chapter 7
“It’s not normal.” Reiko’s voice brought me out of the warm, soft darkness, the only darkness I liked. “Are you sure she wasn’t hit in the head? I’ve seen cases of this on TV. Maybe she’s in a coma.”
Someone sighed. Jason. “And I’m telling you you’re wrong. She was not hit anywhere remotely near the head. The vampire sliced her on the side, but it’s barely a scratch.”
The dull aching on my chest wanted very much to disagree with him. “It’s not a coma. Don’t worry.”
Steeling myself for the inevitable sharp pain that would come when I opened my eyes, I let my eyelids flicker open.
No pain.
The lights were out and only one candle burned on the nightstand.
I was back in bed. My bed.
Who put me here?
Reiko leaned into my vision, a grim look on her ten year old face. “Are you fine? You look sick.”
Slowly, I levered myself up, back against the headboard, all too aware that the slightest sudden movement was liable to put me under again. Or hurt me so much I wished I was. “I’m okay. I’m still alive, anyways. Which is more than I can say for the vampire.”
I did not ask about the body. I didn’t want to know.
Jason sat at my other side, looking down at me with his enigmatic black eyes. “What happened?”
“I passed out.”
He gave me a disgusted look. “I can see that.”
My mouth felt mossy. “Can I have some water, please?”
Reiko exchanged a glance with Jason and straightened up. “I’ll get it. Don’t tax yourself too much, Ran. You don’t look okay.”
Wiser words were never spoken and I nodded slowly. “Thank you, Reiko.”
She flounced out in a cloud of lavender scent, the pale blue skirts vanishing around the door a second after she did. I didn’t think I was ever going to get used to a bloodsucking child-like doll walking and talking.
“How long have I been out?”
He didn’t bother looking at a clock. “An hour, give or take a few minutes.”
That probably explained why the lights still weren’t on. Ah well, all the better for my recovery. “That’s pretty usual. Still, better to ask than be sorry.”
He leaned in closer, almost too close for comfort. I could smell blood on him. Whose blood?
Automatically, my hand flew up to my neck and he let out a short laugh.
“Fear not,” he said quietly. “Your blood is safe from me. Reiko found a willing…donor.”
But I could not answer him until I brushed my hand over every square inch. No puncture marks. Good. Very good. I let out a breath I hadn’t known I’d been holding. “Habit. I told Reiko I didn’t want to give you blood.”
“Quite understandable.”
Honesty prodded me to add, “Although, I did agree to giving you blood when you woke up.”
I never noticed the single dimple digging deep into his left cheek. “I don’t think I could have forgiven myself if I’d taken your blood while you were unconscious.”
“How very…polite of you.”
Again, that flash of a dimple. Why hadn’t I noticed it before? “Thank you.” He paused and the smile faded away into something more serious. “I knew you were a formidable warrior. But I’ll be honest. Against a vampire assassin? Vampires who have trained for centuries and perfected their art? I must admit, I didn’t have a great deal in confidence.” He sighed. “Then again, I didn’t expect to be targeted so soon.”
I didn’t know what to say. “He wasn’t that good, actually.”
He gave me a level stare. “Be that as it may, there was something about the way you held your weapon. The way you moved. Even for me, the assassin was almost too fast to trace. But you’re human, not vampire. How is it you managed to meet his every blow? How did you kill him? And why did you faint afterwards?”
Hearing my time of weakness labeled as “a faint” made me wince. “It’s…” I took a deep breath. Only two people were aware of my precognition. Everyone else was dead. “I suppose you can call it an ability.”
An eyebrow quirked. “So that’s what the rumor was. I paid dearly to learn there was a special fighting ability that was unique to you and only you.”
Reiko came in then, carefully balancing a plastic jug of water and a glass on a small wooden tray. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the moisture condensing on the outside of the jug.
“It’s precog,” I said.
His brow went even higher and I reached out for the cup of water Reiko held out to me. “Precognition?”
I couldn’t remember the last time water had tasted so good. Sweet, cold, refreshing…I didn’t stop drinking until I drained the glass.
Taking an explosive breath, I held out the cup and watched Reiko pour me another glassful. “Yes. I can read movements a couple of seconds before they are executed. It’s the only way I can fight vampires and walk away alive.”
Reiko’s eyes never left me, a petulant tilt to her crimson lips. “I wish I saw you fight. I do so enjoy watching battles.”
“Maybe next time,” I said and drained the glass again, this time slower.
Jason rubbed at his jawline. “How interesting. Well, this does change things.”
“Does it?”
Reiko lifted the jug but I shook my head. I was starting to get brain freeze and I was already in enough pain as it was.
He didn’t answer, only smiled and got up in one fluid, graceful movement. I wished I had half the mobility he did. “I think you and I will make an excellent team, Ran.”
I locked gazes with him, didn’t flinch when the corneas turned black, turned his eyes into a sea of impenetrable darkness. “For the time being.”
He took a step back and I could breathe better. “For the time being.”
This close, it was easier to appreciate the beauty in his simple and clean features. I might be apathetic to him, but I’m certainly not blind. A lock of dark hair fell over his eyes and he shoved it back impatiently. “What’s wrong?”
I shook my head and immediately regretted it as sharp, sudden pain coursed through the back of my mind. “Nothing. Never mind.”
Reiko sat down at the right hand side of the bed, her head to one side. “Will you be incapacitated for long?”
“Shouldn’t be. It usually goes away within a couple of hours, if not sooner,” I said. “Why?”
She crossed her arms and I wondered what it would be like to be a child forever, without any choice in the matter. It probably wasn’t the best idea to bring it up.
“This is only the first night.”
The implications made my head ache even more, pulsing like an angry, infected wound. “So you’re saying there will be other vampires trying to kill him.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “There is a chance, yes. But maybe not. Perhaps when the absence of the assassin is discovered, perhaps they will consider a different approach.”
“One can only hope,” I said, voice dry. “And what are the chances of that, do you think?”
Jason let out a slow breath and stood up, hands on the back of his neck. “It doesn’t matter. I will be prepared now. Already I am beginning to feel…remarkable.”
“Remarkable,” I repeated. “And what is that supposed to mean?”
He shrugged. “Take it as you will. I only meant to say I am no longer a walking target. If another is sent after me, I will not take it lying down.”
“You?” I scoffed. “I don’t think so. This is only your first night. You might be stronger than a human, but against another vampire who is more trained than you are, you wouldn’t be able to hold on for more than a few seconds.”
Reiko coughed. “Ah, Ran?”
“What?” I might have glared at her harder than I meant to. “I’m sorry, Ran. What did you need?”
She coughed again and her round cheeks colored. “Well, that is to say…do you remember what I told you when I came out of Jason’s room last night?”
I blinked. “You said a lot of things. Which one are you referring to?”
She let out a soft sigh. “I told you Jason would not be like any vampire you have ever encountered.”
I stared at her. “What are you trying to say?”
Jason cleared his throat. At this point, I felt about as intelligent as an apple. Was I missing something? Why couldn’t anyone tell me anything outright rather than subtly hinting at clues I never knew existed?
“I’m stronger,” he said. “I’m stronger than most young vampires. My self-control is better. My senses are better. A very distinct advantage when you are turned by a Domina.”
Domina.
Reiko was a Domina.
I wanted to laugh, if only to keep from screaming. “She’s head of her own House?”
She nodded. “I am.”
Instead of abating like it should have, my headache got worse. “I knew you were older than you looked. But you didn’t seem to be particularly strong…”
She looked down demurely. “I have always prided myself on shielding my aura.”
I wanted to laugh. A Domina. Shielding her own aura. “Why would you do that? The only reason a vampire would do such a thing was because they’re afraid of being found. But why would you be afraid of anything? Head of your house, you could take down an entire ten-story building in less than half a minute.”
And it was frightening, to see this pretty little girl, all blushes and giggles. I had little doubt that just by thinking it, she could will me to death. Just imagine that all my blood cells would dry, shrivel and it would happen.
Her dark eyes narrowed. “You are not my enemy. Indeed, I am quite indebted to you. You saved Jason when I could not. Were it not for your actions, we would be right back where we started. I will not hurt you, Ran.”
“I only have your word, don’t I?” I didn’t mean to sound so harsh, but it was better than letting her see just how scared I was. Vampires could taste fear…although I had the not-so-sneaky suspicious Reiko already knew the effect she had on me.
Jason sighed. “We can sit here and snipe at each other, but what would that even achieve? Nothing beneficial, I’m afraid. Ran, you will rest.”
“And you’ll be able to protect yourself?” I sounded skeptical. I was.
He smiled. “Rest.”
He left then, leaving me alone with the last person in the world I wanted to be alone with.
Reiko stared down at her small, pale fingers intertwined in her lap and got up in a rush of perfume and satin skirts. “Sleep. We will look after you this time.”
Fully aware of how important it was that I sleep off the effects of the precog, still, it made me uncomfortable in how they sought to protect me. It should’ve been the other way around. Although, the idea I could possible protect a Domina… “Look, I’ll be fine,” I said. “I just need to rest for an hour. Maybe two. But no more than that. I’ll be up soon.”
The vampire nodded tightly and slipped out the door, leaving me alone with the single burning candle and nothing but the swiftly encroaching darkness.
***
The next two nights passed without incident.
The disposal of Michael’s body had been handled by the large, muscular human servant of Reiko, Marcus. The body was moved to the room next to mine, a sheet tossed over his broken body in a semblance of respect and I watched Marcus heft the driver’s body onto one shoulder like it was a bag of rice. He walked down the stairs and out the front door.
It had been a little past midnight when he carried out Michael’s body. That probably explained the lack of screams from the neighbors. Humans can get rather…tetchy around dead people.
And during the two nights, I watched Reiko train Jason in the basement.
I had known he was no stranger to martial arts, having witnessed his speed and strength on the first night we met, but she wasn’t just forcing him to become better.
She was training him to be a killer.
“Again!” The diminutive Domina grabbed him by the neck and shook him like a terrier with a rat. “Stand up!”
I almost felt sorry for him.
He staggered on his feet, a thin sheen of blood spotting on his temples, breathing heavily. “Let me catch my breath.”
She took a few steps back, face fixed in a thunderous expression. “As you wish.”
Contrary to belief, vampires do breathe. Albeit at a slower and less frequent rate than humans. It’s possible to suffocate vampires…provided you’re strong enough to keep one pinned down and you’ve brought a book to read, because it was going to take a while.
I leaned against the wall next an authentic weapons rack holding up several very authentic weapons. I almost cut myself on the blade of a curved axe that still had dirt on the wooden handle.
Marcus sat down next to me, arms crossed over an impressively sized chest. To be honest, looking at him, you would’ve never figured he could get his arms crossed over pectoral muscles as large as his. “Quite a change.”
He didn’t talk a lot, so every time he did, I was half tempted to check and see if it was raining fish. In the basement, I had no such luck. “You ever see her like this?”
He shrugged. “Sometimes.”
Or maybe it was a good thing he didn’t talk a lot. His voice was low and guttural, like he was a chronic smoker, but I didn’t think he was. Most smokers smelled like ashes, no matter how often they bathed, and Marcus didn’t smell like nicotine.
He just smelled like blood.
Lots of it.
It was more than little disconcerting, the fact he smelled more like a vampire than Reiko and Jason did.
Jason let out an explosive breath and shook his arms out, rolling his head from shoulder to shoulder. “I’m ready.”
Reiko hissed, her canines jutting past her narrow chin and they met on the middle of the training mat in a blur of movement, a blur of color.
I couldn’t follow their movements with my eyes. The precog was always an option, but I wasn’t so gung-ho about following their fighting that I wanted to have a hell of a metaphysical hangover. I’m not that much of a sadist.
The sparring session was fierce but short. It almost always is, between creatures of the underworld.
Droplets of blood sprayed in a wide arc and next to me, Marcus cursed softly.
Reiko took a step back, licking the crimson from her fingertips. “Too slow, Jason. Much too slow.”
Jason swayed, and I watched as the flesh from his right shoulder to the middle of his chest begin to mend, the skin coming together right before my eyes. But no matter how fast he was healing, the tightness in his lips, the way his brows furrowed, the hand on his collarbone…he was in pain, a great deal of pain.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly and fell on the mat as his legs refused to keep him upright anymore. “I will work on this.”
She let out a contemptuous little laugh. “Will you? I certainly hope so. After all, I highly doubt any enemy of yours would back away having already struck you like I have. Had I gone through with the blow, you would be dead.”
I very rarely entered into any argument not my own, but this time, I felt the need to interject. “Yes, but you are older. He’s only been undead for two, three nights. Surely, you can see the folly in such brutal training?”
The look in her dark eyes stopped me from saying anything more. One more word and she could not be held responsible for my safety. I fought the urge to run back upstairs.
“You know nothing of our ways. The weak do not last. If Jason truly wants retribution, then he must learn to discard everything but his will to survive.”
I wasn’t going to argue. Not with that look on her face.
“I’m fine.” Jason levered himself up to his feet, wiping the bloody sweat from his temple. He swayed on his feet, clearly the opposite of his words. “Ran, I appreciate your kind words, but this is something that must happen. Before Reiko introduces me to Noir, before we are admitted to his court, there’s a chance there will be a battle. Noir will not allow anyone weak. I need to make sure I survive long enough to reap the benefits of being within his fortress. It’s the only way we’ll get what we need. I can petition for the bastard who took Shannon. Once that happens, you can do what you wish with Noir.”
This was a dangerous game, perhaps too perilous. “I still don’t understand why I have to be the one who exacts Reiko’s revenge for her. She’s strong enough to do it herself.”
Said vampire snorted. “Be that as it may, I am a vampire. A Domina. Were I to be discovered, my entire House would be in danger. I am not so foolish as to exact such punishment on those under the protection of my name. However, if you were to do it…”
It made sense. I suppose. “If I do it and I’m discovered…what’s to stop Noir from tearing my head off?”
She shrugged. “That is not my problem.”
Said like a true Domina. “Right. Of course. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
Jason shook his head slowly, almost as though he’d been hit too many times in the forehead. Then again, who knew if he had? I certainly couldn’t follow Reiko’s movements fast enough, not with my human eyes. “Reiko, we’re not finished yet.”
“No?” With one fluid, almost elegant flick of her small hand, she touched his shoulder and he flew into the wall, the plaster raining down as he fell with a jolting thud on the stone floor. “I think we are, my son.”
My son. This was just too strange, even for me. “Was that necessary?”
One day, my mouth was going to get me killed.
“He must learn,” she said slowly, watching her son push himself up to his feet and then fall down again, a stream of blood dripping from his hairline. “He’s an idealistic fool who’ll get us all killed if he does not learn. We are, I must admit, nothing more than creatures with no remorse, no soul.”
This was said with no expression, no emotion in her bleak eyes and I resisted the urge to pat her on the head. “I am sorry.”
She shook her head. “Do not be. I made peace with what I was a very long time ago. Jason too must do the same if he wants to live.”
Did Reiko know the deal between Jason and I?
Did she know Jason’s life was mine as soon as I eliminated Noir?
Strangely enough, I did not want to enlighten her. She was volatile, and in this state of mind, with Jason’s blood splattered across her front, I didn’t want to surprise her. Not when I was within arms reach. And even then…
“Marcus,” she said, straightening her narrow, slight shoulders. “Help Jason up. Get him clean, if you can. We’ll hunt tonight.”
A new development. For the past two night, Marcus had brought someone into the house to feed Jason. I could only watch, fingernails curled into the palms of my hand, as he marched two women, one for each night, both of them brunettes, up the stairs.
The old me would have cut him down before he even made it to the base of the stairs.
The old me.
Saying much had changed seemed a gross understatement, at best.
I never saw the girls come back down.
Ignorance is bliss, they say.
I’m apt to agree with them.
I cleared my throat. “And what about me? What should I do?”
She quirked a faint brow at me and then looked me up and down, hands on her hips, in a very adult manner. “Would you like to come? It’s probably best that you do. You are, after all, his Ailward.”
“And Marcus is yours?” I asked.
“I don’t need one,” she said, smiling. “Marcus is just there to…persuade people.”
I had to admit, his girth was persuasive. On the other hand, I couldn’t help but think a pretty little girl walking alone in the dark was hell of a lot more frightening than a walking Goliath.
They do say the most frightening things come in small packages.
Or something like that.
She moved aside as Marcus assisted Jason out the double doors, the latter’s head down and very still. Had he passed out? Were vampires capable of being in an unconscious state? If I ever got out of this alive, all this knowledge of vampires would do me very well.
If I ever got out, that is.
“Where are you going?” I asked, as though I even cared.
Her fangs flashed in the light as she turned on one hell, her long black hair swirling perfectly about her shoulders.
“The Black Masque, where else?”