by R. J. Blain
“A vampire with poor intentions found himself reduced to a pile of dust trying to claim one of them as his own. No loss there.” Emerick rose from his perch on the couch’s arm, sat beside me, and plucked the stake responsible for Carnegie’s death from its holster. “This one is a jewel, for it is the jewel that ended Carnegie’s unlife.”
“Yes, that one has much heart, and it has enjoyed long days beneath the sun. Might I ask where you found the wood to carve that, Miss Pepper?”
“I climbed to the top of the tallest tree I could find in a park. I searched for a branch already breaking, and I took it.” I grimaced at the memory of that climb—and the fall I would’ve endured had I slipped. “I don’t like taking from branches that might live a long time. That one was broken in a storm, I suppose. It just hadn’t fallen yet. Then I came back every night and carved it while sitting in its tree. It was a safe place, and nobody was going to sneak up on me while I was up there.”
“You’ve found a treasure, boy. Who would have thought a youngling from this age would discover the secrets of stake carving through an application of common sense?”
“You will find Pepper to be a very practical woman. Even her approach to feeding was quite practical, although her initial introduction to mortal food upon rising went poorly.”
“I’m afraid to ask.”
“I already told you she’d dined on pizza.”
Clarke winced. “And with so much of my blood in her system, she would have had a less than ideal evening after consuming that. I apologize for that, Miss Pepper. I’m rather sensitive, and when you drank so much of my blood, you would have inherited that trait until my blood was fully flushed from your system. We are not suited for dairy, even the least sensitive among us.”
“Yes, I had wondered at the severity of her reaction to dairy. More extreme than most. That your blood contributed to her unlife explains much. Her first meal in my care was pizza that did not offend her delicate sensibilities. She hasn’t eaten since, although I’ve been insistent on ensuring she has a suitable quantity of blood each day. We have had some conflicts about that.”
“From the day I made you, I have cautioned you about your lack of patience. You cannot force her to dine precisely how you wish immediately. Give her time to adapt. Alternatively, you can continue to tempt her with your blood. There’s something to be said about temptation. If temptation is needed to win your way, then who am I to criticize?”
“You would criticize. Without remorse. As often as possible.” Emerick returned the stake to its sheath, rose to his feet, and crossed his arms. “Would you please tell us what you know of Pepper’s maker? I would rather not go over the specifics; if she doesn’t remember, that may be for the better. The man dies at her hands if possible, but I will accept death by any hand as tolerable.”
“This is where I have some good news and bad news for you. I do not specifically know this vampire. He is newly made himself, but he has interesting allies. I can tell you his motivation for capturing and turning Miss Pepper, although she will find it distasteful.”
“Leverage against my father?” I guessed.
“In part. He wanted knowledge on your father’s operations as well, but you proved to possess too indomitable of a will to break. Frankly spoken, he meant to deliver your corpse to him, ravaged from a failed turning.”
I frowned. “What do you mean by that? Ravaged from a failed turning?”
Emerick scoffed at my question, returned to his seat on the arm of the couch, and clacked his teeth together.
“Please forgive my offspring. He does not like what is being discussed, as he is very delicate with his children and has no tolerance for unnecessary cruelty. He learned that from me, as he was gently risen. A gentle upbringing usually results in a gentle vampire, one who is less inclined to indulge in excessive violence, and one with a smoother temper. You were savaged, and when your body was too broken to sustain life, he forced his blood down your throat. In circumstances like this, a failed rising would have resulted in a very mutilated corpse. You, I believe, sought to spite him beyond death. You drank him almost dry, and our captors tossed me to you so their pathetic master would survive your first feeding. You then drank me to the point of death and attacked one other vampire before you succumbed. That one deserved his demise, so don’t you fret over that. At that point, I played dead, tricking them into returning me to the ground so I could recover. They were inexperienced and were not aware you would rise cranky and hungry after your body healed. I presume it would have taken two to three nights considering how damaged you were and how potent my blood is.”
I regarded my hands and arms, neither of which showed any signs of trauma. “That doesn’t sound anything like how Emerick described when he makes a vampire.”
“That is because he is a gentle master, and he eases his offspring into unlife. He tucks them into a warm bed, stays with them until it is certain they will rise again or not, however fate decides, and treats them like the people they are. Your maker never intended for you to rise.”
What a bastard. “So, he just wanted to get his ass handed to him by a dying chick and toss my body to my shark of a father.”
“Essentially. He did, indeed, get his ass handed to him by a dying chick, but then you proceeded to drink down a rather old vampire and a worthless youngling. Of course, they had no idea of my actual age. They knew I was old, but they did not know how old. I was the next to be questioned, as they felt I had more value than an upstart heiress. That didn’t go according to their plans. I presume they didn’t believe my age was of importance, to allow you to drain me as much as you did. Allowing you to drain me that much was a calculated risk on my part.”
“You took control of her through your blood.” Emerick wrinkled his nose. “How did they hold you hostage? It would be difficult aging a stake correctly. Not even I know exactly how old you are, and with a live capture, even months matter.”
“Preternatural magic of some sort. Likely a witch or were; whatever it was, it was a dark, vile magic, one I’d rather not experience again. The spell broke after your lady sank her new fangs into me. And yes, I took control of her only long enough to redirect her to a different source of blood. I should feel more sorry about that than I do, but she was in a frenzy and would have attacked someone else anyway. I simply did not wish for her to drain me completely dry. As it was, it took me a long time to recover enough to emerge from my grave. I give them some credit; they buried me deep enough to make escaping a challenge. It is a good thing that we do not breathe when buried, else I would’ve surely suffocated. They did not wish for my body to be discovered. They failed to take the steps to ensure my final death, so here I am.”
Great. I’d been vicious from the start of my unlife. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. You did not do anything other than decide you would survive. I do not bear any shame for contributing to your unlife. However, the amount of blood you consumed is likely part of what ensured you would rise from your grave. We do not typically give so much vampiric blood to someone being risen. How much do you give your offspring, boy?”
“Three pints unless I feel more is needed, in which case others in the brood offer no more than three pints. The most I’ve needed to give was nine, but he did rise, slower than I appreciated at the time. The first few weeks of his unlife were rougher on him than I prefer, but he was comfortable in my penthouse until he was ready to join the brood properly. He had an illness no one knew of but rising began the healing process. He does well now.”
“She drained her maker of at least eight pints, another seven or so from me, and ten to twelve from her third victim before she fell into her death sleep. He was quite the large brute, but she handled him perfectly. I admit, I did help her secure him in a good hold so he could not resist her well. I do believe they thought she wouldn’t rise or they assumed her maker wouldn’t want her after she attacked him in the throes of her first frenzy. Unfortunate, really. Had she drained
me a little less, I would have claimed her from her maker and been far gentler with her. But then again, seeing how things have turned out, I’m glad I did not. A female will keep you on your toes, and much like your Ben, you have gone centuries without companionship. It does make me wonder if the entire issue with our women failing to rise is a simple matter of blood and determination.”
Emerick’s expression turned cold. “Do you mean to imply she rose because her making was less than gentle?”
“In part. She wanted to watch his world burn, and she desired to be the one to light the match. I do not believe that has changed. She defied death for that ambition, but I believe it’s more a matter of blood than vengeance. While young, her maker isn’t precisely weak. Misguided and consumed with dark power, but not weak. He could grow to become a threat. The quantity of my blood she consumed likely secured her unlife. Looking upon her, I find a few lost months of my life to be more than worth the value of hers.”
My cheeks flushed. “But I almost killed you.”
“Do not feel remorse. You did not ask to be treated as you had been. By the time you got to me, you were mad with thirst and pain. I allowed you to drink before taking control—I could have prevented you from taking as much as you did. I chose to allow you to drink. My subterfuge bought freedom for both of us, although you were not aware of it at the time. You were aware of little.”
“That’s not an excuse.” That I’d attacked anyone without being aware of it horrified me.
“I see she came prepackaged with your scruples, boy.” Clarke chuckled and relaxed in his seat, kicking up his feet onto the coffee table. “You’ll want to be careful of her. She values her ethics above all else, and she will only betray her father’s secrets once given good reason, which I assume is protecting an endangered population. Although some of that, I believe, was founded on pure spite. It is, all things accounted for, his fault she is as she is now.”
“Considering she sustained herself feeding off a vampire every few weeks, my youngest operates mostly on spite with a splash of vengeance. As it resulted in the deaths of some rather unsavory vampires, I have no problems with this. Once her energy is redirected to more positive things, I think she’ll find her life within the brood rewarding.”
I could see myself choosing to survive to spite my maker and anyone else involved with him. “Since you were an unwilling guest yourself, did you learn the bastard’s name?”
“I didn’t learn it while his unwilling guest, but once I rose from my grave, I began hunting. I’m pleased to report he’s lost a few of his younglings to my fangs. They made poor meals, but I found much satisfaction in cutting off their heads and tossing them in the river to feed the fish. I didn’t want to lose good stakes on pitiable creatures.”
“What price would you ask for this information on him?”
“No payment is required. You have already paid all of the price you should ever pay for this travesty. But, I consider my unauthorized use of your body, even during your feeding frenzy, as a debt, as it bought me my freedom and survival. This will balance our scales. The man’s name is Jeremy Breckenan. He is forty-three, fancies himself your father’s equal, and wishes to take over the preternatural world. You may find this a comfort: he has earned himself an enemy and earned you an ally. Also, I would be very cautious about the man who calls himself your father. I do not think he wants you found because he cares about you.”
I snorted at that. “I’m not that stupid. Considering what you’ve told me, he would only want me found because he wants to know how badly I betrayed him.”
“Then that is a simple enough thing to accomplish. I will play him for the fool he is and send word that right until your death, you did not speak a word of his operations, not even when they sought to peel the truth out of you. I have stolen pictures of that night, and there are images of your maker doing just that. Perhaps, that will put an end to his search.”
“And put an end to my mother’s life, as he’ll need to replace his heir,” I muttered.
“Your mother is much like a queen, is she not? It has been many a year since I have stolen a queen. Leave the matter of your mother to me. If freedom from him is what she desires, it shall be hers.”
I already understood how that would end. “Even if given the choice, I doubt she would leave.”
“She will have the option, but only after I move her to a location of my choosing and have had a chance to properly discuss the matter with her. I would rather she not be an additional tragedy in this already wretched tale, and while your father’s reach is long, he would not pursue her overseas. There are many broods who would enjoy challenging your father’s presumed authority.”
I glance in Emerick’s direction, and he shrugged. “I would not presume to make such a decision for you, Pepper. She is your mother, and she is the one your choice hurts or helps. Inaction will have consequence. Action will have consequence. But know this: you can trust my maker, and you may as well consider him your maker as well. His blood is a vintage even rarer than mine, and considering what I know of women being made, he is probably why you now live, not that pathetic weakling of a vampire who treated you so abhorrently.”
I narrowed my eyes and considered Clarke. “Your thoughts?”
“Allow me to handle your mother. That way, the consequence of inaction won’t haunt you, and you can know you gave her the best chance at a good life moving forward. But, for your safety and hers, she will not learn from me that you still live. She must believe as your father will believe, that you were killed for your refusal to betray his trust.”
“This is going to go over well,” I muttered. “She’s going to hate you and everything you represent, Clarke.”
“Don’t you worry about that, Miss Pepper. I enjoy a challenge.”
Thirteen
There’s no need to rip out the entire floor to get rid of some glitter.
Jeremy Breckenan wasn’t registered as a vampire, and I wondered how he’d dodged the newest laws requiring the preternatural to expose themselves. Some races, such as the various weres, could mask their true natures. Vampires couldn’t, not really.
The whole problem of dodging the sun tended to make us easy to identify. I’d figured that out the first morning after I’d crawled out of my grave.
To make matters worse, as Clarke had claimed, the bastard did his best to rise through the ranks of real estate moguls, competing directly with my father on several fronts. That competition would cause me a great deal of problems. Clarke’s ploy to confirm my death through gruesome methods might keep me from my father’s notice, assuming the Lowrance brood lacked informants and the others aware of my identity kept quiet.
I gave it a few weeks at most before the truth would be exposed to the wrong people and someone would figure out that the Lowrance brood’s new woman was none other than my father’s missing heiress. It would create a mess, and I’d be dumped into the middle of it.
Instead of waltzing me around his penthouse, Emerick called Ben and put the entire brood onto digging out as much information as possible on Breckenan and his activities. The situation with the new laws made even more sense when I framed it through my father’s eyes.
Not only did my father wish to transform Harlem into his personal playground leading him to more wealth and power, if he got away with it, he would have sway over his preternatural residents, making it harder for Breckenan to get a foothold in New York. According to Emerick’s initial research, the vampire haunted Baltimore, and he was expanding his reach into our area.
I located the stash of documentation dealing with legal changes in New York, and I began my search through the new laws in an effort to figure out how the politicians had been purchased—and who the laws benefited the most. My father played his part, but I couldn’t tell where his efforts ended and Breckenan’s began.
The puzzle would drive me mad if I didn’t solve it, almost as mad as understanding I couldn’t just hop into a car, go on a joy ride, and stak
e the bastard in his Baltimore residence. I’d asked. The curt refusal, issued by every damned vampire on the floor, still rang in my ears.
I didn’t even know the names of the men scurrying around Emerick’s penthouse. Like the brood’s master, they wore suits and carried themselves with poise, grace, and arrogance. They all were handsome in their own ways, which annoyed me.
Why the hell did Emerick need a brood of pretty men?
I read through the documents, hissing at the various by-laws designed to make life for the preternatural as difficult as possible. If Breckenan’s goal was to control other preternatural, the by-laws would benefit him as long as he remained the owner of all of his properties, just like Emerick would benefit as long as he held onto the lands and deeds to the properties his vampires resided on.
He who owned the land ruled—assuming they paid the government their dues.
My office, still covered in fucking glitter from the brood’s welcoming party, became a battleground of paperwork. As I wanted coffee and had a question for the brood’s master, I thumped my mug against one of the boxes to draw attention.
“You know where the kitchen is,” Emerick announced, his voice coming from the direction of the sitting room.
“Unacceptable. I need you to make my coffee, and I have a question.”
“Is there anything more dangerous than a woman with a question?” While his tone implied he was complaining, he came into my office, but stayed outside of the glitter covering most of the floor. “What can I do for you?”
“Are you behind any of the legislation in this mess?”
“I made some strong recommendations to some politicians regarding the tax-free status of animal blood and the tax benefits of vampire broods raising livestock. I didn’t pay any off, and I merely suggested they would reap more rewards, including cheaper beef and chicken prices with better quality meats, if they pushed to have the additions. I’m sure other broods contributed financial bribery to make that turned into law. That one went right up to the President’s desk; it’s Federal law. New York’s laws predate the Federal version, and it has some stricter rules, which is why I’ve given you New York’s legislation to read through.”