Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
Warren
My fangs withdrew from my victim’s neck with little resistance as Lena stormed into the lounge, throwing the doors open so hard the glass panels shook within the frames.
I licked the blood from my lips and dropped to my knees, watching with slight disgust as her head lolled to the side.
Humans were pitifully weak, and I found it tiresome how easily they gave up.
There was no fun in the hunt anymore.
“Look at the mess of my beautiful lounge!” Lena screeched, waving her arms for me to look around.
I offered a courtesy glance at the room, though Lena’s answering snarl told me I had not paid enough attention to the recent decor change since my last visit.
The walls now featured floral motifs in hues of pink and gold, creating a warmth that did not quite suit Lena’s character.
There were low sofas and large, curved-back armchairs around the room, the upholstered velvet cushions matching the elegant aesthetic I imagined she was going for.
The drained bodies slung across those armchairs and sofas were perhaps what upset her more than my lack of enthusiasm for her design choices.
“Oh, my beautiful piano!” she yelled, covering her mouth as she gaped at the man slung across the ivory grand piano in the corner, his blood spilling over the top and dripping onto the plush rug beneath. “Where has your sense of decorum gone, you uncultured fiend!”
Rolling my eyes, I strode over to her and slung my arm over her shoulders, forcing her into a hug as I placed a kiss atop her head. “I’ll buy you another, princess.”
Lena huffed, shoving me away from her. “With my own money, you mean?”
I stifled my laugh. “You pay me a stipend as part of your coven. Technically, that makes it my money.”
“Semantics,” Lena muttered, shoving a body from the sofa so she could sit down.
She leveled me with a glare after she situated herself, sniffing the air indignantly.
“I was excited to welcome you home, but your lack of respect has not warranted excitement. You used to act with civility, rather than bringing this level of barbarity into my home. I mean, really, Warren—six bodies? That is just glutinous.”
“Are you jealous that I did not leave one as a gift for you?” I placed my hand over my heart, bowing theatrically. “My apologies, my fearless leader. I will do better next time.”
Lena huffed. “You are a thorn in my side, Warren Hayes.”
It was a simple quip, but one that had me smiling internally. A silent acquiesce to our quarreling, or rather, her endless nagging. It appeared that she had finally realized that she could not change me or fix me, as she was trying so desperately to do.
Annoyance turned into pain when your closest companion wanted to remedy what they believed was wrong with you. Personally, I rather enjoyed the new and improved version of myself.
The world did not hurt me so easily.
I chose one of the large armchairs to sprawl over, letting my long legs hang over one side as my head tilted back over the other.
I ignored her scowl and grabbed one of the trinkets from the table beside me, throwing it into the air and catching it.
“Yes, yes. Now, why did you summon me? I thought I was the disgraced child.”
“You are,” she said matter-of-factly, shrugging, “but you remain part of my coven and my dear, infuriating, beloved friend. And I need your help.”
Her tone had shifted from her usual sharpness to something softer, pleading. It gave me immediate cause for concern, and I sat upright, meeting her gaze. “What’s the matter? Do I need to kill someone for you? I will gladly do it.”
Lena shook her head, trying to force a smile.
“Your bloodlust is…something else. You are so eager to murder for me? My, every time we meet, you seem to have lost yourself further. It pains me greatly to see that your humanity is slipping from your grasp.” She loosed a deep breath and sucked in through her teeth.
“Perhaps you are not the best person for this job, but I trust you more than most. I will endure your insanity and unquenchable hunger if you agree to take this seriously.”
Her words stung the tiny part of me that was trying to hold onto my civility, but I was aware of how little it outwardly affected me; a decade or two ago, it would have broken me inside.
“Princess, I would help you murder the world if you asked—that is what best friends do. Tell me what is wrong, and I will help rectify it however you need.”
“There is unrest within the ranks of the Authority. I hear whispers about usurping and eradicating me, which is not entirely unexpected, as the only woman within its ranks. Yet I must still fight for my position. I have not worked so hard to have my power stolen from me at the hands of the men who cursed me.”
Cursed her? I had associated my own vampirism with curses for so long that I had not ever taken the time to question where it came from.
I thought back to the flashes of her life that Lena had shown me before and the way she had been screaming as the calloused hands of men bound her as they read ancient words from a book. They had taken Lena’s powers from her, but…
“A curse? The Authority cursed you?” I asked, unable to hide the shock in my voice. Why would she work for the people who had hurt her?
Lena smiled, and it was a sad affair. For once in her life, she did not try to mask her pain, and I could see the sorrow behind her eyes.
“I think it is time you learned some of my history. To start with, I should tell you that I am the archetype of vampirism. That is, I was the first vampire ever made.”
My brain could not catch up quickly enough to allow me to ask the questions on the tip of my tongue. I knew that vampires were immortal, but I had never considered that any of the first—the original—would still be walking the Earth. The idea that Lena was the first, my Lena…
“What the hell?” I whispered, staring at her with wide eyes. “How?”
“Before the land was cursed with vampires, there were the original witches. I am sure there were versions spread throughout the land, but my village was the first in Romania to tap into the earth’s magic.
Our crops were dying, and the elders could not produce anything to sustain us.
They said they cried out to their gods—they did not worship the same God that you call to—and were not given any help.
Their only option was to find something else… something new.
“The knowledge on how they tapped into it is vastly unknown in its origin. The magic you see around New Orleans today is nothing compared to the power they unleashed on my village. Everyone gained power virtually overnight, and my ancestors fought to learn control, to overpower whatever was giving us magic.”
I rubbed my face, sighing into my hands. I believed every word she was saying—Lena was most definitely not a liar—but it was still a lot to take in. There was more of her story to come, and yet I could scarcely understand what she was telling me.
“The vr?jitoare, the witches, were not satisfied with what they had been blessed with. The elders of my village during my youth were the men the families looked to for protection. They banded together and were the ones who advised us, guided us, and commanded us. Their wives’ magic seemed more potent, and it caused alarm within their ranks.
I do not know how they did it, but they managed to tether their magic together, effectively putting the village women on a leash. ”
Lena’s voice was cold, and I could feel the anger rippling from her. The people who she loved and was raised by were controlled and bound—I would be furious, too.
“What happened?” I asked, urging her to continue.
Lena licked her teeth, her lip twitching in disgust. She dug her fingers into her skirt, balling the material up as she spoke.
“The magic was not enough for them. They craved more than they were being given, which is horrifying in itself; can you imagine going from watching your family starve to waking up with unfathomable power that gave you everything? It is abhorrent to think that it was not enough. They begged and pleaded and sacrificed until one day a voice answered back. The source of being, it claimed to be. And oh, how loud that voice became.”
I wanted to move over beside Lena and take her hand in mine, but I could see how uncomfortable she was in telling her story.
I did not want to deter her in any way. There was purpose in her words, and all roads led back to the Authority and Lena; I had to hear it through to the end to be able to help her.
“Who was the voice?” I asked. Though whatever it claimed to be, my soul told me otherwise. I believed in God, the creator of all things, and whatever spoke to Lena’s village was far from God Himself.
“I do not know the answer to that. A demon, perhaps. Something evil, most certainly. I often wonder if it was the devil himself, whispering promises to weak-minded men who sought more than they deserved,” she spat, getting to her feet.
She stepped over the body at her feet and made her way to the large bay windows, staring out at the scenery.
“It told them that they could live forever, have an eternal life full of riches and luxuries that they could only dream of. If they followed its instructions, they would live forever.”
I stood up too and followed Lena’s path over to the windows.
The landscape view was gorgeous, showing off the rolling hills and winding roads leading to the populated town area.
It was beautiful, and I loved seeing how much it had changed over the years.
What used to be small, dimly lit houses were now brighter and structurally sound; businesses had opened and brought in a new flood of people who genuinely cared about preserving the beauty of the place.