vampires of san francisco 07 - suckers lost and found

by mcbrayer, jessica

  I turn to Giancarlo and smile. He shows fang thinking he will scare me. Poor Giancarlo doesn’t know that I’ve battled witches and Demons, walked through Hell and have lived to talk about it. I step down from my chair, put on my heels and then rip the sides of my dress so I can kick freely. Giancarlo is gaping at me. He doesn’t even see it coming when I reach down and twist his head. Just to be sure he doesn’t heal, I put one of my PRADA stilettos on his shoulder for leverage while I rip his head off.

  Everyone is quiet for about ten seconds and then the vampires descend. Sebastian and I are fighting for our lives. We’re taking out as many vamps as we can when I feel Aidan transmanifest in behind me. He starts ashing the vamps around us with his magick as soon as he gets here.

  “Not that I don’t love a good fight, but what on earth have you gotten yourselves into,” he says pointing to Giancarlo’s head.

  “I ripped his head off.” I grunt as I kick a female vampire in the stomach as she was trying to sneak up on Bast. “Aidan.” I struggle to get out of a vamp’s arms. “Manda, in the pit. Get us out of here.” I duck as Sebastian spins and punches a muscle-bound blonde vampire as he strikes out at Aidan. Aidan’s mouth hangs open and then the fire enters his eyes. He turns to the pit. He sees Manda and he grows to twice his size. He’s huge and snorting fire. I see clawed hands reach for whoever is close to him and slam the vamps together, instantly killing them. Then he grabs our hands and pops us into the rink. He goes to grab Manda but she screams, kicking and biting at him. He immediately shifts back to his normal self and approaches her carefully. She screams at all of us.

  “Aidan, she doesn’t recognize us. She’s almost feral. We need to get her to Julian and Helena as soon as possible,” I say tenderly to my friend. His face is awash in misery. He nods to me unable to talk. I take that as I am supposed to subdue Manda. She doesn’t see me move as I use my werevamp hyper speed to capture her.

  She’s too exhausted and starved to use her vampire skills of speed and agility. She is still tremendously strong and lethal. I reappear behind her and wrap my arms around her, containing her.

  “I can’t hold her for long. She’s very strong. Aidan, the vamps are starting to circle. Get us the Hell out of here.”

  “Aidan, mon ami, we’ve got her back. We won’t let anything happen to her. Let’s go,” Sebastian shakes Aidan a little to get his attention. Aidan grabs our hands and takes us out to the lawn. Then he leaves us and we hear the screaming inside as he takes out his revenge on the vampires who delighted in this unconscionable sport. Manda keeps trying to escape and I whisper in her ear, letting her know that everything will be okay and Aidan is here now, that we love her and are going to take care of her. She hisses and bites the air hoping to get me or Sebastian. I don’t think she knows what is going on around her because she is so hungry.

  Aidan appears in front of us, bloodied and smoking around the edges, then there is a big boom and the building collapses. I turn so Manda and I don’t get the debris in our faces. Aidan slips an arm around me and holds his hand out to Sebastian who quickly takes it. Before I can even blink we are flying the winds.

  “What on earth is going on?” Helena exclaims. Her green eyes flash as she meets us. “Who’s done this? I’ll kill them!”

  “Too late. We killed some and then Aidan killed the rest. About fifty very important vampires. Most importantly, we need to feed Manda right away. They’ve been starving her,” Sebastian says. Helena explains to Julian as he comes rushing into the hallway.

  “Aidan, Lily, we must get to the atrium in the lab to feed her. Hurry.” Julian says.

  I quickly explain the ‘entertainment’ the King had arranged for us to see.

  “He was giving us the means to end our search without getting his hands dirty or his power challenged,” Bast says, raising his upper lip in a snarl.

  “Oh my Goddess, they have starved her, she looks so weak. Julian, get a drip ready and some of that bagged blood. We’ll get her started on the blood and then we will get her washed up,” Helena says.

  “Aidan, can you put her under like we did Liam?” Julian asks. “It is the safest and gentlest way to feed her.”

  “Why can’t I take her to feed, she’s starving,” Aidan says, his voice full of so much pain.

  “She may kill someone in this state and she also needs the blood to slowly enter her system. When she is healthier we will show her how to feed,” Julian says.

  Aidan waves his hand over Manda. She is redressed in a tank top and yoga pants. She’s clean now and her wounds are even more apparent. She won’t heal until she gets some blood. She doesn’t even acknowledge what just happened to her. She’s still fighting me to get free. Aidan walks up to her and tells her he loves her before touching her forehead, which puts her into a peaceful slumber. Julian is all ready with the equipment.

  “I’ll be right back,” Aidan says a second before he disappears. He pops back with a very angry Basilio.

  “What on earth are you doing? Besides kidnapping me, I heard tonight that Giancarlo’s house blew up but that the vamps were dead before the estate collapsed. Care to share?” Basilio asks while looking at me. His adoration for once squelched under his fury.

  “They were starving them, Basilio. The only way they could eat would be to win a fight,” I say as I gesture to Manda. His mouth hangs and his eyes open wide. Leaving his narrowed vision behind as he realizes what’s happened.

  “Mio Dio! This is Manda?” Basilio asks, his sincerity shows through his expression of horror. I don’t think he knew what was going on. Aidan must have thought that too, since he didn’t ash him.

  “That’s barbaric. What she must have gone through. She’s only three months old? Thank the Goddess that you found her. It’s going to be tricky politics to negotiate this. Some very important vampires were killed tonight. Every one of them deserved it. I don’t condone pit fighting, never have allowed it. It’s illegal under my rule. You have to believe me,” he says looking at me.

  “I do believe you. What are we going to do now?” I ask him. “It’s going to take a while to get her back. She’s suffered horrific physical and emotional damage, if we can heal her.”

  Sebastian snarls. “The place had been used for this sort of thing many times before tonight. Where else in your country is this going on? Where else in the world? We need to root them out. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to call the rental company and tell them where they can pick up our car. I believe for an extra fee they’ll do it tonight, before it becomes too busy with investigators.”

  He leaves the room. Manda is so dehydrated that Julian is having a hard time finding a healthy vein to start the IV.

  “Rest assured, bella, that you will come to no harm. I may have to use some of my own magick to smooth this over but I will. Most of those vamps were supporters of Giancarlo attempting a coup. Parasites,” Basilio spits out.

  I look at the room around me and everyone has looks of concern on their faces. I feel my body relax but not my mind. This is going to take time. Aidan must be going crazy. His eyes are locked on Manda who he is holding in his arms as she slumbers. Julian finally gets a line started and the slow process of feeding her begins.

  I hug Aidan.

  “Thank you,” he whispers. My energy feeds him. His essence is nearly as depleted as Manda’s body is by his enraged response and his heart break over his lover’s condition.

  This isn’t over.

  TWELVE / AIDAN

  “Julian, we’ve given her three bags. That’s three pints, right? How much does she need?” I ask. He shakes his head and shrugs.

  “Everyone is different and we don’t know how starved or dehydrated she is. I’m guessing two more bags based on her color at the moment and her heart rate. Her body is accepting the blood and that’s what we needed to worry about.”

  “We need to discuss how to take care of her after she wakes up,” Helena says.

  “She will be like a feral vampire. She will not rea
son, just react,” Julian says.

  “I’m glad Basilio saw how bad she was. He has to do something about this,” Lilith says. “I think Aidan and Manda should move in with us next door. We’ll have more room than here and Julian and Helena can be there in seconds.” Lilith my friend.

  “I think that’s a good idea,” Helena says. “The Blevdics are gone and the cleaning and painting are all done. Really, you’ll just need a couple of beds.”

  “I would be in your debt, my friends. I would like to stay with you. I just have no idea of what to expect or what to do.” I fight the urge to break things. Big, heavy, explosive things.

  “You’ll need to make sure you don’t make any sudden moves around her – she will attack if she feels threatened. She needs to feed often so she never gets hungry for the first few days. She’ll need lots of support and time to heal,” Julian explains.

  “You would not be indebted to us, Aidan. Please, let’s go over to the other house and see what we need to do to get it ready in time for Manda and Lily to sleep,” Sebastian says. He helps Lilith take Manda’s sleeping body and pats me on the shoulder.

  Lilith is the only one I would leave Manda with at the moment. It’s not that I don’t trust and love the others it’s just that I can count on Lilith to know how I feel for her and to honor that love. Lilith gives me a reassuring smile and promises she will send someone over if Manda wakes.

  We leave the house and go towards next door in a thick fog. The fog horns are muffled in the heavy moisture. Sebastian pulls a key out of his tuxedo pants, a reminder of where the night started, and opens the Art Deco green door. The stained glass in the door depicts a naked woman pouring water into a lily-strewn pond. It makes me smile thinking of Lilith living here. It was a perfect choice.

  “I haven’t been in here before so we’ll have to pick out rooms and scout around to make sure everything is in working order,” Sebastian says as he switches on the lights.

  “It’s pretty bleak right now but don’t worry, Lilith will get me busy decorating. Maybe Manda will be able to participate. I just don’t know what she will be like and I’m scared, Sebastian. What if she doesn’t love me anymore?”

  “Stop. Right now. Her feelings for you are still in there. For a while she’ll be in a bloodlust all the time until she learns that when she is hungry she can have food. At first she’ll feel hungry all the time. We’ll be busy getting her food, teaching her how to eat without killing and making sure she doesn’t escape. But she does still love you, Aidan. Manda is still in there.”

  Rage fills me again as I consider how they’ve turned a being of sunshine into a rabid killer.

  “Let’s get a couple of beds in here. I want to get back to Manda,” Aidan says. I sigh as Sebastian makes his way to the master bedroom.

  “This is the master. I know Lily has always wanted a huge four poster.”

  “Then she shall have one.” I wave my hand and a beautiful carved French antique bed appears. Complete with white linens. Lily will love it. “How’s this?” I asks.

  “It’s perfect. I don’t want to know how you always know what she’ll love.”

  I chuckle despite my melancholy.

  “I think Manda and I will take the room just across the hall. I want to be sure you both can hear me if I need you.”

  “I think that’s a good idea. Let’s go put a bed in there and see how your fiancée is doing.”

  I put my hand on Sebastian’s shoulder and transmanifest us back to the manse, too eager to take the time to walk. Lily is still holding Manda, still under my spell.

  “You can wake her now,” Julian says. “Be prepared, she won’t be herself.”

  “Okay, let me trade places, Lilith. Thank you for watching over her,” I say.

  “Always. She will be like a sister to me before too long. Now is when we love her unconditionally and take care of her.”

  “Wake up Sleeping Beauty,” I whisper before I touch Manda’s forehead.

  In a split second she is across the room and hissing. Her nails are poised to claw someone and her fangs are bared.

  “Not yet, love,” I say using considerable strength to hold on to her. “We’ll be able to go out and about before you know it. Manda, love, do you know where you are?”

  “Huunngry…” she moans and pulls at her hair. I quickly grab her hands to prevent her from hurting herself.

  “Manda, we are going to get someone for you to feed on but you must not kill them. We’ll be here to stop you from taking too much. Remember we love you. We won’t let anyone hurt you. Do you understand?” Julian asks.

  Manda hisses and her fangs are still out but her eyes are a bit clearer. She tilts her head as if she understands part of what Julian said.

  “Aidan, why don’t we trade places again and you can get a donor. It will be faster and she isn’t up to hunting yet,” Lily tells me. She slowly approaches Manda and Manda starts to writhe as if she is in pain. She can probably scent her vampire blood. While it wouldn’t be enough for her nutritionally, all she is reacting to is the scent of blood.

  Lily grabs her arms and in a flash she has replaced me.

  “Shh… darling girl. We will take care of you. Try to relax until your food comes. We’re going to work extra hard not to hurt the food, okay Manda?” Lily says in a gentle voice. Manda is so easily triggered at the moment.

  “Okkkaaay. Sooo hungry. Need food noooow,” Manda groans.

  “Here he is, Manda. Aidan is back with some food.” Manda starts to thrash about trying to get to the young man I have brought for her. “Manda, we’re going to do this together. You may not tear his throat out. You will bite gently and feed. Understand me?” Lily asks.

  “Yesss. Now!”

  “Here we go, Manda.” Lily moves them a little closer to the man. Close enough that Manda can reach him if she stretches her neck. She bites in a flash. It’s a clean bite. We just have to pull her away before she drains him.

  Manda is moaning and sucking hard. Sebastian moves in to help Lily and me with pulling Manda back. She growls at us.

  “Manda, sweetheart. I know you can hear me in there. You don’t want to kill this innocent man. It’s time to let him go. We’ll get you another one if you want,” Lily coaxes.

  Slowly, Manda lets go. It’s so much better if she does this on her own than if we have to pull her off. She’ll gain control over herself faster this way. For some reason she seems to be responding quite well to Lily. It means extra work for Lily but we may have a good chance at reclaiming the real Manda.

  “I’ll get you another, love,” I say and run the back of my knuckles down her face. She doesn’t snap at me, a good sign.

  I’m gone and back in a matter of a minute. Lily is caressing Manda’s arms and hair. Speaking to her in dulcet tones. Manda seems to visibly relax.

  With a new donor in front of her she relaxes even more, starting to trust that what we tell her is the truth and that we will take care of her. She bites the second man almost gently but not quite. She eats like she is starving and he is a T-bone. When she’s taken enough, Lily starts to whisper to her again. Eventually she lets go and Lily asks me for a wet cloth to wipe Manda’s face off. While I take Manda’s dinner home, Lily gingerly washes around Manda’s face, mouth and neck until she is clean.

  “Manda, let Aidan get you a night gown. We must sleep in about fifteen minutes.” Manda gives us a stiff nod.

  “Manda, love, I’m back,” I whisper softly to her, approaching her like the wounded animal she is. Manda backs further into Lily. I stop and pull the next donor forward. I can’t hide the pain on my face as Manda pulls back.

  “Here you go, Manda. Just like before. Bite gently and I’ll let you eat until you start to take too much. Now, honey,” Lily says.

  Manda strikes and groans in pleasure as she drinks deeply. Before too long, Lily pulls her away. Manda hisses but Lily runs her hand over Manda’s hair again and again until she quiets down.

  “Aidan can you change
Manda into a nightgown? We’ve got about five minutes until it’s time to sleep. Maybe we should head over to the other house?”

  Lily gratefully gives Manda to me and collapses into Sebastian’s arms. Manda tenses at first but with Lily’s encouragement she goes with me. We all make our way to the house. I take Manda to bed and Lily collapses on hers. She’s too tired to change. She shouldn’t be tired.

  I hear her talking to Sebastian through the walls.

  “Bast, I think we better get a pregnancy test tomorrow. Can you do that while I’m sleeping? I want to know if that’s why I’m so tired.”

  I grin widely. Maybe it’s her condition, which I know without the pink plus sign result, will shine some joy in our lives right now. She’s pregnant.

  THIRTEEN / LILITH

  The next morning Andrew and Liam had barely had time to comprehend what had happened the night before when Andrew storms through the new house. Andrew is all in a dither, still in pajamas. Julian must have told him about our wedding present. Yikes! He and Liam had been out the night before.

  “Miss Lily! What am I supposed to do? How am I supposed to be in two houses at once?” he says as he bursts into my bedroom.

  “Andrew, I don’t expect you to be in two houses at once. You live there, therefore you butler there. I will just have to do without your wonderful services. Somehow I will survive. I’m not sure how, but I will.”

  “We’ll see,” he huffs.

  Aidan peeks in the room too. Thank goodness Sebastian put me in something decent last night after I fell asleep.

  “Manda is still asleep. Is that normal?” he asks with a frown on his perfect face.

  “Yes, every vampire is different. We’ll keep a close eye on her until she wakes up. Then she will need to feed again,” Sebastian explains. “Lily sleeps six hours and yet Hannah sleeps eight. Age makes no difference. It’s entirely random.”