Judas and the Vampires (54 page)

One of the last things I recalled was Chanson’s voice calling to me from somewhere above, urging me to drink. An acrid taste that was metallic filled my mouth, as liquid poured into my open throat. I almost choked and coughed up some of it. At the same time, I began to feel a surge of strength lift the weakness and discomfort I had felt since the incredible pain erupted in my ovary.

While losing consciousness, cheers of joy erupted around me. The experiment was a success. Garvan and Armando congratulated Peter, and I heard Nora tell Chanson that my color was good and that I’d be ‘fine in no time’. Hearing these things as my awareness faded gave me a sense of satisfaction. At least there was hope of better days ahead. Maybe things would work out for all of us.

But, the last thing I heard before everything went blank was Gustav’s panicked shouts, followed by an escalating murmur from the group. Something about the castle gates being stormed and an invasion on the main floor. Vampires. Bad ones with a single mission.

To find and kill me.

Chapter 22

So there you have it. My story…or at least the beginning of what promises to be an interesting adventure. Oh, yes, there are a few details I need to wrap up before I close. Starting with the events following Relance du sang, the sacred ceremony of the vampires.

Obviously I have survived, at least so far. Ralu’s army did sack the castle, and sadly from what I understand, there were casualties on both sides, including nearly half of Racco’s staff of innocent human beings. Before Ralu and his minions could find me, I was whisked to a ‘safe house’ in nearby Perpignan. A temporary stay until one of Racco’s private jets was ready for boarding.

I missed out on all of the craziness, and didn’t awake until almost noon today, roughly eight hours after I passed out. One of Racco’s assistants, a young teenager named Maria, was the one to check on me. A pretty brunette, I can only hope he hasn’t tried to bed this one, and from what I could tell from her thoughts he hasn’t yet. Yes, a side effect from my experience is that I can somehow read a person’s unspoken musings. Not complete voyeurism like the vampires possess, but I can hear partial sentences. It’s kind of weird, really, since I’ve come to understand in the past ten hours since I awoke that most of us never say everything we think. It’s a hodge-podge of random observations and urges that we somehow streamline into what we verbalize. I doubt we’re even aware of this process most of the time.

To wake up and suddenly have immediate awareness of the endless stream of words within somebody else’s head can be extremely disturbing. At least it was for me today. And, to consider it’s just the opposite experience from when I blacked out, where an incredible calm and peaceful sea of blackness surrounded me.

Surely, you’re wondering about my physical condition. I mean, am I pregnant yet? And, what about the incredible discomfort that racked my insides when the very first ovum of my life coursed down my left ovary and into my womb?

I can tell you that both of these questions were among the last thoughts I considered before everything went blank. My fading awareness of my pain and surroundings was the only reason I didn’t scream to high heaven. It hurt like a mo-fo, and I hope to God I’m never subjected to anything like it again!

Once Maria showed up at my bedside, in addition to the sudden assault from her worried thoughts for my welfare, I was surprised to find my body’s pain had vanished. Completely. It amazed me that I felt really good physically. I startled the poor girl when I jumped up and started getting dressed in the change of clothes she brought for me. The modest bedroom in the much smaller estate gave me pause to consider something truly had happened earlier this morning, and it wasn’t just a bad dream.

Maria’s thoughts began to overwhelm me, and when I realized in horror that the mental confusion bombarding my mind came from her head, I excused myself from her presence and ran into the adjacent bathroom. Thankfully, she understood English when I told her that I’d be right back. Most of what came from her silent musings was in French.

While washing my face in the sink, I began to recall the draining of my blood by Chanson. I pulled my hair back to take a look at my neck. Not surprised the wounds had already healed, the teardrops on my neck were slightly swollen still, providing further confirmation of what had happened to me in the hours just before dawn. More mental images from the event began to flood my awareness, and I could taste the blood being poured down my throat once more.

That’s when incredible nausea came over me, forcing me to my knees as I retched for damn near twenty minutes.

Can morning sickness occur this quickly? Or, was my churning stomach due to reliving the feeding of my blood back to me, as a mixture of human and vampire plasma?

I did get that answer…but, not just yet.

Once I had dressed, Maria led me to the northern wing of the estate, where Mercel waited. I had mixed feelings at seeing him without Racco around, but he assured me that I’d see Racco again at our new location. He refused to divulge where that would be.

“I know this is not what you want to hear, Mademoiselle Ybarra, but I have my orders to follow,” he explained, his expression pained despite a caring smile. “Ask me anything other than that, and if I know the answer, I will tell you.”

Well, he couldn’t answer my next question as to ‘when’ Racco would be coming to this new secret hideout—which I correctly assumed would be another castle. And, he must have learned the ability to cloak his thoughts, as I picked up nothing from him. Almost like the vampires’ empty mental slates I would encounter later on, this evening. I guess only warm-blooded humans transmit readable thoughts.

Other details Mercel did know, and could tell me, were these: we would be boarding the plane around 3:00 p.m., and joining us would be more than one hundred vampires, still asleep in their coffins. This was as much for my continued protection as companionship, he advised. An additional cargo plane would also make the trip, carrying most of the heavier caskets and other treasured items already packed by Gustav’s servants.

From what I gathered, the selected vampires included my friends among them. It lightened my heart after I received the disappointing news that Peter had already been forced to return to America. There was so much left unresolved, and I honestly wanted to speak with him to gauge where our relationship stood after last night. Can it be salvaged? I seriously doubt it, based on what I know of Peter and his sheltered upbringing. What he participated in this morning would likely haunt him for years to come, and I assume this is the reason he was not allowed to stay and speak with me before his trans-Atlantic flight.

Unfortunately, this will remain something I will have to resolve at a later time. Perhaps when I’m allowed to visit my family in Virginia, I can hook up with him then to gain closure on the past and redefine our future. After all, he is the father of the child already growing inside me.

My baby girl.

This brings us to the present moment, nearly 10:00 p.m. We are speeding through India’s airspace toward the Himalayas, aboard Racco’s newest Leer jet. There was some debate about choosing a castle in Hungary, but it turned out Ralu has already seized the property. Gustav advised Chanson that this particular castle used to belong to our adversary before it was lost to the warriors of the Ottoman Empire long ago. Racco had since reclaimed and restored it to its highest glory, but Ralu has always considered it his rightful abode. Now he has it back.

I know nothing of the estate we’re heading to, but after experiencing the prior wealth of my vampire protectors and their alchemist sponsor, I assume it will be grand. Perhaps a palace of some sort, in a Chinese/Indian sort of way? 

At least I’ll have something totally new to write about next time. Perhaps I’ll also have details concerning the birth of my little girl, which should take place five to seven months from now. Apparently, based on centuries past, this is the normal gestation for these children. And, they are nearly always females. There hasn’t been a male born with our birthmark in more than a thousand years.

The only thing I’m waiting on now is to make sure the fetus doesn’t abort. If that happens, we will have to try this again, and the chances of success get slimmer with each attempt. The next seven days are critical. So says Chanson, who also volunteered to edit the final version of the manuscript you hold in your hands, dear reader. Needless to say, having to endure another Relance du sang could be very bad for all of us, human and vampire alike.

Hopefully, by the time you read this the fetus will survive, and I’ll be nearing the end of the journey—my pregnancy. I can hardly wait to introduce the world to the latest blood princess. And I have a name already, one suggested by Gustav a few hours ago that has quickly grown on me. I like this name, but can’t share it. Not yet.

Now, I have one last surprise to share before I bring this chronicle to a close. My vampire friends wanted to add one last element to ensure I didn’t get too bored or lonely in our new home. So, they brought someone else along. Someone I never believed I’d ever see again in this world. Someone who’s brilliant smile and big green eyes could rival many a vampire’s shimmering countenance while alive. 

This person entered the passenger cabin less than half an hour ago, dressed in a stunning coral Valentino cocktail dress and is sitting across from me, pressing me to finish.

Tyreen. 

Tyreen the vampire—or I should say
beautiful
vampire. Still gorgeous and voluptuous, and already at home with ‘elitist’ vampire fashion!

I have only one worry with her. Since she’s new to the undead world, where the nubile vamps are always hungry, how will she handle her bloodlust?

And, the way she’s looking at me now….

Wish me luck.

The End

To be continued in:

The Vampires’ Birthright

(Dying of the Dark Vampires, Book Two)

Available now

Please read on for a sample:

I stayed up until an hour past dawn, and didn’t attempt to sleep until the last of my nocturnal companions, Tyreen, was safely tucked into her casket and quietly at rest. I started thinking about a lot of things, and became fixated on one subject: all my ‘firsts’.

I believe we always remember the first of anything—whether that’s a first tooth lost, first day at school, first kiss—you name it. I had experienced quite a few ‘firsts’ in the past three months. Everything from my orientation at the University of Tennessee, to my first basketball practice with the legendary Pat Summit, to meeting my first serious boyfriend, Peter Worley. Oh, and don’t forget my very first roommate, Tyreen Davenport—now also the first human friend turned to vampire.

But, as I watched the sunlight creep in under my bedchamber door, I considered all of the recent ‘firsts’ that were not so pleasant. Don’t get me wrong—I loved my first near-fling with an immortal human in the French Pyrenees—Racco St Germaine. I loved his castle as well as the helicopter trip we took to go skiing in the Pyrenees—all firsts. Even the trip over the Atlantic on his expensive yacht was an overall enjoyable experience and another definite first.

What kept me awake, though, were the recent necessities that came with being the last of my kind—which in a very real sense is another ‘first’. Before two weeks ago, I had never had anyone dislike me enough to want to take my life. The fact I was the target of a ruthless murderer bent on wiping out my inherited bloodline was most definitely an unpleasant first. Ralu had killed every distant cousin of mine that bore the same birthmark that Chanson and I share. We are the last ones, and since she is a vampire, I’m left as the only viable option to keep our heritage alive.

The list began to swell as I thought about the other night, when I was forced to have sex with Peter while 200 vampires watched. Not only was it a first, but it was also something I’d dare say no one else among the living has ever experienced! Then there was this whole business of running from Ralu after the ceremony ended…the support of the Chinese was supposed to be complete. Now I realized it not only was incomplete, but could be dwindling. Not to mention the hostile stares from other European vampires that I encountered during our conference with Gustav and Huangtian Dadi earlier that morning.

You can probably guess I didn’t get to sleep as soon as I said I did. I think I started to fall asleep around nine o’clock or so, but really didn’t find deep sleep until noon. The next thing I knew, my companions were awake and set to explore our temporary home.

“You’re probably as hungry as we are,” said Chanson, after I finally was fully awake and had dashed to the bathroom to throw up. Yeah, life sucked more than a little. “I can wait for you to shower and dress, but not for long. As for the guys, I believe we’ll have to catch up with them later on, since they awoke with raging thirsts.”

Indeed, it was just the girls and me. Raquel and Tyreen looked famished—at least their eyes did.

“I promise to hurry.”

I prayed I wouldn’t have another bout of morning sickness until after we all found some sort of nourishment. Fortunately, it was my only bout with a nauseous stomach that evening, where with most days and nights those first few weeks, I never wanted to be too far from a modern restroom. Unfortunately, that meant never straying too far from my bedchamber. If I did, Chanson made sure one of my protectors brought a vomit bag. Not fun.