by Joe Fowler
Chapter 31
Rosalyn and I were pleasantly surprised when we came upstairs. The President was flying all of us to Washington again. Seth was already on his way there. We would be receiving accommodation from the President for our heroics over the past months.
We enjoyed the plane ride since it was just us. We were being spoiled somewhat by always having the plane to ourselves. We never had to stand in lines or stop at security anymore. We were celebrities now.
The Jefferson Hotel was just as nice the second time around. Seth was waiting in the lobby which made all of us happy. He told us how they had finished earlier than expected in China. We spent some time having drinks at the bar before going our separate ways. Some of the wolves wanted to go sightseeing while Anna and Seth wanted some alone time. Rosalyn and I went off on our own. She took me on a tour of Washington as she had come to know it.
The next night, we were escorted to the White House where the President awarded us the Presidential Medal of Freedom on national television. He gave a long speech describing our heroics not only in the U.S. but in other countries as well. He made sure the public knew that while his description was pg rated, what we had gone through was beyond obscene. We spent several hours at the White House after the cameras were turned off.
“I am glad you told me this. I will let my advisors know. Is Cyranos really as dangerous as you say?” The President said after we told him about Rosalyn’s theory. “You guys make him sound like the devil himself.”
“Josh and I are the only ones who can beat him in a fight. Rosalyn has spent time around him and knows how smart he is. We would not worry you with these things if we did not believe he posed a threat.” Seth explained.
“How did you meet Cyranos? He doesn’t sound like someone you would be spending time with.” The President asked Rosalyn.
“Kira, my maker, was made by Cyranos. After she made me we traveled to Greece where we ran into Cyranos. Kira was one of his favorites so she wanted us to spend as much time with him as possible. I spent several years trying to find a way to run. I saw enough in those years to fear Cyranos forever. I ran into him again briefly in the 800’s. The main things I can tell you are he is cruel beyond words, he is the most intelligent person I ever met, and he is relentless. No matter how much you fear him, it isn’t enough.” Rosalyn’s head was down as she spoke. She was more worried than she had let on.
“Part of me wants to hunt him down and kill him. I am sure he is guarding himself against that possibility though. Until I know what steps he has taken I don’t want to do anything that might cause more harm than good.” Seth sounded frustrated. “The one problem Josh and I face is how to use all this power we have been given. If Cyranos were to have cameras showing me attacking and killing him, the other vampires could play the outraged clause. That would be right along what Cyranos is thinking.”
“I am more worried about what he will try to do to Rosalyn. Sorry, but my priorities have her safety above all else. Cyranos will come for her, I am sure of it.” I told them what I was feeling and didn’t care if they agreed or not.
“Don’t apologize for that. I would be surprised if it was any other way.” The President reassured me.
“We will figure it out eventually.” Seth sat up in his chair and addressed the President. “What was the trip you asked about earlier?”
“A training mission. Our new werewolf unit isn’t functioning properly and we wanted to see if you could smooth out the kinks. Anna and anyone else that wanted to go would be welcome.” The President added that last part after seeing Anna stiffen at the mention of another trip. She relaxed after she was invited to join.
“I think that would be ok. Anna and Jimmy would be able help to me. Josh and his pack would have to speak for themselves on this. I doubt Rosalyn and Austin would be interested.” Seth looked around to judge our reactions.
“All we want is some more peaceful relaxation time.” Rosalyn said with one of her beautiful smiles.
“I think I would rather be home where I can watch Rosalyn in case Austin is right about Cyranos. She needs to have either Seth or me around at all times.” Josh said the best thing I had heard.
“Thank you.” I said as sincerely as I could.
The rest of our time was spent laughing and teasing each other to the President’s delight. He told us how he didn’t get to have these lighter moments anymore. We returned to the Jefferson Hotel in good spirits. We continued the night consuming spirits. It was a good night.
I looked at Rosalyn once we were back in our room. Her beauty never failed to amaze me. Knowing that Josh would be around to help keep her safe made it possible for me to relax. She was truly my top priority.
Our flight home went quickly enough with the six of us that were left. Josh, his pack, Rosalyn, and I headed to Josh’s house. The girls, Sarah and Crystal, drove a separate vehicle. Josh stopped by a store on the way so we could restock our hard working beer supply. We were all very relieved. None of us were in danger anymore. None of our friends were in danger. We could finally relax and concentrate on life again. Once the night calmed down after we were home from the flight, we watched television.
The news sounded hopeful for a change. China was firmly in front of their vampire problems now, as was India. The worst fighting at the moment was in Egypt. What had been touch and go was quickly becoming manageable. Their government asked for werewolf help and a great deal of wolves from around the world came to their aid.
The United States was becoming accustomed to the new vampire policies. While some small problems arose, the new laws seemed to be working. Werewolves and soldiers were the primary enforcers of those laws. Life was slowly getting back to normal. People stopped panicking and resumed the life they lived before.
Rosalyn and I went to bed feeling really good about the state of things and the way things were turning out. We talked for a long time about our future plans. We debated between traveling and staying here with Josh and his pack. We were no closer to an answer when the sun rose and put us to sleep.
Rosalyn and I woke with smiles on our faces. The peace we were missing since I was turned, was now here. Rosalyn seemed to want to celebrate and I was not the cruel type to deny her. She wouldn’t let me be on top, but she thought about it briefly. Hey, it’s a step in the right direction. It’s not like it was horrible being on the bottom.
Josh and Alicia were watching a movie when we went upstairs. The girls were out running. Rosalyn and I decided to go for a drive. I could see this becoming one of our favorite things. Driving with the windows down letting the wind blow through the truck was very peaceful and relaxing to us. We drove for a couple of hours before I stopped for gas. I was at the pump while she went inside to get a coke.
I heard some glass breaking but didn’t pay much attention. I figured it was some kid that had dropped his drink. It was only a flash of movement that I barely caught out of the corner of my eye that let me know how wrong things were. Cyranos had one hand over Rosalyn’s mouth and his other arm around her to keep her from fighting back. Cyranos darted off and I tried to follow. Jonas and two other vampires appeared in my way. I attacked them but one of them knocked the hell out of me. I landed dazed. When I looked toward them they were still standing there. I attacked again and Jonas was the one who stopped me this time. He caught my hands mid-strike and laughed softly.
“I would like nothing more than tearing you apart slowly. I would make you suffer for days before I let you die. Cyranos says no. He wants you to have to live with knowing he took what you loved and you couldn’t do anything about it.” Jonas then knocked my ass out.
I woke with my heart breaking and my mind going a thousand miles a minute. They were gone. I tried to calm down enough to think. It wasn’t working because all I could think of was Rosalyn. I was finally able to form the thought of Josh. I darted into the store as quickly as I could and grabbed the phone behind the counter. The clerk didn’t even see me until I had taken the phone off
the hook and started dialing.
“Hello” Josh answered.
“Josh! You have to come quick. Cyranos took Rosalyn. Jonas and two others stopped me from following. They knocked me out and I don’t know where they went. Please come.” I was nearly screaming by this point.
“Where are you? Wait a second.” Josh paused which was the last thing I wanted. I was about to scream at him when he came back on the line. “I see where you are. I will be there in ten minutes.”
“Hurry!” I shouted but he had already hung up.
The ten minutes he took was the longest of my life. I left the store with the clerk knowing not to say a damn thing. I walked to my truck and parked it in a parking space to keep it from blocking the pumps. I began pacing back and forth until I heard the sweet sound of Josh’s engine.
He slid to a stop in front of me. I got in and we were on our way. He wasn’t talking. I didn’t care. He seemed to know where to go. This was all fine until he stopped and pulled off to the side of the road. I was about to scream when I noticed he was in the middle of one of his visions. I tried to be patient as I waited for him to come out of it.
“They are at the Blaylock warehouse. Cyranos is talking to the other three vampires. He is telling them what to expect. They know I will be coming for Cyranos. They will let Jonas kill you while the other three take me on.” Josh dropped his head. “I can’t take Cyranos and two more as strong as those two seem to be. You aren’t able to help.”
“What can we do? I can’t leave her there. I don’t care if I die, I have to try and save her. What would you do if this were Alicia that was kidnapped?” I asked. He frustrated me further by holding up his hand to say he needed a minute.
“There is one way.” He said but didn’t move or even tell me what that way was. “I don’t know if I want to even tell you.”
“Josh, this is Rosalyn were talking about. I will do anything to help her.” I was ready to attack Josh if he didn’t tell me what the hell he was waiting on.
“It would mean your death. That is not an if statement. You will die.” Josh’s tone got my full attention.
“I will gladly give my life for her. Josh tell me.” I pleaded.
“You asked once who Keith was that he could order two alpha werewolves around when he appeared to be a teenage boy. Keith’s body was possessed at the time but not by a demon. Keith was an angel. A real angel. He told me once that if a vampire ever drank my blood, that vampire would have to die. He made sure I understood this was non-negotiable. I told you about the evil that runs through my veins but there is more.” Josh wiped his eyes. I could tell this was taking a toll on him.
“What? What else?” I asked.
“You would get stronger and faster. Much stronger and faster. You will be able to fight two, maybe all three of the others while I fight Cyranos. We could win if we do this. We would save her.” He looked at me with his heart breaking. “But I would still have to kill you. No matter what.”
“Oh.” I couldn’t say anything else for a moment. Then Rosalyn’s face appeared in my mind and the decision was made. “Let’s do it. I am sorry for what you will have to do, but I have to save her.”
Josh held out his arm. I drank deeply. His blood had been screaming at me wanting to be drank since I met him. It didn’t disappoint. This was as good as eating could ever be for any species eating any food. Moreover, this was a deeper experience than just drinking blood could be. My whole body was on fire in a pleasant way. I could feel the strength, the power. A part of me I didn’t know about craved that power and was rejoicing. I was lost in the feeling of his blood flowing through me. I could feel it spreading to new parts of my body and infusing that body part with the same pleasant burning. It was several minutes before I could open my eyes. When I did, I knew Rosalyn would be safe.
“Drive.” I told Josh. I didn’t trust my voice enough to say more.
“We will be there in fifteen minutes.” He told me.
I sat back and let the blood change me. I felt all the new strength and it gave me a hungry feeling that I didn’t recognize. I tried to concentrate on Rosalyn but thoughts of what I could do with this new power held control of my mind. That’s when I realized what Josh meant by demon blood.
We didn’t speak during the drive. We got out of the car and approached the warehouse without a word. There were two vehicles in front but the rest of the warehouse looked deserted. Josh disrobed outside the door and turned before we entered.
“You finally made it. I expected you to be here sooner. Rosalyn spoke of your talent to find someone from a distance. Those visions sound helpful.” Cyranos was talking steadily.
He was standing alone with Jonas and the other two off to the side. I positioned myself to approach the others as Josh took the straight line to Cyranos. Neither Josh nor I slowed from the time we entered the door. We knew our task and went to achieve it without delay. The three I would face were smiling in expectation.
“Look who--” I stopped Jonas’s words with a hard punch to the face. The other two vampires saw that the rules had changed.
The other two attacked me at the same time. They seemed to be moving in the slow motion that I was used to seeing in the average vampire. I began toying with them. I could have killed each of them quickly but I was having too much fun hurting them. I pulled my knife and cut them up bad enough to hurt like hell. I still held off on killing them though. I spent more time torturing Jonas than I did on the other two. This was a sweet feeling. Seeing them bleeding and hearing their cries for help. I kept a little attention on Josh to make sure he was handling his business like he was supposed to. Josh was winning but he was having to slowly tear down Cyranos bit by bit. Cyranos was fighting hard until the end. I was enjoying my newfound favorite hobby. Torture was more fun than I ever thought possible. I wondered why I had never done this before. Then I came to my senses a little.
This was evil. This must be what these other vampires felt all the time. This was what I fought so hard against in Paris and Rio. I was becoming not only like them but would probably end up worse than them. My God, what was I doing?
I killed the three I was fighting and turned as Josh took the head off Cyranos. Seeing the threat gone, I sniffed and followed the scent to Rosalyn. She was being held in a triple reinforced steel room in the back of the warehouse. I broke the lock and opened the door for the most beautiful woman in the world. She flew into my arms and began kissing me repeatedly all over my face. I was happier than I had ever felt in my life.
“I was so worried. I wasn’t sure if Josh could handle all of them.” Rosalyn said in my ear.
“He couldn’t.” I didn’t elaborate. I wanted to stay in this moment as long as I could before telling her the consequences.
“What do you mean?” She let go enough to look me in the face. I placed my hands gently on each side of her head and kissed her tenderly.
“When they grabbed you, the other three showed me how much more powerful they were than me. Josh knew he couldn’t fight Cyranos and three extremely powerful vampires at the same time. There was only one option if we wanted to save you.” I looked down not wanting to see her face when she heard the news.
“What? It’s over now and we are ok. What’s wrong?” She was getting scared.
“I had to drink Josh’s blood. He told us that his blood would turn someone evil and he was right. What he didn’t tell us that first night, was how much stronger and faster his blood would make one of our kind. Josh killed Cyranos. I killed the other three on my own.” I said wondering if she would remember the other consequence of drinking Josh’s blood.
“Each one of those were over two thousand years old! There’s no way you could kill them.” She said with wide eyes.
I didn’t speak. I held her in my arms as understanding dawned on her. Her hand came up to cover her face. She started trembling uncontrollably. She tried to say something but couldn’t form the words. I saw the pain fill her.
“NO! Josh you
can’t do that. He just needed to save me! He won’t turn evil, I swear! You can’t do this!” She was screaming at the top of her lungs and looking at Josh the whole time.
“I don’t have a choice Rosalyn. The evil will take him over. He will end up being ten times worse than Cyranos was.” Josh spoke with a heavy heart and one really creepy freaking voice. He was having a rough time with this as well.
Rosalyn darted at Josh in what used to be a speed faster than my eyes could see. This time I moved even faster and stopped her from attacking him. I gently restrained her even though she was trying as hard as she could to get to him.
“I can feel what his blood is doing to me. I tortured those three before I killed them. I enjoyed cutting them to pieces if only to make them suffer. I can feel the thirst for even more power. I can’t let myself become that way, Rosalyn. I would no longer be the man I was. I made this decision knowing the consequences for it. I wanted to save you and this was the only way.” I said as I looked into her eyes.
“You idiot. I’ve lived over two thousand years, you are just getting started. Why did you do this?” She was falling apart and it was breaking my heart.
“Because I love you. My life wasn’t worth living until I met you. I would do the same thing again and again. It wasn’t really a choice. You know how to live without me, but I can’t live without you.” I kissed her and let her go. I turned to Josh and nodded. “We need to do this before I am too far gone. Thank you for saving her, Josh. You and Seth are the best people I ever met. Take care of that pack of yours.”
I knelt to make it easier for him. I think he tried to speak but was overcome with emotion. The growing evil within me tried to get me to run, fight, or do something to stop this. I looked at Rosalyn so her perfect face would be the last thing I ever saw. Then I closed my eyes and hung my head. I didn’t even feel it.
Chapter 32
