Ironic Sacrifice

by Brooklyn Ann

  “We’ll get you warmed up soon.” Razvan’s voice rumbled against her ear and she was too tired to protest.

  He had her stripped down and lowered into a steaming bubble bath in record time. Her teeth chattered as the warm water closed over her. She was cold, after all. The pill began to kick in and she closed her eyes and gave herself up to Razvan’s ministrations, reveling at the feel of his touch. It was too bad it was because of the night’s terrible events.

  Too soon her bath was over. He dried her off briskly and threw a billowy nightgown over her head.

  “Now it’s time for bed. And do not forget, you are to rest all day tomorrow.” Razvan regarded her with a forbidding frown as he turned down the bed. “If I catch you doing anything strenuous when I awaken…”

  “What’ll you do? Spank me?” she asked in a heavy drugged voice.

  A ghost of his old rakish smile crossed his lips, but it was tinged with something else. “Now that is an idea.”

  Once she was in the bed, Razvan climbed in and pulled the covers over them both. There could be nothing more comfortable than the feel of his arms around her. Still, the circumstances were nearly unbearable.

  “I can’t believe they killed Max,” she said. Her throat tightened and her eyes burned as the reality crashed upon her. The gruff, kind man that she had met was no longer here. He had never done anything to harm anyone and yet he was dead because Razvan and Silas pissed some vampires off. He’d been like a father to Akasha. How would she make it without him?

  “Poor Akasha,” she murmured, head swimming with grief and the valium’s stupor.

  “No more talking,” the vampire commanded.

  She opened her mouth to protest his bossy tone, but fell asleep instead.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  When Jayden’s breathing was smooth and steady, Razvan crept out of the bed and joined Silas upstairs. The vampire reclined on the living room couch, staring blankly at the television as he sipped a glass of scotch.

  “May I have some of that?” Razvan asked.

  Silas blinked at him as if he didn’t recognize him. Then comprehension appeared to dawn and he went to the sideboard to fetch the bottle and another glass.

  When Razvan received his drink he took a tentative sip and grimaced. “This brew is potent, but rather unpalatable. I don’t suppose you have any palinka?”

  “What is that?” Silas asked idly.

  Razvan sighed, giving up hope of ever tasting the delicious plum liquor from his home country again. “Never mind.” He lit his pipe and regarded his friend. “Do you think Akasha will get well?”

  Silas closed his eyes as if in brief prayer. “I hope so. The only thing with which I am certain is that Selena must pay. I contacted my attorney, and after Max’s will is read, I’ll enlist his aid in preparing a case to submit to the Elders.”

  “Do you think that will bring any results?” Razvan asked doubtfully.

  McNaught’s eyes were tight from strain. “I don’t know, but I must try.”

  “And when that fails?” He couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of his voice.

  Silas narrowed his eyes. “We shall punish her ourselves. Do not worry, old friend. Justice will be served. I know this situation is even harder for you since Selena is after your woman.” He lowered his voice. “But you must know that Jayden will be much safer if we can secure a writ of execution for Selena and reinforcements from the Elders to aid in her arrest.”

  Razvan took a deep draw off his pipe instead of responding. Silas was right, but it didn’t make their inaction any easier. He stood up and bowed stiffly. “I should go check on Jayden. I only hope her mind can bear this strain.”

  The other vampire smiled. “I think she is stronger than you give her credit for.”

  Razvan frowned. “I am not so certain, Silas. You didn’t see her when I found her, malnourished, psychologically tortured, and desperate to die.”

  Silas raised a brow and quoted, “The best steel goes through the fire.”

  “Perhaps.” Razvan shrugged noncommittally as he left Silas alone with his whiskey.

  His brows drew together as he remembered the spy. That matter remained to be dealt with. Quietly, he made his way downstairs to the room he shared with Jayden. One glance at her fragile, sleeping form brought his rage back, a possessive roar trying to claw its way out.

  With trembling hands, he took his pipe from his breast pocket and loaded it as he struggled to grasp control of his temper. As he ignited the tobacco and inhaled the cherry flavored smoke, rationality gained a foothold. Such impetuous anger was unlike him, he realized with a pensive frown as he sat down in the chair across from the bed. Razvan normally faced problems with a cold calculation that Silas often called Machiavellian.

  Lately, he’d been acting on whims. Why? Was it because of the Mark he placed on Jayden. He shook his head and took another deep draw from the pipe, idly chewing on the stem. No, his impulsiveness had begun the night he first laid eyes on the captivating clairvoyant.

  That realization was more disturbing than enlightening, so Razvan shunted it away, instead focusing on the issue with the spy. In a way, the postponement of his destructive rage had been a good thing, for he was forming a better idea.

  ***

  Jayden awoke at two in the afternoon. She carefully extricated herself from the arms of the sleeping vampire and paused as she heard a thumping noise upstairs. She hurried up the steps, nearly tripping over her nightgown. Another thump came from the kitchen followed by Akasha’s voice, grumbling and cursing.

  A chill ran up her spine. If Akasha went into one of her rages, Jayden had no idea how she would deal with it alone. Very slowly, she walked towards the kitchen.

  Akasha spotted her and her expression twisted into a sickly grin. “Jayden, thank God. Could you open a beer for me, before I lose my mind?” she chuckled. “Oops, bad wording there.” She held up her bandaged and splinted hands.

  She nodded cautiously. “Sure.

  So far it seemed that Akasha was in an amiable mood, but if that changed… she suppressed a shiver.

  Jayden stubbed her toe on a beer can on her way to the fridge. Another one lay on the floor, leaking through a fizzing hole. It appeared that Akasha had been trying to open them with her teeth. They must have slipped from her grasp. Jayden barely had one beer opened before Akasha sucked it down and asked for another one.

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea with the pain pills you’re on?” Jayden asked worriedly.

  “I don’t give a shit,” Akasha grumbled, a faint spark of rage flickering in her purple eyes. There would be no reasoning with her.

  Jayden sighed in defeat. “Okay, I’ll open one more for you. If you want any more after that, you’ll either have to try your teeth again or take it up with your husband.”

  There was no more rest for her for the rest of the day. Akasha was a querulous patient. It enraged her that she couldn’t use her hands and the house echoed with her foul language. Jayden sympathized. She doubted that the woman had ever experienced helplessness before. Luckily Akasha’s thumbs were okay, or things would have been a lot worse.

  By the time they were curled up on the couch with a movie, Jayden was tempted to take another Valium. When Silas and Razvan rose for the night and returned from their hunt, she was happy to leave her charge in someone else’s care.

  The vampires brought home Vietnamese takeout and practically bullied the women to eat. Once that was finished, Silas gave Akasha another pain pill and tucked her into bed. Razvan didn’t say a word to Jayden. He kept darting glances at the door and checking his watch.

  The mystery was solved when the doorbell chimed just as Silas returned to the living room.

  “Thank God,” Silas said. “I was afraid he’d show up when Akasha was still up.”

  “Who is it?” Jayden asked as he went to answer the door.

  “It’s Silas’s attorney. Here’s here to read Max’s will,” Razvan said. “Akasha isn’t ready to deal
with this sort of thing.”

  Jayden agreed wholeheartedly. However, she didn't want her friend kept in the dark forever. “But she’ll be informed when she’s feeling better, right?”

  “Of course,” Silas assured her quickly, acknowledging her concern with a slight smile.

  The attorney, who was also a vampire apparently from the way he greeted Silas and Razvan, joined them at the table. Since Jayden was a “mere mortal” she was ignored after the introductions were made and he opened his briefcase and launched into his legal diatribe.

  At first she was able to follow the talk with all the “whereas” and “bequeaths.” Silas and Akasha would get all of Max’s money and his share of Resurrection Wrenches, LLC. However, his music collection, which included some valuable records, went to Razvan. And, to everyone’s astonishment, his ‘67 Dodge Charger also went to Razvan, along with a motorcycle that had been entrusted to a friend in California. Max’s explanation had been included in the will: “Because that son of a bitch needs to learn how to drive.” The friend’s contact information was included in the paperwork and a copy of the will had already been sent to him.

  Anthony Salazar, attorney at law, was apparently an expert in vampire law as well as human law. Silas explained the circumstances of Max’s death to him and asked if there was any legal recourse. The legal jargon was even harder to follow then, but from what Jayden gathered, the lawyer wanted Max’s medical records and autopsy report before he could put together the proper paperwork to submit to the Elders.

  By the time Mr. Salazar had departed, Jayden’s head was swimming from all the details. Apparently in the vampire world death had just as much, if not more red tape.

  She was just about to leave to check on Akasha when Silas said, “Jayden, I was hoping you would be able to help me with something.”

  “Of course!” She was thrilled to have an opportunity to repay him for all he had done for her. It was like a weight off her chest she didn’t realize she’d been carrying.

  Silas smiled. “There were four cars in Akasha’s shop. She’s not going to be able to take care of them. I’ll collect the work orders later tonight and call the customers. What I need you to do is to call the dealerships around town and arrange for the vehicles to be towed to them for repair. Thankfully, it is winter and the sun is down before those places close.” His eyes narrowed. “I would like you to do your best to be home before dusk. I will send some of my people to guard you when such is unavoidable.”

  Jayden realized that all of Akasha and Max’s customers were vampires. On the heels of that thought came a revelation. Silas and Razvan now trusted her to be out and about alone...or maybe Razvan just didn’t care about her anymore. A lump formed in Jayden’s throat before she resolutely forced the self-pitying thought away and returned her focus to helping her new friends.

  ***

  Razvan the last of his vampires filed into the abandoned warehouse. A hundred pairs of preternatural eyes darted nervous glances at their surroundings. He did not have to be their lord to know what they were thinking: What had possessed him to hold a meeting here instead of the usual plush hotel conference rooms?

  A venomous smile curved his lips. Soon they would rue their curiosity.

  Foregoing greetings of any sort, he began, “As you know, matters with our enemy, the Lord of Post Falls, have escalated to most vexing levels, interrupting my business with the Lord of Coeur d’Alene.”

  After giving his subordinates a moment to digest the obvious, Razvan continued. “In fact, they have escalated so far that we now have a traitor in our midst.”

  Gasps and hushed whispers floated up to the rafters, but the spy gave no sign of alarm. Keeping his expression bland, he called, “Jake, Hilda, Sarah, and Trey, come forward. I require your assistance in this matter.”

  Shocked mutters broke out among the audience as the four vampires approached, only thin lines of tension in their spines betraying their trepidation.

  Razvan surveyed them one by one. Jake, the Civil War veteran turned ranch hand regarded him with a fixed green gaze. Hilda, the buxom beauty who was alleged to be German royalty, and served as amicable bed sport last year, stared at him, her eyes grey pools of lust. Sarah…he didn’t know her origins, but she numbered among the most expensive assassins in the world. She met his regard unflinching. Though he had decreed all would come unarmed, Razvan would bet money she had a weapon stashed away somewhere on those luscious curves or within her dark silken mass of hair. He hid a wry grin. Sarah and Akasha would likely get along well.

  Then there was Trey, former Navy Seal. He would be as deadly as Sarah, had he her coldness and skills in subterfuge.

  Without warning, Razvan seized Jake, sinking his fangs into the man’s throat. At first Jake struggled, but he quickly went limp, submitting to his master’s authority.

  After releasing him, Razvan licked the blood from his lips. “I have learned what I needed. Sarah, Trey, seize Hilda. Jake, you may return to the others.”

  The vampire’s sigh of relief was palpable enough that Razvan’s was undetected. Both Jake and Hilda had guarded Jayden and Akasha at the Rage of Angels concert. Now that he knew Hilda had been acting alone, he was willing to spare Jake from the carnage that would follow.

  Trey and Sarah brought the struggling traitor forward. Razvan met Hilda’s gaze and the savage fury boiled up within him once more.

  He had trusted her to guard Jayden and she’d been acting for Selena all along. A low growl escaped his throat as he struggled to see beyond a red haze of anger.

  Gaining control, he addressed the spy. “When did you join my enemy, Hilda?”

  Her response was obscured by outraged mutters from the audience.

  “What was that?” he asked mildly, an edge of menace creeping in his tone.

  Hilda groaned in pain as her captors tightened their grip. “When you cast me aside for that human freak!” Her lower lip stuck out petulantly. “Selena wants her, so at least there will be a place for the girl when you are done with her.”

  Razvan’s eyes narrowed. He’d made poor choices in bed partners before, but this had to top the list. Not wanting to discuss personal matters before his subordinates, he said coldly, “I Marked her. Surely you know that means I will never be done with her.” He turned to Sarah. “Take out your blade.”

  Her eyes widened for a split second before she nodded and pulled out something resembling a small sword from a sheath on her spine. Razvan grinned and brought a six inch switchblade from his pocket and tossed it to Trey.

  “Now,” he said to Hilda. “You will tell me everything you know about Selena’s plans. You will also tell me if there are any more traitors in mine or Silas McNaught’s territories.”

  “Why should I?” Hilda shrieked. “You will kill me either way.”

  “True,” he said agreeably. “But how fast or slow that happens is up to you.”

  With a nod from their master, Sarah and Trey began cutting. At first the wounds healed fast, but the blood loss accelerated, they would mend at a human’s rate. The audience shrank back in horror as Razvan questioned Hilda.

  He didn’t torture her for the information. He could have drunk all he wanted to know from her veins. He tortured her to make an example of her to his people.

  Let them witness the results of betraying Razvan Nicolae. Let them see the consequences of endangering what was his.

  The smell of blood and raw meat permeated the area, but it was unappetizing. Razvan looked at the babbling crimson covered mass before him and suddenly thought of Jayden. He pictured her reaction to this interrogation. Her eyes would be huge and luminous with fear and her lovely mouth would be thinned in disapproval. Crippling shame knotted his gut, making him feel like the monster he was reputed to be.

  Razvan held up a hand. “Enough,” his voice was raspy.

  Trey and Sarah obeyed, blinking at him in curiosity.

  “I have another appointment this evening,” he half lied. There was much that
he needed to tell Silas.

  He seized Hilda’s bloody wrist and plunged his fangs into the mauled flesh. In seconds he received the rest of the scant information. In the next second, she was dead. Releasing Hilda’s lifeless body, he ordered it disposed of and dismissed his people. They bowed lower than usual and departed with terrified glances and funereal whispers. This did not please him as much as he anticipated, despite his relief that Jayden’s safety had marginally improved.

  Now alone with his conscience, Razvan realized it would take more than a shower and Listerine to wash away the filth and the foul taste in his mouth.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  The next few days were hectic for Jayden. She spent long hours on the phone at Resurrection Wrenches calling car dealerships and scheduling repair appointments, more hours waiting for late tow-trucks, and even longer fielding questions she had no answers for. She knew that Akasha and Max had dealt with ten times more every day on top of their actual duties repairing cars and her admiration for them grew. On top of handling Akasha’s business, she spent hours nursing the lady herself.

  Fortunately, the doctor had been right. After three days, Akasha was healed. When the splints and bandages were removed, Jayden’s jaw gaped as she stared at her friend’s hands. They were wrinkled from the bandages, but otherwise perfect. There wasn’t even a scar.

  Akasha made a beeline for the fridge to get a beer, shouting her thanks to Dr. Greenbriar over her shoulder.

  Then came the night of Max’s funeral. Jayden had no idea how much Silas had to have paid the preacher and funeral home staff, but it was beautiful. The Forest Cemetery got its name from the tall pines that filled the grounds and each one was now adorned with gold Christmas lights. Christmas had been Max’s favorite holiday. A dozen patio heaters had been arranged around the graveside pavilion to make the December air barely tolerable. Jayden huddled with Razvan, Akasha, Silas, a bunch of other vampires, and almost the entire crowd of the Powder River regulars. There would be a “wake” at the bar afterwards.