by Eve Newton
“What book?” CK asks smoothly.
But he isn’t fooling me. “I’m guessing it’s why Sebastian is here in the first place. What is it?” I ask again forcefully.
Silence.
“It isn’t rhetorical,” I yell.
CK sighs. “Aefre. You can never leave anything alone, can you?” CK asks.
Cole, despite his anger at my sire, snickers in my ear.
“You got that right,” he adds.
I shake Cole off me – the Judas – and step forward. “Start talking, D’Arcangelo,” I growl.
Sebastian’s eyebrows go up. “She last-named you?” he asks incredulously. “I don’t think anyone in the history of the world has ever done that before.”
“Yes, well, don’t get any ideas,” CK says wryly. “The book is nothing for you to worry about,” he adds to me.
“Scott thinks otherwise.”
“Scott should mind his own business,” he says menacingly.
“If he thought it wasn’t important, he wouldn’t have mentioned it.”
“What is he?” Sebastian asks again. “Like some kind of mind reader?”
“Exactly some kind of mind reader. He is an Empath, and your thoughts about this book sent up a red flag,” I affirm.
“Fuck me. He really should mind his own damn business,” Sebastian mutters, looking far too worried about having his thoughts read than I’m comfortable with.
“Well, if you hadn’t gone down there in the first place, your little secret would still be safe,” I say. He blanches before resuming normal expressions as I add, “Lucky for you, he doesn’t understand French, or Latin, or whatever language most of your thoughts are in.”
CK glowers at him. “We will discuss this in private,” he says, effectively dismissing Cole, much to Cole’s annoyance.
“Cole stays,” I say. He looks smug as CK looks furious.
“Fine,” he snaps. “The book is a history, of our history.”
“What do you mean?” I ask curiously.
“The run-up of events that led to our creation, why and by whom.”
“What? You didn’t already know?”
“No. It just…was.”
“Don’t you have all of that in your head?” Cole asks me.
“No. The records only start the exact moment that Ahmed was created. There is nothing prior to that. And not much prior to any of the Initial Vampires’ human lives. Why didn’t you want me to know?”
“I was going to tell you. I just wanted to read it through first. Understand it myself before I tried to explain it.”
“But Sebastian knew about it,” I pout. “I would have thought that not only as a Vampire but as Queen of the Vampires you would have told me about it. And if not for that reason, then because it’s me,” I add softly.
“Sebastian risked his life to get this, if he hadn’t gone for it, he wouldn’t know either. And I was going to tell you,” he adds just as softly.
“Risked his life? Why, where was it? I could have gone for it.”
“I started looking for it before I knew you were invulnerable, but even then, I wouldn’t have risked you, Aefre.”
“So, what am I?” Sebastian asks, insulted. “Chopped liver?”
Ignoring him, I say to CK, “What’s the story then?”
“It’s written in Babylonian so it’s taking me awhile to translate, but by that alone I’m going to assume you know who started all of this?” he says and waves his hand at the four of us.
“Babylonian?” I say thoughtfully and the penny drops. “Tiamat.”
“Got it in one, my clever girl,” CK says. I simper under his praise. “That woman has been a thorn in my side,” he grumbles.
“What, you don’t like being a Vampire?” I ask, surprised.
“It’s not the life I would have chosen, my sweet,” he says wryly, to my shock. “As it was, I had no choice.”
Hurt by his words, I say, “No choice? You didn’t choose this?”
“No. I was picked.”
“Picked?”
“Handpicked,” Sebastian pipes up and I focus on him for a moment.
“Handpicked? By what means?”
CK speaks again. “Bloodline, mostly.” He shrugs evasively.
“Oh, please, modest much?” Sebastian scoffs. “Bloodline and being Quam Optime. Better than the best, the cream of the crop, the crème de la…”
“I think they get the point, Bastian,” CK snaps at him.
“The best at what?” Coles asks, forgetting his anger in the sight of such intrigue.
CK frowns at him and says, “It doesn’t matter. It makes no difference now who my father was or when my birthday was or how accomplished a warrior I was. I was thrust into this.” I can see his lack of consent riles on him, but I look at Sebastian as he looks at me and we both open our mouths to be the first to ask the question, “When is your birthday?” We ask it in unison, glaring at each other.
CK glowers at us. “I said it makes no difference now.”
“You just hate giving up information about yourself,” Cole says suddenly. “What’s the big deal?”
Silence.
“You as well, Liv. I have no idea when your birthday is.”
“Well, I don’t celebrate it, Cole. What am I going to do, put a thousand and seventeen candles on a cake?” I ask wryly.
He chuckles. “No, I suppose not. Still, I’d like to know.”
“Seventeen? You were seventeen when Constantine turned you?” Sebastian asks out of the blue.
Startled, I turn to him, “No, I was sixteen.”
“Sixteen?” he repeats in disbelief. “You turned her when she was sixteen?” he asks CK, who looks mildly embarrassed.
“So what?” I say, confused.
Ignoring me, he says, “What happened to the over-eighteen rule?”
“What over eighteen rule?” I ask, now even more confused.
Sebastian turns to me. “Our sire has a policy of only turning people over the age of eighteen. Or at least he did,” he says pointedly.
I look at CK. “Why over eighteen? It’s only recently that became ‘adult’ age. We all grew up way quicker than that back then.”
CK straightens his suit jacket cuffs to show his discomfort. “I didn’t want to be lumbered with a bunch of children. It was a personal choice,” he says haughtily.
I’m beyond hurt by his confession, asking, “Children? Is that what you thought about me?”
“Christ, Aefre. Do you even have to ask me that?” he asks, exasperated. “You had already been married for two years when I met you. Hardly a child. Do you think I would have gone anywhere near you if I thought that?” he adds, highly insulted that I appear to think so little of him that he would defile a child.
I think about it for a moment, which angers him further. “No,” I say eventually. “I don’t suppose you would.” He looks slightly mollified. “But what was your plan?” I ask, having a massive sense of déjà vu. “Were you just going to hang on until I became of age?” I continue, saying the last three words with a showy hand movement to which Sebastian snickers.
“That is kind of a moot point, my dear, seeing as the alternative was to leave you to bleed to death. And besides which, I know I would have turned you sooner rather than later because of the…” He stops at my horrified look.
“Because of the what?” Cole asks, annoyed.
CK smiles then, his features returning to one of smug arrogance as he becomes aware that I have not told Cole about the baby.
“Because of the monster who dared to call himself her husband and I couldn’t bear to be without her. I wanted her safe and with me,” he says easily.
I relax a bit now that I know he won’t spill the baby beans.
“Sooo,” Sebastian draws out the word slowly, “back to your birthday. You taught me everything I know about sidestepping a question and while, nicely done, you aren’t getting away from this one.”
“I don’t see the point. It
isn’t even the same date as it would be now,” he complains.
“What does that mean?” Cole asks, lost as usual in the changes throughout the history of the world.
I turn to him and explain about the change in calendar from the ancient lunar calendar – which these two old farts were born during – through the Roman calendar, Julian calendar – Devon and I – to the current Gregorian calendar, being Cole.
“Oh, I see. Well, a date is a date, isn’t it?”
“I have an idea,” Sebastian says. “Why don’t we all just go together and that way we all find out each other’s. Date first, followed by the month that it would be today. Agreed?”
We all nod, and he says, “Right, go.”
And, not as much to my surprise as you would think, we all blurt out, “April 15th.”
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED THIRTEEN
“Well, go figure,” Cole says as we all stare at each other.
“Now, that is some coincidence,” Sebastian says as CK looks away. I stare at him and know that it is no coincidence, as I already know that Cole, Devon and Fraser were also born on April 15th. I just didn’t fathom the extent to which it went. Although, what it means is undecided. It makes sense to me, in a way, that they would share my birthday as we were all involved in the Prophecy that brought me to Power, but Sebastian? What is his role? Or maybe it isn’t anything to do with me at all, but CK instead?
“What’s the significance?” I ask him, searching his eyes as he turns back to me.
He shrugs. “I haven’t got that far yet.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Where is the book now?”
“It’s not here,” he says.
Nice try.
“Where is it?” I press.
“Ponte Sull’acqua,” he says, glaring at me for pushing him.
“Fine. I will go and get it,” I say. Inspiration hits me and I add, “I will also find out what is behind those wards while I’m there.” I grab Cole’s arm and Astral out, as CK shouts, “Aefre, No!”
Cole and I land in the Grand Entrance Hall of the castle, followed closely by both CK and Sebastian.
Cole looks around in awe. “Wow,” he says, “This is some fucking place.”
“This fucking place is my home,” CK says, thoroughly pissed off that we are here uninvited.
“What’s yours is mine, my dear,” I say patronizingly to him as I barge past him to the kitchens.
“Aefre, no,” he says again. “You don’t want to go down there.”
“Constantine. You told me that you would tell me what’s down there.”
“I know I did. But this isn’t the time. It’s not the right way.”
“Tell me or I go down there,” I give him the ultimatum with crossed arms, the book all but forgotten.
“Aefre. Don’t, my love,” he pleads with me.
“If you don’t tell me and I go down there and if it’s… you know what, there is going to be Hell to pay.”
“It’s not that. I told you it’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
He shakes his head, so I turn to the dungeon door and place my hand on it.
He sighs and runs his hand through his hair in agitation.
I break through the wards and pull open the door. A very loud, pain-filled howl of anguish echoes up the steps, followed by a clatter against the iron bars of a cell.
I step back, horrified. “What have you done?” I ask him.
“Not mine, Aefre. Yours,” he says, so sad my heart nearly breaks.
“Mine? What do you mean mine?” I hiss at him.
“He is one of yours, Aefre.”
My mouth drops open in shock. “No. No. I only have two living charges. You know that.”
“No, my sweet. You have three.”
“No!” I say again. “No! That’s not possible. I would know! I would have known if one of them were still alive and here. I would have sensed them.”
“He was behind the wards. You wouldn’t have known.” He pauses for the longest time and then says quietly, “Did you never think about what happened to the man you sired in Nagyvárad?”
“Gustav? I don’t know, I never thought about it. I assumed he was dead as I never heard from him again after I got back,” I say, dread creeping over me.
I gulp as Cole stares at me in disbelief, and Sebastian looks away, not wanting to catch my eye. I slump down the wall and close my eyes. Cole tries to come closer, but I hold my hand up for him to remain where he is. I have to see if this is the truth. I have to do something that I haven’t wanted to do since I got my Powers six months ago but should have. I was afraid to see it. I didn’t want to see all the loss I had caused. I concentrate and flick through the records in my head and bring up my own list of charges. I saw it briefly when the download occurred at the old Council buildings in Milan, but I pushed it to the side and kept it buried. I find it and I draw in a deep breath. I peek at it in my mind’s eye and I see Evoric at the top. Status: Murdered. I see the next and the next, all murdered. I skip to the bottom, just to stop all the pain and see Devon and Cole there, Status: Alive. It calms me and I look for Gustav’s name. I find it fairly close to the bottom. Status: Alive.
It’s true.
“Explain,” I croak.
“After about twelve years had passed since I saw you that day, I wanted to find you. I needed to see you again. I had heard no more about you in Nagyvárad and I assumed you had Shifted and moved on to a quieter life. I went back to the castle where I last saw you, but found it was abandoned. The villagers were terrified of the place, said it was haunted by the spirits of those who had…” he clears his throat, “…died there. I went anyway and discovered the dungeons had been locked off with wards. Romani magick. I knew then it had something to do with Lance. I summoned Dmitri to help unlock the wards as he had Romani of his own and that is when we found him. The humans were long since dead but the Vampire you sired…he was still alive. Starved and insane, a feral creature that was beyond repair,” he says and pauses to see my reaction.
I stare at him in horror, speechless.
He continues, “I had him brought here, tried for centuries to fix him after we found you, but it was too late. The damage of being new and away from you and of being starved and isolated was too much for him to come back from.”
I shake my head. “No,” I say, the tears falling freely. “No, please, no.” I slump further down the wall to the floor, not able to complete a coherent thought.
“I’m sorry, my love. It was just another punishment from Lance,” he says, crouching next to me.
“Why didn’t you just end him? Put him out of his misery?”
“The Romani who broke the wards warned me of the link. The link with Blood Magick. I couldn’t risk it. I couldn’t take the chance that ending him would also end you. He hasn’t been mistreated, Aefre. I have given him the best life I could under the circumstances. I have never stopped trying to bring him back. But he is dangerous.”
“All this time? All this time you had him here and you didn’t tell me? I lived here with him locked up in the dungeon for over two hundred and fifty years and you didn’t tell me?” I’m getting hysterical now. “Why? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“To protect you,” he says simply. “You were in no fit shape after we found you. Over a dozen years it took for you to come back from what he did to you. You were my priority. When you did come back you were still so fragile for so long, I couldn’t risk a relapse. It was done and I didn’t want you taking on the burden and guilt that it would have brought.”
“I have to go down there. I have to see him,” I say, holding out my hand for Cole to help me up.
“I don’t think you should. He won’t know who you are, and you can’t talk to him. He has lost all of his humanity, Aefre. He can’t Shift back.”
“What?”
“He has been completely taken over by his Vampire half.”
“I can help him. I have to try,” I say desperately. �
�He’s mine. I did this to him. It’s all my fault. I have to fix it.”
“You can’t.”
“Then end him,” I say forcefully. “Don’t leave him to be a monster.”
“I can’t,” Constantine says desperately. “Lance told me that he did link you, when you were going to get Polly. I asked him and he told me what he did.”
“Maybe he was lying? Who cares? I can’t die now. I’m invulnerable. Don’t think about me, just put him out of his misery,” I say again.
“No. I won't risk it,” he says, resolute.
“Liv,” Cole says. I look at him and he looks back at me in sorrow.
“I have to go down there,” I say again.
“I will come with you,” Sebastian says.
“No,” Constantine says. “I don’t want you going down there.”
“You can’t stop me.”
“Like Hell I can’t,” he says as he grabs my arm, pulling me back from the door.
I use all of the strength I can muster to pull away from him and take Sebastian’s hand, kicking off my shoes in the process. Damn dungeon steps.
“Liv,” Cole says again desperately. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
I nod sadly. “He’s mine. I left him to this fate. I won’t let him go another minute thinking I left him on purpose.”
“Come,” Sebastian tugs on me and I follow him, the knot tightening in my stomach with each step down.
He must sense me on some level, as he calms when I approach him. He is on all fours, completely Vamped out, snarling at Sebastian, but then he whimpers when he sees me.
I pull away from Sebastian and kneel at the cell. I put my hand through the bars. He bares his fangs at me.
“Liv,” Sebastian warns quietly.
“Shush,” I whisper.
Gustav stares at me, at my hand, and crawls closer. He stops in front of me and he sniffs my hand, then licks me like a dog would. My heart breaks as he puts his face against my palm, nuzzling me. The tears roll silently down my face, as he clearly does know me.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I left you,” I whisper in the old language. “I’m sorry that I turned you, I’m sorry that I kept you locked away. I’m so sorry that I left you. Please know it wasn’t my choice to leave you.”