Vlad, Carter, and Finn stood at the altar, patiently waiting to receive me. I wish I had some romantic soliloquy about how handsome they looked, or even a randy musing of which wore their tuxedo best.
To me, they were predators threatening my prey.
Blinking hard, I fought for focus. The chemical shouldn’t have affected me so potently. Logically, it made no sense. Unless, you added in a new independent variable to the freak show experiment that was my life.
Vlad’s blood.
Having it in my system must have made me more susceptible.
Fantastic.
As far as things you can catch from a guy goes, ravenous cannibalism was right up there at the top of the absolute worst list.
Bright side? This was basically a chemical reaction based on a contaminant in my blood stream. Like using a soap my skin was sensitive to, I simply needed to wait it out for the irritant to fade.
“Are you okay?” Vlad muttered, reaching for my hand to help me up the two steps to the altar.
Clamping my lips down on an involuntary growl, the most I could muster was a twitch of a nod. Hand placed in his, I hitched up the hem of my gown to take the needed steps up.
To my left, Elodie seized Micah’s arm, her urgent whisper hitting my ears like a scream. “Her eyes! Look at her eyes!”
What she saw, I couldn’t say. Judging by the way the officiant recoiled when I peered up at him from under my lashes, I’m guessing it fell far short of blushing bride.
Shaking off his bout of shock, he threw his age-spot covered hand out wide and let his voice boom to the cheap seats. “Dearly beloved, we are gathered together today to join Lord Vlad Tepes of House Draculesti with Vincenza Meredith Larow in matrimony.”
The ballroom door creaked open, allowing in a last-minute straggler.
With them came an odd stench of spoiled meat and fungal earth.
“Vincenza.” The thunderous echo of Carter’s voice, snapped my head up. “I need you to listen to me, and know I only have your best interest at heart.”
Fearing he slipped up and signed his own death warrant or was moments from objecting to our vows, I glanced to Vlad. His impassive expression showed no signs he heard anything at all.
“Vinx, whatever you do,” Once more Carter’s voice resonated all around, coming from everywhere and nowhere simultaneously. “Don’t turn around.”
Like any normal person told not to turn, the very first thing I did was … turn. Glancing over my shoulder at our gaggle of guests, the world slowed to a crawl.
Following my stare, Vlad’s handed tightened protectively around mine.
“No, Vinx, don’t look.”
Micah whimpered, her hand fluttering to her mouth.
“Vincenza, no!”
Finn and Elodie dropped fang, their arms bent and ready to strike.
“Please … close your eyes. Stay with me.”
Elodie explained Carter would master telepathy when he had something worth saying. How I wish I had been wise enough to listen.
The sharp clap of wingtip shoes connecting with the marble floor resonated through the cathedral. “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand for those strong enough to defeat the devil’s temptations!” The cadence of Markus’s commanding timbre transported me back to the airplane hangar where I barely made it out alive.
Striding down the aisle, Markus’s expertly styled hair bobbed with each step. An arrogant half-grin twisted back one corner of his weaselly mouth.
At his side—as always—stood his glorified henchman, Neil Rutherford. The candlelight gleamed off Rutherford’s bald head, his expression set in a hateful scowl. His fingers twitched toward his pocket, hinting he came armed.
My fangs were pushing from the folds in my gumline when Thomas planted himself in front of me. Good arm raised to halt my advance, the voice that rumbled from his lips was not his own. “There’s a door behind the altar.” Desperation I had yet to understand advanced Carter’s powers to new realms, his plea broadcasting through the bewildered triplet. “I’m begging you, Vinx. Go. You don’t want to see—”
Compelled to discover the truth, I pushed Thomas aside and stepped down from the altar.
“Yet, here we all are! Invited into the devil’s den. Then again, the invitation really wasn’t for me was it?” Markus caught my stare with a sinister sneer and dragged my attention down to his right hand.
Don’t look. Don’t … Carter’s final plea trailed off as my chin tipped downward.
Camera’s clicked all around.
Whirring video footage captured every moment of wedding guests along the aisle scrambling to get away from Markus’s grisly offer.
My eyes were open.
Peering directly at it.
Still, it took my brain a beat to register the depth of depravity right in front of me.
An item—no bigger than a bowling ball—dripped with tar-black fluid. Markus held tight to it in a fist of … sandy brown hair.
“It’s a head!”
“Good Lord, he’s carrying a severed head!”
Panicked shrieks filled the ballroom, guests trampling over each other to get to the nearest exit.
“Your brother wanted so badly to be here,” Markus tsked, his tongue clucking against the roof of his mouth. “He often spoke of reconnecting with you. Unfortunately, as is true for all other manner of paranormal freaks, his mask of civility slipped off to the most horrible consequences.”
Jeremy.
Was it yesterday, or a lifetime ago, we were fighting over bathroom time?
“Guards!” Vlad roared, appearing at my side in a ripple of air.
Of course, it had to be the magi that flanked the perimeter, hunting for the best way to eradicate the problem. We couldn’t have vampires putting their hands on humans. Oh, no. That would be wrong. They could lock us in their basements, crack our chests open, and play the xylophone on our exposed rib cages. Still, one flash of fang and we were rabid dogs that needed to be put down.
Markus threw his arms out wide, the gore from Jeremy’s neck stub splashing over the pews and aisle runner. “They brought you here to sell you a lie! To make you believe they are beings capable of love! Oh, and they do play their parts well! Jeremy, here, pretended to be against vampire equality. Then, he charged into a rally and attacked innocent humans unprovoked. His face is splashed all over the news, along with grisly details about the three lives he took before anyone could subdue him. This is the truth! This is reality! Not some fairytale they are cramming down your throats, to lure you into a false sense of security amongst … fangers.”
“Get them out of here, at once!”
“Sire, as soon as we get the guests out, we can flank them and have them immobilized in under a minute.”
“Make it so!”
Magi cut between the pews, inching closer in anticipation of their window to strike.
So many shouts.
So much panicked inaction.
That’s all it was.
Cautious impotence.
“They aren’t like us, and I can prove it.” Swinging his arm back, Markus released the head on the upsurge. Like the bowling ball I originally thought it was, Jeremy’s head rolled down the aisle, colliding with my foot in a muted thump.
Gradually, my stare drifted downward to all that was left of my brother. Whatever thread of control I managed to maintain … snapped. Red haze clouding the edges of my vision, a threatening hiss bubbled from my chest.
I didn’t drop fang.
Not this time.
Not for him.
A blur of speed landed me inches from Markus. Head tilted, I peered his way with vulturine interest.
“What are you going to do, little girl?” Markus taunted in a barely audible whisper. “Remember, the world is watching.”
“Vincenza, p
lease,” Vlad implored, keeping his tone soft and measured. “I didn’t believe our kind was capable of good. You and your friends showed me how wrong I was. Don’t let him drive you to darkness. Trust me, copil, there is no coming back from that.”
“No one is driving me to darkness,” I murmured vacantly. “I’m already there.”
Hand shooting out, I punched my fist into Markus’s chest cavity. Fingers closing around the pulsing lump of flesh within, I ripped his heart out with the indifference of pulling the plug on an old staticky radio. A slick of blood coated my arm to the elbow, splattering over my designer gown.
While a flicker of life still remained, I let Markus watch with bulging eyes while I licked his blood from my fingers. As he folded to the floor in a lifeless heap, I cast his still beating heart aside like the trash it was.
“You undead bitch!” Going for the gun in the inside pocket of his suit coat, Rutherford charged.
Heightened reflexes made it easy to catch his elbow in midair. Pulling straight up, hard and fast, I yanked his shoulder from its socket with a sickening thunk. Anguished screams tearing from his throat, I silenced him by driving the heel of my palm into his nose. The cartilage jammed into his brain in a spray of gore.
The magi swarmed, moving in to stop me.
Let them try.
Let them all try.
I was eager to share my pain.
Chapter thirty-two
Vlad
Wedding Day
A life unhinged.
The binding rules of compliance severed.
Before any vampire could move to save Vincenza from herself, silver shackles appeared on our wrists and ankles. Air swirled in a crackle of magic, sewing the lips shut of all Nosferatu in the room, except for myself.
“Vlad, Vlad, Vlad,” Dorian’s voice in my ear sent shivers of hate pulsing down my spine. “This all could have been avoided, old friend. Had you simply been worthy of The Dragon from the start. Instead, you decided to take the clichéd dark and broody approach, whining over your soul’s damnation. Really, watch a movie or six, that angle is long since played out.”
I barely acknowledged him, stare fixated on my gore splattered bride lashing out at every Magi that dared come near her.
Lacing his fingers in front of him, Dorian cocked his head to consider me. “I’m surprised you didn’t rush in, like the hero you believe yourself to be. Even before I clapped irons on you, there was a definite hesitation.”
Rage plunged her dagger into Vinx’s thigh, tearing muscle and fabric with its serrated edge. Grabbing her by the back collar of her robe, Vinx flung the petite magi at the wall in a flailing pinwheel.
“Who … would I help in this equation?”
Dorian’s mouth curved into a downward C. “Good point. Either way, it’s safe to say your honeymoon is ruined. Tell me, how will you spin this? The would-be-queen taking human lives while the world watches? That’s sure to be a PR nightmare. Forget vampire equality, humans will line up with silver and stakes to go to war with your kind after this.”
Glancing to Vinx’s friends, I found them looking every bit as helpless and mystified as I felt. Even their skin blistering and cracking beneath the scorching shackles couldn’t tear their attention from the horror unfolding.
“I honestly don’t know,” I managed, wincing as Ego sprinted straight for Vincenza, only to be flipped over her shoulder and spiked to the ground.
“There’s still one way.” Dorian wrung his hands with a mischievous grin. “I have no desire for The Dragon myself. With my powers and immortality, I feel such servitude would be a bit too … confining for my taste. However, I would love to find a more worthy playmate. One who will help me usher in the war I’ve longed for. After all, I’ve taunted and goaded you in countless unspeakable ways, and still you sought the noble way out,” his nose crinkled in disgust at the word. “Truth be told, it’s maddening. That said, I’ll make you a deal. Let me try once more to lure The Dragon out of you, to place it in the receptacle of my choosing. I was going to use Markus. Unfortunately, it seems his heart wasn’t in the task. Horrible joke, had to be made. Back to the point. Give me what I want, and I’ll work my magic to make all this unpleasantness go away. I have the original footage of what happened in that airplane hangar, and vials of the artificial sulfur in my possession. We could blow this story wide open, paint a picture of your wife as a victim in an unfortunate manipulation scheme. For good measure, I can even guarantee your adorable little NPI Bill is passed by the end of the week. What do you say?”
“No.”
Tendons in his neck bulging, Dorian’s face morphed from red to purple. “You stubborn bastard. You’ve lost! You have no other options! You were never worthy of The Dragon’s gift! Always rolling over, and showing your soft underbelly the instant someone you cared for was harmed! A true adversary draws strength from loss. Look at her.” His hand stabbed in Vincenza’s direction. “Barely more than a child, yet her pain molded her into a true specimen of destruction. Why? Why won’t you part with what was never meant to be yours?”
“Because,” tone vacant of emotion, I spoke over his indignant rant, “The Dragon … is no longer inside of me. Where he roosted for so long remains only the gaping hole of his absence. He reduced me to just another body to be counted amongst the vampire bloodline.”
Dorian’s mouth swung open and shut. “Wha … ? How? How is that possible?”
After elbowing Greed in the solar plexus, Vincenza curled one arm around his throat and snapped his neck. “It would seem, Drákon deemed another worthy. You said it yourself, she is a true specimen of destruction.”
Dorian followed my stare, watching with fresh interest as the last magi fell by Vinx’s hand. Her arms hung limp at her sides, hands still curled into vicious claws. Chin drooping to her chest, fat drops of blood dripped from her hair. Once the pinnacle of elegant fashion, her white gown was shredded to ribbons and stained with crimson gore.
“This puny little nobody? The Dragon has accomplished nothing more than finding itself another slave.” Lip curling in disgust, Dorian rolled one wrist, intending to disappear in a magical fog.
Vincenza moved with the force of a raging storm cloud. Arms and legs morphing into tendrils of black mist, she seized Dorian by the throat and held him there until he was forced corporeal.
“You’re the one who molested my mind.” Pressing in, intimately close, she breathed the words into him. “The puppet master that set all of this up. It had to be you, because Markus believed Jeremy was a vampire. We both know he was actually reanimated by a necromancer. The same one you forced me to kill for you, to tie up that little loose end.”
“Look at you following the breadcrumbs.” Pupils dilating with desire, Dorian pulled his chin back enough to allow his lecherous gaze to travel the length of my bride. “The new slave to the darkness. Mmm. I’m inclined to take back my previous reservations. You’ll do quite nicely.”
Vincenza added to her ghoulish appearance by dropping fang. Tilting her head, she raked the tips of her incisors over Dorian’s throat. “This isn’t going to go the way you think it is. I tried the civilized approach, and your lackeys brought me my brother’s head. I suggest you take that little painting of yours, and hide it away. Because I’m coming for you, Dorian, and anyone else that gets in my way.”
“Such fire and flare. It’s absolutely delicious. Makes me want to beg you to make it hurt so good. Sadly, you’re only role in this is as the fun candy coating.” One onyx brow hitched in interest, Dorian searched Vincenza’s face for traces of the beast within. “I seek … your new master.”
I knew the truth before she uttered it.
Felt it in the throbbing energy radiating off of her.
What I lived in fear of for so long, she conquered with reckless abandon.
A malevolent smile teased at the corners of Vincenza’s full
lips. “That’s where you’re wrong. I have no master. The darkness did speak to me. While I stood barefoot on the blood-soaked floor—surrounded by my fresh kills—it stretched and roiled from the shadows around me. With breath reeking of fire and brimstone, it praised my fortitude and bowed to my strength.” Stepping back, she threw her arms out wide, owning her title. “In that moment, it called me … Queen.”
The Veiled Series continues with Vendetta,
coming soon!
About the Author
Stacey Rourke is the author of award-winning books that span various genres, yet maintain her trademark blend of action and humor. She lives in Florida with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction, and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head.
Connect with her at:
www.staceyrourke.com
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Sign up for her newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/c56flr
If you enjoyed Vlad, check out these other titles by Stacey Rourke:
The Gryphon Series
The Conduit
Embrace
Sacrifice
Ascension
Descent
Inferno
Revelation
and The Official Gryphon Series Coloring Book
The Legends Saga
Crane
Raven
Steam
Reel Romance
Adapted for Film
Turn Tables
The Unfortunate Soul Chronicles
Rise of the Sea Witch
Entombed in Glass
TS901 Chronicles (co-written with Tish Thawer)
T2901: Anomaly
TS901: Dominion
Archive of the Fives:
Apocalypse Five
The Journals of Octavia Hollows:
How the Dead Lie (A Havenwood Falls Novella)
Wake the Dead
Vlad Page 16