Inside, I fill the tub and set out some towels and a bathrobe for her. Once it’s all ready, I go and fetch Allora who’s still wearing my work shirt over her dress. I guide her into the bathroom.
“Okay, so the tub’s here,” I say, placing her hands on the edge of it. I can feel her shaking but I try to ignore it. This girl hasn’t been in the outside world in a long time and it must be scary. “You can just climb in, and the towels are here,” I place her other hand on the rail by the tub before letting go. “Call me if you need anything.”
She nods her head and I leave quickly. I flop down onto the bed in exhaustion and close my eyes. I don’t realise I’ve fallen asleep until I feel someone nudging my shoulder.
“Finn, Finn,” calls a soft feminine voice.
I’m flat on my stomach so I roll over onto my back, rubbing my eyes and opening them. “What is it?”
Allora’s standing over me, her hair wet and her body wrapped up in a white towel robe.
“I thought you might want to shower,” she whispers.
“Oh yeah, right. Thanks.”
She moves past me and crawls into the bed, pulling back the covers and climbing under them. She rests her head on the pillow and closes her eyes. I make quick work of showering and return to bed in my boxers. Allora is sleeping soundly now, her chest rising and falling gently.
The last woman I shared a bed with was Tegan, and we all know how badly that ended. Instead of getting under the covers with her, I lie on top of them, determined not to allow myself to be taken in by a beautiful woman this time.
The events of the last twenty-four hours run through my mind before I eventually fall back asleep.
Chapter Three
Dirty Business
Tegan
Ethan insists that I sit with him in his living room as he meets with the vampires lined up outside. Apparently, he’s going to talk to them in their family groups, which is how it works in the vamp world.
I ask him why I have to be there, as it’s not exactly something I’m over the moon about.
“Because, my dear, I need to show them that you are mine.”
I get riled up at his statement and I’m about to argue with him when he cuts me off by lifting a hand.
“Relax. It’s for your own safety. They have to know that they cannot touch you. They all saw how I transformed on that roof and they know that the only way a vampire can become what I have become is to drink from a human with your blood. Since you were the only human present, they know you are the one I drank from. I will show them that any attempts to steal you will be severely punished.”
“Oh,” I breathe.
“I want you there to see how they react. After I have observed them I will know who wishes to take your blood for themselves and who is truly loyal to me.”
“But how will you be able to tell?”
He comes and kneels in front of me, taking my hands into his and rubbing at the insides of my wrists with his thumbs.
“I will switch on my sensory overload, as you put it,” he grins. “With your blood in me, mine is now far superior to theirs. I’ll be able to see every thought that goes through their heads simply from the expressions on their faces, including whether or not they are loyal.”
“Okay, I guess that makes sense,” I say resigned.
The first person ushered into the house by Lucas is an older vampire, one of the oldest I’ve ever seen, and Ethan introduces him to me as Nicu Arcos, an old friend of his father’s. I shake hands with the dark eyed man as he takes me in with interest.
Then two females and one male vampire enter, Nicu’s daughters and his son. They take seats on the couch while Ethan stands by the mantelpiece.
“I asked you in before anyone else because you’re the only person I know I can really trust, Nicu,” says Ethan. “So I’ll cut to the chase. If I’m to lead our people I want you in a prominent position by my side. I know you don’t usually partake of politics, but this new era isn’t going to be like any that have come before it. I want to rule differently. I want to end the wars.”
Nicu waves him off. “I’m a businessman, Ethan. You know I don’t involve myself in these things. I came here to ensure that none of my dealings would be affected by the change in leadership.” His accent is like a thicker version of Ethan’s and I wonder if they knew each other back in Romania.
“Of course you may continue your dealings as you have been doing,” says Ethan. “But I would like you to work with me, too. I’ve never met anyone with a better head for numbers and I want you to be my treasurer. Whitfield left behind much wealth that now goes to me if I’m to lead. You would have the top job in deciding how it should be spent.”
At hearing this, Nicu’s eyes light up a fraction. He rubs at his chin, considering it, and then laughs. “You’re being sly, Ethan. You know that is an offer I can’t refuse.”
“I need you with me in this,” says Ethan.
Nicu looks to his son who has an eager expression on his face, as though urging his father to say yes. None of this makes any sense to me. The vampires have a treasury? I mean, it’s not like they’re a country. What exactly do they spend it on? Well, seeing as they’re constantly being attacked by the DOH, they probably use it to buy weapons. Though since the DOH is now basically extinct in Tribane, I don’t see how they’d need any more weapons. I’ve witnessed with my own two eyes that gun power doesn’t work against magic, so it would be useless when facing Theodore.
There’s a long stretch of silence as Nicu mentally thinks through his options. Ethan seems to consider him a friend, so it’s not like he can’t say no.
Finally, the old vampire speaks. “I will take the position provisionally and see how things progress. As I said before, business is my area. I’m not certain I’ll be cut out for this job but I’ll give it my best shot.”
Ethan strides toward him, his hand outstretched. “Excellent, Nicu. I assure you, you won’t regret this.”
“Hmm, I hope not,” says Nicu, shaking Ethan’s hand and gesturing for his son and daughters to follow him out.
For the next hour Ethan meets with the vampires he feels he can trust the most, vampires he’s been friends with for a long time. Most of the meetings go similarly to the one with Nicu, except that these vamps seem far more enthusiastic about taking political positions with Ethan. Half the time, I have to stifle the urge to yawn. It’s just all so boring.
It’s only when Lucas brings a male and female couple into the room that my spidey senses wake up. There’s something off-putting about the two of them but I can’t seem to put my finger on it. They’ve both got sleek jet black hair and green serpentine eyes. The way that they regard me for far longer than they do Ethan raises my hackles. I look to Ethan as he watches them and I want to know what’s he’s gleaning from their reactions to me.
Pulling my legs up under me on the cushioned armchair I’m sitting on, I stare at them dead on, not allowing myself to be eye shy. Eventually they turn to greet Ethan and take seats on the sofa in the middle of the room. I remain in my corner, anxious that something bad is going to happen. My magical blood bubbles under my skin in warning.
“Angelica, Raul, it’s a pleasure to see you both again.”
“Likewise,” says Angelica, folding her slim, pale arms across her chest. “You’re wearing your years well, Ethan.”
He inclines his head, acknowledging the compliment. “As are you. Now, I’d like to get straight down to business. We are all aware that you were both in Whitfield’s inner circle, as I once had been. I need to know if you hold any grudges about the way in which he died.”
“None at all,” Raul speaks up blandly. “In fact, I am eager to see how you fare as ruler. I always thought you had a good head for leadership.”
Raul continues to lavish Ethan with compliments and for some reason my attention is drawn to Angelica, who is very slowly rising from her seat. Quick as a flash she whips out a stake and advances on Ethan. Raul stops talking and strid
es towards me with feral determination. I don’t hesitate for a moment as I hold my hand in front of me and sparks shoot out in warning. Angelica plunges the stake at Ethan’s heart but it doesn’t even break the skin.
My mind flicks back to earlier in the day, when he’d shown me the sharp nail of his baby finger and told me it’s the only thing that can successfully cut him now. Angelica seizes up with panic as Ethan stands in front of her, not even bothering to fight back. He knows her attempt on his life is futile.
“Not another step,” I say to Raul whose eyes flicker from side to side trying to figure out a way to get by my sparks. Ethan turns his attention to me, and if I’m not mistaken he looks like he’s proud of me.
Angelica tries one more time to plunge the stake into Ethan. He grabs her wrist and turns her body before clutching her to him. Her back is pressed to his front, one of his arms wrapped around her middle. It’s a position that looks almost like a lover’s embrace if you were to ignore the way his hand grips her neck and smoothly wrenches it to the side. I hear the dull snap of bone just before he lets her body drop to the floor.
Milliseconds later he’s grabbing Raul in the exact same way and incapacitating him with the exact same snapping of his neck. He picks the stake Angelica had tried to kill him with up off the carpet and then drags both bodies from the room as though they are weightless rag dolls.
I hurry out after him as he strides down the hallway to his front door, opens it and heaves both bodies out. The vampires waiting in the dark gasp audibly as Ethan stands stoically before them and announces, “This is what happens to those who try to betray me.”
Lightning fast he plunges the stake into Raul and then Angelica before tossing their bodies out onto the road. Mere moments pass and they dissolve into a black sludgy mess.
Dead silence fills the street as the assembled vampires look on in terror, whispering hushed exclamations of shock and fear. Ethan turns and re-enters the house, bringing his attention to Lucas who is standing by me with a pleased expression. He’s glad that Ethan has shown the vampires a display of power. And to be perfectly honest, I am too. It will make any of them planning a similar assassination to think twice about it.
Long hours later, Ethan has met with most of the vampires who had been waiting. He tells those remaining to return the next night and they leave, quickly obeying his orders. I take the liberty of using his home phone to call for a pizza delivery. Something about drinking Ethan’s blood this morning kept my hunger at bay for a while, but now I’m starving.
When Lucas sits beside me on the sofa I take the opportunity to ask him about the others. “Where is everyone? You were with them on that roof, weren’t you?”
“I was. They were frightened when they saw what had become of Ethan and fled. I haven’t located them yet. I searched the slayer’s house but it was empty. They can’t have gotten too far since we’re all trapped in anyway.”
I sigh. “Yeah. That’s true. We have to find them, make sure they’re okay.”
“Delilah will return when the time is right.”
“Speaking of my sister,” says Ethan entering the room. “I would like her found now, Lucas. I don’t like thinking of her out there alone.”
“She’s not alone. She’s with Finn and the others,” I interject.
Ethan lets out a low sound of derision and I roll my eyes. Before I know it I’m being flipped over his back and hauled upstairs to his room. Seconds later he throws me down on his bed.
“Do that one more time and see what happens,” he warns playfully, leaning over me and nipping at my shoulder with his teeth, no fangs – not yet.
I smirk at him and take my time doing one big leisurely eye roll. In response he turns me over abruptly and spanks my bottom hard. I yelp.
“Ow, ow, okay, I’m sorry. Please forgive me, oh great one,” I can’t help giggling while I say it. “That good enough for you?”
Ethan growls and licks a line from the curve of my neck to my ear where he sucks my lobe into his mouth. His hand slips over my belly and then down into my pants, his fingers digging into the fabric of my underwear. I moan in response and he massages lightly then pulls away.
I turn and stare at him in frustration.
“Glad to see you’ve learned your lesson,” he smiles just as the doorbell rings with the pizza.
“Oh, come on. It’s not polite to leave a girl with blue balls,” I protest and Ethan quirks a brow.
“You have a curious way with words.”
“So do you,” I reply, rising from the bed and walking past him to go collect the pizza.
Several minutes later I’m sitting by his kitchen counter digging into a slice when he decides to join me.
“Not going to share, my love?” he asks with amusement.
“Go ahead,” I say gesturing to the open box.
We eat in comfortable silence for a few minutes before I begin to broach a conversation. “You do want this, don’t you? Leading the vampires of the city and all? It kind of feels like you think you don’t have a choice.”
“I don’t,” says Ethan placidly before throwing the crust back in the box.
“Of course you do. I’m sure there are a whole bunch of vamps who genuinely want the job. Just give it to one of them.”
“I could do that, but then I’d have to disappear. They couldn’t rule comfortably knowing a far stronger candidate is still residing in the city. And I don’t want to disappear, Tegan.”
I study him a moment. “Well, maybe it’s a good thing. They always say that reluctant rulers are the best kind. You aren’t in it for the benefits or the lavish lifestyle. It means you might actually focus on what’s important instead of your own selfish interests.”
“That’s a good theory. But it could also go the opposite way. The fact that I’m reluctant might mean that I’ll intentionally fuck up the job.”
I smile at him. “I don’t think you’d do that. You’re too much of a perfectionist. It would just irritate you to do a half arsed job.”
“Why, is that a compliment, Tegan?” he chuckles.
“A roundabout one. That’s the best you’re going to get from me.”
He kisses me tenderly on the cheek and clears away the pizza. A second later his arm is reaching under my knees so that he can lift me up.
“Come on, fata frumoasa,” he whispers in my ear. “Let’s see what we can do about those blue balls of yours.”
I laugh as he carries me all the way to his bedroom.
Finn
I wake up in the early hours of the morning because the bed is shaking. Glancing to my left I see Allora convulsing beneath the covers and a surge of panic grips me.
Rising up on my elbow, I put my hand to her forehead; it’s hot and clammy with sweat. I know she told me this might happen while she slept, but that doesn’t make it any easier to watch her. The convulsions that wrack her body look painful. As I stare, I wonder what it is she’s seeing. I wonder if she can see the future of the city and what’s going to become of us.
Will Theodore keep us trapped in his bubble forever? Or will we all be dead before the week is through?
One thing I know for certain is that I have to make contact with Tegan. I have to know the choices Cristescu is going to make for his vampires. Will he spur them to kill or encourage them to live peacefully?
Too many ‘what ifs’ fill my head which makes it impossible to get back to sleep. After a couple of minutes Allora stills and her breathing returns to normal. I lie awake on top of the covers, my hands clasped above my head and my mind on high alert.
Once seven o’clock hits I get up, have another shower and get dressed. Allora wakes up just as I’m sitting at the foot of the bed lacing my boots.
“Morning, Goldy. Did you sleep well?” I say turning to give her a friendly grin.
She sits up and rubs at her head. The towel robe she slept in is hanging open a little at the chest, showing me the round curve of her cleavage. She notices me looking and surrept
itiously covers herself, wrapping the robe tighter around her body.
Rubbing at her head she replies, “I slept okay.” She pauses and glances at me. “Did I…did anything happen while I was asleep?”
I nod. “Yeah, you had a vision. At least I think you did. It was just like you said it would be. Your body shook with convulsions. Do you remember anything?”
She grimaces. “I always do, unfortunately.”
“And?”
A small grin shapes her lips. “What? You think I’m going to tell you? I hardly know you, Finn.”
I raise an eyebrow. “You know me well enough to share a bed with me.”
“Yeah well, my options were pretty limited,” she replies.
She climbs from the bed and feels her way to the bathroom without another word. A minute or two later I hear the shower coming on. I smile to myself, thinking my shy little elf has a steely side, and I think I like it.
I go out to the van and drive to the nearest shopping mall, which is back out on the motorway a couple of miles from the hotel. I stock up on necessities for everyone and buy Allora something to wear that’s a little less conspicuous than a floor length evening gown. I opt for those one size fits all leggings and a couple of t-shirts and cardigans. I also throw in some socks, plimsolls and knickers. I’m not even going to try guessing her bra size.
Small boobs are easier to guess than big boobs, and Allora could be anywhere from a double D to a G. I love how this is what my brain decides to focus on, instead of thinking of how I’m saddling myself with yet another damsel in distress. I’m sure a psychologist could have a field day with me. Always trying to save females because I couldn’t save Mum and Sis, the only two who really mattered.
When I get back to the hotel, I drop off the bag of clothes I got for Ira. When I reach my room I find Allora sitting by the dresser, attempting to blow dry her long hair with one of those tiny hotel hair dryers. I drop the shopping bags down on the bed.
“I bought you some clothes,” I say. “I went as generic as possible because I don’t know your sizes.”
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