“The vampire child who drinks vampire blood,” he said quietly. “Everyone is afraid of her. Of what she will become.”
“And none more so than me.” My fingernail tapped against the book. “My daughter is only part vampire. The other half is Incubus.”
“You lay with an Incubus?” James looked shocked, but more like I’d made friends with a unicorn than simply shared a night with my oldest friend. “And that is why your daughter drinks vampire blood. Such a thing is…unheard of.”
“You had a child with a human,” I reminded him. “I’d never heard of a living dhampir before. I mean, there’s human lore of it to be sure, but it’s never been seen among us. I didn’t even think it was possible.”
“There might be history of the dhampir, but is no lore of a vampire and Incubus child. Not to my knowledge.”
I shook my head. “Nor mine. That is why your book intrigued me so. You mentioned in your account that Anastasia was different than other vampires. She had a power over her peers that you could not explain, and there were mysterious circumstances surrounding her birth. Did you ever see her drinking another vampire’s blood like my daughter does?” I waited for his answer in hope that all my fears had no foundation, that I had been worried for nothing.
He debated for several moments, pulling back his old memories of a time long passed. When he looked up to meet my eyes, I saw the answer, and it was not the one I wanted. “Yes. I saw her drink vampire blood many times.” He went back into his mind to search for more memories. “Now that I am presented with the option, I cannot in all honesty discount the possibility that she was not fully vampire.”
My legs started to shake. I steadied myself on my desk. “My daughter could end up like her. She could be the next destruction of our species, if the turned vampires don’t finish us off first.”
“You don’t know what she was. I said I couldn’t discount the possibility, I didn’t say I was positive she was part Incubus. And even if she was, there is no way to prove it now. She’s been gone for four hundred years.”
“Is she dead?” I probed. “Did you see her body? Was there chanting in the streets in celebration of her passing?”
“She was presumed dead, but it was never confirmed. I tried for decades to find her again, I swear this to you. If she is alive, and I mean if. Finding her will be next to impossible.”
“No, I won’t accept that answer. There has to be something, someone, who has seen her.” I hoisted my hip onto my desk to think. I would not give up on my daughter.
“There…” James started. He stopped himself and pressed his lips together, but my hopes had risen already.
“Say it. Please?”
“There is only one thing we can do. Hand me the journal, please.” He took it from me and immediately ripped the binding off. I dove to stop him, but he held out his hand. Hidden inside the cloth outer layer and the hard inner layer of the binding was a folded piece of paper. He handed the journal and the destroyed cover back to me.
“I hope that was worth it,” I complained. The paper unfolded to reveal a small piece of blood-stained cloth. “What is that?”
“This,” he said with a smile. “Is stained with the blood of the only vampire who ever mattered to Anastasia Bathory.”
“A blood-stained cloth.”
“Yes.”
“And that will help us find Anastasia? And by ‘us’ I mean me, don’t get ideas.”
“Yes,” James repeated. “Presuming he is not dead. But finding him requires an extra component.”
“Do not say magic. Or the light of a full moon. I will slap you.”
He rolled his eyes at me. “No, don’t be ridiculous. Magic isn’t real. This requires something I didn’t have when I was trying to find the vampire that the blood belongs to. I tried doing it on my own, it’s how I started blood binging. I figured enough human blood in my system would allow me the power to track any scent of blood. Sadly, I had no idea that that wasn’t something a blood binge would give me, and by the time I figured that out I was too far into the binge to even care. I left Europe and I never searched for Anastasia again.”
“Is the component a dhampir? Is that why you had a child with a human?”
“Believe it or not, I had a child with Sara because I love her. I know that sounds contradictory, considering our history, but it’s the truth.”
“Just tell me what the thing is, I’m not incredibly interested in your love life.”
He glared at me, but his smile came back on cue. “The component is a werewolf. Your lover should suffice.”
“He’s not my lover.”
“Details,” James said with a wave of his hand. “A Lycan cannot track blood older than a few years. Werewolves on the other hand can track any scent of any age. Your lover is the last of his kind, and I suspect there will never be another. If he dies, you will never be able to track the vampire you need.”
“Then I’ll make sure he doesn’t die,” I assured him. Not that I was planning on him dying, or anything. Quite the opposite.
“Then I suggest you do this before any kind of battle with the turned takes place. I can assure you, no matter what you might say about the werewolf, if there is a choice between your life and his, he will choose you, and the battle to come will not be without casualties.”
“I can’t exactly run off to Zanzibar right now.”
“His last recorded residence was in Italy. You can start from there. His name is Lucas.”
“Lucas?” I asked.
James handed me the cloth wrapped in its paper sleeve again. “Lucas.”
CHAPTER 4
Lucas. That was the name of the vampire I needed to find, the only being on the planet that knew where Anastasia Bathory was. I didn’t make the mistake of believing it would be simple. First, I had to make up an excuse to go to Europe without Arthur, and I had to make sure Knight went with me while also keeping it secret as to why he had to come along.
Cameron would’ve helped me. He would’ve taken care of Kitty for me, even let her feed off him without hesitation. I missed him more than words could say. I had to believe he’d be back one day, after all of this had blown over, but a small part of me was afraid. He was undercover in the turned army now. If they caught him, they’d be sending him back to me in a pile of ash. On that day, I would rain a raging fire over their worthless bodies in such a way that would make Anastasia Bathory’s deeds look like child’s play.
I hoped for the turned’s sake they never made such a careless mistake.
The first part to this plan would be another meeting with the Council. I’d fiddled with the alliance draft until it more suited my needs, while still achieving the overall goal. To pull this off meant making it look like I had to go to Europe to help negotiations. My stubbornness was well-known, and my position of authority meant if I said I wanted things a certain way, getting it done would be fairly simple. Since the Council was letting me spearhead it, I knew everything would fall into place.
Eventually.
It took little effort to gather the Council together after a few days of planning. As this was an informal meeting, I had instructed Arthur to direct everyone towards the smaller drawing room. By the time I arrived, everyone had found a seat or a place to stand. Castilla was perched on one of the antique sofas, so close to the edge that I was afraid she might slide off.
“Council members,” I said as I walked in. Sending everyone a respectful nod, I noticed Estinien standing in a corner of the small room with his arms crossed over his chest. I nodded to him as well.
Thaddeus sat in one of the arm chairs, his hands propped up on an old cane. “Lisbeth, we eagerly await the purpose for this meeting. It is your right to call us together whenever you wish, as the leader of the oldest vampire Order.” His tone had more than a hint of annoyance, though I’d thought he was one of my allies. Had I interrupted his nap? “Forgive my tone, dear one. Estinien has been very vocal these past few minutes before you arrived.”
“Flau
nting her power all over the place. Disgraceful,” Estinien spat. “Othello would be ashamed to see his successor consorting with Lycans, sleeping with a werewolf, giving birth to a monstrosity, and now forcing us to attend meetings whenever the desire suits her just to flaunt her power. This is a disgrace to the Council, make no mistake.”
I fixed him with a pointed stare and opened my folder. “I’ve brought you here for the next phase of the Lycan negotiations.” Estinien scoffed and rolled his eyes.
“The Council will be silent,” Castilla declared. “Lisbeth has the floor, and our respect.” She glared at Estinien until he relaxed his stance and looked away. I sensed something coming from her, but it disappeared before I could process it. She turned back to me with a smile. “What are you proposing, Lisbeth?” Arthur handed her the papers and she flipped through them. “Diplomatic parties to each foreign Lycan pack. One vampire, four Lycans.”
Thaddeus motioned to be given the contract next. “That’s suicide,” he said as he scanned the words. “This is extremely dangerous. They wouldn’t attack a group of us, but Lycans could, and will, turn on one vulnerable vampire. And if their guardian Lycans don’t, the foreign packs will. This is suicide,” he repeated.
“This is war,” I told him. “We don’t have options. This is the best way to negotiate with the foreign packs. I’ve thought out every detail. The vampires chosen as diplomats will be protected from their guardians, and from the packs overseas.”
“Not everyone has the luxury of being friends with the Lycans,” Estinien quipped. “There’s nothing that will keep our diplomats safe. Your blind trust will get more of us killed.”
“There’s something we can do that will ensure absolute protection, but we need permission from the Lycans to get it.”
“Hostages?” someone asked hopefully.
“Not quite,” I answered with a smile. “It’s something the Alphas have, a bracelet that protects the wearer from harm.”
“What, does it have a magic spell?” Estinien said with another scoff.
“Better. A law in the Lycan culture. Whoever wears the bracelet will be protected, no matter who the human, or vampire, is. I had one when I was with the werewolf. It’s why he swore fealty to me.
“I’m sure that wasn’t the reason,” Castilla said under her breath.
“There’s only one problem.”
“Beyond getting their permission to use these bracelets?” Thaddeus asked.
I hesitated. “They’re decorated with vampire teeth.”
The room erupted with outrage, which was what I’d expected. It took several minutes, and Arthur’s constant ordering of everyone to be quiet, before the room became silent again.
“I will not order my kinsmen to wear a bracelet with spoils of slaughter on it,” Estinien declared, his fists pumping at his sides.
For a brief few seconds, I could see the opposite side of this. I was asking them to compromise something very sacred with the act of pretending that the teeth on those bracelets hadn’t belonged to our kind, vampires that were loved and missed by us. It didn’t matter that we had no idea who the teeth belonged to. They belonged to a vampire, and that was just as important as knowing the owners.
On the other side was Kitty, my precious girl, whose future depended on these negotiations. I swallowed any guilt over what I was about to say and felt my stomach churn in response.
“I...” The room spun slightly. I was low on blood again. Keep it together, Lisbeth. Kitty needs you. “I understand. I really do. This is too much to ask, believe me. I know. I could say that the Alphas here have only killed vampires from my domain, but the foreign Alphas will also have bracelets with teeth from your brothers too.” I glanced at Castilla. She was always on my side, no matter what I did. She saw the wisdom in my choices. Instead of looking at me with an encouraging smile, she was staring at the carpet near my feet looking like she’d just licked a salty lemon. “Thaddeus. How many Lycans have you killed?”
His fingers curled and uncurled around the hilt of his cane and his mouth worked in thought. “Eighty three.”
“Estinien.”
He looked like he was going to giggle before he answered. “Three hundred and twelve.” Damn, son. Someone needed a new hobby.
“Castilla.”
She glanced up from her study of the carpet with cloudy eyes. “Two.”
“Raise your hand if you’ve never killed a Lycan.” Everyone in the room, Arthur included, didn’t raise their hand, except for me. The only one of my kind to never kill our enemies. I was a unicorn amongst horses. “My point. You’ve all slaughtered their kind. They’ve slaughtered ours. I’m not asking you to forget. I’m not even asking you to forgive. I’m asking you to move on. We are not better than them in crimes of war. The only difference is they choose to wear their kills like a badge of honor while we pretend it’s not the same thing when we kill their kind.”
My stomach churned again. I couldn’t believe I’d just said that. They would surely shut me down now. Expunge me from my seat. Kick me out. Worse, feed me to the dogs. Except the Lycans liked me. Maybe they’d show mercy. Or they’d fry me up with potatoes.
Thaddeus leaned heavily on his cane and stood up from the tartan armchair he was sitting in. “As much as it pains me to admit…” Lisbeth is a psycho and deserves to die? No, that wouldn’t be painful to admit. It’d be super easy to admit. “Lisbeth is right. There have been many deaths on both sides of the Lycan and vampire feud. Perhaps with this alliance, all of that will change. I’m not saying we’ll be friends-” He gave me a loaded stare, like I’d suggested we go get mani-pedis with the Lycans, and braid their hair while watching chick flicks. “-but maybe less bloodshed. I’d be honored to volunteer one of my subordinates for the task of diplomat.”
Not to be outdone, the rest of the Council members quickly did the same. I left the meeting with a list of names, far more than we needed for the mission, and another success under my belt.
Early on the appointed day, I stood over Kitty’s bed, watching her sleep. She’d grown so much in the past weeks. I could’ve spent hours over her crib just looking at her pink cheeks and her tiny toes, and I had many times when the work was finished for the day. In order for my plan to work, I’d have to leave her side briefly, and it was the hardest thing I’d ever contemplated doing. It needed to be done. In the moments when I missed her, I could go back to this memory of watching her little belly go up and down with each breath.
One last kiss on her cheek, I grabbed the baby monitor and left my room in the quiet of sunrise. The house was empty at this early hour. With the castle as crowded as it was, it was slightly nice to walk down the staircase to an empty foyer. I hadn’t been truly alone in weeks, even in the time before Kitty had been born. Relishing it, I smiled and pushed the swing door of the kitchen open, only to walk in on Knight eating a bowl of cereal. He looked as shocked as I was, but he managed to not drop his bowl while the baby monitor slipped from my hands. I caught it before it hit the floor.
“Sorry,” he said, putting his bowl onto the counter. “I didn’t know… I got hungry, so I thought…”
“It’s fine,” I told him quickly, staring at anything except his face. “All of the Lycans are welcome to use the kitchen whenever they want.”
He sat down on one of the bar stools and ran a nervous hand through his thick black hair. He’d tied it back, but a few unruly strands had escaped. “Right. I just don’t want to, you know… tick anyone off. Tensions have been pretty high.”
I set the baby monitor onto the counter and glanced at it before walking over to the special fridge in the corner. “I’m the leader of this house now, and I’m the one who said it was okay. You’re free to eat whenever you need to.” The entire room smelled like him. I could stand in here all day with his scent surrounding me.
The special fridge had bags of blood, my new friends. I grabbed two of them and tossed them onto the counter by the baby monitor before rooting in the cabinets for a tum
bler. Knight munched on his cereal, watching me unscrew the tumbler lid and pour the blood inside. I screwed the lid back on and took a long sip through the straw.
Oh god. This was so disgusting. I would’ve preferred drinking from a diseased human over drinking another tumbler of bagged blood. After drinking the stuff for weeks, I’d hoped to gain a taste for it, like humans with coffee. I swallowed and tried not to contort my face too much.
“I heard you were in charge now,” Knight said while he chewed. “Congrats on the promotion.” I took another sip and had to turn my face so he couldn’t see me gagging on it. “What happened to creepy guy? You know, the one you said was always hitting on you?”
That made me smile. “He was kidnapped by the turned. Their parting gift, in fact.”
He chuckled around a mouthful of cereal. “Who’d have thought they could be so thoughtful,” he mused. With anyone else, I would’ve thought they were being disrespectful, or making light of Othello being taken, but I knew Knight well enough to know when he wasn’t taking things seriously. He confirmed that when he met my eyes and said, “I’m sorry, Lis.”
The inside of my soul had frozen over from all the pain I’d endured in the past year, and just one look from his deep and steady brown eyes was enough to melt it all away. I looked back down at the baby monitor before my inner glacier could submit to global warming. Kitty hiccupped in her sleep and went back to her little baby snores.
I expected Knight to ask about her. Who was her dad? Who had I replaced him with? Was my new beau as pretty as him? And most importantly, did he also have awesome hair? Instead, Knight just sat there eating his cereal like it was the most important thing he could possibly be doing.
“So,” I said finally with a sip of gross blood to steady me. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but, why are you here exactly? The meeting today is on the reservation.”
He finished his cereal and stood up to rinse the bowl off in the sink. “Arthur asked me to help escort you there.”
I fumed inwardly at Arthur’s obvious lack of social awareness, meaning he had no problem lumping me with my ex-whatever-he-is, so long as it meant I was safer. Guess who wasn’t ever getting a pay raise?
War of the Chosen Page 3
