Blood Destiny: Blood Passage Part 5

"Mine will only go so far," Merrill agreed. "They know I do not have an interest in that part of your life. I am only teaching you. Therefore, they feel free to make offers of this nature."

"These vampires may be willing to fight one another for you and we do not need such conflict within their ranks," Wlodek's voice was stiff and unrelenting.

I didn't know the evening was going to end this way. I realized that Wlodek and Merrill had most likely known all along and once again, n.o.body was telling me anything. I wanted to shout at them. Weep angry tears and throw priceless art objects at Flavio's tastefully painted walls. They'd trapped me like a wild animal. The inescapable power of the Vampire Council was herding me down a path I had no desire to tread. I couldn't escape, Merrill's compulsion saw to that. His was a velvet glove covering the steel of the trap, but it was a trap nonetheless. I'd had more freedom while Winkler was blackmailing me.

"You may put a stop to further offers if you accept one of them tonight," Merrill said. "You will be consenting to a lengthy engagement, with a courts.h.i.+p during the five year period. The Council will not allow a vampire to marry until he or she has successfully pa.s.sed their probationary period." Yeah, Wlodek already said that. Obviously, Merrill didn't think it registered the first time.

"And I have to get married after the five years is up?" I had to know. I wanted to curl up in a ball and whimper. Hanging onto Gavin would have been frowned upon under any other circ.u.mstances. I was supposed to develop the mask they all had. None of them showed any emotion.

"Yes, unless you pet.i.tion the Council to dissolve the engagement. And unless both parties wish to have the engagement dissolved, it will be put to a vote, I warn you," Wlodek informed me coldly. "Therefore, if they decide against you, your marriage will take place. Marriages between vampires last a period of one hundred years and may be renewed for additional periods of one hundred year intervals, from thereon."

"You're not going to let this go, are you?" I searched Wlodek's face for any empathy or emotion. There was none.

"An unmated female vampire is too much of a temptation, Lissa," Wlodek said. "Males will challenge and fight over you as long as you are unclaimed."

Gavin had been watching and listening the entire time, his face in that expressionless mask that I was coming to recognize. All of them had it-it was the face they showed each other most of the time. No way could I go to Rene. He'd kill me if he ever found out what I'd done. Ivan? I think I'd rather die at Rene's hand. "Gavin, you're not going to become insufferable, are you?" I turned to him, begging with my eyes as well as my voice.

"Only if you refuse me," he replied softly. "And especially if you turn me down in favor of my cousin. He likes to acquire things. It would give him great pleasure to s.n.a.t.c.h you from beneath my nose." I wondered where my time was-the period Gavin had requested to earn my trust. Had he known about this? I had no idea. Everything was turned upside down and I had no way to sort it all out now.

"He's not about to s.n.a.t.c.h me anywhere," I said, struggling to keep my voice even. "Ivan scares the c.r.a.p out of me. Wellington almost put me to sleep. Moretti? He wanted to have s.e.x, right there in the floor, I think." I shuddered, just thinking about it. "Gavin, I'm not turning you down, but you have an uphill climb." I let his arm go and sat up straight, leaning my body away from his.

"You are accepting Gavin's offer?" Wlodek quirked an eyebrow again.

"Yes. I suppose so," I sighed. I really didn't have much choice.

"Gavin, you will bring a ring and make the formal offer within the week," Merrill said. "The acceptance will be listed in the Council's records immediately."

"There's a ring?" I must have sounded lost. I thought it was just some sort of promise, I suppose, with all of that coming later. I hadn't even been widowed a year, yet.

"There will be," Gavin growled. I think he knew not to push things right then. I was still a little stunned.

"Gavin, if I lend you my car, I trust you can get Lissa home before dawn and in one piece?" Wlodek asked. "Merrill will drop me off. We have business to discuss."

"I can do that," Gavin nodded.

"You may spend the night at the manor, if you wish," Merrill said. "In a separate bedroom, of course."

"Of course," Gavin nodded slightly. "Come, Lissa," he said, helping me off the sofa. Gavin laid his jacket across my shoulders once we were outside in the cool air, opened the car door and put me up front on the pa.s.senger side. The driver gave the keys over and Gavin pulled out of the driveway, heading away from London.

"We're engaged?" I tried to keep the trembling from my voice.

"Love, it will be all right," Gavin reached over and patted my hand.

"She will be protected; I cannot imagine many who would willingly challenge an a.s.sa.s.sin, especially this one," Wlodek sighed. "Had I the penchant, I would have wagered against her acceptance of Gavin under any circ.u.mstances, and I was quite surprised he arrived tonight before the ball was over. He was on a.s.signment in Madrid. No matter, she has made a choice so I will make the announcement at the meeting tomorrow and see if anyone has a complaint."

"She still doesn't trust him, but the others were unknown to her and they frightened her more," Merrill said.

"Especially de la Roque. Did you see the look on her face? She has no idea that this is a game to him. She is terrified that he will kill her if he discovers that she took those tiaras. I imagine she witnessed his anger when he discovered that he'd lost this round," Wlodek said. "Too bad she didn't come away with some of the other things, but we didn't send her after those. I had no idea she'd come out of this as successfully as she did. This bodes well for us in the future. And now that she's with Gavin, it may be easier to persuade her to work for us once her probationary period is up. In the meantime, we will send her out on other supervised a.s.signments so she may gain the experience she needs. This one will definitely be an a.s.set for us."

"Wlodek, I wouldn't count too heavily on your being able to strong-arm that one," Merrill observed. "She is new, now, and somewhat afraid. If her confidence improves, she may not only surprise you with her abilities but with her defiance as well. Do not play with her, Wlodek."

"Lissa, I am a little hungry," Gavin informed me when we reached the house. Merrill had showed me where the key was kept outside so I pulled it out of its hidden brick and opened the door.

"I have some blood in my fridge," I said, returning the key and locking the door behind us. Gavin followed me upstairs and looked around my bedroom while I handed the unit of blood to him. It was after four and he drank almost the entire pint of blood.

"Want what's left?" he asked. I took it and drained the rest. Some days I couldn't believe how easily this came to me now. Once, in my human life, I'd not been able to watch while they drew blood from my husband's arm. Now I didn't even bat an eyelash. The empty blood bags were destroyed once we were finished with them. Merrill or Franklin dropped them off somewhere; we kept separate covered wastebins just for that. Probably one of the things I was destined to learn.

"Now, how about cuddling with me so I can watch the news?" Gavin reached for my hand and kissed it. I led him to my sitting area, which held a sofa, a chair and a chaise. Gavin opted for the sofa; it was directly in front of the flat screen that hung on the wall. Grabbing the remote, he turned the television on, pulling me down onto the sofa with him. Gavin stroked my neck and cheek absently while listening to an early news program; I was tuning all of it out until a journalist announced breaking news.

"The Cambridge Lover's Knot tiara and the Spencer family tiara have both been returned anonymously," the journalist said. I stiffened in Gavin's arms. "There were no fingerprints on the tiaras or the packaging and they were mailed from a facility in Wales," the correspondent went on. "The employees at the s.h.i.+pping business have no recollection of the mailing and no recording of the incident was made."

"Cripes," I muttered.

"Nice work, ma pet.i.te ange," Gavin bent down to kiss me.

You're not going to teach me Russian, are you?"

"No immediate plans."

"Good."

Chapter 4.

Merrill was back before dawn and chased Gavin out of my bedroom. He'd been content to watch television there until he fell asleep, I think. I managed to get out of my pricy gown and diamonds before I went to bed, wondering briefly if Merrill wanted the diamonds back. I'll have to ask, I thought, as I set them on my dresser.

A quick shower followed; I shampooed all the hairspray and mousse out of my hair before going to bed. I was engaged. How the h.e.l.l had that happened? And to Gavin, on top of that. It was probably better than the alternatives I'd been offered. There wasn't much time to worry over the whole, confusing mess; I dropped off the moment dawn arrived.

"Gavin said to tell you he'd be back-he went to trade cars and run another errand or two," Franklin advised when I made my way downstairs. I'd dressed in black fleece pants and a pink top, with a black fleece jacket. I'd been thinking about going to the roof. The night before still hadn't settled well, leaving me adrift on uncharted waters. "Merrill has already left for the meeting," Franklin went on.

"Are you doing all right?" I asked, giving Franklin a hug. "If you didn't belong to Greg, I might take you for myself."

"You're welcome to whatever Greg doesn't want," he hugged me back. "I understand that Mr. Gavin has a prior claim, now."

"Oh, yeah. That," I grumped. "Nothing like getting strong-armed into an engagement so the dogs won't come sniffing around. Is it too late to get a s.e.x change operation?"

"More than likely," Franklin laughed. "And I wouldn't want to be the one to break the news to Gavin."

"He'd be p.i.s.sed all right," I agreed.

"Merrill gave him a key," Franklin said soberly.

"He did what? I don't even have a key." I was upset, now.

"And the bedroom down the hall from yours, where he slept last night," Franklin added.

"He's going to be staying here?" My voice squeaked.

"At times, it appears," Franklin said.

"Well, this just gets better as it goes along," I grumbled. "I'm going to the roof. Tell Mr. I can just waltz in and get whatever I want that he can float up if he wants, I can't stop him."

"I wouldn't imagine that you could. I can take the broom to him," Franklin offered with a grin.

"Franklin, that is a vampire and an a.s.sa.s.sin on top of that. Get Merrill to take a broom to him if he needs it," I said.

"Fair enough," Franklin nodded.

Gavin did float up after a while but I was expecting him. I'd heard his Mercedes in the driveway minutes before. "I brought a swimsuit and some clothing," he said as he settled his tall frame beside me. "I was thinking about soaking in the hot tub. Might you consider joining me?"

"Maybe." I hadn't been in the hot tub in days. "How did you get out of providing security for the meeting?"

"Wlodek gave me two weeks off to celebrate my engagement," Gavin leaned over and nuzzled my neck. "And sent someone else to finish my a.s.signment in Madrid."

"Lucky you," I said.

"Yes. I am lucky. Quite lucky. I think you may be able to hear my cousin's angry shout when he learns I made away with you," Gavin was now kissing my neck. "Do you know how fine your skin is?"

"How did both of you get turned at nearly the same time?" I asked, trying to distract him. He was doing a little nipping with the kissing.

"We were both fighting in the Roman army and were defeated by the Goths," he mumbled against my skin before pulling back a little. "I was turned first; Rene was turned three days later by the same sire. Of course, our names were different then but we adopted France as our country after a time. Rene still lives there, as you know," he hugged me. "Both of us are nearly seventeen hundred years old."

"That's not scary or anything," I muttered, hunching into my fleece jacket a little. Gavin was more than sixteen centuries older than I.

"Lissa, your lifespan is no more than a blink to us," Gavin confirmed my thoughts as he pulled me into his lap. "But a very important blink. To me, anyway." It was so nice to know that even at my age, I was considered a vampire infant.

The night around us was crisp and cold. It was October in Kent and Gavin was hugging me tightly as if that might warm me or something. Vampire bodies are cool; blood doesn't pump through our veins as it does in humans. Considering that I might ask Merrill what our normal body temperature was, I lifted my head to ask Gavin about it first when I received mindspeech from Robert, one of two other known vampires with the talent.

Lissa, there is trouble, he sent. Bring Gavin and come quickly.

"Gavin, I sure hope you know where the meeting is," I said instead. "Robert just said there was trouble and to bring you quickly."

Gavin had me off the roof so fast I was nearly dizzy, and we were in the Mercedes and speeding away in less time than that. "Did he say what the problem was?" Gavin asked while I kept an eye on the speedometer. Kilometers per hour still evaded my sense of time and distance. No time to do research now.

"No, let me contact him to find out." Robert, I sent, Gavin wants to know what the problem is.

The Council met after the formal meeting. We were attacked and are being held captive by six humans and three vampires. One of the humans has explosives strapped to his body and a detonation device in his hand, Robert returned.

"Gavin, the Council is being held by six humans and three vampires, and one of the humans is strapped with a bomb." I was s.h.i.+vering, now.

"A bomb will kill a vampire, just as it will a human if the bomb is strong enough and the detonation takes place near enough," Gavin informed me. "If a Vampire is blown to bits, obviously he will not survive." We'd pulled up to an intersection, but there were no waiting cars so Gavin blew right through, ignoring the red light. "And both our misters are out on a.s.signment; they are called for more often than not," Gavin went on.

"Then if you need one, I'll go," I offered.

"Lissa, I do not like risking you in this way, that is a bomb," Gavin said, as if I didn't realize it to begin with.

"I know," I said. My s.h.i.+vering hadn't stopped. "Why are vampires working with humans?" I asked, attempting to control my quivering.

"At times they form an alliance, each attempting to take advantage of the other race in order to achieve their goals. The humans can move about in daylight. The vampires are strong. Some vampires desire a return to the old ways and look to change or destroy that which keeps the laws. The humans may think of us as evil and wish to exterminate us. It is an unholy alliance between the two factions."

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend theory?" I asked.

"Temporarily," Gavin agreed. "Both sides realize that their alliance is never meant to last; it is just that each intends to come out the ultimate victor, and that is seldom the case." Gavin s.h.i.+fted angrily as we turned a corner at a high rate of speed. His statement informed me that he'd seen all this before. With sixteen centuries behind him, it wasn't that much of a surprise. It took us less than fifteen minutes, with Gavin driving more than one hundred eighty kilometers per hour at times, to get to Gravesend where the meeting was being held. I smelled the Thames nearby when we leapt from the car; it was mixed with other scents of the city around us-petrol and automobiles.

"What are they waiting on?" I asked Gavin as we ran swiftly toward a single-story brick building. "If they were going to blow the Council up, why not go ahead and do it?"

"Because the vampires are in charge and realize that something of this nature may not be accomplished by merely killing the Council. They are attempting to change the laws."

"Great," I mumbled. "I suppose the Enforcers are all inside with the Council members?"

"Yes. They would be."

"We need to get the bomber. The others can be dealt with after that," I said. I concentrated on turning to mist.

"Lissa, what will you do?" Gavin's voice held worry and that wasn't like him.

Where's that stiff upper lip? I sent to him, watching my hands and feet disappear.

"That is British, which is not my nationality," he grumbled. "Lissa, do not do anything foolish."

That's easy for you to say, I sent. My record for turning may have been broken that night, but there wasn't anyone there to time me when the change was complete. Floating as invisible mist, I made my way toward the building.

Coming in now, I sent mindspeech to Robert.

We are in the bas.e.m.e.nt, he returned. Gavin positioned himself at the building's entrance. I didn't think any of the bad guys would get past him alive.

The door to the stairwell was locked with a keypad, but there was s.p.a.ce at the bottom and I misted underneath, making my way down the stairs. The Council was in a wide chamber below, all of them seated at tables against the far wall. The three rogue vampires threatening them stood behind the human strapped with a bomb. It looked like a vest to me, something that a road repair crew might wear. It was orange in color and well-padded with explosives. The detonator was in his hand and he stood a bare fifteen feet away from Wlodek, who sat at the center of a long table.

I was terrified. Not just for myself but for some of the vampires at the table. Charles was there, along with Flavio and the others, and behind them were the Enforcers, including Robert, Russell, Will and Radomir. What frightened me the most, however, was who was standing off to the side, at the very end of the Enforcers. Merrill. This was going to take some strategy and a very big chance on my part. If I failed, then it was likely the entire building would go up and me with it.

"You are just a figurehead," one of the three rogue vampires shouted at Wlodek. "Change the laws and we will let you live."

"Do not lie to me," Wlodek said sharply. "Step forward and we will discuss your demands."

"Old man, I know what the range of your compulsion is," the vampire laughed. So, that's why they were all standing as far away as they were. Otherwise, Wlodek would just command them all to give up and they wouldn't have a choice. Slowly and cautiously, I misted between the bomber and the rogue vampire standing a few feet behind him. Hoping he'd keep his eyes straight ahead instead of looking down, I stood behind the bomber so my hands would appear only in front of him while using his body to conceal their appearance from the vampire. My feet would be revealed at the same time my hands were and things could go downhill fast if the rogue saw them while I was attempting to do the only thing I could.

In their usual way, Wlodek and the rest of the Council never blinked when my hands coalesced against the human's torso. It was my plan to take away the detonator and drag the human toward Wlodek so he'd have control of the would-be bomber, but even I wasn't expecting what happened. My misted body came in contact with the bomber's, and just as the tiaras had disappeared in my grip, so too did the human. He, the detonator and the bomb instantly turned to mist the moment I touched him.

The vampire behind us shouted and slashed out at me the moment the human disappeared, but I was invisible mist and he only managed to disturb the air around me, forcing me forward for a moment. I had no idea what status the bomb was in and took no chances, turning and flying toward the stairs and then beneath the locked door. I thought I heard fighting behind me as I fled but I didn't have time to worry about it; I had to get the bomber out of there and then decide what to do with him. Flying straight up into the night air once we cleared the building, I felt the human's emotions as I carried him with me. He'd suddenly found himself in a state he never expected to be and was sending out his fear in waves and vibrations. Turning quickly, I saw the river barely a quarter mile away, the dark water sparkling under a few nearby street lamps. Hoping there weren't any boats traveling the waters nearby, I rushed toward the Thames.