by T. S. Ryder
Kendra nodded. “When did you first notice something was wrong?” she asked.
“Roughly a year ago, a few weeks after the Great Gathering. You’ll find out about those in the book I gave you as well, and the next one is the reason why we’re in such a hurry – we’re the hosts of this year’s Gathering, and it’s ten days away. Anyway, after we returned from the last Great Gathering, one of my nurses asked me to pay her sister a visit. The girl seemed to be suffering from uncharacteristically strong fatigue and a fever that just wouldn’t break, which for a vampire is unusual, to say the least. I tried to administer some tried treatments for similar symptoms, but none of it worked and the girl died several weeks later. She spent the last ten days in a deep coma, probably because of the fever-induced brain damage.” God, how sad! And what a shock it must’ve been for a species so used to being practically invincible.
“We didn’t suspect any foul play at the time, and the girl was cremated,” Anais continued. “But new cases began to appear over time, and we’ve lost twenty-three people since the first case. The first definite findings we uncovered came from autopsies we performed on the poor souls who died, and once we realized what it was that we needed to be looking for, it became easier to diagnose the disease in living patients and find treatments that worked for them. But I’m afraid that, for all our effort, we couldn’t find a way to fully eradicate it, or to prevent further infection.”
“But how was it that a virus never crossed your mind?” Kendra couldn’t help but ask. She understood now how a vampire or a dhampir doctor could’ve automatically dismissed that possibility, but Dr. Duquesne was human.
“As you noted yourself, the diseased cells showed more in common with human cancer cells than with virus-infected ones,” Anais noted. “And, also, the investigations Sebastien launched at our father’s order to find out the common traits between the victims showed very few straight lines. We suspected at first it might be transferred through blood, as feeding is an essential part of proper vampire sustenance, but not everyone who fed on an infected person contracted the disease. And if it were airborne it would’ve spread much faster.” Indeed, Kendra thought to herself, mulling over theories in her head as to what could cause such a sporadic network of infection.
One of the more controversial theories about the most controversial disease in human history came to her mind almost instantly. “Have you ever heard about the multifactorial model of AIDS contraction?” she asked Anais, and the older woman shook her head in negation. “Basically, back in the early days, one of the theories about AIDS was that it took a set of multiple factors to come together for a body to become vulnerable to the disease, which would explain why some people could be infected with HIV for a long time before they develop AIDS. It’s generally considered an outdated theory, and has been for decades, but the way you describe the pattern of this infection... it may very well be the reason why some people who come into contact with infected blood do contract the disease while others don’t.” And AIDS itself had originally been considered a new form of cancer, another parallel that Kendra thought worth looking into.
Anais sat silently for a while, thinking about Kendra’s theory. “It does make a certain amount of sense,” she said finally, her expression very somber. “And it’s a direction we haven’t considered before. We’ll need to delve into some preparations at first, mostly obtaining new samples, but other than that, I think we have all the tools we need to put that theory to the test.”
Kendra wanted to say something, but her stomach decided to take the moment she opened her mouth to protest its state of emptiness, and Anais gave her a quizzical look. “You came down here as soon as you woke up, didn’t you?” she asked, and an embarrassed Kendra just nodded. “Well, come on, then,” Anais said, standing up. “Let’s get you fed and caffeinated so we can get to work.”
Figuring it’d be easier to focus if she wasn’t hungry, Kendra followed Anais out of the laboratory, looking forward to something for the first time since she was brought into the house.
Chapter Six
It had been a difficult night for Sebastien, not only because he had to deal with the fact that he’d nearly torn his best friend to shreds but also because he’d had to bite the bullet and admit why he’d been behaving so irrationally in the past twelve hours.
Ironically, the person who brought this fact to his attention was none other than Alex himself.
“You’re Bonding with her!” he exclaimed, as he stormed into Sebastien’s office, slamming the door behind him.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” He dismissed the accusation right away, but Alex knew him too well to just let things slide.
“You pretty much snatched her out of my arms the second we came out of the plane, you sat by her bed like a dog until she woke up, your canines protracted for her without any provocation as if you were a horny teen and you nearly killed me last night for calling her a bitch... which she completely deserved after cold-cocking me – twice!”
Sebastien’s brow shot up. “Twice?”
Alex groaned. “She punched me when she saw me at the door before we took her to the lab,” he explained, and Sebastien couldn’t help but laugh. Oh, yeah. She was a real wildcat, his Kendra.
He instantly felt his face grow cold.
“Aw, hell,” he cursed. “I’m Bonding with her.”
Noticeable possessiveness without a valid reason behind it was one of the first and most obvious early signs of Bonding, and he freaking missed it until now.
“Damn it,” he grumbled, “As if this situation wasn’t complicated enough.”
Alex grunted, agreeing, and for once not being an ass about being right.
“I’m going to need to limit the time I spend with her as much as possible,” Sebastien said, prompting his friend to scoff.
“As if that’s gonna do you any good. Face it, Seb, Mother Nature made her will clear – there are fat brown babies in your future.” Sebastien shot his second a violent look, a warning growl rumbling from deep inside his chest. “Whoa, there, boy,” Alex raised his palms up defensively. “It’s not my fault your woman’s thick and juicy.” Somehow, this only made Sebastien even angrier. “You know what, I’m just gonna shut up about this for now.” Alex finally gave up, and Sebastien decided that was probably the smartest thing his second had said all night.
“Never mind Kendra now,” he announced, doing his best to calm his temper down. “Tell me about the reports.” While his sister and her late husband were working on the cure for the mysterious and fatal disease that was picking off the members of their Clan one by one, Sebastien and his direct subordinates were trying to find out any connections between the victims in an effort to locate the original source of the infection.
“There’s nothing to tell,” Alex told him, just as exasperated by the dead ends they kept running into as Sebastien was. “So far the only real connection all of them shared was that they all attended the last Great Gathering... but, come on, it couldn’t be that. No one would be insane enough to desecrate the sanctity of a Gathering, and even if such a maniac existed, wouldn’t we have heard about victims in other Clans?”
Reluctantly, Sebastien had to admit Alex had a point.
But, still, there was something that picked at his brain and wouldn’t let him dismiss the idea just yet.
“You know what I keep thinking about?” he told Alex. “The Mississippi Clan.”
Alex frowned. “You mean their marriage proposal?” he asked, and Sebastien nodded.
“You have to admit that was more than a little weird,” he said. “They’ve been pissed at us ever since my father helped my mother run away from home.”
It's been one of the great romances in vampire history, akin to Romeo and Juliet of the human world, except his parents actually had good heads on their shoulders and planned their union with much greater care. They’d met and Bonded at one of the Great Gatherings, their connection instant and all-consuming, but
his maternal grandfather, the Clan King of Mississippi, refused to allow the union, seeking to hurt the then Clan King of Louisiana for some transgression long forgotten by everyone else but him, and not caring who got hurt in the process.
But he’d underestimated the strength of his daughter’s character. It took her and her beloved months of planning, but when the opportune moment came, she packed her bags and, together with every dhampir slave brave enough to follow her, ran away from her father’s plantation and into the bayou, where Baptiste Roche waited for her with boats and a small but well-equipped army.
Sebastien’s paternal grandfather granted the runaway slaves their freedom and welcomed them into the Clan, and his parents wed and led a long and happy life together until his mother’s death, their joy a perpetual thorn in the eye of her father and brothers. Ever since then, there hadn’t been a single Great Gathering that hadn’t had at least one major fight between the Louisiana and the Mississippi Clan, usually with the latter as instigators (though God knew their own Clan didn’t lack in dumb hotheads).
That was, until last year’s Gathering, which saw, for the first time in over 200 years, an offer of peace – and alliance through marriage – between the two feuding Clans. The offer of marriage was declined (unlike Sebastien’s mother’s family, the Roche looked down on the idea of cousin spouses), but the offer of peace was accepted with open arms, and the two Clams spent the night in joint revelry, drinking, dancing and coupling until the dawn’s approaching light sent them all to their beds.
“I want to investigate this further,” Sebastien told Alex. “Speak to the families, to friends... to any of the infected who are still able to speak. Ask them to tell you every little thing they remember from that night, no matter how insignificant it might seem.” Alex sighed, clearly thinking that this was a lost cause, but nevertheless obeyed. They might butt heads sometimes, but his second never failed to execute the Clan Prince’s commands to the fullest.
Once he and Alex parted, Sebastien threw himself a work, but when it became obvious that the only thing he could think of was Kendra alone in her bed, he gave up and went down to the gym to sweat off his frustrations. It didn’t do much to ease his mind, but at least it made him tired enough to fall asleep without too much tossing about.
When the sun set and the metal window covers rose, Sebastien woke up to the sound out of pure habit. As usual, after breakfast, he went down to the medical bay to see his father, passing through the laboratory on his way. Sure, he could’ve taken another route, but this one was faster... and he knew Kendra was there.
It was such an odd feeling, being so profoundly aware of another person, yet he felt as comfortable about it as if things had always been this way. He’d wondered if she was feeling the same, or if it would be taking more time for the Bonding to sink its hooks into her body and soul the way it had into his. He hoped it would happen sooner rather than later, because the wait was killing him.
She with Anais in the lab, bent over a desk as they observed something he couldn’t see from this angle – but he could observe the generous curve of her full backside instead, and felt like it was a fair exchange. He smirked but otherwise tried to pass through as if her vicinity didn’t have his hormones screaming to snatch her and carry her off to his room over one shoulder.
For better or worse, though, Anais turned just as he’d passed them by and called out to him. “Going to see the old man?” she asked by the way of greeting, and Sebastien nodded.
“Is he lucid?” he asked in reply, knowing that his sister kept regular tabs on their father while he was in the sick bay.
“It was still daylight when I saw him last,” she told him and walked over to her work desk to pick up their father’s sheet. “Come on, we’ll go see if he’s awake together,” she smiled at her brother, linking her arm with his, before calling out to her new assistant. “Kendra, come with us. Father’s one of our latest infected, and the disease hasn’t truly begun ravaging him yet. You’ll get to see how it looks in the early stage... and meet the Clan King, too.”
Kendra looked as if she was thinking it over for a moment before she left her current work to join them, nodding to Sebastien, but otherwise remaining silent.
Unfortunately, their father was still asleep and didn’t wake during their visit. He may have been only one of the recent victims, but he was also the oldest one they had so far, carrying 459 years under his belt. Vampires lived long lives, but they weren’t immortal, or immune to the trappings of age. The longest living vampire Sebastien had ever heard of was Old Mother Bellamy, the iron matriarch of the Washington Clan, who’d celebrated her 600th birthday just last year, but for all the sharpness of her mind – and tongue – her body had become too frail for her to ever leave her wheelchair decades ago. She remained alive through the sheer power of her will, but even that couldn’t last forever. The old coot had had a good run, and Sebastien still felt a little sad at the thought of attending a Great Gathering without seeing her there, surrounded by her many children and grandchildren.
It hurt his heart to see his father so ill, but he did his best not to show it too much, sitting on the stool at his bedside while Anais and Kendra looked over Baptiste’s charts and compared them with other data they had. He only half listened to them... until he heard one of them mention AIDS.
He looked at them, frowning, but they didn’t notice him at all, and it wasn’t until they were out of the sick bay and back in the lab that he took the opportunity to ask what was going on.
“Kendra had an interesting theory that I decided it was worth looking into,” Anais told him, actually sounding hopeful. “We won’t know anything for sure until all the lab work is concluded, but I think we might be on to something.”
“It’s based on old AIDS research,” Kendra chimed in. “The data Anais and Dr. Duquesne gathered so far makes me think it’s a valid option... but yes, until the new data is in and we can do a comparison, we won’t know for sure if we’re going in the right direction.”
Sebastien frowned. “You think it might be sexually transmitted?” he asked Kendra directly, but she shook her head. Whatever fear or awkwardness she had felt the night before, it had clearly taken a step back to professional curiosity, because she spoke without shying away or wasting time on carefully wording her replies. “I think it might be transmitted through bodily fluids, with blood being the most obvious carrier,” she told him. “Anais said that you were in charge of all non-medical research into the infection?” He nodded. “Good. I’d like to see the results of your investigations. It might help us narrow down the field and pinpoint the original source.”
“We’re actually following a new lead ourselves,” he told them then. “Alex is doing all the groundwork for the time being, but if anything definitive or new comes along, I’ll be sure to bring it to you right away.”
Anais nodded. “Hopefully, we’ll get to the bottom of this soon,” she said. “I’m sick and tired of watching my people die.” Unsaid went what Sebastien knew to be the biggest fear his sister had – the death of their father – but he chose not to bring it up. Anais still hadn’t had a chance to properly mourn the loss of her husband; he didn’t need to add to that burden.
“You should take Kendra to bed,” Anais suggested out of the blue, making both her brother and her assistant choke, but continuing as if she hadn’t noticed the shock on their faces. “She’s been working all day, but we have an even bigger load to deal with tomorrow, and needs to sleep.” She was acting all innocent and altruistic, but Sebastien recognized matchmaking when he saw it.
If it had been any other woman, he would’ve made some excuse and dashed off.
But for Kendra...
He looked over at her, waiting for her reply. “It’s still early... but, yeah, I probably should get some rest,” she said, but she didn’t wait for Sebastien. Instead, she walked over to one of the desks in the lab and picked up what looked to him like his first history book, and made her way out of the la
b.
“Better hurry if you don’t want someone else to snatch her away,” Anais teased him, but rather than reply with his usual lightheartedness, Sebastien growled angrily at the thought of Kendra in another man’s arms, and rushed after her.
Chapter Seven
It didn’t take Sebastien too long to catch up with Kendra, and she felt a strange sort of satisfaction when she heard him trailing after her, his heavy steps growing louder as he approached her. It made her feel hunted, but rather than be afraid or repulsed by the thought, it excited her.
Clearly, this whole vampire thing was affecting her brain more than she would’ve thought possible... although, oddly, not more than she would’ve liked. It was a new and alluring feeling, and she was curious to explore where it could lead
She knew where she wanted it to lead her, though, and wondered if Sebastien felt the same. She did not know him, but she knew herself, and she recognized the signs that she was rapidly becoming interested in this man, this vampire, probably more so than would be wise. But she couldn’t help it. Every other moment, even when she was deep in her work, she would remember some reaction of his or something that he said, a trace of a kinder, gentler person that existed under the harsh exterior of the pure male he presented to the outside world. Oh, she had no doubt that this profound masculinity was as much a part of his personality as the loving brother Anais talked about or the caring son she had seen today in his father’s hospital suite, but where the alpha male attracted her on a deeply carnal level, it was the other, hidden part of him that made her think of Sebastien Roche as someone who might tempt her to wish for more than a wild clash of bodies in the night.
But that wasn’t going to happen, was it? He was not only a very handsome man, but the current de facto leader of his Clan and the future Clan King. She could see him taking her for a romp – she had caught him looking at her with lust in his eyes more than once – but she suspected he would choose someone with a better understanding of his world for his Queen.