DraculaVille - New York - Book One

by Lara Nance

  Lucilla whimpered, hands still clutching her head. Talia had a strong crazy urge to stick her tongue out at the vampire bitch.

  Maron paced in front of them He glowered, his hands planted on his hips.

  Talia glanced at Drake and he raised one brow. Hopefully he’d play along even if he didn’t know about armantor.

  “Is this true?” The patron stopped in front of Drake.

  “Yes.” Drake gave him a cool look. Talia squeezed his hand in thanks.

  Behind the anger, fear glittered in Maron’s eyes.

  Hope surged in her gut. Maybe they would make it out of here alive...well, not hurt, in Drake’s case.

  Maron whispered something to a guard. Baldy, as Talia thought of him.

  “You’ll return to your room. I need to consult with our elder. I’ve never heard of armantor between a human and vampire. Until I am certain, you will wait.” The vampire leader strode away.

  Their guards herded them toward the cavern exit.

  Talia caught a glare from Lucilla. Sorry, bitch. You don’t get to kill me. Yet.

  Chapter 26

  “Do you mind telling me what you were talking about in there?” Drake asked once they were back in their storeroom prison. His eyes burned hotter as his hunger increased.

  “I blurted out something I thought might save us. Seems they’re still bound by the ancient vampire traditions, given they wouldn’t kill you once you told them you belonged to Carlotta’s group. So I used another one.” Talia shrugged, not relishing the necessity of explaining the delicate subject of armantor.

  “What does it mean, armantor?” He crossed his arms over his chest.

  She let out a deep breath and gave him the story Lydia had told her. She left out the part about why she’d met the witch in the first place. He didn’t need to know everything.

  Drake’s brows went up. So if they believe we’re some sort of fated couple, they can’t kill you?”

  “I guess. I was hoping that would be the case.” She kicked off her high-heels and perched on a box, rubbing her feet.

  He stroked his chin. “I hope it works.”

  “So do I.” She mostly hoped it didn’t matter that no one had heard of a vampire-human version.

  The door creaked open and one of their guards came in with a box. He shoved it into Drake’s arms and left.

  “What the hell was that all about?” Talia stood.

  He brought the box over and opened the top flaps. “Looks like they aren’t going to starve us to death.” He pulled out a bag from a fast food chain and handed it to her, then extracted a jar of blood.

  Her stomach rumbled, and she ripped open the bag. Inside was a bottle of water and a hamburger with fries. She hadn’t eaten fast food in ten years, but she devoured the fat laden meal with fervor fueled by hunger. He tipped back the jar and drained the blood in a few gulps. She was glad his eyes returned to their subdued brownish tint.

  “At least we bought some time.” She crumpled her burger wrapper and stuffed it in the bag. “Until Maron talks to their elder and finds out it was just a ploy.”

  “Maybe it’s true.” He glanced at her sideways.

  She stopped crushing the paper bag and stared a him.

  “That we’re armantor.”

  “There’s one problem. I’m not a vampire. It’s supposed to be between vampire mates.” She hoped he didn’t want to explore how she could become a vampire mate with him.

  “You can’t deny there’s something between us, Tal.”

  “Maybe it’s something else.”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. How about plain old human lust?”

  He snorted and turned away. “It’s more than that and you know it.”

  She bit her lip. He was right, but she wouldn’t admit it. It would make things way too complicated. They needed to focus on getting out of here.

  “Dad! Your Majesty!”

  Talia jumped. Pip’s voice had come from the grate. His pale face stared at her through the metal bars.

  Drake leaped onto the box pile and stuck his fingers through to grasp the boy’s. “What are you doing here?”

  “How did you find us?” She climbed up beside Drake.

  “Uncle Felix told me what area you were in last night. I been ridin’ around in a cab all night until I found an alley with a red circle on a door. It was easy to find an old sewer cover and get in.”

  “You’re a genius, Pip.” She patted one of his little fingers poking through the grate.

  He beamed.

  “We can’t get out of here,” Drake said, giving the bars another tug.

  “You can’t break ‘em?” Pip asked.

  “No, they’re solid.”

  “Maybe I can get inside the hall and open the door.”

  “It’s too dangerous,” Talia said. “I’m sure they have guards out there.”

  The boy’s face fell.

  “I know what you can do.” Drake glanced at her. “You have to get Felix to take you to Carlotta.”

  Pip’s face lit up again.

  Talia gasped. “Drake, he could get hurt.”

  “If he doesn’t go, we could get killed.”

  “I can do it, Mom. I promise.” Pip’s eyes pleaded with her.

  “He’ll be okay with Felix, and Carlotta wouldn’t hurt him.” Drake nudged her with his elbow, and she understood he was just trying to get Pip away from here.

  She nodded. “Okay, that’s a good idea.”

  “Tell Felix to take you to Club Ariba on the Upper West End. Carlotta should be there. Tell her Maron has us and is going to kill us.”

  Pip’s eyes grew to bright round saucers. “Okay, I’ll go right away.”

  Drake gripped the boy’s fingers a second. “Be careful, Pip. Remember we love you.”

  Talia couldn’t speak through a lump in her throat. Tears burned her eyes.

  “I will. Don’t worry, Mom. I’ll save you.” He backed down the narrow passageway behind the grate and was soon lost in darkness.

  “Good-bye, Pip,” she whispered. She didn’t even care that he’d called her Mom. She might never see him again. A sob choked her. She grabbed Drake’s shirt, burying her face in his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and patted her back.

  “It’ll be okay, Talia,” he murmured against her hair. “By the time he finds Carlotta and realizes she’s not going to rescue us, we’ll either have escaped or be dead. But he’ll be safe.”

  Her shoulders shook with sobs, and her heart ached. She’d give anything to be in her apartment with her friends and her little flock of vampires, all sitting around eating one of Drake’s fabulous meals. To top off her sorrow, now her fabulous project for the Romanians would go to some other agency. A stab of anger shot through her stomach.

  She looked at her watch. Three a.m. The sun would rise in another three or four hours to begin Sunday morning. Damn it. Time was running out. They needed to escape soon or she wouldn’t complete the advertising pieces for DraculaVille. She brushed tears from her eyes and struggled off the box mountain.

  “Tal?” Drake followed her.

  “Only four more days until the meeting with the Romanians. I could lose the account if we don’t get out of here.” She tucked her hair behind her ears and bit her knuckle.

  Drake took a few steps backward. “I can’t believe you’re worried about the campaign at a time like this.”

  “I can’t help it.” She paced the floor. “The thought that some schmuck is going to benefit from my idea and hard work makes me furious.”

  “Once you’re dead, it won’t matter.”

  “You don’t understand.”

  He threw up his hands. “You’re right. I don’t. That stupid project is the last thing on my mind.”

  “Stupid?” She slapped her hands on her hips. “It’s not stupid.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  She did, but she preferred anger to sentimental weakness at the thought of never seeing Pip or
Felix or Gerri again. They were the only people who would miss her. Well, Harv would miss her after she lost the account, but that wasn’t the same.

  To keep her sanity had to focus on something other than dying. She climbed on a large box, tucked her legs under her and started making a mental list of the changes she needed in her schedule to still meet the deadline.

  At some point, Drake climbed beside her and leaned back, yawning. He closed his eyes and rested his head on a smaller box behind him. She wanted to crawl next to him and snuggle into his arms as she had yesterday. But fueling her ire kept her from crying, so she continued her mental lists. Later she began a new one, which included all the things she wanted to do to Lucilla.

  ***

  “Let’s go.” Baldy motioned them to leave their cell.

  They filed out, Talia behind Drake, and Baldy bringing up the rear. The same cordon of guards on either side escorted them through the maze of halls and tunnels.

  She wished she’d talked to Drake more last night. It might have been the last time they spent alone together. She’d been close to falling apart, and discussing their feelings would have broken her completely. It was one thing to think about never seeing Pip or her friends, but to imagine losing Drake was unbearable.

  They passed the opening to the big cavern. The laughter, murmurs of conversations and the clink of glasses of the vampires gathered there floated out. At the end of the tunnel, a set of iron rung steps led farther into the earth. Half the guards led the way. Talia and Drake descended, followed by their remaining escort.

  She shivered at the cold dampness of this level. Drake glanced at her, and she tried to smile. He reached out to take her hand, but Baldy pushed them apart and forced them down this new passage.

  This tunnel was carved entirely out of stone. Oil lanterns hung at intervals and provided slight illumination every six feet or so. She tripped constantly over the uneven stone floor in her spiky heels, but managed to stay on her feet. A musty smell of death and decay pervaded the chilly air and she trembled.

  The passage ended in a large rounded area with several tunnels leading off it. A heavy wooden door criss-crossed with iron bars was sunk into the back wall. A bulky vampire stood beside the door, arms folded over his chest. Beside him, Maron waited.

  The patron’s face showed no expression, which Talia took as a good sign. He was the type who couldn’t help gloating if things were going his way.

  “Our elder, Gosen, is inside this room.” Maron took a step toward them. “He’ll determine if you’re armantor or not. You won’t be able to fool him, so put that out of your mind.” He stalked closer and jabbed a finger at her. “You have evoked a most sacred tradition. If you lied, you’ll die a horrible death.”

  She swallowed. She could only imagine what horrible death Maron and Lucilla could dream up.

  The leader turned and took a skeleton key off a hook and unlocked the door. The great door creaked open.

  Their guards gave them a shove toward the opening, then the door slammed behind them. Talia jumped, then realized neither Maron nor the guards had followed them into the room. The key clicked, locking them in. She tucked an arm through Drake’s elbow, holding tight.

  Lanterns and candles provided minimal light in the cluttered room. Her skin crawled as she strained her eyes to make out details. Bookcases filled with leather bound books lined the walls. Heavy wooden tables held stacks of books, scrolls and scattered papers. A fire burned in a large stone fireplace at the back. The mantle above it held an elaborately carved ivory candelabra, three human skulls and a brass box embedded with shiny gems.

  Drake nudged her with his elbow and jerked his head to the other side of the room. An old man sat in a dark brown velvet wing chair, nearly lost in the shadows. He held an open book on his lap, long thin fingers grasping the edges. His pure black eyes scrutinized them, shaded by long scraggly brown hair hanging over his forehead. He stared at them a moment, then placed his book on a small round table at his side.

  “Welcome,” he said in a soft voice. He rose from his chair and came toward them, moving around one of many tables. “My name is Gosen.”

  Something clinked as he neared them. A long chain anchored to one of his ankles trailed behind him. Her gaze flew to his face and she gasped.

  “Yes, my dear. I, too, am a prisoner of Maron.” He gestured to the chain.

  “I, I, I’m sorry.” Why did the Vampire leader have to keep his own elder chained up?

  “Why are you a prisoner? I thought you were the flock’s elder?” Drake asked.

  “Oh, I am the elder. I have been in these tunnels since long before Maron was made.” He motioned to the seating area he’d left to come greet them. “But that is a very long story. Come have a seat and we will discuss your little problem.”

  She shared a glance with Drake then followed the old vampire to a Queen Anne couch and chairs where’d he’d been reading. She sat beside Drake on the sofa, and took in the old tapestries on stone walls, paintings, and plaques displaying coats of arms.

  Gosen kicked the chain with one foot in a move that appeared practiced. He made his way to his chair.

  “Did Maron chain you?” Drake asked.

  Gosen steepled his long thin fingers and nodded. “He took over this flock about seven years ago, after killing the old patron, Ivan, in a challenge fight. Ivan was my friend. We had been together many years and built this flock into a strong group. Maron made new vampires against our wishes, and they supported his desire for change. When he won leadership, I told him I was leaving. A flock cannot survive without an elder, so he had his guards attack me in the middle of the night and chain me.”

  “He keeps you here only to legitimize the flock?” she asked.

  Gosen nodded.

  “You’ve been imprisoned for seven years?” Maron was cruel and heartless. She couldn’t believe he do such a thing to his own kind. “What a bastard.”

  “Yes, I was not harmed and I am given anything I ask for…except freedom.” Gosen looked at his lap.

  Silence settled between them.

  Gosen raised his head. “Enough about me. Maron has sent you so I can test your bond. He says you claim to be armantor.”

  Talia nodded. “Yes, that’s what I told him.”

  “I see.” He crossed a thin leg over the other. He looked elegant in his dapper suit, a double breasted charcoal color and white shirt with ruffles. She hardly believed such a well mannered individual had probably killed thousands of people in his life.

  “So what’s the test?” Drake asked. He took Talia’s hand.

  “There is really no test. I only told Maron that because it was what he sought. Plus I wanted to meet you.”

  “Why?” Talia asked.

  “First, you stood up to Maron. That took a great deal of inner fortitude.” He flicked a speck of dust from his sleeve with one bony finger. “I also want to know how a human knows about our traditions. It is most unusual.”

  “I read a book about it,” Talia said. She didn’t care how dapper he looked. He was still a vampire, dangerous to both her and Lydia.

  Gosen pursed his lips. “I see. And what book was this?”

  She bit her lip. “Just some crumbly old thing I found in a used book store. I don’t remember the title.”

  “Hmm.” He tapped his fingers on the carved wooden arm of his chair. “Very interesting. I would love to see such a book.”

  “If you get us out of here, I’ll go get it for you,” she said.

  He chuckled. “I’m sure you would.”

  “So, if there’s no test, what are you going to tell Maron?” Drake leaned forward staring at the older vampire.

  Gosen’s eyes glittered with hatred. “I will tell him the truth. You two are most definitely armantor. He will not like it, but there is nothing he can do about it.”

  Sparks went off, burning in Talia’s stomach. “It’s true? How do you know?”

  “I only have to look at you and feel your auras.�
� He flipped his hand over, palm up. “It is simple for someone as old as I. Fascinating. A human and vampire couple. It is very rare. I have lived for over five-hundred years, and I may have heard of such a thing, but I have never witnessed it. I had always assumed it to be rumor more than fact.”

  Five hundred years? Talia’s head spun. He was that old? Incredible.

  “Now what?” Drake asked.

  “I tell Maron that you spoke the truth.”

  “Will he let us go?” Talia squeezed Drake’s hand.

  “That I cannot tell you. I certainly have no power over your futures.” He rubbed his chin. “Maron makes his own decisions, and no one can stop him.”

  “Is there anything we can do to help you?” she asked. “Maybe there’s a way to break the chain.”

  Gosen stared at her a moment then broke into laughter. “My dear, you are simply delightful. How surprising to find you want to help me when you are in so much trouble yourself. I am afraid there is no breaking this chain. Without the key, I am doomed to stay here forever.” He shrugged. “I suppose there are worse fates. I have come to accept it. At least I have my books to keep me company.”

  “What are all these books?” she asked, her gaze sweeping over the thousands of tomes.

  “The history of our kind. Elders of each flock maintain the knowledge of the past. This is why a flock cannot survive without one. Every question about our welfare rests in the elders’ hands. There is no way for someone to gain the knowledge I have unless they received it directly from an elder.”

  “How do you receive the knowledge?” she asked.

  “It is a mental link only the oldest of our kind can form. We pass our histories from one elder to another. Someone as young as Maron cannot receive this information. That is why he is afraid to kill me. He needs my knowledge and as long as he does, I will stay alive.” A smile curved his thin lips.

  She imagined Gosen still hoped he had a chance to escape and kill Maron. She wished him luck. She’d love to point a shotgun at the patron’s head herself.

  His door opened with a squeak of rusty hinges, and the evil leader stepped just inside the opening. “Gosen.”

  “It has been a pleasure talking with you,” Gosen said as he rose from his chair. “I’m sorry I could not be of help.”