Blood Bond (PULSE, Book 5)

by Kailin Gow

  Mal grunted. “We have the source now, in any case. But when we drain her, don't even think about taking another drop.”

  “That's the problem,” said Olga. “Molotov doesn't want to drain her. We can't steal the vials – he wants the girl alive. If she even is alive – I think that girl's been turned...”

  “Impossible!”

  “He wants to sell access to her to desperate vamps who want to turn human. A few hundred thousand rubles a day for time to fall in love with the girl. And to do whatever else besides.”

  Kalina shivered at the memory of Molotov's plan.

  “Does he know you're not with him?” Mal's voice grew quieter. “Does he suspect?”

  “The Life's Blood broke his hold on me – he can't read me the way he used to.” Olga snapped. “So don't complain that I took your precious Life's Blood; if I hadn't, Molotov might've seen right through us, and then where would we be?”

  Kalina clapped a hand over her mouth. So Mal wasn't on Molotov's side after all. From the looks of things, Olga and Mal were both working to subvert the plans of their maker.

  “You're sure he doesn't know? About the Carriers in custody.”

  “I'm sure. No, not Molotov. I'd know if he knew. He's a fool. If he were wise like you, he'd drain the girl and make an army of Life's Blood vampires to serve him – but he's a different kind of evil. He likes money and doesn't like getting his hands dirty. Sends us to do it for him.”

  Kalina's heart almost stopped. So Mal had managed to get his hands on some of the Carriers.

  “Did you find more?”

  “We've searched all over the world,” said Mal. “Sniffed out whomever we could. We searched every village and every city. We played it safe – any girl who had the slightest whiff of Life's Blood about her we took. They're in the compound now.”

  “And if they turn out not to be Carriers?”

  “We always need more slaves. And I'm sure at least half of them will turn out to have Life's Blood.”

  Kalina felt sick to her stomach. The thought of those girls – why, they couldn't be more than sixteen years old – kidnapped, frightened, taken away from their homes, from their families, from everyone they loved made her want to throw up. She couldn't even begin to imagine how they must be feeling – how afraid...

  “I'm thinking of making a deal,” said Molotov.

  “A deal? With Molotov? After all...”

  “Don't be silly, my pet. It will work out to our advantage. I'll give him two or three of the Carriers when they age – two or three times the profit for him – and I get Kalina. These children will manifest their abilities in a few years – what is a year or two to a vampire? He'll surely wait – and while he waits, we'll manage to have the rest of the children along with that girl.”

  Kalina could stand it no longer. She turned and ran down the rafter once more, flying down to Octavius’ side. He had just finished staking one final guard; the guard exploded into dust at their feet.

  “I did warn them to run,” said Octavius sadly, “But they insisted on fighting until the end.”

  She tugged at his sleeve. “Mal has them,” she cried, her breath catching in her throat.

  “Mal has who?” Octavius turned around.

  “The Carriers,” Kalina coughed and spluttered, her worry choking her words. “The latent Carriers – the children. I heard him talking...”

  Octavius’ expression turned to stone. He turned to Kalina. “Where is he?”

  “Mal – they're in the other room. Him and Olga. I was eavesdropping.”

  Before Kalina could finish explaining, Octavius had rushed into the other room, Kalina and the other vampires following behind. Octavius made straight for Mal, his large, muscular hands wrapping tightly around his throat, pinning him to the wall.

  “Where are they?”

  Mal looked confused. The last he had seen of Octavius, Kalina knew, they had been fighting a supposedly unwinnable battle with Life's Blood vampires. He hadn't expected any of them to make it out alive.

  Olga stood in the corner, her fangs bared. She made no effort to help Mal. Rather, she was looking Octavius up and down, clearly in awe of his superior strength, looks, and courage. Kalina seethed inwardly. Olga apparently didn't care who it was that she was serving – as long as she managed to get something out of it.

  “How did you get out...” Mal began.

  “No time for pleasantries, Malvolio,” said Octavius swiftly. “Listen to me – you will tell me where the Life's Blood children are, and if you don't, I swear you'll receive a stake to the heart that will turn you to dust.”

  There was a long pause. And then Mal started to laugh. “You're going to stake me!” His laugh grew louder. “Really, Octavius – what a fool you are. You must know it won't do me any harm. We've been through that already.” Yet his laugh grew nervous. It was obvious that Octavius had some reason behind this show of fierce confidence. “Life's Blood makes me invincible. As you would know, if you'd only drink from that delectable girl there...” He turned to Kalina.

  “You want proof?” Octavius said. “You want to go back into the main room, to look at all the vampires turned to dust on the floor. You wondering how I managed to fight off five Life's Blood vampires without a scratch on me. Not one of them has chased me in here, Mal, have you noticed that? Why is that. Perhaps maybe they've just gotten bored. Or perhaps they're dead.”

  Mal's eyes widened. “How...” he sputtered.

  “Ours is not to reason why,” quoted Octavius, pressing the stake against Mal's chest until it drew blood. “Ours is but to do – or die.”

  “Tell us where the Carriers are!” Jaegar and Stuart stepped forth. “And we might decide to show you some mercy.”

  Mal glanced over at Olga, fury mingling with wild fear in his eyes. “Olga – do something! Get them off me.”

  Olga did nothing, but merely scanned the situation, looking up and down at the vampires.

  “Olga! I am your Master – I command you! I made you! Got you out of St. Petersburg before those filthy proletariats had you shot with the rest of the Romanovs...”

  “The Life's Blood took care of that, Mal,” said Olga. “If Molotov can't hear my thoughts, then neither can you order me around. I'm a free woman. Which was, I suppose, your objection to me drinking it.”

  “Olga, we can argue later. Just get me out...”

  “I can't say I'm too interested in risking my life and limb in order to serve as a little nanny to your new little girls, Mal. I don't do bedtimes stories, and I don't do glasses of milk. I'm not interested in coddling Carriers for your benefit – not if it means risking my hide.”

  “Don't be a fool, Olga. I know you love me.”

  “I did love you once, Mal,” said Olga. “As all vampires love their makers. But you never knew what love meant, did you? You had no interest in love. You simply desired to kill or feed. And in all the Carriers you've slaughtered over the years, all the Life's Blood you've encountered – not one girl ever loved you. Oh, you’ve tried. You’ve even claimed to have loved a carrier once. But not one girl ever gave you a shot at being human. Why? Because you don't know how to love. Hundreds of years alive and you still don't know how to love.” She looked over at Octavius. “See, this vampire – far more ancient than you are. More powerful – he can kill Life's Blood vampires. But this one can love. I can see it in his eyes. He has that power...”

  “Taken!” Kalina couldn't help but shout, stepping firmly to Octavius side.

  “I'll give you one last chance,” said Octavius, pressing the stake in deeper. “I'll count to three. And if you don't tell me where the Life's Blood Carriers are, I'll have you killed right now.”

  Mal gave a twisted smile. “Then let them die. If you kill me, you'll never find them. And then they'll starve to death in my compound. No food. No water. No light. Maybe some vampire will come to feed and put them out of their mercy...”

  “I think you might want to reconsider your position.” A voic
e came booming from the room. Kalina turned around in surprise. There was Molotov, clad in furs. “Anything you'd like to tell me, Mal?”

  Chapter 16

  Molotov had retreated from the fight in the beginning. It was custom, Octavius had told Kalina, for particularly strong or powerful vampires in this part of the world to retreat into their chambers while a battle was being waged, sending lesser vampires out into the fray. Only if the threat became truly serious would a strong vampire deign to wage war on those he deemed lesser. Clad in his furs, his eyes flashing and dark, Molotov looked truly intimidating even without his army. Kalina shivered. Life's Blood or not, she didn't want to face him.

  “I see you have made short work of my men.” Molotov's tone was expressionless. He betrayed no anger, no hatred, only a mild curiosity. “It seems you have great power, Octavius. And you are currently threatening my offspring.”

  Octavius tightened his grip on Mal, squeezing his neck and grimacing. “Mal and I have a feud of a personal nature that needs settling,” Octavius said through gritted teeth.

  “Ah yes,” said Molotov. “I remember. This one managed to destroy all the major members of the Consortium, was that it? Excepting you, of course.”

  “That's it,” Octavius scowled. “Great men and women – my friends. My colleagues. My comrades-at-arms. All slaughtered by this brute.”

  “I know the Consortium. Many times throughout the years I considered joining. Indeed, I was briefly affiliated with it – long before you were even made. Long before you transformed the Consortium into what it was – a society for order and the protection of human-vampire relations – I knew Isaiah, your maker. Back then, the Consortium was a mere collection of the powerful. And I see it did not change. Many a time would I hear of some illustrious or great vampire only to discover that he, too, was a member of the Consortium. While younger, reckless, foolish young vampires would get into trouble – they'd get massacred by villagers by making themselves too well-known, or else try to go out in the light with counterfeit Life's Blood – Consortium members knew how to survive. They were wise. Loyal. And so they were like you and I, Octavius – old ones? Ones who have managed to outgrow our foolish bloodlust.” Molotov turned to Mal. “A lesson we have not all learned, evidently.”

  “It is not too late,” said Octavius. “Stuart, Jaegar, and I – three of the leaders of the Consortium – still live. Nearly all of the regiments still exist – needing only a new leader to survive. They await my orders. You could still join us. I am willing to pay you a salary – not, perhaps, as great as you would earn by this...ah...prostitution of the woman I love, but in a far nobler profession than that of vampire procurer.”

  Kalina looked on, fascinated. As repulsive as she found Molotov's plan, she couldn't help but respect this very ancient vampire. He wasn't rushing for her blood, or crazed for power and an army like Mal was. He simply wanted cold hard cash, and was open to how he got it. She wouldn't feel safe around him, she knew, but watching Octavius and Molotov talk, she realized quite how ancient, quite how rich, the vampire civilization was. These were two of the greatest vampires of all time, trying to resolve their disagreement with courteous words and fine diplomacy.

  She hoped it would work.

  “You were always a noble vampire,” said Molotov. “That's what made you such a fine general, back in the Rome days. You were always unselfish. You thought for the greater good of others. I have no such qualms. I care for myself and myself alone. You have lived a long time according to your philosophy, but I have lived longer still according to mine. I wish my plan to work – and so I want Mal to tell me where he has been hiding my young Carriers.”

  “Yours?” Octavius gaped.

  “Yes, mine,” said Molotov. “Malvolio was sent on a mission to find them for me, but it appears he has defected. He has hidden them for himself. I should have known that a bloodthirsty vampire like Malvolio was not to be trusted, but alas – I let myself think he might be worth it for one mission. But now you see, he has betrayed me. And I will torture him until he changes his mind.”

  “Then you sent Mal after us!” Octavius turned on him. “I've chased that bastard all over the world, followed him through continents. All the while, I thought he was our greatest enemy. And now I find out it was you all along. You sent Mal after us. You were the reason that my offspring Aaron is dead.”

  “I doubt that,” said Molotov. “Even if I hadn't sent Mal on a mission, he might have gone after Kalina on his own. He seems to have a disregard for life, human and vampire alike. He is greedy; he is callous. At least by giving him a mission I thought I would channel his rage into something...profitable.”

  “And the Consortium Mal destroyed. My friends! You were behind that?”

  “I gave Mal license to do whatever he needed to do to collect Carriers. And yes, in this case, it seems that he chose to destroy the Consortium to do it. They were protecting Kalina. They were an obstacle.”

  “How could you...”

  “It wasn't personal, Octavius. I simply equipped Mal with the information he needed to get the job done. In any case, as much as I personally regret your loss, I cannot bring myself to mourn the Consortium. Octavius, you and your kind have always applied human rules to vampires. Laws that it is not in our nature to follow. Before Rome, before your order, there was an older way of living. A way of chaos. The victor chooses the rules. He is not bound by them.”

  Molotov turned to Mal. “You fool. You think vampires are like humans, their hearing growing worse in their old age? Their ears grow stronger. And I heard – yes, Mal, from halfway across the house – exactly what you planned to do. The fool you tried to make of me – both of you!”

  Olga whimpered silently.

  “Back in my day, one did not tolerate defiance. And especially not to a Vampire Emperor like me.” He glared at Mal.

  “It wasn't defiance!” Kalina had never seen Mal look so cowardly. “It was more like...”

  “In the old days, I'd have you encased in concrete, to live out your eternal Life's Blood life in misery and captivity. But technology marches on, I see.” With that, before Kalina could even blink, Molotov grabbed a ruby stake from Kalina's hand and staked Mal through the heart.

  Mal's last look was an expression of utter shock before he crumbled into dust.

  With a scream, Olga bolted for the door, terror wild in her eyes. But Molotov caught her easily by the arm, looking at her with a wry smile, like a cat regarding a mouse. “So, you want to share your lover's fate?”

  Olga gulped. “N-no, my master. Never! I tried not to be part of his schemes – but he was my maker...he compelled me...”

  Molotov did not look particularly softened. “And why should I believe a word that you say? You have given me nothing but reasons to doubt you.” He pulled her roughly towards him, his lips curling in a sneer. “And I do not tolerate disloyalty, my dear girl!”

  “I am yours!” Olga cried, terrified. “Mal was my maker, and you were his – you are thus my master now that he is dead. I will do your bidding. I swear!” Kalina knew she was lying – the Life's Blood had broken all bonds between her and Molotov. Yet in her terror, Olga looked almost convincing.

  “I will give you one chance to serve me – just one!” Molotov said. “I'd hate to waste your talents by staking you. But now I am hungry. And that human over there – he's not a Carrier, is he? No...”

  Kalina whirled around in horror. The human in question he was pointing to was Justin.

  “Molotov, you can't! That's my brother..”

  “A human is a human,” Molotov shrugged. “Bring him to me!”

  Before any of them could react, Olga set upon Justin, lightning-fast, her teeth sinking into his neck.

  “No!” Kalina cried, but no sooner had she rushed to Olga than Olga had dragged Justin's body, increasingly weak, to Molotov, who sunk his teeth into Justin's shoulder. Justin gave a sharp cry of pain that graduated into a soft moan as the rapid blood loss exhausted him.
/>
  “Let him go!” Kalina and Octavius rushed to Justin, but his eyes had already closed into unconsciousness.

  Octavius grabbed Molotov, shoving him from Justin's fallen body. Kalina's blood seethed white-hot with anger. How dare they attack her brother like that – so callously! Other vampires had smirked at the idea of causing her pain, but Molotov genuinely didn't seem to care or understand what he had done: Justin was a human; he was food. It was that simple. Olga, on the other hand, had smirked as she performed her duty, gleeful at the notion of hurting her newfound rival.

  And so Kalina's hatred, her anger, took over. Barely conscious of what she was doing, she pulled Olga roughly off of Justin and sank a stake straight into her heart. “You leave my brother alone!” she cried. “You did it on purpose – you wanted to hurt us, you heartless bitch!”

  But there was no response. Olga had already crumpled into dust. Kalina looked down at her stake, shocked. She had killed vampires before, but never had she killed with such anger, such rage. She had wanted to murder Olga, to make her suffer – even now, she regretted that she had let the woman die too quickly. This wasn't ordinary self-preservation, Kalina realized with a shudder. This was bloodlust.

  Octavius had pulled Molotov aside, and Justin lay in a heap at Kalina's feet, barely breathing. “Wake up!” Kalina whispered to Justin. “Please, wake up.”

  Molotov looked up at Octavius in surprise. “You disturbed my feed,” he said incredulously. “Why would you do that? Do you know what great disrespect it is to a vampire to disturb him while he is eating?”

  “Certain things trump etiquette, Molotov,” Octavius growled. “This is one of them.”

  “I do not tolerate disrespect, Octavius,” Molotov sneered. “I have let you rouse me long enough. Prepare to die!”