Valerie wasn’t sure she quite understood all this mitochondrial talk, but she definitely did not understand what it had to do with immortality. “What does this have to do with immortality?”
“We believe that there was a time in history when living vampires had their own communities along side humans. When the vampires bottlenecked, they had to interrogate into the human population and the mitochondrial DNA mutated to become recessive, inactive, in order for the species to survive.”
“So some humans carry this vampiric mitochondrial DNA?”
“Yes. Technically they are not human but they possess no vampiric traits. For some reason this DNA becomes activated—as it was in you—and a living vampire is born. It could work in the same way as some hereditary diseases that skip a generation. Not to imply that I consider vampirism a disease,” Alessandro clarified.
“Okay, I’m sorry, but I’m still not understanding the immortal part yet.”
“We believe—and we have seen some evidence that Venjamin believes the same thing and may even have some proof of the theory,” Jonathan said, “that it’s a matter of blood consumption. It might even be what activated the vampire DNA. A baby born with a strong desire for blood or raw meat that the parents indulge. Valerie, you do not have to drink human blood. As long as you eat your meat on the raw side, you will live an average human life. You can even consume human food, and it will give you some of the nutrients your body needs. But if you were to drink only human blood, you would not age. It is your consumption of human blood that has kept you looking twenty instead of thirty. On a diet of human blood you will not die. Venjamin thinks your children function the same way and that is why Harry is so far behind in his physical development. He drinks more blood than the rest of you slowing down the aging process. Also the less blood you drink, the more vulnerable you are to infection and injury.”
A sudden loud noise made Valerie cry out. Huge steel curtains moved across the windows sealing them off from the view and the rising sun.
“Living in a house mainly made of windows requires some strong precautions,” Alessandro apologized. “Noisy as they are, they keep the light out and protect against hurricanes.”
“So living vampires are allergic to light?”
“No. You can go out during the day. I would recommend sunscreen however. You will burn as humans burn.”
“And the children?”
“We don’t know. But we can do a simple ultraviolet light test to find out without putting them in any danger,” Alessandro said.
“What about the speed and the strength? We never knew we had these until running from Venjamin’s men.”
“Latent. You never needed them before. Surely it was something Venjamin would have wanted to test, but then you’d have the ability to revolt. If you go off human blood completely, you will lose them.”
“Tell me about made-vampires now.”
“Are you sure you want to continue? This is a lot to process and take in,” Alessandro said.
“We could continue tomorrow night, and you could get some rest,” Jonathan offered.
“No.”
“Okay. We have venom in our fangs—as do you. It helps subdue our victims, immobilizes them. It will also alter the genes of a human being so they transform into vampire. So we are more like the mutant vampire that Tobar imagines you to be. Our bodies are dead. We don’t breathe. Our hearts don’t beat. Our bodies don’t produce waste. But the change in our genes that is geared towards immortality keeps us alive. We can only feed on blood. Though we have no direct proof, we believe we were originally created by living vampires though we don’t know why.”
“How does one create a vampire?”
“A vampire must first bite a human infecting him with his venom, then the vampire drains him of every last ounce of blood, and finally he offers himself to the victim, the vampire’s blood replenishing the human’s transforming the human into a vampire.”
It sounded like a barbaric practice. “Why would you make another vampire?”
“Most do it for companionship. Eternity is lonely. But some do it for power. Selfishness. Revenge. It all depends on the vampire.”
Valerie rubbed her eyes then ran a hand through her hair. “If your body is dead, how do you produce sperm? How could I reproduce with my husband?”
“To that we have no answer,” Jonathan said.
“Though we male vampires can ejaculate, I have never seen swimming sperm under a microscope,” Alessandro said. “Maybe there is a very low percentage of living sperm which makes life possible, but as to how a dead body could produce that sperm, I could not tell you.”
“Okay,” Valerie said taking a deep breath. “Tell me about yourselves. Personally.”
“Tenacious,” Alessandro said with a smile. “I was a Germanic Saxon who had invaded Britain in the late fifth century. I had a particularly strong bloodlust as a human. That is why my maker chose me. He thought I would make a good sporting companion. I am proud to say that I have evolved since then. After a couple of centuries, the hunt began to bore me and I parted ways with my maker. I had always been a voracious reader as a vampire and now turned my eternity towards that pursuit. I discovered that I had an aptitude for science and medicine.
“I am told that I am a bit eccentric,” he said with a grin. “I change my name every century. As we entered our two thousandth year, I chose Alessandro. I do not have a last name except for tax purposes and that is Smith. Over the years I have been a lord, a warlock, an actor—hence the costume tonight. I put on a show of Henry VIII. I was magnificent if I may say so myself. I have dabbled in every business imaginable and have acquired quite the fortune. Right now Jonathan and I own and operate a resort slash casino slash nightclub on the island. We have been here for . . . fifteen years now. Let’s see . . . I have a soft spot for humans and animals though animals typically don’t like me. I love to entertain and I always have a room open for a friend. Anything else you’d like to know?”
She turned her eyes to Jonathan. “What about you?”
“I do not know the year I was born or the year I was turned. As a human I was a tribal leader on the coast of Africa. I was kidnapped from my home and taken to America as a slave before America was even America. One night a black man came to my hut and offered me freedom. I thought him a demon, but he was my only chance of escape. We ran into the fields, but we had been seen. The master and his men were after us, firing their muskets wildly into the night. Once we had found a moment’s peace to rest, the demon transformed me into a vampire. This was his idea of freedom. We soon parted ways. I’ve done odd jobs for many, many years. Then I became involved in machinery. Then electronics. Then computers.”
“Jonathan is the only reason we have as much information on Tobar as we do, and why our house is so impregnable. We have a security system that monitors everything,” Alessandro bragged obviously proud of his friend.
“How did you two meet?”
“Our hunting grounds overlapped some hundred years ago. Instead of battling for the territory, we discovered that we were kindred spirits,” Alessandro said.
“And Ethan?” she said looking over her shoulder at him. He had not said a single word this entire time, but she had felt his dark blue eyes fixed intensely on the back of her neck.
“Thanatos? A pity case!” Alessandro laughed.
“A stray we took in,” Jonathan said smiling as well.
“I think it’s time for bed,” Ethan said.
“I agree,” Alessandro said. “Valerie?”
“How do you plan to free Charlie?”
Chapter Thirty-four
Mystery Solved
The mystery vampire’s name was Ethan Shanahan. He did prefer to feast on the dying, and he was not unfamiliar to Sangre Valley or Venjamin. Rhett’s hunch had paid off. After spending a night on the street with the stench of bums and junkies, Rhett had been able to gather a wealth of information on their unnamed vampire. More humans had taken notice o
f him than vampires.
“He’s a devil,” one rather rancid man told him through rotten and missing teeth. Rhett didn’t understand how Shanahan could feast on such filth. “I seen him years ago when I was living under an overpass in Boston. Skulking in the shadows watching us all devil-like. You see him, and you know someone will be dead in the morning.”
“Does he live in Boston? Is that where he’s from?”
“The devil has no other home than Hell, you fool. I have a friend, he seen the devil in Florida. I’ve heard other stories all up and down the coast. The devil is everywhere.”
A street down, a homeless woman who reeked of booze and B.O. told him, “He’s the angel of death. He takes mercy on those that are sick and in pain and dying. If you’re healthy and happy, he don’t want you. He’s only after the dying.”
“He’s a vampire,” yet another street person told him. “They’re real, ya know. Exposure, overdoses, disease, that’s what the po-po says. But I’ve seen the bodies. Completely drained of blood. But who’s gonna believe a junkie?”
“Do you know his name or where he lives?”
The human shook his head. “No. But I know where some other vampires live. You don’t go into their hood at night, man. Not unless you have a death wish. So whatcha got for me? Some green? A little pick me up? Some beer? I don’t give nothing out for nothing.”
Rhett smiled revealing his fangs. The man’s bloodshot eyes transformed into huge disks. He tried to run, but Rhett was in front of him before he had even taken two steps. With one swift movement, he snapped the junkie’s neck. He was not about to sink his teeth into such bile.
The address the druggie gave him was for a coven of three in Brooklyn, two females and a male. Those vampires had a name for him. He had encroached on their territory some twenty-plus years back. They didn’t know about his taste for the dying though.
“He hunted vampire slayers. That’s the only reason we left him alive,” a petite curly-haired blonde with thick lips told him. “He was pretty badass.”
“We’d heard rumors about him,” a tall, dangly male said. “He had taken on whole armies of hunters by himself, all armed with wooden stakes and silver bullets. Slaughtered them all and never even swallowed a drop of their blood. It wasn’t bloodlust, it was vengeance.”
“I’m sure it’s an exaggeration,” the full figured, curvy vampire said leaning seductively in a doorway. Rhett knew how she lured her prey in. “But I had a go with him. He’s a skilled fighter, knocked me on my ass more than once. He could have finished me. But he didn’t. He was pretty single faceted.”
“Why would he seek out vampire hunters? Seems like he’d have a death wish,” Rhett said. Secretly he was impressed. Taking down a vampire hunter was no small feat. More than ever he wanted to test his own skill against this vampire.
“To avenge the death of his lady love, another vampire killed by a secret society of Catholic slayers. He wiped the organization into extinction,” the blonde said.
“But his vengeance wasn’t quenched. He continued to hunt the ones that hunted us. He had tracked a group back to our territory. Did us a favor in the long run,” the male said.
“You haven’t seen him since?” He wondered how a vampire went from hunting slayers to hunting human trash. It seemed almost like a fall from grace.
“Nope. Hadn’t heard any more rumors about him either. Figured he finally got himself staked.”
“Do you happen to know his name?” Rhett asked. He was on the cusp of tracking this vampire down and along with him the rest of the Murray family. He could feel it in his blood.
“Ethan Shanahan,” the curvy one said.
That name hadn’t meant anything to Rhett. But when he called Dr. Venjamin with an update, the name meant the world to the doctor.
“Ethan Shanahan. Yes, I’m acquainted with the vampire. We met a very long time ago. I would very much like to become reacquainted with him.” The description of the scars should have given his identity away. Charlie now had similar scars on his face and body. Venjamin didn’t know why he hadn’t put two and two together. “He is a very strong and dangerous vampire.” Venjamin had learned that lesson the hard way. He had never seen anything like Shanahan. Such single-mindedness, such swelling rage and vengeance all tempered with the self-discipline of a yogi master. Strength, speed, and skill superior to any other vampire. He was a terrible and beautiful creature. “If you come across his trail, don’t approach him. Call for back up. You will need it. Good work, Rhett.” Dr. Venjamin hung up the phone.
He hadn’t thought about Ethan in a very long time. He had a tendency not to dwell on his failure which was probably why he hadn’t recognized Shanahan’s description. He remembered being fascinated by the strength and resolve of the vampire. He had a bloodlust, but it wasn’t based on hunger. Ethan had been a legend in himself among vampires. Oh, how Venjamin had wanted him for his town. But it wasn’t meant to be. Ethan was the first and only vampire to escape from his clutches. Ethan had his revenge against the vampire slayers that murdered his maker and lover. Now it looked like he was after revenge on Venjamin. It would be sad to put that vampire down, but he would once and for all.
Chapter Thirty-five
Refuge
Soon as Valerie’s head hit the pillow, she was out cold. Inside the beach house she felt safe for the first time since leaving her home. She did not have to worry that every little sound was a precursor to Rhett and Drew bursting through the door. Her children were safe. Exhausted from everything she had been told tonight and everything she had seen in the last week, she slept hard and deep and without dreams.
When she finally woke to the sounds of the waves gently lapping onto the sand, she was disoriented. Lying in a four poster bed, she was cocooned in the softest sheets that had ever touched her skin. Dark oil paintings of water and natives hung on the soothing pale cerulean walls. Bookshelves housed multitudes of old books. There was a small sitting area with a wicker love seat and chair, a vase of red hibiscuses on the table. The room was beautiful. It wasn’t until her eyes found the beach outside the tall windows that last night’s events came back to her with a flooding intensity. Her head almost began to hurt as she thought about last night’s conversation.
Pushing all that out of her head, she stretched and went in search of her children. She knew they were livid at her for excluding them last night. But she wouldn’t have been able to handle their questions and opinions on top of everything Alessandro and Jonathan had to tell her. Ethan had pointed out their bedrooms last night. She knocked and opened the doors, but Amelia and Harry’s rooms were empty. She went to knock on John’s, but angry music blared from the room and she decided it was best not to disturb him. She couldn’t handle his attitude or resentment at the moment.
Downstairs she found Alessandro in the kitchen stocking the refrigerator with something that looked remarkably like the packets of blood she use to buy at the Blood Market.
“Good evening, Valerie. How did you sleep?” he asked cheerfully. He was dressed in khakis and a blue and black bowling shirt, his long hair pulled back into a low ponytail.
“Fine, thank you. Where are my children?” she asked still feeling a little dazed from her sleep.
“Oh, I hope you don’t mind, but Gabriella took Amelia and Harry shopping. John declined the invitation and has been enjoying his music upstairs for most of the evening.”
She realized that she had slept half the night away.
“I’m sorry. I’ll tell him to turn it down.”
“No worries. Teenagers. Can I get you some breakfast?”
“What were you just putting into the fridge?”
He opened the fridge back up and pulled out a packet of blood. “It’s donated blood. Harry told Gabriella that he missed human blood. I wasn’t going to give it to him without your consent, of course. But I promise you, no humans were killed in the process,” he assured her with a smile.
She took the pack from him. It felt heav
y in her hand. Her stomach growled. “How did Venjamin come up with enough humans to feed an entire town?”
“The questions never stop with you. We think that’s why he supplemented with animal meat and blood. Made a mockery out of it. We certainly don’t eat eyeballs or severed fingers. But this world is full of homeless people, runaways, and there is always human trafficking. Tobar is a resourceful man.”
“What do you mean by ‘donated’? Did the humans give it up freely or was it taken from them against their will?”
“We have a blood drive at the resort every couple of months. Most of the blood makes it to the local hospital, but not all of it. When we are born into our vampiric lives, we do not lose our souls, Valerie. It’s just that the hunger is greater than our will. We are not evil creatures. Jonathan and I do drink human blood, but we do not kill. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to the resort. I’m sure Jonathan is wondering what’s taking me so long. I will see you later and answer whatever questions you have left.”
“Thank you,” she said sincerely, tears suddenly threatening. “Thank you for helping us and giving us a place to stay. I don’t know what we would have done if Ethan hadn’t found us.”
Alessandro smiled. “This is your home now. You live here as long as you like. And when we free Charlie, he’ll be welcomed here as well.”
She gave him a tight smile.
He motioned to the packet of blood in her hands. “Enjoy your blood,” he said with a wink and took his leave.
She found a glass and poured herself some blood. She knew she was breaking her own rule about drinking blood from humans. But it tasted so sweet going down, filled her in a way only human blood could. Donated blood seemed like a good compromise. Harry and John would be happy. She was a little trepidatious of Amelia’s reaction though.
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