by Cheree Alsop
The female vampire smiled. “Most welcome, even if it is Ashstock blood. At this point, anything sounds lovely.”
They closed in on Aleric. He had seen Dartan’s strength. One werewolf against seven vampires would be a losing battle for sure, but he wasn’t about to go down without a fight.
Aleric bared his teeth and a rumbling snarl rolled from his throat. The first vampire made a grab for his head. Aleric dove beneath the vampire’s arm and bit his ribs. The vampire yelled and slammed a fist into the side of Aleric’s face. The punch threw him and he rolled with it, coming back up on his feet.
Two vampires charged. Aleric leaped at the first one and clamped down on her shoulder. The second vampire grabbed him by the back of the neck and threw him across the alley. He hit the warehouse wall and fell to the ground. Two vampires pounced before he could rise. He yelped as teeth sunk into the skin between his shoulder blades. Fists pummeled his ribs, knocking the air out from him.
Aleric ran straight for the wall. He spun at the last second, slamming one of the vampires against the wood. The second let go at the impact. Aleric slashed the vampire’s leg with his fangs and leaped out of the way before the vampire could catch him. Another vampire grabbed him in hands stronger than any human’s and threw him against the wall again. Aleric hit the ground in a daze. Seven forms advanced on him, their shadows cloaks of darkness in the fading moonlight.
Aleric growled. The smell of the doll lingered in his nose. They had the banshee’s sister. He knew that for certain. He had to get past them to free her. He wouldn’t leave a young girl in their greedy clutches.
Aleric sprang at Ravad. The vampire backed up in surprise and Aleric’s teeth clicked shut millimeters from his throat. A vampire to Ravad’s right grabbed Aleric by the ears and slammed his forehead against the werewolf’s. Aleric dropped to the ground. He felt four sets of teeth sink into his flesh. The feeling of his blood being sucked by the vampires made his skin run cold. He tried to fight, but Ravad held him down, pinning Aleric against the pavement with unforgiving strength.
“Wait!” a voice called.
The vampires lifted their heads, breaking contact with Aleric.
Familiarity struck Aleric through the pain-filled haze. He looked past the vampires to a form at the corner. Dartan barely glanced at him before the vampire’s red eyes met those of the Dark fae around Aleric.
“Leave the werewolf to me.”
“Prince Dartan,” Ravad said with a note of loathing. “I thought you were dead.”
“Me, too,” Dartan replied. “Fortunately, I appear somewhat more resilient against sunlight than you hoped.”
“I wasn’t the one who left you in that garden.”
Dartan’s eyes narrowed. “Did I mention it was a garden?”
Ravad met the younger vampire’s glare with one of his own. “What do you want, Inheritant?”
Dartan gestured to Aleric. “The werewolf.”
Ravad shook his head. “That’s not happening.”
Dartan held the older vampire’s gaze. “I’m bringing him to my father as you should have.”
“And how do you intend to control him?” Ravad asked.
Dartan hefted the gun he held. Aleric recognized it as the tranquilizer gun from Dr. Indley.
“With tranquilizers. Father would want the honor of draining the Werewolf of Edge City himself.” He speared Ravad with a look. “You know that.”
“It was our intent to bring the werewolf to His Lordship, but the creature put up such a fight we wanted to drain him a bit to make him a little more amenable to our demands.”
“Just a bit?” Dartan said. “He looks rather deflated. Perhaps you got a bit overenthusiastic?”
“Perhaps,” Ravad replied.
Dartan gave Aleric a cold once-over as though he inspected a bag of blood for freshness. “I could probably handle him in his current physical state, but just to be sure….” He pointed the gun at Aleric’s head. The barest hint of a smile crossed the vampire’s mouth and he shifted to barrel to aim at Aleric’s shoulder. He squeezed the trigger.
A yelp escaped Aleric when the needle point of the tranquilizer impacted with the force of a bullet. He waited, expecting the numbing rush of the horse sedative. Instead, a strange, bubbling sensation filled his veins. The taste of grass filled his mouth. Aleric looked up at Dartan in surprise.
Dartan crouched and sunk his hands into Aleric’s thick fur.
“Act tranquilized,” he hissed in Aleric’s ear.
The vampire stood and hefted Aleric onto his shoulders. Aleric let his head and limbs flop over the vampire’s back and chest. The bite wounds from the vampires throbbed, but he was grateful to be alive. Where he would end up after the sun rose was left to be determined.
“I just want to reiterate that I’m grateful you’re alive,” Ravad said, falling in behind Dartan. “His Lordship was quite beside himself at the disappearance of his only son.”
“Very much so,” Tereen seconded. “Right Brell?”
“Oh, definitely,” Brell said.
“I’m sure he was,” Dartan muttered. He glanced back at the vampires. “How is the lair coming along?”
“Very well,” Ravad reported. “His Lordship is quite pleased with the progress. He says as soon as the excavating is finished, we’ll begin Phase Two.”
Aleric wasn’t sure if he wanted to know what Phase Two was. He kept his eyes half-closed. Dartan carried him without showing any sign of exhaustion beneath the werewolf’s weight. The vampires walked between the rundown buildings with a knowledge of the streets that told of much time spent there. When Dartan reached the base of a huge building, the doors opened without hesitation.
“Welcome back, Inheritant,” a low voice said.
“Thank you, Crode,” Dartan replied. “I’ve come with a gift for my father.”
“He’s overseeing the conclusion of Phase One, my Prince. You’ll find him in the lower levels,” Crode answered.
Dartan gave a single nod and led the way down the long hallway. Aleric lost track of how many stairs and hallways they traversed. It felt as though they climbed down beyond the normal limits of human architecture by the time Dartan’s footsteps slowed. He paused at a door.
“Open,” he demanded.
“For whom?” a voice asked from the other side.
Dartan glared at the panel in the door. “For the Inheritant, Gron. You know who I am.”
The thick door slid aside with the sound of metal gears.
“I just had to know my eyes weren’t failing me,” an ancient vampire with white skin and a hump on his back replied when Dartan stepped through.
Dartan walked past without answering. Cells lined the walls in the hundreds. Aleric glanced at them while keeping up the appearance of being under heavy tranquilization. Each cell was empty.
“Phase Two,” Dartan said under his breath.
Aleric realized the vampire was speaking low enough that only he could hear.
“My father brought me here from Blays a week ago. I told him what they were doing was wrong. We argued. He said I didn’t respect his vision. A few days later, I woke up in a hospital covered in burns.”
Dartan reached the end of the hallway and took the right-hand branch. He pushed open the doors at the end without waiting for anyone to open them.
“Father,” he said.
A chill ran through Aleric’s veins at the sight of the hundreds of vampires that filled the rectangular chamber. A lone vampire sat at the end of a very long table while the other Dark fae waited respectfully along the walls.
Aleric recognized the vampire. The fact that he was in Lord Targesh’s lair set his teeth on edge. It was all he could do to remain limp across Dartan’s shoulders.
The vampire wore a long red cloak over his black clothes. A silver clasp with the stamp of the ironwork troll held the cloak around Lord Targesh’s neck.
“I was told you were dead,” the Vampire Lord said when Dartan approached.
> “I hear the sorrow in your voice,” Dartan replied dryly. “Don’t hold back, Father. No one will judge your tears.”
The vampire speared him with a look. “You always were a ridiculous sot prattling on about who knows what. Your opinions regarding our actions here have been discussed and disregarded for the good of the clan.”
Dartan inclined his head. “I respect that, and to prove it, I’ve brought you a gift.”
The vampire’s head rose.
Dartan grabbed Aleric by the scruff of his neck and threw him down onto the table. His body made a resounding thud on the thick wood.
“A werewolf?” Lord Targesh said in surprise. “Where did you find this Ashstock beast?”
“He’s the one that’s been plaguing Edge City, Father. He was close to locating the shockwave Initiator. I thought you would enjoy this particular vintage as tribute to your vision that reaches much further than mine,” Dartan replied.
The Vampire Lord eyed Aleric with suspicion.
“He’s still breathing. What’s wrong with him?”
Dartan casually pulled the gun from his waist and tossed it on the table next to Aleric. “I used a tranquilizer dart from the hospital. I know how you enjoy your beverages fresh.”
Lord Targesh chuckled. “My habits are becoming legend.”
Vampires from around the room joined in the laughter.
The Vampire Lord rose. “Son, it’s good to have you back in this penitent state having seen the error of your ways. Your gift is accepted. Drink with me.”
Aleric’s heartbeat thundered in his ears. He wanted to fight back; his instincts screamed for him to throw himself at Lord Targesh and attempt to tear out his neck before the other vampires reached him.
Yet Aleric lay still with his eyes half-closed and his muscles as relaxed as he could will them to be. The Vampire Lord pulled him closer by the fur beneath his right ear. He lifted Aleric’s muzzle to better position himself above the jugular.
Dartan moved next to his father.
“Bottom’s up,” Lord Targesh said.
Two sets of fangs sank into Aleric’s neck. His muscles twitched at the pain. He could feel the Vampire Lord drinking deeply of his blood. Thoughts of betrayal flashed through Aleric’s mind. Dartan had brought him to the vampires to die. He had made a vow and he was fulfilling it. Aleric would never return to Blays. He would never again help the patients at Edge City Hospital. He would die beneath the fangs of a vampire as so many other werewolves had during the Fallow Conflict. The circle of betrayal was complete and Aleric would be their final werewolf victim.
He willed his limbs to respond, bunching his muscles to die fighting instead of lying on a table like some grand bloodsucker meal. He didn’t have much time left. His paws felt cold as the blood was pulled through his body by the greedy fangs of the Vampire Lord. He couldn’t tell if Dartan drank his blood or not; he decided it didn’t matter given the vampire’s betrayal.
Aleric took a steadying breath and was about to pull his paws beneath him in a final effort when Lord Targesh reared back, breaking the contact.
“What’s wrong with me?” he asked. His words slurred slightly. Blood dripped down his chin. The Vampire Lord wiped the blood with his hand and stared at it. “Is that…green?”
Several drops hit the table when he spoke. As Aleric watched, the single puddle separated into two, the smaller portion of green blood pooling away from the red.
“Wood nymph blood,” Dartan said. He winked at Aleric. “Courtesy of our mutual friends.”
The Vampire Lord stumbled. Dartan grabbed his father’s shoulders and eased him to a sitting position on his chair. Other vampires closed in. Dartan picked up the dart gun and pointed it at his father. The Vampire Lord’s head slumped to his chest and a gurgling sound rattled from his throat.
“One more step and his death will be on your shoulders,” Dartan snarled.
The vampires halted a few steps away.
Dartan’s gaze circled the room.
“I haven’t killed your lord, but he is under my control. If any of you make one wrong move, I will give him a dose of wood nymph blood straight to his cold, pitiless heart.”
“Why?” the word bubbled from Lord Targesh.
An incredulous expression filled Dartan’s face. “Why? He wants to know why?” He stooped to look into his father’s eyes. “You couldn’t abide by the Armistice of Fae Equality, could you, Father? You couldn’t abstain from drinking the blood of fae even if it meant going back on your word.” His voice tightened when he said, “You killed people.”
“Light fae aren’t people,” the Vampire Lord gurgled, his head still slumped on his chest.
Dartan raised the gun to his father’s head. For a moment, Aleric thought he would end the life of the Vampire Lord. Instead, Dartan glanced back at Aleric.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Aleric rose slowly to his haunches. His head swam from the lack of blood and he let it hang down as he gathered his strength. He gave a short huff.
“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’,” Dartan said. He motioned with the gun for the vampires around them to move back. “Give us space, brethren and sisters. For you see, with Lord Targesh currently incapacitated, as the Inheritant, I am in charge.”
A rush of whispers ran through the crowd. It seemed the vampires realized the same thing because they fell back to the walls and stood as still as statues. They watched the proceedings with wide, red eyes.
“Bring me the shockwave Initiator,” Dartan commanded.
Several vampires left the room. A few minutes later, the scent from the doll made Aleric lift his head. He glanced to the left to see a young girl be led forward. Silver chains stamped with the emblem of the ironwork trolls dangled from her wrists and feet. Her long brown hair hung in ratty strands and her dress was tattered and torn. Her hands shook, making the chains rattle.
“Free her,” Dartan ordered.
The vampires quickly obeyed.
When the chains were clear, Dartan knelt in front of the girl.
“Hello, Elianna,” he said, his voice gentle. “Are you alright?”
She nodded despite the dried tear tracks along her dirty cheeks. “How do you know my name?” she asked in a voice just above a whisper.
“Daylen sent me,” Dartan told her. He held up the doll.
The girl’s eyes lit up at the mention of her brother and she clutched the doll to her chest.
“Do you want to go back to Daylen?” the vampire asked. “He asked me to bring you where you could be safe.”
Her eyes filled with tears and she nodded. “I want to go home.”
“So does he,” Dartan reassured her. “I just need you to do something for me. Do you think you could help me out?”
“What thing?” she asked, her voice hesitant.
Dartan pointed to his father on the chair. “Do you know that man?”
Elianna nodded and took a step backwards. Fear showed on her face. The expression made Aleric want to end the Vampire Lord’s life then and there, but he knew better than to upset the tenuous hold Dartan had on the vampires in the room. He jumped to the floor with less grace than he usually had as a wolf. The scarcity of blood in his system was definitely making itself known. He stopped at Dartan’s side.
Dartan set a hand on Aleric’s head in a gesture that was almost like a human with a pet. Aleric fought back the urge to shake him off.
“Elianna, this is my friend Aleric. He’s a werewolf. Do you know about werewolves?” Dartan asked. At Elianna’s nod, Dartan smiled. “Aleric doesn’t like vampires. He has promised to protect you and your brother from any vampire who would want to hurt you. Do you like that?”
The little girl nodded again quickly. To Aleric’s surprise, she crossed to him and wrapped an arm over his neck. She had to rise on her little tiptoes to do so, but the shaking of her hands stopped as she clutched at his fur.
Dartan addressed her again, his words gentle. “Elianna, I need to
send this bad man home. Can you help me with that?”
“Y-you want me to send out the shockwave?” she asked.
Dartan nodded. “If you do, I will take Lord Targesh to Governor Hornsbellow and let the Governor know all the bad things he has done.” Dartan met Aleric’s gaze. “Including his orders to wipe out all werewolves despite the Armistice.”
Gratitude filled Aleric. If the truth came from a vampire, there was no way Governor Hornsbellow could deny justice.
A warble of denial rose from Lord Targesh.
“I’ll do it,” Elianna said.
The vampires around them pressed more tightly to the walls.
Elianna closed her eyes.
Aleric felt a thrum of energy run through the girl. She held out her hands. For a moment, nothing happened. Aleric glanced at Dartan. He waited with a look of trepidation on his face even though he made no move to stand back with the rest of the vampires.
Electricity shot between Elianna’s hands. Aleric’s fur stood on end. The energy moved back and forth until it formed into a crackling, angry ball. Elianna spread her hands apart and the electricity grew. She whispered something and then threw the ball at the wall across from them.
Vampires dove to either side. The ball erupted in a shockwave that pulsed through the room, knocking everyone but Elianna off their feet. She kept her hands out, her palms toward the pulsing wall across from them. The blurred image moved into focus and the energy shifted to the perimeters of the wall to create a passageway.
Aleric’s heart gave a strong beat at the familiarity of Twenty-Seventh Street and the corner of the Glass District. It was where he had fallen from Blays to the human world, the last thing he had seen before he blacked out.
Dartan stood first. He made his way to Lord Targesh and brought the Vampire Lord’s arm up around his shoulder. The Vampire Lord muttered angry curses but couldn’t move as his son dragged him to the shockwave.
Dartan looked over his shoulder.
“I order every vampire on this premises to follow me. Under orders of the Inheritant, you will depart to Cruor and never return to Edge City ever again.”