Blood Threads: The Star Seamstress Book One

by Noella Royce

  10

  I slammed out into the hallway, bewildered and bothered by what an odd conversation I'd just had. I'd only learned the smallest things, like that the necromancers were fractured, and that they may try to recruit me into their wacky gang.

  What displeased me the most, however, was how the conversation had only deepened his mysteries. He hadn't even begun to answer why he'd been following me, although maybe vampires were truly so bored by their eternal day-to-day that they were desperate for fun wherever they could find It.

  Even the man who wanted me to come into my skills and grab my destiny wasn't allowed to tell me much because of his terrifying girlfriend, and the dude who'd protected me said he did it for the novelty.

  Crazy, all of it. But crap, that'd been a hell of a kiss. My lips seemed to tingle at the memory of the skill and controlled passion they'd experienced.

  Next time I saw Adin, I was going to tell him to stay the hell away from me, and that'd be that. He could find some other young woman to freak out and be cryptic with. Hell, there was a whole university of them.

  I stomped back to the store, where I had little time to dwell on my frustrations due to an influx of students stopping by after classes. I was pleased to note there were no insane art professors choreographing the madness this time. Frank didn't return—wow, that must have been a hell of a fight with Thalia—and Amari and Kristen pretty much left me alone, correctly sensing that I had a lot on my mind and wasn't in the mood for random chatter.

  When we closed up, I began to sneak up the stairs, thinking that I would try to get some more sewing under my belt. Unfortunately, the door was locked, and I kicked it in frustration.

  "I'm sorry, Veda," Amari said as I came down. "We're not allowed to let you up there."

  "Whatever," I said as I stuffed my skirt in my purse. I had to get my hands on a sewing machine.

  Amari stopped me as I headed for the door. "Hey." He looked around, making sure no one was listening. "I just want to say again how sorry I am about what happened in the club, and not telling you about Leslie sooner. But I promise you I'm not under some sort of thrall, or a vamp groupie or something. What I have with Leslie is real."

  What could I say to that? I didn't know enough about these day-walking vampires to judge if they were also seductive mind-screwers, but they appeared to hold down jobs and interact with people on a normal level. Maybe it made sense that they could also have normal relationships. "I believe you. Leslie's a nice guy."

  He gave me a grateful smile and I saw an opening to gain information. "Hey, while speaking of vampires, if they're not a bunch of terrifying monsters by default then why is everyone afraid of Adin? He's intense, but I've yet to see him do anything horrible."

  Amari rubbed the back of his head. "The truth is, I'm not exactly sure, but all the other vampires don't trust him, and they say he's loyal to no one. A few years ago, there were a bunch of deaths that we were all pretty sure were vamp attacks, and the rumor was that Adin was to blame. Leslie says that's untrue, but you never know." He lowered his voice further, eyes wide. "The rumor goes that he likes to put on really fancy, old-fashioned clothing and wander around town nomming on innocent women."

  His beautiful velvet outfit flashed before my eye. Was he using the creations of past Star Seamstresses to enhance his powers and kill people?

  "Was it ever proven?"

  "Nope, they never found out who it was, and so he still gets the blame."

  I remembered his threats about going undead and eating me, and held down a shudder. "And yet they still let him teach at the college?"

  "Who's going to stop him? His peers might talk shit about him, but that doesn't mean they're not scared for some reason. And the town government doesn't get involved in school politics, and vice versa, so they're not going to help."

  "Right, but doesn't that scare you, that this supposedly murderous vampire is running around teaching kids and being a supposedly good professor? Isn't that dangerous?"

  "It is, but the average Maywen University student has no idea about any of the supernatural stuff around here, and thus have no reason to be afraid." Amari sighed. "I have no excuses, Veda; this is just how Maywen rolls. But I'd still say stay away from Adin—Leslie's a pretty easygoing guy, and the fact he hates Adin so much says something."

  I nodded, not completely convinced. I wasn't sure I liked Adin either and wanted him to stop stalking me, but he'd still saved my life, and he'd treated his students with real humor and compassion. There was more to this story. I just had to tease it out, either from him, Frank, or someone else in this town who knew what was going on.

  "Thanks, Amari."

  "You're welcome, and thanks so much for being cool. And don't tell Frank I said anything, he's still convinced we have to ease you into all this."

  "I think it's too late for all that," I said dryly. "But when you see Frank, please give him a guilt trip about how he needs to explain things to me. I'm close to going postal, and I won't care what his scary witch girlfriend has to say about it."

  He blinked in surprise. "You know Thalia's a witch?"

  I coughed. "I mean, it's obvious, isn't it? Am I wrong?"

  "No, you're not wrong. I'm just impressed you figured it out." As I left, he gave me a relieved hug, and I petted his back.

  I hit the street, looking around and considering what to do next. It was a beautiful fall day, and it didn't make much sense to head home, stuff some food in myself and go all the way to the north side of town to Sun Ji's house. This was an excuse to buy myself a sandwich, rather a luxury at that time in my life, and wander around slowly.

  "Hello, Miss Geroux."

  "Ah!" I practically jumped out of my skin at the very close sound of a male voice, and I turned to see the smug, handsome mug of Chief Metzger, his eyes shining with something cold and frightening. He was wearing a button-up white shirt and tan blazer with jeans, and looked like someone's affable dad. What spoiled the effect was his asshole smirk. I jumped a step away from him. "What the hell are you doing here?"

  "My job." He looked around like a lord surveying his domain, and I tried not to roll my eyes. Was it just me, or did a middle-aged couple about to cross the street actually turn around and go in the other direction when they saw him? "I find it's always a good idea to get out among the people I serve, ensure everything is safe and sound in the community."

  "Oh yeah, you're so focused on the community. You cared so much when a guy got kidnapped; really stepped up there. America's best police chief."

  His smirk fell, and his brow furrowed in anger. "Don't mock me, little girl. You have no idea what you're dealing with." He pointed at my purse. "Give me that skirt."

  "My skirt?" Was the chief of police really demanding I give him my silly, sparkly little knit skirt? Wow, a lot of people really did believe in this crazy Star Seamstress stuff. I didn't know if I was one of them, but maybe I needed to take it seriously. I decided my best bet was to play innocent, and loudly. "Why would you want my skirt?"

  As I had hoped, my afraid and affronted tone attracted a lot of attention, with several people staring at us, and one helpful young man filming us on his phone. Metzger's scowl deepened. "You're playing a very stupid game. If you give it to me now you will make your life a lot easier."

  "Why, because you're an 'Asher', or whatever strange name you necromancers go by?" His face scrunched up angrily, and I knew it was a mistake showing what I knew.

  I was never very good at withholding information. At this rate, it was going to be my doom.

  "Miss Geroux." He made my name a low snake's hiss. His hand was on my arm and he squeezed, hard, making me wince. Fuck, he was strong.

  "Let me go," I said through gritted teeth, "or I scream."

  "You think that'll save you? This is my town, girlie."

  "And you're a walking cliché." I tore my arm away. "Leave me alone and stop trying to get my skirt. You can't have it!"

  A woman gave us a wide-eyed stare at that,
looking at Metzger like he was a pervert, exactly what I was hoping for.

  He stepped away and plastered that smarmy smile on his face, the one that had so infuriated me in the police station. "Remember this—that you made this choice. We will not forget, and the First Changer will not protect you. He cannot."

  "Wonderful." I rolled my eyes at him and clutched my purse to my chest. "You do what you have to do; just stay the hell from me."

  Rattled, I took a deep breath and tried to pull myself together. Who the fuck was the First Changer? Was that Adin? Now I had another question to add to my fifty gazillion I needed to ask him.

  Then my mind thought about that kiss again, and I began swearing audibly.

  How the hell had my Maywen life become even more complicated than my LA life?

  Not having time to go home and jittery after my confrontation with Metzger, I decided I'd just get some food and make it to Sun Ji's. I grabbed a cheap sandwich and wandered slowly in that direction, taking in the amazing fall weather and the hustle and bustle of the students running around, laughing, and generally being young and dumb.

  Man, I missed being young and dumb. Life was so much easier at the time, no matter how much I believed it was full of drama and stress back then.

  Innocent little me had no idea.

  I skirted the college quad, not wanting to deal with quite that much youthful exuberance, but forgot that meant I would be going right by the river.

  Dammit. You'd think after the stupid thing tried to seduce me into suicide by drowning I'd have remembered its existence and avoided its cursed shores.

  Then again, anyone heading to the north side of town had no choice; no matter what, your butt would be crossing the Agrimony River.

  "Well, I don't care what you think!" I told the water with a huff. "I'm probably just going crazy and don't hear anything, anyways. So there!"

  In response came that fuzzy murmuring I now associated with the Agrimony, and I swear the bastard voices were laughing at me through their veil of liquid. Even worse, I felt like I was being followed, as if someone was walking behind me holding a tape recorder that made a disturbing and alien sound.

  I walked faster. "Leave me alone," I said angrily. I had to stop taunting things that could kill me or drive me crazy.

  A tall student with glasses walking by shot me a startled look and I ignored him. How I was perceived in public was the least of my problems.

  We don't want you dead, sweet thing. The murmurings coalesced into a voice. Man, was it freaky. We simply want you to join us. Our power will enhance your power, and you can pull upon everything we offer. Wouldn't you like to know who you truly are? To be given real answers, to no longer play these games?

  The river could obviously read my mind because it was playing on my exact frustrations. Lovely. The Agrimony wasn't only magical, it was emotionally manipulative as well.

  "Yes, but I won't find out what you offer until I'm actually inside you, right?" I shook my head. "No thanks, I feel you have all the power in this arrangement."

  But we can keep you safe. The tone was so soothing and seductive, as if a hot tub was trying to cajole me into climbing in. No one else here can do that for you. The First Changer may try, but he brings with him too much history, and his reality is one of chaos and danger. Unlike him, we are steady, and we abide. Abide with us and you will be reborn into something better, something stronger.

  "Thanks, but no thanks. I think I'd like to stay on land. It feels safer up here."

  The water will take you, no matter what, Veda. We will have you. I shuddered at the use of my name. What you must ask yourself is this: shall we destroy, or shall we enhance?

  This question rattled me with its straightforward menace, and when my phone map veered me away from the river and deep into a posh-looking neighborhood, I found myself practically running from the laughter in the back of my brain.

  After staring at the house numbers for a couple of blocks I came across a stately old white home with a big plaque out front proclaiming it the Maywen University president's mansion. I read the rest of the text.

  Wisteria House has been the continuous residency of the Maywen University presidents since 1832.

  Wait, if this was Sun Ji's house, did that mean he was the president's kid? I had been expecting some group housing, co-op, or even a dorm, but this officially next-level.

  Also, if vampires like Adin ran Maywen University, did that mean one of his parents was a vampire? Was that even possible?

  I knocked on the front door, both nervous and curious, and was relieved when Sun Ji's smiling face appeared.

  "Veda! You came!" He clapped his hands together. "We weren't sure if you'd show, since I know you're not cosplaying right now, and you're probably too nice to say no."

  I smiled back at him. "Maybe, but I'm also not a dick who forgets my promise."

  "Heh, that's a relief. Come on." Sun Ji ushered me deeper into the structure and I admired the tasteful antiques and the pictures that depicted the history of both the university and the town. The place seemed more like a museum than a house.

  "You live here?" I asked, admiring the rich brocade of the green curtains in an empty sitting room.

  "Dear god, no; I couldn't take it." He laughed, leading me towards the stairs. "I live off campus, but my apartment is stupidly small, and Mom doesn't mind when we hold meetings here."

  "So your mom is university president?"

  Sun Ji looked embarrassed and stopped on the stairs. "Yeah, I should have warned you about that. Chun-Hei Kahm is my mom, and yeah, she's in charge. It's kinda silly."

  My expression must have broadcast my curiosity, because he coughed. "Yeah, she's a great mom. Despite her job, she's very normal. Just a completely standard mom, yup."

  Well, that answered that question.

  A couple of hours later, I was glad I'd come and met everyone. Sitting on the thick blue carpet in the living room, surrounded by a dozen costumed students, I felt more in my element than I had since leaving LA. I was touched that they had put effort into dressing up just for me, as well as impressed with the talent on display: one young woman had crafted one hell of a mega-sword out of foam core, and a tall, thin boy with long arms looked downright elegant in his lovingly crafted dark blue mage robes.

  Some of the students were into superheroes, others into anime and video games, and a couple more into fairy tale movies, but I'd been so deeply enmeshed in the scene I could credibly discuss it all.

  "How do you create volume in your skirts?" Sneha was asking me; she was a pretty, curvy, Indian girl with huge, beautiful eyes and a keen interest in sewing. "I've tried just wearing multiple skirts, but then I'm really hot and feel super stuffed. Ends up totally gross."

  "The secret, my dear, is the bumroll," I said. There were a bunch of giggles, and I smiled. "You're probably thinking of my Beauty and the Beast costume, right, and how I got the skirt so big? It's just a roll of fabric around my waist, about here," I held up my hands for demonstration, "and it flares the skirt out. It also keeps the fabric away from my legs. A good bumroll will keep the skirt away from you and give you that volume, but won't make you feel like a stuffed cabbage. The other option is, of course, creating a plastic structure like a cage, and that'll form a very specific and rigid shape. I'm not as fond of that method because it doesn't move as naturally. Don't hesitate to use old-fashioned dress techniques in your costumes—often, the old-school seamstresses had some incredible techniques figured out that are still useful today."

  She nodded gratefully, taking notes. Not being much of a student myself, I had always taken information on-the-fly and integrated that into the things I'd learned and picked up, and I admired their studious, detail-oriented ways. Man, I should have stayed in school. Maybe if I had, I wouldn't be where I was now.

  I was tumbling down the self-pity spiral when Sneha spoke up. "Will you come back? Even if you don't do it anymore, I'd would love to have you help us with our costumes and give us any ad
vice you have."

  "Anytime," I answered honestly.

  "Sun Ji, will you be much longer?" This was a throaty female voice and I turned to see a striking Asian woman with her hair up in a bun and wearing a well-tailored charcoal business suit. This must be his mother, the university president. "I'm getting up tomorrow at 5 a.m. for an English department retreat, and I need to rest."

  "Oh, yeah; no worries. We're finishing up now." He looked at me. "Veda, this is Chun-Hei Kahm, my mother. Mom, this is Veda Geroux and she's new in town. She's done costume stuff in the past, so I invited her to talk to the group."

  We shook hands and she gave me an appraising once-over. Chun-Hei was a self-possessed woman, but her demeanor wasn't unfriendly, simply watchful. She also didn't have that certain quality that both Adin and Leslie had even in the daytime that set them apart, and I took that to mean she wasn't a bloodsucker. That was a relief; there were at least a few humans running the place.

  "It's very nice of you to talk to my son and his friends," she said with a polite smile. "What are you doing in town, Veda?"

  I tried not to shuffle my feet. Man, I hated answering that question these days. "Oh, I'm working at Barnes' art shop, and bartending at the Tangerine. You know, until I find something steadier."

  "That's unfortunate." Her tone was matter-of-fact and I winced. There was nothing like the sharp disappointment of a highly accomplished and educated person to make you feel two feet tall.

  "Mom!" Sun Ji admonished her and shook his head. "Sorry about that, Veda. My mother is an unrepentant snob, and she spends too much time around other equally self-impressed academics, all of whom think the world of higher education is all there is in the world"

  "Oh!" Chun-Hei's hand flew to her mouth. "Yes, of course you're right. That was rude of me. I'm sorry. It's been a trying couple of weeks, but that's no excuse." She gave me an apologetic smile and I saw where Sun Ji got his considerable charisma. "I really shouldn't be let out of my academic cage."