“Special? Sure you are. You don’t get to be in denial about it. That would just be stupid. You’re many things, Aurora, but stupid doesn’t make the list.” I wasn’t sure how to respond, so I just waited for her to continue. She looked at me long and hard, but I was patient. “What have you noticed so far?” she asked. “Anything strange? Maybe a few new abilities popping up?” I blinked at her. This was really getting weird. “Think.” She couldn’t read my mind, my mental fortress would have prevented it if she tried, but I was pretty sure she was tracking for this full-moon cycle. Still, something in my eyes must have given her answer enough. “Ah,” she said, sneering in satisfaction. “So you have.... Of course you have. You’re the only one good things happen to. Even beating you in that fight at Club Sanguine backfired on me. How was I supposed to know your precious rock star would have the nerve to take you to a Synod Elder to keep you from dying? Now, on top of being special, you have the blood of a Synod Elder coursing through your pretty little veins. No wonder you’re developing new talents.”
I wanted to smack the smug look off her face, but my desire to see where this was going took precedence.
“He senses it in you,” she said, which wasn’t really an explanation at all.
“Senses?” I demanded.
“I wasn’t really paying attention,” she admitted. “Something about him being able to sense you ever since he gave you his blood. Blah, blah, blah. He suspects you’re developing unusual talents. Blah, blah, blah. I try not to listen when he goes on and on about you. You can’t really blame me. Anyway, the point is that he’s been trying to duplicate it, but nothing has worked so far.”
So many questions were vying for attention in my mind that I didn’t know where to start. “He’s been giving other vampires his blood?”
“Not openly,” she said. “He’s been putting it in special batches of wine and giving it to his fledglings.”
“Why bother with the wine?” I asked. “If he made all those fledglings, they’d already have his blood.”
“He didn’t make them,” she corrected. “At least not directly. He had other vampires randomly making fledglings. I guess he was hoping that if he left them to fend for themselves they’d create enough chaos to bring vampires into the open. That didn’t go so well,” she added. “That’s when Stanislav decided to secretly give them his blood in the wine and see if they’d start doing whatever it is that you’re doing.”
“Is it working?” I asked.
“He wouldn’t have much use for you if it was.”
That was a relief. I wasn’t sure what my ability to pull from more than one power at a time – and during daylight hours – meant, but I was pretty sure it wouldn’t be good if there were unsupervised fledglings running around in Florida who could do the same.
“Let me have Tytus,” she said, dropping any pretense of niceties.
“I don’t own Tytus,” I stated. “He’s free to do what he wants although he’s made it pretty clear he wants nothing more to do with you.”
“You have everything,” Malena said, and I saw a hint of the maniacal desperation I’d seen in her at our last encounter at Club Sanguine. “Let me have this one thing.”
“Who is this Angelica you’re looking for?” I asked, my curiosity getting the best of me. “What’s so important about her that you have to enlist Tytus?”
“The only way I can ever hope to salvage what’s left of my reputation back home is for Stanislav Vidic to endorse me. He’s promised that to me, but only if I can locate her. He’s obsessed with having an heir to his legacy.”
“There is no heir. Damir told me himself that the bloodline ends with him, and since he clearly can’t have children.”
“Damir doesn’t know what Stanislav knows.” She gave me a wicked smile. “Damir’s brother had a child. A daughter.”
“But he died so young....”
She shrugged. “I’m just relaying what I’ve heard. I’m not even sure the brother knew about her, but she’s out there. She’s been floating around in foster care her entire life. Stanislav has done his homework, and it’s my job to track her down.”
Stanislav had a human heir? No wonder he was searching so hard. All of Stanislav’s hopes of building a legacy had ended with the death of Damir’s son, but if that weren’t true – if this girl really existed – Stanislav Vidic would still have family. And that meant that Damir did, too.
“Give me tonight,” I told her. “Don’t leave town. We may be able to help each other after all.”
She laughed, although I didn’t find anything funny about the situation. “You know how to find me,” she said, and with that she walked away.
I texted Tytus and asked him to meet me at the room Trey and I were sharing, and I found the two of them waiting for me when I unlocked the door with my key card and walked inside.
“I got your message,” Tytus said when he saw me.
“Thanks for meeting here,” I told him. “Where are Mark and Beck?”
“They’re doing a little night sightseeing,” Tytus answered.
“What’s going on?” Trey asked casually as I dropped my purse on a table. “Trouble restocking the stash?”
I’d only told him that I was running an errand, and he’d assumed I was going out to get us more blood. The truth wouldn’t make him quite so happy. “I didn’t go out for blood,” I stated. “I went to see Malena.”
Trey’s reaction was immediately evident in the way his heartbeat shifted gears. He practically jumped to his feet and was standing right in front of me, giving me the once-over. “Alone?” he asked. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I told him, giving him a second to work through everything that was running through his mind.
Malena’s dangerous, he was thinking. She almost killed you. Why would you do that? Then I saw flashes in his memory of me flying through the banister at Club Sanguine, of him forcing his way through the vampires on the floor below to find me impaled by a piece of wood. I’d avoided looking into his memories of that night for more than one reason. Seeing it all in waves like this was overwhelming.
“I’m fine,” I repeated, taking his hand in mine so he would focus and look at me. The flashbacks stopped when his blue eyes met mine. “We just talked,” I assured him. “Really.”
“I would have gone with you,” he said. “Both of us would have.” He included Tytus with a jerk of his head.
“He’s right,” Tytus said.
“I know,” I told them both. “This was just something I had to do. I had questions, and Malena had answers. We can spend all night talking about how what I did was stupid, or you can let me tell you what I just learned.” Trey’s shoulders dropped, and the look on his face softened. He squeezed my hand and led me over to the sofa, sitting down and patting the spot next to him. I sat down and said, “Malena is working with Stanislav.” Trey and Tytus were silent, staring at me. “It’s really not that far-fetched when you think about it.”
“She couldn’t have Damir-” Tytus said slowly.
“Exactly,” I stated. “She’s moved on, and up, which also means that she knows things.”
“What kind of things?” Trey asked.
“She confirmed what Stanislav said about him changing the fledglings in Florida to create chaos, but there’s something Stanislav didn’t tell us. He didn’t make those vampires himself, but he’s been giving them his blood through special batches of wine at the vineyard. He has enough vampires on his payroll that it wouldn’t even be hard for him.”
“Why would he want them to have his blood?” Trey asked. “He made it very clear to me when I showed up asking for help that it’s no light matter for a vampire in his position to give his blood. This just doesn’t make any sense.”
“Malena claims that Stanislav can sense whatever is happening with me. That means he knows I’m getting stronger and that my abilities are evolving.
“He thinks it’s because he gave you his blood,” Trey said slowly.<
br />
“It makes perfect sense when you think about it,” I agreed. “Of course he would want to duplicate that with vampires who follow orders better than I do.”
“What do we do about all of this?” Tytus asked.
“First,” I said, “Tytus, you need to help Malena find this Angelica girl she’s looking for.”
“Why?” Tytus asked bluntly.
“Because,” I said. “She’s the only human alive to come from the Vidic bloodline.” It took him a second, but I could tell by the look on his face that Tytus was right there with me. “She’s Damir’s niece,” I explained. “Damir’s brother fathered her before he died. At least, that’s what Stanislav believes. And what better way to convince Stanislav that bringing vampires into the open and putting humans in their place is a bad idea than to find his long-lost great, great, great – whatever – human granddaughter?” Tytus bit his lip in thought, and Trey got to his feet and walked over to the window slowly, gazing outside for a long minute.
When he finally turned around he asked, “Does Damir know?”
I shook my head. “Not yet, but he’s about to.”
Chapter 63
Trey
IT HAD BEEN THREE days since Tytus had left to join Malena and her search. The tour would have been over now, if not for the fact that we’d had to reschedule the night Stanislav had held O’Shea and Kacie captive. We were back at that same venue now, putting on the show that hadn’t happened the first time around. It felt great to be on this stage with O’Shea at my side. The last time I’d been here, he’d been beaten, drained, and left to die. I’d asked him earlier if it bothered him at all coming back here. He’d basically told me that it only would have bothered him to bring Kacie back here. As it was, Kacie was safe in Clearwater, and Antonio was keeping an eye on her for us. O’Shea had shared my sentiment. He just wanted to get out there on the stage and kill it for the fans that were dedicated enough to come out a second time just to see us play.
It was the last night of the tour, and the fans were more than eager to have us back. They screamed every word of the fast songs back at us, and cradled their lit cell phones in the air to wave back and forth like the rolling tide during the slow ones. They were the perfect crowd, and we were just trying to deserve that. When the main set was over, Aurora had made us over into our zombie selves and sent us back out to perform the encore. We were playing “Filtered Ache,” and I was trying to memorize exactly how I felt being on the stage in that moment. Another tour had come and gone now, and although that had meant some long nights and a lot of miles on the road, I knew I would miss it as soon as it was over. I would miss the constant goofing off with my brothers, and the chance to play the music we were so passionate about in front of enthusiastic crowds like this one almost every night. I would miss the way these kids were performing the songs right along with me, like they’d written the words themselves. I would miss sharing a tour bus with Aurora, and the way she’d managed to make it feel like a home somehow. I would miss sneaking into empty rooms backstage with her to steal a kiss, and the way she usually convinced me to drink from her just to get me through the next show. So many things were running through my head as I sang the words to the song.
“I know that it’s a sacrifice
The way to you now is clear
I’ll take a breath and take a chance
Push aside my every fear.”
I was slamming on my guitar when I could have sworn I heard Aurora in my head, calling my name. I looked around for her, but she hadn’t come back out to the seat in the first row after zombifying me and the guys. I’d never been able to communicate silently with her during shows before. I don’t know why I thought it was starting now. There were just too many people for that. I shrugged it off as needing to feed or something, and I threw myself into the final chorus of the song.
“I’ll forgo all that I am
Don’t want to face the night alone
I know it won’t be easy
Seeing you … feels like coming home.”
And with that last note, and the eruption of screams from the crowd, the Until Sanity Tour was officially over. The feeling was bittersweet – finishing a tour usually was – but the journey of these past few months had been no ordinary tour. I put my guitar on a stand and moved to the edge of the stage to join my bandmates and brothers in our final bow. I was waving at the fans, and mouthing ‘I love you, too’ to a particularly eager one in the third row when I heard Aurora’s voice again.
Trey!
I cast my eyes around, half-expecting to find her among the first few waves of fans, but she was nowhere to be seen. Was I really imagining it? I couldn’t be sure. The reality was that plenty of people were screaming my name. Out loud.
I smiled and then gasped as cold water suddenly poured over my head. I ducked instinctively, and most of it missed my face, but the rest of me was soaked. Chase’s laugh rang out loud and clear from directly behind me, and I shook my head, sending drops of water flying. I laughed and looked up just as Chase dropped his now empty water bottle on the stage at our feet. I gripped the back of his neck playfully and pulled him into a choke hold.
Trey!
There it was again. The voice was unmistakably Aurora’s. I was certain now. I released Chase and searched for her again, frantically this time. I finally saw her at the side of the stage, skidding to a stop just out of sight of the crowd. She’d come running, but I couldn’t imagine why. Then the expression on her face registered in my brain. Sheer panic. I’d never seen that look on her face. Ever. Then she looked right past me, and I spun around to see why.
Stanislav Vidic and three of his cronies were walking out onto the stage from the other side.
I’d been so caught up in the rush of the performance that I hadn’t even sensed them coming. I immediately pushed O’Shea behind me, putting myself in a defensive position between the guys and the vamps. I didn’t want to think too hard about who might have tried to get in the Synod Elder’s way before he took the stage, and what he might have done to get past them. In response to the still cheering crowd, Stanislav began clapping and nodding, smiling and gesturing to us as if he were just another adoring fan. He had a microphone in his hand and raised it to his mouth to say, “Bravo! Bravo! What a wonderful spectacle, wouldn’t ‘you agree?” He raised his hand toward the guys and I, and the audience roared in approval. They had no idea the show – or at least the end of it – had just been hijacked.
Aurora was at my side now, standing with me to separate the vampires from my brothers. Her sudden appearance on the stage resulted in an even louder response from the crowd. Stanislav looked absolutely thrilled.
“We’re not doing this,” I said into my microphone, staring straight at the Synod Elder.
“Oh, but I think we are,” Stanislav responded into his microphone, gesturing with a grandiose sweep of his hand to the adoring crowd. “Trey has a little announcement to make to all of you,” he continued without hesitation. “Would you like to hear it?” The crowd was relentless in their cheering. “You see?” he added, smiling victoriously at me. “They can’t wait to hear what you have to say.”
“Let’s take this backstage,” I offered. “These people are innocent. Leave them out of this.”
“They’re a big part of this,” Stanislav argued. “Besides, does it seem like they want to be left out?” I wracked my brain for a way out – anything to stop the inevitable. “You’ve already disappointed them once,” he continued. “You cancelled the show on them last time, and now you want to deprive them of the pleasure of sharing in our dirty little secret? It’s shameful, really.”
“What secret,” I asked. I hoped I might buy some time, but Stanislav wasn’t having it.
“If you’re really going to be such a coward about it, I’ll make the announcement for you,” he said, which caused the crowd to become eerily silent in just seconds. “You see, ladies and gentlemen, I am a vampire.” The crowd’s reaction was exactly w
hat one might expect after a declaration like that. There were some claps, a few whistles, and one girl in the second row even hollered out, “Do you sparkle?” The last one earned a decent laugh from the fans. Stanislav smiled patiently before he held up a hand to silence the laughter. “The best part of my announcement is that your beloved Trey and his darling Aurora are also vampires.”
I’m not sure whether it was the looks on our faces, or the sheer ridiculousness of the situation that caused the span of silence following Stanislav’s proclamation. The next voice I heard come over the speakers belonged to Jonas, who was standing somewhere behind me.
“Um, in case you haven’t noticed, we’re Zombies.”
The crowd was in an uproar, and I risked a glance in Jonas’s direction just long enough for him to shrug, as if to say ‘Just go with it.’
“Can you believe this guy?” Chase said into his mic, pointing a thumb in Stanislav’s direction and shaking his head. “Wouldn’t know a zombie if it devoured his brain.” The fans were eating it up, convinced we were playing around – this being the last show of the tour and all. I saw it in Aurora’s face, the hint of a smile, and I realized we might be able to make this work.
“Your precious Trey has been lying to you,” Stanislav interjected, desperate to get back control of the situation and the crowd. “He’s been lying to you the whole tour.”
“That’s your plan, now?” O’Shea asked. “You’re going to gain the crowd’s favor by bashing our singer? In what world did you think that was going to work?”
Stanislav’s marble expression was beginning to crack at the idea of being thwarted for a second time. “It’s not too late to join with me,” he said to Aurora and me, backpedaling. “We’ll be great together. The three of us can bring about a new era for vampires everywhere.”
“I think we’re just over the whole vampire thing,” I said in exasperation. “Haven’t you heard? Zombies are the new vampires!” I threw my fist in the air. “Am I right?”
Fangs And Fame Page 33