by Pace, Pepper
My husband was being punished somewhere, and all of these bastards had known all along but had kept it from me—to protect me.
I don’t need protection. They need protection.
I stripped off my ruined clothes and washed, barely containing my rage. I had tapped into something I’d never felt before, something new and scary.
I was so angry that I wanted to rip and shred planet Earth.
It wasn’t easy remaining calm when you wanted to destroy a planet, but I did as I dressed in black pants, a formfitting black nylon T-shirt, and a wispy black duster. Though my neck was tender, I still wore a large leather, diamond-encrusted choker to hide what hadn’t yet healed. My thick, curly hair haloed my head, and despite my rage, I looked as if I had just stepped out of the beauty salon. I checked my watch. It was almost three AM.
Donning another pair of black-out glasses, I left my home for the Council house.
I had another score to settle.
~***~
I materialized in the lower level of the Council house where we usually held our meetings. It wasn’t a formal meeting, so we didn’t have the long table out. Everyone present was lounging on the modern furniture talking like old friends.
Tony was conspicuously absent.
I’m sure he had to change his shirt.
Malarias, Alexis’ replacement, stood alone by the fireplace with his old, stooped shoulders. He was at least a thousand years old and looked every bit of it. Someone had turned Malarias when he was eighty, and with his long white robe, he would have looked more at home in a monastery than a Vampire Council house. I didn’t care for Malarias at all, because when Alexis had been trying to fight for my life, he was the one who resisted saving me.
All eyes were on me when I approached.
“Where is Tony?” Cyrene asked me coolly.
No one on the Council liked me. Cyrene thought I was too low class. Keada didn’t like how I got on the Council. Frank wanted to have sex with me. Kaniji still blamed me for her missing hand--now grown back--and wanted me dead for stealing Tony from her. Should I tell Kaniji that Tony was wide open for her now? Maybe later.
“Tony is indisposed,” I said. “He gives his apologies to the Council.” I continued to eye them all. They had something on me, and it pissed me off. They knew where Alexis was.
I sat as far away from them as possible.
“Well, let’s get started,” Cyrene said. The Council had no spokesperson, Cyrene fancied herself the Alpha dog so we let her lead the meetings.
Malarias stared at me.
I ignored him and cleared my throat. “Before we begin, I have a matter to bring before the Council.”
Cyrene’s mouth hung open. In all the months that I had attended the meetings, I had only spoken when necessary.
“I want to know what happened to Alexis. I suspect that you all know. And if you know then I should know.” I stared Malarias. “Am I right, Malarias?”
“No. You are not correct, Council member Kim Russell,” Malarias said in his ancient, dry voice. “There are things that would do no good to disclose.”
“Like secrets?” I said.
Malarias’ eyes flashed red at me.
“I know quite a few,” I said. When Alexis was attempting to save me, I became privy to secrets that would be disastrous to the Vampire Nation if exposed—especially about the existence of day-walkers.
Frank lost his usual bored, glazed-over look. He looked from Malarias and then back to me.
“You would be making a grave mistake to think that you can blackmail this Council, Kim Russell,” Malarias thought in my head. “I could crush your heart in your chest and would be well within my rights to do so if necessary.”
“I don’t need to blackmail you to get the information I need.” I zeroed in on Kaniji.
“Kim Russell!” Malarias shouted in my head. “Your disruptive behavior will not be tolerated!”
I stood. “I’ve never been disruptive to either of your Councils. I’ve barely spoken in this one. I ask only for the same knowledge that my other Council members have.”
Something slammed me back against the far stone wall.
I didn’t even flinch.
I glared at Malarias. “Have you ever been burned until you were nothing more than a small mound of melting flesh? I have. You have to do much more than this to hurt me.”
“Kim!” Keada warned.
I appreciated her attempt to warn me, but then I remembered that I wanted to firebomb all of these bastards!
“No, Keada,” I said, not removing my eyes from Malarias. “Somewhere my husband is alive, and if you hurt me, Malarias, I believe that he will punish you.”
Malarias’ lips quivered.
I knew I had played the right card. Alexis was the bad boy on the Elder Council. I had seen what he could do. He was a really bad boy.
Malarias turned and disappeared.
Cyrene threw up her hands. “Well, that’s it. The Council meeting is adjourned for the evening.” She glared at me then glanced at Kaniji. “But I suppose there is another meeting that will be taking place. Frank, Keada, let us depart.”
“No way,” Frank said. “And miss the girl fight?”
“Come on, Frank,” Cyrene said. “I’ll let you look at my rare collection of Victorian nudes.”
“Are they in black and white?” Frank asked.
“Of course,” Cyrene said.
“Goody,” Frank said, and all but Kaniji left.
Kaniji stared at me with a self-satisfying smirk. “Why would you think I would help you?” she asked.
“To help yourself. Remember? You told me that before.”
She licked her lips.
Kaniji was a petite Japanese beauty. Her long, silky black hair was always worn up on the top of her head in beautiful designs. She was hundreds of years old. When you looked at her you saw someone smart enough to make it this far mostly by manipulation and backstabbing. My predecessor on the Council had been her longtime lover, as had Tony. She had double reason for hating me, but I wasn’t scared.
I knew too much about her. For instance, I knew she had a huge bald spot on top of her head, hence the reason she stacked her hair. I also knew that Alexis had made Kaniji his pet for telling me how to save Tige. No one knew what he had done to her during that time, but I’m sure she didn’t have a good time. Alexis sometimes needed screams to make him feel. Many of his “pets” left him maimed for eternity.
“Tell me, what did Alexis do to you when he made you his pet?”
She clenched her teeth. “He fucked me.”
I felt as if a knife had been plunged into my gut though I kept my face calm. I wouldn’t doubt that she would lie just to get under my skin.
Kaniji smirked. “Not with his body but with his mind.” And then her eyes darkened. “You wanted to know whether or not he made me scream? He did. Repeatedly.” She cocked her head at me. “Does that answer your question?”
Then I knew she wasn’t lying. Alexis had used his mind to bring me to climax. For me, though, he had made it most enjoyable.
“The last time that I tried to help ‘myself,’ Alexis pulled my tongue out of my mouth,” Kaniji continued. “Of course, you know this because you were standing there watching him do it.”
My husband has been a very bad boy.
“Where is Alexis?” I asked. I had seen a different side of an evil man. I knew that there was more to him even if Kaniji didn’t.
“He’s been exiled,” Kaniji said.
I tried to hide my surprise. I didn’t expect her to tell me anything. “What does that mean?”
“It means that he has to leave all he knows, his place on the Council, and … you.”
My breathing grew ragged. “Why is he being punished?”
Kaniji smiled. “Now that’s the million-dollar question.”
“A million dollars is nothing to us,” I said. “What do you want in return for this information?”
“You have
nothing that I want.”
“Not even Tony?”
Her eyes flashed at me. “You would bargain away Tony for Alexis?” She laughed. “You are a stupid little human! Alexis has no capacity to love. He is a masochistic animal who plays at life.”
“Plays?” I asked. “Even you aren’t naïve enough to believe that. Alexis plays at nothing. He just is.”
“What is your bargain?” she asked.
“You can have Tony, if he wants you.” Tony had kept me in the dark one too many times.
“You are serious?” Kaniji asked.
I stood. “If I lie, then I’m sure you’ll know. I will do absolutely nothing to encourage him. I will never ever speak to him again unless it is a matter of necessity.”
“You swear it?” she asked.
“Yes, bitch!” I screamed. “Now tell me where my husband is!” The skin across my face split as the muscles doubled, tripled. Blood sprayed. My shoulders hunched. I knew that my mouth spread to accommodate my now massive teeth.
Kaniji leaped back. “Alexis is in Spain. A small village outside of Barcelona called Epic Cu. There is a monastery in the town center. That’s where you will find him.”
Gradually my features returned to normal. Spain. I could feel pain at the damage done to my face. Fuck it. It would heal.
“Undoubtedly you understand that you cannot leap to him,” Kaniji said. “Vampires cannot transport over large bodies of water. You will have to arrange for transportation.”
Epic Cu. I turned my back to leave.
“You love him?” Kaniji asked.
“Alexis? Of course.”
“Tony?”
I frowned. “I don’t love being thought of as a damsel in distress. I’m a capable fucking Vampire. The struggles I had were only made worse because he stood in my way trying to protect and save me.”
“Like you’re trying to do for Alexis? Like you did for Tige? Incidentally, has Tige ever thanked you for it? Neratomay are notorious for not wanting to be saved. Remember that.”
She disappeared.
The hell with her!
I went to Karen’s home.
CHAPTER 4
When I materialized in Karen’s bedroom, she shot out of her bed with a scream.
“Karen,” I said. “It’s Kim.”
She squinted at me then turned on the bedroom light. “Dear Lord. What happened to your face?”
“Long story. It will heal. I want to be in Barcelona, Spain, tomorrow when I awake. Can you arrange that?”
“Tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow.”
“I can do it in two days.”
I clenched my teeth and closed my eyes. My breath was still, and I tried to stay calm. “If I’m not in Barcelona when I awake, then I hope you’re not within my reach.”
Karen’s hands went to her neck. She nodded her head. “Yes, Master.”
I stared at her without emotion or warmth. “Karen, I’ve wasted too much time because of the secrets that my-so-called friends kept from me. That won’t ever happen to me again. I hope you understand what I’m saying.”
I could feel her fear like mist in the air. “Yes. I understand.”
I went back to the house that I had thought of as home. I never wanted Paul as much as I wanted him now. He would not have kept this secret from me. He would have understood the desire to act quickly, and he would have made it work. I wanted him so much right now to calm me and to comfort me.
I lay down on my bed and let my thoughts play out until the morning claimed me.
~***~
I awoke in total darkness.
I couldn’t find the minutest bit of light, and it seemed as if I was in motion. I pressed my hands around me, and my fingers came into contact with a satiny material. A coffin? I pressed upwards until bright light bathed my face. I closed my eyes.
“She’s awake.”
Someone placed sunglasses into my hands, and I slipped them on. When my eyes were sheathed, I sat up and looked around.
I was in some type of bus or trailer with blacked-out windows.
Julie was kneeling beside the coffin that I had slept in. She offered me her hand.
I took it, stood, and stepped out of the damned thing. I didn’t like coffins.
Julie, my First Lieutenant, or Second-in-Command appeared to be little more than a twelve-year-old girl with her pixie cut brown hair pushed behind her ears. She wore a long, black velvet dress that touched her feet and black combat boots with three-inch heels. Anyone stupid enough to fall for the innocent little girl look was usually sorry for it. Julie was as bad as they came--and scary, too, because if she needed to play the role of a little girl she would.
Tyler was sitting in a comfy looking couch built into the wall of the vehicle. She wore black conservative pants and a black suit jacket with a black nylon shirt underneath. Beside her was Monica. She looked like Malibu Barbie with a boob job. She wore sleek black pants and a black halter. Her long blonde hair was pinned up on top of her head. They watched me warily.
I closed the coffin lid and then sat on it. “Where are we?” I asked.
“We’re about an hour outside of Barcelona,” Tyler said. “Karen went ahead to the villa to make sure the arrangements checked out.”
They all looked worn out, except for Julie, who watched me intently.
“You really scared Karen,” Tyler said. “She thought you’d rip her throat out when you awoke.”
“She said two days, I said one, and I’m where I need to be. She has nothing to worry about. Julie, shouldn’t you be at home making sure nothing goes wrong while I’m away?”
“I’m where you need me to be,” Julie said. “I think you need me to be here with you now.”
“Tyler? Why are you here?”
“Someone has to take care of you two during the day,” she replied.
I knew why Monica and Karen were here. I moved to the couch across from her. “Epic Cu. What can you tell me about the place?”
Epic Cu was sometimes called the birthplace of modern torture. During the Spanish Inquisition, Epic Cu provided torture devices for the Vatican.
“Epic Cu used to be owned by the Catholics?” I asked.
Julie shook her head. “No. It was built by Neratomay.”
“Are you saying that the Vatican knows about Vampires?”
“That’s what I’m saying,” Julie said. “Epic Cu is where the most important Vampires are sent when they break the rules. It’s a mystery what goes on there, and the Elders aren’t talking. The place is stripped bare. There aren’t even any guards. There is not a need for any.”
Monica cleared her throat. “Epic Cu isn’t a prison. I heard that Vampires hold ceremonies there.”
“Yes,” Julie said, “but only Elders and those above them attend them.”
“I heard it’s painful to get on the Elder Board,” Tyler said. “Not all of them live. Epic Cu is where they are initiated for an entire year.”
I shrugged. “Alexis and I didn’t talk about Vampire affairs when we were away. We were …” I frowned.
Monica let out a long sigh. “I let you down, Kim. I know I did.”
“Monica,” I murmured, “now is not the time. I’m going to Epic Cu and I want to know as much as possible about the place before I get there.”
“Before we get there.” Julie said.
“Yes, we,” Tyler said.
“Let me run this past you all,” I said. “If Alexis would go against his Council, if he would risk exile for me but would torture his other subjects including Council members, then neither of you would be safe. I feel that no matter what, Alexis is going to fight to protect me. I can’t say that he will fight as hard for you.”
Julie stared at me. “You speak the truth. Still, our job is to protect you.”
“Really? I thought your job was to assist me. How will your death assist me?”
Julie’s eyes flashed red. “You’re still angry, and you’re not thinking rationally.”
<
br /> “Maybe you’re right,” I said. “But I’m not risking any of your lives because I decided to go on this suicide mission. This is my fight, not yours. Your battles are in The Land of the Happy Feelings.”
Tyler smiled because despite my anger you just couldn’t sound terribly scary when those words came from your mouth. Hey, I had to come up with a name, and I was grooving to some old Frankie Beverly and Maze at the time…
“I just want to understand what brought Alexis here,” I said.
The vehicle slowed and came to a stop. Monica excused herself to walk through a partition to the front of the vehicle.
“Kim,” Tyler said, “please don’t be angry at any of us for not telling you about Alexis. As a Master you’re one in a million. Humans get bullied into whatever the vamps want, so eventually we’re conditioned not to make waves. It wasn’t because we thought it was right. We didn’t speak up because we were afraid, and we’re still afraid. Tony is going to be pissed. And I know what happened to Kaniji when Alexis found out she told you how to save Tige.”
I nodded. She had a point. I couldn’t hold a grudge because Tyler followed Vampire tradition. But she was right about something else. I’m a new school vamp. They’ve never met anyone like me before.
“Tyler, you’re still my girl,” I said. “I can’t help that I’m hurt. I can’t even help that I’m angry. But I guess I understand how this happened. So I just have to get over it. But from now on …”
“We won’t keep any more secrets from you,” Tyler said.
Monica opened the partition and smiled. “We’re here. Now, this isn’t exactly Barcelona. If we had actually stayed within the city, the local Master would have had to approve our stay and we would have had to pay our respects and all that jazz. Karen said that she didn’t think you’d want to do all that.”
“She’s right,” I said.
We went outside. I took off my glasses. The villa was fucking magnificent!