Karma's Vengeance (Vampire Huntress Saga Book 1)

by Christina Escue

  “Let’s head to Harrison’s. If he returns to the area he will go to his house, and I want him to know we are all okay.”

  “We also need to contact the elders and let them know what’s going on. I may not totally trust them, but they can help,” Karma told them.

  “I don’t totally trust them either, but I agree they can help. Let’s go to Harrison’s and you can call Nevaeh from there. I’m sure she’s still with them. They’re probably heading this way anyway.”

  “Okay. Jackson, grab you some clothes and let’s go,” Karma said, and Jackson disappeared through a hidden door in the ground. He was back less than a minute later with a backpack. “You can ride with me.”

  “Sweet,” he said with a grin as Karma slid onto her bike. “I promise to hold on tight.”

  “Not too tight, little brother,” Dylan said as he climbed on his own bike.

  Jackson laughed as he climbed behind Karma and slid his hands around her waist. His grip tightened a bit when Karma took off behind Dylan and they drove the short distance to Harrison’s house.

  “Do you really think he could still be alive?” Dylan asked later that night after they had both showered away the road dust from traveling so far in such a short time.

  “I do.” Karma answered honestly. “Chances are he’s leading Vincent on a wild goose chase and will be contacting you soon to let you know he’s alright.”

  “I hope you’re right, Karma. He’s been part of my life for a really long time and I honestly don’t know what I would do without him.”

  “You’d survive the same as I have without my family. Some days I was ready to give up, to give in to the darker side, then I would see my brothers and how full of life and joy they were, and I’d be reminded that failure isn’t an option. Then I met you and found a new reason to survive. You made me remember what life was like before my heart was ripped out by Vincent.”

  Dylan didn’t say anything, he just wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. With her in his arms, he could honestly believe he would be able to face whatever life threw at him and he would come out on the other side stronger than he was before.

  “Dylan,” Jackson interrupted the moment with a soft whisper.

  “Yeah,” Dylan replied without letting go of Karma.

  “I think you should read this,” Jackson held out a small piece of paper.

  Dylan released Karma and took the paper from Jackson’s hand. It was a short letter from Harrison.

  Dylan,

  I am writing this quick because I am leading Vincent away from here, so Jackson will remain safe. There is something you need to know, and I don’t know if I will survive to tell you. Your Mother’s accident wasn’t an accident at all. She was murdered.

  She and I were having a secret relationship, it was a secret because relationships between humans and vampire are frowned upon by the elders. One elder found out and told me if I didn’t end it, he would make sure it ended one way or the other. I tried to walk away, but Mary wouldn’t let me. She told me you needed me in your life, and that she wasn’t scared.

  Two weeks later she was dead. I know the elder killed her, but I have never been able to prove it. Be careful who you trust, son, because people aren’t always who you think they are. When dealing with the elders, especially Demetri, watch your back.

  I love you, son.

  Take care of yourself,

  Harrison.

  “Son of a bitch,” Karma whispered softly. “I knew we couldn’t trust him.”

  “What are we going to do?”

  “Nothing yet. We need to get him to expose himself to the other elders. Holbrook and Langley already have their suspicions, so it shouldn’t take much for them to completely lose their trust in him.”

  “What do you have in mind?” Jackson asked, more because he wanted to be included than for any other reason.

  “I’m going to do what he wants, or at least convince him I am,” Karma answered, and Dylan looked at her like she’d lost her mind.

  “Are you sure that’s what he wants, and he isn’t just trying to set you up?”

  “I’m sure he’s trying to set me up, and that’s exactly what I want him to do. If he attempts to double cross me, the rest of the elders will know what he’s been doing. They’ll know he’s the traitor.”

  “Then we need a plan in place before they get here,” Dylan said, uncertain this was the best idea, but he knew better than to try to talk her out of it.

  “Here’s how we’re going to play this,” Karma said and outlined her idea for Dylan and Jackson. When she was finished both men nodded their agreement.

  “We can do this, Dylan. We have to,” Karma told him after Jackson went inside.

  “I know, but I’m afraid something’s going to happen to you. I cannot even imagine losing you,” Dylan pulled her into a tight hug.

  “I’ll be fine,” Karma hugged him back. “I love you, Dylan.”

  “I love you, too, Karma,” he answered and tightened his arms around her. “Let’s get some rest so you’re firing on all cylinders tomorrow when they arrive.”

  “Sounds like an excellent plan,” she said and pulled him inside the house.

  ****

  “Jackson, wake up,” Karma whispered almost silently as she shook him. When his eyes popped open, she put her hand over his mouth and shook her head. “Vampire.”

  He nodded his understanding and she removed her hand.

  “How many?” He mouthed silently.

  Karma held up both hands and spread her fingers out indicating there were ten, then she pointed to the window to let him know they were outside.

  “Come on,” she mouthed, and he followed her out of the bedroom.

  “This way,” Dylan said, silently, once they were in the hall. When they heard the vampire outside a couple minutes ago Karma went to get Jackson while Dylan checked out Harrison’s escape tunnel to make sure it was clear. The tunnel was almost a mile long and would get them out of the house quickly and undetected.

  “Wait,” Dylan said a little louder just before entering the tunnel. “Harrison.”

  “Harrison?” Karma asked in confusion and sniffed the air. Harrison was outside. Before they could move, the front door burst open and Harrison walked in followed by three vampire.

  “They’re mine,” he said quickly when he noticed Karma take her fighting stance. “They won’t hurt Jackson, or anyone else.”

  Karma relaxed a little, but stayed on alert as Dylan walked over to Harrison. “Where have you been?”

  “I led Vincent all the way to San Francisco before I was able to get away from him. He was fast, but I was faster. I’m sorry it took me so long to get back, but I had to gather a few of my creations along the way. They will help us protect Jackson. Milton, Keegan and Blyth are three of my most trusted creations,” he gestured behind him where the three vampire were standing guard at the door and windows. “They will remain inside with us while the rest stay outside.”

  “We found your note,” Jackson told him.

  “And we have a plan in place to expose Demetri for what he really is,” Karma said with an evil grin.

  “Oh wow. You three are on top of it,” Harrison praised.

  “I do have one question,” Karma said and when Harrison nodded, she continued. “Did Demetri create Vincent?”

  “No, Demetri’s creator did, though. Demetri was there.” Harrison answered and Karma grinned.

  “It’s going to be fun to destroy Vincent in front of Demetri.”

  “You are one twisted female,” Harrison said and grinned. “I knew I liked you.”

  “She has mad torture skills, too. I’d hate to be the one in her sights,” Dylan told him. He wasn’t scared of her, but he was slightly in awe.

  “I know how to get what I want and right now what I want is to hand Vincent’s head to Demetri on a silver platter. I may not be strong enough to destroy Demetri, but the elders are and when he shows his true colors to them, they
will destroy him.”

  “Karma, you are strong enough to destroy him. He is weak and has never been a good fighter. That’s why he changed so many wicked people. He needed an army.”

  “An army? How many followers does he have?” Dylan asked.

  “Only about eighty now, but he did have over five hundred. They’ve been killing each other for over a hundred years now though because he tried to keep them all together. When volatile vampire are together, there is fighting. It was a survival of the meanest type thing.”

  “How do you know all of this?” Karma asked, fearing she already knew the answer.

  “Demetri created me,” Harrison answered, and Karma’s fear was validated.

  “Were you one of the wicked?” Jackson asked.

  “Yes.” Harrison answered honestly. “In my human life I was one of the worst people imaginable. I ran a whore house, but it was more than that. The women were expendable to me and I let the men do whatever they wanted to them. On the night Demetri found me, I was helping one customer with his blood fetish by making small cuts on one of my women while he had his way with her. Demetri smelled the blood and came to investigate. He changed both me and the man I was helping. After I was changed, I was worse. I was sadistic and didn’t care who I hurt. I killed for the fun of it and never suffered any consequences because I was under Demetri’s protection. All of that changed when I met your Mother. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen, and I was instantly in love with her. She was human, and that was forbidden, but I didn’t care. I had to be with her. When you were born, I was the happiest vampire alive. I had a son and I was in a position to turn your mother, but Demetri found me and to keep you two safe I left. He was so afraid of the prophecy about the Halfling who was supposed to unite the human and vampire races, he made sure all Halflings were killed before they reached maturity. I joined back up with him for a time, but I never could be what he wanted again. Eventually I left and came back here. I knew since you were older, I would be able to protect you better.”

  “Harrison, if Demetri wanted all Halflings dead, why didn’t Vincent kill me when he first found me?”

  “Because the Senate was watching you. From the day you were born the Senate has been watching you, and Demetri knew if he tried anything, they would see who he really was. He couldn’t risk it.”

  “So, this whole plan is really his and not Vincent’s? My family was murdered because of him?”

  “Yes,” Harrison answered honestly. “I didn’t know that until yesterday when I overheard some of Vincent’s vampire talking. Apparently, Demetri is the one giving the orders, and Vincent is just a scapegoat.”

  “So, Vincent is just a pawn in Demetri’s twisted chess game,” Karma muttered. “I thought it was something like that when we were at the compound the other day. Now I wonder if Vincent wasn’t trying to tell us something when he dropped that vile of serum in our hotel room.”

  “Vincent isn’t innocent in this. He could have walked away before it got to this point, but he loves the power working for Demetri gives him.”

  “Oh, I know. Vincent is still the one who killed my family, even if it was on Demetri’s orders. For that alone, he must die. I will work on exposing Demetri for what he is, and let the Senate take him down. They will make him suffer for his crimes.”

  “That they will,” Harrison agreed. “Are they on their way here?”

  “They are. I called Nevaeh earlier and told her we’d meet them in town when they got here. I didn’t want them to know where we were staying,” Karma answered. “I think Dylan and I should meet with them alone still. I think it’d be better if they thought you were still missing.”

  “I agree. If Demetri knows you know all this, he will try to discredit you with the Senate before you even have a chance to pull off your plan.”

  “Karma, I think we should let them think Jackson is dead, too. That would be a good way to convince Demetri you are willing to step forward and unite the vampire and humans.”

  “I agree,” Karma nodded. “Now, let’s go over the plan again, so Harrison can give us his input.”

  Chapter Twenty

  “You sure this is going to work?” Dylan asked as they waited in the diner for the Senate.

  “Nope, but it’s the best plan we have,” Karma answered honestly, and Dylan cringed.

  “I can’t lose you,” he said softly.

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Karma promised just as the van pulled to a stop in front of the diner. “They’re here.”

  “Here we go,” Dylan said and took a deep breath.

  When the bell sounded over the door, Dylan turned in his seat and looked at the group that walked in. Even as a Halfling, he couldn’t tell they were anything other than human.

  “Thanks for coming,” Karma said as they approached the table. “They have a small room in the back where we can talk in private.”

  Once they were all seated Karma told them the story Harrison had come up with. “We were too late in getting here. Jackson is dead, and we believe Harrison is, too. Dylan’s house and barn are both gone, and we found Jackson’s body inside the truck where the barn used to be. All that was left was bones, but we know it was Jackson.”

  “I am so sorry you’re having to go through this again, Karma,” Nevaeh told her as she stood from her chair and wrapped her arms tightly around her.

  Karma took a deep breath and continued. “I have decided I will step up and embrace who you say I am. After this tragedy I feel uniting the humans and vampire is the only way to stop the needless murders. It’s the only way to stop Vincent.”

  “How do you know it will stop him?” Demetri asked.

  “Because, once the humans know about vampire they will be educated in the differences in a human and vampire. I am also going to work with the Senate closely, because for me to do this there has to be rules and regulations in place regarding vampire/human relations. I want a council created of both human and vampire members, and I want all vampire to have to obey certain laws, or they will be eliminated.”

  “What kind of laws?” Langley asked curiously.

  “First, all vampire must register with the Senate. We will have a file on each vampire, so we know how many are in each region. Second, all vampire will have to seek Senate approval and permission before creating any new vampire, and approval will only be granted if the Senate deems it a worthy change. Third, if a vampire kills a human for any reason other than self-preservation, they will face murder charges. A vampire prison will be built, and any vampire found guilty of committing a crime will be held in this prison until a sentence is handed down and carried out.”

  “Don’t you think that’s all a little much?” Demetri asked.

  “I don’t think it is. I think these are great ideas,” Dristen said with a small smile at Karma.

  “I agree with Dristen. Karma, these are great laws to put into place,” Aleyn agreed. “Why are you against law and order, Demetri?”

  “I’m not against law and order. I am against over doing it. Vampire have run free for many Millennium, and to try to regulate them now would be chaos,” Demetri countered.

  “It’s the only way I will do this. If you won’t agree to this I will walk away, and things will continue as they are. I am not going to bring vampire out in the open and just let them run rampant over the humans who think they’re alone on this earth,” Karma told them all.

  “I think we need to set up a vampire legal system whether we are brought to human attention or not,” Constance told them. “It may not stop vampire like Vincent from doing what he’s doing, but it would let them all know there are consequences for these actions.”

  “Fabulous idea,” Eduardo said and smiled at Karma. “Will you speak for us? If we start this process will you be the vampire voice?”

  “I will,” Karma agreed. “And Dylan will too. As Halflings we should be able to bridge the gap between vampire and humans.”

  “Thank you both,” Holbrook sm
iled at them then turned to the other elders. “I say we start getting word out to the vampire community about these new laws.”

  “I agree,” Ramsey said. “But we need to take a vote first. All those in favor of making the changes Karma has laid out say aye.” Eduardo, Constance, Aleyn, Holbrook, Langley, Ramsey and Dristen all said aye in unison.

  “All those opposed?” Demetri was they only nay. “The ayes have it. We will start the process within twenty-four hours.”

  “As soon as the process is started, I will contact the White House and see about getting the ball rolling to make you two the official vampire to human liaisons.” Eduardo told them.

  “Sounds great. I have one more request. I want to be the one to track down Vincent and bring him in for his crimes. He’s murdered too many people I care about for me not to be the one,” Karma told them.

  “He’s all yours,” Langley promised with a smile.

  “And if I can’t bring him in alive?” Karma asked. She was baiting Demetri, hoping he would react.

  “Then that’s one less trial we have to mediate over,” Aleyn told her with a smile.

  Demetri just sat there, looking at them with a curious expression on his face. He’s good. Karma thought to herself. But I’m better.

  “One more thing. All vampire armies that consist of over twenty must be disbanded. If the creator refuses, then he or she will be immediately arrested.”

  “Agreed,” Constance said with a nod. “We must keep the vampire in check, so we can keep the humans from revolting against us.”

  Demetri shifted uncomfortably in his chair at this, but he still didn’t say anything. The meeting lasted another half an hour before they all filed out of the back room and into the diner.

  “Okay everyone. There’s a small hotel a little further in town if you want to get rooms for the night. We’re heading back to Harrison’s house to see if he’s returned yet. If not, we will be at the hotel later. I think we all need to stay close in case something happens,” Karma told them as soon as they walked out of the diner and into the sunlight.