19. Novak
Chapter 19
Novak
A my was still out cold when I woke up near dusk. I leaned over and brushed a kiss against her cheek, reluctant to leave the bed without her. But she needed rest, and I was already restless.
I dropped last night’s shirt and the rest of my clothes in the laundry, then stepped into the shower. The moment I dressed and got out, Lourna was tidying up the bedroom.
“Baros of Carpe Noctem called. He’s on your office line,” she whispered, tiptoeing around the room so as to not wake Amy.
“Fuck.” With being so concerned about her last night, I’d forgotten all about him.
“He called last night as well, but I didn’t want to disturb either of you.” She glanced at Amy, sleeping peacefully in the center of my bed.
“Right, thank you.” I rubbed my forehead, already anticipating what a headache this call was going to be.
“Should I bring her something?” Lourna asked. “For when she wakes up?”
“Like what?”
“Well, humans usually appreciate a glass of water and some painkillers after a rough night.”
“Then yes please,” I said. “Whatever she needs.”
Lourna clicked her tongue, her sympathetic gaze on Amy as she moved around the room. “I hope the poor thing is all right. Will she be staying?”
Fucking Temkra, I hope so.
“I’m not sure,” I admitted. “That’ll be up to her when she wakes up.”
“Don’t worry about her, sir. See to your business.” Lourna’s spine straightened. “We’ll take care of her.”
“Thank you, sincerely.” I gave my housekeeper a grateful smile on my way out of the bedroom. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who’d become fond of Amy in the past few weeks.
The walk to my office was too short, no matter how much I dragged my feet. The red light on my desk phone blinked ominously like some kind of evil eye.
With a taut breath, I stood behind the desk and answered the call. “Baros. Sorry to keep you waiting.”
“I’m sure.” I could hear the aristocratic sneer in his voice. “You seem awfully busy these recent nights, Rathka’s Order.”
I didn’t realize I was at your beck and call, was what I wanted to say. What I actually said was, “I apologize. What can I do for you?”
“Right. I’ve scheduled Inessa’s fertility ritual for the end of the month on the new moon. I trust you’ll make it a priority to attend? Seeing as you’ll be putting that heightened fertility to good use.”
All of the air left my lungs as if I’d been punched in the gut. “The end of the month,” I repeated. “So soon?”
Female vampires had a brief fertile period roughly once per year. Those with the right means and connections could call upon Temkra’s Blood, the clan with the closest, most sacred connection to our goddess, to perform a ritual to expand that fertility window. The ritual was said to at least double the chances of a successful pregnancy.
I had pushed away thoughts of my arrangement with Carpe Noctem, but with Thorne’s recent visit and now this phone call, I had to face it head-on. The idea of fucking and impregnating a stranger had always been uncomfortable for me, even if everyone acted like the end result was worth it.
But right then, with Amy asleep in my bed and the taste of her kiss lingering on my tongue, I felt downright disgusted.
“Yes, the sooner the better.” Baros sounded nothing short of jovial. “Her fertile time last year was during the spring and lasted about three days, so I’m quite confident we’re timing the ritual well for optimal results.”
If he felt awkward about spilling the details of his daughter’s fertility cycle to me, he gave no indication. And optimal results? He sounded like a human breeding an animal for specific traits.
“Baros,” I said tightly. “I’m afraid I’m not able to fulfill my end of this agreement. I apologize for going back on my word, but I’ve thought about it some more and?—”
A loud laugh burst from the phone. “Don’t be ridiculous, Novak.”
“I promise you I’m being quite serious.”
“No, you’re being foolish. Think about what you’re doing.”
“I assure you I have. And I’ve determined that this plan is not for me.”
“It’s not about what’s for you , idiot,” Baros hissed. “This plan is for our kind, for all of Sanguine. It’s about knocking down Blood ‘til Dawn until they’re buried in the mud where they belong. This is about restoring our clans to their true greatness.”
I sighed, rubbing my temple. “I’m sorry, Baros. I don’t?—”
“Your father was right about you.”
My breath stopped, my grip choking around the phone receiver.
“What?”
“You’re a disgrace to Rathka’s Order,” Baros spat. “Just like your father moaned and bitched about all night at clan gatherings. His soft little second son, always reading books, always looking at things under microscopes and clinging to his mother. You never grew up. Not even when your father’s legacy was crumbling all around you, could you grow a backbone to save your clan.”
I wanted to slam the phone down, to tell him to fuck off with all the cold carelessness of an icy wind. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. I could only freeze and listen, like I had done all my life.
“Even now when you’re the only one left, on the verge of extinction,” Baros prattled on, “you can’t do the easiest thing in the world and fuck a female! Were you born without a cock too, Novak? What in Rathka’s name is wrong with you?”
“Nothing.”
The word leaving my mouth was just noise, an automated response to the barrage of abuse coming at me through the phone. It could have been my father, my brother, any number of people on the other end. And I might as well had been a child or even a juvenile with the way I shut down and absorbed all the blows like punches, just waiting for it all to be over.
Logically I knew I shouldn’t let Baros get under my skin. But he was already there because he knew exactly how to worm his way into that spot, to become that voice in my head.
“Then you’ll do your duty and create an heir.” His smugness came through the phone like a bad smell. “You have no other options, son. You must see that. No one else wants to touch your clan’s name with a ten-foot pole. Without me, you’re ruined. You have nothing now, on the verge of having less than nothing. Keep me as your ally and you’ll have something worth living for again.”
I thought of Amy, her tears soaking my shirt, the softness of her mouth and the sweet sharpness of her fangs. She didn’t care about my clan’s name, my history. She came to me when she needed a safe place. Having that trust felt more precious than any power and wealth my clan ever had.
But everything was so new. She was figuring out how to balance her human and vampiric traits. Once she did, she might move on from me or prefer to be only friends. There might be a kernel of truth to Baros’s words, and she may eventually see me as spineless, someone too weak to carry the responsibilities of his clan on his shoulders. Plus there was the fact that she was technically part of Blood ‘til Dawn, who would love nothing more than to see my bloodline extinct.
I shut my eyes against the building pressure in my temples.
“Do you understand me, Novak?” Baros pressed. “This is your duty. You will attend this fertility ritual and impregnate my daughter because you’ll be the biggest disappointment in vampire history if you do not.”
“I understand.” Those two words were more noise that meant nothing. I just wanted this conversation to be over.
“Excellent.” His tone turned pleasant in an instant. “I’ll see you at my estate on the new moon.”
I slammed the phone receiver into the cradle without any goodbye. I could picture him in the same moment, hanging up the phone gently with a victorious smile on his face. He and my father were like two peas in a pod, happiest when crushing someone’s spirit.
Baros’s father was similarly cruel, unsurprisingly. I had been secretly pleased to find out twenty years ago that Kalix of Blood ‘til Dawn had killed him. A shame that Kalix ended up imprisoned by Carpe Noctem as retribution. Baros certainly loved having him as a prisoner.
Thoughts of murder were running through my head right then. Not that I would act on them, but the walls of my office felt like they were closing in on me. I needed to get out of here before I did something stupid.
I jogged down the stairs and yelled to Jo in the kitchen as I passed, “Need some air. I’ll be back.” My coat was around my shoulders and my feet hit the sidewalk before she ever replied.
I walked without any destination in mind, just needing movement through my limbs to calm the fuck down and shake Baros’s words from my head.
Inevitably I ended up in the Cap, a vibrant, bustling neighborhood within the Heart of Sanguine. The streets were lively, as they always were. Restaurants, bars, and nightclubs were packed. Red smoke drifted on the breeze from the darakt shops and music played from several different directions. In the distance, the bright white building marking the blood bank could be seen.
My mouth dried. I needed blood, it had been a while. I should stop at the blood bank while out. It was there for exactly this reason, for vampires or brusang with no one to feed from.
Despite knowing this, I turned away from the stark white building and headed down a street full of restaurants and lounges. Amy had only ever fed from me. While she hadn’t expressed wanting to return the favor, it felt wrong to take from other sources when she hadn’t.
We weren’t blood pets, mates, or exclusive in any other way. And yet, the thought of any kind of intimacy or touch with someone else turned my stomach. It didn’t matter if it was as simple as blood drinking or more involved like creating a child. She was the only one I wanted any shred of intimacy with.
My teeth ground against each other, fangs nearly stabbing into my lower gums. I would not be attending that fertility ritual or doing anything with Baros’s daughter, but he would not let go unless I offered him something else. He was dead-set on overthrowing Blood ‘til Dawn and wanted me in his back pocket. The trick was getting out of his scheme while still making him believe I was on his side.
The world around me blurred and became white noise as I walked. I had no leverage against him, no clan to support me. All I had was Amy, and that connection was fragile too. If Thorne told her about Baros before I could end the deal, she would absolutely walk away too.
Fuck, why couldn’t I have found a cure for Rathka’s Curse? At least then I might’ve had a shred more power against Baros. I would have had the power to say no, at least.
“Hey, it’s you.”
The voice didn’t register until a hand caught my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. I looked to see Amy’s friend Tavia sitting with her mate, Cyan, on a patio next to the street. She had reached across the small loveseat they sat on and over the patio fence to grab me.
“Ah, hello,” I said stiffly, unsure why she stopped me.
Cyan’s mouth thinned, his hand drifting mostly likely toward a silver dagger hidden somewhere on him. But when Tavia asked, “Where’s Amy?” it sounded more curious than accusatory.
“She’s at my house,” I said. “Sleeping. I just needed to go for a walk.” To Cyan, I added, “You know where I live. You’re welcome to check on her.”
Tavia placed a hand on his chest like she was telling him to back down. “That’s not necessary. I just wanted to make sure she’s okay.”
I turned toward her then, moving closer to the fence and out of the flow of people walking the street. Cyan subtly tugged his mate closer to him, glaring at me.
“She was really upset,” I admitted. “Did you see her after she returned from Sapien?” I wasn’t sure how much Tavia knew, but it sounded like she and Amy had reconciled. Maybe she could give insight into who hurt her so badly.
“No.” Tavia shook her head. “These guys came back without her.” She pointed at Cyan with her thumb and gave him an accusatory look.
“She asked us to drop her off in the Heart, so that’s what we did,” he argued. “I figured she was going off to see him.” He acknowledged me with a jerk of his chin. “You know we don’t like it, but Amy can make her own decisions.”
“How did she seem on the way back?” I asked.
“Fine,” he threw back. “Maybe a little quiet, but fine.”
“What happened while you all were there?” Tavia asked him.
“Exactly what I’d like to know,” I said.
“Some humans saw her, like I told you.” Cyan addressed his mate and ignored me. “They got spooked, that’s all. Pretty much the same reaction to seeing vampires. It wasn’t a big deal.”
Tavia sighed loudly. “Not to you, maybe. But Amy’s sensitive. She’s still adjusting to not being human.” She looked up at me. “Novak, would you like to sit with us?”
“I’m sorry, what?” Cyan stared at her.
“Cy.” Tavia’s head swiveled in his direction. “Novak is Amy’s friend. She spends more time at his place than with us. Doesn’t that make him worth getting to know?”
Cyan didn’t flat-out refuse but mumbled something like, “She’ll get over it.”
“I’ll behave if he does,” I said, nodding toward the other vampire.
Tavia beamed. “That sounds fair. What do you say, Cy?”
A long moment of glaring and jaw-grinding passed before he finally muttered, “Fine.”
I went through the patio gate and took a seat on the sofa across from the couple. “Thank you for allowing me to join you.”
“I’m glad I saw you,” Tavia said. “You stand out in a crowd with that hair color.”
“All of Rathka’s Order had that look,” Cyan said flatly. “The ghost hair.”
“You sound jealous, Cyan.” I couldn’t help ribbing him, running a hand through my pale blond strands.
Cyan snorted. “Jealous of you? Yeah, right.” His arm tightened around Tavia’s waist, face turning to kiss her temple. The wordless remark was clear. I have my blood mate, and therefore everything I need in this woman beside me.
Tavia let out a sigh but leaned into the affection regardless. “Not even five seconds and you two are already shit-talking.”
“I apologize. Congratulations on your mating, by the way.”
“Thank you.” Cyan actually sounded gracious, his hand possessively around Tavia’s hip. “There’s nothing like finding your person.”
I was starting to think I had found my person, but with Baros breathing down my neck, a life with her seemed out of reach.
A vampire waiter came over to set a wine glass down in front of me, and Cyan gestured to the open bottle on the table. “Help yourself. Tavi just sold five cases of her wine to this lounge and we’re celebrating.”
“Thank you, and congratulations, again.” I poured myself a modest-sized glass. “Amy brought one of your wines to my house, so I’m already a fan of your work.”
“Oh, that’s very sweet. Thank you.” Tavia blushed and looked a little uncomfortable, clearly not one to bask in her accomplishments. “Five cases seems a little excessive, but it’s what they asked for.”
“Nonsense, they’re already selling it,” Cyan told her. “They’re going to sell out by the end of the week and ask for twenty next time.”
“You’re full of shit.” Tavia groaned, but grinned at his praise.
Cyan turned to me. “I’m planting an orchard for her ciders. Obviously she needs a vineyard and all the right facilities and equipment too.”
“That seems like a logical next step,” I said. “Let me know if you need an investor. I love to support a good product and new businesses.”
The two of them looked shocked. Cyan even sputtered and choked.
“We don’t need money from Rathka’s Order.” He grimaced like he was going sling another tired insult, but a glance at Tavia had his expression softening. “But your generous offer is… noted and appreciated.”
“Now that would be a step toward repairing the feud between your clans.” Tavia smirked over the rim of her glass. “Blood ‘til Dawn and Rathka’s Order coming together over some wine, can you imagine it?”
“Don’t get your hopes up.” Cyan dropped a kiss on her shoulder.
The two of them were so naturally at ease with each other. Comfortable, with a spark lighting up their touches and glances at one another. Their connection was one to be envied.
“Can you tell me anything else about Sapien last night?” I focused on Cyan, since he was with Amy that night. “Who were the humans who got spooked by Amy?”
“I don’t know.” He ran a hand over his buzzed hair with a sigh. “Some human male. Looked like his blood tasted bad. You know what I mean?”
I nodded while Tavia shook her head with a small chuckle. It was just a feeling vampires had sometimes. Every once in a while, we only had to look at a person to know that their blood was shitty.
“The other was an older woman. I think… ” He turned to Tavia. “I think it was Robin, the one who looked out for you and Amy.”
“Oh no.” Tavia’s face fell. “If Robin reacted badly to seeing her, Amy would’ve been crushed. She looked up to Robin. We both did.”
“What about the male? Who was he to her?” I desperately wanted to know if he’d been one of Amy’s bullies, or significant to her in some other way.
“I don’t know.” Cyan threw his hands up helplessly.
“What did he look like?” Tavia asked him. “I’m sure I know who he is.”
“Like a worm. A really thick one, with bad blood.” She smacked his arm and he proceeded to give his best actual physical description of the male. Then Tavia looked at me, anguish and sorrow in her eyes.
“That sounds like Tom Harrison. I hate him with every fiber of my being.”
“Why? What did he do?”
Tavia’s shoulders slumped.
“He broke Amy’s heart.”