Dissension

by Adrienne Monson

  The silence on the other end was thick and almost deafening.

  Samantha took a breath. “Do you understand what I’m saying? Did you hear me, Mason?”

  “Perfectly,” came the frosty reply. “You’re still with your little vampire, aren’t you?”

  She debated briefly on whether to lie, but decided to go with truth. “Yes, I’m going to be staying with Leisha,” she said softly.

  “You’re choosing that monster over your own father?” His anger was as apparent as if she were in the same room with him.

  “I’m not choosing any one person over the other, but I trust Leisha and I know I’m safe with her.” She paused a beat. “I can’t say the same thing about you.”

  Mason gasped, then proceeded to use every profanity in the book, all of it lashing out at Leisha, panting by the end of his litany. “Listen to me Samantha,” he said with sudden calm. “I know I wasn’t in your life while you were growing up, but I am trying to be your father now. Come back home with me and give me the chance that your mother didn’t allow me. I can’t promise to be wonderful, but I’ll be the best dad I can.”

  Tears sprang to her eyes, but she blinked them away. “No,” her voice trembled. “Not right now, okay? I just need some time to think.”

  “That brainwashing, manipulative, conniving bitch! She has taken away your will! You’re not able to think for yourself right now. You need—”

  “I’m still me,” she said between clenched teeth. “I’ll call you on Christmas or something.” With that, she pressed the end button and slumped back into her chair.

  After a few moments of staring at nothing, she picked up her mug of hot chocolate, her hands still shaking, and took a long sip.

  Samantha was exhausted. It had been five days since Ptah came to annihilate the immortals, and they had been on the move ever since. Leisha drove all the way to Germany, doing little odd jobs here and there to earn money for food and gas.

  Leisha’s throat healed within minutes after leaving Oxford and she had been able to fluently sweet talk her way through all kinds of near disasters. The vampire charmed her way through the borders even though she had no identification, with bloodstains on her clothes. Most of the people they encountered seemed enamored by the woman’s beauty and barely noticed the blood.

  After two days of driving, they arrived at a bank, where they met with one of Leisha’s connections to get an ID for Samantha. When all was done, they stopped at an Internet café.

  Returning from using a computer, Leisha sighed.

  “Well?” Samantha prompted.

  “The vampires don’t have all the details on who died in the attack at Oxford. At least, they don’t know the deceased immortals. I’ve been chatting with Nikita on I.M. and he said they know at least five people on the immortal council did not survive, but that’s all he knows. Victor has taken Annette as his mate and they are talking about moving to a different base, in Paris or Italy.”

  Samantha sagged her shoulders. “So, nothing really changed, has it?”

  “Well, having Victor for a leader will be different, though I doubt it will change for the better.”

  “And the immortals?”

  “They may have lost half of their council, but they will be replaced. They’ll find another location and life will go on. In the meantime, both sides will still be trying to find the prophecy child.” She smiled at Samantha. “Too bad, they don’t have you to tell them that he has not been born yet.” She paused. “Are you ready to tell me about the conversation with your dad yet?”

  Samantha’s stomach clenched at the question. “Maybe later.”

  Leisha pursed her lips to the side. “You can change your mind, Samantha. You’re more than welcome to stay with me, and I promise I’ll take care of you, but I understand if you want to try and work things out with your father.”

  Closing her eyes, Samantha remembered her father watching over Leisha’s broken body. His eyes had held no warmth at all. “I would much rather live with you.”

  Leisha nodded, smiling. She knew Leisha loved her like a sister and Samantha felt the same. She could not leave the vampire now. Not while Samantha was grieving over all the immortals who had died because she had snuck Ptah in.

  She also couldn’t leave now when she knew Leisha was going through her own grief. Her daughter was now alive, yet hated the very existence of her. And Leisha would not discuss it at all, nor would she talk to Samantha about the kiss she and Tafari shared. Samantha was feeling optimistic about them rekindling a romance, but Leisha only showed stoicism over it.

  “Samantha,” Leisha whispered, “After all that you have seen of me, and after all that I have told you about myself, why aren’t you scared of me?”

  “That’s easy. It’s because you are just a person, like everyone else sitting here in this cafe.”

  “No, I’m not. You know what I am.”

  “Yes, you’re right. You’re more than just any regular person. After all, you help rid the streets of murderers and still have a healthy respect for human life regardless of your natural tendencies. No one in this room could top that!”

  Leisha looked perplexed for a few minutes, then shook her head and laughed. It was the first time she had heard Leisha truly laugh. “Come on.” The vampire stood. “Let’s get back to the hotel.”

  They left and climbed into their car. Neither one spoke as Leisha maneuvered through the busy streets. Samantha was reaching to turn on the radio when a new vision assaulted her senses . . .

  A woman was lying on a couch in what looked like a small apartment. She was screaming as though in agony, but no one was touching her. Then Samantha looked around the room and saw them.

  Victor was holding a newborn baby who was squirming at the sound of his mother’s screams. Standing next to him was Annette, her gaze fixed solely on the woman. Samantha’s blood curdled as she realized what was happening.

  Victor grabbed Annette’s arm. “That’s enough,” he snapped. Then he walked over to the woman and held out the child. “Do you want him back?”

  The mother was weaker than her newborn babe, but still tried to reach for him. Victor pulled the baby out of reach. “You must answer my questions first.”

  The woman sobbed helplessly. “I swear,” she said. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. His father abandoned me when I was six months pregnant. That’s all there is to it. He’s nothing special, he’s just my baby.” Her voice broke on a sob. “Please give him back to me!”

  Victor sighed in clear annoyance. He turned to Annette. “It seems we have followed yet another false lead.” He placed the baby in his mother’s arms, the woman barely able to hold him.

  Victor walked over to Annette. “Which one would you like?”

  Annette gave a sweet smile. “I like the fresh innocent blood of a babe.”

  “I prefer older blood myself,” he said casually. “They always hold so much more terror in their aura.”

  Together, they walked with menace as they approached the mother and child.

  Samantha came out of her vision to see Leisha parked on the side of the road, cars speeding past them, honking their irritation.

  “Are you all right?” Leisha asked, clearly concerned. “What on earth did you see?”

  It was then that Samantha noticed the tears streaming down her face. She was sobbing uncontrollably. It took her several minutes to get her crying under control before she was able to recount her vision to Leisha. “It was so horrible, Leisha!” Samantha was starting to cry again. “The worst part is that I know I can’t save them. I don’t know where they are and I can’t go up against Victor and Annette.”

  “We need to find the prophecy child before they do.”

  Samantha bit her lip. “Where are we supposed to start?”

  Leisha was silent for some time before turning back onto the road. “There’s only so much we can do. I think we should return to America, get you back into school and let you have some semblance of a nor
mal life. We’ll just have to pay strict attention to your visions while I spend my time in libraries and online doing research.” She reached over and gently squeezed Samantha’s hand. “We’ll figure this out together, and we’ll make sure the child is protected, from both immortals and vampires.”

  Samantha wasn’t sure if she believed that, but Leisha sounded so sure of herself that the girl relaxed. Maybe they could really save this poor child, whoever he was.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Many thanks to my critique group, who helped me turn my writing weaknesses into strengths. Jessica Bradshaw, Brett Monson, Ruth Craddock, Ashleigh Miller, Roxy Haynie, and Karyn Patterson.

  I would also like to mention my first fans, Shantell Ewell and Esther Montgomery. They loved my manuscript and instantly became enthusiastic supporters for this book to get published. Erica Miller was a great help at polishing my work and submissions.

  A special thanks to an unknown intern at Jolly Fish Press, who believed in my manuscript so much that she pushed for it like an agent would have.

  Of course, I have to mention Christopher Loke, who was willing to take a chance on a nameless author, and has encouraged me to finish the trilogy. My publicist, Kirk Cunningham, has been a lot of fun to work with and loves to try new campaigns with me.

  And finally, my husband, Adam, who has supported me through my dream of becoming an author, and has been monumental in building my online platform.

  I couldn’t have gotten to this point without any of these people, and I’m so grateful for their friendship and support!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Adrienne Monson, winner of the 2009 Oquirrh’s Writer’s Contest and the Utah RWA’s Great Beginnings, has immersed herself in different kinds of fiction since a young age, but she has always found herself to have a voracious appetite for vampire novels. She currently lives in American Fork, Utah, with her husband and two kids.