Rising Son (The Juliana Lucio Series)

by L. C. DeCarlo

  “I can see that, and I told you already I had fed before coming, but thank you again for the offer.”

  Sebastian seemed content to stop his interrogation of William and instead sat back to watch what was unfolding between Martin and I. I began to ruffle through the small purse I was carrying when Martin again brought my attention back to him.

  “Juliana.”

  “Yes?” I asked momentarily stopping my search to glance up at him.

  “Feed on this woman now.”

  I could feel him in my mind pushing with an unspoken command that was like tendrils taking hold, wanting to command me, control me. He was trying to compel me and it felt slimy, and foreign, and I didn’t want him in there. I shook my head as though I was shaking off dust from a dirty room, as I did I saw the scarf I was looking for. I reached out for the woman’s wrist and gently cradled it in my own hand looking it over. Martin sat back against the booth mimicking Sebastian’s pose crossing his arms over his chest with a self-satisfied smile on his face.

  “Ma’am,” I began as I was wrapping the scarf around her bloody wrist, “you really need to get this looked at tonight. Do not wait until tomorrow. I think you have some tendon damage and it will be permanent if it’s not taken care of immediately.”

  She gave me a wide-eyed stare as if she were afraid to speak or move, and then looked to Sebastian and Martin for guidance.

  “Go see the house doctor,” Sebastian said waving her off. The woman clutched her wrist closely to her as she scurried out of sight.

  “What the hell was that?” William asked.

  “That was your boss trying to incite bloodlust in me and Martin here attempting, and failing, to compel me within only minutes of meeting me. Does anyone have a napkin? My hands are a mess.”

  “Do you think it wise, Querida, to speak to us that way? Do you know who we are?” Sebastian asked.

  “Mr. Ramirez, I know as the director of the Council, you are the one who ordered my death. As for Mr. Harris well, I know nothing about him, other than I didn’t do what he wanted so he attempted to compel me, and couldn’t.”

  “Mrs. Lucio, we can tell you are lying.”

  “I’d like to see you try to make me say anything different.”

  “Don’t be so sure of yourself, compulsion isn’t the only way to make someone talk,” Martin said with a grin.

  “What did Nathaniel want with you?”

  “What do you want with me? Why did you bring me here, what is the purpose of this?”

  “Ok, I think perhaps we have gotten off on the wrong foot, let us start fresh shall we?” Sebastian said with an amicable smile.

  “Did you kill Nathaniel?” Martin suddenly asked ignoring Sebastian’s attempts at diplomacy.

  The room went silent. The two seemed to forget we were in a room full of vampires, the idiots.

  “Nathaniel Retta was over 400-years-old, and I am just a newborn of only a few months. Can you conceive of any plausible scenario where I can stake a master vampire in the chest and kill him?”

  After a brief moment of considering silence the chatter in the room began once more, as if in sync with one another they decided there was no plausible way for me to do what I had just described.

  Martin leaned all the way over and whispered so faintly I almost couldn’t hear him, “I never said how he was killed Mrs. Lucio. . .”

  “…but I agree,” he said at normal tone, moving back into his own space, “I don’t think you could kill him. It would take someone with considerable more strength and skill than you possess.” His eyes were now trained on William. “Someone with experience, don’t you think?”

  “How would I know what it takes to kill a vampire, or anyone for that matter? It would seem you are the one knowledgeable in that area, not me,” I snapped back at him. He was getting a little too close to home, how did they know what we did. Why weren’t Ana and William saying anything?

  “I’m knowledgeable in many areas, killing is only one of them.”

  He cocked his head to the side making an obvious show of looking my completely exposed legs up and down and flashing the corner of his fangs as he did it.

  “Oh as if, keep dreaming Mr. Harris.”

  “We need some real answers here,” Sebastian leveled Ana, William and I with a heavy stare before continuing. “I think it’s time we go for a drive.”

  None of us budged, I don’t think any of us thought it would be a good thing to leave the view of the public, but we really didn’t have a choice. I don’t think he was really giving us an option though.

  “What? Why can’t we finish talking here?” I asked them both.

  “Because we have questions that can’t be asked or answered here, now get up,” Martin said grabbing for me.

  All at once Ana, William and Sebastian even, jumped up blocking Martin’s seizure of my arm.

  “She isn’t going anywhere,” William said getting into Martin’s face.

  “I don’t think that’s a call you get to make Mr. Bancroft.”

  “No, but as her Sire, I do get to make it. I may work for you, but she doesn’t, you don’t get to order her around. Juliana isn’t going anywhere.”

  “Look everyone, let’s just try to relax, where is it you want to go exactly? Can’t we all go?”

  Ana and William were busy trying to stare down Martin so they didn’t really respond. They had both moved so they were completely blocking Martin’s view and reach of me. Sebastian was standing a little out of the way and came to stand by my side, he decided to answer me.

  “They can go for a bit, but there is somewhere I want to take you alone –”

  “That isn’t going –”

  “Silence!” Sebastian yelled at Ana.

  “As I was saying, Querida, they can come with us. They also have some things to answer for, but I want to take you somewhere alone. I give my word you will be safe, under my protection. Of course, if you don’t trust me to protect you, even though I have kept the two of them safe for over a hundred years, then by all means bring them along. Just know if they are discovered and staked out for the sun to burn, it will be on your conscience, not mine.”

  I looked past him at the two people who were defying the very men that had been protecting them, and controlling their very existence for over a hundred years. I couldn’t let anything happen to either Ana or William.

  “Let’s go guys. We’ll leave together then I’ll go with Sebastian alone.”

  They both opened up their mouths to protest, but Sebastian held up his hand and their arguments stopped immediately. I think they knew they could only push him so far.

  Chapter Ten

  We found ourselves sitting in the back of a limo similar to the one that had been driving us around earlier. I thought the interrogation would be right away much like it was in the club, but to my surprise, Sebastian looked us over and smiled a full grin that went all the way to his eyes. The shock must have shown on my face because Martin even gave what I suppose he considered a smile.

  “Mrs. Lucio, I do apologize about the show back there, but we must have the public believing that we are doing everything in our control to seek out the killers of one of our own. Now that they have seen us attempting to strong arm you, they will ease off a little, believing we are hard at work.”

  “That was an act?” I asked a little dumbfounded before turning to Ana and William.

  “Did you know they were going to do that?”

  “Well, no, but I also didn’t think they would really question you like that in public so, I assumed it was for public’s sake. But really, Martin, ‘Did you kill Nathaniel’ that was a little over the top even for you,” Ana said almost jokingly.

  I thought about what had happened back in the club and looked over at William, he didn’t look as convinced as Ana seemed to be.

  “You didn’t need to compel me to show the public that you’re searching for Nathaniel’s killer,” I responded evenly.

  Martin turned to look
at me, and the atmosphere in the car slowly dropped.

  “That’s true, but the fact remains that we do still need information about the situation, and about you. If I could accomplish both those things at the same, I would,” he said unapologetically.

  “So, I take it there is a reason for bringing us out here, where no one will know if we ever come out alive.”

  “That’s correct. How did you resist my compulsion Mrs. Lucio? Was Nathaniel able to compel you, did he ever try?”

  I looked to Ana, not really sure how to answer. They both had told me not to let Sebastian or Martin know the full extent of my abilities, but since I’d just resisted compulsion right in front of them they knew that much already. She gave me a slight nod of her head that I should answer them.

  “I’m not sure how I’m able to resist it, I just am. I can tell when someone is trying to use compulsion on me, it’s like I can feel them whispering in the back of my mind, pushing me, telling me what to do. It’s almost like hearing a conversation outside of myself, if that makes any sense, but I don’t have to listen to it. I can if I choose, but I am not forced to. Nathaniel tried to compel me, several times, but was never able to. I let him believe he could initially though.”

  We all sat in silence as the two of them seemed to weigh the words of what I was telling them. I don’t think they could communicate telepathically, but they never spoke to one another or looked in the others’ direction. They just sat staring at me. I didn’t say anything and held back all the snarky remarks that popped into my mind. I could tell they were both at the brink of making a decision that would be detrimental to my very existence, and for all the tough girl persona I gave off; I didn’t want to piss them off.

  Finally, Sebastian broke the silence, “What did he want with you?”

  “Oh, um he said he wanted me to join him, and his, uh, revolution. Whatever that might be, he didn’t really go into detail on it.”

  I left out the part where I found this out by compelling Nathaniel to tell me, which should have been impossible for me to do. William adjusted the way he was sitting, the only time he ever made himself look like he was uncomfortable was when he was getting ready for a fight. It was almost a distraction technique. Oh, great just what I wanted, to be trapped in a car with three vampires, whose profession was killing.

  “Relax William, nothing is going to happen,” Sebastian said.

  “And what exactly was your response?” Martin asked, his eyes never leaving mine.

  “I told him to go to hell.”

  “I’m sure you did,” he responded with a smirk.

  “Mr. Ramirez, Mr. Harris we gave you our report about what happened. What is this about?” William asked them both. Finally, maybe they would answer him.

  “This is about getting the truth, and finding out whose side Juliana Lucio is really on. We have reports from other operatives in the field that Mrs. Lucio has substantial more abilities than you three are letting on, and I want to know why it hasn’t been reported. If she agreed to work for the Coven, I want to know it now.”

  “I’m not on anyone’s side! All I want is to protect those I care about. You know, the family who was stolen from me at the Council’s order. And yeah I want to protect Ana and William now as well. Would I fight to protect them? Yes, but that is because I am loyal to them, because they have shown me loyalty and protection in return. I want nothing to do with this fight of yours and I don’t even know enough to take sides anyway.”

  “Ok, fair enough.”

  “What? What’s fair enough?”

  It couldn’t be good he was agreeing with me.

  Sebastian started lowering the panel separating the driver from us, “Take us to my car.”

  “Jules,” William said sitting up straight next to me.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “I think you made a very valid point, I’m not as completely unreasonable as you would believe. I think you can be the secret weapon the Council and Sub-Rosa need to stop this war from happening. But if you don’t believe it’s a worthy cause, you will do us no good at all. You think it’s just a little tiff that has started this fight, well it isn’t, and I’m going to show you the face of the enemy. You and I my dear, are going to meet the Coven.”

  “She is not going anywhere without us!” yelled William.

  “Yes, she is Mr. Bancroft, and if you try ordering me around again I will have you punished. Is that understood? I gave her my word to protect her and I will,” Sebastian told William in a voice so threatening we all cringed back except William. Sebastian eyes had turned demon black, and his fangs dropped instantly when he spoke to William. He was tired of them being insubordinate even still I think William was contemplating arguing with him.

  “William,” I said gently turning his face to mine, “do you trust Sebastian’s ability to fight and protect me if it were needed?”

  “Yes, he’s the only one in the Council stronger or faster than I am.”

  “Do you think he’s lying when he says he’ll protect me?”

  “Of course not,” William said pulling away from me.

  “Then let me go. Don’t get yourself punished over something you can trust him to do.”

  William let out a big breath of air he didn’t really need to breathe, it just showed his frustration at the situation. He turned to look over at Sebastian who had since returned to his normal teeth and dark brown eyes.

  “Sebastian, will you forgive me for my insubordination? I know you alone can protect Juliana better than I.”

  Sebastian held out his left hand, which William took in both of his and kissed the signet on his pinky finger.

  “Wow, I guess she really can compel other vampires,” Martin said.

  Sebastian just laughed out a full loud laugh, “That my old friend was compulsion of another kind, the sort only women possess.”

  “Before we leave I want you to know you two will be getting another partner added to your team. They will be moving in with you and should be arriving in the next week,” Martin told them.

  “We don’t need another member on our team, how is that going to work? And why do they have to live with us?” Ana started arguing.

  “Tell me Ana, how have your contacts within the Coven taken to the news of Nathaniel’s death? William, where are the rogue vampires meeting now? Last time we spoke they had up and moved locations, and you were seeking them out.”

  They didn’t answer, but instead looked at each other uneasily. I hadn’t realized I had caused them so much trouble. When they didn’t answer, Martin continued.

  “If you didn’t want another member on your team, then you shouldn’t have lost all your contacts within the Coven. They will help reaffirm your status as a rogue vampire trying to enter the ranks of the Coven. If that is disagreeable to you we can transfer your location. The choice is yours – this time.”

  Neither Ana nor William seemed to like the idea of relocating, and I certainly didn’t. I had no idea where they might try to send them, but I wasn’t going to leave my family. I might not be in their lives anymore, but I could still watch over them.

  “We’ve been here for years, we can’t just up and leave and start over again.”

  “That’s exactly what you can do. Start all over again. You’ve done it before, what makes things different this time?”

  They both trailed their eyes in my direction making it obvious I was one of the main reasons they didn’t want to leave Chicago, they knew I wouldn’t go anywhere no matter what they said.

  “Fine, we’ll stay and work with whoever you send. Putting an end to the Coven, and the three of us staying together is more important than anything else right now,” William finally told them.

  “I thought you’d see it our way,” Martin said with a grin.

  We started to turn onto a long narrow drive, Ana and William began giving each other nervous looks with their eyes. I was feeling incredibly anxious myself not knowing what I was going into, but I did
believe Sebastian would keep his word and protect me. He did want something from me after all.

  “There’s something I need to ask you before you leave,” William said.

  “Oh? I am curious why you think you’re in the position for requesting favors,” Sebastian replied.

  “It’s for Jules, I mean Juliana. If we are going to have a vampire we don’t know or trust in the house with us; I request Juliana be given a Guardian. A human Guardian to protect her during the day,” William replied.

  Sebastian didn’t reply, as a matter of fact no one did. I think we were all just a little shocked at his pronouncement. That must have been what he was researching in all those darn books. Sebastian looked William over, analyzing his request. He didn’t answer him, he instead turned to Ana.

  “Do you agree with your partner? Do you think it necessary for your child to have a Guardian?”

  Even though she was surprised by William’s request she didn’t miss a beat, “Yes. I think the rogue vampires in Chicago are laying low because they suspect our involvement, if they learn of her abilities they may come for her during the day when William and I are unable to protect her. I think it’s wise to have extra precautions in place.”

  Sebastian looked at me, giving me a long hard stare before finally speaking, “If after tonight she agrees to work for us, then she gets the Guardian; if she says no, then my answer is the same. She will be on her own.” He looked at William, “I’m assuming you have someone in mind?”

  “Yes, his name is Christian Lucio.”

  “What!” I yelled out being taken completely by surprise.

  “I will train him myself, but I want full protection for him from the Council. He can tell no one of vampirekind, but he will not be enslaved or owned by any definition of the law,” William went on ignoring me. “Day Guardians must be human therefore aren’t subject to the law of being turned or killed for discovering vampirekind.”

  “I see you have done your homework. We haven’t used Day Guardians in over three centuries. Okay, my first stipulation still stands, but the law is the law; if young Mr. Lucio tells anyone, even insinuates of our kind, he will face the full punishment of the Council. Do you understand he will be turned if I deem him useful or killed if not; should he break Council Law?”