Exsanguination

  “Ugh,” he shuddered.

  People were gradually making their way out the doors, going off to feed and relax.

  “Shall we snack on our twins?” Vanessa smiled.

  “Lead on!”

  XXIX

  Phillip opened the gates the next day at about five and Jack drove up to the front of the house. He was greeted with a smile as he walked through the doors.

  “How are you, Jack?” Phillip asked.

  “Alright, I guess. The aftermath of last night is going to be a nuisance,” he responded as he hung his coat on the rack.

  “Is that Jack, darling?”

  “It is. Your favourite policeman.” Phillip smiled as he walked into the drawing room.

  Vanessa got to her feet. “Jack! Good to see you’re unscathed! We were about to sit down to breakfast. Will you join us?”

  He nodded. “Thank you, that’s very gracious.”

  “Did you get to feed last night? If not, I’ll gladly loan you Sara or Mara,” Vanessa smiled as she led the way to the dining room.

  “Already did, thanks. Besides, that would feel too much like cheating,” his face reflected a twinge of mental discomfort with the idea.

  Within moments, everyone filtered into the dining room and Robert was moving food to the buffet. Once plates were filled and everyone was seated, Vanessa looked at Jack.

  “So what was the final outcome of last night?”

  “Twenty-three dead lycans and about twenty-five got away. We’ve got thirty-seven dead people and about thirty bitten.”

  “Well, I can make a suggestion on the dead lycans. Find out who they were. Use that . . .” she gestured to Phillip for help and he responded.

  “Facial recognition software.”

  “Yes . . . that,” Vanessa continued. “If you can find out who they were, it may give you some leads on the others. A long shot but, who knows.”

  “I’m more worried about what to do with the people who were bitten,” Jack frowned.

  “Well,” Vanessa moved a forkful of egg to her mouth, chewed, swallowed, and shrugged, “there are really only two choices. Lock them up securely for the rest of their lives or kill them.”

  Jack sighed. “I know. We can’t just kill them. There would be public outrage.”

  “There’s no cure, Jack, you know that.”

  “We don’t know. There might be someday.”

  “Who can tell,” Phillip interjected. “Maybe something with DNA and stem cells or something.”

  “At least we didn’t lose any police last night. I tried to team them up in twos – one human and one vampire. In fact, vampire numbers are about to increase dramatically if you’ll allow it.”

  Vanessa frowned, wrinkling her brow. “How’s that?”

  “Straight up and down the ranks, there are members of the force requesting it – asking to be turned. Most feel they’d be better able to protect both themselves and civilians. Plus, it enhances all their senses and gives them greater abilities. I thought I’d get your input on it.”

  “I have no problem with it at all. Two things, though.”

  “I’m all ears.”

  “Make sure the newly turned ones are working nights. The sun can be really rough for a while.”

  “Sensible. And the other?”

  “Remember they’ll have to feed.”

  Jack nodded and Phillip spoke up.

  “I know this may sound silly but maybe you could give some sort or orientation class, Vanessa.”

  “Life gets stranger and stranger,” Nikki chuckled.

  “I suppose I could do that, Jack. It might help them survive,” she held up her fork. “Have you made any progress in getting your men armed? Having silver bullets made?”

  His face went glum. “Apparently silver bullets don’t fit into the department’s budget and, without them, arming my men would be an exercise in futility.”

  Vanessa sighed. “I’ll have the bullets cast and foot the bill myself.”

  “Isn’t that going to do a number on your trust?” Nikki asked.

  She shook her head. “I haven’t mentioned this to anyone other than Phillip – didn’t see the need, really. Part of the deal I made with the P.M. included . . . hold onto your hats . . . war reparations in the amount of thirty million.”

  There were sounds of approval from everyone at the table. Nikki looked at her with a wide smile.

  “You rock!”

  She laughed softly. “Yes, I suppose I do,” she turned to Jack. “It will take some weeks. I have to get them from an obscure company in Eastern Europe. Once they arrive, can you get your people armed?”

  “That’s another sticking point. They refused to approve it, claiming that an armed constabulary would put the general population into a state of fear.”

  Nikki shook her head. “God, humans are complete fools.”

  “You’ll get no argument from me on that count,” Vanessa agreed. “That said, it’s possible I could bring some pressure to bear on your upper echelons, Jack,” she started to smile.

  “What do you have in mind?”

  “Let’s just say there’s someone who owes me quite the large favour. Time to call it in, I think.”

  The following evening, Vanessa, Phillip, and Nikki made their way into the studio. Susan Harris faced her audience.

  “I would like to reintroduce three people for whom I have the utmost admiration and respect. The Countess of Ashford, Phillip, her fiancé, Phillip, and the intrepid Nikki.”

  The audience went completely wild as the three made their way to chairs opposite her. After some moments, there was relative quiet.

  “Let’s start out with a bang, shall we? I have information regarding an encounter you and Phillip had with a lycan in the underground. Is it true that, when it attacked, he pushed you to the side and went right for the creature’s throat with his teeth, killing it?”

  Vanessa sighed to herself and decided to give Phillip his moment in the sun. “That is absolutely true, Susan. The man knows no fear.”

  “What bravery!” Applause rippled through the audience for a minute and then hands began to go up in the air. Susan acknowledged one.

  “Although there were some attacks in the streets and some shops, it seems that most were in the tube. Why is that?”

  “The tunnels are dark and lycans have night vision that’s equal to that of vampires. When you combine that with the fact that people are in a confined situation, it’s a recipe for disaster. As Phillip puts it, for the lycans, it’s like shooting fish in a barrel. People have nowhere to run.”

  Another hand waved back and forth. “Are there more of them out there?”

  Nikki piped up. “They’re a bit like cockroaches, it seems. If you see one in your kitchen, there are a lot more of them you don’t see.”

  Vanessa nodded.

  “So there could be thousands?”

  “We don’t think their numbers are that great. If they were, there would have been many more attacks. That said, we don’t know where they are or who they are.”

  “And they just turn during the full moon?”

  “Yes and no. We have good reason to believe that, after they turn the first time during the full moon, they may be able to change at will. That would mean, full moon or not, day or night, they could be a threat.”

  “So what can we do?” Susan interjected.

  “We have a problem,” Vanessa frowned.

  “While I’ve offered to supply the police with the silver bullets necessary to kill them when they’re encountered, the upper-level police officials refuse to allow their officers to be armed. This sort of foolishness leaves constables without the ability to protect, not only themselves but the civilian population as well.”

  “Why would they not allow law enforcement to arm themselves?” Susan shook her head.

  “They claim it would make the general population nervous, seeing armed policemen.”

  “Is that a joke?”

  Vanessa looked
directly at the camera that swung toward her, her facial expression dark and serious.

  “I have a question for all of you viewing this broadcast. If you were faced with a choice between seeing a well-trained, armed police constable with a gun hanging from his shoulder or watching your child’s chest ripped open and his internal organs torn apart by a monstrous creature, what would you choose?” she took a deep breath.

  “Vampires have special permission to be armed and, although our numbers grow daily, there are not enough of us to cover this entire city, to say nothing of other major cities in England. Nikki,” she gestured toward Phillip’s sister, “took out a lycan with three well-placed shots in a train car. We need the assistance of the police but, to send them, unarmed, against lycans is sending them to certain, horrible, death. When Phillip and I went into the train car with the lycan, the walls were covered in blood and the screams of victims were horrendous. Not only were several people torn to shreds but others were bitten. That means they will become lycans. If something is not done, this will become a plague and none of you will be safe. Not on the street, not in the tube, not even in your own homes.”

  Phillip hid his smile. She was going directly to the people, working their fears and stirring them to action.

  “I call upon each and every one of you. Make phone calls, hold protests in front of Police Headquarters. Let the new Police Commissioner know that you demand the protection that is rightfully yours. Do not stop until he does the right thing.”

  “No matter what happens, we will continue the fight as best we can but, quite frankly; it may be a losing battle.”

  There was a death-like silence in the audience as she concluded.

  Two hours later, after coming through the front door, Jack strode into the drawing room and glared at Vanessa.

  “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” he barked

  She tilted her head and smiled slightly. “Why don’t you tell me, Jack?”

  “No one is leaving their homes! The restaurants are empty! The shops have no shoppers! London is like a ghost town!”

  Vanessa sipped her wine and waved her free hand. “It’ll pass, Jack. As soon as your commissioner does the right thing and allows your people to be fully armed, the people will realize they have a good level of protection. How is your commissioner, by the way?”

  “He’s in a complete rage – a meltdown,” Jack couldn’t suppress a chuckle.

  She grinned. “Perhaps he’ll go the way of the previous one. Why don’t you turn him? It would calm his nerves considerably.”

  “You, madam, are an infuriating woman!” Jack raised his voice.

  “I do try, Jack. You’re too tightly wound. Why don’t you pour yourself a drink? There’s nothing left to do but wait for word from your superiors.”

  The official response came the following afternoon. The police would not be armed. Once Jack had made Vanessa aware of the decision, she turned to Phillip.

  “I’m going to visit this commissioner. Would you like to accompany me?”

  “What are you going to do to him?” Phillip frowned.

  She laughed softly. “I won’t turn him and I’ll not harm a hair on his head.”

  A half-hour later, the Police Commissioner reluctantly allowed Vanessa and Phillip into his office. They had to work through a sizable group of several hundred protesters in front of the building. She extended her hand and glanced and the ornate nameplate on his desk.

  “A pleasure to meet you, Commissioner Nelson,” she smiled, intentionally exposing her canines.

  It was obvious, by his facial expression, that he was not pleased to see her.

  “You’ve made a confounded nuisance of yourself, madam, almost stirring the whole city into a complete panic.”

  “Possibly but think of all the lives I’ve saved by doing so.”

  He grumbled. “Well, what is it that you want? I’m very busy at the moment.”

  “I want to know why you won’t allow your police officers to be armed. Do you not trust them even when they’re properly trained?

  “That is none of your affair,” he said with finality.

  Vanessa sighed and then spoke sharply. “Look at me, Commissioner.”

  He stared at her and felt a bit light headed.

  “Listen to me, Mr Nelson,” she smiled at him. “Today, you will give your official permission to the men under you to carry firearms if they’re properly trained and you will immediately order appropriate training to begin.”

  “Yes, of course,” he sounded a bit listless in his reply.

  “And you will move heaven and earth to have silver bullets made for them as soon as possible. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, immediately,” he responded quietly.

  “Excellent. Remember . . . vampires are your friends.” she turned away and the man shook his head as if to clear out some sort of fog in his mind.

  “Thank you for your time, Commissioner Nelson.”

  He nodded, confused.

  As they walked out into the street, Phillip looked at her.

  “Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you do that before!”

  She smiled. “Sometimes humans must be made to do the reasonable thing.”

  A couple of hours after returning home, Jack rang at the gates and was shown into the drawing room by the now, spry Robert.

  “I’m in shock!” he said as he poured a whiskey. “Men are being assigned for firearms training and those who have been trained can now carry weapons. Additionally, I’m told that silver bullets are in the pipeline!”

  Vanessa shrugged and smile. “Your commissioner and I had a little chat a short time ago. I helped him see reason.”

  Nikki laughed. “You oogah boogah’d him!”

  She frowned and shook her head. “Where do you get those expressions?”

  “Cartoons,” she replied sheepishly.

  “Are you busy tomorrow evening?” Jack looked from Vanessa to Phillip.

  Vanessa cocked her head. “Why?”

  “Remember we spoke of an orientation for those who wish to be turned?”

  “Ah, yes. You want me to teach a kind of class.”

  He nodded. “It turns out the word spread and there are a lot more interested officers than I first thought. I had to acquire an auditorium.”

  “Good grief! How many will there be?”

  “Just over a thousand.”

  A sly smile came across her lips. “How many will this auditorium hold, Jack?”

  He shrugged. “Probably twice that, I think.”

  “Good. If you can spare the manpower, would you add in as many as possible of your men who already have been turned? I may be able to add to their knowledge and skills.”

  “I can do that,” he nodded his assent.

  “How do you plan on turning them?”

  “By injection. We’ve taken blood samples from most of those already turned.”

  “Well prepared, Jack. My compliments.”

  The following evening at six, Vanessa stood at a podium in the auditorium.

  “I’m going to cover the skills that you can employ after you’ve been turned. They will take practice to master but you will likely enjoy the process. For those of you who are already turned, some of these skills will be new to you, so all should listen closely.”

  “Those of you who choose to be turned will change dramatically in comparison to humans. Your hearing will become incredibly acute, your eyesight will function perfectly in darkness, your speed and strength will be without equal, and you will heal almost instantaneously. You will become members of an elite community, superior to humans in every way imaginable. You will not age. You will, effectively, be immortal but should remember that immortality is not the same thing as invincibility. You can be killed.”

  She spent the following hour explaining what would be new talents to them and talking about feeding and the care and caution that it required. At the point when she appeared to be finished, she made a final sta
tement.

  “I’m now going to tell you something you should never forget. As members of the Metropolitan Police Force, you answer to your superiors, such as DCI Fuller,” she gestured to him at the side of the stage and then paused. “As vampires, you ultimately answer to me and only me.”

  Jack’s head snapped to the side as he stared at her in shock, his jaw dropping slightly.

  “Are there any questions?”

  There were the usual ones about direct sunlight and some about feeding and then one regarding her final statement.

  “What did you mean when you said as vampires we would answer to you?”

  She nodded slowly. “Those of you who were turned during our short-lived war were likely given the bare essentials – the basic information for your survival. You were brought, many of you unwillingly, into a community which you didn’t understand. I suspect most people see us as independent individuals, doing as we please and we are. There is, however, a structure and hierarchy in the community and I am at the top of that hierarchy. Except for many of the newly turned, every vampire in the world knows that he or she answers to me. Not directly but through the structure that exists. I am the oldest and strongest in the world.”

  “The vampire in the video some weeks ago who exposed us to the public is at the bottom of the Thames. I put him there. One of our number made moves to foment war between vampires and humans. When I learned of it, I ripped out his heart. I do not suffer fools gladly.”

  There was a good deal of murmuring and she held up her hand.

  “On balance, those were the first two vampires I’ve had to kill in over two hundred years. It’s not a task I relish.”

  Many breathed a sigh of relief at that revelation.

  “Any of you who feel you wouldn’t be able to accept this hierarchy should not take the shot. To those of you who were turned but unaware, I offer you my sincere regrets but we were at war and the amenities were few. Your condition is not reversible.”

  Much to her surprise, Vanessa saw that no one left and, when a large crate of loaded syringes was brought out, Jack instructed the vampires in the room to give the shots. He left the auditorium at the same time as Vanessa and Phillip. Instead of going home, he followed them in his car to Smythe House.