A Vampire's Bane

by Raven Steele

  “It is that reason I know you so well that I ask you to leave. You will push him until he does something you cannot take away, and it may be your very life.” His eyes grew serious. “I mean it, Samira. He will not stop until you are dead, and he has exactly what he wants.”

  I jumped out of the chair, indignant. “You forget, Mateo. I am fire, and I am might. It was me who lead the northern realm against the fae invasion of the fourteen-hundreds, and slit the dragon Ravana’s throats while he slept, all ten of them, also killing all his royal guard in the process.”

  “Yes, I remember,” he interrupted, standing up, his face red with anger. “I also remember that you were the breaker of my heart, which is much more difficult to overcome than all those things.”

  I blinked, surprised at his audacity to say that I broke his heart. Ignoring it, I moved on. “I was Korin’s executioner for a reason, and he has yet to see the new me. The stronger me. He should be afraid of me. And if you cannot support me, then leave.” My voice was venomous as I spat my words.

  “Samira, you do not know Korin anymore. He has changed, and his powers have grown. I don’t even know all he’s capable of. I’m not certain he does, either.” He stood up slowly, unwilling to look away from me as he came to his feet. “And I will not stand by and let him take you and use you, as he has so many others.”

  “Mateo,” I growled. “I am not leaving Faithe.”

  “It is already too late for her.”

  “It is not. I will find a way to protect her.”

  “I heard her tell you this herself, and I agree with her.” He swallowed hard and I knew it cost him to admit to this. “I love Faithe as I loved my own sister, as a daughter, perhaps. But she has chosen her path in life. Your love for her blinds you.”

  “Just as your feelings for me blind you.”

  He scowled, as he took a step back. “We will have to agree to disagree on this point. Despite what you think about me, do not doubt I will protect you as much as I am able.” He nodded his head slightly. “I bid you good night.”

  As soon as he was gone, I sucked in a breath and slammed my hand across the back of his chair. It sent both the chair and the table flying, and they crashed against the wall, then clattered to the floor in a great mess of jagged wood. I took in another breath, calming myself by counting down. When I was done, I picked up the broken pieces, studying them. They were easily fixable.

  At least I had something to do for the rest of the night. I couldn’t let anyone see how my conversation with Mateo had affected me. I’d fix the chair and table, and then I would find a way to resolve the problem with Korin.

  And then, the Phoenix.

  I had never been more glad to be so busy than I had been the last few days. It helped to keep my mind off Mateo. I did regret some of the words I’d said to him, especially since he was right. Korin had new powers, and even before he had them I wasn’t certain I could beat him in a battle. I shouldn’t fight with Mateo; I needed his help. But it infuriated me that he tried to get me to leave, to stand in for me and not allow me to fight my own battles. I shoved those thoughts away when they crept in.

  He was a distraction I didn’t need right now. Not when there was so much going on.

  Briar and the Silver Claws, with Angel’s help, had learned everything they could about security at White Pine, where Korin held supernaturals captive. We also discovered Korin was manufacturing Scorpion’s Breath 2.0 there. Briar said the cloud coming out of the building’s smokestack reeked worse than Angel’s breath after drinking SJ, the name she’d given to Lynx’s anti-compulsion potion, short for what she’d originally called it: shit juice. Somehow, and much to my dismay, the name stuck.

  Security at White Pine was worse than we feared. Not only were there dozens of Hydes acting as guards surrounding the building, but there were also half a dozen vehicles patrolling a ten-mile loop around the property. From what Briar could gather, these cars had been outfitted with all kinds of weapons. Plus, Briar had discovered magic on the property as well; spells meant to be security. Angel couldn’t get close enough to know what kind was being used or what it might do to intruders, just that it was there.

  We needed more help, and I knew just who to call upon.

  Briar walked in the door at exactly the same moment I walked upstairs from the basement, having just woken up at sunset. Really I hadn’t slept. Only laid there in thick blackness on comfortable padding. I’d picked out the nicest coffin I could find when I first came to Rouen. I hated hard bedded coffins, which most were. The dead had no need of comfort, the salesman at the funeral home had told me, laughing even. I assured him, with my strongest predatory glare, they did. I left that funeral home with the nicest coffin the man owned, made special with extra padding added to the inside.

  “You received my message.” I walked past Briar to the refrigerator and grabbed my thermos of blood. Someone had covered my label with another one that read: “Yummy tomato juice.” And beneath it, in smaller letters: “P.S. I promise.” I recognized Briar’s handwriting.

  I didn’t give her the satisfaction of acknowledging her new label as I drank down what was left of it. It was salty and cold and left me still hungry. I didn’t like that sensation deep in my stomach. The constant ache as sure as the ticking of a clock. Though I was tempted to find a way to ease the ache, I kept it there, never fully satisfying myself. For in that way, I was able to keep the Kiss’s darkness from fully rooting itself inside me.

  The Kiss of Eternal Night’s powers became stronger when it fed on rage, grief, and even gluttony. And the more I indulged those emotions, the more I gave up control to the Kiss, which smothered my humanity.

  Detrand had helped me bring it back through much pain and suffering. Now, that constant pain in my stomach served as a reminder. Briar always gave me a hard time for not showing emotions, but one day I might explain to her why I had to keep them to myself. One day she might understand why I refrained from feeling anything the Kiss might take advantage of.

  Sometimes, during the day when I lay in my coffin and the house was extra quiet, I could hear the Kiss whispering encouraging words. It wanted me to drink and drink and drink until my stomach could no longer hold all the warm blood. It wanted me to seek revenge toward Mateo for abandoning me. It even wanted me to experience joy like I used to, wild and free.

  But I knew the Kiss’s tricks. The moment I indulged, it would take over.

  “Why did you want me here so early?” Briar asked, eyeing the label on my thermos hard as if to draw my attention to it. I ignored her. I’d been looking for an opportunity to teach her patience. This was the perfect moment.

  “We need to go see Eddie.”

  “My boss? Why would we do that?”

  “He might be able to help.” I grabbed the keys to my car hanging on a hook near the door.

  “Hell, no. We are not involving humans.”

  I said nothing and walked out the door. Briar continued to complain, even as we drove away from the house. In the beginning, her sarcasm and opinions on everything had grated on all my senses, but lately I welcomed the distraction. I turned on my cell phone, illuminating the notification that Lynx had called, and set it on the center console next to a business card. It was Owen’s and bore the Apex symbol.

  “Are you even listening, dead-face?” Briar snapped.

  I’d learned the more I ignored her, the worst her insults became. I continued to ignore her and turned down Main Street.

  “We cannot involve Eddie. Do you understand? Besides, he’s not going to be there this early. We’re wasting our time.”

  I passed by the road leading to Sinsual.

  She whipped around, watching it pass. “Where the hell are we going?”

  I continued to drive, enjoying her growing discomfort.

  She slapped the dashboard. “Hey, anemic poser! I asked you a question.”

  Pulling into a parking lot, I turned off the car. “We’re here.”

  She swivel
ed in her seat and peered out. “A Chinese restaurant?”

  I opened the door and headed inside. It had been a while since I’d been here. Small red paper lanterns hung in rows across the ceiling. Their faint light illuminated a couple dozen tables resting upon cheap linoleum floors. There were a handful of customers in the restaurant. I moved away from them, knowing it was safer.

  Briar grabbed my arm and spun me around, her face pinched. “What the hell are we doing here?”

  “I’m hungry.” I dropped into the nearest chair and looked around, specifically focusing on the rear of the restaurant. I checked the time.

  Briar pulled out a chair across from me and sat down. “Are you doing this on purpose?”

  “What?” I asked, but I couldn’t stop the twitch at the corner of my mouth. I hoped she wouldn’t notice but she was too perceptive.

  She leaned forward and hissed, “You little shit.”

  “Just relax and get something to eat. I’ll explain everything soon.” I tilted my head, curious. “Don’t you know where we are?”

  She glanced around. “Why would I?”

  “You’re an Alpha in Rouen. I’d think you’d know all the important places.”

  She opened her mouth, but closed it when a waitress approached our table. The waitress’s brown eyes lit up when she recognized me. “Sweet Samira! You’re back. I wondered when I’d see you again.”

  “Hello, Kuriko. How’s Da Chun?”

  Briar looked from me to Kuriko, her eyebrows raised.

  “Growing like a weed! I can’t keep up with her. You want your usual?” She swiped stray hairs away from her face.

  “Yes, please, and give Da Chun a hug for me.”

  Briar’s mouth fell open. She managed to collect herself long enough to place her order. As soon as the waitress left, she swung her head back to me. “Who the hell are you? And since when did you give hugs?”

  “Children need hugs. I would not deny them something so easy to give, would you?”

  She leaned back in her seat and folded her arms. “I don’t know you at all.”

  “No, you don’t. And that is a good thing.” Part of me spoke the truth. She couldn’t know the dark parts of me, how close I constantly hovered to a powerful darkness that could destroy not only me, but everyone around me. And yet, I wished she could know the person I used to be. I mourned that person often, especially since meeting Briar and Lynx. I could see in their eyes what they thought of me. Boring, stuffy, uncaring, unfeeling. All of which wasn’t true.

  “Tell me about this place,” Briar ordered.

  I nodded my head back toward a door at the rear of the restaurant. “This is the entrance to the Apex.”

  “Where the witches meet?”

  “Lynx called me earlier saying they have the first batch of SJ ready. She wanted me to come get it and to finally meet the Witches of Rouen. I detected a hint of fear in her voice, so I brought you, just in case. I have a tendency to rub people the wrong way.”

  She laughed. “And I don’t?”

  I blinked. “I see what you mean.”

  “Why the ruse? And why say we were going to see Eddie?”

  “Because, Briar, you need to learn patience. And maybe we still are.”

  “This was a lesson?”

  “You are pack Alpha and a Komira. These are powerful positions that require strength, fortitude, and courage, all qualities you have. But they also need patience, gentleness, and the ability to know when to shut up. Sometimes, when you are still, you will discover things you might not have otherwise.”

  “What truth would I have discovered in this lesson of yours?”

  I sighed and told her about my cell phone and the business card. “Little clues, insights into people, are always around you. Be patient and alert and give truth a chance to reveal itself.”

  “This was a stupid lesson.”

  Kuriko returned to deliver our food. She set a warm, steaming cup of thick crimson liquid in front of me. This was the closest I’d ever allow myself to come to drinking straight from the vein.

  “It smells wonderful,” I said. “Thank you, Kuriko.”

  “Anything for you.” She set Briar’s plate of rice and chicken in front of Briar. “It’s nice to see you with someone, Samira. The heart needs friends.”

  I bowed my head. “Wise counsel.”

  After she left, Briar leaned forward. “She knows you’re a plasmatarian? How?”

  “Have you forgotten my lesson so soon? Look around.” I brought the spoon to my mouth and savored the warm blood as it coated my tongue.

  She paused, her gaze circling the room. If she was paying attention, she’d spot the small pentagram in the corner of the window. The yellow canary in a cage near the register. The symbol of earth on the door as we walked in. The customers who smelled of jasmine and iron. The cook with a strange, bluish birthmark on his neck in the shape of a snake. Briar might’ve also noticed the tattoo of a triangle on Kuriko’s palm. The signs were everywhere had she been looking.

  Her gaze returned to mine, eyes wide. “This place is full of witches.”

  Chapter 21

  I didn’t give her the satisfaction of showing my pleasure at her answer. “Enjoy your food, Briar. And think about my lesson.”

  This time, she didn’t say anything, and we enjoyed our meal in silence. I hoped she did actually take my words to heart. I feared with what was coming in our future, it would be important for Briar to catch the little details. It was the only way to read people like Korin.

  I checked the time on my phone.

  She pointed it. “Ha! That’s the second time you’ve checked the time. See? I can pay attention.”

  “Lynx should be here.” I frowned and looked up at the old wooden door at the back. The symbol of fire was etched into its center. It opened just then, and Lynx slipped into the dining room. Her red hair had been straightened and pulled tightly into a pony tail. It made her look different somehow, with long bangs sweeping over the side of her face. The light freckles across the bridge of her nose stood out more than usual, and her green eyes appeared more alive. She even had a little pink patch of a blush on her cheeks, subtle enough that only a vampire would notice. She’d been using magic.

  Lynx spotted Briar. Her brows drew together. “Hey, Briar. How come you’re here?”

  “I wanted her to come,” I said. “I hope that’s okay.”

  She forced a smile. “Sure. Come on back, but please, let me do the talking. They are a … spirited group right now. Not everyone agrees with working with vampires and shifters.”

  And that’s exactly why I brought Briar. As long as she tempered herself, and listened to them, they will see her as a great resource and valuable ally. But there was the secondary reason for Briar’s presence. Witches could be dangerous. I needed someone with me who would back me up should there be trouble.

  We walked through the opening. As soon as the door closed behind us, the temperature dropped considerably. Behind the door lay the beginning of a metal, spiral staircase.

  Briar shivered. “Why is it so cold?”

  Lynx glanced over her shoulder as she led the way down. “Magic works better in cooler temperatures.”

  I’d only been here two other times, nearly forty years ago. The long dark stairway leading two stories below ground smelled the same. Rosewood mingled with animal blood. The last time I’d come here, it had been by force. A group of witches had attempted to recreate the power of the Red Tree Witches, a powerful coven who had existed centuries earlier, and had tried to take over the city. I had been captured while trying to stop them. For two weeks, I remained imprisoned while being forced to endure various means of torture. They wanted the names of those I worked with, but I gave them nothing. However, I had learned valuable information about their coven. Once I had the information I came for, I escaped and told the Ames de la Terra. Within a day, their group was destroyed.

  “What are these witches like?” Briar asked. “Are they cool
or total bitches?”

  I eyed her sideways. “This is one of those times where you shouldn’t talk. Take in what you can.”

  “What Samira said,” Lynx added, nodding her head.

  Briar groaned, but remained silent the rest of the way. At the bottom of the stairs, we turned down a long hallway. Old lights flickered above us, creating shadows at our feet. A strange tingling began to lift the hair on my arms. We were getting close to the Apex.

  At the end of the hall, Lynx turned left and stopped in front of a metal door with a keypad on the side. This was new. She didn’t bother shielding herself as she pressed a five digit code into the pad. I memorized the numbers and glanced at Briar to see if she was doing the same. She rolled her eyes at me, mouthing, “Duh.”

  Beyond the door, a great room opened up with twenty-foot ceilings painted black with witch symbols painted in white strategically placed throughout the room, just as I remembered. In the center of the ceiling, clear glass partially glowed with moonlight. Above the glass, a long tube traveled through the earth and the building above it into a great smokestack, but it never held smoke. Only captured moonlight via a mirror as the moon tracked across the sky.

  Scattered across the stone floor, two dozen witches stopped talking at our arrival and faced us. Much to my dismay, I didn’t see Roma. I was hoping she’d be here to facilitate a conversation between us. Owen, however was. He stepped apart from the group.

  “Welcome to the Apex,” he said. He wore a long dark robe, a hood at his back.

  The rest of the witches, consisting of both men and women, wore normal street clothes. Several of them eyed us dangerously. I took in what I could about them in case one of them could be the Phoenix. A few of them held the faint outline of guns hidden within their jacket pockets. A few others openly held wooden stakes, which was telling about how much they trusted me. As if they’d get close enough to me to be effective.

  Lynx introduced us. “This is Briar, Alpha of the Silver Claws, and this is Samira.”