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Luc

Humans are weak.

Vulnerable.

Their physical abilities are limited, their intellectual range is narrow. In every way, they are inferior to vampires.

All but one.

They have life.

And we need their blood, we crave it and we lust after it the same way we lust after their soft flesh, their warm bodies, the aroma of their bodies when they sweat.

Since human blood is regulated, vampires are not allowed to feed on people, not officially. Unofficially, blood donors, feeders and more nefarious activities thrive on the black market. Most vampires buy blood products, synthetic blood that has been boosted with various taste enhancers as well as drugs to boost performance or induce all kinds of sensory experiences but human blood is still the best.

Occasionally, there are reports of humans that were abducted and killed and as per our agreement with the authorities, we must hunt these vampires down and execute them.

Most of us remember being human, the families we had but our memories fade as we become older, they become like childhood dreams, something to be embarrassed about, not to be mentioned in public, certainly not around others like us. Vampire families go back centuries and the politics involved in the alliances and wars between us are complicated and intricate. Our wealth is vast and hidden, tied up in property and investments, land and companies.

We have always been part of the ruling elite, either behind the scenes or in a more visible role depending on public sensitivity but we have always been a part of the top tier. When the tide of favor turns against us, we retreat and wait it out. It always changes, that is one of the rules of humanity that is cast in stone. Not for us, though.

Little changes for us over time.

Horses give way to cars.

Cars give way to planes.

We adapt, but we don’t change.

Or perhaps, we do.

I hadn’t noticed it in myself over the past few weeks, ever since meeting Ruby, but then Alexandra had commented on it. She’d made jokes, off-hand comments that came across light-hearted, but I knew it was more than that. Alexandra knew me. She had found a weakness and I couldn’t trust her.

She would never forgive me for leaving her and ending our relationship.

She did not want me to be happy.

Happiness, though, what was that? Surely another childhood dream, belonging to human life, something long gone for me.

Only, I’d been happy with Ruby.

Lying in bed with her, making love to her, I had been able to escape from the confines of my existence, the burden of memory, the many years that I’d been alive. Bonds forged over so many years with those in my community and I loved them, deeply, but they were also a burden.

With Ruby, there was none of this heaviness.

Our interactions were light and sweet, I could almost taste this sweetness. When we had sex the first time, I’d allowed myself a drop of her blood. She had permitted it, feeling the sharpness against her skin, she had not hesitated, trusting me and that single drop had exploded in my system, it was a sensation I could become addicted to. I also enjoyed her personality, her conversation. I liked to be with her, around her. There was none of the awkwardness I’d experienced with so many other women.

I had no idea what she expected of me or if she expected anything at all. Usually at some point with other women, there had to be a talk about relationships and commitment. This wasn’t the case with Ruby. I knew she wanted to be with me when I saw her, but she never asked to see me again or if I’d call her. Her life was chaotic and she was clearly used to figuring out things on her own. I found myself wanting to help her though. It annoyed me that she seemed so loath to accept it.

When I got the sense of distress from her, I left everything to get to her as quickly as possible. I dealt with her attacker and was surprised by her reaction, which was not as grateful as I thought it would be. She seemed annoyed by my response and even upset at the sight of the dead shifter. When she told me to leave, I did.

But the conversation between us had not been as before.

It caught me by surprise.

As I fled bloody Buzzard Creek with all the trouble it had, I thought to myself that this was perhaps the perfect ending to what had so far, been the perfect hookup. Even though Ruby was a wonderful girl and I enjoyed myself thoroughly with her, her relationship with the shifters was problematic. I thought she’d want to be free of them, but it didn’t seem to be the case now. She kept pulling me into that hellhole where I was at risk of injuring myself.

In addition, did she now blame me for killing a filthy dog?

Please.

Making matters worse, jumping to her aid was interfering with my finding out who had killed Matteo. I was finally beginning to get some answers and I needed my wits about me to pursue this matter. Things were far more complicated than I’d realized. I was beginning to think the answers lay in the royal family and this would take my investigation into a very dangerous direction.

When I’d tried to find the Clarissa who had spoken to Captain Dennington, I was told there was no such person at the Castle. I spoke to the staff member in charge of the royal family and she curtly informed me that she didn’t know what I was talking about. Then, out of the blue, Queen Taheera appeared.

“What are you doing here, Lord D’Essay?” she asked in a frosty voice.

“Shouldn’t you be fighting our war?”

I told her I was still looking into Matteo’s death.

“Shifters were responsible, we already know this,” she said, waving her hand to dismiss me.”

“No, it seems that is incorrect,” I said. She fixed a sharp gaze on me. She was an attractive woman, but I knew what lay behind her looks. She was ambitious and vicious at the same time, it could be a lethal combination.

“Matteo’s dead,” she said slowly, as if I needed reminding. “You need to worry about the living. Including yourself,” she said, before walking off briskly.

It was a threat, clearly.

I was mulling over her words, when a figure stepped out of the shadows.

“You need to be careful,” I heard someone say. I turned to see Prince Dano, the king’s son from a previous marriage. Even though his body resembled a young man of 17, he was much older now, closer to 70. He had not approved of the marriage to Thaheera and therefore did not live with the king anymore. He had been banished from the Castle, spending most of his time managing other properties.

“Prince Dano,” I greeted him as per our protocol, with a nod of the head.

He acknowledged the greeting and stepped closer. “I’ve come to see my father. I was wondering, have you noticed his strange behavior?”

“The king?”

Prince Dano looked at me. “He has not left the top floor in months. He is always at the lookout, staring at the city.”

“Surely, he’s attending the War Council meetings?”

He shook his head. “Harris is representing him, supposedly carrying out his wishes.”

“Supposedly?”

Prince Dano carefully chose his words. “I don’t think my father really knows what is going on. He trusts Harris and his wife to take the right course of action but I fear his mind is failing.”

Such words were treason and Dano knew it.

He stepped back quickly into the shadows before I could ask any more questions. “Watch your back,” he said and disappeared. His words threw me and I didn’t quite know what to make of them. Was he warning me or was this some kind of subtle threat?

He seemed to suggest that Vlas was no longer in charge of the decision-making. It was true that he had seemed vague and a bit preoccupied when I’d seen him the last couple of times, but it was his temperament too. He was never a man of action, more of a thoughtful, considered leader.

I had spent so much time away, solving disputes and serving as an acting commissioner for the many issues in our world. I had not seen him much of late, and our conversations had been brief.

I recalled accusing Matteo of being paranoid. He’d told me about concerns he’d had. I always shut down these conversations. Perhaps he was aware of some nefarious business regarding the king.

I wondered what Dano had been suggesting. I didn’t like the sound of it. Plots against the king were not unusual, even in his own family. I wondered if Dano was thinking of taking over, arguing that the king was weak and unable to fight a war.

Matteo could have found out something about this, perhaps he needed to be eliminated. Of course, the best time to stage a coup was when all of us were engaged in war, our focus elsewhere.

This would allow the enemy within to pounce.

I looked around the corridor where the temperature had suddenly dropped. I felt the rush of air from an open window and walked over to close it. There were dark clouds coming over the mountains and I felt certain that behind the bad weather, more evil was lurking. This war was bringing darkness to our shores and I didn’t like it.