King Takes Rook

by A. L. Kessler

  Levi grabbed his phone and punched the buttons needed to call Oliver.

  "Levi, to what do I owe this honor?" Oliver's bored voice came across the line. "Is Abigail in trouble again? Or are you just calling to check in on how her elemental training is going."

  Levi hesitated at the mention of Abby's training. He hadn't really considered calling to see how that was going, but on the other hand, he figured if it were going poorly then Abigail would have mentioned something. So he hoped. "No, I'm calling because I have an interesting situation and I need some names."

  "And you assume I have all the names." Oliver chuckled. "Oh, Levi. What are you willing to trade this time?"

  Levi locked his jaw. "Would you rather money or…?" He let it trail off.

  "I have a big job right now that'll cover my bills for the next year, so money isn't really an issue to me. What I need is information that your second in command might have."

  "You know about Mario then."

  "I do. I just talked to Catalina earlier. She's the one who needed me for the job, but that's neither here nor there. Does Abigail know?"

  "She's met him." Not that it was any of Oliver's concern. "Back to the information. What do you need to know?"

  Oliver sighed. "Always so closed lipped about Abigail. I'm sure she'll mention how she doesn't trust him next time we get together."

  He knew her well. "She doesn't know that he's my second. She just met him the other night."

  "I need to know the location of a particular vampire, so I need a meeting with Mario. That's what I require."

  Levi thought for a moment, wondering what vampire Oliver would need to find and why Mario would be able to provide it. "As long as it doesn't lead Mario back to Hannah, that's fine."

  "Good, I'll meet you at your house tomorrow evening, and we'll discuss details." The line went dead, and Levi found himself shaking his head. Oliver never made sense to him.

  His phone dinged in his hand. He looked down to see a message from Mario.

  'One's awake, come ASAP'

  Levi sighed. That was quick. He closed his eyes and took himself back to the town. He appeared in front of the clinic, which was a house with a huge red cross on it. When Levi walked in, it was clear that it was an old home modified into a clinic. The floors creaked under Levi's feet as he walked up to the old wooden desk where a woman sat.

  "Excuse me," he said gently, and she looked up at him.

  "You must be the other vampire. The doctor is waiting for you down the hall." She motioned to the hall to her left. "It's the only room down that hall, so you can't miss it."

  Levi nodded and walked past the desk. The woman went back to playing on her phone. He shook his head and continued forward.

  Mario was waiting in the hall, leaning against the wall. "He's in bad shape, but he's awake. The doctor only wants you in there for a couple minutes, and then he's going to sedate him to allow him to heal."

  Levi nodded. "There's only one thing that I really want to know. Have you spoken to him?"

  Mario shook his head. "No, the moment he started to stir the doctor sent me out."

  "They don't seem to like us here."

  "Yet, they asked for our help." Mario shrugged. "If they resist too much, I say we go back home and let them deal with all of it on their own."

  Levi shook his head. "No, because then how long until it bleeds into our territory?"

  "We've dealt with worse."

  "Yes, but that doesn't mean I want to deal with it." Levi knocked on the door, and the man from the park opened the door and stepped to the side.

  "Mario tell you my expectations?"

  Levi nodded. "I just want to ask him one question, and then I will be out of your hair."

  "Okay, I don't know if he'll answer you, you need to-"

  Levi held up a hand. "Doctor, I've interviewed victims before, I know how to take caution and be careful."

  The doctor bowed his head and backed away so that Levi could get in. Levi walked into the room and looked at the teen in the bed. An IV stuck out of one of the two arms laying on top of the blanket, and his eyes flickered to Levi. "Who are you?"

  "I'm someone that Laura called in to help. My name is Levi, and I'm looking for the person or people that hurt you. Do you remember anything?"

  His face tightened, and he groaned as if he was in pain. "There's something on the edge of my memory. Something I can't quite get to."

  "Is it painful?"

  The teen nodded. "Yes, like something is physically blocking me from getting there."

  "Thank you, that's all I needed to know. Rest." Levi turned to leave.

  "Wait."

  Levi looked back at him. "Yes?"

  "Laura doesn't know, but her little brother was with us. Did he return? Did the others return?"

  "There were only three of you. Laura's brother, is he a shifter?"

  He shook his head. "A warlock. Oh man, she's never going to forgive us if he's hurt." His voice weakened, and pain crossed his face again.

  "Rest, we'll see what we can do about him." Maybe he should ask Oliver about doing a tracking spell still. "Once you heal a bit more we'll talk."

  The shifter closed his eyes, and Levi took that as his sign to leave, closing the door behind him. "We have another person missing."

  Mario raised a brow. "Oh?"

  "According to this victim, its Laura's little brother."

  Mario shook his head. "Laura told us that no one else was missing."

  "Laura is also married, there's a chance she doesn't live in the same house as her little brother, but I think we need to talk to her about him. It seems like that boy wasn't supposed to be there." Levi walked out of the clinic. "Go get Laura and meet me at the bar."

  "I will." Mario bowed his head and disappeared. Levi went to take himself to the bar but stopped when something made him shiver. Magic marched over his skin, biting at him as if a warning. He wasn't a stranger to magic, but this wasn't something he'd felt before. It touched him, and for an instant, he craved blood as if he hadn't feed in weeks, and with it came an unwelcome memory. Samuel. His maker.

  Levi shook it off. He would not let that vampire haunt him after centuries of freedom. He wiped his hands over his arms and disappeared, going to the bar.

  Levi appeared in front of the building, not bothering to spare Heidi's head a glance as he walked in. Mario sat there, and Laura leaned against the wooden bar with her arms crossed, muttering to herself.

  "When was the last time you talked to your little brother?" Levi didn't bother with pleasantries, he wanted answers, and direct questions were the only way this woman was going to work with him.

  She jerked as if he hit her. "He's with my parents. What does he have to do with anything."

  "The victim that woke, he mentioned that your brother had been with them. He's afraid that your brother was taken as well."

  She shook her head. "No, Chase knows better than to take my brother out. He's a warlock, not a shifter." Her eyes widened. "Oh god, he didn't come back." She put her hand to her mouth as her body shook and she visibly tried to keep back her tears. "We have to find him! He's only five!" She slammed her hand on the bar.

  Almost a baby. Mario looked at Levi and nodded. "I have a warlock who deals with some of the darker magic. I'll ask him to help."

  Laura didn't respond as she seemed to focus on a spot in the bar. Mario stepped up to her. "Laura?"

  "Did Ira do this?" she whispered. "Did Heidi invite this evil upon us?"

  "I don't know. We will find out though," Levi promised. Though he knew that the chances of finding the little boy alive were slim, he wasn't going to share that information with her. "I'll contact the warlock when I get back to my house, and I will have him work during the day."

  She nodded. "Thank you. I…I need to go talk to my parents and figure out why they didn't mention thi
s."

  "A good idea, if you learn anything, please let us know." Levi put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off and left him and Mario in the bar.

  "Have you talked to Oliver already?" Mario asked, watching Laura leave.

  "I did, but not for this. I was looking for a list of people who could do the spell that prevents healing by magic. He wants to meet with you in exchange for the information."

  Mario raised a brow. "Oliver hates me almost as much as he hates you. Why would he want to meet with me?"

  "Something about a vampire he needs to get a hold of, and he seems to think that you have a way to contact them."

  Mario was quiet for a moment. "Did he say which vampire?"

  "No, not really my business. I figured you'd let me know if it was going to affect me or the territory when you were done talking to him. Now the question is, what else will he want to help us find a child?"

  Mario shook his head. "I don't know, but if there is any kindness left in him, he'll do it because there is a child involved. No payment."

  Not long ago Oliver had tried to trade Abigail for his own, estranged, daughter. The man was willing to do almost anything if a child was involved. "I'll call him when we get back and move the meeting. Time is of the essence here, and we both know the statistics in the magical world when a child disappears."

  Mario nodded and disappeared. Levi assumed he took himself back to the mansion. Levi took another moment to consider the situation and if there was more he could do at this moment. Laura had said she needed to talk to her parents, and he assumed that she would call with any information if she was truly concerned for her brother's wellbeing. After another moment, he took himself back to the office at the mansion.

  Mario wasn't there, but it didn't matter. Levi reached for his phone and called Oliver once more.

  "Must be a busy night if you're calling me again. Did you speak to Mario?"

  "I did, but we have another favor to ask of you. There's a child missing in the same town. A five-year-old little boy who was taken at the same time as the teens I told you about earlier."

  Oliver growled. "Why didn't you mention this before?"

  "Because I just found out from one of the victims. The little boy's sister is a witch, and she wasn't able to track the teens. We need your help."

  "Give me the location of this town, and I'll go out there and start working during the day. Make sure you have your phone on while you sleep," Oliver demanded. "I'll still be at your house tomorrow-" he stopped for a moment. "Tonight, seeing as it's almost dawn. Also, you want to know about your little window problem?"

  Levi paused at that. "I assumed it was magic."

  "Get your house checked for bugs, someone went in and did a sloppy fix of your tape. It was an outside job, but my guess was someone was moving around and planting things while you were gone."

  The line went dead without further explanation, and Levi growled. Levi texted Oliver the town's name and the bar address before setting his phone down. There would be no sleep for him today because he'd be worried about the child.

  He went to his room and pulled off his clothes, trading them for pajama bottoms. He could read until sleep decided to settle in. He laid down and reached for his book on the nightstand. It was going to be a long day.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  "Don't do it, brother." Levi put a hand on Ira's shoulder. "It's not worth it."

  Ira shrugged his hand off. "A whole village, Levi, we can wipe out an entire village of humans in a matter of minutes."

  "There's no reason to. They haven't threatened Samuel or us."

  Ira looked back at him with a wicked grin. "They are humans; their very existence is a threat to us. Haven't you been listening to Samuel's lessons?"

  But they had been human once, not long ago. "You're killing innocent people."

  "And there's nothing they can do about it." Ira disappeared from Levi's view.

  Levi growled. His brother hadn't always been so cruel or dark. Once upon a time, he'd been loving and protective. Their change had woken something dark in Ira, and Levi didn't know how to stop it from growing. Ira wanted nothing more than to please Samuel. Levi, on the other hand, hadn't quite accepted their new life yet.

  He looked down at the village his brother was planning on destroying, and something in him died. He put a hand to his heart at the thought of all the innocent humans that would die because his brother believed that humans needed to be brought down in numbers, close to extinction so that Samuel could rise up and rule.

  Levi turned to leave and came face to face with his maker.

  Samuel stood taller than Levi. His blond hair was pulled back at the base of his neck, trailing down past his waist. His blue gaze felt like ice whenever he looked at Levi, and his power flowed around him demanding attention and obedience. "Ira has gone without you?"

  "He went hunting in the village. He's planning on destroying it in your honor."

  Samuel stared at him. "And you stand here, alone. Why do you not join him?"

  Levi knew better than to answer with the truth, but Samuel would know he was lying the moment he opened his mouth. So silence was the better option.

  "You're refusing to answer, does that mean that your morals are still engraved in your head?" Samuel put a hand against Levi's cheek. "What do I have to do to make you understand that you're no longer human. Rules and morals no longer apply to you." He tapped his fingers against Levi's cheek, but Levi simply remained silent and still under the touch. "I need to remind you of the monster that you are, I think."

  Levi's gaze flickered to meet Samuel's as fear crawled through him. "What do you mean?"

  "You are a vampire, Levi, a monster who craves and survives on blood. I know exactly how to remind you of that." Samuel gave a cruel laugh. One Levi had learned meant nothing good. "Follow me."

  Levi hesitated for a moment before following Samuel into the woods and to a cave. Once in the back, Samuel grabbed Levi, slamming him against the rock wall. "This will be your home for a bit. Alone, starving, and wishing that you could feed."

  "The sunlight-"

  "Won't touch you this far back." Samuel grabbed chains and wrapped Levi's wrists in them. "These will hold you as you weaken. If I find that you have left by your own hand or another's, I will find you." There was an unspoken threat in his voice that Levi didn't question.

  The dream shifted, and Levi found himself free of the chains, but too weak to hold himself up. In front of him stood a woman and a child, humans, with Ira standing behind them. Levi groaned as hunger caused his muscles to tighten and his mind to go blurry. He needed to feed.

  "I have brought you a meal, brother. Samuel has granted you permission to be free and feed."

  He'd never feed from children or unwilling women. He hesitated in his steps, trying to fight off the pain and the madness that came with being starved. One human alone wouldn't be enough to satisfy the lust. No, he'd need both.

  "Come, brother, do not torture yourself any longer. Our master has granted you freedom to feed, now do so before he changes his mind and leaves you here for another two months." Ira growled and pulled out a knife. He put the blade against the woman's neck and pulled it with enough pressure to draw a crimson line.

  Levi's tongue darted out of his mouth as the world around him began to narrow down to that one red streak. The woman's soft sobs and shaking were all but forgotten to him as he stumbled forward to feed.

  Levi's phone woke him with a shrill ring, pulling him from the dream. He rubbed his eyes and tried to push the memory out of his mind. Those days were gone. Samuel could no longer control his feeding habits. Levi grabbed his phone and answered it. "Yes?"

  "I've searched the town, I've done three tracking spells, and I'm about to try doin
g a trace spell despite my hate for the things," Oliver growled over the phone. "There is no tracking this child. It's almost like he doesn't exist at all."

  Wasn't that interesting? Levi closed his eyes. "It would be a pretty elaborate scheme if it was one. Laura seemed pretty upset, and the victim also seemed genuinely concerned about him."

  "Did Laura or her husband have contact with the victim before you saw him?"

  "Mario hadn't mentioned it." Levi sighed. "Do your trace spell and see what comes up. Let me know what you find."

  Oliver grumbled something under his breath before hanging up. Levi looked at the time. Sunset was still a little ways off, and he had time to shower, feed, and do a little bit of research about the town. Maybe there was something in the past that would help them.

  Levi stood and walked to the bathroom, leaving his pajama pants and boxers on the floor behind him. He much preferred this modern world to the past. Warm showers. Air conditioning. He reached to turn on the water and heard Mario banging on the bedroom door.

  "Are you awake?"

  Levi sighed, he debated for a moment if he should just get in the shower without answering, but by the sound in Mario's voice, it was something urgent. Levi pulled his robe on and answered his door. "I am. A bit early for you to be though."

  "I was up arranging meals for both of us because I have a feeling it's going to be a long night. Turn on the news."

  Levi hated any night that started with getting his information from the news. He walked over and picked up the remote from his nightstand and turned on the television.

  "The uptick of recent vampire attacks has the public concerned for the safety of the non-paranormal members of the communities. Protests are starting to pop up around the country demanding stricter laws in regards to vampires who attack unwilling humans."

  Levi pressed his lips together, but Mario snorted. "Like the laws can be much stricter. If we step a toe out of line, there's a death sentence waiting for us."