Shadow Born: Book 1 of the Shadow-Borne Chronicles

by Paul A. Cagle

  "I thought a vampire didn't have a reflection," Alec said approaching the mirror.

  Marcus laughed. "Just another one of those myths. We move so quickly that if we didn't want to be seen approaching you using a mirror, then you wouldn't see us."

  Alec stepped in front of the mirror, what he saw almost took his breath away. He looked like one of the freaking male models from a magazine. His shoulders were broad and the muscles underneath his skin were taut. His pecs were rounded and stood out like two mounds. He shook his head. His sides made a V shape that tapered down to a thin waist. Wow, he even had a washboard stomach, the muscles making ridges that stopped right above his jeans. Alec was speechless as he turned and viewed himself from different angles. Damn, his ass even looked good in these jeans. Vampirism does a body good, he thought.

  "Nice," Marcus said admiring him. "Those jeans definitely fit you well," he said staring at Alec.

  "Thanks," Alec mumbled, embarrassed.

  "Here." Marcus tossed him a light blue V-neck T-shirt that Alec pulled on. It was form fitting and Alec could see his muscles standing out under the fabric of the shirt. The color also brought out the blue in Alec's eyes. He honestly didn't even recognize himself any more. It was insane.

  "Now that," Marcus said appreciatively, "is a good look for you, Alec." He smiled that cocky half smile of his. "Damn. You won't be able to keep the ladies from rushing you on the streets." Alec blushed furiously and dropped his head, embarrassed.

  "Okay, you sexy beast. Go take a shower. You can just wear what you've got on." Marcus indicated the door across the room. "Feel free to use anything in there. There are towels, shampoos, shower gels, whatever is in there is yours to use."

  Alec nodded, grabbed his shoes and a fresh pair of socks and disappeared into the bathroom. Inside Alec saw that Marcus had the same style mammoth tub and walk in shower that was present in his own 'chambers'. He stripped and laid his clothes aside making sure not to wrinkle them and stepped into the shower, turning on the water. It was amazing. The shower head massaged Alec's muscles and the warm water relaxed him. He hadn't been aware how tense he was until this moment. His dream, all but forgotten, and the last twenty-four hours had done a number on him.

  There were several bottles of all types of cleansing products. Alec tested each one, picking his favorites and using them to wash himself clean. Once finished he stepped out and dried himself and hung the towel on the rod on the wall. He stood in front of the mirror and admired himself. He really had changed. He couldn't get over it. He looked through the products on Marcus's vanity and picked several. Some went in his hair, some under his arms, and he finished it off with a body spray. Done.

  Alec quickly dressed and stepped outside the bathroom to see that Marcus had filled up not one, but three of the carrying boxes with clothes and was working on a fourth. Alec didn't think he'd ever need that many clothes. He grabbed his cargo pants and pulled out his wallet, keys and cell phone and transferred them to his new jeans.

  He looked through the clothes that Marcus had procured for him. There were jeans, cargo pants, sleep pants, T-shirts, Polo shirts and button ups. He was admiring the clothing when the cell phone buzzed in his pocket causing him to jump. Marcus just chuckled and Alec pulled it out. It was a text from Doctor Schubert. It said, 'Meet me in my lab.'

  Marcus offered to lead him there, which was good because Alec was lost in this huge building. Before they stepped out, Marcus used the Service phone to request that someone pick up the clothes that he had packed and take them to Alec's chambers.

  Marcus led Alec back up to the main floor and then they crossed in front of Silas's sitting room. Alec noticed that there was a different set of guards at the door this time. They didn't say anything as he and Marcus passed but Alec did notice that they were very alert and watched him closely.

  When they got to Doctor Schubert's lab, Marcus opened the door for him and said, "This is where I leave you." Alec thanked him and entered.

  Doctor Schubert was looking through a microscope when Alec arrived so he stood quietly until the man was finished. Schubert wrote something in a file that he had open on his desk and then turned on his stool.

  “Ah, Alec, good. Please sit.” He swiveled on his stool until he was facing Alec. He still had the file in his hand and he consulted it as Alec sat across from him.

  “I reviewed your x-rays from yesterday and have run some blood tests.” He sighed and shook his head. “Alec, this is remarkable. You have every organ a vampire needs to function, and you also have most human organs needed. There are a few you don’t have any longer but they are irrelevant considering everything.”

  Alec just shook his head. “What does this mean?”

  “Well, Alec from everything that I can see this means that you are both vampire and human, but aren’t actually either one. You are something that I have never seen before or even heard of before.” He shook his head but there was a glint in his eyes. Schubert was intrigued.

  “From what I’ve seen Alec, your bones are pretty dense, much like a vampire’s. But the x-rays I did lead me to believe that they are not completely solid like a normal vampires and that you have bone marrow left.”

  Alec looked confused. “Meaning?”

  “Meaning that you create your own blood and don’t have to feed like a normal vampire. See, with a regular vampire,” he said smiling, “our bones are solid, and thicker, making them much stronger. But this also means that the marrow is gone and we don’t create our own blood, which is why we have to feed. Yours have thickened but not as much. And I’m led to believe you still have marrow.” He looked at Alec, squinted his eyes and sighed. “Now, we can try doing a bone marrow test if you want. But, it will be painful. And there is no guarantee that it will work. Your bones are thick enough that it would be very difficult for me to penetrate them for the test.”

  “Uh, no thanks,” Alec said quickly.

  Schubert laughed. “That’s what I thought. We will keep an eye on the situation and see what happens. Let me know immediately if you start craving blood or have the desire to rip someone’s throat out.” He smiled to show he was at least partially joking.

  Alec didn’t laugh at this and felt a bit queasy. He nodded once.

  “Okay, good.” Doctor Schubert got up and clapped Alec on the shoulder. “Follow me.”

  Schubert led Alec out of the lab, down the hallway and through a series of doors and hallways until they reached a gym. He led Alec in and then headed over to the free weight section. There he stopped with folder in hand and started looking at the weights. He found what he was looking for and motioned to Alec. “Pick that up please,” he said pointing to a two hundred pound weight that was lying on the floor.

  Alec looked doubtful, but complied. He grasped the round weight and lifted. He managed to lift it about an inch and then dropped it again.

  Schubert frowned and bit the inside of his cheek as he notated the result in his file. Next he pointed at a one hundred pound weight. “Lift this please.”

  Alec managed to get the weight about a foot above the ground, but his face showed the effort of it. Schubert looked even more confused, but he notated the file again and stood thinking. After a moment he pulled out his cell phone, typed in a message and replaced it in the breast pocket of his lab coat. He put Alec through a series of tests, running through tires that were placed in ones and twos on the floor, swinging from a series of rings that were set in twos hanging from bars and jumping over differing heights of hurdles. After each one, he would make notations in Alec’s file.

  While Alec was catching his breath, Marcus entered the gym and approached them.

  “Ah good,” Schubert said and handed Marcus the file. He read through his notes and frowned. “I don’t understand.”

  “Neither do I,” Schubert said, thinking. “I was hoping you could shed some light on this.”

  “What?” Alec asked finally catching his breath and standing erect.<
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  “You aren’t exhibiting any signs of vampiric strength or dexterity.”

  Alec frowned.

  “Well,” Marcus said thinking. “When we were attacked, Alec just…reacted. He didn’t think about it. He just defended himself.”

  Schubert nodded thinking. He walked over to the weights again and seemed to find what he was looking for. Without hesitating, he grabbed a huge five hundred pound weight and threw it at Alec.

  Without thinking about it, Alec reacted and grabbed the lead weight with one hand, halting its progress and holding it parallel to the ground. Alec looked like he was shocked. He slowly lifted the weight over his head, and then walked it back to its original place and set it carefully down.

  “Extraordinary,” was all Schubert said, scribbling notes in the file as quickly as he could.

  “Silas needs to see Alec,” Marcus told Schubert. The doctor looked like he was going to protest but then said “Fine.”

  Marcus motioned for Alec to follow them. Once outside the gym, Alec asked Marcus, “What just happened?”

  “Well,“ Marcus said slowly, “from what I saw in your file, you didn’t do so well on your other tests, well not until Schubert threw the weight at your head. I’m guessing you acted subconsciously when you grabbed it out of the air and held it.”

  “What?” Alec asked confused.

  “I’m guessing that you don’t know how to use your abilities consciously, so Schubert tossed five hundred pounds at your head so you would react subconsciously.”

  Five hundred pounds???, Alec thought. I shouldn’t be able to easily catch a five hundred pound weight. Hell, Schubert shouldn’t be able to throw it. It boggled Alec’s mind.

  Before he could ask anything else, they were standing before the double doors leading to Silas’s sitting room. Marcus nodded to the guards as he entered.

  Silas sat on the same white leather couch as before. Alec got the feeling that he spent a lot of time there.

  “Alec,” Silas said, rising, “thanks for joining me.”

  Alec nodded but didn’t say anything.

  “Did you sleep well?”

  Alec nodded and said yes, but didn’t go into any detail.

  They sat then as they had before and Silas asked Alec about his past. Alec quietly told him about the wreck that had killed his parents and his days in the orphanage. He didn’t go into detail about how horrible it had been. He didn’t want to think about it and he certainly didn’t want to share such detailed information with Silas. It was just too private. Silas asked a few more questions about Alec’s past and what he’d hoped to do with his future. Alec wasn’t sure where the questions where coming from but he answered them as honestly as he could. After a few moments of this, the Service phone buzzed behind Silas and he excused himself to answer.

  Marcus was in mid-sentence when we stopped talking and cocked his head. He listened intently for a moment and then said, “Shit.” Silas spoke a moment and then hung up the phone looking displeased.

  Marcus looked at Alec and spoke quickly and quietly. “Listen, we have a problem. I don’t have time to explain so I’m going to give you the quick version. There is someone here that we don’t trust. Speak as little as possible to her and try not to get on her bad side. She will do everything in her power to get you to snap so that she can make you her enemy. Try to ignore her and let Silas and me handle this. Okay?”

  Alec wasn’t sure what was going on but he nodded. The double doors opened into the room and a gorgeous woman with dark brown hair, wearing a brown dress that hugged her curves, entered the room followed by several attendees. She walked regally as if she were a queen and as if the room she were entering was her own. She crossed the room walking quickly, but gracefully, her expensive heels clicking quietly on the hardwood of the floors. When she approached Silas she approached him as an equal, her back straight and her gaze unwavering. They kissed each other on each cheek and Silas smiled.

  “Cassandra, what an excellent surprise. To what do I owe this honor?” Silas asked, not sounding at all like he didn't trust her.

  “I am on business, Silas. You know Laramie keeps me busy.” Laramie? Hadn’t Alec heard that name before? Wasn’t that the vampire that allegedly sent the thugs that had attacked Marcus and himself the night before?

  “Of course,” Silas said, his words clipped.

  Cassandra turned to review Marcus and Alec. “Marcus,” she said dismissively.

  Marcus nodded formally and stood quietly.

  “I see you’re still around,” she said unpleasantly. “I’ve come to see this new pet you’ve acquired.” She looked at Alec then, up and down, scrutinizing him hard. “Is this…him?” she said as if she expected something different.

  “It is. Cassandra, this is Alec Carson. Alec, this is Cassandra St. James, Laramie’s second.”

  Alec nodded shyly and opened his mouth to say something pleasant but before he could, Cassandra frowned distastefully and addressed Silas. “This is the one everyone is talking about?” She sounded incredulous. Everyone was talking about him? He snapped his mouth shut.

  Silas kept a straight face but a look of admonishment was in his eyes. “It is,” was all he said.

  Cassandra walked to Alec and then reviewed him up and down. She motioned with a well-manicured finger that he was to turn. He did so without question. He felt like he was some sort of animal on display and wanted to cover himself. It took all of Alec's willpower not to. She shook her head. “Not much to look at is he?” she asked grimacing. Silas frowned.

  Alec was mortified. His face burned in shame and he lowered his head, tears stinging his eyes.

  She tuned suddenly and addressed Silas. "I need to speak with Claus. If you don't mind..." she motioned with her hands. Silas turned and nodded to Xavier who in turn approached the Service phone and made a call.

  While they waited Xavier handed Cassandra a glass of red wine and made sure her retinue had something to refresh them. He also filled everyone else's glasses as well. After a moment the double doors opened and Doctor Schubert walked in.

  "Ah Claus, finally,” Cassandra said as if she’d been waiting forever. “I'll need to see Alec's files immediately, if you'll..."

  Doctor Schubert didn't give her a chance to finish. He simply said "No." and then stood looking at her.

  "Excuse me?" she said. Her voice sounded very dangerous.

  "I said, ‘no’."

  Cassandra narrowed her eyes and sat up a bit straighter. "I'm here on behalf of Laramie, and he demands..."

  Again he interrupted her. "Yes, well Laramie is not here himself, is he?"

  "No, he isn't. He sent me," she said from between gritted teeth.

  "Then the answer is no. And he certainly can't demand anything if he didn’t bother to come himself.”

  "As his second, I speak on his behalf and I want to see those files."

  Doctor Schubert chuckled quietly. "Cassandra dear, you are indeed Laramie's second. However, I cannot just turn over Alec's files to you. Patient-doctor privacy. I'm sure you understand." His face remained completely neutral.

  "That is ridiculous. Those stupid rules only apply to human doctors and patients."

  "I'm afraid in that you are mistaken, my dear."

  "I am here on behalf of council member Laramie and he wants those files." Her voice was starting to rise a little.

  "If Laramie had wanted to see the files himself, he should have come himself," he said logically.

  "Laramie is busy and..."

  "Well, there you go. If he's too busy to come for the files himself then they obviously aren't that important to him. I certainly hope you didn't waste a trip just for this," he said frowning.

  Cassandra frowned as well. She was used to getting her way and didn't like it when she didn't. "You will hand those files over to me now or..."

  "Or what?" Doctor Schubert interrupted quietly. There was something dangerous in the way he quietly a
sked the question. "Let me make something completely clear here, Cassandra." He said her name as if there were something foul tasting in his mouth. "You have no authority here other than what little your master has given you. Furthermore, you do not come in here and make demands, certainly not from me. I would not hand over the files to Laramie himself if he were here. Right now, this is Silas's issue to deal with. And he is doing such. Until this becomes a council matter, then Laramie has no say in this. And even were it a council matter, you are not on the council. You do not give orders to me or anyone else. You may request the files if you like, however at this point I am still doing research and this is a matter for the District Protectorate, and that is Silas. As I have stated Silas is dealing with it. Laramie's assistance is not required and he needn't have sent his lap dog."

  Cassandra was livid.

  Schubert didn't give Cassandra a chance to respond, "If there's nothing else?" When no one responded he turned and walked towards the double doors.

  "I did not dismiss you," she said loudly. He didn't respond to her words but simply walked out.

  "Are you going to let your servants speak to me that way Silas?" she demanded, her face a mask of anger and hate.

  "You know as well as anyone that Doctor Schubert is not a servant and per the council, answers to no one. Coming in to my house and making demands was not a good idea and you knew it before you tried."

  "Laramie is concerned about this situation and has sent me to monitor your progress." She took a sip from her wine glass to give herself a moment to regain her composure.

  "I assure you," Silas said slowly, "that we have everything well in hand."

  She smiled a tight little smile. "Laramie isn't assured. He believes, as do many of us," she said smirking, "that you should have taken care of this little problem well before now." She was attempting to calm herself after her utter failure with Doctor Schubert.

  Silas's face never changed. "Well, thankfully, as Doctor Schubert stated, this is not Laramie's business yet. It's mine. And do remember please, Cassandra, that I don't answer to you or Laramie."