to maintain his balance.
“Malik,” Stanley called out to me. Stella held him up. He had a wound in his shoulder.
“Get him out of here,” I said to her. She nodded. Several of the house guards formed around them, to help them leave through the back exit.
I faced Trey. “You have a minute before this demon takes me over. I’d rather just take out Lorcan and not you. Why don’t you run like a coward?”
“I’m not running from you,” he said as his voice shook.
“You fear me. You don’t want the throne, but you don’t want me to have it either.”
“You have never been stable, Malik. You are more nuts than Lydia. What kind of vampire licks blood from seats to live?!”
“The kind that rips out his cousin’s throat for betrayal,” I said as I lunged toward him. We hit the ground, knocking chairs to the floor. He crawled away from me, but I pulled him back. He landed a sucker punch across my jaw, but it didn’t faze me. Trey had had his chance to leave. He was a dead man now.
Pulling a gun from his side, he opted to try to slow me down. He fired three times. The bullets struck me in the right side of my chest, but only one pierced my skin. The other two fell to the floor. He stared at me in disbelief. I ripped my shirt open to show him that the darkness had taken over my entire body except my head. But I knew my fangs had extended and my eyes were red and glowing.
“How? You’re not one of the old ones,” he said.
“Say you are afraid of me,” I snarled.
“I’m not,” he lifted his chin.
“Wrong answer,” I replied, reaching out with long arms and long claws I backhanded him across the room.
The sword blows stopped for a moment, and my eyes connected with Lorcan. “You are next,” I growled, then bounded across the room to my cousin.
He backed against the wall. “Do it, Malik. Prove you are just as evil as your father. No one will ever respect you. They will only fear you,” he said.
“What would a respectable man do with a traitor like you?” I asked.
“He would see that I’m not a traitor. He would see that I wanted the best for the realm. I supported you with Dick and Tierney. You are right. I don’t want the job, but you don’t deserve it either,” he said as I advanced on him.
“You attacked me.” I pointed at the spot where he had tackled me. “You joined with the enemy. The man who wants to take over all the realms. You are a traitor, Trey! Take off your blood- colored glasses and see that you fucked up!”
“You will never take your rightful place! The South is doomed.”
I made it to him and wrapped my claws around his neck. “That’s where you are wrong. I’ve already claimed my inheritance.” The pressure in my back built up and my skin began to split. I howled in pain as two giant wings sprouted. Trey’s eyes widened.
“My Lord,” he muttered.
“You picked the wrong side,” I snarled, then snapped his neck.
When I turned to face Lorcan, my wing brushed against the wall, then involuntarily closed in close to my back.
“You’ve given him the inheritance,” Lorcan shot at my father.
“I have. You can take my life, but you can never have my realm. My son will never relinquish it to you,” Father said.
Lorcan looked at me as I stalked toward him.
“You drop your sword now!” I demanded.
“You can’t tell me what to do!” he yelled back.
“Drop your fucking sword,” I said, throwing my will out through my words. If I truly had my father’s inheritance, then he would have to obey.
The sword dropped to the floor. Father backed away from him lowering his.
“You will split the North and East. Tierney will become the Lady of the East. You will go back to your realm and conduct yourself in a manner that is honorable to the laws of the old ones,” I demanded.
“Yes, my Lord,” he muttered through gritted teeth.
“And if you harm a hair on her head, I will gut you before I drink the blood from your veins,” I said.
“I understand,” he said.
“Is he dead?” I asked, pointing to Dickey.
My father knelt down next to him. “He is alive.”
“Lorcan, take him upstairs. One of our guards will take him to the doctor,” I said. Lorcan nodded in obedience and picked up the new Lord of the Western realm. He walked out leaving me with my father.
Timothy Demonbreun walked across the blood-soaked floor to me. We stood face to face, then he knelt before me.
“My Lord,” he said.
“Oh, hell no. You tricked me into this shit,” I said. “Only Lorcan knows what I am. I suggest we keep it that way.”
“You want me to pretend to be the Lord?” he asked.
“Yes. You gave me a year. I intend to take it,” I replied. “And I need to you to tell me what the hell to do with these wings.”
He stood, slapped me on the shoulder. “Just relax, Son. They will fade just like the power inside of you.”
I took deep breaths, calming the demon as I had before. The wings retracted into my body in the same manner as my claws. My knees felt weak, and my body trembled. Father supported me as I reined in the demon.
“That’s it. Just breathe, Son,” he coaxed.
I opened my eyes to see the carnage around us. “He orchestrated this, and I let him live. But I killed Trey.”
“Lorcan’s day is coming. It was right of you to split his realm. That is a very heavy punishment that no one will forget.”
“They will think you did it,” I said.
“One day they will know the truth. Most importantly, Lorcan will know the truth,” he said. “How did you figure all of this out? I had it wrong.”
“I shared blood with Tierney, then commanded her to tell me,” I said.
“She’s special,” Father said.
“She’s the Lady of the East now,” I said, waiting for his comment on that.
“It is a good choice. I approve, but I can’t figure why you’d let a woman like that get away.”
“It’s better for all of us this way,” I said.
“Don’t be a fool, Son. You would have given your life for her. She saved you,” he said.
“She did, and I will thank her properly,” I replied. He chuckled then patted me on the back.
“I need a gallon of blood.”
“I’ve got a few on tap. Choose your poison.”
“Between her blood and yours, I’d prefer human at this point.”
When I walked, my knees wobbled, but Father supported me all the way to the living quarters that he’d provided for me. He helped me sit on the couch. A servant promptly arrived with several decanters of blood. I gulped down the liquid while my father sipped at a small glass.
“What happens now? With your blood in me?”
“It’s no longer mine,” he said.
“Can I give it back to you?” I asked.
“No, you can only give it to one that you’ve sired. So, one day you’ll need to choose an heir.”
I rubbed my forehead as a massive headache threatened to cause me to pass out. The thought of forcing another into this life as I had been made my stomach turn.
“I hope I have ti
me.”
“You do.” He sat his glass down on the table. “I’m going to my room to rest. Besides, you have company.”
I cocked my head to the side, and my father touched his nose. I took a deep breath, and the spicy scent of a redhead teased my senses. Father smiled, then left the room.
“Tierney, he’s gone.”
She stepped out of the linen closet, looking around the room. “What happened?”
“Would you like a drink?” I asked. I wanted to be careful with everything I said to her.
“Yes, please,” she said, joining me on the couch. I poured her a glass, then handed it to her. “Is my father dead?”
“No,” I said, as I refilled my glass.
“No?”
“I spared his life.”
“Your father spared his life.”
I shook my head, then sat down the glass of blood. “The blood I drank during the toast was my father’s. He gave me my inheritance, so I could force Lorcan to do as I commanded.”
“Why couldn’t your father just do that?” she asked.
“I’m not sure. Something I should ask him. There is something else,” I said.
She sat her glass down, anticipating my news. “What else?”
“You are now the Lady of the East. The realms have been divided once again.”
Her mouth fell open. “Malik. How did you manage that?”
“I’m sorry I didn’t ask first.”
She moved over to me on the couch. “Here I thought you were going to keep me to yourself.”
I touched her cheek with the back of my blood-stained hand. “You are the one that said this wouldn’t work.”
“It won’t, but I didn’t expect you to give up.”
“I’m not giving up.”
“Good. Go take a shower. You have to thank me for saving your ass,” she said with a grin.
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied.
While she slept, I thought of my father and the responsibilities I’d have in the future. Hopefully, for now, we could keep up the impression that he was still the same man he was. I’d taken on the full power of his demon without knowledge of it, but I’d rather fight it than take his place. Perhaps he would see over the course of the next year that we could do this. I’d still have a small piece of freedom by having my condo across town.
