The village physician informed Grigor and his father that his blood disease appeared to be worse and that he would not live long. Lord Vladimir Oleander dismissed the doctor and sent several mercenaries to find the Vampire princess. It took 6 years for word to return that the princess would not come. She did not care if Grigor lived or died. She was upset that his blood had caused her to be sick and she had traveled to her African homeland to recuperate. Lord Vladimir Oleander was distraught and felt he had nowhere to turn until the messenger said that he knew where the princess went.
In Lord Vladimir Oleander’s mind, Africa was a land of savages and it was fitting that the princess called it home. He sold everything he had and packed Grigor into a carriage and traveled to Africa. Along the way, Lord Vladimir Oleander found people for his son to feed upon, every time disposing of the bodies so as not to attract attention. After each feeding, Grigor would get better for two or three days, but fall ill again.
By the time they had reached the western coast of the large savage land, Grigor had drained thousands of bodies and his father had aged many years. It was only chance that brought the pair to a village in what is now known as Ghana. The villagers were eager to see the pale skinned visitors and helped them to get water and food. For many weeks they slept a mile from the village, out of energy and without any leads.
Every night the villagers sang around the fire and every morning the children would run and play near the watering hole. The activities of the villagers were so routine that it took the Lords by surprise when their routine changed. One night, after a long hot day of hunting and gathering, the villagers quietly prepared a large feast and welcomed visitors. Grigor, having just fed on a warrior returning from the day's hunt, was sitting in a tree when he saw the Vampire princess and her warriors arrive to the feast. He could see that she was hugging and kissing certain members of the village as if they were her own.
Nearly falling out of the tree, Grigor rushed to tell his father, but found the man near the end of his life. He told his father to hold on because he could fix it and he ran to the village to confront the princess. Every step he took to the village brought a smell that made Grigor’s mouth water. He could not pinpoint the exact source of the smell but he knew that it was appealing to him.
He stepped into the clearing in time to see the princess lift her head from the wrist of the village chief. He had never known that you could drink without killing because he had never had the desire to stop. The blood that was dripping from the wrist of the chief smelled delicious. The strong smell of metal was coming from him and Grigor sprung forward to claim it.
He reached the chief and his wonderful smelling blood only to have the princess lift him into the air by the throat. He was suspended there, salivating over the blood that still stained the teeth of the princess. He struggled against her grip but it only caused her to dig her nails deeper into his flesh. She was about to rip his head off when she heard people screaming in the distance. Near the edge of the clearing stood the elderly Lord Vladimir Oleander and in his arms lay a village child with a knife to her throat.
The princess, against the wishes of her warriors, laid her life down for the life of the little village girl. The girl was, after all, her great great-grandchild, Efia.
In the end, Grigor, with the aid of his father, killed the Princess with fire and a few of her warriors that didn't flee. Then he drained the chief of his blood. There was something different about his blood for Grigor felt instantly better than he had in many years. He decided to turn his father into a Vampire as well and they would rule the world. Or so was the plan.
Chapter 12
The three of us had called down to the kitchen numerous times for tea and cookies. The story of how Grigor became a Vampire was so interesting that I begged the two of them not to stop when they got tired. We were on the verge of being late to the Council meeting and needed to get changed. Our dresses were simple; long medieval-like dresses with a plain gold braided rope for a belt. The fact that Tabitha’s did not have the same high collar as ours concerned me. It was also odd to me that every other St. Clair would be dressed in red while she was in green but it didn't seem the time to voice my confusion.
Solomon as standing in front of the huge double doors of the ballroom when we arrived. He was dressed in a long black tunic and loose fitting pants and sensible looking footwear. Around his waist was a long sword hanging from a blood red sash. As we came closer, I could see two pairs of Stewards flanking each side of the doors. They were dressed identically to Solomon and all five of them bowed deeply at our approach. I wasn’t sure just what to do when people bowed at me so I simply stopped walking. Chloe and Tabitha, on the other hand, continued forward until they were standing a few feet from the doors. Solomon and the other Stewards remained in the bowed positions until Chloe waved me forward.
Solomon stood from his bow and directed his men to open the doors. As we entered, we were joined by Zander, Violeta and Jordan. My brothers were wearing the same outfit as Solomon except in red and with the high collars that Chloe and I had. Violeta had a purple dress that was identical to mine and I began to wonder why hers had the collar and Tabitha’s did not. I was contemplating the reasons when I looked up to see the assembled Vampires.
The ballroom had been converted to a Roman style Senate room with three-tiered coliseum seats in a semi-circle around a raised stage with six high backed chairs. The Council seats were filled with a variety of Vampires, none of which I recognized. The Vampires in the front row must have been the Elders as they were all dressed in white robes with red stoles over their shoulders. None of them looked like they were any older than 40 years old, all having wrinkle-free skin and long healthy looking hair. Between the three of them, not one had the same complexion. And I wondered if they were strategically seated to emphasize the differences.
In the second and third row of seats sat the two Senators and twenty-five Vampire Reps dressed in modern business attire. It looked as if they were getting ready to attend a corporate board meeting instead of a Vampire Council meeting. Each of them wore a lily on their lapel and I assumed it was to identify them as St. Clair subjects. I looked at each of their faces to find that they, unlike the Elders, were smiling and nodding their approval.
At the far end of the room sat our family members. Efia was flanked by Pleasant and Abraham while the rest sat behind them. They were in the shadow of the candle-lit wall sconces and clearly not meant to be the focus of tonight’s festivities.
The six of us walked to the chairs in the center of the room and prepared to sit down. Before I could sit down, however, the entire group of Vampires stood and bowed and remained bowed until all of us were seated. I grasped the arms of my chair as I felt my knees begin to shake. This was entirely too much for me.
After I had taken my seat, one of the Elders stepped forward. He smelled of old books and hickory smoke, like a fireplace in a library. His eyes were as blue and as clear as the pictures that you see on Caribbean Island postcards but with a red ring around the iris. His nose was an unexpected turned-up knob in the center of his face, making him look like a toddler instead of the hundreds year old Vampire Elder that I was certain he was. He bowed deeply in front of my siblings and me and nodded towards Violeta and Tabitha.
“St. Clairs,” he began, with a voice so much higher than expected that I started to wonder if I had gotten the gender wrong. “It is a pleasure to be invited to your home even on such an occasion as this.”
He stood from his bow and returned to his seat.
“Esteemed Council, respected Senators and admired Representatives, welcome to our home. It is a pleasure that you would consider our request worthy of your time.”
Zander, having stood, sounded as if he were a King speaking to his subjects and the audience of Vampires was acting as if they had just received such an honor. Each of them began to speak at once, thanking us for the warm welcome and for the pleasure of our hospitality. It felt strange being at the
receiving end of such adoration. I looked around and saw that Chloe and Jordan were as unfazed as Zander and I immediately felt alone. Violeta adjusted herself so that she could see my face. She raised an eyebrow in question and mouthed 'breathe' to me.
On the other side of me Tabitha had moved to place a hand on my shoulder and I immediately began to feel better. I emptied my lungs of the breath I was holding and glanced around the room to make sure that my fear had not caused any damage. To my delight, Violeta and Tabitha appeared to be the only people who noticed. But I wasn’t naïve enough to think that the Elders felt nothing. All of the others, I was sure, were too busy politicking to be bothered.
“It is customary for the Elders to verify the DNA of each newly found member of a royal family. Being the current Council Magistrate, the responsibility and the honor fall upon me.”
The blue-eyed Elder was speaking again and I felt Tabitha’s hand tighten on my shoulder as he placed a bib-like garment around his neck. Chloe had mentioned that there had to be proof of my bloodline and yet, even knowing I was dealing with Vampires, I had believed a simple trip to the doctor would suffice. At least they could have sprung for Maury to say “Cheyenne, you ARE a Vampire descendant.” No such luck.
My brothers and sister stood, approached the Magistrate and presented their wrists to him. As if in slow motion, the Magistrate dropped to his knees at the feet of my siblings and pressed his mouth to each of their wrists in turn. He didn’t seem to be doing anything at all but there was a small amount of blood on his lips when he stood.
My mouth hung open as Chloe returned to her seat, without turning in my direction or acknowledging my presence at all. Jordan and Zander remained standing near the Magistrate as Violeta stood and extended her hand toward me. I stood, reluctantly, and walked forward, knowing for certain that I didn’t want the Magistrate to touch me. I knew that this was my rite of passage into the Vampire world, but I had been raised a human and Vampires weren’t suppose to exist.
Standing between Zander and Jordan, just as Chloe had, I recognized their tense stances from the training I had received. They were there for my protection. If I thought about it, the very few times when Chloe and I were in the presence of Vampires who were not family, we were always accompanied by others. Zander and Jordan were usually there, I was guessing, to ensure that their sisters weren't drained by a Vampire with weak willpower or a strong appetite.
Trying to relax, I waited for the Magistrate to return to his knees before I extended my wrist for him. His hands were not as cold as his skin looked but they were every bit as stone-like. He looked up into my eyes and I saw an eager hunger in them. I was about to pull my wrist out of his grasp when I heard a low growl from my brothers causing the Magistrate to close his eyes. Once he was composed, he returned his gaze to mine, thoroughly chastised and apologetic. I nodded for him to proceed and braced myself.
I felt his teeth pierce my flesh and almost yanked my wrist out of his mouth. He pulled the blood from my veins gently at first and then with more pressure. My world began to rotate and my knees begin to buckle. Certain that the Magistrate had taken too much blood, I began to panic. My breathing became shallow and I turned to look at Jordan and then Zander who both appeared relaxed and unaware of my distress. My gaze returned to the Magistrate. His eyes had been replaced by onyx black orbs.
“Cheyenne St. Clair, you are the Prophesied One. You will unite all Vampires into one clan and your family will rule over them. But your cousins need you for they are in grave danger.” The voice of the Magistrate was amplified in my ears but his mouth was still firmly on my wrist, deliberately pulling plasma from my veins.
“Cheyenne,” the Magistrate said, this time having had his fill of my blood, “the blood of your mother’s mother runs through your veins. It is my esteemed pleasure to verify your DNA and pronounce you a St. Clair.”
With that, the Magistrate released my wrist and stood. He wiped a small droplet of blood from his mouth and gave me a closed mouth smile while his eyes changed from black to their original eerie sea blue. Zander and Jordan placed a hand on each of my elbows to steady me and returned me to my seat. Out of breath and a little bit grossed out, a sideways glance confirmed that Chloe was shaken as well. We would talk later.
The Magistrate remained standing and directed his attention to the rear of the room where Efia and my other family members sat. He nodded slowly in their direction and then nodded towards the seated members of the Council, I assumed in affirmation of my DNA match. This was the last obstacle between me and my Embrace. Now the path was clear for me to be turned into a Vampire.
Chapter 13
The next few days were a blur of activity. The Stewards made plans and packed suitcases and trunks. Everyone was excited about our trip to Sanguine Township Island, the place where the Stewards and Fare live. Once there, I would select my Fare; a decision that had me completely conflicted.
We arrived at the hanger of the small airport in full force. There were seven black on black SUVs with blacked out windows and flags on the fenders like diplomats use. The Stewards were in the first, middle and last vehicles for maximum security. This was apparently a rite of passage, because Efia and Pleasant were traveling together. Solomon had usually taken precautions that they kept their distance from one another like the President and the Vice President; in case one was killed the other could rule.
The pit in my stomach opened wider when I saw the jet that we would be flying on. I hated to fly even though it afforded you certain luxuries. I had asked Efia to drug me like they did B.A. Baracus in that A-Team movie but she refused, saying that I would regret not having the experience. I wasn’t so sure.
As we jumped out of the vehicles, I knew that we had been followed and were being watched. Tabitha and Chloe must have felt it too, because, in unison, we all turned to look out of the hanger door into the bright sunlight. Whoever was out there was concealed by the waves of heat coming off of the tarmac and the smell of melting asphalt. I looked at Chloe and wondered if this trip would be safe for her and contemplated asking Efia to send her back to the compound. As if reading my mind, which I wouldn’t doubt was an attribute she possessed; Chloe looked me directly in the eyes and shook her head. This girl was amazing; amazingly stubborn.
As I was led past two of the three aircraft being loaded, I noticed how the airport employees kept their distance from our group. I had begun to wonder just how Efia and the rest of the family dealt with their little secret in the real world and realized that the answer was an age old solution: money. I watched as Solomon handed the foreman a thick manila envelope that no doubt was filled with cash. Money might not be able to buy you happiness but it sure was buying Efia a little bit of privacy.
We boarded our plane and found seats. I was told that we were flying on a G650 and that it was the best private jet currently being made in the world. My concern was not in the manufacturing of the machine, however, but in the weather that I had convinced myself was going to force us out of the air. I had seen an episode or two of LOST and I wasn’t excited about this trip.
I followed Chloe up the steps of our plane and looked around the spacious interior as others boarded. So, this was the famous G6 that all of the rappers talk about. Not bad. I was sitting in a plush white leather chair with an adjustable lumbar and massage feature. There was burl wood on every hard surface and it shone to a gloss. There were multiple flat screens mounted around the cabin but all were currently blank. I wondered if we were all going to be watching the same in house movie or possibly an infomercial on the benefits of selecting your own dinner. I really hated having to go on this trip.
Everything about the Embrace was foreign to me. I mean, Vampires? Really? But, I had been around them for the past few months and had no doubt that I was not asleep and that my life and the lives of those I loved were in immediate danger. So, I had to suck it up, no pun intended.
I tore my attention from the gorgeous interior of the jet as the Fare boarded and t
ook their seats. It must be a treat for them to go back to visit their families. The Vampire to Fare relationship wasn't unlike that of a Lord and Peasant in the feudal system, except that the Fare quite literally feed the Vampires. It still amazed me that they thought it to be a great honor to be chosen.
On board with us today were the female Fare belonging to Efia, Pleasant and Tabitha. Chloe and I were to select ours during this visit. It was unusual that someone as young as Chloe would select her Fare that early but we were living in unusual times. If something happened to me, Chloe was next in line to be targeted by Grigor and would need to be Embraced immediately. It seemed that her fate hinged on my actions. No pressure.
Jeannette, Efia’s Fare, was sitting across the aisle from me. She was a gorgeous girl with auburn hair and silver colored eyes. She had been with Efia for the past 50 years but didn’t look a day over 25. Her family had a long history with supplying Fare to members of the Council and she was anxious to introduce me and Chloe to her family’s prospects. Pleasant’s Fare was named Lucinda and she was the opposite of Jeannette. Her jet black hair and olive skin made her look like an Egyptian goddess. She carried herself with a humbleness that increased her beauty and I believed that it caused the other Fare to be jealous of her.
Lucinda was from a Lower Caste family in the Fare Caste system. It was a complicated matter of being the product of a forbidden union. Love children amongst the Fare were outcasts and getting selected as Pleasant’s Fare had been a coup for Lucinda’s parents and grandparents. Lucinda had no hopes that either Chloe or I would choose her family member, but I wasn’t so sure. Chloe loved Lucinda and I believed that there was another coup in the works.
Blood Descendants (St. Clair Vampires Book 1) Page 11
