by D. C. Gambel
“No.” I started. He visibly relaxed. “I changed him when Anton left him for dead.”
His face brightened with enlightenment. “Ah… Now I know why you have come. It’s your mate.” He smiled cocky at me. “As I’m sure you have realized his transition to vampirism is far from normal.” I was shocked that he knew. A moment later I nodded as I watched him stand and pace around the office.
“Please Gabriella, do not look so shocked. I may not look it, but I think you forget how old I truly am. There is incredibly little that I haven’t seen or been through. What exactly seems to be the problem? Is it simply that he day walks or is it deeper.”
“How..?” Instead of asking him how he knew everything, I decided to jump to the point. “It’s deeper. He can’t feed from anyone but me. If he does, he becomes ill, but the feedings are becoming more and more frequent.”
“Ah, yes. This happened to me many years after I fell.” Fell? I didn’t know what that meant, but I figured there was something demonic behind it. After all, it was what human history had been telling us for years. Vampires were soulless, wretched creatures. It was the reason we couldn’t enter people’s homes, why we drank their blood. We were Satan’s creatures.
“You’re demon.” I stated matter-of-factly.
A rumble bellowed deep within his chest. The room shock with his laughter. “Tell me child how do you think vampires came into existence?” I shook my head, unsure and not wanting to envelop myself with random human lure. “I am the first. Surely you did not think that I sprouted from the ground.” I really had never given it much thought except that I believed us to be demons. “I’m sure that the notion of drinking someone’s blood seems demonic, but I assure you, I am no demon, quite the opposite actually.” He grinned. Without giving me a moment to process he spoke, “I am an angel. A fallen, to be more precise.” His smile grew, revealing the sharp point of his fangs. My face contorted with confusion. He smirked then he seemed to distract himself with a bowl resting on his desk. “When I was cast down from heaven, God forgot to remove the task to which he had bestowed on me. It took me some time to realize that I still had the ability to bring death to humans. Only now, with the exchange of my blood, can I give them life once more.”
“Death? As in the angel of death?” Disbelief dripping from my word.
He popped a piece of candy into his mouth, “We are death.” He shrugged. “We move throughout the world, feeding on mankind, leaving a trail of bodies everywhere we go. We are a plague upon humanity, devouring them. Although, I am sure that was never God’s intention or that those I created would acquire my blood lust.”
“Well as fascinating as this little history lesson is, what about Grayson?”
“Ah yes, Mr. Alexander. As it so happens I do have the knowledge you seek.”
“Really?” I heaved a sigh of relief. After all this time I would finally have the answers and hopefully a solution.
“I am sorry to disappoint you, but I will not be sharing that knowledge with you tonight.”
“What?” My excitement was short lived. One moment everything was falling into place, then Damien yanked the rug I was standing on out from under me.
“This meeting was simply to find out what it was you wanted of me.”
“You can’t be serious? You set this whole thing up. You contacted Grayson, made up a bogus meeting, all so you could figure out why I wanted to find you and now that you know, you’re refusing to help me.” I couldn’t believe the audacity of him. He simply wanted to ease his curiosity and didn’t give a damn about helping me. The key to Grayson’s existence was standing in the room with me and was in my grasp, but just out of my reach. “He could die! He grows weaker by the day!”
“If you would have let me finish; young people today have no manners,” he mumbled the last part as he crossed behind his desk taking his seat. “I will not share that knowledge with you tonight. I assume that the knowledge is not the only thing you seek, but a solution as well, yes? Without losing the abilities you have bestowed on him?” I nodded worried to get my hopes up again. Damien dropped his head and scribbled something down. “Bring your mate to this address tomorrow an hour before dusk. Then you shall have your answers and the solution you seek. It will be up to him if he chooses to take it.”
I hesitantly took the paper from him. “How do I know I can trust you?”
His face looked pained at my words. His voice lowered shoving all joking aside. “You are my daughter, Gabriella. Everything I have ever done was to protect you. I understand trust is earned and this is my way of trying to earn yours.” He pressed a button on the phone. “Jade,” was all he said. The door swung open and in walked the redheaded vampire. She held open the door for me gesturing for me to leave and followed me out.
We walked along in silence. Coming to the end of the stairs she spoke. “He’s a good man, you know.”
“Who?” I wondered.
“Your father. Once word got to him about Anton’s demise, he up and moved us all, his entire nest across the country. He was thrilled to see you. You should give him a little credit.”
“When he heard about Anton? How long ago was that?”
“Right after it happened. It’s hard to move an entire nest.”
Damien came looking for me after Anton? But he said my looking for him had been causing trouble. I didn’t know what to say so I said nothing. She led me out and deposited me back at the bar where I was met with a frantic Grayson.
“Gabriella, where the hell have you been? I have been looking everywhere for you.” He wrapped his arms around me clutching me to his chest. I could hear the hysteria in his voice. I wasn’t the only one that relived the night Anton tried to destroy us.
“Calm down lover boy. No need to get your panties in a twist,” Jade spoke. I had forgotten she was there. Grayson’s grip on me loosened. He seemed confused that she had spoken to him. Jade stepped into Grayson’s personal space wedging herself right between us to straighten his collar. His eyes narrowed and I could tell he was wondering who the hell she was. “We were just upstairs having a bit of a family reunion.” Her hand trailed down his shoulder. It was meant as a comforting gesture, but did quite the opposite to Grayson. Jade turned her green gaze of me. “Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow, beautiful.” Jade turned on her heels and walked through the crowd, disappearing among them.
“Who the hell was that and what family reunion was she talking about?”
I sighed. Not wanting to drag it out, I immediately answered his questions. “That was Jade. She just took me to meet my father.”
“Your father? But I thought…”
I cut him off with a shake of my head. “This whole thing was a set up. He wanted to know why I was looking for him.”
“So he had no answers,” he stated instead of asking. It seemed he had already come to terms with the notion.
“Not exactly,” I looked down at his chest picking at an imaginary piece of lint. “I think he might be able to help.” Grayson stilled my hands. Gripping my chin he forced me to look him in the eye.
“What?” He questioned almost afraid to believe his ears.
I let out a long breath. “We are going to meet him here tomorrow.” I held up the paper Damien had given me. Grayson took it and examined it. “He says we’ll have our answers then and our solution.”
Once in the car on the way home, my phone jingled, alerting me to a text.
Shawn: Be careful Gaby. I looked up Cave Lamia. It’s Latin for Beware of Vampires
Well that would have been nice to know earlier.
My stomach was twisted in knots the whole day leading up to our meeting with Damien. I was excited and nervous. Once dusk came, we’d hopefully have a solution to Grayson’s problems.
Regret still bombarded me when I thought about what I had taken from him and I’m sure it always would. I would never see immortality as a gift, because to me it wasn’t. He’d have to watch everyone around him grow old and die. Plus
, if Damien’s solution turned him into a traditional vampire, it would be a cruel thing for Grayson to share his life with a day walker only to have to bare the constant reminder that he would never be able to share in that ability. I hoped Damien would come through, not just on the blood part, but also to allow Grayson to be a day walker like me.
Grayson chose to drive us that evening. John hadn’t noticed the difference in Grayson since his transition to vampirism. Why would he? He never saw Grayson drink blood or shy away from the sun, but to have John drive us to a vampire nest and wait for us there just seemed like we’d be playing with fire.
An hour before dusk we arrived at the address as Damien had requested. At first I thought we’d made a mistake and were in the wrong location. It was strange. It looked like we arrived at an office building. I risked a glance at Grayson and saw the same befuddled expression. Then I saw the sign, The Angelo Tower and figured we were in the right place. I’m not sure what we expected, but neither of us had been expecting that; perhaps something a bit more medieval or gothic for the nest of the first vampire. When we made our way inside my skepticism only rose. Sitting across the entrance was an information desk with one employee stationed behind it. The room smelled like a hospital which was odd. It was Saturday so it wasn’t unusual that an office building might seem empty and I began to wonder if Damien had somehow given us the wrong address. I was expecting an apartment or even a hotel, but an office building?
“Hello. Can I help you?” The woman behind the counter asked when neither Grayson nor I approached.
“Um…” I hesitated. “I’m not sure. I think we may be at the wrong place.”
“What’s the place you’re looking for?” She seemed awfully cheerful. I read her the address. “You’re in the right place. Who are you here to see?”
“Damien Malach?”
“Mr. Malach,” she looked down appearing to be reading something. “Ah yes. You must be Mr. Alexander and Ms. Carmichael. This way please.” She slid out from behind her desk. Bouncing as she walked, she led us to the elevator. She pressed the call button, the doors immediately opened and she ushered us inside. “You need a special code to get to the top floor,” she proclaimed punching some numbers into the key pad and pressing the button for the top floor before stepping off the elevator. “Enjoy the ride.” She waved us goodbye as the doors closed.
“Well, she was awfully chipper,” I mumbled.
“Any of this seem strange?” Grayson asked.
“What? You mean the office building, the antiseptic smell or the overly enthusiastic receptionist?”
“Well, when you list it all out there like that...”
The car opened to what appeared to be a vacant floor, but the moment the doors opened, I could feel power invading the small area where we stood. There were definitely vampires around. A lot of them. It crashed on me almost like a tidal wave. I braced myself against the railing that wrapped around the elevator car.
Recalling the entrance to the building I expected to be in an office area, but what we were met with was a penthouse. The floor plan opened into a huge sitting area, much too big for just my father and the few close lackeys that I was sure he kept around. A set of stairs rested in the corner of the room leading to the floor below.
“There’s no one here.” Grayson stated looking around.
“Oh, they’re here alright.”
The moment I shoved myself away from the wall, I began to feel like I was tethered to something. Placing one foot in front of the other, I left the car behind me and allowed myself to be pulled forward. I walked past the sitting area and the kitchen following a sporadic trail of doors.
“Gaby?” Grayson called for me, but I ignored him. I didn’t know where I was going. My body seemed pulled by a strong source. I felt it rippling through the air and across my skin. The part of me that was still mindful figured I was being pulled towards Damien, although I hadn’t recalled feeling the connection the night I met him, perhaps the alcohol and my hormones had dulled my perception. Grayson followed close behind me. I could hear him trying to gain my attention, but I could only focus on where the source was. I abruptly came to a stop in front of a closed door near the end of the hall. Turning to face it, I knew the source was behind it. I could feel the power pulling me, beckoning me in. I twisted the knob swinging the door open revealing a man standing alone in what appeared to be a bedroom.
The muscles on his back rippled as he tugged a t-shirt over his head covering the hint of two parallel scars on his shoulder blades. Before he even spun to face us I knew it wasn’t Damien. The man before me was much more muscular and had blonde hair instead of Damien’s black. I focused on the draw I felt, sure I had somehow misread the pull tugging at me even now, but it was definitely coming from this room. I clung to the door frame to prevent me from walking farther in the room. The stranger’s green eyes locked on me, seeming unfazed by my invasion. It was almost as if he expected me. We stood fixed in place, staring at one another quizzically. I could feel my heart pounding, trying to punch its way out of my chest and knew that he was the source I was feeling, although I didn’t know why. He was certainly attractive with his hard, chiseled features. My eyes trailed down his body noticing the definition that even his shirt couldn’t hide. I thought I heard a hint of a chuckle come from him drawing my eyes back to his face when I realized I was gawking at him.
“You’re not Damien, are you?” Grayson’s voice broke the connection. The stranger turned his head in Grayson’s direction, and I snapped my eyes away. I shook my head clearing the spell that had overcome me.
“No, sorry,” he risked a glance at me and my gaze met his briefly. There was a hint of disappointment in his face; almost like he was sad that the moment had passed. Then he returned his attention to Grayson. “Damien isn’t on this floor. He’s on the one below. The elevator doesn’t stop there, for safety reasons,” he stated, as if that should explain it all. “Go back the way you came. Take the stairs and his is the last door on the right.”
“Thanks,” Grayson held his hand out to me. “Gaby,” he beckoned. I placed my palm in his. The moment his skin touched mine, my head cleared. I turned to the stranger who was intently watching us leave. Once we were a good distance away, Grayson asked, “Why’d you take us there and why didn’t you knock? Did you get confused as to where Damien told you to go?”
“No,” I cut off Grayson’s onslaught of questions. “I thought Damien was there. It was my mistake.” Even I didn’t believe that. I didn’t know why I had felt the draw to the stranger we just met, but I had. It was different than the power I felt coming off of supernaturals, although I was pretty sure he was one, even though I didn’t know what he was.
“I don’t understand.”
“Neither do I,” I mumbled under my breath. I tried convincing myself that the draw I felt to him must have been because he was so powerful, even though deep down there was something erotic that caused me to flush whenever I thought about the pull.
Following the stranger’s direction led us to stand before a door. Grayson stepped forward rapping his knuckles against it. I was sure he didn’t want me barging in on another half-dressed stranger.
The door swung open revealing Jade wearing something that would barely register as a dress.
“Well if it isn’t Bella and Edward.”
“I’m sorry?” Grayson seemed perplexed. I rolled my eyes wondering how the Twilight phenomena had completely bypassed my worldly fiancé, but not the ancient vampire before us.
“Never mind,” Jade mimicked my eye roll. “Come on in. His holiness is expecting you.” She walked away not waiting to see if we’d follow.
Damien sat behind a chrome desk. His head bent, focused on a phone call he was having. The room was uniquely modern, but set up strange. With how large the rest of the place had appeared, this room was fairly small. It was no bigger than our master bathroom. There was room for Damien’s desk and a small couch that sat to the right of it. It didn�
�t make sense. I let my eyes wander over the room. I looked behind me and saw a floor length curtain pulled across the entire width of the small room. It was similar to that of a stage curtain that was pulled closed at the end of a play. I couldn’t help but wonder if it was there for aesthetic purpose, but I doubted it. It only made sense that it was separating this room from something else; perhaps something Damien wanted to keep hidden, but close by for his own purposes.
Damien stood after ending his call making his way around his desk. He didn’t have to walk far before standing in front of us.
“Gabriella,” he pulled me into a tight hug. It felt awkward, but I hugged him back. He was, after all, my father and was hopefully helping Grayson. “And this must be your mate, Mr. Alexander.” He held his hand out to Grayson.
“Please, call me Grayson,” Grayson answered shaking Damien’s hand.
“Of course. We will, after all, be family soon. Yes?” Damien’s eyes fell to my engagement ring.
“Yes,” Grayson agreed, stunned, but didn’t let it fluster him.
“I do not wish to waste your time with small talk. I hope there will be plenty of that at a later time.” He paused, waiting for us to agree. Both Grayson and I nodded. I was still resentful to Damien for abandoning me, but what he was doing for Grayson was a great first step in mending that fence. I had always wanted to know my father and now fate was giving me a chance. Who was I to snuff it?
“You must please forgive my people for deceiving you with the false meeting,” he spoke to Grayson. “I was eager to meet my daughter and,” Damien circled Grayson like a predator stalks its prey. Damien leaned in close to Grayson. It almost looked like he smelled him. “Her new mate.” Damien turned to face me. “Human when you mated him by the smell of it.” I stared stunned for a moment that he had actually smelled Grayson and he was also correct before slowly nodded. Ancients seemed to have no sense of personal boundaries. “Ah!” he added like that was a piece to the riddle he was trying to solve. “I can’t imagine that your mother nor Anton were too happy with that.”
