Here Be Monsters [2] (2 page)

"Oh, it has its perks."
 

Thom was for all intents and purposes, human. Taken into Underhill over a century ago by Titania and made a part of her court. Unfortunately for Thom, time moved differently in the human realm. And where as the elves were free to move back and forth through the cairns, he was not. It was said that if Thom Rhymer stepped a single boot outside a cairn, he'd become the ashes he truly was.
 

Oberon believed this would make him the perfect sub-in-charge, because he would never leave.
 

Aby crossed his arms over his chest. "Well? You wanted to see me?"
 

Thom laughed and stood before he bounded down the steps and took Aby into a warm embrace. The two had been friends since the day Thom'd been taken. They were both outcasts in a way.
 

"It's good to see you, Aby," Thom said as he patted the elf's back. "You look good—all leathered up like that. And what are those?" he reached up and tapped the shades on Aby's face.
 

"They're sunglasses," he said and he removed them temporarily. The sun from Underhill seemed unnaturally bright and it stung his eyes. He put them back on. "They protect your eyes from the sun in the human realm, as well as from UV rays."
 

"UV rays?"
 

Aby gave him a half grin. "I'll explain later. So," he took a step back and held out his gloved hands. The hilt of his katana thrust up from behind his left shoulder. "What is it you wanted to see me about?"
 

"Ah," Thom nodded and gestured for Aby to follow him. "Walk with me. We need to talk."
 

Aby glanced around warily when no one else followed Thom—no guards or court fops. Thom didn't speak for a while as they walked through the castle atrium to the central gardens. Roses and more roses, Titania's favorite. In the center of the guarden was the tomb—a monolith of white marble erected for the memory of their father, King Calder, who died centuries ago, after a long life of debauchery and human stealing. Or so the legend was sung.

Aby was surprised when Thom produced a set of keys and opened the tomb door. He stepped inside and gestured for Aby to follow him. With a glance around outside, the red-headed UnSeleighe stepped into the darkness.
 

"Sorry about the toomb—but it's one of the few places most of Oberon's loyals won't follow," Thom's voice echoed inside.
 

Aby was amazed at the size of the interior. It had to be the subtle creation magic of underhill—the spacial differences that made everything possible. For what looked like a shorter version of the Washington monument on the outside, had the depth and width of the New York Museum of Natural History on the inside. He looked at the names chiseled into the marble drawers, housing the kings of a long gone era, both elven and human. Author was rumored to be entombed here, though Aby had never actually seen the name.
 

"Abyssinian," Thom began and Aby turned to watch him. "I was more than appalled to hear what it was Oberon was doing. My own spies informed me that his little gang of blood stealers killed upward of fifty-seven elves. Most of them UnSeleighe."

"Fifty-seven?" Abyssinian felt sick in his stomach. He'd only guessed there were perhaps fifteen and he'd based that on the number of bodies found—to learn there were so many undiscovered…
 

"I've known Oberon for a painfully long time—hence the use of the word painfully. I have never known him to do something without a solid, logical reason. Even killing. It's my suspicion," Thom rubbed at his chin. "That Oberon was looking for something. Something very rare. So rare that the outward signs of its presence were lost or locked away. Otherwise, he wouldn't have killed so many innocents."
 

Sunlight filtering through the tomb's upper stained glass glinted as the trees swayed outside in the breeze. It was so hard to remember this land was perpetually summer when his own home in Chicago in the human realm had just entered the fall. "I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at Thom." He kept his voice even. Abyssinian knew Oberon had been trying to create an elixir that would allow the vampires to walk in the day—he knew this because his brother had taken his blood to create it.
 

Siobhan had been successful at convincing Oberon it was still an
elixir
she'd drank mixed and magic'd by Abyssinian. She'd told no one that she'd drank directly from Aby's bleeding neck.
 

Had Aby known it would heal her instead of kill her?
 

Yes.
 

How had he known?
 

Because Oberon told him it would. Had he believed it?

No. Not until he believed her life was in danger. And then he'd have risked anything to save her.
 

Thom watched Aby, though his brow was knitted together. "Are you sure you don't understand, Abyssinian?"
 

Aby wasn't happy with the regent's tone. He lowered his hands from the tomb and removed his shades. "Thom—why did you want to see me?"
 

"How," Thom said abruptly and turned to pace, his hands locked behind him. "How much do you know about the caste of the Seleighe and the UnSeleighe?"
 

Know? Aby shrugged. No more than anyone else. "There have always been the two—opposing opinions of the same race."
 

"Any other differences?" Thom said and stopped. "Aby—what makes you UnSeleighe and your brother Seleighe?"
 

"You mean physical differences?" Aby grinned. "I'm better looking?"
 

Thom also smiled, but it vanished quickly. "No other physical differences?"
 

"You mean in general? The UnSeleighe seem to possess a greater magic in the mortal realm. My magic was always stronger than my brother's. But as for anything evident at a glance? No. We look the same."
 

The Regent rubbed at his forehead. He looked to Aby to be…unsure. "Has it always been sunny in Underhill?"
 

The question seemed incongruent. "Yes."
 

"No," Thom shook his head. "That's not true. There was a year when snow covered these grounds. When the leaves fell from the trees and did not regrow. When the crops died, when the animals suffered, when Underhill almost fell in the war with the Fallen."
 

"The Fallen?"
 

"The elves were once a united people, Aby," Thom said as he turned and strolled along the wall in front of a row of tombs. "There was no distinction between the Seleighe and UnSeleighe as they are now. But there were, the Fallen. They were the original Dark Court. And they were…twisted. Immoral creatures. They lusted after all things that gave others terror. And they loved humans. Not in a cherishing way—but in a toying sense. They were the first to drag them into this realm. The first to change them, claim them, and make them theirs."
 

"You mean like Changelings?"
 

"Not like me—but before then. They used their blood to make small monsters. Humans that needed to feed on the blood of others."

"Thom..are you insinuating that these Fallen…were vampires?"
 

"Aye," Thom nodded. "They were the first." He gave a small smile. "Ironic isn't it? That the very race the vampires fear, is the race from where they were born?"
 

- 3 -

"How in the hell did she get out?"
 

Siobhan ran a long fingered hand through her dark hair. It was late—an hour past midnight—and already things had gone from bad to worse. Really worse. She fixed Captain Mike Miller with the hardest stare she could muster. She was hungry—and now she was scared.
 

And if there was one thing Siobhan hated—it was being one or both of those things.
 

Captain Miller, the temporary replacement for the recently incarcerated Captain Oberon Geld, leaned back in his chair. It creaked beneath him in the small, cramped room he used as an office. Four walls of glass, cheap dark-painted pine, and used blinds. "Look—I'd say we did pretty good. You gave us ten names—all of them working with Oberon on his little blood-letting operation and we caught all of them."
 

"All—but one got away," Siobhan held up her hands. "And that one is the worst of the bunch of them. She was Oberon's right-hand woman. Elf. Whatever."
 

"Don't you think you're over reacting a little?" Captain Miller leaned forward and rested his elbows on his desk. He looked a bit run-down in Siobhan's opinion. She wondered when was the last time he'd had a good night's sleep. Catching the culprit responsible for killing elves had proven a huge feather in his cap—but convicting the former police Captain of the crime—well—

Though a bit of a megalomanic, Geld had held things together and he'd been a damn find detective. Siobhan could vouch for that having worked with him several times. The only snag they might have is if Abyssinian changed his mind and decided not to testify against his brother.
 

After the arrest, Aby stated he wouldn't. He would not look upon his brother's face again. The young elf still carried the scar of an iron shackle on his wrist where his own brother had imprisoned him. Iron was poison to Underhill inhabitants. Siobhan could only imagine what sort of pain her partner had endured in Oberon's dungeon—recently uncovered in the basement of his estate.
 

It was Aby's own wicked charm that freed him, after he'd bribed one of his brother's mistresses to release him.
 

The very Elf that had gotten away.

Siobhan knew how hard it was to resist that charm—though she'd tried on several occasions. Aby always knew how to get her to do things
his
way.
And I'm the vampire with the glamouring gaze. If only it worked on him. Just once
.
 

Eventually she had worn Aby down and he'd agreed to testify. But he wasn't happy about it. The court date was in two days. The escape of the last of Oberon's little murder gang was a low blow.
 

The elf in question, known only as Silira, had somehow tricked her way out of custody, though the Precinct had assured everyone the wards to hold her magic had been in place. The guard on duty had no memory of her ever being in the cell. Yet, video records showed she'd been brought in along with the last three of Oberon's team.
 

And now—nothing.
 

"Look, I know you're worried about your boyfriend—"

"He's not my boyfriend," she interjected. Though—Siobhan wasn't really sure that statement was accurate. Two months ago she'd heard him tell her he loved her, just before he forced her to drink his blood. At the time, with him bleeding to death of what appeared to be a fatal wound, trapped with her in a room open to the rising sun, she'd believed his motive for feeding her elven poison was so that she wouldn't have to suffer being burned to death.
 

She'd expected to die.

But when she'd drank from Aby—the opposite had happened. It had allowed her move in the sun to catch Oberon in the act of searching her mirror store on the Miracle Mile. And he'd made his confession, in a room full of hidden cameras.
 

What an arrogant idiot.
 

If there was one character flaw Oberon Geld wasn't lacking in, it was hubris.
 

"Whatever," Captain Miller said. "If you'd just tell me what it was that the former captain was trying to do by draining UnSeleighe elves of blood—"
 

She shook her head and held up a hand. "Look, I really don't know. And I don't know if we'll ever understand his motives. I chalked it up to a long-time rivalry between the two courts."
 

"About that," Miller leaned back. "That's something I've never understood. This two courts thing. How can you have two courts with Seleighe and UnSeleighe—and what's the difference? How can Captain Geld be Seleighe and his own brother is UnSeleighe?" He shrugged. "In all the bodies we found so far, how is it that he knew which were which? Is it a mark? Or eye color—though they all have those crazy eyes—or maybe even like hair color? I mean…Abyssinian's hair is a bit—"
 

She nodded. "Anime. Yeah, I know. But its natural for him. To answer your question—I don't know. I've never figured that out myself." And she had asked
both
brothers—Oberon had been her lover a long time ago—as crazy as that sounded. Being in love with a man whose blood could kill you.
 

Oberon and Aby had said the same thing. "It's complicated."
 

Yeah well…so am I
. And there wasn't really an answer she didn't think she couldn't find. But this one was a doozy.

Was it the blood? She and Aby had talked about his blood's ability—and he'd admitted it didn't matter who drank it—if they were a vampire they'd be able to withstand the day for a short period of time. Usually the span of a normal day of daylight.
 

"I'm not worried about Aby's safety—he can take care of himself. Quite accomplished at it as well. What I am worried about are all the other UnSeleighe who have no idea these wackos are after them—and by putting it out there on the news—"

"I don't see your issue with that. It was a warning."
 

"Yeah—and a warning to all the other nut jobs that'll see that and figure, 'oh, if I can get me some UnSeleighe blood, I can sell it for a price.' Obviously there's a run on it."

Miller looked upset. "I didn't even consider that."

"No, you didn't. But those are the kind of morons I had to deal with when I was a detective." Siobhan didn't like pulling out the former "Top Detective" card, but damn it, Miller needed to listen to her. "You knock one head off the snake, and in this day and age with magic, twelve more are going to pop up. It's a cosmic game of wac-a-mole."