“I just need to have a little chat with your consort.”
Her eyes moved beyond Anastasia. “And who’s that with you?” She pointed to Sia who stood behind her. “And what in the hell is wrong with her face?”
“I don’t have time for this,” Anastasia replied. “He was there when Remy was bit. Now, Remy is dying. I need to talk to him.”
“Oh, so that poor bastard finally got what was coming to him?” She placed her hand on her hip and smiled. “How long does he have left? Where should I send my condolences?”
“Alexis, please.”
“Please?” she repeated in wonderment. “Look, Lambert has given too much to your kind and look what it has gotten him? Attendance is down at Dark Sepulcher, he’s losing money… all because some Pure Deamhan tramp and her white-eyed devil protégé is running rampant.”
“And we want to stop it,” Sia said to her. “We want to put an end to it.”
“You’ll just drag him down again into something and this time he might end up like Remy.” When she spoke, her vampire fangs clacked. “Trouble follows you Deamhan and I’m tired of it.”
“Enough.” Anastasia violently pushed Alexis to the side and stormed in. The vampire didn’t take the threat too lightly.
“You’re not welcome here!” She wrapped her forearm around Anastasia’s neck and tossed her back, toward the door.
She fell to the ground and before she could lift herself, Alexis placed her foot on her chest to keep her down. “I said you’re not welcome here!”
Sia dashed in but Anastasia held her hand up to stop her. “Alexis, get your foot off me.”
“Or what?” The vampire hissed. “You’re going to kill me? No one is scared of you anymore, Anastasia. You’re not the big, bad around here.”
“I won’t ask you again.” She felt her eyes darken.
“I don’t care.” She leaned forward. “Now you and your weird-looking Deamhan friend here will get the hell out of my club.” She pressed down and Anastasia felt the sharp heel of her boot digging into her skin. “He’s done risking his life for your people, do you hear me?”
“I won’t ask him to risk his life.”
As unexpected as Alexis’ behavior appeared to be, Anastasia understood it. Lambert had done plenty of Deamhan in the city of Minneapolis at the expense of his life and his living as the owner of Dark Sepulcher. It only made sense for Alexis to protect what rightfully belonged to them and to secure their future in the city’s now unpredictable state. Still, this all had to wait for another time. Anastasia remained adamant that she’d talk to Lambert, even if she had to go through his consort.
She grabbed the vampire’s foot and twisted it sharply to the left. She heard the sound of her ankle bone break and Alexis hobbled back in pain. Now on her feet, Anastasia grabbed her by the neck and pushed her through a large black cloth that blocked the entry into the club. The cloth broke free from the clasps holding it from the ceiling, revealing a new and improved interior of Dark Sepulcher.
She saw round tables, situated on the dance floor, covered in red cloth with fine dinnerware. The bar had a complete makeover along with the red and black walls. The booths she remembered being on the right no longer there existed. Instead, she viewed smaller tables and red candle lights on the walls above them.
The club changed before she left the city and now it changed once again. This time, it didn’t look like the typical nighttime club. It varied from its roots. Dark Sepulcher no longer looked like a place for supernaturals. She didn’t question it. She knew Lambert had to keep up with the times and if that meant catering to a more human crowd, then that’s what he had to do.
Surprised by how everything now looked, she failed to see the numerous vampires inside, all who had witnessed her attack on Alexis.
“Anastasia, think about what you’re doing.” Frantic, Sia noticed them and she remained close to the entrance.
“I’m thinking about what I’m doing.” She watched Alexis clamber to her feet. “All I want to do is talk to Lambert about what he saw at the caves. I don’t want him to accompany me there. I don’t want him to send vampires to accompany me there. All I want to do is talk to him.”
The vampires walked toward her until Alexis sighed. “You have five minutes.” She snapped her ankle back in place.
“Thank you. We’ll finally be out of your hair and leave you and him to it.” Anastasia walked around her. “Is he upstairs?”
“Where else would you expect him to be?” She straightened her clothing. “I mean it. You have five minutes. Don’t make us come up there and throw you both out.”
Recognizing the same stairs near the back, leading up to Lambert’s private quarters on the second floor, Anastasia and Sia hurried across the floor and climbed the steps—two at a time.
When they approached, they found the door to his private quarters opened. Lambert, dressed in a black robe, sat on a red leather couch with a dark liquid drink in his hand.
“I hope you didn’t rough up my Alexis too much.”
“Sorry but I had to see you.”
Lambert stood. “Two years, right? It’s been two years since you stepped foot in my club.” His eyes turned to Sia. “And you brought company.”
“You’ve changed the look around here.” She walked in. “Any special occasion?”
“Another grand reopening. It helps liven up the place, especially when attendance has been so low. Please, sit.”
They both sat and Anastasia watched Lambert make his way to his small bar near the back of the room. “How’s Remy doing?”
“That’s one reason why I’m here.” She drummed her fingers on her leg. “He’s dying.”
“Dying? He can’t heal himself?”
“No,” Sia replied. “Vampire, the Deamhan who bit Remy—”
“Lambert, please.”
“Lambert,” she corrected herself. “The Deamhan who bit him is my sister, Anzuna, is an Estrie. Her bite is toxic to all Deamhan.”
“That Deamhan is your sister?” he said in a slow voice.
She nodded.
“She was quite the performer and sloppy to boot. She left a mess in that cave. My vampires and I had to scrape remains of our people off the dirt floor.” He poured himself another drink. “That can’t happen again, you know.”
“We know.”
“I don’t think you do.” He sipped from his glass. “I’ve been sending my vampires out on a nightly basis, trying to get a feel for what’s happening on the streets. I’ve been trying to see if humans have gotten wind of what’s going on, and do you know what I found? More reports are coming in. Law enforcement is becoming suspicious. So, not only have I turned into Deamhan’s personal clean-up disposal company, I also have to deal with the humans who are talking. This can’t continue, Anastasia.”
“There will always be collateral damage regardless of the outcome,” Sia replied.
“My vampires aren’t just collateral damage,” he said in a stern voice.
“Of course not,” Anastasia retorted. “I understand and appreciate what you’ve done for Deamhan in this city. Now it’s our turn to make sure that those who have died, Deamhan and vampire alike, didn’t die in vain.”
“We’ll get Ruby to talk and we have a Kashshapu on our side that can end this madness, hopefully for good,” Sia added. “After we leave here, we’ll find Anzuna. Her blood can cure Remy.”
“So if you have it all figured out then, why did you come to see me?”
Anastasia leaned forward. “You’ve heard of the individual who has been killing Deamhan?”
“Who hasn’t?” He walked from behind the bar. “It’s a hot rumor, even among my vampires.”
“The Kashshapu we have thinks that the Defiler is another Kashshapu.”
“Do tell!” He sat next to her. “But I thought Kashshapu didn’t exist? Didn’t Deamhan kill them all off centuries ago?”
“Yes, but Sia thinks that they didn’t kill them all.”
&n
bsp; “Hmmm.” He rubbed his chin. “So, I’m afraid to ask. What do you want from me?”
“I need you to find out who the Defiler is and what she wants.”
“She’s killing Deamhan. It’s clear what she wants.” He folded his legs. “My tentacles reach further out than even an old Deamhan like you can see, but there are limits. I’m not omnipotent.”
“But you know of other vampires in different cities, those where this person has killed Deamhan?”
“I do.”
“Could you ask them?”
“I guess I could.” He looked straight ahead in thought and in silence. “Although, majority of these vampires won’t give me the information willingly. I’m sorry to say but they do enjoy watching Deamhan run for the hills.” He finished his drink. “But there may be someone here who knows something about this Defiler.”
“Who?”
He stood. “My vampires found a few Dorvo vampires, still alive, at the cave when we went back to clean up the mess left behind by your sister.” He pointed to Sia. “Ruby sired them. Maybe she told them something about the Defiler? We all know how she loves to talk.”
“Where are they now?”
“In my basement. I decided to spare them.”
“Why spare them?” Anastasia knew the only reason why a vampire would spare a Dorvo vampire. The complicated and extensive history between the two species teetered on violence at best.
“For my amusement.”
She eyed him suspiciously.
“Oh, don’t give me that look.” He walked to the door. “It’s basically the same thing you and Remy have done to Kenneth.”
***
Anastasia and Sia followed Lambert toward a thick door with a huge archaic lock. She leaned against the wall and watched the vampire pull a large metal key from his pocket.
“You’ve never been down here, have you?” he asked her as he unlocked the door.
She’d never had the pleasure, but she knew about the sex toys that he and his consort Alexis kept in the basement.
After unlocking it, he grunted while pushing the door open. They descended down concrete stairs. The air smelled of rotting flesh and horrid body odor. As they made their way forward through the dank and awkward silence tunnel, she heard the sounds of metal bars clinging against brick. It was a noise that Lambert didn’t bother to address.
“I can smell you!” a female voice yelled out.
They continued until coming upon an opening.
Another male voice made itself known. “LET ME OUT!” He screamed over and over again.
“Don’t worry. They’re in their cells,” Lambert spoke.
“I’m not worried.” Anastasia never ran away from danger and she wouldn’t start now. Once her eyesight adapted, she saw the outline these cells and the Dorvo vampires had in them.
“Where am I?”
Anastasia snapped her head in the direction of the voice. Finally, she could see a male with half of his body hidden in the darkness of his cell. He had long, brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. Splotched of dirt covered his white shirt and his blue jeans.
“Please let us go!” Across from her, she saw a large overweight woman with two prominent, sharp fangs. “Please! I’m hungry.”
Shocked, Anastasia directed her distaste for what she saw at Lambert. “They’re teenagers! Why would you keep them chained and locked up down here? What amusement can you get from all of this?”
“They’re Dorvo vampires. They’re no longer teenagers.”
“They should not be down here.”
“Oh, stop it,” Lambert replied. “Get off your high horse.”
The male spoke out. “Why are you keeping us here?” He approached the bars. He too looked dirty and unkempt. However, his beautiful brown eyes Anastasia found to be mesmerizing.
But one individual, in the back cell, struck her as oddly familiar.
“I doubt any of you idiots know who she is.”
“Ollie?” She stared at him. The last she heard of the Lami, he had been kicked out of his own warehouse by Lucius and Selene. Later, Remy stabbed his shoulder with a stake and set his new hideout on fire. She wasn’t fond of the annoying weasel. “Lambert, why is he down here?”
Ollie answered for him. “I wanted to be down here.” His tired eyes scoured her from head to toe. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.” She approached his cell.
“It’s a scary world out there. You know that better than I do.” He leaned against the bars with his arms folded and a snicker on his face. “I heard about Remy. Hope he makes it out okay.”
“He will.” She looked over her shoulder at Lambert.
“Now, before you upset yourself further, you need to know that he came to me,” Lambert said. “He wanted sanctuary and seeing that he still did own the warehouse… we made a deal.”
“Yeah, my warehouse for… you know… a place to lay low.” Ollie waved at Lambert. “You gonna let me out. I promised I won’t eat any vampires here.” His dark Deamhan eyes moved to one of the caged Dorvo vampires. “But I can’t promise you I won’t eat her though.”
“Just tell Anastasia what you know about the Defiler.”
“I won’t talk with that one hovering behind her.” He pointed to Sia. “She looks a little too creepy. Gonna mess up my appetite and everything.”
“Just talk!” Anastasia raised her voice.
“Okay! Okay! Jeez! Don’t be so pushy.” His eyes transformed into a darkish color. “If you can get me out of here and to, let’s say, some remote island in the middle of the Pacific until this whole shit blows over, I’ll tell her everything. Deal?” He held out his hand for Lambert to shake. Instead the vampire shifted his right eyebrow.
“Crap. It was worth a try, right?” he joked. “The Defiler, right? Okay. Well…” He started his recount with his escape from Minneapolis. He spent moments in ebullience and spilled his guts to her in a Freudian-born drivel, using the cold concrete floor as a couch. He gave explicit details about the fight at the warehouse and how Kenneth betrayed Remy and the others, hoping they’d die alongside Lucius and Selene. He described Amenirdis’ release and her sudden disappearance. He then went back to his escape.
“I made it as far as Austin when I started hearin’ stories about some woman who was more powerful than Amenirdis. They said that she was a Pure One but that wasn’t right. Every Deamhan knows that Amenirdis was the only one to escape Limbo.”
“And what else?” Anastasia gazed into his eyes as if she tried to suck the truth right out of him.
“Some said it was a Dorvo vampire, working for that other wench, Ruby. But that wasn’t right either.”
“Did you find out?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t want to. There was no way in hell I wanted to rattle that nest. I tried my best to avoid it until…”
“Until what?”
Ollie wiped his nose. “Until I saw her one night. I didn’t know it was her until I saw her wipe the floor with a few Deamhan. Damn, the way she killed them… she didn’t even break a sweat.”
“So she’s human?” Sia asked.
“I don’t know what she is but she ain’t human. I didn’t get close enough to smell her. All I knew was that she killed them in a blink of an eye. When one tried to run from her, she somehow stopped him. She did something with her hands and he just froze, like she was controlling him.”
“Don’t forget the other detail,” Lambert reminded Ollie.
“Oh yeah… and her face… she wore some gray-looking mask. Y’know? Like the ones you’d see at the store during Halloween. Scary stuff, I tell ya.”
“Is that it?”
“Yeah, that’s it. I ran as fast as I could out of there, out of the state of Texas, and back here. I’m telling you, Anastasia. She scared the living hell out of me. I’ve never seen anything like this… ever. That’s why I made a deal with Lambert.”
“Why didn’t you go to Blind Bluff Manor?”
Ollie huf
fed. “The only way to stay safe, as a Deamhan, right now is to be surrounded by vampires or other supernaturals. I don’t know any supernaturals except Lambert. He seemed like the best bet. She isn’t after them. She’s only after our kind.”
Anastasia looked back to Sia who remained quiet. “What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking that this all started with Amenirdis being released from Limbo. That is, if you believe what this Deamhan says is true.”
Anastasia saw the fear in Ollie’s eyes. “I believe him.”
“No disrespect but it doesn’t matter if you believe me or not. Amenirdis may be a Pure One but she’s nothing compared to this Defiler chick. She’s all power and all bite. I’d rather stand up to Amenirdis than stand up to her. All anyone can do is to stay the fuck out of her way and hide, so that’s what I’m doing.” He shuffled back in his cell. “That’s what you should do as well.”
CHAPTER NINE
HALLIE
Hallie noticed the moon’s glow peeked through the blinds and into the foyer. It bounced off Nathan’s collection of tall Greek gods and goddesses statues and the floor, engulfing the area in a shiny, bright glow.
So far, there weren’t any signs of Anastasia and Sia. The fact that they’d yet to return with Anzuna’s blood made her peevish. How long was a mission like this supposed to take?
However, she wasn’t the only one who remained on edge. Maris paced back and forth in the foyer, nervously rubbing her arms and Ayden stood in the doorway to the study. They didn’t appear to be all that concerned about the same issue. Instead, Maris remained upset about the argument she had with Anastasia over Kenneth.
Why would Maris care about what Anastasia did to him? Kenneth deserved to be locked down there, in the basement, unlike Remy. The way she acted toward her sire made no sense to Hallie. She should be thankful she has a sire who does care!
“Will we try to make her talk again, or just stand here and wait?” Ayden pointed to Ruby, still tied and gagged, sitting in a chair in the study.
Shortly after Sia and Anastasia left, they tried to get the Dorvo vamp to open up by threatening her. It didn’t take them long to realize that she’d never tell them. Ayden suggested poking her with pieces of sharp wood but Maris refused. He taped her mouth shut again when she wouldn’t stop ranting about their pending deaths.
Divination (Deamhan Chronicles Book 4) Page 9
