I walk up to him and spit on the ground. “You disappoint me, Gavin,” I say. “I thought you had more will in you.”
I go back to retrieve the secret knife and slice through his wrists, severing both his hands. His limp, lifeless body collapses forward from the wall.
I kick at him in revulsion. “Because of you,” I say, “another of your brothers must suffer.”
I sigh and turn away, thinking of who best would be the next victim—when I come across the shadow of The Ancient looming at the door.
Anger spirals through me. “How long have you been there?” I demand. “How long have you watched?”
“Long enough to see what you are doing,” comes the cryptic, telepathic reply.
I sneer. “You know how important this is for us.”
“Not us. You. I never wanted to be King.”
“And hence, our great partnership,” I mutter, shouldering past him. “Are you here to clean up the mess, or did you want to speak?”
“I have heard from my brother,” he tells me.
That makes me freeze in place. Felix is our greatest strategic advantage when it comes to facing the other coven.
“And?” I ask, voice dripping with impatience.
“I will tell you in my rooms. Come with me.”
I grumble under my breath, only barely able to suppress my anger. I know The Ancient is a more powerful vampire than I. I also know that now, I can destroy him with the Blood Magic I possess.
That should have changed the power dynamic between us. At the very least, it should have made him treat me with an ounce more respect.
But he is altogether oblivious to my new might. Either that, or he doesn’t care, which rankles me even more.
That means he has some sort of knowledge I do not possess, which would make him into a more terrible adversary than I expect.
Still, it doesn’t really matter. He and I have a symbiotic relationship.
I do not intend to rid the world of him just yet.
We go through the secret tunnels reserved only for the King until we reach his chambers. He has the grandest rooms in The Crypts, and nobody knows it but he and I. If the other vampires discovered I deferred to him this way, it would erode the hierarchy of this place—it would make me look weak, submissive.
Luckily, The Ancient has no interest in letting anybody know. These rooms can only be accessed from the secret passages, and any regular vampire caught in there is sentenced to death by fire.
In my time, none have tried to test my willingness to sentence them to that fate.
“Your vampires grow fat,” The Ancient says abruptly. “While they feast on blood every few days they are losing their instincts. They have no hunger. You are making them stronger, but you are dulling their ability to kill.”
“The vampires will do as I ask when the time is right. They are reliant on me. You know that.”
“They are complacent,” The Ancient says. “The things my brother has seen, they will not be able to fight.”
I cross my arms and narrow my eyes. “I find that hard to believe.”
But then The Ancient explains what he’s heard about the Tentoria, and a shiver of discomfort crawls down my spine.
I crush it immediately.
“You said they were taken care of, destroyed by their new Queen.”
“That is what I heard. Yet how are we to know? If all those thousands hid beneath the earth, so many more might be there.” He looks at me gravely. “ Even I did not detect anything unusual when I ventured to The Haven.”
I consider the implications of that for a minute. “That is troubling,” I admit. “Still. It seems the threat has been extinguished.”
“What if it has not? What if these creatures are under their control? Your vampires will not stand a chance in the attack.”
“You know our destiny as well as I,” I growl. “We are meant to inherit the earth. We shall cover this planet in eternal night and hold our place in proper dominion of all man!”
“You do not have the girl from the prophecy on your side,” he says.
“Not yet. Eleira will be gotten. When her coven falls, she will have no choice but to submit to me.”
“If she doesn’t? If she is killed in the fighting, Logan, what then?”
I fix him with a sly look. “You’ve been thinking this through, haven’t you? This is the most talkative you’ve been in years.”
He gives no reply, instead simply searing that hard gaze into me.
I grunt in exasperation. “If Eleira dies, we will simply do without her. Prophecy must be fulfilled. But that same prophecy may be twisted without her. Twisted in our favor.”
“Do not be so ready to test fate,” he warns.
“And what do you know about fate,” I snarl, growing angry with his attitude. “You’ve been bound to me for hundreds of years, been nothing more than a vessel from which my vampires drink their blood.”
His expression barely shifts, but I can feel the harsh disapproval in his eyes.
I realize what I’ve said and quickly back-pedal. “I’m sorry. I know you are free to leave at any time.”
“Do not confuse me with them, Logan,” he says. “Those vampires in the banquet hall are your subjects. Not me.”
“I know, I know, I know!” I exclaim. I start to pace the room. “I know you are here of your own will. I am sorry for what I said.”
“Do not say words you do not mean. The apology rings hollow. You are becoming arrogant”.
“Is that a censure?” I demand.
He ignores the question. “You let somebody very important walk away from us tonight.”
“Who, Dagan? Forget him, he is past his time. His heart is not in it anymore—”
“Not him. The girl he brought. She is of prophecy, too.”
I bristle. “What? How do you know?”
“I feel it. When she arrived I had the Divine Sight.”
I curse. “Now there’s a second girl of prophecy? Why didn’t you tell me before? Why did you not come to me while she was here?” I turn away, striding for the exit. “I’ll gather the guards. They will find her, bring her back—”
“No,” the Ancient interrupts again. “You will not. That is not meant to be.”
I turn back to him, lips curled up in a rictus snarl.
“Then why did you tell me about her?” I ask in a low, slow, dangerous tone.
“She is related to you. You should have known.”
“Related? What?”
“She is your flesh and blood, much like Riyu was. If you did not see that you do not deserve to have her.”
“And who are you to render judgment upon me?” I roar. My anger flashes. Without thinking, I reach for the Elemental Forces—
A blast form the Mind Gift sends me ricocheting back. I crash against the wall before I even know it, and the Ancient is instantly on me.
His hand is crushing my throat, fury raging in his eyes, and he holds me pinned like a bug.
“If you ever again dare use Blood Magic against me,” he says in my head,” I will end your life.”
I feel a sudden constriction in my chest. It becomes impossible to breathe.
“Nothing will shield you from my fury with the Mind Gift wrapped around your heart. I can kill you from anywhere. Do not test my mercy again, Logan. You will find yourself in the red.”
I choke and sputter for breath, as the constriction deepens. and my heart stops beating. I feel the life seeping out of me. I cannot move, and I cannot fight back. I cannot access the Elements to stand up for myself against this humiliation.
Long seconds pass with The Ancient staring into my eyes. I start to feel like a small child, an infant, a bug.
I am powerless against him, and my life force drains away.
Finally, he lets me go. I collapse on the floor, gasping.
“Your daughter was here, Logan, and in your arrogance, you let her go. You forget the virtue of humility. Let this be your final warning.”
He turns away. “Channel magic against me again, and it will be the last time you ever do.”
Slowly, as if walking under water, The Ancient strolls out. I feel his presence as he settles down in his bed and prepares for sleep.
One last telepathic message comes to me before his slumber takes hold. “You spoil your vampires with my blood, and this will happen no longer. I shall give not a single drop to any vampire of The Crypts again.
“And yes, Logan,” he finishes, “that includes you.”
Chapter Twenty-Four