by Kate Martin
“What is it?”
“Malachite.”
Sounded too much like Malachi for my liking. “Okay. Is it supposed to do anything?”
“Enhance the predictive ability of those who foresee misfortune.”
“Fabulous.” As long as it didn’t increase the number of visits from my doom sense.
“You will hold it, and concentrate.”
I stared at the rather large lump of stone in my hand. “Okay. Now what?”
“Now,” she said, sweeping her way to the table where the incense sat, and lighting them, “we wait.”
It only took me half a second to realize she wasn’t kidding. She really intended to make me stand there and wait out the possible power-boost I would get from the stone. I fidgeted and stared at the clock on the wall of the study, ticking away the seconds like painful stretches of eternity.
I waited a full agonizing five minutes before complaining. “Nothing’s happening. No doom approaches. And last I checked, that was a good thing.”
“Remember something then.”
“Like what?”
“Anything.”
She was out to drive me crazy. I knew it. Usually she pushed me, prodded me, goaded me into remembering either things she had said to Eva, or things that had happened to Bryn. Thankfully, she had never forced me into remembering the details of my deaths, though I knew that was where she aimed. At least for Eva. If I could identify the members of the VFO who had helped Malachi, then they could be arrested and punished.
Not really that high on my list of priorities. I had enough people hating me already, and Rhys was all that mattered.
Regardless, I figured I should at least look like I was making the effort. The sooner I got out of here, the sooner I could start going about this investigation my own way. Sitting lotus style, I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and tried to clear my head of any thoughts.
After what felt like hours, but was probably only moments, I couldn’t concentrate under the clear weight of Aurelia’s impatient gaze. I cracked one eye open. “You’re freaking me out.”
“Excuse me?”
Warren choked, probably unable to believe I had said such a thing. Honestly, I couldn’t either. It was a testament to how fidgety she made me. “I can’t concentrate,” I said, shoulders slumping. “All I can think about it you watching me.”
“Oh, honestly, Kassandra.”
“I’m just telling you how I feel.”
She spoke in a long string of incredulous words that I couldn’t understand. Why did everyone keep doing that? It wasn’t fair. Even if I learned another dozen languages in my now expansive lifetime, my first language would always be well known to all of them. Not fair.
“Fine.”
“What?” It took a second for me to realize she had spoken to me.
“Fine,” she said again. “I shall leave you to it. But Warren will stay. Won’t you, Warren?”
“Uh, yes, ma’am.”
“Warren will stay, and make sure you remain focused.” Aurelia glided to the door, ignoring any protests either of us had. “And once you have remembered something, you will feed.”
Everyone was the boss of me.
Did eighteen years old count for nothing anymore?
The click of the door left me and Warren alone. Good thing I liked him.
“Well,” he said, smiling over the knee he had drawn up onto the chair, “better get to it.”
Sometimes I liked him.
“You had better be careful,” I warned him, settling into my very best zen position, “I’ll get good at this, and then I’ll peel away all your layers of life, revealing your deepest, darkest secrets.”
“They wouldn’t really be my secrets.”
“I’ll discover that you were a Russian folk dancer, and a German beer brewer, and before that, a fish.”
“I don’t think it works that way.”
“I’ll bet once you were even the most popular kid in school, with a grade point average of only two point nine.” Warren had never gotten anything lower than a four-point-o.
“The horror.” His deadpan response made me grin. “Seriously though, she’ll know if you don’t actually do anything, and she’ll give me one of her looks.”
“Fine, fine. A quick jog around memory lane, then I’ll get a bite to eat.”
“You’re going to bite me?”
“Shut up.”
I had never been very good at meditating or anything like that. So I ran through as many focused thoughts as I could, attempting to clear away the cobwebs of my mind. I thought of Rhys, and Sara and the whole mess that seemed a lifetime ago, even though it had only been less than a week. I thought of the past lives I could only barely remember, that I was supposed to remember. Why did I have to remember so quickly anyway? I had forever. Bryn’s life would be mostly happy, but short. Same with Eva. Jacqueline, I knew next to nothing about her. France, married life, kids; all the glimpses I had gotten were fairly general and certainly nothing special. Normal.
Jacqueline was the most uneventful of all my lives.
I adjusted the brim of my new straw hat and looked myself over in the mirror one last time.
Perfect. As always.
The neckline of my new gown dipped low in the most elegant of fashions and the jewel that hung at the base of my throat was clear, spectacular and very, very real. The benefits of a well-off husband from a well-respected and wealthy family. The soft blue color of the gown complimented my eyes, while the golden ribbon crisscrossed across the bodice of the gown accented the highlights in my hair.
I ran a hand over the slight bump that had begun to show at my belly.
Satisfied that it would be nearly impossible for anyone to outshine me once I walked into the garden, I turned, and with all the grace I possessed, went to make my grand entrance. We were entertaining my husband’s closest associates and their wives, and I had worked hard to make sure everything would be perfect.
But the first man to greet me when I stepped out into the sunshine was not my husband.
“Good afternoon, Lady Bontecou,” the man said, bowing. He was handsome, but clearly not French, not with that pale skin, blue eyes, and dark hair.
“I do not believe we have met before,” I said, maintaining distance. “Are you a new acquaintance of my husband’s?”
“I suppose you could say that.”
Something didn’t quite feel right about this man. Almost like he had a power over me, pulled me towards him. I didn’t like it. “Do you have a name?”
The man just smiled. “I do.”
“Are you going to share it with me?”
“I’m not sure what you would do with my name once you had it.”
Do with it? “What an odd thing to say. Well, sir, if you have no conversation to offer then I must see to my other guests.”
He grabbed my arm as I moved to walk past, but released me the moment I gasped and pulled away. “How dare you?”
The young man stared at the ground. “Apologies. I don’t know what came over me. Forgive me.” His gaze cautiously met mine again.
My wrist tingled where the memory of his touch still lingered, cold, as though ice had been pressed against it. “Your hand,” I said, feeling my heart like a stone in my chest. “You have no warmth. You are . . . you are one of them.”
I opened my mouth to scream, but he was gone. Nothing but sunlight and air remained.
A hand settled on my lower back and I started, pressing my hand over my heart when I recognized my husband’s coat. “Oh, Armand, you frightened me.”
“I’m sorry, my dear.” He kissed my cheek and I felt him smile. “Were you speaking with someone?”
“A man. Not one of your friends.”
“No? Then who was he?”
“Vampire.”
Armand stiffened at my side, his arm tightening around my waist. “How? The garden is filled with nearly nothing but Hunters. One couldn’t possibly get by us without our notici
ng.”
“Well, one did. And he knew precisely who I am.”
“Stay here. I will send someone to watch over you.”
“I don’t think he meant to harm me.”
“Of course it meant to harm you. They are monsters, incapable of feeling anything other than hunger and lust. If one sought you out then you are to be considered a target. This will not be argued, Jacqueline.”
“As you wish.”
He kissed me again. “I don’t mean to worry you, but you have more than just yourself to look after now.” His hand came to rest against my belly. “You know what they can do, Jacque. You have seen it with your own eyes.”
I pulled away from him then, closing my eyes and willing away the images of my family slaughtered like animals on the floor of our home, bled dry and left to rot. “I’ll ask that you not remind me of such things while in my current condition. Our child shouldn’t know of the touch of evil before he even glimpses the sun.”
“Our child will know it all. Now, I must tell the others of this. Do not say anything to the other wives. You should be safe enough amongst us all, despite this little visitation. Did the creature introduce himself?”
What would I do with his name indeed. “No, he did not.”
“Fine then. I’m sure you can provide one of our artists with a description later?”
“Of course.”
He left me then. Joining the others of the Society to tell them of my encounter. Yet I held no fear in my heart, despite being touched by the foul undead.
I could recall perfectly, that moment just before he disappeared, a moment I hadn’t been aware of at the time, the pained expression he wore at my repulsion.
He hadn’t hurt me, but I had hurt him.
I drew breath as though I had been drowning in the ocean when the memory released me. The rough carpet beneath me spoke of home, and my clothes seemed terribly insubstantial after remembering the cumbersome dress and fine fabrics.
Warren hovered just above me. “Kass?” he asked. “You okay?”
“Uh . . .”
“What did you remember?” He helped me sit up, but I still didn’t say anything. What could I say? “You don’t look good,” he said. “Maybe you should drink?”
“I, uh, I need some air.” I scrambled up from the floor and made for the door. The hinges gave way in my haste. Warren called after me once more, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. I ran down the stairs, through the hall and out the door.
I didn’t know where I was headed, had no plan. I simply ran, trying to outpace my thoughts.
Jacqueline knew about vampires. She had met Rhys. No one had told me that. Cade had said that Rhys found her, saw her happy and so let her be. But that wasn’t what I had seen. Rhys had approached her, spoken to her. He had tried to make a connection with her. Jacqueline had refused.
She had known what he was. As did her husband.
I struggled to remember more about him, but the more I tried to focus on his face, the more blurred it became. I couldn’t see him. Only his beautifully tailored clothes. I could still feel his hand on my back; strong, sure and protective. His voice replayed over and over in my mind, filled with hate and disgust when discussing vampires. From Jacqueline’s thoughts, I knew everyone in the garden that day knew of the existence of vampires. But why?
My head was beginning to hurt.
I tried to remember beyond that garden party, to see what happened after Jacqueline revealed Rhys to the “Society” as she called it. Nothing. She didn’t have his name, but I knew, somehow, that she would have given it without a second thought.
Had her description been accurate?
I supposed it didn’t really matter. Rhys had clearly survived the encounter and anything afterwards.
Why had no one told me that Jacqueline knew about vampires? It changed everything. I had thought I had experienced one life free of all this, despite being also deprived of Rhys. One life without the undead and the blood and the killing. Apparently I had been wrong. Jacqueline’s family had all been killed, drained, eaten. Though she hadn’t feared Rhys directly as he approached, I could still feel the other emotions that had swirled about in the back of her subconscious.
She hated vampires. Wanted them dead, gone. And that conviction was stronger than anything else. Had Rhys tried again, she might even have been stubborn enough to let that hate overshadow a centuries old love.
Thank god Rhys didn’t try again.
It suddenly occurred to me that I was running faster than humanly possible. Slowing, I switched to a quick walk. A quick glance around told me no one had seen.
Almost no one walked the streets, despite the sunlight. Did they fear the day now too?
By the corner of one of my favorite little trinket shops, I ducked into the narrow alleyway between it and the pizza place. God, how I missed pizza. But even the smell of it did little for me now, only dug up memories of good times with friends who now hated and feared me.
Slumping against the brick wall, I closed my eyes and just tried to forget. The buildings gave me some cover, but the sunlight still slipped in, missing me by inches. I hadn’t gone deep into the alley. The heat from the sun still made my flesh throb, and my throat tickle. When I had fed from Warren that morning I only took a little. I had left in such a hurry that I had forgotten that the plan had been to drink more after Aurelia was done with me.
Great.
The hunger wasn’t that bad though. I could handle it. Just a few more minutes alone, and I would head back home. Aurelia would be waiting, eager to know what I had seen.
Rhys’s pained expression when Jacqueline realized what he was flashed through my mind again. The poor guy never got a break. Five hundred years of misery. It wasn’t fair. I would have to make a conscious effort to make sure this life made up for all the others.
I could start by not wandering out on my own while we were in the middle of a war. What if someone found me? It had happened before. Sure, I had taken out a few creatures on my own the other night, but that didn’t make me super-vamp. Running out just because my memory had startled me was not my best idea.
Stupid, Kassandra. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I knocked my head back against the brick wall to drive the lesson home.
The raid should have gone perfectly. It had been extensively planned for months.
But it hadn’t. The vampires had known we were coming. Someone had sold us out. They had been waiting. So much for the claims of trustworthy vampires. And just when we had begun to think that it might actually be true, that there may be vampires who could behave as civilized creatures. Better to know now rather than later, when they had the true advantage.
Checking the security of my gold rings, I nodded to my companions that I was ready. I may not have been a Hunter by blood, but I was by desire, and on this day, I would have my revenge.
Our torches were the only light in the crypt. They were also our best defense. Opening the doors, we set the entire thing ablaze, all the while listening to the screams and cries of those fighting outside.
The fire spread quickly.
The creatures within screamed in agony, but I had no remorse. They had taken from me no more than what I now took from them. At least in my taking, I made the world safer, not darker.
Out of the shadows of the night a featureless figure sprang towards me. I put up my arms to defend myself and grabbed his face with my hands, holding his teeth just short of my neck.
His flesh burned and smoked beneath my rings.
One of my companions ran the creature through with a gold-plated sword and carved out its heart. Blood spilled everywhere, over my shoes and the special breeches that had been made for me for just this occasion. Once the scent of blood had called to mind the memories of my slaughtered family had made me faint and ill. Now, exhilaration.
I pulled my hands from the vampire’s face and watched the creature fall to the stone floor of the crypt. Pleased, but not nearly satisfied, I went out into the night t
o join the others.
The smell of blood lingered even when the memory left me. I breathed heavily, hoping to catch another scent to make me forget what I had seen, what I had smelled.
Jacqueline was a Hunter. She had married one.
And suddenly I remembered something Cade had said to me, just after Rhys had been arrested. “Once, he was able to walk into a garden full of Hunters and go undetected.”
Rhys had gone to see Jacqueline, who had married a Hunter, and she had reported him.
“Kassandra?”
The voice came from the street. Travis Hammond stood, one hand on the corner of the building, leaning in through the sunlight to look at me. He had been in my class since middle school, but we had only spoken occasionally. “Are you all right?” he asked. “You look kind of sick.”
“I’m fine,” I said all too quickly, not able to do anything but stare at him. Jacqueline’s memory still pulsed through me, exciting me as it had her, despite the current reversal of roles.
“Do you need a ride? I have my car. Or I could call someone for you?”
“I’m okay. Really. I just, uh, overdid it going for a run this morning.” Yeah, cause I was such an athlete.
Travis looked like he knew I didn’t really run much. “Okay, well, you probably shouldn’t stay in the alley too long. What with everything that’s been going on and all, you know?”
Oh, if he only knew. “Yeah. Don’t worry. I was just catching my breath.” I smiled, hoping he would go away. I was out of direct sunlight, but the heat was still there, and his veins pulsed so close to the surface of his skin I could see the blood move through them.
Funny. I hadn’t ever really noticed something like that before, not when I wasn’t really thirsty.
The vein in his neck throbbed, taunting me.
Jacqueline’s charged desire to find and eliminate danced at the back of my mind.
“If you’re sure then,” Travis said. “I’ll see you around I guess.”
“Sure.” Keep smiling.
His hand slipped down the wall as he went to leave—and caught on a jagged edge. Travis drew in a sharp breath and brought his hand close to his face to see it better.
His palm faced away from me, but it didn’t change the facts. My heart thumped, jarring my ribs. I began to sweat, as though I were standing in direct sunlight. My vision narrowed down to a single point; Travis. All I could hear was the beat of his heart, and the rush of blood in his veins. And one thought consumed me above all else.