Once Bitten: A Vampire Urban Fantasy Mystery (Order of the Dragon: Wolf's Den)
Page 11
Alistair picked up his long, rune-engraved staff and banged it against the floor, silencing the packed room.
The growing ruckus wasn’t what he’d expected to encounter when he’d called the meeting. On most days, everyone got along swell, but this was not most days.
“Should we not be concerned about this human you’ve brought here?” asked one gentleman, but it wasn’t just his question but the question of many, for several nodded their heads.
Alistair tried not to scowl. Even he had his trepidation, but there’d been no reason for him to let Leslie die.
“In this Order, as created by the gods and overseen by me, the son of Balder, our mission is for this to be a place for those like us, and we have accepted the two women, Myrtle, and her granddaughter, Leslie, into our abode. Both have not been properly introduced. You will meet them today and welcome them as I have welcomed each of you.
“The change is not always one of birth. Some of us here have been different since we took our first breath, while others have transitioned, and in death, found this place to be their beacon. And yet others—”
“But this one is different. She’s a vampire,” someone in the crowd called out, and more faces nodded their agreement this time.
“Calm down. Now,” Alistair said. “This woman is a vampire, but also my mate.” He heard Rose’s sharp inhale. “As I am her sire,” he continued. “What you do to her, you do to me. She is not to be harmed—not a hair on her head or hide.”
“Interesting games the gods play,” Killian responded.
“Alistair, you created a vampire but did not tell me of this at the scene.” Rose bristled. “It is possible that this abomination has killed.”
Alistair shook his head, but he watched the idea build steam as those in the crowd began to gesture in agreement. “By creating her, you have created a quagmire for vampires that are outlawed. They almost decimated the entire East Coast, feeding on supes and humans alike. Where vampires appear, they infest, breed discord, and kill. She is a menace for our kind.”
“Do you dare question my authority, Rose?”
“I am a wielder, and the magic required to keep this place safe, I can also wield. You have brought forth a blight, and in doing so, you will bring attention to us and cause us all harm. That is not thinking in the best interest of our kind.”
Sethos, the herbalist and mage, moved forward to stand in front of Alistair. “You are all quite wrong about this Leslie. She has a strong fortitude like I’ve never seen. Even more, His Highness was only gifted his ability once. If she is forced to die, then you will also kill him, as their souls are tethered together. And surely, you do not wish death on the one who has harbored you and granted you a place of peace. Where the Order reigns, be it in the halls of Scotland, here in this very compound, or even in the magical New Orleans, our allegiance is to the Dragon Queen, and she has placed her brother to lead and protect us.”
Killian slapped his hand down on Alistair’s shoulder and stepped forward, too. “There is more that you don’t know. The seer is not just a prophecy, but for the great battle, she will be needed so that we may win and stand with the gods at Ragnarok. I have spoken to the other divisions, and each of their seers have spoken of her. Leslie is blessed by the gods, chosen by them for him, and for us. We do them and her a disservice not to allow the lass a chance to prove herself.”
“What can you tell us about the murder in the city?” Sethos asked.
Rose then stepped forward. “The body was drained of blood, and after initial testing, I located traces of henbane at the scene. Henbane is used by the seers to kill.”
“It sounds as if you are ready to bring her before the magistrate for this?” Killian asked.
Alistair rose. “Here I am just that.” He banged his staff again against the floor. “Grace, I pronounce, she is under the protection of the Order, of me.”
Rose sucked in her cheeks, then bowed and stepped back. “As you say, sir.”
It wasn't every day that he allowed recently turned and unvetted beings to pass over the threshold into their inner sanctum. Consequences could be dire. Although most recently he'd allowed the dragon to come out, the beast still barely rested under the surface.
“Bring the women forth,” Alistair declared.
Chapter Twenty-One
Leslie
This place only needed some Greek Letters to qualify as a frat house. I glanced up and thought I saw a bra dangling from the chandelier. Yep, this large room reminded me of Alpha Delta Eta’s common areas, where we’d get together and play beer pong.
From the back of the room, we listened and watched. Talk about being disliked. It seemed like vampires were as badly hated as carpal tunnel, Brussels sprouts, and assholes.
The place was strange. Not only did it have the magnificent aroma of fresh cloves everywhere, but the air felt like that NASA grade oxygen, at least from what I could remember from space camp eons ago. It was cool and refreshing. My lungs breathed it in and did a little happy dance, recognizing it for what it was—pure, delightful air.
In a crowd of humanoid shifters and dragon-like creatures, an array of colors illuminated around their shoulders—some shown in bright purples, greens, and various blues. Magic hung in the air like the sweet aroma of a baking cake. Additionally, some wore dragon wolf pendants on their lapels as well, each house with a different color. My gaze came to rest on the one who Alistair identified as Rose. Her ears were pointy, and she stood tall and lean. I knew right away that she was not an ordinary person. She was more beautiful than almost any woman I'd ever seen.
“Psst, Gran,” I whispered. “Do you see all of this?”
Gran, of course, saw everything—that was the great thing about being a ghost. “Oh, child,” she responded. “I think you are going to have to be careful about which rooms you enter. What if each of these rooms takes you to one of the different realms, the nine worlds?”
“That is outrageous.”
“Look around you,” she whispered. “We're surrounded by supernaturals.”
I felt Alistair glaring at me as he watched my every movement. He brazenly cleared his throat. “Dearly beloved, please welcome your new kin, Myrtle and Leslie.”
Gran took my hand, and huddled together, we walked up front to where Alistair stood. Just as his gaze was heavy, so was the disapproval of all of those around us. They shot bullets with their stern stares.
“It’s great to be here,” I said with a broad smile. I wasn't sure if he could tell that I was lying, but it seemed plausible enough to me that something like that could happen.
He crossed his arms.
I didn’t have Daddy issues. Those days had ended a long time ago, somewhere between age twenty-five and me finding out that I didn't need an agent to publish my first book. Imagine my surprise on knowing that there were tons of men interested in offering me a free ride. They didn't care what my hopes and dreams were, only if I was willing to bed them. They didn't love me, and I refused to love them.
I don't belong here, and although I’m very thankful for your saving me from the depths of death, I'm confused. Words I should have said, but instead, I began to ramble about the interior design. How it felt like a college dorm or old-age community, and how I couldn’t wait to meet everyone individually.
Maybe I shouldn’t have expected a warm reception, but I still expected something—and something was exactly what I got. Up until now, Gran might have said that things which were too good to be true, usually were. And although Alistair was attempting to make my transition to this side as painless as possible, it all felt like getting my wisdom teeth removed. For the first thirty seconds, you could hear a pin drop, all the while the pet boar snorted and snotted.
“Is it me, or is something off-kilter?” Gran asked.
The crowd turned their backs on us and dispersed without a word.
I didn’t think that was the normal way for a meeting to be dismissed. In fact, I found it profoundly rude.
“It’s an adjustment for all.” I took his hand and gasped, as I then morphed into a wolf.
Leslie’s red wolfish appearance quickly disappeared and again, she stood before him. “WTF just happened, and did I turn into a freaking wolf? What did you to me? Here I thought I was vampire. And now… I’m a freaking dog?”
Alistair ran his fingers through his hair. He tried to bite back his shock. “Um, well, I have never seen such. Never heard of such. You are the first.”
“Oh, just fucking wonderful” She coughed and then started to hack. “A fucking hairball? Are you kidding me? Alistair. I should rip your limbs off and beat you with them.” Her eyes blaze red.
“I have never had such a desire to kick my own arse.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Alistair
With the meeting ended, Alistair returned to his chambers to think.
Responsibility weighed wearily on his shoulders. He paced. Just as the prophecy declared, as the seer, she operated almost like a sponge, able to mimic the talents of anyone she touched.
He picked up Leslie’s dog-eared novel and began again to read the tale of Ivan, the Viking. It wasn’t enough that Ivan couldn’t be with his people in Norway but now had to set up a homestead in the hostile territory of the Highlands. He flipped through the pages, choosing the romance in the novel over that of his current situation.
Ivan reminded him of who he used to be before he’d taken the call. How he’d slaughtered in the name of the gods, and the million reasons he’d embraced becoming the dragon he’d always been.
His chamber door flew open, and Rose stomped in. “You didn’t listen to anything I said, Alistair. What you witnessed here tonight is an anomaly. Dangerous. You know what a seer of such powers will do.”
Alistair cleared his throat, put the book to the side, and shook his head. “Rose, I expect your next report forthwith as to any news regarding this crime. You’re dismissed.”
He ignored her accusations. There was too much riding on this for him not to act.
“You know you could always send her away. Or to another Order. But if she is indeed slaughtering humans, there will be nowhere you can send her to. In effect, you might have just signed your own death sentence.” Rose curtsied and left him to consider the options as to what could be transpiring.
Alistair essentially assumed the same. But was the risk of being stuck here worth it? Although he couldn't see the other side of the equation, he knew the gods must be up to something, and his and Leslie’s fate were knotted together.
A new knock on his door distracted him, for there Leslie stood, bundled up from head to toe.
“I thought you were heading to bed, Leslie?”
She smiled. “I would have done the same, but I had one question before I could sleep.”
“Yes?” He didn't want to answer any questions. He'd saved her from drowning and certain death—shouldn't that have been enough for a bit? “But I cannot guarantee that I will answer.”
She nodded. “That’s fair enough.” She cleared her throat, pulled back her shoulders, took a deep breath, and then paused. “I don't know how to begin this.”
He moved his energy outward and prodded until her body began to relax, watching as her muscles eased and her jaw unclenched. “Is that better?”
“No.” She shook her head. “I have a request. Please, stay out of my mind. I do not wish for you to read my thoughts.”
“Are you sure?” In all of his years, he'd never had a woman complain. Most wanted him to know what they desired before they could utter a word as if he were a magical genie, and they were to be rewarded for thinking it. He smiled in return. “I will respect your wishes. But I must also make a request. I have a proposition for you.”
“Uh-oh,” she said, catching herself from saying something. She covered her mouth with her hands.
“Not one of those, but one of my investigators, Rose, is a great fan of your work. I insist that you make use of your time here and do the research you need to create your next tale. The library is available to you with some of the best tomes and books.”
“Wait. What? You want me to write a book while staying here? A book takes more than a couple of days.”
“Yes, I'm sure it does. But here, you can soak in all of that magic, and it can spark your next tale. You wouldn't want to disappoint your fans by not having that next book finished, right?”
He watched her emotions play across her face. She seemed to war against herself, but he refused to look closer. Whatever she had to say, from now on, she needed to say it to him and not simply think it.
“The way to my heart is a good library.”
“This compound, staff, and I are at your service to help you in any way possible, and to maybe even inspire your muse.” He took a step forward to close the space between them.
She beckoned him, called to him without a word, but right now, he had no desire to see her walk away. Although he wanted to be alone and feared that something might transpire, he was a god and would protect her as only a man could.
Peering into her warm eyes, he saw the hurt that rested there, scars from a past he knew nothing of. But there was nothing weak about her. He couldn’t imagine a future without her.
“Mine,” his dragon rumbled.
“One day I’ll say mine, too,” she whispered and cupped his cheek. A simple touch felt like lightning striking him. He leaned in closer, and she walked backward until the wall was at her back.
He stood toe-to-toe with her, and remembering Gran’s words, he put on the Scottish brogue. “So, what is your answer, dear lass? Will you stay?”
"I'll sleep on it," she tossed him a coy smile and slipped out of the door.
As soon as she was gone, the delight of her shifted and again he wanted to kick himself. He’d focused so much on righting things between them that he didn’t talk to her about the recent murder, as planned. The pure shock of her sponging or siphoning magic that caused a physical transformation still has him shook. In all of his time, he’d never met one like her. She was no simple seer, user of magic.
Yep, when the gods called, they cared only about your ability and willingness to heed their commands. What were the gods up to with summoning Leslie to his side.
But now he understood even more why the rogue vampires would be after one of her caliber: she was unparalleled.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Leslie
The Next Day
Did vampires sleep during the day and stay awake all night? My dragon didn’t look any better.
Alistair had asked for a private audience. I’d thought it might be an introductory lesson: How to be a supernatural? Nope. He might as well have been sitting in his overly stuffed office chair, brooding, while swinging a pair of handcuffs. He gave me every impression that a supernatural jail awaited.
I shook my hands, hoping that such a simple motion might cause them to stop tingling, then walked up and down the length of the room.
“If you keep pacing like that, you are going to wear a hole in my carpet,” Alistair finally said.
“This is why I left college behind years ago. This oh-look-what-she-said-she-did-didn’t-do-but-we-have-to-blame-someone crapola.”
“Calm down. You’re walking so fast that you’re beginning to blur.”
“I guess it must be that superspeed.” I guffawed.
I wanted him to enclose me in his arms, but instead, it was like he was shoving thorns under my fingernails. At one point, I seemed to be retreating from the idea of love, but to be honest, a part of me wished to fight for what might be one day. We could do it nice and slow. I wouldn’t send him eggplant emojis, either—one, because he didn’t seem to have
a cell phone, and secondly, I’d be an adult about this. Heck, I could even wait nine whole dates, real dates, not just us hanging out like now. If he wooed me, well, who knew what might happen?
Of course, all thoughts of cuddling disappeared with the next surge of fury. I suddenly longed for nothing more than to paint the walls crimson red. “If you want to accuse me of killing someone, then you must take me to the crime scene. I’m a good person. Why would I kill someone in cold blood?”
The soothing aroma of lavender washed over me, and I inhaled it deeply. Again, finding a sense of calm.
Alistair slumped back in his chair. “Your bloodlust is too great. You can’t leave these warded walls, for if you do, there is no telling what may transpire.”
He couldn’t know that I had the inner strength and perseverance of a river, and right now, he was my rock. One way or another, I was going to find out the truth, and neither he nor his cronies were going to make it otherwise.
“And who is this person that I was supposed to have killed?” I asked. “I might not be able to leave, but I can do a Google search.”
“Google?”
“Oh, my gosh, how are you living without Wi-Fi? Why hasn’t your team updated your technology? I need to bring you up to date, just like you need to make sure that I can acclimate to this new world.”
It certainly explained why I’d yet to find a phone in the compound to make a call. Note to self: get a cell phone.
“This is Charming’s place, I am just its guest, and much was done in preparation to keep you safe.”
He must have been holding on to the past with an iron fist, but he didn’t know that satellites were taking pictures from above, that everything was only a mouse click away, and especially, that life was more than just this archaic Order.