Embrace The Dawning (The Covenant Series Book 1)

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Embrace The Dawning (The Covenant Series Book 1) Page 7

by Betty Shreffler


  “I’m sure the Covenant will send their vampire hunter out to dispatch of the rogue vampire, if they haven’t already. The Covenant doesn’t like to be tied to any area for too long or for a problem to linger.”

  Kayci perked up at hearing vampire hunter. She remembered hearing the odorous bald-headed vampire call Adrian by that title.

  “What is a vampire hunter?”

  Rosemary smiled. She clearly enjoyed sharing her knowledge with Kayci. “Well, my dear, before I can explain what a vampire hunter is, I should explain your lineage.”

  Kayci twitched. She didn’t like being referred to as a part of the vampire lineage. She felt no connection to them. To her, she was human.

  “Vampires were created in ancient times, long before Christ and Christianity, when humans still worshipped spirits, demons, and many different gods and goddesses. The story as it has passed through the years is that a demon by the name of Nybbas, a lesser-respected demon who was the keeper of dreams, envied humans. He coveted what he could not have. He wanted so much to ravish in the pleasures of earthly possessions, especially women. That desire developed most likely because it was said that Nybbas was portly and grotesque and often turned the eyes of humans.

  “The demon Nybbas, being the charlatan and deceitful demon that he was, promised an attractive human man by the name of Vlastimir more land and wealth than he could imagine as long as the man agreed to let Nybbas inhabit his body while the man slept at night. Nybbas had to take advantage of the night, for that was when he was most powerful. The purification powers of the sun would expel Nybbas from the man’s body if he tried to enter Vlastimir’s body during the day.

  “Vlastimir, being greedy and foolish, agreed to the arrangement. While he slept and dreamt of wealth and endless luxuries, Nybbas possessed his body. He used the man’s body for many nights to seduce the women of the village and indulge in as much food, drink, and herbal tonics as he could consume. Vlastimir, through his wife’s own behavior, came to realize that Nybbas had been seducing and taking pleasure in his wife in addition to the other women of the village. Realizing this, Vlastimir grew angry and jealous. He broke off his arrangement with Nybbas and told the demon that he could no longer inhabit his body. Nybbas sought revenge against Vlastimir for breaking their arrangement and took to terrorizing Vlastimir’s dreams. Vlastimir tried to avoid sleep, but eventually he grew weary and slept out of exhaustion. The torment and nightmares continued, and Vlastimir began to suffer physically and mentally. Vlastimir thought the only way to end his suffering and make penance for his sins was to be killed while the demon inhabited his body.”

  Kayci grimaced. Rosemary rose from her chair, bringing the teakettle back to the table to refill their teacups. She set it aside and continued.

  “Vlastimir begged and pleaded and ultimately convinced his brother, who’s own wife had succumbed to the charms of Nybbas, to kill Vlastimir while the demon inhabited his body. Nybbas, exuberant that Vlastimir had changed his mind and naïve to Vlastimir’s plans, possessed Vlastimir’s body and returned to his insatiable ways. That night, Vlastimir’s brother followed through on his promise, killing both Vlastimir and Nybbas. The night after, Vlastimir unexpectedly woke in his grave, with a horrible insatiable hunger for blood. Vlastimir dug himself out of his shallow grave, and with his new ravenous hunger, he fed on the livestock and then progressed to humans. The villagers, terrified of Vlastimir, cast him out of the village, claiming he had bonded himself blood and spirit with the demon Nybbas. The demon Nybbas could not have known what would become of him dying in a human man’s body. The result was the creation of the first vampire—blood monster, as the villagers referred to him.

  “Vlastimir and the villagers also did not know that Vlastimir’s sloppy, insatiable feeding would unintentionally turn several of the villagers into the first coven of vampires. Thankfully, vampires have changed since the very first transformation. They have learned to control their feeding and have adapted to feeding from humans without killing them. It took centuries, but eventually the demon blood now referred to as vampirism became understood by vampires and therefore became restrained.”

  “What happened to the original vampires?”

  “They are believed to have perished from one source or another, most likely from being exposed to the sun, but not without creating more vampires beforehand.”

  Kayci noticed Rosemary spoke of vampirism as if it was a disease that spread uncontrollably. It made her wonder how witches came to be, but she had other questions first.

  “So vampires have attributes like mine?”

  “Yes, dear, just like yours, and more. Demons all have abilities that surpass human abilities. Abilities like strength, speed, flying, causing illusions, better sensory skills, and others. When the demon Nybbas and the human Vlastimir became one, the creature that returned from the grave had a mixture of both human and demon abilities. Vampires have the ability to heal very quickly, exceptional strength, incredible running speed, and the ability to leap upward to great heights. Furthermore, they have heightened senses, heightened emotions, as well as having their insatiable hunger for blood.”

  Kayci notated the similarities to her attributes—thankful she didn’t have the hunger for blood. Except for when she came in contact with the talisman, she remembered. A thought she needed to come back to.

  “Do vampires have any weaknesses?”

  “Oh yes. Vampires have a weakness to the sun. If they are exposed to the sun, they burn to ash. This is because the sun purifies the body, removing the demon portion of blood, body, and spirit and in turn kills the vampire. Vampires can be harmed and even killed by fire if the flames are strong enough. As well as a few other methods, which brings me back to your question of the vampire hunter.

  “When a human comes back from the dead as a vampire, the blood transformation, vampirism, mutates the genetics of the human and can sometimes bring out abilities that may have been dormant when they were human. Such as with the vampire hunter. He has more abilities than the average vampire. He has the ability to track the scent of any other vampire no matter how far they are or how long it’s been since he has smelled their scent. The vampire hunter is a bit stronger than most vampires and a bit faster. He’s recognized among his kind as more of a warrior vampire. He is often sent out by the Covenant to dispatch of rogue vampires or other kinds of problems.”

  Kayci caught the emphasis on the word problem. Was Rosemary insinuating that Kayci could be considered a problem that the Covenant would send the vampire hunter out to dispose of? She tried to ignore the uncomfortable sensation building in her gut and instead thought of Adrian. She wanted to tell Rosemary that she had met the vampire hunter, but remembered Adrian asked her not to tell anyone he revealed his identity, and kept quiet. Now she had even more reason to steer clear of Adrian. She had no intention of informing him she was likely a half-breed vampire. Something she wasn’t sure she was ready to accept herself.

  “Why is it that I don’t turn to ashes in the sun?” Kayci asked with interest.

  Rosemary paused for a moment. “My theory is that there isn’t enough vampire blood in your system to cause you to burn to ash. You have enough human blood to protect you. Since you were born this way, I’m sure you have developed immunity to the sun that causes only sensitivity rather than destruction.”

  “If I have vampire blood in my system, what happens to me if I die?”

  Rosemary pondered this question the same as the last.

  “My assumption is that you would come back from death as a vampire.”

  Kayci’s heart sunk. She didn’t want to die as an old woman only to come back to life as a vampire.

  Rosemary’s expression displayed empathy. “If you came back as a vampire and did not want that life for yourself, all you would need to do is wait for the sun to rise.”

  Kayci nodded her head while her eyes stared off blankly. She could not concern herself with such thoughts right now. She had a life to live, she r
eminded herself. She returned to meet Rosemary’s compassionate gaze.

  “One last question, Rosemary, and thank you for being so forthcoming with all your knowledge.”

  Rosemary smiled affectionately. “Of course, my dear. Any time you need anything, you are welcome back.”

  “Thank you.” Kayci smiled.

  “My last question…” Kayci announced politely. “Why does the talisman cause me to react the way I did?”

  “The talisman is enchanted with a spell, and the engraving on the talisman is a part of the spell. It wards off evil demonic spirits. The vampire part of you is responding to that spell. The longer you are around it, the more aggressively you will react to the talisman. The spell is literally drawing out the vampire part of you and is trying to harm you enough to avoid it. If you were a full vampire, your reactions would have been far worse. Your hand would have caught fire rather than been seared by the talisman, and the bright light that I know you saw would have temporarily blinded you. Which reminds me.”

  Rosemary got up from her chair and headed toward her armoire. “I’m going to send you home with some herbs to place at your windows and provide you with your own talisman to hang on your front door. These will keep unwanted visitors from entering your home. They will help keep you safe.”

  Kayci’s appreciation of Rosemary grew in that moment. This woman, a complete stranger, had taken time out of her day to educate and help her, and even protect her. Kayci didn’t know how she could ever repay such kindness.

  “Rosemary, I can’t put into words how appreciative I am of your help.”

  “I’m happy to help, my dear. You didn’t ask for any of this to be brought on you. Besides, you’ll need some level of protection as you maneuver your way through this new world. I believe you were guided to my shop for a reason.”

  Kayci held the same belief.

  “What hocus-pocus are you going to do now?” Kayci asked with a good-humored smile when she saw Rosemary pull a few items out of her armoire.

  Rosemary grinned. “This is the dried and crushed plant verbena. Witches have been using the herb for centuries to keep vampires out of unwanted places. In order for the plant to ward off evil spirits, it does have to be enchanted, otherwise it’s just another herb. This bundle”—Rosemary held up the verbena herbs in her hand—“has already been enchanted. Spread the verbena on the windowsills of your home and say this after you have placed them at each window: Volentes nocere non praeteribit.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means, those who wish to harm shall not pass.”

  Rosemary put the verbena in a little brown paper bag before handing it to Kayci. “I’ll send you with the talisman you reacted to as well. Hang it on your door. Its apotropaic magic, and the evil eye will ward off evil spirits of all sorts. Make sure not to look at it as you pass over your threshold so you don’t catch fire.”

  Kayci’s eyes widened as she took the bag from Rosemary. “It can do that?”

  “Yes, the spell attached to it is quite powerful, and one of my own making.”

  “Incredible.” Kayci pulled out her cell phone from her purse. “I better save the phrase you told me to say in my cell phone. I’ve already forgotten it. Can you repeat the phrase?”

  “Yes, dear. Volentes nocere non praeteribit.” Rosemary helped spell the words as Kayci typed them into her phone.

  “Again, thank you so very much for your help today.” Kayci leaned in to embrace Rosemary. Rosemary reciprocated the embrace before guiding Kayci out of the room and back into the shop area.

  Kayci looked outside the glass windows of the shop, surprised by how dark it had become. Their conversations had gone well into the evening. She stared out into the night with a new and unusual feeling of despair. The quiet of the night was her refuge from the day and the chaos it brought with it. Now she looked into the darkness as though it was a stranger she didn’t recognize. There was much to truly fear in the dark.

  Kayci’s attention was brought back to Rosemary as she dropped the talisman into Kayci’s brown bag.

  “Better hang that up with gloves,” Rosemary told her.

  Kayci smiled. “Definitely.”

  “There are a couple things I’d like to purchase before I go. Is that all right?” It was a way to repay Rosemary for her kindness.

  Rosemary’s face lit up. “Of course, my dear.”

  Kayci picked up the earth candle, the four-elements candle, the bottle of the citrus-lemongrass lotion she had dropped, and a stunning bead bracelet hanging from a wood-carved tree on the center table. Rosemary cheerfully rang up Kayci’s items.

  “Do you still want to rent the book, my dear?”

  “Do you think I still need to read it?”

  “Might as well. We covered a lot of the same topics you will find in here. Nonetheless, there is still some information that could be valuable to you.” Rosemary set the book inside a larger brown bag with the other items.

  “Your total is $83.65.”

  Kayci pulled out her debit card and handed it to Rosemary, who quickly swiped the card and handed it back.

  “Thank you again, Rosemary. I’ll see you in a few days.”

  Rosemary stepped out from behind the counter headed toward the front door.

  “I look forward to it, my dear.”

  Kayci followed close behind Rosemary and waved good-bye as Rosemary held the door. As the lock clicked behind her and the breeze of the cool night hit Kayci’s face, she felt as though a door had just closed on a significant part of her life. She was no longer Kayci the physical trainer or a woman with strange attributes. She was a half-breed vampire with abilities beyond a normal human’s. She was no longer an abnormal person who had difficulty building close relationships with other people. She was a lone half-breed vampire that no one could ever be aware of.

  Chapter 5

  Adrian held Duncan off the ground by his neck. The vampire was a bloody mess, and his wounds were already beginning to heal.

  “Where is she?!” Adrian asked forcefully. “I can smell her all over you.”

  The vampire let out as much of a mocking smile as he could. He refused to answer.

  “Perhaps he needs a little more encouragement,” Vladimir suggested to Adrian.

  Adrian held tightly to Duncan while Vladimir brought a lit torch toward the vampire. Duncan squirmed in his grasp. Vladimir let the flames touch the vampire’s flesh. As the stench reached Adrian’s nostrils, he turned his head away. It was unbearable. The vampire screamed in pain. Soon he begged for them to stop.

  “I’ll tell you!”

  “Now that’s more like it,” Vladimir said, lowering the flame.

  Adrian dropped the vampire. He fell to the floor in a heap, too weak to run, his face twisting in agony. His burned flesh slowly regenerated.

  “You know she will kill me if I tell you.”

  Vladimir glared at Duncan. “We’ll kill you if you don’t.”

  The vampire caught his breath. “Castar Street. She’s in a suite. Top floor.”

  “What building?” Adrian asked.

  Duncan fled for the door without answering. Vladimir lunged after him. Within moments Duncan’s head lay on the floor, separated from his body.

  “I needed more information!” Adrian scolded.

  “It will have to be close enough. I have confidence in your ability to find her. You found him, didn’t you?” Vladimir pointed to the disintegrating vampire on the floor.

  Adrian had spent the previous and current night hunting Danika and didn’t appreciate his efforts wasted or deterred. Irritating enough the Covenant had doubts of Danika’s escape and whether it was willful on his part. Now Vladimir tagged along to ensure Adrian kept his word and brought Danika back to the Covenant alive. The last thing he needed was for his trail to go cold. He had been lucky to find Danika’s familiar scent on the now dead vampire after retracing their old hunting grounds. He had limited time before she relocated her hideout.


  “You underestimate her, Vladimir.”

  “Perhaps. Perhaps she underestimates you.”

  Vladimir lit what was left of the vampire’s body on fire with the torch. Moments later there was nothing left but ash.

  ***

  Danika licked the blood clean from her lips. She paid no mind to the corpse lying at her feet. She instead relished in the revitalizing sensation coursing through her body. She closed her eyes and let the salty breeze blow across her face. When she heard Reece’s footsteps entering the balcony from behind, her irritation rose. She opened her golden eyes and gazed out at the dark horizon in an attempt to remain calm.

  “What is it now?” she asked in between gritted teeth.

  Reece let a heavy sigh escape before responding. “Mia and Collin returned to the suite with their panties in a twist. Apparently they nearly had a run-in with the vampire hunter. They said he and a tall blond vampire, probably Vladimir, took Duncan with them. Guaranteed we won’t see him again,” Reece proclaimed with clear irritation in his tone.

  Danika clicked her tongue in frustration. “I want to speak with them and get rid of this body. It’s starting to reek.” Danika kicked at the body with her boot as she passed by.

  As she entered the living room of the suite, Mia and Collin stood with their heads bowed and expressions full of unease.

  “I can’t believe you idiots came back here after seeing Adrian! Didn’t I make myself clear that he is doing the Covenant’s dirty work and hunting me? You might as well have told him the address!”

  “He didn’t see us. I’m sure of it,” Mia explained quickly.

 

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