Blood Cruel (Gods of Blood and Shadow Book 1) (10 page)

If he had a copy of a picture of Caterina that had been uploaded to the web, he could do a reverse search on it. But how likely was a vampire to be on social media?

The bus dropped him off and he walked back to his house, his thoughts working. He had so few frames of reference. If it was between Caterina and his father, he had to trust Rans, didn’t he? He needed some kind of independent verification. He needed another vampire to ask. But where would he find them?

Caterina had mentioned Dublin, but how could he get there? Or… he wondered whether the mere mention of Ireland might make his father open up.

He made his way to his house and unlocked the door, heading inside. Once inside in the warmth, he pulled out his phone and found Katie’s number.

It rang for a long minute before he hung up. Either she was ignoring him, or she was busy. He didn’t want to wait. He needed to know.

Walking to the living room, he dropped his bag on the sofa and rapped on the lid of Rans’ coffin.

After a moment, it opened and Rans looked blearily out. “Is it time to wake up already?”

“It’s after five.”

“It’s still early.” Rans reached to close the lid again. “Give me another hour.”

“I wanted to make sure it’s okay I go on a field trip with school.”

“Of course.”

“It’s to Dublin, in Ireland. Exciting, really…”

Rans sat bolt upright, struggling out of the coffin and spilling more dirt. “Dublin?”

“Yeah. I’ve always wanted to go there.”

“No, you can’t. It’s a dangerous place. They hunt vampires there.”

“But you won’t be going. It’s just me. And I won’t turn for another two weeks. The trip is this weekend, so I’ve plenty of time.”

“I forbid it. You need to stay here.”

Jaden frowned. His father had reacted as he’d thought he would. Did it confirm Caterina’s story or just muddy the waters even more? He needed answers. Real answers.

“Fine,” he said. “There is no field trip. I wanted to see how you’d react. My mother contacted me.”

“That’s not possible. Your mother is dead.”

“She told me her name’s Caterina. That you stole me from her when I was four.”

Rans froze, staring at Jaden. “We need to leave. If she’s found us, it won’t be long until others do too.”

“What? What are you talking about? Is she my mother or not?”

“Come on. We need to pack.”

“No. Not until you answer me. Is Caterina my mother?”

Rans hovered in the doorway, as if unsure how to answer. “She is. But she’s dangerous. I took you away for your own good.”

Jaden could tell his father was hiding something. Another lie that would turn his whole world upside down. “Dangerous how? I’m a vampire. You said vampires don’t kill one another.”

“No… they… she wants to hurt you. You can’t trust her.”

“Everything you’ve told me is a lie. And you want me to trust you now?”

“We have to leave,” Rans said. “Find somewhere to hide for the next month. After that, none of this will matter.”

“Will something happen when I turn? Is that why?”

Rans opened his mouth, but no words came out. He stood staring at Jaden.

“I’m leaving,” Jaden said. “But not with you and not with Caterina. I don’t know who to trust right now.”

“Where are you going to go?”

“Away. I don’t know. I’m taking some money and checking into a hotel or something. Don’t follow me. I’m going to think all this through.”

Rans seemed about to object, but nodded. “I understand. Try to stay inside at night. Remember a hotel room doesn’t count as a home.”

Jaden went up to his room and packed a bag. His father was hiding something, that much was obvious. But that didn’t mean he could trust Caterina either. There was something he wasn’t getting.

On impulse, he pulled out his phone again and dialled Katie’s number. This time she answered, out of breath.

“Hi,” she panted. “Sorry I had to leave earlier. I had something I needed to do that I forgot about.”

“That’s okay. Listen, I have to move out of my house for a few days, while I sort some things out. So I…”

“You can move in here,” she said. “Things have gotten much better. You can come over, it’s only up the road, after all.”

“Thanks.” Something made him pause. “How do you know you only live up the road from me?”

“Ah… I was passing by one day and I saw you going in there.”

She wasn’t as good a liar as Rans was, but Jaden needed a friendly ear and he couldn’t be suspicious of everyone. She wasn’t a vampire.

“Can you text me your address?” he asked.

“Sure. See you soon.”

Chapter 15

Spare Room

K
atie hung up the phone and lay back on her bed with a smile. She was sorry things weren’t going well at home for Jaden, but considering his father was a vampire, that might not be the worst thing.

“Are you insane?” Loki asked. “You invited a vampire into your home? You can’t take that back. This house will never be a sanctuary again, as long as he lives.”

“He’s my friend,” she said. “I’m doing your training; let me make my own decisions about my friends.”

“You’re not thinking clearly. What do you imagine will happen when he turns? He won’t be your friend anymore and you won’t be his. You’ll be his next meal. Followed soon after by your father.”

“Do vampires forget who they are the moment they turn?”

Loki shook his head. “They lose all capacity for emotion. They’re natural psychopaths.”

“We’ll see.”

“You should transfer my money back to my account. And you don’t need to worry about training anymore.”

She shot him a look. “I’m not dead yet. Let me do this my way.”

She struggled to her feet, then went out her door and over to the spare room. All the furniture in there was half-destroyed. Anytime Sonneillon had made her father break something, they’d swapped it out. Now the bed had one wonky leg, the nightstand didn’t open, and the closet door was hanging loose.

She didn’t have time to fix any of them, so she just made the bed with fresh sheets. Then she opened the window, letting in the cold to air the room out.

From downstairs, the doorbell rang, and she hurried to answer it. Her father still wasn’t home from work, but she’d have some explaining to do when he got back.

She opened the door, revealing a bedraggled-looking Jaden. He had a pair of backpacks over his shoulders and another bag in his left hand.

“Hi,” she said. “Come in.”

He stepped through the door and looked around. “Are you sure this is okay? I could go to a hotel.”

“Don’t be silly.” She gestured for him to follow her up the stairs. “We have a spare room sitting there doing nothing. Besides, what are friends for if you can’t stay with them every once in a while?”

“And your father won’t mind?”

“He’ll be fine. The trouble we were going through is over now.”

“Even so, he might not want a strange man in the house with his teenage daughter.”

“To be honest, I think he’d celebrate if anyone took an interest.” Katie tried to smile reassuringly. She opened the door of the spare room and hurried over to close the window, shivering from the chill. She saw Jaden’s eyes drift over the ramshackle furniture.

“Sorry everything is broken,” she said. “We don’t get many guests.”

From down in the hall, she heard the front door open. “We should say hello.”

Jaden shrugged, throwing his bags onto the bed. Together they went downstairs, where her father was taking his coat off.

“Dad, this is Jaden,” Katie said.

Aidan’s eyes widened in surprise. After a moment, he held his hand out. “Nice to meet you, Jaden. I’m Aidan.”

Jaden took Aidan’s hand and nodded, surprisingly shy.

“Jaden needs to stay with us for a few weeks,” Katie said. “Is that all right?”

Aidan paused for a moment before smiling. “As long as he’s okay with pork chops and mash.”

“Pork chops and mash?” Jaden asked.

“Dinner,” Katie said. “It’s Dad’s way of saying it’s fine.”

“I’ll get started,” Aidan said. “I presume Jaden’s in the spare room?”

Katie nodded.

“You should get him settled in.” Aidan headed for the kitchen.

Jaden frowned in confusion. “Is he really okay with me staying here? Doesn’t he worry I’ll do something… bad?”

“He trusts my judgement,” Katie said. She didn’t add that her father would ask his god, Klondike, to keep an invisible eye on Jaden. “Come on, you should unpack. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

They went back upstairs to the spare room, Katie closing the door behind them. She wasn’t sure how to broach the subject with Jaden of why he moved out.

“I found out my father was lying.” Jaden walked over to sit on the bed.

She moved to sit beside him. “About your mother?”

“Not just that. When I mentioned going to Dublin, he freaked out.”

“Could there be another reason? Maybe he was worried about something else there, other than the truth?”

Jaden shook his head. “He couldn’t even tell me. He just kept saying it was dangerous. Dangerous for him, I think. Caterina might be telling the truth, but I’ve no way of knowing for sure.”

“Who could steal a son away from his mother?”

“According to Dad, it’s for my own good. But can I believe a single word he says?”

“How could it possibly be for your own good? What else might he be running from?”

“Secrets,” Jaden said. “Things no one is meant to find out.”

She realised they couldn’t keep dancing around the truth. She couldn’t watch him in pain without being able to discuss things. She needed to tell him. “I know what you are.”

“A pathetic loser with a messed up family life?”

“No,” she said. “A vampire.”

Jaden stared at her, his jaw dropping.

In front of them, Loki appeared, fury lining his face. “What are you doing? You’ve just made yourself more of a target.”

Jaden’s eyes widened, and he stared at Loki. “W-What… Who the hell is that?”

Chapter 16

Plans

J
aden stared at the figure in front of him. The man was odd-looking, with a hooked nose, long hair, and impressive black beard. His belly pushed out an old-fashioned, scarlet tunic.

“He can see me.” The man’s eyes widened.

“Of course I can,” Jaden said. “Who is this, Katie?”

“Loki,” Katie said. “You’re not the only one with a secret life, Jaden. I’m a Godchosen.”

Loki reached up and tugged at his beard, his brow furrowed in thought. “Never mind that. Why can he see me?”

“What’s a Godchosen?” Jaden asked.

“I have my own personal god,” Katie said. “So does my father. His is called Klondike, mine is Loki.”

“I’ve heard of Loki,” Jaden said. “The trickster god. He does things for his own amusement, tormenting people.”

“A clever piece of propaganda by your people,” Loki said. “Say anything enough times, for hundreds of years, and it becomes true. I’m not the one who razes villages and eats all the people there.”

“I’ve never done that,” Jaden said.

“But you will,” Loki said. “And relish every moment. Now let me think.”

Jaden threw a questioning look at Katie, but she just shrugged. Both of them watched Loki pull at his beard. After a moment, his eyes brightened.

“You’re half dead,” Loki said. “Vampires can’t see me, because they’re fully dead. Humans can’t see me, because they’re fully alive. But people can often see into other realms when they’re on the verge of death.”

“I don’t feel half dead,” Jaden said.

“Try holding your breath,” Loki said.

Jaden didn’t like the way the strange god was ordering him around, but he did as instructed. After two full minutes, he needed air again.

“See,” Loki said. “You barely need to breathe. Your heart rate is probably almost non-existent. Your vampire side is taking over.”

“This is your god?” Jaden asked Katie. “A rude man in a red suit. He’s like an anti-Santa.”

“Yeah, I didn’t have the money for a better one,” Katie said. “I got stuck with him.”

“Stuck with me. As if I’m a curse.” Loki pointed at Jaden. “He’s the one who’s going to kill everyone he ever meets.”

“Not everyone,” Jaden said. “My father only feeds once a month.”

“Oh, well that’s okay then,” Loki said. “He’s only killed hundreds of people, not thousands.”

Katie gripped Jaden’s arm. “If we need answers, Loki will have them. He’s been fighting vampires for centuries. He’ll know all about your kind.”

“Oh, so now you need me,” Loki said. “I’m not sure I want to educate the vampire on how to kill people.”