Follow Me When the Sun Goes Down

Follow
Me

When the Sun Goes Down

By

Lisa Olsen

Copyright © 201
3 Lisa Olsen, all rights reserved.

Cover Image licensed by Depositphotos.com/Cosma Andrei and Petar Paunchev

This book is sold subject to the conditions that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, copied, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any other format or changed in any way, including the author’s name and title, and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

This is a work of fiction.  Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.  The use of any real person, company or product names are for literary effect only and used without permission.  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.

Visit the author’s website at
http://www.lisaolsen.net

Acknowledgements

Thanks to everyone who voted on my website and helped me decide to write this one next as well as the cover art.  I love hearing from you guys, so keep messaging me on the website and on Facebook.  Thanks to Randi Pandi, for tearing through the first draft so quickly and giving me great feedback.  A giant mug of cocoa with cinnamon sprinkles to my editing team, Beckie Pimentel (Lady Bex!), Marilyn Weaver (the best mom in the universe!), and James Olsen (The Captain rules!) for all the fantastic edits and helping to make this baby so much better.  You guys rock!

“I knew you had it in you, but that was masterful!”  Felix beamed, dimples in
full effect as his grin stretched wide.

Me,
Anja Evans, the new Elder of the West?  Had I slid into an alternate dimension?  What else was wonky here?  Would someone bust in and announce a tornado full of sharks on the horizon in the next instant? 

“
I don’t understand, what do you mean I’m the new Elder?  I thought this was an informal meet and greet only.”

“
After that performance?  They didn’t even have to vote.  You’re in!”

He kept gushing about how I’d crushed the opponents and how excited everyone was, but all I could think was
this must be what going crazy feels like.
  The more Felix talked, the more the anxiety swirling in my belly turned into flat out panic and I had to hold my hands out to get him to stop talking. 

“
I need a minute.  Where’s Rob?  I need Rob.”

“
I’m here, miss.”  His gravelly voice slid over me like a soothing balm, and I spotted him leaning next to the parlor door.  Clean-shaven for the occasion, he looked like any other party go-er, except for the hint of vigilance in his eyes and the bulge of capable muscles concealed by the tailored suit jacket.  Once I’d found him menacing enough, but now I wanted nothing more than to let him comfort me like a five year-old over the mess I’d gotten myself into. 

Felix sketched a half bow, his smile dimming, but not his elation
; I could tell from the gleam in his eye.  “I’ll give you a few minutes, Your Grace.”

Y
our Grace.
  I did my best to choke down the panic those two little words produced, but some of it spilled out the moment the door shut behind Felix.  “Rob, please don’t be moody right now, because I can’t take that.  I’m sorry I said that thing before about the job description, but I was just so…”

Thankfully, there was no hint of residual anger as h
is brows twitched together, hands finding my elbows for a steadying grip.  “Easy now, what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong?”  My voice
leapt an octave in a single bound.  “Did you not hear what just happened back there?  I’m the Elder!” I hissed.  “How the heck did that happen?”

His worry eased, and unfortunately, so did the soothing grip on my arms as he stepped back.  “Vampires resp
ect a show of strength and that’s exactly what you gave them.”

“
Wait… so you’re saying my list of stupid demands out there actually got me the job?”  All at once I started to realize my error in judgment. 

“
Course it did.  What did you think would happen?  They’ve been itching for a strong leader for ages around here.  Nobody much likes what’s become of the West since Vendal got her clutches into Lyons.  What you said about her in front of the council just clinched the deal.” 

Holy smokes
, had I messed things up. “There has to be some way to make this go away.  Can’t I go in there and say no, I don’t want the job?”

“
You could at that,” he allowed, perching against the arm of an overstuffed chair.  “Course, you’d be giving up a fair lot of power.”

“
I don’t want it.  I never did, you know that.”  Or did he not know me at all?

“
That’s why you’re meant for it.  You’ll do what needs doing for the sake of what’s right.”

Rob sure seemed to have a lot of faith in me.  Then again, he always had.  He’d been the one to tell me I could do anything I put my mind to when I’d tumbled into the Jarl position, and look how good that turned out.  Still, Elder of the West was such a huge responsibility, there had to be someone better qualified for it than me.  “What about Marcus?  That guy has politician written all over him.  He could handle this in his sleep.”

“Do you really think that’s what the West needs?  Someone going through the motions in his sleep, or someone ready to shake things up a bit?”

I’d shake things up alright, I just wasn’t convinced the West would end up the better for it at the end of the day.  “
What if I completely screw this up?  I don’t think I’m ready for this kind of a responsibility.  I’ve only been Jarl for a few weeks.”

“
And look how well you’ve done with it.  There’s folks alive right now that wouldn’t be, thanks to you.”

“And some that have died…”  I wished I could take those words back as soon as I saw the furrow of pain twitch across his brow.  He might claim it was all business, but I knew Ellie’s death affected him more than he let on. 
I opened my mouth to apologize, but froze at the light tap on the door, my panic returning full force. 

“
I can’t go back in there,” I whispered.  “I don’t know what to say to those people.” 
Sorry, guys, pick someone else? 

Rob pushed away from the chair, coming to stand right in front of me.  “Speak from the heart, try not to waffle on and you’ll be
aces,” he said with a decisive nod.

He made it sound so simple, but the thought of getting up in front of those people made me want to hurl.  “
I just want to go home.  Can we do that?  Can we go home?”  Maybe that made me weak, but I had no business stepping into the Elder’s shoes.  Not with only a few months experience even
being
a vampire in the first place. 

He let out a short breath, but nodded easily enough.  “
Right then, I’ll have the car brought around.”

“
No, I mean
home,
home, not back to Felix’s house in Malibu.” I stopped him with a hand on his arm.  “Do you think Felix would lend me his jet again?”

“
It’s your jet now.”

“
My jet.”  I could have a jet.  For some reason that struck me as a symbol of real power.  Not that I needed rich stuff to sway me to take the job, but it sort of represented what I could do with it.  I could go anywhere I wanted, help anyone in my territory.  I could finally lobby for real change without having to worry about the Order taking my head off.  I could fly back to Vetis and make Corley pay for what he’d done to Tommy.  Then again, that meant I’d see Bishop, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to do that yet. 

Rob must
’ve seen that added flare of panic, because he reached up, his thumb brushing against my jaw.  “Hey now, take a breath.  You got this, yeah?” The corner of his mouth tilted up into a half smile and it warmed me to the core. 

Anja Gudrun, Elder of the West.
  All I had to do was man up and take what they offered me on a silver platter. 

“
I got this,” I repeated, willing it to be true. 

The knock sounded again and Felix poked his head in this time.  “Hey, boss. 
You gotta get back in there now, the room’s going nuts.” 

Rob dropped me like a hot potato, and I tried not to let it bother me.  “
What do they want?” I asked Felix.

“
To welcome the new Elder, of course.  They’re waiting to swear you in.”

“A
lready?”  Somehow I’d thought there would be a bigger ceremony, but maybe it was better this way.  No muss, no fuss.  I’d take over as Elder and be on my way.

“Sure.  T
he longer we’re without a leader, the bigger a target it makes us,” he explained.  We’ll have an informal deal tonight, the party for the actual inauguration will take some time to plan.  Plus, we’ll want to leave plenty of time for everyone to come.”

So much for no fuss. 
“Naturally,” I murmured, sucking in a long, breath.  It didn’t look like I’d escape the pomp and circumstance of my new position.  Then again, I could still turn it down, it wasn’t a done deal.  My gaze swung to Rob, standing by the door again, all reserve and formality.  He gave me a single nod, and I could see his unwavering faith there.  Whatever unkind words we’d traded in the past, whatever crazy, murky twist our relationship had taken, he seemed to think I could handle it. 

“
Alright,” I breathed, taking the arm Felix offered.  “Let’s do this.”

We were met with enthusiastic applause as we entered the ballroom in Durand’s grand colonial estate, and I did my best to paste a serene smile on my face.  I kept my head high as I held on to Felix for support, praying to all that’s holy I wouldn’t trip over my own feet before I made it to the front of the room.  It helped if I didn’t look at anyone in particular, only I couldn’t help but catch Marcus’ gaze as we turned to face the crowd.  My teeth caught at my lower lip, anticipating a sullen note at the least or even open hostility at my having swiped his coveted position out from under him, but the look I got from him was one of pure respect. 

Somehow I didn’t think I’d get the same from Byrne, but I didn’t see the weaselly magistrate anywhere.  Maggie was there though, and Bridget, cheering like a crazy person.  Gunnar edged closer to the front of the room, the better to protect me, I supposed. 

The sole woman on the council, a curvy redhead named Cordelia, approached me with a radiant smile on her face.  As she took her place beside me, I expected a flowery speech but she got right to the point.  “Anja Gudrun, do you vow to serve the people to the best of your ability as Elder of the West?”

“I do.”

“Do you vow to uphold vampire law and offer swift justice to those who do not?”

I wasn’t expecting that one, and I was faced with a conundrum.  Give the expected response or be honest and speak my mind?  A tiny part of me voted to do the latter, hoping they’d change their minds and take it back. 

“I do up to a point,” I replied, honesty winning out.  “I’ll hold with the laws, only with the understanding that I intend to revisit them, with the goal of updating them to reflect the current needs of our society.”

Her smile stretched wider.  “I think that satisfies the need for protocol.  We’ll forgo the blooding until the formal ceremony, but for now…”  Cordelia handed Felix a small
, black, plastic box.  “Felix, if you’ll please do the honors?”

I wanted to go back to the meaning behind
‘the blooding’, but there wasn’t any time to ask questions as he opened the box and switched on the small machine.  Removing a hand held scanner, attached to the box by a coiled cord, he aimed it towards my arm.  “Your chip, if you please, Your Grace.”  His dimples were back. 

I could only guess at what he was up to as I held out my arm and he swiped the scanner across my wrist, an electronic beep sounding loudly in the ballroom that had fallen completely silent. 

“Alright, you got the juice now,” he grinned, and I assumed my electronic bio was now updated with a handy new title on the subdermal chip.  “But let’s not forget this.”  He handed back the electronics and dug a ring box out of his pocket.  “You’ll get presented this again when we have the formal inauguration, but I thought you might like to have it now.”

Inside the box was a gold signet ring, bearing a stylized W crowned by a wreath of laurels.  I’d have expected something chunkier since the last Elder was a man, but it was obviously styled for a woman’s hand.  “It looks like it’s my size,” I commented reaching for it.

“I took the liberty of having one made up.  Call it a hunch,” he winked.  “It goes on your other hand though.”

My eyes lit upon Jakob’s ring, the amber cabochon glowing warmly under the ballroom lights.  “I can’t take this off,” I balked.  It made me feel queasy to even think about it, even though now I knew why.

“Hey, with all due respect, I think this is a little more important, no matter where you got it from,” Felix pointed out, and I wondered if I even
could
remove it with Jakob’s compulsion in place. 

Well… was I the Elder or not?
  Time to test the waters.  “I wear a ring of queens.  It was given to me by my Sire.  Does anyone challenge my right to wear it on this hand?” My declaration was met with utter silence and then they started dropping to one knee in a rippling wave of assent.  One and all genuflected before me and Felix’s jaw dropped before he snapped it shut with an audible click. 

“You got it, boss,” he grinned, slipping the ring of office onto my other hand. 

“All hail Anja Gudrun, Elder of the West!”  Someone sounded the cry, I’m not sure who, but it was soon taken up by the small crowd and repeated with growing fervor.  I was as still as can be, too busy trying to decide if there was a formal reply to that or if I should just bask in their adoration, to actually say something back.  After a few rounds, Felix gave me a pointed look, his head jotting to one side and I knew it was time to end the love fest. 

I raised my hands and the room fell almost instantly silent again, my sub
jects remaining on bent knee.  Jeez Louise, I felt just like Loki at Comic Con, commanding them with a single gesture.  It was a heady sensation.  I had the sneaking suspicion I could say anything to them and they’d have eaten it up without question.  Order them to storm Disneyland and I’d have a pile of mouse ears at my feet within the hour.  Instead, I took Rob’s advice and tried to keep it short and sweet. 

“Thank you for this great honor.  I’ll do everything in my power to make the West a safe sanctuary for all of our people.”  There, not a waffle in sight. 

They swarmed en masse to offer congratulations, and I was grateful for Gunnar’s bulk and Rob’s calming presence by my side as they demanded a cushion of space around me.  In addition to the two of them, Felix’s team supplemented my security force, as well as a couple of faces I didn’t recognize that probably worked for our host.  Instant brute squad, cool beans. 

The crowd quickly got the hint and backed off, approaching singly or in pairs.  I pressed the flesh, barely taking in the names and faces except for when the council approached me.  I’d been briefly introduced to them before the speeches, but hadn’t had the chance to speak beyond the trivial.  They offered the same congratulations as the others, but I paid closer attention to the flattery, in case they said something important. 

Besides Cordelia, there was Holt (balding, long sideburns, intimidating stare), Anders (dark skinned, unruly salt-and-pepper afro, friendly smile), Powell (rangy, heavy mustache, wary eyes) and Durand (piercing blue eyes, polished, double Windsor knot) – the owner of the grand house we gathered in and coincidentally, the man who’d stood and returned my formal greeting before my infamous speech. 

Durand lingered by my side far longer than the others, braving Gunnar’s steely gaze with ease.  He wore his three piece suit with casual elegance, like he probably wore them to the dentist’s office
, and based on what I’d seen of his house, I couldn’t fault his taste. 

“I haven’t met anyone like you in a long time,” he said when we had a private moment.  Well, as private a moment as you can have with six burly guys standing around, doing their best to look menacing. 

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Refreshingly good,” he smiled.  “I thought I knew everyone important in this territory, but you’ve been holding out on us.  Where have you been hiding yourself?”

“I wouldn’t call it hiding.  That implies fear where there is none.”  I borrowed the words from Jakob, finding them semi-appropriate.  “As strange as it may seem after the spectacle I’ve made of myself tonight, I prefer to stay out of the limelight.”

“Then I’m glad you chose to leave the shadows behind for us when we need you the most.”  He swiped a pair of champagne glasses from a passing tray and offered one to me.  I accepted the glass and touched mine to his, taking a brief sip of the bubbly liquid as I pondered the flowery words. 

Durand posed an interesting set of contradictions.  From his speech patterns he didn’t sound like an old one, but the polished elegance and his taste in décor was definitely classic, to say the least.  His chestnut hair was cut in a modern style, but the three piece suit definitely put more of a refined slant to his overall look.  Throw in the fact that he alone had known the proper response to my formal greeting – it had me wondering how old and powerful a vampire stared back at me with stars in his eyes.       

“I hope you don’t mind my asking, but have you always lived in the West?  I feel like maybe we’ve meet somewhere before,” I asked, totally fishing for information since I was pretty sure it would be considered gauche to come right out and ask him how old he was.  

“Born and raised,” he smiled with pride.  “I spent some of my younger days traveling abroad with my Sire, but I’ve been settled here in L.A. for a while now.  And no, I don’t mind you asking, but I think I definitely would’ve remembered it if we’d met before.”

I raised my glass to him, taking another sip to give myself time to think.  “I didn’t think anyone was familiar with the formalities anymore
.  It’s nice to see someone who appreciates the old ways.”

Durand chuckled, perhaps over a triggered memory, or maybe he’d just remembered the punch
line to a good joke.  “I haven’t heard those words in a long time,” he said finally.  “My Sire was definitely old school.  It didn’t serve him well in the end, but I believe it gave me certain advantages.  Like knowing a good thing when I see it, for one.”

I dodged the flattery, gesturing to the sweeping architecture of the ballroom with a wave of my champagne glass.  “You’re obviously doing well for yourself.”

He gave a self-deprecating shrug.  “I’ve learned to adapt and embrace the modern era, but the old principles still apply.  I was very impressed to hear about your moves for reform up north.  I wondered if we couldn’t have a private chat sometime?  I’d love to hear your plans for the West in greater detail.”   

It didn’t feel like he was hitting on me, but I could sense a definite interest that had nothing to do with my politics.  Best to nip that in the bud; I didn’t need any more romantic complications in my life, I was full up already.  “That sounds nice, but I’ll be returning to
San Francisco as soon as possible.”

“Of course, how selfish of me,” he immediately nodded.  “I imagine you’ll
be busy, especially with the Gathering to get ready for.”

“Oh right, I forgot about the Gathering.”  I vaguely remembered Bishop mentioning it a few times while I’d been in
England.  Throughout the whole Elder talk, I hadn’t once thought about having to represent the West in front of all the other Houses.  All at once, the pleasant glow I’d gotten from the champagne and the
I’ve got this
mentality started to fade. 

“That’s on January twelfth, right?” I mused aloud.  That wouldn’t be so bad.  I’d have time to prepare.  Felix could give me the rundown on what my duties would be and my role in the thing.  I figured I’d be low man on the totem pole in Vetis, what with me being a noob as well as from the West – Corley hadn’t made it a secret how the rest of the world viewed the ‘colonies’.

“No, it’s on Twelfth Night.”

“Son of a biscuit, that
is
coming up soon, isn’t it?”  I had days, not weeks to prepare.  My gaze started to roam, looking for Felix, thinking we should skedaddle soon and make some plans.  I’d need a decent run down on all the Houses (I had no idea how many of them there even were), the major players involved (who I should make nice with and who might be the enemy) and if he expected there to be any Earth-shattering changes.  Hadn’t Bishop said there hadn’t been a Gathering for the past fifty years? 

“When you return, perhaps?”

“Hmm, what?” I blinked, realizing I had no idea what he was talking about.

“Maybe we can have that talk when you get back?” he tried again.

“Oh, right.  Sure, that sounds like fun.”

“I could introduce you to the major players down here, help you get acquainted.  Or I could come up to see you, if you prefer.”

“We’ll have to play it by ear, okay?  I’m not sure where I’ll be for the next few weeks, and I know you must have plenty to keep you busy as well.”

“I’ll make time.” 

Yep, definite interest.
  “Why don’t you contact my secretary?  She can set something up when we’re back in town.  Felix can get you the number.”  Ooh, I’d always wanted to say something like that!  How awesome was it to have an appointment secretary?  It’d give me plenty of time to figure out a polite way to discourage his interest.  After all, he was an important council member, so I had to be careful not to foster any bad feelings on my first day.

Speaking of which…
I caught the sight of Byrne in my peripheral vision.  My shoulders should’ve been sore from the way he stared daggers at my back, and I started to think I should be careful accepting drinks in his presence for fear of poison.  Almost as if he’d heard my train of thought, Byrne raised his glass of champagne to me in a silent salute – one I might have taken as congratulatory if he’d bothered to hide the predatory gleam to his eye. 

Yep, he’s going to be a problem
.