Page 35 of Blood as Sweet as Roses

Crimson

Not in the mood to drink from a breather anymore, I down another bottle of distilled blood.

Once I’m sure that the shifters are gone, I make my way out of the lounge.

I don’t want to appear weak, or like I’m affected by their threats.

But I know what a blow it would be to our clan if we lost their support.

The eastern shifter alliance is the largest coalition of shifter packs on the east coast. They provide protection from the independent packs, and they’re good allies in the event of a conflict.

Periodically the witches will try to start something with us, and if they get the shifters on their side, they could be a legitimate threat.

And I don’t want the shifters looking for other magical allies, especially if Oana and Cedric are operating in this region.

What a fucking pain in the ass. This is what I was worried about, when I found out Kai was fucking a merman. Why can’t they just listen to me?

I know I should go yell at them, but somehow, I don’t have the will right now. I feel antsy and restless.

But a soft voice distracts me.

“Thanks for calling me back, Miles,” Paige whispers into her cellphone.

She’s down the hallway, in the front foyer of the mansion, with her back to me.

Tonight she wears a dress printed with blue flowers, simple but stunning on her curvy frame.

“I just wanted to see how you’re doing. I know this day can be hard. ”

She pauses, and I hear the electronic buzz of the voice on the other line. I wait, not wanting to interrupt her conversation.

“I’m all right, Mi,” she says, her voice brave but gentle. “Don’t worry about me. I’m just…having a quiet night at home.”

Her fingers fiddle with a strand of her long hair. I wonder who she’s lying to. Why they would be worried about her.

“Yes, I think it’s a great thing to mention to your therapist. Maybe we can talk about it next week. Will you be ok until then?” she says, concerned.

A strong, protective feeling rises up in me. I don’t know who she’s speaking with, but suddenly I have an urge to discover who it is and send a full vampire guard there to ensure their safety. To dissolve all of her fears.

But then she nods. Apparently the other person on the line has reassured her sufficiently.

“That’s good, Mi. If you need anyone to talk to, remember, I’m just a phone call away, ok?

Yes, all night…” she laughs. It’s a little tight, but the sound rings like music to my ears.

I want to make her laugh like that. “I know, I’ve been staying up late, working the evening shift at the coffeeshop…

but you should get some sleep. You need your rest… goodnight, Mi.”

She hangs up the phone, and her smile instantly dips, replaced by an expression of deep tiredness.

As though she holds everything together for the people she loves, but it’s becoming heavy.

It makes me want to take the burden from her shoulders.

To hold it all for her. For just a moment, I get to witness the beauty of her bare vulnerability.

Then she sees me, and jumps.

“Oh!” she gasps, her fingers tightening over her cellphone. “I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t realize you were there.”

“My apologies for startling you,” I tell her, moving closer. “And for listening in. I didn’t want to interrupt your conversation.”

“That’s all right,” she says, a delicious flush of red across her cheeks. “It’s just my brother. Usually I call him before sunset, but he was busy, and I wanted to make sure I spoke with him today.”

“Why today?” I ask, finding myself curious about her. I recall that she mentioned she had a brother, but I don’t know much more about her or her family.

“It’s…it’s nothing,” she replies, unzipping her small clutch to put her phone away. Before I can press further, she steps toward me, so I can feel the warmth radiate from her skin. She blinks up at me shyly. “I was hoping to see you tonight.”

I’m drawn in by the way she gazes up at me with her soft brown eyes, by the timid flutter of her heartbeat. Is it possible that we’re both distracting ourselves from our problems?

I know I shouldn’t drink from her again, but I don’t have the will to return to the lounge, to find another breather. And I am distracting myself. But I don’t care.

I offer her my arm. “Come walk with me. Out to the gardens.”

Her eyes light up, and she carefully wraps her arm under mine. Her soft pulse beats a delicate rhythm against my skin. It’s calming, peaceful.

“You don’t want to go to the lounge?” she asks.

“No,” I sigh, glancing toward the festivities with a grim expression. “The night has been long enough already. I’d like some peace and quiet, for a change.”

“It can’t be easy, managing a whole clan of vampires,” Paige says thoughtfully.

“You have no idea,” I mutter bitterly, thinking of the exchange I just had.

“Well…I’d like to hear about it, if you want to talk.” She tugs at my arm a little, looking up at me hopefully.

For a split second, I’m suspicious. Why would she care about what I’m going through? The breathers I drink from never ask me questions like this. They’re with me to fulfill their darkest desires, not to learn about the complex world of magical politics.

But I can smell the sweet scent of her interest, pure and true, hear the steady beat of her heart. She’s not trying to deceive me, at least I don’t have any reason to believe so.

I wave a hand to open the door to the gardens. It swings out in a flash of deep blue.

Paige’s eyes widen. “Is it…is it actually magic?” she whispers with awe.

“Do you think vampires can’t perform magic?” I ask, with a raised eyebrow, as we step out into the black night. “We’re just as capable as witches.”

“I didn’t even know witches were real!” she says with a shake of her head.

“Not until I started working here. I’d heard about vampires, of course, lots of people in Midnight City know about your clan.

But…I suppose I hadn’t realized it was so…

well, magical, I guess. Did you really go to a magic school? ”

“Many years ago. Usually witches don’t allow vampires to attend their schools, but long ago, they started an inclusive magic academy. It was shut down for a while, but they’ve opened it back up again.”

“For vampires and witches?”

“Vampires, witches, shifters, mermaids…”

She bats me playfully on the arm. “Now I know you’re teasing. There’s no such thing as mermaids.”

“I wish there was no such thing as mermaids,” I mutter irritably, my eyes scanning the courtyard for any gemstone-wearing delinquents. But there are few others out here tonight. Just Paige and I, strolling among the rosebushes and fountains. “They’re causing me quite a headache right now.”

Paige frowns at me. “I know you probably think I’m just a silly human, and that I don’t know much about the magical world. But…you can talk to me about what’s going on, if you want to. I want to know.”

There’s a flicker of guilt as I remember how harshly I spoke to her before. But it’s only the two of us out here tonight, and the moonlight across the marble statues is making me feel sentimental. What harm could it do?

“Just before I saw you, the leader of the wolf shifters showed up at the lounge,” I tell her. “We’re allied with them, but they’re upset because they think we’ve been dealing with the mermaids, who are their enemies.”

“The mermaids and the wolves are enemies?”

“Well, the wolves are part of a broader shifter alliance, which includes the dolphin shifters, who are enemies with the mermaids.”

“Dolphin shifters?” Paige gasps. “Like…people who can turn into dolphins?”

“I know, they’re incredibly irritating,” I sigh. “Anyway, now the wolves are threatening to break our alliance because they’re paranoid. They’ve never liked us anyway. Shifters and vampires do not get along.”

“Why do the wolves think you’re friends with the mermaids?” Paige asks.

I answer with a scowl. “My progeny, they’re…enamored with a merman. It’s been going on for several years, but it’s become more serious recently. They think they’re in love. They even asked me if they can get married, if you believe that.”

“Aw,” Paige says, burying her heart-shaped face against my arm. “That sounds sort of romantic. They must really love him. I think it’s sweet.”

“Inconvenient, is what it is,” I mutter, but I find it difficult to stay irritated, with the way she’s nestled in close to me.

I’m used to breathers treating me with reverence and fear.

I can’t recall the last time one of them was so…

affectionate with me. “I should drain that merman for causing me so much trouble, but…” the words come out of me, unbidden.

I’ve never acknowledged this out loud, and I’m a bit surprised by the revelation.

“Kai is my only surviving progeny. I’ve always given them a lot of leeway, and I…

I hesitate to cause them any pain, or to stake them. ”

“That sounds difficult,” Paige whispers, rubbing my arm tenderly. “That’s a heavy burden, to have to keep your clan safe, but also have to make those tough decisions.”

“Yes, it is…”

We’ve come to the center of the rose garden, beside a looming fountain. The sound of water trickling is strangely soothing. I pause, and then turn to face Paige, looking down into her gentle brown eyes.

I bring my hand to her cheek, caressing her smooth skin with my thumb. I know I should say something to her, but I don’t have any words for this moment. Instead, I lean down, and kiss her softly. I keep my fangs retracted, wanting to savour her slowly.

She leans in to me, bringing her fingers up to my shoulder, stroking the short hair on the back of my head. In return, I take her into my arms, holding her close, deepening our kiss.

And it feels like…like I have the whole world in my arms.

She breaks away for a moment, her eyelashes fluttering. “Do you…do you want to drink from me tonight?”

“Your blood levels must be low. I should give you time to recover.” I take a strand of her dark hair between my fingers, and tuck it carefully behind her ear.

She swallows, and takes a wonderfully breathy inhale. “You know I’m…I’m all yours, Crimson.”

For a moment, I wonder if I do know. I’m aware of our agreement. But is she telling me…that she’s mine in another way?

Suddenly, a loud, clattering sound breaks the moment between us. Paige jumps, her pulse quickening. Instinctively, I shield her body with mine.

With my vampiric night vision, I can see a group of breathers in a corner of the courtyard, circled around a stone table. A wisp of purple smoke reveals what they’re doing. When they spot me, they cower in fear, the smell of adrenaline thickening the night air.

“Go back to the lounge,” I hiss at them, furious that they’ve interrupted us with their clamouring. “And take that with you.”

In a scramble, they pack up the violet powder and hurry out of the courtyard, and back into the mansion.

Paige frowns. “Were they doing…”

“Glow,” I answer, watching them to ensure they’re gone. I want to be alone with her. “It’s a magically-enhanced drug. Cedric has disrupted the supply chain, so there’s been an influx of cheaper, low-quality product.”

“That’s awful,” she sighs, crossing her arms over her chest. Goosebumps dot her skin. Is it chilly, this time of year?

“Well, Alin may have a solution,” I reply. “He’s created a proposal for the Night clan to establish our own supply of glow. We could sell it directly to our donors, and in our clubs and bars. If we can develop the infrastructure, we might be able to cut costs…”

“You can’t really be considering that,” Paige says. I turn back to look at her, surprised by the emotion in her voice.

“Why not?” I ask. “Many vampire clans produce magical drugs. It’s a solid business model.”

“But it’s wrong,” Paige insists, her voice sharpening. “Those drugs have a real impact on people, especially vulnerable people. Yes, sometimes it can be fun to go out and use, but for lots of people, especially people with histories of trauma and abuse, that use can quickly become unhealthy.”

I wasn’t expecting her to react this way, and I become instinctively defensive. “What can we do, if some breathers use too much?” I scoff. “We’ve got to make money, we can’t control what happens once they’ve bought our product.”

Paige glares at me, a passionate fire in her dark eyes. I’m shocked by the sudden shift in her demeanor. I’ve never seen her this way, except perhaps when her ex came to the mansion.

“You have a responsibility,” she declares. “If you’re going to sell magical drugs, you have to do it safely, or not at all…”

I cross my arms in frustration. I’m not used to being spoken to like this. Breathers only ever treat me with fear and deference. “Who are you, to tell me what I can and can’t do?”

“I…” she starts, but her voice catches, and she appears a little unsteady.

Then she seems to make a decision, and she finds her words again.

“I was calling my brother today because…it’s the anniversary of the day my mother died.

The day she… she overdosed. I was the one who found her. It was the worst day of my life.”

She takes a deep breath. I’m startled by her revelation, and surprised by the twisting sensation in my gut.

“I know you don’t think about those things, because you don’t have to.

And I know this is an entirely different world than the one I’m used to, but…

you do have a responsibility. If you have power, and wealth, then you have a responsibility to use it to protect people.

To take care of people.” She gestures to where the breathers had been using, only minutes ago.

“Those donors, they come here to they serve your vampires. They offer up their own blood. Without it, your vampires wouldn’t be able to…

do whatever it is all of you do. You owe it to them to make sure they’re safe.

And giving them dangerous drugs isn’t keeping them safe. ”

I lean down toward her. “Paige…”

“No,” she whispers, stepping backward, averting her gaze. I can see the tears well up in her eyes, and it tugs at my unbeating heart. “I’m going back to my room. And I don’t want you to follow me.”

Without another word, she turns away, and hurries back into the mansion.