“Eighteen years ago Grigor set a trap in the attempt to catch any of Efia’s people unaware. Violeta was his prize.”
Isidora made it sound just that simple but I knew there was more to it. I had trained with Violeta for months and I knew that there was never a second of any given day that she was ever unaware. I wondered what type of trap Grigor had been able to set that would outwit my masochist drill sergeant and came up empty. When I looked around to see if anyone would give me a hint, everyone’s eyes were diverted to the ground; even Efia’s. My approach would have to be direct if I wanted answers, and I did want answers.
“How? How was Grigor able to trap you, Violeta? I can't think of one single trap he could set that you couldn't out-smart. What could have caused you to give yourself up?”
“You.”
Violeta’s voice was so soft I thought I had heard her wrong. She didn’t repeat herself but I heard it echoed over and over in my head. Her gorgeous face had tears streamed down her cheeks and she began to shake. She had let go of Zander’s hand and had fists at her side trying to calm herself.
“Grigor had someone follow Zola before you were born. When his men set a trap to capture the two of you, she went into labor. We arrived just in time to safely deliver you and give you to Solomon for transport to a safe house.”
“Grigor and his people took her. They held and tortured her for years until Isidora and another Vampire helped her escape.” Zander was looking at his bride-to-be with an admiration that surpassed all else.
No one here pitied Violeta. On the contrary, her actions were looked upon as heroic and selfless. I understood why she kept me at arm’s length. She had sacrificed herself because I was too weak to protect myself. I was determined to make sure that I was never that weak again.
The urge to hug hug her was overwhelming but I was afraid that it would be corny. Wiping my face with the back of my hand I just stood there while Zander continued.
“When she came back to us she was all but broken and had only one thing on her mind. She wanted to make sure that you were trained to protect yourself against Grigor and his people. That's why she is so hard on you, Chey.”
Information overload was too much for me. My knees were weak and I slowly let myself sit down in the middle of our group. Solomon sat down opposite me, still clearly making sure that I was doing okay. Chloe came and sat right next to me, putting an arm around my waist and her head on my shoulder. I felt instant comfort from her contact, as if she had just made the entire world slip away and it was just her and I.
“I’m sorry, Violeta. I’m sorry for not trying harder or being better. I just thought you hated me and that I was never going to get it and that I was just a clumsy human teenager that you resented me for taking up your valuable time and that you just wished that I'd just go away and…”
I was talking so fast that I didn’t give myself a chance to take a breath. Everyone was looking at me now, with either a look of confusion or amusement. I rambled on like this for a few more seconds before Violeta put me out of my misery.
“Will you shut up already? You are late for training and you know very well that I do not do late!”
With that, and a wicked smile, Violeta turned and walked toward the house. Zander and Jordan burst out laughing and followed her, trying to talk as fast as I had. Efia took Isidora by the hand leading her away while Chloe and Tabitha walked in the opposite direction. That left me alone with Solomon. He continued to stare at me…still waiting for that transformation that I was sure would never come. He helped me to my feet when he saw that my knees were still wobbly but didn’t let go of my hand.
“Cheyenne, there will come a time in your future when all of your past will catch up to you.” Solomon’s voice sounded ominous as it echoed off of the nearby trees. “You will have a choice such as Isidora, Efia and Violeta had. It will mean the difference between life and death and the choice will be yours; solely yours.”
With that, Solomon smiled and turned to walk away. I watched his large shape take a few steps before I called after him.
“Why me?”
He gave me that brilliant smile of his and simply shrugged. For a moment I didn’t think he was going to answer me. Then he cocked an eyebrow up and said, “It is in your blood.”
Chapter 22
The Stewards and the Fare were helping us pack for the trip. It would take us a little less than 3 hours to arrive in Las Vegas and another hour to check into our hotel and get settled. It was risky, truly, I knew, trying to rescue the woman who had conceived me just for a chance at immortality. It was unheard of. But, if there was a chance that we could save her, it was a risk I was willing to take.
It had been decided that only Tabitha, Jordan, Zander and Violeta would escort me to Vegas. This angered Solomon and Chloe to no end and they were not too shy to voice it. Solomon had been charged with the welfare of any descendant that had yet to the Embraced and took great insult to being relieved of his post.
Chloe likewise had valid reasons for being upset with the exclusion. Having been taken from Zola at birth, Chloe was raised by Efia and the others. She had been trained to fight and kill Vampires and was far better at everything combat than I was. Efia feared, however, that Grigor might take the opportunity to grab the both of us and save Chloe for her 18th birthday. Being drained by Grigor was a risk I was willing to take, but I didn’t want to put my newly found sister at risk of the same. When I asked Efia to make her stay, Chloe gave me a look that could kill. The unfortunate thing was that I knew she could back it up.
I couldn’t help but feel badly as I saw Chloe sitting on the edge of my cot watching us pack. She had been so helpful with my training and family history lessons and I would miss her company. I had never had a sister and the last thing I wanted was for her to be angry at me. I stopped packing and walked over to her.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“I just want to make sure that we’re okay.”
“Look, Chey, all I have ever wanted to do was kick Grigor’s ass. It’s what I’ve been trained for my entire life. So, yeah, I’m angry that you get to go and I don’t. But, I’m not stupid. If he gets a hold of the both of us…Well, I just don’t want to think about it.”
I could tell that Chloe was sincere and I reached out to give her a hug. She was the toughest 15 year old I knew, but she collapsed into my hug the second I had my arms around her. I would do anything for this kid even if it meant killing someone.
I put my chin on the top of her head and held on for dear life until Artemis came into the cabin and barked once; loudly. We hesitantly let go of one another and got off of the cot just as Samuel the butler walked in, looking at us with a mixture or sadness and pride.
“Are you ready?” Samuel’s smooth baritone voice slid through me like a knife. This trip would be the culmination of months of training and education and I didn’t want to come back in an urn.
“Yeah, Samuel, I’m ready.” I lied straight through my teeth and he knew it, but simply inclined his head and put his hand on my shoulder in support. Stewards never touched Vampires unless necessary and Samuel was no different, so the physical contact made it clear the amount of danger we were in.
I placed my hand on top of his and looked straight into his eyes.
“Samuel, you take care of Chloe. That is your only job now. Keep her safe.”
“It will be my pleasure.” With a practiced bow, Samuel waited for Chloe to stand.
“I don’t need watching after. I can take care of myself,” Chloe turned and stormed out without a backwards glance.
“She’ll be fine,” Samuel assured me, and then turned and left.
The fact that Chloe was acting out because she was afraid, but it didn’t make me feel any better. She had just found me and now I was leaving her again. I knew the feeling and wanted to comfort her. My only goal, however, was to sneak into Grigor’s compound and rescue my mother. Piece of cake.
With my personal bag packed and rea
dy to go, I went to find the others. We were to meet in the subterranean garage were they had readied the SUV. I had asked why we didn’t fly directly into Vegas and was told that Grigor was watching all travel into and out of the area.
Tabitha and Jordan were in deep conversation when I stepped into the garage. I was used to them being so close and wondered when Efia would officially allow them to become a couple. They had long since stop trying to hide it in front of me once they were outed by Chloe during practice one day. Although it had been extremely embarrassing for me, the two of them took it in stride and laughed it off.
Tabitha looked like she was angry at Jordan and he seemed unconcerned, as if he had dealt with her anger before. As I approached, Tabitha continued to talk but lowered her volume. So, she was talking about me. Again. Tabitha, was suppose to be my best friend but she acted like an over protective aunt most of the time. I wasn’t sure whether I was offended or flattered at her obvious love for me. My reactions usually depended on how long she kept something from me.
“So, what’s up?” I asked, as if we weren’t about to go on a suicide mission.
“Tab is angry at me because I got you a gift.” Jordan’s smile told me that the gift was likely a weapon.
I became giddy like a school-girl and tapped my feet quickly on the metal floor. I held my hands out in front of me and wiggled my fingers until he put a wooden box in them. The box was heavy. So heavy, in fact, that I nearly dropped it. I looked at it closely and saw that it had a Calla lily carved into the top of it. It was gorgeous. The lid was held shut by an elaborate pewter locking mechanism. I had never seen anything like it.
Walking over to an SUV, I sat on the rear bumper and turned the box around in order to view it from all sides. The workmanship was amazing. The only metal on the box was the pewter lock holding it shut. I set the box down and started to open the lid when I felt a sharp pain in my head. Falling to the floor, I writhed in agony while Tabitha rushed to my side. These bouts of pain had been coming with entirely too much frequency now and I was worried.
Tabitha had gotten into the habit of carrying a piece of plastic and placed it securely in between my teeth to keep me from biting my tongue off. I sent a grateful look her way just as I was racked with another jolt of pain. Efia had assured us that these episodes would end once I was Embraced, but I wasn’t so sure. It had been my decision not to be Embraced before we went after Zola to keep Grigor from detecting me. Now, I was regretting my gift of persuasion.
The convulsions lasted for the next 5 minutes or so before the episode ended. The Elders would want another vat of blood for testing after this one and I wasn’t looking forward to it. Tabitha and Jordan helped me into the SUV. Jordan’s forehead was wrinkled in concern but he kept quiet. He was smart enough to not suggest what I knew he was thinking; that I stay home. Instead, he tried to smile and handed me the box.
“Open it.”
I hesitated before taking the box from him. It had, after all, been the last thing that I touched before the pain hit. I tended to blame my episodes on events and objects instead of on the fact that I felt like I was dying. The box sat on my lap for a few seconds before I inhaled and flipped the lock. The lid gave a low squeak as the seldom used hinges turned over. Inside the box, lying on a bed of bright red velvet was the most beautiful knife I had ever seen. A dagger.
I grabbed the dagger by the handle and lifted it from the box. It must have weighed more than 3 pounds. It was crafted out of one solid piece of metal with onyx inlays on the handle. It was not a jewel encrusted ceremonial knife like Efia had used, this was a well balanced weapon.
In the bottom of the box were two black leather holsters. I lifted them out and discovered that one was for the thigh and the other for the bicep. They looked just like the holsters that Jordan used and tears welled up in my eyes. Jordan and Zander had not wanted me to be involved in this mission; feeling that I was too vulnerable to capture and that Efia should insist that I be Embraced or stay home. Neither one of them was shy about voicing their opinions, so I was surprised by Jordan’s gift.
“What do we have here?” Violeta waltzed over to the vehicle with a small Gucci bag slung over her shoulder. Where she thought we were going, I didn’t know. I was still in awe of her. She was a machine. All muscle with the brains to match. If not for her brutal nature, my training would have taken much longer. She was the best sparring partner anyone could ever have, because she might accidentally kill you if you weren't careful.
“I see Jordan got you a gift.” Zander said, from behind Violeta. “It’s nice.”
“Nice?” Jordan said, as he held his hand to his heart in mock insult. “I’ll have you know that knife was made specifically for the St. Clair’s by an Elder in the late…”
“The late 2000s!” Zander interrupted. “You know you commissioned it the day we found Cheyenne in New Mexico.”
The two brothers smiled and started throwing punches at each other in the way that boys do when they play around. I would never, for the life of me, understand how getting punched is considered fun. I saw the other girls weren’t as confused as I was. They almost seemed to appreciate the manliness that was on display. It reminded me of those giant mountain goats on Animal Planet. They would lock horns over and over until one of them won the female goat. If this was some form of Vampiric mating ritual I was going to be sick.
“Boys.” Efia had entered the cargo hull with several other members of the family. Her tone was not one of chastisement, but rather of pride. These were her warrior grandsons displaying their strength. To me, they were my idiot brothers trying to impress the girls. I sighed and slid out of the SUV.
Solomon was walking around the vehicle, checking tires for air and the engine for fluids. I knew that he had already performed this inspection ahead of time and was just using it as an excuse to keep moving. I walked over to him and grabbed his hand in mine. He had started to become like a father to me and I hated the look in his eyes. He squeezed my hand tightly before returning to his pretend inspection.
Zeus and the twins had come behind Efia and where now sitting at attention waiting for the good-byes to be said. Efia walked toward me and placed her hands on my shoulders. She looked into my eyes for a very long time before leaning forward and placing her forehead on mine.
“I pray, my sweet Cheyenne, that you are able to do what I could not. Come back to us.” Efia kissed my forehead and turned away.
With our good-byes said and our weapons packed, the five of us jumped into the SUV and drove off. The engine was so quiet that I could hear every rock under the tires. The tension was rolling off of us in waves and I nearly passed out. It could possibly be because I was driving to my death or life of indentured servitude, but I suddenly felt like I was making a mistake. Although it had been stressed to me the importance of keeping my elemental powers a secret from Grigor until I needed to use them, I was no longer sure I had control. I had been practicing over the last few weeks to control my emotions. Not getting upset when Chloe burns my toast is a far cry from not getting anxious when an insane Vampire tries to rip my throat out.
Silence was neither friend nor foe as we made our way towards the highway. We would arrive in Las Vegas in a few hours and plan our midnight mission. The hope was to extract our mother from Grigor’s compound and kill him, but that was easier said than done. Efia had been trying to kill him for centuries and only succeeded in losing members of her clan. For her to send her un-Embraced granddaughter meant that she was desperate and out of options.
It seemed like the sun grew brighter the closer we came to Vegas. All of the barren mountains and desert plains seemed to go on forever. I watched the scenery zip by as Zander drove well over the speed limit, eager to get us to our destination. We had rooms at the Tne Venetian, but we wouldn't be spending too much time by the pool. Our plan was to check in, inspect our weapons, grab a muffin and some coffee and go kill a power and insane Vampire who was being guarded by several hundred loyal and devote
d soldiers. Piece of cake!
Traffic started to slow down as we approached what appeared to be road construction of some sort. I looked over the front head rest to see that people were coming car to car and looking at the occupants. At first I thought nothing of it until I glimpsed white hair in the distance. Raphael. He was orchestrating a search of each vehicle.
“It’s Raphael.” Zander said in a panicked voice. “He’s going to see us any minute now.”
“Chey,” I turned to see Tabitha staring me in the eyes. I knew what she wanted and I started to shake. I had never done it under pressure, and this was pressure. We were in imminent danger and I was going to choke.
“Chey!”
“You do something. You're a Cereb. Can't you just make him see something else?”
“No, not on this scale. He would alert the others before I could get enough illusion together to fool anyone.”
Tabitha had grabbed a hold of my face with both hands. Her breath smelled like peppermints and ice. Such a strange but familiar combination. I tried to concentrate but was unable to think of anything but Raphael and his crew headed straight towards us. We were trapped in this SUV like caged animals and we would die if I didn’t do something.
Tabitha slapped me across the face, hard. Tears came to my eyes and I started to shout at her when I realized that my mind was momentarily free of fear. I had one chance at this. I tried to concentrate on the wind but there was none. The desert air was not only dry but it was still as well. I leaned forward and turned the AC on max and put my face in front of a vent. The cold air went straight up my nose and threatened to make me sneeze when I grabbed it. I grabbed it like I was grabbing a cat by the tail and I swung it around the SUV as if my life depended on it. Which it did.
By manipulating the air, the SUV started to blur. I just had to hold it until the danger had passed and hoped that no one would lean against the vehicle. Raphael was three cars ahead of us but his flunkies were just about to our front bumper. I wasn’t worried about them. They didn’t seem to have the same abilities as Raphael had and they passed our vehicle like it wasn’t there. I watched as they went to the car behind us and looked at the people inside. There were four girls in the convertible and they began to flirt with the men as they walked by.
Blood Descendants (St. Clair Vampires Book 1) Page 22
