Chapter 14
Joseph was asking a lot of questions about Robert’s fangs. I wanted to tell him to screw the fangs and focus on Robert and Serena’s illicit affair, but I could hardly get a word in edgewise.
“So, walk me through this again,” he commanded, his steely gaze fixed on my face. “You went to pick up Robert’s fangs from your ex, who stole them from Robert, but then he was murdered.”
I sighed in exasperation. “That’s right. And the fangs were gone; the police looked everywhere for them.”
“Then, when you came home, Robert was gone, too.”
“Yes. The house was also a little messed up. I forgot to tell you that part.”
Joseph leaned closer to me on the sofa. “Elaborate.”
I shrugged. “There was no blood or anything. A couple things had been overturned. It was nothing major.”
“But his phone was still here?” he asked, and I nodded. “Then, you called your friend Liz, and she—”
“Came over,” I interrupted. I didn’t need my own story reiterated to me. “While she was here, well I already told you that part.”
“You got calls from Serena and Robert. They said they were together now as a couple.”
“Exactly. But I don’t see—”
“How did Robert sound on the phone?”
I frowned. “Like an asshole.”
Joseph shook his head. “That’s not what I mean. Did he sound different than usual—maybe in his tone or wording?”
My heartbeat quickened, though I was trying not to get excited.
“Actually, yes. He sounded . . . cold, monotone. Like he was dead on the inside. He didn’t react at all when I got upset, and that isn’t like him.
He also ghosted me after his call, which was weird.
Robert’s never been one to shy away from confrontation. ”
Joseph went quiet for a moment, and it was maddening to no end. I wished he’d just spit it out.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. “What does any of this have to do with Robert’s fangs? That’s what this is about, right, his fangs?”
Joseph paused, as if weighing his options.
He must have decided that I was worthy of the truth because he said, “I’m going to tell you some things that are for your ears only.
We—the VGO—don’t make a habit of discussing our business with humans, but since you’re already involved, I can’t see any way around it.
I don’t need to tell you what the organization might do if you repeat anything. ”
I gulped. “I understand.”
“As you know, part of the deal you struck with the VGO was that we wouldn’t hurt your treacherous ex, Nick—though, frankly, I could never understand why.
Had it been me in your shoes, I would have had him executed.
” I nodded as Joseph took a sip of blood.
“However, not hurting Nick doesn’t mean that we didn’t occasionally check in on him to ensure he was remaining silent about the existence of vampires. ”
That didn’t surprise me whatsoever. Vampires were as cautious as they were paranoid. I was positive any information they had on Nick had been obtained through illegal means like phone tapping and email monitoring. Having lived for thousands of years, vampires knew a thing or two about surveillance.
He continued, “Serena was overseeing the observation of Nick. Nobody else wanted the job, and she’d volunteered, so we let her. I figured she was trying to get back in our good graces after offending so many of our members.”
“Did she report what she found to the VGO?”
Joseph’s face darkened. “She did, but I’m beginning to think there were things she kept from us, like Nick having Robert’s fangs. This is news to me.”
I scratched my head in confusion. “But why would she hide that from you?”
“I’m getting to that, Olivia,” he said, but not unkindly. I got the sense he was gearing up to tell me some news I didn’t want to hear.
“Were you aware Nick was murdered?”
Joseph shook his head. “Not until you told me. With Serena being gone, our surveillance of Nick has slackened. There’s been some recent changes at the VGO, so our efforts have been focused on other things.” He flapped a hand. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter.”
“And what does matter?” I asked, practically pleading with him to cut to the chase.
“How much do you know about vampire history?” he asked.
I gave him a wry look. “About as much as you’d think.”
He seemed surprised. “Robert didn’t tell you anything?”
“No. To be fair, I never asked. It wasn’t something that came up in conversation, but I doubt he even knows much. He’s more of a modern kind of guy.”
Joseph mulled this over. “Robert is young by vampire standards, so it makes sense that he is ignorant of our legends. Still, his maker should have told him some of the more important ones, if only for his own protection.”
“Remember, Leopold Sorin was the one who made him,” I pointed out dryly. Meaning, if the history didn’t involve Leopold directly, he would have deemed it unworthy of telling.
“That explains it,” Joseph said in an equally dry tone. “Robert should have been a lot more careful where he kept his fangs—and treated getting them back with urgency. Had I been in his position, I would have killed to get them back.” He was being literal about the killing part.
I had enough of his beating around the bush.
“I don’t understand the significance of Robert’s fangs—why should he have been so careful?
It’s not like they didn’t grow back. They fell out when he turned human, but then he sprouted a whole new pair once he became vampire again.
The fangs Nick had weren’t the only ones Robert was ever going to get. ”
“I’m going to tell you something very few—if any—humans know.” He paused a second, then amended, “Actually, if Robert’s anything to go by, perhaps younger vampires don’t know this, either.”
I groaned impatiently.
Finally, he said, “Anyone, human or vampire, who possesses a vampire’s fangs has the power to control them.”
The rational part of my brain refused to accept what I was hearing. “How is that even possible?”
“The possessor can also indirectly create an event for a vampire and then make it happen.”
My mouth fell open. “I don’t believe . . . I mean how . . .”
My words faded when I was struck by a memory from Bali.
At the time, Robert and I were on the island hiding out from the VGO, and Nick was in possession of Robert’s fangs.
In one of his email rantings to me, he’d stated that he wished Robert would wrap his flashy car around a tree—and that he wanted millions to witness Robert’s humiliation.
Shortly thereafter, Robert crashed our convertible into a palm tree while trying to outrun the paparazzi.
Photos of the incident were later featured on social media sites all over the world.
People loved seeing billionaires screw up.
Still. It was crazy, wasn’t it, that Nick had caused the accident because he’d wished for it with Robert’s fangs?
Joseph raised his eyebrows. “You have questions?”
“So many.”
It was difficult picking which one to ask first. I said, “You’re talking as if this is something that’s happened before, but how could it be possible that someone could even have a vampire’s fangs?
From my understanding, a vampire has never turned back into a human before my blood changed Robert.
Beyond that, the only other times I’ve seen a vampire’s fangs fall out is when they died. Am I missing something?”
“A vampire’s fangs do fall out when they die, which every immortal knows.
But if a vampire loses their fangs, it does not necessarily mean they have died.
I’m assuming you’ve heard of pliers?” he asked rhetorically.
“If I pulled my fangs out right now it would hurt like hell, but they’d grow back by next sunrise. ”
“Why would anyone want to pull a vampire’s fangs out?” I asked. “Before anyone discovered that a vampire could be controlled by them, I mean.”
“It once was a form of punishment for those who stepped out of the confines of vampire law. It was meant to humiliate the vampire for their misdeeds, but only for a short time. It was like a slap on the wrist for minor infractions,” he explained.
“How it was later discovered that vampires can be controlled by their fangs, I don’t know, but the news of it spread fast.”
“Were the removals done by the VGO?”
“Yes, originally. However, once word got out, the removals were done by others.”
“Humans?”
He nodded grimly. “If they could capture a vampire and starve them into weakness. It wasn’t unheard of for royalty, both human and vampire, to buy fangs on the black market from fang merchants.”
“So, they could have their very own vampire to control,” I said.
“Right. Usually as palace guards, commanded to fight to the death to protect the kingdom. A couple kings kept harems of vampire women and even vampire boys, though the ‘boys’ might have been older than they were by centuries. Some bought vampires for their children to be used as pets. Dreadful stuff.”
“God.” I couldn’t imagine something so awful.
“The last known fang extraction occurred a couple centuries ago. Now, of course, the practice is strictly forbidden and punishable by death. That goes for everyone, the VGO included.”
“Were fang merchants vampires?”
“Sometimes,” he said, his eyes narrowing at the recollection.
“It was a terrible time, vampires attacking other vampires for their fangs. It came down to money. Fangs could fetch a sum higher than some vampires had seen in their entire lifetime. The VGO considered such business practices treason, so the fang merchants were also executed, even if they didn’t do the extractions themselves.
So were those caught trying to buy fangs.
We have a zero-tolerance policy for vampire slavery. ”
I swallowed, thinking of Robert. “Is the vampire aware they’re being controlled?”
“The vampire knows what’s happening on a subconscious level, much like a human in a coma—though the vampire is awake. The one with the fangs controls everything: the vampire’s decisions, behavior, and even when to feed and sleep. It’s torturous, from what I’ve been told.”
I sighed, heartsick. “So, how does this relate to Robert and Serena?”
He raised his eyebrows, as if I should know. I had an idea, but I wanted to hear it from him anyway, so that we were both on the same page.
He said, “Serena obviously knew Nick had stolen Robert’s fangs, since she’d been monitoring him.”
“So, she killed Nick for Robert’s fangs?” I said, aghast. “Why didn’t she just ask for them?”
“Serena doesn’t ask for anything. It was faster to just take them.”
I was too furious to speak.
“I wouldn’t expect anything less of her. She loathes humans,” he said. “Given your ex’s past behavior, there’s also the possibility that he’d tried to strike a bargain with her for them, which she would have not tolerated.”
“But why would Serena want Robert’s fangs? I’m sure you saw the way she was flirting with him when we were at your headquarters.” I folded my arms across my chest angrily. “Think she’s kidnapped him and turned him into her sex slave?” I could practically scream at the thought of it.
“To tell you the truth, Olivia, I don’t think Serena even likes men, sexually or otherwise.”
“Then why—”
“She was merely trying to get a rise out of you by flirting with Robert.”
“That bitch.”
“Indeed,” he agreed. “As I mentioned, Serena has made a nuisance of herself at the VGO. We’ve made no secret of our displeasure.
She probably figured out that she was going to be dismissed from her position.
I don’t know what she’s planning, but I believe she’s going to try to use Robert to make it happen. ”
I felt sick. “You mean revenge—something violent?”
“Maybe.” Joseph shook his head apologetically. “Probably.”