by Kat Cotton
Yeah, it was okay for him to say that, but he was the one who’d die. And I’d be the one left without him. Even if he’d been a bit absent lately, I needed him.
Nic reached for the hexenspiegel, but Kisho held it out of his reach. He tried to act like he didn’t see Nic, but it was totally obvious that he didn’t want to let go of it.
“Can’t you just turn it down to low beam? You don’t need to go full force. Just enough zap to test things.”
Kisho and Nic argued for a while.
“Okay, I’ll try it,” I said.
Kisho shook his head. “No way.”
“Look at it this way: if we don’t kill the Vampire King, I’ll have to live with this zappy stuff inside me forever. I’ll need to learn to control it. This is the best way to do that. And, hey, if we do kill the King, the power will be gone. This may be the only chance I get to use it on Nic.”
Kisho shook his head. “I won’t be part of this.”
Nic and I went to the garden. “We need to position ourselves so you don’t damage the house,” he said. “That might be difficult.” He walked around, checking out the small garden from different angles.
“What about that park you take Hellhound to? That might be better. And it’s not like there’ll be anyone around.”
Nic agreed. “We should get Vlad’s gym mats from the basement. That will help protect the testing area.”
“Ah, no, we don’t need them.” Those mats had been shredded during my training sessions.
Luckily, Vlad hadn’t mentioned them since he’d returned. Mostly, he’d just slept. He didn’t even feed that much anymore. But if Nic saw the mess those mats were in, he’d still freak like a little bitch.
Before we left for the park, Vlad came downstairs. “Are you going to the park? I’ll take Hellhound for a run.”
“Sure, but he’s my dog,” Nic said.
Ever since Vlad had returned, that dog had attached itself to him.
“I know, Nic.” Vlad patted Nic’s arm in a very condescending way. That made me like Vlad a whole lot more.
Hellhound jumped around with excitement, being with the three of us.
“You’ll have to make sure Hellhound is well out of the way at the park,” Nic said as we walked there. Then he explained the situation to Vlad.
“You can’t do that!” Wow, Vlad sounded just like Kisho.
“It’s just a simple test.”
“She’s human. Even if she uses just a fraction of that power, the mirror refracts it at three times the strength. Chances of it killing her are pretty high.”
“What? Did you know this, Nic?” I folded my arms. “You planned to kill me? You’re a total bastard.”
“Not kill you. I didn’t know it’d increase the power.”
“That’s what ‘thrice blessed’ means, isn’t it? Damn. I hate you so much. I hope you get staked to death with tiny little toothpicks. Prick. Prick. Prick.”
“Well, that ruins our tests.” Nic seemed more concerned about that than my life.
“I’ll test with you,” said Vlad.
“Huh?” I said. “You have this power too?”
How the hell did the kid have this power? Had he been sucking face with the Vampire King? Because that would be the ultimate in gross and wrong. He’d just been a kid when he was captured by the Vampire King. To be honest, the King did seem way too interested in children. Creepy old fucker.
“It’s similar. It’s not stolen from the King, though, so he won’t sense the connection.”
Well, I like to be all self-sacrificing for the greater cause and that kind of thing, but not having to be killed in the process made me pretty darn happy. The kid was unkillable, so he could probably handle this okay. Definitely better than me with my weak human body.
“Thanks, kid. I owe you one. Oh, and sorry for that thing, you know, the trying to stake you business.”
“That’s okay.” He grinned at me. He still had traces of that chipmunky smile he’d had as a kid.
I like someone who doesn’t hold a grudge.
“I only did it because Nic paid me.” I felt it only right that he knew that.
Vlad turned to Nic. “You have to make sure you can use that thing, because if I hit you, it’s going to hurt. A lot.”
Nic nodded. “I’m prepared.”
We got to the park and looked for a place to do our testing.
“You should get somewhere safe,” Vlad said. “You don’t want to get caught in the crossfire.”
“Like, home. That’s really safe.”
But I wanted to watch this. I ended up climbing up on one of the lower branches of a tree. I could rest in the crook with my back against the trunk. Nice and safe, with a good view of the battle.
“Take Hellhound with you,” Vlad said, handing the dog up to me.
I thought Hellhound would freak. Being up a tree isn’t natural for dogs, but he settled on my lap and fell asleep.
Nic got ready with the hexenspiegel. It was so tiny, I wasn’t sure it would provide much protection. I also wasn’t sure that Yamaguchi had been totally honest. He’d gotten that awesome dragon tooth, and we got a shitty necklace. I didn’t trust that old Japanese man one little bit.
As Nic held it up, though, it had a faint shimmer. Nothing too extreme, just a slight glow.
Vlad rolled up his sleeves and grinned at Nic. “Ready?”
“As ready as I can be.” Yeah, he tried to sound brave, but Nic’s voice shook. It was worth being here just for that. Rarely did Nic get flustered.
At first, Vlad shot a pale wisp of light at Nic. He really knew what he was doing, unlike me. Also unlike me, the light coming from his fingers wasn’t blue but a pale pink.
Nic blocked it, and as it zapped back, Vlad jumped out of the way. Super-fast. I’d never have been able to dodge like that. The kid really had lightning reflexes.
A bush near where he’d been standing sparked. The edges of the leaves all turned brown. Whoa, that could’ve been me, all singed like that. Bastard Nic. Before Nic could even react, Vlad shot another zap at him. That one hit.
Nic cringed but didn’t fall to the ground. It’d been a weak zap.
“Hey, watch it,” Nic said.
“You watch it,” Vlad said. “This is battle.”
Nic laughed. “You’re right. Come at me.”
Vlad shot his light at Nic again; this time, the color was a little brighter. As it got close to Nic, a slight shimmer surrounded him like a bubble. The pink flash hit it and bounced back. Vlad jumped, twisting in the air. Showoff. He could’ve just moved to the side, but no, he had to be all clever and gymnastic about it.
Vlad zapped him again. The shimmer bubble formed around Nic, but it wavered. Nic got hit. He flinched, but he didn’t cry out.
“Three out of ten,” I called out.
“Huh?”
“You used to score Vlad in gymnastics, so now I’m scoring you. That was only worth three points. You need to up your game.”
Vlad gave me the thumbs-up and laughed.
Nic screwed up his face, but he had that slight shimmer back before Vlad could shoot at him again. The zap hit the invisible wall before it shot back to Vlad. Vlad, of course, skipped out of its way. He moved so fast, I could barely follow him with my eyes.
“Eight,” I called.
“I’d say seven,” Vlad replied.
“Hey,” Nic said. “That was nine, at least.”
“Hey, kid, get away from my tree,” I called as Vlad flipped closer to me. “I don’t want some off-target zappy-zaps hitting me.”
He shuffled to the side, well away from my tree.
This time, he zapped at Nic, then flipped to the side and shot again, hardly giving Nic time to respond. Nic’s shimmering bubble grew stronger.
“Okay,” I said, “that was a nine.”
After a few more shots, Nic seemed to have more control of the hexenspiegel. Rather than having to work to avoid every single shot, he focused on keeping that bubbl
e up. As Nic’s protection got stronger, Vlad increased the power of his zaps. They’d gone from pale pink to a flashy and vibrant magenta. I needed to know how he managed to control the power.
“I think I’ve got the hang of this now,” Nic said.
“Not yet,” Vlad said. “You need to get stronger and stronger. You need to be a ten every single time.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “And this mirror of yours — does it just block the zaps, or does it protect you from the Vampire King’s mind control powers? Because if it doesn’t, you’re screwed. All he has to do is order you to drop the trinket, and you have to obey. That’s no use to anyone.”
“Well, we can’t test that, can we?” Nic folded his arms.
I half-expected Vlad to zap him while he was distracted. That was what I’d do.
“What actually happens with him? I mean, with the commanding and stuff? He doesn’t have total control, right?”
“If he gives a specific order, I can’t disobey. I still have free will to think, but my body can’t move against him. If he’s not specific with the command, there’s more leeway. Also, once he takes his focus off me, the power weakens. You know that. You saw it for yourself when you used your aura on him.”
I nodded. “It’s not like I can try that on him again, though.”
“There are times when he can’t control you,” Vlad said. “Like, if he commanded you to kill someone you love. He can’t make you do that. And he can’t usurp the natural chain of control. He can’t make the pack attack Nic, for instance. The hexenspiegel can block the mind control, but again, you have to focus. The hexenspiegel doesn’t give you anything you don’t have inside yourself to start with. It’s only a focusing tool.”
Nic and I nodded.
“Are you guys finished training?” I asked. Hellhound was getting restless.
“Yep?” Nic looked at Vlad.
“Yep.”
I jumped down from the tree. “Be honest with me, Nic. We’re pretty close to screwed, aren’t we? Even with your hexenspiegel and Kisho’s patricide power, the odds are against us.”
“It’s not great, but we have no alternative.”
I sighed. He spoke the truth.
We walked home together. Along the way, Nic stopped to let Hellhound sniff a tree. Ha, Nic’s shirt had been singed on the back from the training. I wouldn’t tell him, and he could walk around with his perfection flawed for the rest of the day. That would teach him to almost try to kill me.
“We can defeat the King,” Vlad said.
He said it so emphatically that I almost believed him. Vlad on his own could take him on. Vlad had the strength, and the unicorn blood and the being unkillable, which made him a deadly weapon. But Vlad couldn’t do the killing. Kisho had to do that.
“Maybe Kisho should be training with you instead of Nic,” I said. “He’s the one who needs the protection.”
“Kisho should,” Vlad said.
Hellhound tried to twist his lead around Vlad’s legs, but Vlad deftly avoided that.
“So, tell me, how do I control this power?” I asked.
“You shouldn’t try to control it. You should get rid of it. It’s stolen power. That’s the darkest power of them all.”
“I’ve been trying, believe me.”
Vlad stopped walking and stared at me. “Have you really, Clem? You say you do, that you’ve made some attempts to get rid of it because you want to please Kisho, but if you really wanted it gone, you could do it. Everyone has a black spot in their soul. This is yours. Some part of you loves having that power.”
Was that true? I hated causing people pain.
A tiny prickling poked at the back of my brain. When I defeated the kitsune, I’d loved that. Taking on demons with a flick of my hands was pretty cool, too. That orgasmic surge when I used it meant something.
I shook my head, wanting to clear those thoughts out.
“So, if I decide I really, really absolutely don’t want it, what do I do?” I asked.
“When that time comes, you’ll know,” Vlad replied.
Damn hippy unicorn hybrid.
Nic lagged behind so Hellhound could poop.
I turned to Vlad. “So, black spots in the soul. What’s Nic’s?” I asked him in a low voice.
“Isn’t it obvious? He’d do anything for his pack.”
“But loyalty’s a good thing?”
Vlad nodded. “To a point. There’s a line there, and Nic would have no difficulty crossing it.”
“Do you actually know all this, kid, or are you just trying to look all mystic and shit?”
“There are things I know. The Vampire King can be defeated. It’s happened before, with a previous King many centuries ago. Most of the details have been lost to time, but a King was defeated by his own blood. Of course. Otherwise, there’d be no prophecy.”
That made sense. Still, I didn’t like this plan one little bit, because it wasn’t actually a plan. It was just a bunch of rumors.
“And Kisho won’t be under his command any more,” Vlad said. “I know that. Not now that he’s fed.”
“How the hell do you know that?”
Vlad didn’t answer. He just smiled mysteriously, like he knew so much more than anyone else. Fuck, I hated cryptic shit.
Chapter 28: Feeding
I couldn’t sleep, so I went to Kisho’s room. We hadn’t talked much lately, what with him being all blood-obsessed, and I wanted to make sure he was okay. Well, I was also thinking about sex, but I wouldn’t push that. Kisho had lost interest. His whole libido had become bloodlust instead.
I knocked on the door and he didn’t answer, so I pushed it open.
No Kisho. The bed hadn’t been slept in, and he was nowhere around.
I headed down to the basement. He’d be feeding.
The girls weren’t asleep yet.
“Have you seen Kisho?” I asked.
“He was here earlier, but we told him to go away,” Francine said. “He’s gone nuts. We can’t keep up with him, not with the others feeding too. I’ve spoken to Nic about it, but, hey, if you want to stick around, we’re having a Netflix session.”
I shook my head. If Kisho wasn’t with the girls, he might be with one of the other vamps, I hoped. I needed to find him.
“He’s getting a bit creepy,” Rose said. “He gets that glazed-over look in his eyes. He doesn’t even see us. It’s all just blood.”
He wouldn’t be with Nic. The two of them had been a bit weird with each other lately. Kisho would never openly defy Nic, but he’d begun talking back. The other day, he’d even raised his voice.
From the noises coming from Luis and Shelley’s room, they were watching Twilight again. I didn’t bother entering. I went to the other room.
Jeb and Vlad were sleeping. One of them was snoring badly.
Andre was sitting on the floor, playing a game. “Clem, I always knew you’d sneak in here one night.” He winked at me.
“Shut it. I’m looking for Kisho. He’s not here?”
“Nope. But he’ll be around somewhere.”
I wasn’t so sure. “Nic’s caught him sneaking out once. The girls have told him to back off on feeding. I’m a bit worried.”
“Talk to Nic about it.”
“I would, but I don’t want to cause problems between them. Maybe...”
“Are you thinking of going out looking for him? Because that’s a stupid idea. Nic would never approve.”
“We don’t have to tell him.” I ran my hands through my hair.
“Yeah, remember last time we did that?”
“We’ll be more careful this time. Come on, Andre. I can’t go on my own.”
He sighed. I totally had him.
“If you get killed, Nic will kill me,” he pointed out.
“I won’t get killed. But Kisho’s too focused on feeding to look out for himself. We need to find him.”
Andre got up. “Be damn grateful I’m doing this for you.” He put on a jacket. “I’ll
try one of the clubs. Kisho asked me about it today. I thought he was just making conversation, but maybe not.”
Andre wasn’t wrong about Nic killing us if he caught us leaving. His over-protectiveness kept getting worse.
“I’m coming with you,” Vlad said.
I’d thought he was asleep. That meant Jeb was the snorer. Figured.
“Okay, kid,” I said. We’d be much safer with him in tow. “We’re taking my car, and I’m driving.”
Andre sighed, but he’d fixed the Mustang, and it needed to be driven. I’d resisted the temptation so far.
It was only when we got to the club doors that it hit me I hadn’t dressed for this. I had on yoga pants and an old t-shirt.
The girl on the door gave me a snotty look but let me in. Guess they weren’t too fussy about dress codes.
Inside, music thudded through a cheap sound system, all distorted and tinny. The place was packed, though.
“Why the hell are these people even here?” I asked Andre.
“They like the excitement. Where there are vampires, there are vampire groupies. Nothing surer. Even with the danger. Luckily for me.”
A girl walked over. “Hi, Andre,” she said, then gave me the once-over. Really? If she wanted Andre, he was all hers.
I cruised the room. No sign of Kisho. I guessed if we’d walked in and he’d been standing at the bar, that would have been too easy. Still, if he wasn’t here, it’d mean searching the streets. That could prove risky.
“Hey, gorgeous.” A man sidled up to me.
Vampire. I could smell it. I moved away.
“That’s not very friendly,” he said.
“Have you seen a guy about this tall? Long hair? Probably wearing a leather jacket? He’s my possessive boyfriend.”
“He can’t be too possessive, since he went out into the back alley with another chick about five minutes ago. Want to make him jealous?” The sleaze pressed himself against me.
I pushed him aside and grabbed Vlad.
“Back alley,” I said, and we took off. Andre was still occupied with his woman, but Vlad and I could handle this alone.
God, walking into that back alley was like walking into a sex club. I wanted to cover Vlad’s eyes. The kid wasn’t old enough to be seeing that kind of carry-on. I actually tried to cover them.
