by T. A. White
“Are you sure they’re dead?” I asked, joining Liam beside the bodies. I didn’t spare him any attention, treating his presence like a piece of furniture as I concentrated on what Joseph was doing.
Vampires technically didn’t need a heartbeat. Not really. We could go for long periods without one.
The first time I’d woken to discover my heart not functioning, or just so slowly my heartbeat was practically nonexistent, I’d panicked. It had taken me a while to get used to the lack. After time, I found it usually only stopped when I went too long between feedings.
It was the same with breathing. I could hold my breath for an indefinite amount of time. If I wanted to, I could probably sit on the bottom of the ocean for a year without moving.
“Pretty sure,” Joseph said, not displaying any impatience at my question.
I lifted my eyebrows. Pretty sure wasn’t a “yes”.
“Their essence has fled, leaving their bodies inert,” he explained.
I noticed he didn’t use the word soul. Before my undeath, I’d never concerned myself about the state of my soul, but now I had to wonder. Did I have one? Was a single act, one that wasn’t even my choice, enough to cost me the intangible, yet essential part needed to keep me human?
“I still don’t understand how they died,” Anton complained. “We’re not human, something like a few convulsions shouldn’t have been enough to do this.”
“Normally you would be right,” Joseph said, his expression holding a peculiar light as if he relished the mystery. “In this instance, that convulsion effectively snuffed out the source of their magic. It killed them.”
“What could do something like that?” Liam asked, his gaze intense.
Joseph shook his head, one hand going up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “You’ve got me. I’ve never seen anything like this. Whatever was done to them would have been excruciatingly painful. Like their soul was being ripped from its shell.”
“I hate magic,” Makoto said, his voice grim.
“We all do,” Anton responded, for once no trace of teasing in his tone.
“How did this happen?” Eric asked. “I thought our wards were supposed to protect us from their magic.”
I looked up with interest. This was the first time I’d heard that.
“I don’t know,” Liam said, his gaze still on the bodies. He seemed pensive, almost regretful, as if the sight of these dead vampires pained him, reminded him of his failure.
I ignored it, unwilling to let my anger go, even if he was showing a trace, a very tiny bit, of humanity.
“You should bring Miriam in,” I said. “She could probably tell us more.”
He narrowed his eyes at me.
“I’m sure she’d be happy to leave whatever hole you dropped her in.” My words held more of a bite than I intended.
“Would you rather I left her to wander loose after nearly killing you?” he asked, a forced politeness in his voice as he responded to the faint judgment.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” There was a snap to my words even as I gave him my sweetest smile. “We both know you wouldn’t want to disappoint the person holding your leash.”
His eyes burned, the blue twin flames that threatened to sear. No one spoke, holding their breath as the moment pressed down on us. I refused to back down, stubbornly holding Liam’s gaze.
I let him see inside me, let him see that whatever we thought we’d been building up to with the flirting and the games, it was over now. The sides were very clear, and he wasn’t on mine.
“Fine,” he bit out. “We’ll ask the witch. Makoto and Anton, bring her.”
The two enforcers excused themselves as the rest of us waited silently, the room full of strained tension.
Miriam walked in, flanked by the enforcers. There was a bruise along her chin and her skin looked pale, lines of pain around her mouth and dark circles under her eyes. Around her wrists were a pair of handcuffs that seemed to eat the magic she emitted naturally.
Gone was the facade of the perky coed, in its place was an exhausted, irritable woman.
Miriam’s glare could have lit the room on fire had her handcuffs given her even a little access to her natural magic. As it was, she had nothing but a frown to strike fear into our hearts.
“I see you survived,” Miriam said in a dour voice when she saw me in the corner. “Pity.”
“You have a very interesting way of thanking someone when they save your neck,” I told her.
She scoffed, the sound full of derision. “Save me? They would never have come after me if not for you.”
“Who?” Liam asked before I could speak.
Miriam spared him a brief glance. Her lip curled in disdain. “What’s this? More pointless questions? I’ve already told you I don’t know anything.”
Liam bared his teeth at her, his expression chilling. This was a man who’d gladly end her existence. Tear it from her and not spare a thought or ounce of regret for his actions later.
I was tempted to let him, but we’d be right back where we started.
“I’ll make it easy for you, Miriam. We already know your coven has made a deal with the Fae,” I told her.
She watched me with a guarded expression.
I gave her a humorless smile. “They’ve just shown they don’t consider you one of them, which in a way is good for you since it means these guys will be less likely to kill you.”
As if on cue Daniel and Anton glowered at her, their expressions menacing.
“All you need to do is fill in a couple blanks for us.”
I waited as she studied us.
“Bullshit, he nearly killed me last night,” she said, tilting her head at Liam.
He stepped forward, aggression in every line of his body.
I caught his arm and pulled him back. “You did try to kill me. I can’t really blame him for retaliating.”
Despite the turmoil of earlier and how fragile I still felt, I managed to come off sounding strong and confident.
Miriam reached up to flick her hair over her shoulde. “I may have overreacted to the situation.”
Anton gave a small snort. “That’s one way to put it.”
Sensing I’d gotten somewhere with her and not wanting to lose the small glimmer of cooperation, I pointed at the bodies. “Tell me what you know about these.”
Miriam took a step closer, careful not to get too close to Joseph who watched her with fascination.
“They’re dead,” she said.
“We know that. How?” Liam asked.
She shrugged, the motion careless.
“You’re not even trying to lie well,” Anton said silkily.
Insult flashed before she controlled the emotion.
“Do you know what we can do to a witch like you?” he asked, circling her. “We’ll drink you down to nothing.”
“Try, and my power will burn you from the inside out,” she snapped.
His smile was full of dark promise. This wasn’t the charming rogue; this was a predator pure and simple.
From the unease on Miriam’s face, a part of her understood that.
“We’re not like the rest of our kind, pequeña. We’re the council’s enforcers. We’ve drunk down much more powerful beings than you.”
“You lie.” Miriam’s protest lacked oomph. Some part of her believed Anton.
Hell, I believed Anton.
He tapped her on the nose. “Keep being difficult and you’ll find out.”
He stepped back and gave her a self-satisfied smirk.
She watched him like a mouse watches a snake, no longer convinced of her invincibility. Still, a touch of stubbornness remained. This wasn’t someone used to being at the bottom of the food chain. She might refuse simply out of misplaced pride.
“Miriam, just help us. Your coven has already turned from you. They’ve proven they want you dead,” I said.
Her eyes narrowed. “Not all of them. Just Sarah’s disciples.”
Now w
e were getting somewhere.
“Why try to kill you?” I asked.
Her smile was bitter. “Because I’m the only one with the power to stand up to that bitch.” A trace of uncomfortableness crossed her face. “And because Angela was her grandniece. She blames me for what happened to her. Almost as much as she blames you.”
I digested that.
“And them?” Liam indicated the two on the table.
“Unfortunate casualties in Sarah’s war,” Miriam said.
There were sounds of anger from the men around me.
“Sarah got the Fae here with promises of information on you,” Miriam said, a sly look on her face.
I blinked at her in surprise. “I find that hard to believe.”
Her smile turned taunting. “It’s true. The Fae have always been interested in those who can see through their glamours. When Sarah whispered in their ear the possibility of such a one being here, they came as soon as they could.”
I went still at that, not blinking as she held my stare.
“Why would Sarah think I had such an ability?” I probed.
Miriam’s expression told me my casualness wasn’t fooling her. “Because you never had a reaction to the tea.”
Tea? What tea? It took several seconds before I remembered. The first time I’d met Sarah she served me tea. Both she and Miriam had looked expectant and then shocked after I drank it without experiencing any effects.
But that had been before the sorcerer’s spell gave me the ability to see magic. It shouldn’t have indicated existence of any abilities because I didn’t have them yet.
Unless this was another situation where that magic Joseph swore crouched deep inside me had reached out to turn everything wonky, just like when it interfered after Thomas’s bite transforming me into a vampire despite all odds.
“What was in the tea?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Just a little bit of this and that.”
“Anton, she’s all yours,” I said.
Anton didn’t budge—perhaps because I wasn’t the one holding his leash. It didn’t matter. Miriam believed my threat.
“It was a spell. It was supposed to make you amenable to our suggestions and denote how powerful you would become.”
There were angry sounds from the vampires around me.
Miriam hurried to continue. “It failed in its purpose. You had no reaction to it. There are only a few reasons for that. Sarah decided it was enough to convince the Fae you could see through a glamour, and if you couldn’t, she could always claim your lack of power messed with her reading.”
I digested that statement, feeling cold inside. Miriam had no idea how close that spell put her to the truth.
“She probably just messed up the spell anyway. Her magic has been slipping,” Miriam muttered. “Either way, their Fae lady was especially interested to hear of the hold you have over your enforcer. She seemed to have something special planned for the two of you.”
The sound that came from Liam tore from the deepest parts of him. He advanced on Miriam, his expression ferocious and enraged. She backed away from him, fear suddenly present as he grabbed her.
“Liam, no!”
He hesitated, his fangs poised above her throat as he looked over at me. There was only a small spark of intelligence there.
“We still need her,” I tried. Reason and logic were hard when fear and terror coated my insides. His loss of control reminded me of my own tenuous hold not long before. “She might have information that can be useful.”
Reason re-exerted itself and Liam relaxed, the harsh lines of his face turning cruel. “You’re right. There are many ways she can be assist us.”
He released his brutal hold on her and stepped back. “Anton.”
“With pleasure,” the other vampire said with a predatory smile.
Miriam tried to back up as he advanced, resisting his hold. She struggled as he turned her back to him, grabbing her hair and pushing it aside to bare her neck.
With sick horror, I realized what he was doing. “Liam.”
“It’s this or death,” Liam said.
“You’re not going to accomplish anything. She’s too powerful a witch for Anton to influence,” I said.
“We’ll see.”
I started forward, to do what I wasn’t entirely sure.
“Daniel,” Liam said, command in his voice.
“Yes, my lord.” Daniel dipped his head and caught me by the arm, pulling me out of the room and away from what I’d caused.
*
I sat with my back against the wall, waiting. Daniel had made it clear when I tried to leave that I wasn’t going anywhere.
I pulled out the note Cadell had given me during the party. All it said was “Meet us at the apartment. Come alone.”
That wasn’t vague or anything. I balled up the paper and slipped it into the dress. Cadell could have been slightly helpful and at least given me something to go on.
I’d already decided to track them down. The note was just a risk without a lot of payoff.
It didn’t take long for Anton to finish his feeding. I watched as he helped Miriam out of the room, supporting her weight as he guided her down the hall.
Liam stepped out next, his thoughts veiled.
“What will happen to her now?” I asked.
“She will remain with us while Anton completes the bond,” he said.
“And if it doesn’t take?”
“I’ll order her death.”
I shook my head, anger and sorrow tangling inside me, leaving me with the bitter taste of defeat.
Things had seemed so easy earlier tonight. Help Liam figure out who was trying to kill us and make them pay. Now, I was party to my worst nightmare.
I stood. “I’m going home.”
I needed space and time to process. Not to mention there were a couple of High Fae waiting on me.
“You’re not.” The words were a whip.
“Oh? Did you become my keeper while I wasn’t looking?” I asked, acid in my voice. “Dawn will be soon. I plan to spend it in my bed.”
“Think again, macushla. You’re not leaving my sight until this is over.” There was no softness in his expression. He meant that. He had no intention of giving me space.
A strangled sound left me. “I have an errand to run.”
He remained unmoved. “Then we’ll run it together.”
He didn’t give me time to argue, glancing at Daniel. “Watch her. I have something to take care of.”
Daniel nodded, moving closer as if his presence alone could keep me there.
Liam stalked away.
“That was mean,” Joseph remarked from the doorway.
“I don’t care,” I snapped.
Daniel stepped into my way when I would have walked past, his hazel eyes holding mine, calm in their depths.
“For my first feeding, my sire bade me drain my ten-year-old sister. It was punishment for leading a raid on her lands,” Daniel said without preamble.
I blinked at him, horrified and lost for words.
“She then slaughtered the rest of my family and had me lick the blood from her body,” he continued.
A dull horror moved through me at the picture he painted.
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked, my voice hushed.
“Your first feeding could have been worse,” he stated plainly.
He was right, the words shaking me out of the pity party I’d been falling into. Things could have been much worse.
What Thomas had done wasn’t right. Subsuming my will in favor of his—forcing me to commit an act that I was by no means ready for, was wrong on so many levels—but the world wasn’t over. I was still me. I still had control. I wasn’t a ravening monster roaming the streets.
“I’m sorry for what was done to you,” I said in a quiet voice. I meant it, too. Daniel might not like me, nor I him, but no person should have to go through that. It spoke of an almost unfathomable level of cruelty.
“It happened a long time ago,” he said.
“That doesn’t make it any less painful,” I said.
He tilted his head slightly and gave a small nod. “You are right in that.”
“If you two are done communing over your crappy histories, maybe I can show you something, Aileen,” Joseph said caustically.
Daniel didn’t react, obviously used to the other man’s abrupt manner.
Joseph didn’t wait for my response, going back into his office. I trailed after him as he headed for his desk. He flipped his laptop open and hit a few keys, bringing up a video.
“Watch this,” he said, before stepping back.
I moved closer as the video started. The content gave me pause. There was a man in a cage, his back to the camera. I glanced at Joseph, wondering what he hoped I’d get out of this. So far, I just had serious concerns about whether he’d gone mad scientist on us and kidnapped some poor sap off the street to conduct experiments on.
The man threw himself at the bars of his cage, snarling like a wild animal, appearing out of his mind with rage.
The camera caught a glimpse of his face. Flesh fell off it in ribbons, like he’d raked his fingernails down it, exposing the tendons and muscles underneath the surface. The whites of his eyes had morphed to red and the iris was a coppery color, probably from burst blood vessels.
His expression was bestial, his eyes empty and glazed, no sign of sanity present. He opened his mouth and roared. This was a vampire, his fangs oversized as he bit at the air.
“What is this?” I asked, slightly horrified.
Joseph stuck one hand in his pocket and leaned a hip against the desk next to me, his tiger eyes watching me with a sick fascination. Neither Daniel or I could turn from the screen and the enraged vampire on it, too consumed with the horror of it.
“Devolution isn’t a pretty process. Your body begins to rot as the toxicity of your blood climbs. It starts in your extremities as your body falls apart around you. The last to go is the brain. Once the devolution reaches the brain, there is no saving you,” he said, his voice that of a teacher lecturing a student who wasn’t particularly bright.
He cocked his head, a sardonic expression on his face. “Just thought you should see what you were up against before you judged Thomas or Liam too harshly.”