I sit back into my chair, defeated. I got my hopes up that I’d have the answers I was seeking. Patience has never been a virtue of mine, but knowing that there’s more to Maggie’s story just adds to the already daunting list of questions.
“I’m sorry, Marina,” Shante says, eyes downcast. “I wouldn’t have offered to call upon your sister if I wasn’t very sure I could. What happened here tonight”—she shakes her head—“it’s unnatural. And that’s saying something coming from a witch.” She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.
“I know, Shante. Julian speaks highly of your talent. I don’t doubt your ability at all.”
“And you’re right not to,” Law chimes in. “Shante has worked with our family for centuries. There is no other witch that matches her strength.”
Shante scoffs. “That may be an exaggeration. There are many talented witches.”
“Not one as trustworthy as you.” Law says it with so much reverence, I wonder how exactly Shante came to be so trusted by the royal family.
“When we share common goals, it’s easy for me to call upon my full powers.”
“What is our shared goal?” I ask, wanting to know what part of this current mess has Shante wanting to get involved.
She purses her lips, as though I’ve offended her in some way, but eventually, she speaks. “If Marcellus manages to create an army of new bites, chaos will rain down on us all. It’s in all witches’ interest for humanity to survive, Marina. Whatever it takes to ensure a natural balance, we’ll sign up for.”
I bob my head, liking her answer. It’s simple, but the most crucial of all goals at the moment. “In that case, it appears we’re all on the same team. Thank you for trying.”
“I must be going,” she says, standing from the table. “I’m needed in New Orleans this evening. I’ll consult with my sisters and get back to you on what I find.” She comes around the table and leans down so that we’re at eye level. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Marina.”
I smile, but it’s weak, exhaustion taking root.
“I think it’s time you go back to bed,” Law says, coming to my side and helping me stand.
“I’ll see myself out,” Shante calls over her shoulder.
I don’t even remember Law helping me into bed, or tucking me in, but I’ll never forget the nightmares that begin the second my eyes close.
Chapter Four
Julian
My fingers dig into my temples, trying—and failing—to rid my mind of the scene unfolding right before my eyes. I’ve been in this hellhole for days, attempting to speed up the process by which we tame new bites.
It’s a complete shitshow.
The guys I’ve left in charge of the operation are some of my most trusted generals, but they’re in over their heads. The place is a mess and completely lacking the organization I thought was in place when I last left.
When I arrived here in Seattle, a new truckload of vampires, sick with bloodlust, had just been hauled in from New Mexico. There were two dozen in that delivery, and I was towing in another dozen. They were wholly unprepared and out of space. The process of rehabilitating the new bites is too slow.
The new bite training facility was established in Seattle because it was a central location to the first outbreak of vampires. Marcellus’s crew made their way down the West Coast and got as far as Portland before we interceded. It’s likely that our interference with his plan prompted the move south. It’s getting harder to transport new bites the distance to Seattle and it’s giving Marcellus too much time to wreak havoc.
I’m not sure how long this facility can withstand the traffic, but I hardly have enough time to arrange for an additional location. It’s not easy to amass a space large enough to house rabid vampires; it has to be low-key so it doesn’t attract attention. Add to that the need for trustworthy people to run the location, and right now, I trust very few.
“Boss,” Bash grates from the door. “Anderson needs you in chamber block six. Girl’s about to lose her head if you don’t intervene.”
I groan, digging my pen into the wood desk.
“What did she do now?”
“Spit in his face.” He smirks. “Not that I can blame her. Anderson’s an ass, if you don’t mind me saying so.”
I let out a laugh, picturing that scene.
No wonder Bash seems frustrated. I’ve tasked him with the impossible. Anderson doesn’t take kindly to orders of any sort and I’ve put Bash on his block. Anderson is an ass, but he’s one of the best generals I have. He’s a vampire I can trust at my back and these days, that’s saying something. I need him, despite the fact that the chip on his shoulder grows by the second.
“I’ll be there shortly. Can you attempt to keep the peace until I get there?”
He nods.
“Bash,” I call to his retreating back, and he turns. “Aside from the bodily fluids, how’s she doing?”
He inhales deeply. “She’s coming along, sir. She’s more frightened than anything else.”
I know he’s right. She needs to see someone who can root her to her humanity. I’m a stranger and as far as she’s concerned, the king of the monsters who took away her life. It’s going to take someone she truly cares about to bring her back to a semblance of her former self.
An impossibility.
“Might I make a suggestion, sir?” Bash asks, tentatively.
“Please,” I grunt, ready to hear any option that would make this situation better.
“Remove Anderson from her care and put him on another block. She needs someone not so . . .”
“Terrifying?” I offer, and he nods.
“Precisely.”
“I hear you, Bash, but I need him there. He’s the best I have.”
“He’s not helping her. He’s making things worse.”
“Maybe that’s what she needs. Provocation.”
“May I?” he says, motioning toward the door, his passive-aggressive way of saying agree to disagree. I don’t appreciate his insubordinate attitude, but this is how our relationship works. It straddles a line between professional and familial.
Sebastian MacNeil, or as I call him, Bash, has been my right-hand man for over a century. He was turned shortly after contracting the Spanish flu, and I intercepted to help him transition. He hasn’t left my side since. Bash believes I saved him, especially now that he sees what could’ve come of his life had I not intervened and helped him control his thirst. New bites are worse than vicious animals. They not only drain their victims, but they mutilate humans’ bodies, leaving them unrecognizable.
Bash has his ear to the ground too. Somehow, he manages to get news of uprising before I ever do. He’s become an unlikely friend and ally through the years of solitude. Without his help and Anderson’s, I wouldn’t be as far as I am with the new bite initiative.
Bash helps locate new clusters of new bites and brings them to Seattle, where Anderson leads the charge in rehabilitation. Anderson’s methods aren’t what many would call civilized, but they can’t be when you’re working with beasts.