AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Irena is one of the few vampires who has been gifted with the ability to see into the future, although not clearly. For the most part, her visions are bits and pieces she has to puzzle together, and the pieces often change. Some might become clearer over time, but she can never be sure. This is because what she sees is affected by her own actions or those of others. She can glimpse tomorrow’s possibilities and watch the results of her actions play out like a movie in her head, but the movie isn’t always the same.
My sister’s latest revelation about our sire stirs up a feeling of dread within me. The flesh trade was outlawed centuries ago by the vampiric council, but it had nothing to do with morality. They simply wanted to ensure our existence remained a secret. Humans believed in monsters lurking under their beds and around every corner in those days. They could tell themselves that vampires were just creatures of myth, not reality, so long as there was no proof of our existence.
In modern times, our secret is far more at risk than back when humans feared wind-up mechanical monsters and wild animals roaming the countryside. Now we have genetic research and weapons with enough firepower to destroy entire cities. And unlike back then, when most people lived off the land and within medieval walls with only a rifle or two and pitchforks for protection, humans in this new day and age of technology could easily wipe us out if they knew what we really were.
“Do you think the council is aware?” I ask.
Irena shakes her head. “Many still believe that Jedidiah is a saint amongst us,” she bites out bitterly. “Out there building us a future. It’s laughable.”
It’s the undeniable truth that Ancients are far from gods. We were once mortal humans, just like them. However, some still believe that our people can be saved by Jedidiah. His fanatics hold him up as their savior, a deliverer who can bring back power to vampires and subjugate mankind under our rule forevermore.
Highly unlikely, considering how outnumbered and outgunned we are by humans.
“I have a few men on the inside who I can contact and find out details,” I reassure her. “If I find anything out, you will be the first to know.”
Her brow furrows, her lips thinning into a tight line of frustration, and the lines at the corners of her eyes crease with concern as she struggles to maintain her composure. My sister is always less controlled after visiting our mother, and her vision, no doubt, has not helped anything. Our sire dealing in human flesh is hitting her hard. Human trafficking is something that Irena fights hard against as King Enterprises’ outreach manager.
In the times of the pyramids, sex trafficking didn’t have a name, nor was it illegal. Trading spouses, siblings, and children was not uncommon, and it was rarely, if ever, punished. Due to the bloodlust of being newly turned, it was several years before I returned home to see my family, only to find that my father had sold my sister to pay his debts to a local merchant. One with a penchant for young girls.
When I found her, she was barely alive.
I rushed to her side, and my heart sank as I saw what had been done to her. The stench of stale blood and urine hung in the air like a funeral shroud over her broken body where she lay limp on the filthy floor of the merchant’s hideaway. Her glassy eyes told me she was barely clinging to life, and all I wanted was for my friend Jedidiah to do something, anything, to save her from this fate.
If only I knew then what I know now.
Irena lives with the guilt of murdering our mother in her blood lust. The one driven by revenge. Our father used her as a shield, and in Irena’s darkness, she drank from her.
If only I had never left home.
“Even after all these millennia, you still blame yourself.” She tsks, her head shaking in a reprimand. “My mind and body have long forgotten the trauma my human skin endured. So should you.”
But it isn’t just that day that haunts me. It’s all the ones that came after.
“You aren’t responsible for those days either.” I find it disconcerting how my sister can read my thoughts better than she can read her tarot cards. “You need to learn to move on, brother. The past will bring you nothing but pain.”
“Says the woman who moves our mother’s ashes wherever she goes.”
Irena doesn’t flinch at my harsh barb, but I can see the near infinitesimal change in her posture.
“Shit,” I curse. “I didn’t…”
“You did.” She stands gracefully from her chair, her chin high. “The difference between us, though, big brother, is that I don’t take her with me to remember the sins of my past. I take her with me to remind me of the humanity I still have. Remember that when you’re using your new blood bag as a weapon.”
Fuck. Irena checkmates me with her words, and I can’t be mad. She’s right. But that isn’t going to stop me from doing what needs to be done.
Chapter 9
Thalia
Last night wasn’t a dream.
The realization hits me the moment I wake. I’m still in the lion’s den.
Despite last night, I’m well rested, which might have something to do with the buttery-soft sheets and the mattress made of clouds. I’ve never had such nice things. It will be a shame to leave them behind once my brother pays his dues.
If he pays his dues.
Shrugging off the dark thought, I roll out of bed and trudge into the bathroom. I desperately need caffeine, but first, I want to wash off the grime of last night’s dinner. The bathroom is simple yet stunning, with a massive freestanding claw-foot tub and white Carrara marble lining every inch of the space. I didn’t truly take in how marvelous it was when I first arrived, too anxious and distracted.
