Chapter 22
The First Vampire
“Danielle! You look wonderful! Being married agrees with you,” sang her mother as Danielle was tugged into a warm hug.
“Welcome. I hope you both like fish,” Ethan said.
“A boy after my own heart,” replied her father with a slap on his son-in-law’s back.
James entered next, took Danielle by the hand and turned her in a circle, his gaze looking for…. “I see no bruises. Either he’s good at hiding them or he’s taking good care of her.”
“James!”
“Are you happy, big sister? Now be honest.”
She laughed. “Of course I am! Ethan’s like a dream—”
“Whoa, there, Danielle. Too much information.”
Everyone laughed, as James pulled a funny face and strode past them into the living room.
Internally, Danielle was freaking out. She felt naked, as though they may be able to see the fact that she was immortal instead of mortal. Because of this, she hung to the back, trying to avoid their natural perusing.
* * * * *
“Brilliant fish, Ethan,” said Nadia, who’d also joined them for dinner.
“The pudding is quite lovely as well,” added Danielle’s father.
Poor Max was moving a mouthful of pudding around his mouth with an expression that said he didn’t think it was so lovely.
Ethan was eating, putting on a great mortal act, while Danielle was struggling to do the same. She knew he’d made something she would have liked had she not also been cursed. But while it all smelled divine, it tasted bland, like eating flavorless texture.
“Ethan, I didn’t know you were such a good cook. And what a nice English style meal. I know Tom has been missing the food from back home,”
Tom, Danielle’s dad, nodded as he forked up another mouthful of pudding.
Her mom continued, “Danielle said you went to culinary school?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“What do you do for a living, Ethan? Do you work as a chef?”
“No, ma’am.”
Danielle eyed her husband wondering how he might answer this. She knew whatever it was would either be a boldfaced lie or a creative twist on the truth.
He swallowed, and said, “I’m a writer.”
“Really? What do you write?”
His mouth quirked into a smirk. “Vampire romance,” he said.
Danielle choked on a green bean.
Ethan patted her back gently. “Max is also a writer,” he went on. “He’s published several history books on the Order of the Garter.”
Eyeing Max, she suspected it was true. It was Ethan she wondered about. Was her husband truly a romance writer, or was that just another one of his skilled fibs? Many times she honestly didn’t know because he was so good at it.
“I was obsessed with knights as a boy,” Max said, cutting his fish into such small pieces that she figured he meant to hide it under his pudding rather than actually eat it. “Hence, I did enough research to write about it.”
Danielle remained withdrawn for the rest of the evening as the others sipped tea, ate teacakes and conversed, telling jokes and teasing Ethan about writing romance. He took it all in stride, said he enjoyed it, and she began to wonder if perhaps he really had worked as a writer for a while. She certainly knew he’d had time for it.
“Relax, honey, you look exactly the same,” Ethan whispered into her ear.
But James and her mother were watching every move she made like a pair of owls. It was true they hadn’t seen her since she’d married, and she didn’t know exactly what they were checking for, but she was about to crawl out of her skin worrying she may give something away.
And she wanted to burst into tears when her mother pulled her aside and asked quietly if she was expecting. Mom’s pretty blue eyes danced with grandmotherly longing and hope, which Danielle had to extinguish. “Sorry, Mom, you’re not a grandmother yet.”
Patting her on the shoulder, Mom sighed and then moved to collect another one of the little cakes Ethan had made.
Danielle made for the bathroom, hoping they wouldn’t notice her hasty escape. She felt sick to her stomach. Sadly the queasiness wasn’t from pregnancy, and wasn’t from food, but from sheer nervousness, and from the deep upset over the reminder of her loss. She’d wanted so badly to spend time with her family when she’d moved back to Colorado, and now, she just wanted them all to leave. They had no idea their daughter and sister had been pregnant, had been forced into hiding because she was the center of a civil war, and then been stabbed, only to be resurrected as a cursed being.
She realized as she sank to the floor and buried her hands in her face that her departure had been noticed when a soft knock sounded at the door. “I’ll be out in a moment,” she called out not wanting whoever it was to see her tears.
“What’s wrong?” came Ethan’s voice.
For him, she rose from the floor and opened the door. “Only everything…” she said, letting him take her into his arms.
* * * * *
Danielle pressed her hand to the cool airplane window as they returned to London. This was the second time she’d looked upon this city from this view but now it seemed so different. Perhaps it was because she had a different perspective and, in truth, was a very different person from the terrified young woman who’d set out to simply attend art school.
A sense of terror still sat heavily in her stomach, but obviously for different reasons. She couldn’t help but wonder, What next? They’d had their baby ripped from them, and now even their mortality had been stolen from not just him, but both of them. Images of a mortal Ethan haunted her thoughts. She’d liked him that way. He’d been more insecure in a way that had been sort of adorable. And those glasses ... the poor guy had bad eyesight and she found it so human and so sexy when he pushed them up the bridge of his nose when they slid.
He held her hand now, his thumb gliding over the back of her knuckles and fingers, back and forth. Lifting her lashes, Danielle looked at him and was lost in those blue eyes of his as he sensed her gaze and turned to face her. She always got lost in that gaze. Mortal or immortal that part hadn’t changed, though it was different somehow now that they were both cursed. Not in a bad way really, just ... she had no idea how to explain it.
The plane landed. She dropped her free hand to her lap, the cooled flesh heating against the warmer fabric of her skirt. Ethan stood as soon as the plane came to a stop, his hand leaving hers.
Moments later, while still staring out through the glass, Danielle heard, “It’s time to leave, Mrs. Deveroux.” The prince spoke.
She ignored him with her gaze instead going to Ethan who’d been gathering their bags from the overhead compartment. Grabbing onto the back of the seat in front of her, she pulled to standing and moved toward her husband. Richard silently moved out of her way but she could sense him following close behind, just as the rest of their guards did.
* * * * *
They weren’t allowed to go home but were whisked along swiftly to Order headquarters, or rather, Beon’s bed and breakfast. The guards had remained on high alert and she wondered how much trouble could she still be in if she was cursed just like the rest of them now.
After buttoning a shirt and then tugging it down over her tank top, Danielle muttered, “Why are they still so concerned? I thought I was safe now. Or safer,” she added when Ethan raised an eyebrow at her first comment.
“I’ve been told they haven’t stopped hunting us and their numbers have grown to insane proportions. We’re incredibly outnumbered.”
She reached for the hiking boots after pulling on her socks. Wondering why the guards had informed Ethan of this and not her, she asked, “Why are we dressing for a hike? Are we going camping?”
Ethan met her gaze and then looked away as he laced up his own boots. He was apparently deep in thought, Danielle realized as she watched emotion etch lines of stress in his expression. Uncertainty and even worry were the ones she recognized first. When his eyes returned to hers, she saw something else before he said, “We’re going to see Benjamin and then Lilith if we can find her.” She recognized it now—determination.
Still she doubted. “How can this help?” she paused with laces held tightly in fisted fingers. “What if the first vampire is on their side?” He certainly could be, she thought but didn’t say. What if he liked what he was? Liked the benefits. And Lilith, it was her curse they’d broken. Could she be angry about this too? The witch could likely curse them into something even worse than vampires....
Ethan had finished off tying and was now leaning forward, his forehead resting against one palm. “We can only hope ... and try.”
“That’s all you’ve got? Hope? Ethan—”
With one swift move, Ethan had her in his lap, snatching her next set of questions with the sudden change. Warm fingers moved along the side of her face from temple to jaw. His spicy, tangy scent surrounded her, enchanting her, even if it no longer had the power to entrance her being cursed just as he was. “Yes, hope.” His palm captured her face, forcing eye contact to remain. “Where is your faith, Danielle? I have a good feeling about this. I need you to trust me.”
His thumb moved along her cheek and then over her lips. Still, the loving gesture couldn’t comfort her heart completely. “I trust you, silly. It’s them I don’t trust. Some ancient vampire and a bitter witch—”
“Sorceress. There’s a difference. Never trust a witch.”
Danielle laughed at that and kissed Ethan on the nose, snuggling closer. “How would I know if I’ve even met a witch?”
Leaning further back into the settee, Ethan pushed his legs out a bit further from the edge, giving her more lap to sit on. “They always wear black.”
She threw her head back and laughed.
Ethan’s mouth was curved with a knowing smirk and she suspected he was only teasing her now. Jerk, she wanted some serious answers. “What was that for?” he asked right after she slugged him in the shoulder.
“For mocking me!”
The smirk left his face. “I may be flirting with you, sweet, but I’m completely serious about what they wear.”
“You can’t be—”
“Oh, but I am.”
She thought about this longer while toying with the shaggy bits of hair just brushing over his collar, then asked, “So, does that mean that one girl in high school who always wore black and lined her eyes with a thick line of black eyeliner was a witch?”
“I rather doubt it.”
“But you just said—”
With his mouth landing firmly on hers, Danielle couldn’t argue any longer. Suspicions that this was just another one of his very skilled distractions rolled through her mind. But as his mouth moved over hers, as his tongue searched for hers in a dance that tasted like Ethan and not food, she caved in and went with it. The rotten scoundrel....
Hooking his thumb into a loop on her jeans as Ethan captured her waist, he then led her to the drawing room, where the others were waiting.
Three of the men sat on the sofa, all leaning forward. Beon sat in the middle with Max to his right and Richard to his left. His fingers were busy tapping at the keyboard of a laptop on the coffee table. The one standing, though also bent forward so he could see, was Seth. He blocked most of her view of the computer screen. Moving closer and peering past shoulders she could see it was a satellite image of a mountainous area.
Pointing at a part of the mountain range, Seth said, “He lives here. We think.”
“We’ll search the entire area if we have to.” That was Richard.
“The odds are dismal now. Richard, you’ve been in this position, how did you win that battle—?”
Danielle knew which battle Beon was talking about, the one where he’d managed to win against fifty-thousand with only ten-thousand men. It’s why everyone had thought Richard would make such a great king, if only he hadn’t died before he had the chance. And now it was part of why they’d asked him to join their order. Or perhaps it was the main reason.
After being silent, as he likely made battle plans in his head, he finally admitted, “Truth is, part of that success was pure luck.” He straightened his spine, sitting more upright now.
“Bloody hell,” Max growled.
“We may not need to be completely dismayed,” Richard continued. “The nature of this situation is completely different. I fought with mortal men before ... there were hills ... they were fooled into thinking they fought more men than they actually did. Life isn’t fragile for us now as it was then. We have different strengths, different skills, even different ways of fighting.” His gaze returned to the computer. “We didn’t have satellite either. I can plot a course this way.” He drew his finger from the bottom left corner to the spot mentioned as being where Benjamin presumably dwelled. “If we can get Benjamin to help us, we’ll have an advantage then.”
“I thought he lived in Moldova.” At least that’s what Ethan had said when he was planning to visit Benjamin last time. The map Richard was tapping at said it was Russia.
“He did, but we believe he’s moved to Russia where there’s more unpopulated land.”
How could a vampire live in such a secluded location? Danielle wondered, only realizing when they turned to look at her that she’d actually said that aloud.
Returning his fingers to the keyboard, Beon pressed a button or two and zoomed out from where they were looking previously. Pointing at the screen, he said, “These are cities,” Beon touched the monitor at four different locations on the map, “Very old cities. Stories of vampire legend have been told here for centuries, probably even originating from these Slavic countries. That’s why we think this is where he lives.”
“Could he hunt animals like all of you?” She was hoping....
“It’s doubtful. Those woods are known to be quite full of thriving wildlife. There have been no signs of it ever diminishing over the years.”
“But—”
Seeming to know her next question, Seth said, “He does have to travel rather far for a meal. It’s quite possibly a few hundred miles from any of those cities to his possible location, but for him, for any vampire really, it would be an easy task to stay hidden for as long as he liked. He’d need only space out his time between feedings and shift from one city to the next. And with fear of vampires being so high, the people would never venture into those woods to find out for certain, hence, he could maintain his lifestyle forever if he so wished.”
Danielle stared at the map a moment longer, imagining. Imagining Benjamin running through those woods to any village he chose, at night, seeking anyone fool enough to be out after dark. She could picture it not really taking him very long, despite the distance, already knowing how fast he could travel. What did he do with the bodies? Did he drag that back with him? Did he bury the poor souls who lost their lives to become a vampire’s meal? All questions she would likely never get an answer to, so she shifted her attention away from that.
As the men continued to discuss battle plans, Ethan joined them and Danielle’s gaze wandered to everyone else in the room. Several other vampires, guards, warriors, or whatever they were, milled around behind Beon and the others. They were listening, but not adding comment. She figured they felt they didn’t need to as a few of them nodded when they heard something they apparently agreed with. They seemed very eager to fight, like well trained soldiers secretly wishing to put to use the skills they’d learned even though they may not truly like the idea of war. Her attention returned to Ethan and the others, they’d stopped talking.
She was slightly startled to see them all looking at her. “It’s time to leave,” Seth announced.
“Now? I mean we just landed.”
I’m sorry, Ethan lipped.
“We haven’t got time to waste. We have a long way to go and the opposition could show up here if we don’t get moving now,” Beon said.
Of course his words made sense even though she didn’t like it, and Danielle nodded but asked, “Could I see Sophia? Say hello, say goodbye?” She might have been stalling, slightly. This was war they were planning for and the thought of it was sort of freaking her out. She didn’t know what to expect. Certainly she was trained to defend herself, but that’s what it was—defense. This was much more offensive. This is what these men were prepared for, not her.
“Sophia and Nadia have been hidden away for their safety.”
Her chin came up, her gaze shot to Beon’s. Why? Sophia was still a vampire, so if she was in danger was Danielle also?
“We need you there for this one, darling.” Ethan was at her side now, offering comfort as his hand touched the small of her back. The heat of his touch radiated through her clothes to the skin beneath. It was comforting and she couldn’t help but be grateful to him for how well he knew and understood her.
“What can I do?”
A gentle finger caught under her chin, tipping her face up a bit more. “We believe you’re the only one who can sway her, persuade her to help us.”
He was talking about Lilith. “But I thought we were going to see Benjamin?”
Ethan smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling up as his cheeks lifted, he kissed her and said, “We are, but only so we can find Lilith.”
Panic and fear of the unknown swelled up inside her like nausea. Swallowing, Danielle forced herself to ignore it. If Ethan was still the overprotective man he had been in the past then he wouldn’t let anything happen to her now. Locking their gazes, Ethan pled with his eyes. She understood the words, though unspoken verbally. Trust me. Have faith in me.
* * * * *
After a seven hour plane ride, they landed in Moscow, Russia. It was daytime. They’d planned it that way so they could make eye contact with immigration officers without causing a scene.
Having only seen Moscow on television, she’d thought perhaps most of the buildings would have towers topped with what looked like huge upside down tops. Pointy and colorful. But it wasn’t all like Red Square. There were more ornately styled buildings and sculptures than usual, but most of it looked just like any other big city with many tall buildings. The truth was she didn’t really get to see much before they were moving again.
They rented cars until nightfall, abandoned the vehicles at the outskirts of the city and then went on foot, leaving civilization behind.
At the edge of the forest the others filtered off to feed on a herd of poor deer that happened to be in the area. Ethan had gone to speak with Beon just before they also left her line of vision. Danielle expelled a shuddering breath, worried she might now be asked to kill an animal when she’d never bitten anything or anyone other than Ethan so far. While playing nervously with her pocket zipper, Danielle began searching for him when he was suddenly there, carefully taking her arm and drawing her behind a large tree. “What—?”
“Why the troubled face?”
Relief swamped her emotions and she smiled up at him as he gently cupped her face. “I—well, everyone was—”
“And you thought I’d abandon you? Leave you to fend for yourself?” A hint of irritation and hurt flashed amongst shards of sapphire in his gaze. Frowning, he said, “What from our time together makes you doubt—?”
“I’m sorry,” she said before he could say any more because the fingers she’d placed against his mouth wouldn’t stop his words if he meant to keep going. It’s true, she thought looking away, she shouldn’t have doubted him. She just felt so out of her element, in a country she’d never been to, trying to complete a potentially dangerous task she never thought ... never even imagined.... On top of all of that, she was still new to this, new to being a vampire. Deep down she knew she hadn’t fully adjusted yet and doubted she ever really would.
Ethan kissed those fingers, drawing her eyes back to his just before his hand closed around her wrist and drew it to his shoulder. His lashes lowered and his head tipped down and closer as his lips lifted at the corners. He kissed her as the fingers of his other hand tunneled into her hair, curving around the back of her skull. Releasing her wrist, that hand landed on the small of her back, holding her in place. With his mouth moving over hers, she was lost in the moment. The muscle-packed length of his body pressed her more firmly against the bumpy bark behind her. Instinctively her fingers curled into the fabric of his coat and her free hand slid underneath everything to his skin, to his ribs, sliding around to his muscular back. Danielle felt the shudder that moved through his body.
Against her mouth he chuckled, unintentionally giving her a dose of his magical breath though it didn’t knock her out any longer. “Seems I’m a bit ticklish there,” he said.
Pulling away, Ethan dropped his forehead against hers and matched their gazes. For another moment she was lost in a sea of blue—the current there pulling her to his very soul. This was home, she mused, as she felt a smile of contentment overtake her mouth, completely forgetting her previous worries.
Turning his face away, Ethan said, “There now, take what you need.”
With her vision now filled with his throat, Danielle’s fingers left his shoulder and rose to his exposed flesh. The tips moved along the pulse-less vein just visible beneath. The sight alone caused her fangs to slide out, bumping against the inside of her bottom lip. She moved her fingers out of the way. Her lips parted and her tongue reached for him.
Again, Ethan shuddered beneath her hands as her fangs sank into him finding the blood they sought. Just as his soul had filled her sight a moment ago, his energy, his essence rushed into her. Unwilling to truly admit it, Danielle shoved back the idea that she might actually miss this if or when they were able to turn back into mortals.
Snuggling closer to Ethan, her spine lifted from the tree as she consumed Ethan in a way she’d never thought possible ... until his fingers tightened in her hair and he forced her loose. “Ravenous little thing, aren’t you?” he muttered while stroking his fingers down her back, returning upward to next run his palm over her hair.
“I’m sorry,” she said, shuddering at the feeling of her fangs retracting after leaving his flesh. Her tongue went out to catch a drop of blood that dripped onto her lip and she frowned at how good it tasted. Heavy guilt shattered any comfort she’d just received and settled into her stomach and heart like a lump of poisonous fruit. She shouldn’t be enjoying this, savoring this ... it was so wrong to make Ethan, her love, suffer—
His gaze was on her mouth as she gathered another spot of blood she’d missed. The smile fell from his expression when his eyes lifted. “Don’t you dare regret that,” Ethan said, his tone stern while he pushed away a telling tear on her cheek. “I like it too much.”
“You do?” No way! She’d felt his body quake. Hadn’t that been in repulsion?
“I’ll not deny it’s sort of sexy in a way.”
“You’re lying.”
“I swear I’m not, Danielle.” Again his mouth touched hers. “You’ll never feed from another. Promise me...”
“How could I ever—but what about you?” She presented her neck. “Feed from me, it’s only fair.”
“No, you need your strength.”
“But!”
He stepped back, releasing her almost as though she’d stung him. With her words? “We cannot afford to have you weakened like that.” His British accent had thickened along with his old-fashioned cadence.
Dropping back against the tree for support she likely needed more emotionally than physically, she asked, “Why? What are you expecting? Will Benjamin fight us?”
Ethan’s gaze shifted and she knew he was watching as the others fed on animals. With his eyes meeting hers again, he said, “No. I don’t think Benjamin will give us much trouble.”
“But he might not like this cure either.”
“As the first vampire, he would have a better understanding of this curse than most, and therefore know that it would have to be his choice to break it. I doubt he’ll care if it’s something we want.”
“How can you know that?”
“Beon met a vampire who knew him, or rather, the man he accidentally turned. This man didn’t exactly regret how things turned out. He said Benjamin was hurt by Lilith’s actions, but has actually enjoyed what he is now too, taking comfort in knowing that his happiness gives him an unexpected victory over Lilith.”
“But I thought he was considered dangerous.”
“I’m certain he is,” Ethan said, returning to stand just inches in front of her.
Silenced by kisses that first landed on her mouth before moving to her forehead, she frowned, knowing it probably looked more like a pout. Ethan again stepped back with a low laugh.
“It’s my turn to feed, darling, and it will not be on that lovely neck of yours.” Without another word, he turned and dashed off to the right, the darkness swallowing up his shape as he moved further away, but she still heard his whispered, “Wait for me...”
* * * * *
Thicker woods closed in around them as her boots landed on the soft cushion of earth strewn with pine needles and leaves. Running through this forest as they were, she still noticed there were no signs of civilization here, and Danielle doubted even campers would venture out this far. Partly because they never passed any abandoned campsites as they had before. But also ... partly because she sensed something ... different, though she couldn’t explain what that was.
Of course this forest was beautiful and the refreshing smells of pine and wood filled her nose. The night sky was a clear blackish-blue dotted with some of the brightest stars she’d ever seen. But even with the lush greenery shifting past her vision, that thing she sensed before poisoned it, and she felt more secluded than ever. A chill sank inside her heart and touched her soul. Tightening the sash on her suede coat, Danielle wondered about Benjamin aloud, “Why would he want to live out here like this? Without power? Without heat? Without anything?”
“Yeah, I’m fond of my electronics,” Ethan said, leaping with ease over a ten-foot high boulder. He bent his knees and tucked his legs closer as he cleared the stone.
Danielle followed. It was weird to do that, to leap over something so solid and big. But her body did it. She cringed however, when her foot landed near a snake. Of course it never had time to strike out if she’d startled it, but it still caused shivers to ride up the length of her spine. While this place was lovely and untouched by man, the creatures living here still gave her the creeps.
“He could have a generator,” said Max, moving like a wraith to her left.
“We’ll soon find out,” said Seth. Danielle sensed eagerness in his tone, like he was curious.
Not admitting it vocally, she knew she was a bit curious too. What did Benjamin look like? How did he dress? What did he do with his time?
“There,” Beon whispered. He was pointing to the northeast. There did appear to be a structure on the edge of a cliff halfway up the side of a mountain. It was well hidden by trees and a rocky overhang. The satellites would never be able to pick it up, but with her heightened sight she could see a faint reflection from what appeared to be glass.
“It’s dark. What if he’s not home?” Danielle asked. He certainly could be out hunting ... killing.
“I may not be inside, but I am close by,” came a voice she didn’t recognize. The words, though spoken in English, were thick with a Russian or Romanian accent. Or perhaps it was more a mix of the two.
She and the others came to a sudden stop, kicking up a folly of forest debris. A breeze caught at her hair and clothes as she searched for this man they’d come so far to meet. But all she could see was everyone belonging to the Order.
“Benjamin, we need your help,” began Beon, also scanning the surrounding area.
“Who are these people, darling?” came a woman’s voice. She had a similar accent to the man.
“Guests, I suppose,” replied the man.
Chuckling, the sound was dark, almost evil, the woman said, “Shall I make tea?”
Danielle heard their footfalls ahead. Of course she wondered if they could be just returning from feeding. Strolling and holding hands, a man and a woman entered the clearing from the woods on the west side. “How did you find me?” Benjamin asked of Beon who stood with Seth close by his side.
“We tracked rumors and stories told in the area.”
Seth added, “It was a lucky guess, really.”
“Clever, and very lucky,” agreed Benjamin.
The black-haired woman at his side had a youthful face, while Benjamin appeared much older. She wouldn’t say he looked elderly, just like he’d been living for a very long time. His dark hair was not streaked with gray and his face was without wrinkles, but something old was reflected back in wisdom-filled eyes of gray that seemed to see everything.
Danielle remembered hearing about the woman now. The woman Benjamin had chosen and turned so he’d have companionship. The action having been clear rebellion against Lilith who’d meant for him to be alone. Did this relationship force him to hide from Lilith in this way? Is that why he chooses to live in such total seclusion?
Suddenly the woman was in her face, her eyes roving over Danielle’s features and clothes with bald curiosity. “You’re the only woman amongst these men. Why?” The female vampire’s eyes were a blackish-brown. Dressed in black trousers and a ruffled black cardigan, the woman circled Danielle, touching her hair, breathing in her scent even.
Apparently Ethan didn’t like it because the next thing she knew she was being jerked around behind his back as he took on a threatening stance.
The woman’s head flew back as she laughed. “How charming. Benjamin, she belongs to this one.”
By now they’d all gathered around, and tension settled around them like a thick net of heavy fog. Instinctively, Danielle clung to Ethan and his fingers encircling her wrist tightened. A silent warning to be quiet she figured. That was completely fine with her.
“This is Heleways, my wife, and who might the rest of you be?” asked Benjamin. It was sort of strange how he seemed less threatening than his bride. The leather of his black jacket made a rustling sound as he moved to place an arm around Heleways. Strangely, his touch seemed to make her haughtiness deflate a little.
“I’m Beon. This is Seth, Maximilian, Cedric and the rest of our Order. These two are Ethan and Danielle.”
“What Order is this?”
Beon stood taller as his spine stiffened. “We call it the Order of the Curse-Bound Nights.”
“What is your purpose?”
“We rebel against what the curse makes us.”
One of Benjamin’s eyebrows lifted before his mouth curved with a grin. “So it’s true then, the rumors I’ve been hearing? Someone has solved Lil’s riddle?”
“I did,” said Ethan.
Rubbing the thick beard on his chin with long fingers making a rasping sound, Benjamin said, “Tell me,” as his eyebrows rose with his gaze, while he appeared to study Ethan more closely.
“‘The one who gives himself to humanity will find the cure to the curse,’” began Ethan by reiterating the prophecy. “I was extremely weak with thirst and instead of biting ... a mortal, I allowed them to bite me instead.” Ethan tugged Danielle closer to his back, her hands landed on his waist because the movement had been so sudden. She didn’t want it to look like she was trying to hide behind him, so she moved slightly to the left, making herself more visible even though she liked Ethan’s protectiveness.
“You’re not mortal,” argued Heleways.
“I was.” Ethan then explained the theories they had as to why this had worked.
“Danielle was the mortal,” Benjamin said, his gray eyes sparkling with understanding, but he frowned and asked, “Why is she too a vampire now?”
“She was stabbed,” Ethan said. “I turned her to save her.”
“We lost our baby,” Danielle whispered.
Danielle was surprised to see it, but compassion filled both of their expressions. “Who did this and why?” demanded Benjamin, folding his arms over his broad chest. Heleways looked like she might actually cry, her gaze turning glossy.
“Our enemies,” responded Beon. “Enemies of our Order. Many are not pleased about this cure.”
“Ah,” said Benjamin, “And that is why you’re here. You want my aid.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry to say there isn’t anything I can do for you. I’d like to maintain my ... seclusion, if you don’t mind.”
“We only need your help in finding Lilith,” said Seth, moving forward, his heavy boots crunching dried leaves and twigs as he stepped.
Narrowed gray eyes shot to Seth, “That witch won’t help you.”
“We need to ask her. We need to try.”
Benjamin bellowed with a loud guffaw at that. “Do all of you really wish to be mortal? Weak?”
“Some of us do, but not all of us. We want immortals to have a choice.”
“Hmm, I see.” The First Vampire dropped a hand to his hip. He appeared to be thinking as a cunning twinkle sparkled in his gaze. “I suppose it’s worth a try. She lives in Romania, or did when I left her. Granted, that was centuries ago.” Turning his gaze to Beon, he asked, “Do you have one of these GPS gadgets I’ve heard about?”
“Yes.” Beon pulled it from his satchel and held it out to Benjamin.
The old vampire emitted a low chuckle and held up his hand, palm forward. “I don’t know how to use that thing, just enter these coordinates.” He then rattled off a few numbers which Danielle figured were longitude and latitude. Beon typed them into the device.
“Well then,” Benjamin bowed sweeping his arm to the side. As he swung upright, he said, “I’ll be returning home now. But don’t share my location with anyone else or I will have to hunt you all down. I do know how to kill immortals, you won’t escape me.”
“Thank you,” Seth, Ethan and Beon said in unison.