Goddess of Night (Amaranthine Book 9)

by Joleene Naylor

  “You could have helped me explain it to her.”

  “She doesn’t trust me. Anything I said would have been viewed as a lie. It would have created more problems.”

  He lifted the book and she snapped, “You could have made me feel better.”

  “You mean coddle and agree with you? No, I couldn’t.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  With a sigh, he closed the book in surrender. “Katelina, all you wanted was for me to stand at your elbow and agree that Brad is a terrible person who has dared to stray from your idealized conventions, but I don’t agree. I have never agreed. I’ve never pretended to agree. You haven’t listened to me, and I realized you weren’t going to. It was a conclusion you had to come to on your own. You put them in boxes of ‘your mother’ and ‘your friend’s boyfriend’. You were the only one who could let them out. Besides, it’s good for you to handle things without me sometimes.”

  She crossed her arms. “Since when did you believe that?”

  “I can change my opinion…rarely,” he added. “In this case, I noticed you’ve been…happier since you started doing things for yourself. Besides, weren’t you the one who said I needed to stop being overprotective and acknowledge your strengths? Yet, when I do, you complain.”

  That argument happened months ago. That he’d bring it up now…

  “After five hundred years, a few months is like a week to me.” He opened his book again. “I’ve come to realize you were right, you don’t need me attached to your hip for every unpleasant task.”

  “Aha! That’s it. It was unpleasant and you didn’t want to do it.”

  “I suppose you could look at it that way. A better way would be that I have faith in you and your abilities.”

  As he turned a page, Katelina growled. “I swear, I’m going to beat you to death with a book.”

  “If you must, do it now. This is Oren’s. I’d rather you not sully one of mine.”

  Katelina didn’t bother to reply.

  When Patricia and Brad came back from their walk, they asked the obvious question: How do you make someone a vampire?

  “It’s a complicated process,” Verchiel said. “You’re not ready for that. Someone else could turn him for you, but I don’t think you want to do that.”

  “Why not?” Patricia asked.

  “When someone turns you, they own you for a while. They can do whatever they want with you until they consider your blood debt paid. Kately’s probably not going to make you do anything, but she’s not strong enough right now to turn someone else. I can’t guarantee another vampire wouldn’t take advantage of it and make Brad their slave for a hundred years or more. Plus, there’s a lot of complicated things involved with being turned by someone. Trust me.”

  Brad stopped Patricia from arguing. “It’s all right. I’m not going anywhere. There’s plenty of time.”

  Having worked all day, Brad was tired. Etsuko tucked him into a room upstairs. Though Patricia wanted to join him, Verchiel convinced her not to. “When you wake up tomorrow, thirsty, we don’t know what you might do. You’d feel bad if you drained him dry.”

  After Brad was squirreled away, Katelina dug out the three whatnots they’d found at the house. “It’s not much, but I know they meant something to you.”

  Patricia ran her thumb over the broken angel. “Your grandma gave me this when you were born. She died too young.”

  Katelina nodded. She’d been twenty-two when her grandma was diagnosed with cancer. Six months later, she was gone. Another three months, and her grandfather had followed.

  Patricia set the figurine down. “So are we immortal now?”

  “Yeah. And any injuries will heal with blood or sleep. Except for something major, like being beheaded.” Or having most of your body blown up. “You have to destroy a vampire’s heart to kill them.”

  “Like with a stake?”

  “That would work. But so does just ripping their heart out and squashing it.”

  Patricia wrinkled her nose. “I wonder about the company you’ve been keeping.”

  So do I.

  It was nearly sunrise when Zander pulled Katelina aside. “I understand you do not follow the Goddess as I do but, if you like, I could perform a blessing for your mother. It is one of our rituals to ask for the Goddess’ guidance in a fledgling’s new life.”

  Katelina didn’t believe in the Goddess, but they could use all the blessings they could get. “Thank you. That would be nice.”

  When she tried to explain it to her mother, the woman frowned.

  “The Goddess of what? I’m sorry, Kately, I’ve never heard of that. It’s not a cult is it?”

  “No, Mother. It’s some ancient goddess. Zander is…well, he’s old.

  “Old? Like the pagans?”

  She propelled her down the corridor. “Yeah, something like that. Anyway, it means a lot to him.”

  “Which one is Zander?”

  “The old one in the long robes. I don’t know if you saw him.”

  “With the long hair? Who looks like an androgynous model?”

  “Androgynous? Good lord, Mom, do you know what that means?”

  She chuckled. “I’m not stupid, dear.”

  They met Zander in the library. He nodded to them, then to the weight bench, where he’d set up his altar. Like the last sunrise prayer, he had three candles, a bowl, and a knife. The old book lay open to the side, next to a dishtowel. A ceramic bowl was filled with vegetable oil.

  “We have to make do,” Zander explained, motioning to the bowl and its contents. “The Goddess will understand.”

  Patricia eyed the knife. “What’s that for?”

  “The sacrifice,” Zander said. When she looked startled, he explained, “I will provide that. As a new fledgling and master, neither of you can spare it.”

  He turned back to his altar. “If you are ready? I must apologize, but I do not have this ceremony memorized. I will have to read it. I will try to translate some of it, but most will be in the old language.”

  Katelina wasn’t sure what the old language was but, once Zander started, she never wanted him to stop. More music than words, the sing-song rhythm was like a lullaby. A memory tickled the back of her mind. She’d encountered something like that before…

  Zander broke into English, “We ask Goddess for your protection and blessing as we welcome our new sister into the world of night.” He motioned Patricia forward. With a nod of encouragement, he dipped his fingers in the oil. He took up his sing song chant as he traced something on her forehead.

  He wiped his hand on the dishcloth, then lifted the knife. Despite the calming influence of the song, Katelina stiffened. Her mother stepped back. Like last time, he only drew it across his palm and squeezed a few drops of blood into the bowl. He lifted the bowl, chanted, then dipped his fingers in it to trace a second symbol over the oil on Patricia’s forehead.

  He cleaned his hand, and finished the prayers. As the last words died away, Katelina felt a spark of sorrow, as if something beautiful had ended — like watching a flower die.

  Though the ceremony was over, the two women stood, transfixed, until Zander said, “It is finished.”

  Katelina shook out of the spell. “Oh. Yes. Thank you.”

  He inclined his head. “You are welcome. She may wash her forehead. The anointing has already done its work. I will do my sunrise prayers now.”

  Patricia was still glazed, so Katelina thanked him again before she dragged her away. In the hall, her mother blinked and mumbled, “That was beautiful.”

  “Hypnotizing, more like.” Katelina snapped her fingers in front of her mom’s face. Patricia flinched. Her eyes cleared.

  “What? Oh. Yes. I’m here.”

  “Glad to know it. Come on. We might as well clean you up, then head to bed.”

  “Right.” But even as Katelina led her to the bathroom, her mother looked back toward the closed door of the library.

  When Patricia was clean
, she greeted the basement with the same enthusiasm Katelina felt. Etsuko made it better with extra blankets and solicitous comments that left her with no option except to say how wonderful everything was.

  Katelina stretched out next to Jorick and closed her eyes. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against him. His lips tickled her ear as he whispered, “Are you still mad at me?”

  “I should be.”

  “That’s a shame. I guess I’ll roll over and—”

  “Go ahead. I’ll add it to the list of things you did wrong today.”

  He chuckled. “There’s a list? I’d like to hear it.”

  “You’re the mind reader. Pluck it out of my thoughts.”

  “Is that a challenge?” She felt him in her head and imagined a heavy brick wall. His efforts doubled. She pushed back harder.

  “You’ve practiced blocking your thoughts?” he asked finally.

  She thought about lying, but settled for the truth. “No. I’m surprised it worked.”

  “Why? Your mind has gotten steadily more difficult to read since your encounter with Samael. I have to work harder at it. That’s why you can feel it when I try, now. You didn’t used to.”

  “I think I did. Sometimes.”

  “Sometimes, but not every time. It’s not important. It means your abilities are growing.” He pressed a kiss to the side of her head. “Since you won’t tell me the list of my sins, I’m going to sleep.”

  “You already know them. I hardly saw you all night.”

  “Because you didn’t need me, little one. I told you, there was nothing for me to do.”

  She suspected he was right, but she had no intention of telling him. “Good night, Jorick.”

  “Good night, little one. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Sleep came surprisingly easy, and brought few dreams. The sudden wash of sunlight was a surprise, as were the palm trees that waved outside the window. Like the last dream meeting, there was no peace, only an itchy sense of urgency.

  It took Katelina a moment to find the center of the impatience. Samael sat on the floor of an open closet, jackets hanging above him. Though she couldn’t see bodies, she sensed they were there in reality, no doubt the owners of the house.

  “You judge me to be in the wrong?” Samael asked.

  “You can’t kill people because you want to stay in their closet. As powerful as you are, you could turn yourself invisible or take over their minds.”

  “Yes, but why? Do you take the time to step over an ant, or trod upon it without thought?”

  “They’re people, not ants.”

  “Not to me.”

  She didn’t like where the conversation was going. “Did you find Lilith?”

  “Yes.”

  When no more came, she pressed. “Where?”

  “She is near here. I know not the names mortals have given these places.”

  Katelina groaned. “Then how are we going to get there?”

  “You do not need to. The war is between me and the whore of darkness.”

  “But she has an army. You said yourself she was raising one. And she has that ancient sword, and who knows what else.”

  “Do you believe in the magic of the Gods? I understood you thought the sword to be a relic, a piece of metal with no meaning?”

  “It is. I think. I don’t know. The curse…everyone who’s had it really did die horribly. If there’s something to that…” She laid her hand on the back of a cream colored sofa. “It’s better safe than sorry.”

  “You may join me if you wish. Leave your fresh fledgling behind. She is weak, as are the humans. Bring only your strongest.”

  “Bring them where?”

  “The desert,” Samael said.

  “You realize the desert is a huge place, right? It’s like four states or something.” Truthfully, she had no idea. She’d never been west.

  Samael lifted his head, and closed his eyes. A soft murmur of voices rose, like a low buzz. They grew louder, until she could recognize words, some in English, some in Spanish, and some in languages she couldn’t guess.

  “The thoughts of the ants.”

  Not ants, but people. Samael was tuned into the humans, sifting through a million minds. Voices peeled away, until there was a single word.

  Phoenix.

  “Remember what I said. Bring only your strongest. Death waits here for the weak.”

  Katelina started to say she was weak, but the room and the vampire disappeared before she could.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Katelina opened her eyes the next evening and shook Jorick awake. He gave the familiar gasp, then, “Little one?”

  “Samael is in Phoenix.”

  “What?” He sat up. The film of sleep slipped away, leaving him alert. “Arizona?”

  She nodded. “He says that Lilith is nearby and that we can come, but we need to leave Mom and the humans behind because ‘death waits for the weak’.”

  Jorick leaned back on his elbows. “Taking a fresh fledgling and humans to battle is never a good idea. Let’s feed, and we’ll speak to the others.”

  To Katelina’s relief, Etsuko offered Patricia bottled blood. The thought of taking her mother through the underbrush, showing her how to drink from a squirrel…she didn’t want to contemplate it.

  “You’ll need to do it eventually,” Jorick said.

  “I know. The longer I can wait, the better.” She hated to look a gift horse in the mouth, but…”Why do they have all that bottled blood, anyway?”

  “Oren doesn’t like to drink from living creatures,” Jorick said. “He objects to the connection with his victims. He prefers to hunt, kill the animal, drain it, and drink the blood later. It creates a separation. He says it’s ‘easier’.”

  Though she hated to say it, she agreed with Oren. “Where do they get it?”

  “He kills a deer, or some other suitable creature, then drains them.” Jorick squinted over the property. “I assume he’s using the barn for that.”

  Katelina glanced at the building and imagined a row of carcasses hanging, throats slit, their blood running into buckets. While it bothered her, it also made her hungry.

  After their breakfast, they returned to the house. Xandria was in the living room with Brad. “Hey, Kate, was I supposed to let him out?”

  Brad rounded on her. “Why was I locked in?”

  Katelina stepped back from his anger. “I didn’t know you were.”

  “It was for his own protection,” Oren answered from the doorway. “And ours. We don’t know him, or what he might do during daylight hours. He had adequate facilities. There is a private powder room attached to that bedroom.”

  “But I’m starving,” Brad snapped. “And I want to see Patricia. Where is she?”

  “Here I am.” Katelina’s mother came out of the kitchen. In the borrowed dress, sans her usual glasses, she looked like a stranger to Katelina.

  Brad hurried to catch Patricia in a one armed hug. “Are you all right?”

  Both the question and sentiment echoed inside Katelina. It was like watching a scene from her past. When she was still human, how many times had Jorick rushed to check on her after they’d been separated?

  When everyone was fed, Jorick gathered most of the vampires together in the kitchen. Katelina repeated the dream, warning and all.

  Oren was the first to comment, “I was under the impression we were finished? The goal was to retrieve the child and your…Katelina’s friend. The child was retrieved. As to the other, I see no point in risking life and limb to rescue someone who doesn’t want rescued.”

  Brandle laid a hand on Oren’s shoulder. “That was indeed your goal. None can fault you if you’ve fulfilled it. Mine, however, was to retrieve William and Angelica, which has not yet been accomplished.”

  “It was not my goal, either,” Zander said. “I wish to see an end to Lilith and all who would cause such destruction. It is an insult to the Goddess.”

  �
�I want to kill Anya,” Torina said.

  “And I don’t give a shit,” Micah added. “I’m down for a fight. I got nothing better to do, and I ain’t never been out west. I always wanted to see California. Redwoods and that shit.”

  “I’m available,” Verchiel said, though Katelina thought it more likely he was AWOL.

  Sorino remained conspicuously silent, a half smirk on his lips.

  “What about you, Jorick?” Oren asked.

  The vampire ran a hand through his dark hair. “On my own, I would say this is a matter for the Guild, or the Kugsankal, or for Samael himself. But Katelina wants to go.”

  She twisted her hands together. Did she?

  “You’ll want to deal with Sarah,” Verchiel prompted.

  A voice came from the doorway, “What about Sarah?”

  Katelina swiveled to see Brad and her mother.

  “Mom.” She broke off. How could she explain this?

  “You said yesterday that Sarah was kidnapped and tortured. Is that what you’re talking about, or something else?”

  So her mom remembered that. Katelina regretted the outburst. No doubt there would be uncomfortable follow up questions.

  Verchiel gallantly stepped up to the plate. “Sarah is with a crazy vampiress who wants to wage a major war with her ex. We thought Sarah was kidnapped, but it turns out she joined on purpose.”

  “I saw her,” Brad said slowly. “Before everything exploded. The investigators said I thought I had, that it was a suicide bomber that reminded me of Sarah, and that my brain swapped the faces in my memories, but…”

  “It was probably her,” Verchiel said.

  “Why?” Brad asked.

  Katelina choked. “Are you serious? Brad, you dumped her for the woman she looked at as a surrogate mother. She’s hurt, and she’s angry.”

  “She blew us up?” Brad demanded.

  Katelina flinched. She hadn’t said Sarah was responsible for the attack. “Who said…”

  Brad made to cross his arms, then dropped his good hand uselessly. “I told you yesterday, Kate, I can piece things together. If Sarah did that, if she’s the one who hurt Patty…”