by Laura Lee
Leo reached down and forced me up by my elbows, leading me into the building, which happened to be a hotel. I tried ignoring the stares from onlookers as I stumbled by. I was confused as he headed towards the elevators because this wasn’t our hotel. “What—”
Leo’s raised hand gave me the universal gesture for shut the hell up. He stabbed the button for the top floor and remained silent as we rode the lift up. I had to speed walk to keep up with him as he exited the elevator and walked down the hallway. He pulled a key card out of his pocket and examined the burnt edges. It apparently wasn’t too damaged, because a green light illuminated as he swiped it to unlatch the lock. Leo pushed the door open and turned the deadbolt once I joined him inside.
He nodded curtly towards the sleek grey chesterfield. “Sit down and tell me what happened.”
I looked down at my bloodied clothing. “I’m filthy. I think I’ll stand.”
He walked into the bedroom, came out with two large towels and placed them on the couch. “Sit. Talk.”
I obeyed. “Why do you have a room at another hotel?”
“What the hell happened back there, Karli?” he shouted.
I stiffened. Leo never raised his voice, especially not towards me. His fists were clenched and his nostrils flared. “I don’t know…I got lost. Before I knew what was happening, Maria was there, attacking me.” I recalled the events in my head. “I fought back. She was going to kill me, so I reacted.”
“Since when can you channel sunlight?”
I threw my hands up. “I don’t know!” I took a deep breath. “It just happened. I thought I was about to die and it just came out of nowhere!”
He sat on the couch next to me and rested his elbows on his knees. “You can produce light as a weapon.”
Grabbing his hand, I said, “Leo, I would never hurt you.”
He looked pointedly at our ruined clothes. “I think you’ve already proven that’s not true. Karli, your light didn’t come out of nowhere. It came out of everywhere.”
“I didn’t mean for you to get caught in it. It was an accident! I didn’t even know you were there and I don’t know how I did it!”
“Takk told me what happened earlier. And now this? Your powers seem to be growing exponentially and you don’t have any control over them.” He sighed. “I need to know exactly what happened before I arrived.”
I recapped the story for Leo, ending with Connor taking Maria in his arms and sifting away. Yes, I said Connor. He was the man who came to her rescue.
“What do you mean, he sifted?”
“I mean, that he disappeared into thin air with Maria in tow.”
Leo shook his head. “That’s impossible…you said he is a vampire.”
“Yeah. And?”
“And vampires cannot manipulate space like that. He must have simply run too fast for your eyes to track.”
I shook my head this time. “Nuh-uh. I know what I saw.”
Leo scowled. “Tell me what he looks like.”
“You should know…it’s the same guy I was with at the pub. I saw Takk taking a picture of us.”
He didn’t even try denying it. “He didn’t get a good shot. I could only see the back of his head.”
I glared. “So you admit to having him spy on me while he’s supposedly providing security detail?”
“Quit being such a petulant child and focus on what matters.”
“Are you kidding me right now?” Okay, maybe I was being a little petulant.
He grabbed my shoulders. “Karli. Tell me. What. He. Looks. Like.”
I pushed his arms away and stood up. I did not like this Leo one bit. “What the hell is the matter with you? Why are you being such an asshole?”
He scrubbed his hand over his face. “Answer the question please.”
“Fine! Dark skin, brown eyes, black hair. Big guy. Built like a Greek God. He looked Middle Eastern almost but…not. His accent was pure Irish though. Very thick. Now why does it matter so much?”
He looked up at me. “Because…if you truly did see him sift, then there’s only one vampire in existence who has that ability. And if it is him, nothing good can come from his association with Maria.”
“Who?”
His face took on a grim expression. “Khonsu.”
“Who?” I’m sure my face was scrunched in confusion.
He walked across the room, grabbing the History of the Fae book. When did that get here? He flipped through it for a minute or so before holding it out towards me. “Read it.”
It was the story of the original vampires. The fairy maiden, Renata and Khonsu, the fallen god. I gasped. “But…but his accent was Irish.” He gave me a minute to think it through. “But…those can be faked. Or if he really has been here a long time, he could’ve picked it up.”
“Correct,” he agreed.
“Why would he be with Maria? That can’t be a coincidence.”
“I don’t know for sure…but one thing I do know is that he can track all of his children. All but one anyway.” When one vampire sired another, they considered that person their child.
“That doesn’t make sense. You’re Maria’s maker. Only you can track her. At least only you could.” Maria had been working with Erica’s late husband, Jake. He was a warlock and used black magic to remove Maria’s bond to Leo. Once it was gone, Leo lost the ability to sense her whereabouts, allowing her to escape.
He shook his head. “He’s the original, Karli. He’s a god. His power is unfathomable; Maria’s spell to remove her bond from me would have been useless on him. He is linked to every vampire in existence except…”
“Except whom?”
“Except me.”
“Wait…what?”
He sighed. “It’s a long story. Let’s get cleaned up first. I’ll order some food for you and then we’ll talk.”
“I don’t need a shower or food, Leo. This is more important.”
“My dear, I do. I need to inspect my—I’m not going to sit here covered in charred clothing and dried blood.” He started walking towards the bedroom. “I’ll be back shortly. Help yourself to the shower in the other bath. There should be a robe in there.”
I decided to take Leo’s advice about cleaning up since I had to wait for him anyway. Afterwards, I walked into the living room donning a hotel-issued robe, towel drying my hair.
Leo was looking through the room service menu. “What would you like to eat?” He was wearing a long-sleeved blue tee that made his eyes practically glow, along with a pair of black track pants. It was always so unnerving seeing him this casual.
“I’m not hungry. Unless you want something, don’t bother calling.” I had a feeling I was going to need a drink for this, as Leo’s stories about his past were usually filled with things I’d rather not know. I nodded towards the mini bar. “May I?”
“Of course. Help yourself to whatever you’d like.” I grabbed two glasses and poured some scotch for Leo and a vodka cran for myself. He took the proffered glass from my hand, sat on the couch, and…winced?
“You okay?”
He looked startled by my question. “Yes, of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“When you sat down just now…it seemed like you were in pain.” My eyes traveled over his body. From what I could see, he appeared fine. “Are you sure you’re healed? Did you have enough of my blood?”
He gulped. “Yes, I’m sure.”
I narrowed my eyes in doubt. “That wasn’t very convincing.”
He stood up, took my hand, and led me back to the couch. “My sweet, I assure you I had all the blood I can handle. I’ll be fine.”
“All the blood you can handle?” I repeated. “What does that mean? You’ve been acting strange since healing my leg the other day. What’s going on, Leo?”
He inhaled through his mouth and closed his eyes. “I mentioned the other day that your blood is different, more powerful.”
“And?”
He opened his eyes, staring into min
e quite intensely. “And…I had…difficulty stopping. Not biting…drinking. Deeply.” I couldn’t help it; I flinched, and he noticed. “Your reaction tells me I wasn’t wrong in leaving our shared room. You’re afraid of me.”
I shook my head in denial, but my reply lacked conviction. “No, I’m not. I trust you.”
“My love, I can feel your fear. Whether you want to admit it or not, it’s there.”
I really hated that he could read my emotions. Stupid vampire abilities. “Okay, fine. Maybe I’m a little afraid…but not really, Leo. I do trust you. With my life. You should know that by now.”
“Regardless, I didn’t trust myself at the time. It’s more than your blood, my sweet. Your scent is surfacing as well.” His nostrils flared. “I can smell your blood beneath your skin when you’re nearby. It makes me feel like I…need to taste it. I’ve never felt this impulsive before. Biting…my need for blood, it’s almost always under my control. Yes, the urges get stronger if I go too long without any, but they’ve never reached a point where my fangs lengthen against my will. Not without a grave injury at least. That miniscule taste of your blood the other day had a rather…disturbing effect.”
“So that’s why you left? There was no trip to Belfast?”
He shook his head. “No. I needed to get away from you to quell…the urges. I needed space to figure it out. Thankfully, I wasn’t too far away or I wouldn’t have been able to get to you when I sensed your terror. Although…you didn’t seem to need my assistance after all.”
I turned my head away in shame from hurting him. “No, I guess not.”
He squeezed my hand reassuringly. “Anyhow, I’m okay now. Being close to you…I have more control. I was caught off guard before. Now that I know what’s happening, I can easily override instinct with logic. As it was proven in the alley. I drank what I needed, and then I stopped.”
I remembered something that Connor, AKA Khonsu, had said to me the other night. “Leo, I need to know more about this guy. He’s been following me…the alley was the fourth time that I’ve seen him since we’ve been here. The first two times were pretty innocuous…and honestly, I thought he was just a guy trying to get laid the third time. After seeing him with Maria, I know that’s not the case. He mentioned my scent when we were at the pub. Do you think he knew what it was? And why is he in Ireland? Even if he does know what I am, he couldn’t possibly want to follow me halfway around the world for blood. I’m just one fairy.”
His eyes took on an icy hue. “He knows what you are; I have no doubt about that. He would’ve known before he sat with you that evening. There’s little chance Maria wouldn’t have mentioned it. My question is why is he so interested in you? I’m fairly certain that this isn’t a desire for your blood.” His expression turned grim. “If that were the case, you’d already be dead. He seeks something greater. The question is, what?”
That’s what I wanted to know. “Leo, tell me everything you know.”
Leo proceeded to tell me everything he had learned from his maker, Renata. She and Khonsu were together for over fifteen hundred years. They reigned together, quite violently. About five hundred years into their rule, she wanted something more civilized but he didn’t share her feelings. She argued that they didn’t need to ravage villages or kill so ruthlessly. Only freshly made vampires were ruled by their thirst, and she believed she could teach them how to control their impulses. She ached for a return to the peaceful life in which she was born. Khonsu was quite mad; he derived great pleasure from seeing others suffer. He raped, murdered, and destroyed entire villages with no mercy. He only sired those who killed without remorse as he did. He made it his personal mission to create an army of cold-blooded killers. I was having trouble reconciling this version of the man to the sophisticated, charming one I had met. He had obviously learned how to adapt in a more civilized world.
Little did Khonsu know, Renata had created an army of her own but she was ill-equipped to train them in battle. She led a rebellion blindly, wanting so desperately to be free from him. Her followers were all killed; not a single one was spared. She was imprisoned for treason and tortured for decades. Eventually he released her, believing that he had successfully stifled any further notions of betrayal. He loved her in his own sadistic way and wanted her by his side. After another thousand years or so, he finally lost interest in her. He was too consumed with his new pet, Amira, to make time for anyone else and granted her permission to leave. She traveled the world creating a new breed of vampire, one that was much more refined. They were taught to control their hunger and to only eliminate those who deserved death. She and her children were ridding the earth of the vilest beings one by one.
Renata eventually landed in London, which was where she’d met Leo. They’d dated for some time while he was still human and fell in love. She offered him the gift of immortality so they could be together for an eternity. They spent the next four hundred years traveling the world, enjoying each other’s company. Unbeknownst to them, Khonsu was watching them the entire time. He always had someone reporting back to him and when he realized Leo wasn’t just a favored pet, jealously spurned him into action. He personally followed them to Paris during the interwar period. He told her that she’d had enough time to play around and it was time to join him once again. She refused, telling him that she had a good life, and didn’t want anything to do with his way of living. He gave her one year’s time to reconsider. Apparently when you’re a god who had lived for many millennia, a year was a measly measure of time.
Renata immediately sent Leo to the United States, agreeing to meet up with him as soon as possible. She knew that her defiance made him a target, so she arranged for him to stay with a coven of witches in New York. They held the power of thirteen, which was a binding spell that only thirteen siblings of the same gender could perform. Once the ceremony was complete, their powers would pool together, making them capable of casting almost any spell. These particular sisters were not only heavy in magical strength but also knowledge. They created the spell that could break a bond with an original. They had explicit instructions from Renata to break any ties that Leo and Khonsu shared. Once the spell was performed, he was required to avoid consuming any blood for six cycles of the moon. If he survived, the bond would be severed.
It took me a while to process everything he had told me before I could formulate any questions. “Didn’t you say that you need blood at least once a month? And that newer vampires need it more often than that?”
“Yes, I did,” Leo confirmed. “The odds of survival were slim, but she insisted that this was the lesser of two evils. I had no reason not to trust her. She truly believed that my life was in danger since he knew of our relationship. We were exclusive for almost four hundred years; there was no way she could have passed me off as a fleeting interest. I fought her on it, insisted on standing by her, but she refused. She forced her influence on me, compelling me to leave.”
All vampires had the ability to influence others in some way, but I didn’t think it worked on their own kind. “Wait…a vampire can charm another vampire?”
He nodded. “It is rare, but yes. All vampires are blessed with certain abilities. That was hers. Unfortunately, Khonsu was immune to it. ”
“What’s Khonsu’s?”
“You witnessed it in the alley. He’s the only known vampire to have such ability. I believe it was a godly power…one that he regained upon becoming a vampire. He can teleport, but only in short distances. Renata believed that ability was the reason he was never killed. Imagine being able to simply disappear when you find yourself in a dire situation.”
“The sifting thing?”
He smirked. “Yes, the ‘sifting thing’.”
“That would definitely come in handy,” I remarked. “You still haven’t told me how you survived.”
He shrugged. “I don’t know…sheer will, maybe? It certainly wasn’t pleasant. I wasted away more and more each day. I lost track of time...I almost lost my sa
nity. I don’t think I would have made it had the witches not opened their home to me. They had an underground cell similar to a bomb shelter. It protected me from the elements.” His expression turned somber. “If only they thought to protect themselves from me.”
“What does that mean?”
“After the sixth cycle was over, they opened the cell to retrieve me.” He paused. “I honestly don’t think they thought I’d survive; hence the lack of common sense on their part.”
I motioned with my hands for him to continue. “Still not getting it, Leo.”
“My thirst was unbearable…it took precedence over anything else. I killed them, Karli. All of them. I couldn’t stop drinking until every one of them was bled dry.”
“Oh.”
“Anyhow…” Leo continued, as if he hadn’t just told me that he slaughtered thirteen women that were responsible for saving his life. I knew he had killed people in the past; he told me so himself. But I always assumed that they were horrible people. Did that make it any better? I didn’t know. A year ago I would have firmly said no, but considering I’ve killed a woman, and now possibly a second, the lines were blurred. “Karli, are you listening to me?”
Crap! “Uh, sorry. Please continue.”
He cleared his throat. “As I was saying, after the bond was broken, I came out to Vegas as we had planned. It was quite isolated back then. The Strip was non-existent at that point. It was the perfect place for staying under the radar. I began construction on my home while waiting for her to join me.”
“Did she need to break her bond with him before she could come out?”
He shook his head. “No. As co-creators of our race, they had no physical obligation to one another. They were equals. Blood bonds, which typically signify subservience, didn’t come into play until they sired others.”
Okay, ignoring the subservient piece for now to stay on topic. “So why didn’t she just accompany you to New York?”