The Mark of the Vampire Queen (6 page)

While he didn't know the mood she'd be in when she surfaced, since she was capricious in that regard, he had no illusion tonight's magical connection would continue forever. The night a servant received his third mark was a honeymoon period. Even if his lady's mood prevailed, because of the illness she suffered and the challenges they faced, this honeymoon would be far shorter than either of them would wish.

 

Returning to the present and far less pleasant matters, Jacob focused on what Debra had told him. When Lyssa had resisted giving him the third mark, he'd thought it had been grief and stubborn guilt. She'd lost her husband, Rex, and her servant, Thomas, within the past two years. While she still hadn't shared the full story with him, Jacob knew Rex was the reason Thomas had gotten the fatal disease that somehow infected Lyssa. Debra had given him a horrific idea of how Rex had accomplished it.

Lyssa had killed her husband herself when she found out he was responsible for Thomas's death. She'd then had to make the vampire world believe the honorable and always loyal Thomas had poisoned and staked Rex and she'd killed the servant as punishment.

Despite her Machiavellian nature, she was also a woman. It was a web of lies and deceptions that would have broken any woman's heart. In the end, Jacob realized she didn't want to give him the third mark because he would die with her. She'd been protecting him. So he'd bullied, coaxed, nagged, cajoled. In what he knew she still considered a weak moment on her part, he'd convinced her. His choice. He wasn't afraid of death. He was afraid of being where he couldn't protect
her
. Love her. And with the third mark, she could draw from his energy to help prolong her own life and give her more of the precious time she needed.

If only Brian and his fellow vampire science geeks had known about Thomas, been able to study him until his death. Andrev was a born vampire, from human and vampire parents. Lyssa was born vampire and Fey, the oldest living vampire with powers no other vampire had…Perhaps it would go differently for her. If only they didn't have to hide it.

But vampires like Carnal were trying to undermine everything she'd built. Carnal, the vampire who'd been made by Lyssa's late husband, Rex. Carnal preferred a world where humans would be cattle for the bloodthirsty whims of the vampires.

As the number of born vampires had decreased, the Vampire Council had allowed more vampires to be made, against her advice. A growing number of these made vampires, whose impulse control and bloodlust were not as well controlled as their older, born brethren, were impatient with the many Council rules.

Closing his eyes again, Jacob pressed on the bridge of his nose, relieving the tension building in his head with his thoughts. The vampire world existed in prosperous harmony in the shadows of the human-dominated world primarily because of her efforts over the past several centuries to establish the current Vampire Council structure. The elaborate ritual courtesies and rules had created a balance between vampire bloodlust and blood need. In vampire terms, that form of governance was young. It had only been in existence for the past couple of centuries, following some bloody territory wars to enforce it, of which she'd been a terrifying part.

She was the Council's muscle. The last direct descendant of royalty among the vampires, she didn't sit on the Council but was considered an important advisory member of it. Over a thousand years old, the limits of her strength and actual age unknown, she was all too aware that when she died, the Council would have to manage on its own against those like Carnal.

She had over fifty vampire fugitives she'd granted asylum in her territory. The upcoming Vampire Council Gathering was the vital turning point. At the event that occurred every five years, she would petition for permanent asylum for them, as well as reinforce the strength of the Council in any way possible with her presence as their queen.

If she got through the Council Gathering without suspicion, even if she died soon thereafter—and his mind shied from that thought—the illusion that she was still around would be in place long enough for her vampires to position themselves accordingly. It was not unusual for a vampire of her stature to go into seclusion for extended periods, communicating with other vampires only through her servant or other trusted agents. She could conceivably be gone five years before the truth was known.

He was helping her put all the pieces in place for that illusion if needed, and she would consolidate it with the contacts she would make at the Gathering, confirming who her allies might be. Places her fugitives and even her legitimate territory vampires might go if they had to flee her Region.

She was finally trusting him to be her ally, to guard her back, while he wanted nothing more than to focus fully on what would cure her of this damn disease, keep her alive and vibrant forever.

“You do realize I could have slit your throat three times while you've been sitting here daydreaming?”

 

Jacob's eyes snapped open. The man sitting in the chair across from him didn't complement his surroundings the way Debra had. He wore a pair of worn jeans, a dark T-shirt and a bomber jacket Jacob was certain hid an array of weaponry. Probably a nine millimeter and loaded wrist gauntlets. There'd be a knife scabbard on his left calf, another down the back. He hadn't had his hair cut in a while, and the shave looked a couple of days old. Still, the glittering blue eyes of his brother were as vibrant as his own, though Gideon's face held far more lines and his hair was threaded with white. The result of lifestyle, not age. Only a handspan of years separated them. That and a whole hell of a lot of other things.

“Gideon.”

“I thought about shooting you right here, but I was curious. I wanted to know why you've lost your fucking mind.” He ignored the startled and offended looks of nearby patrons. Rising, he jerked his thumb toward the door. “Get your ass up and we'll go somewhere and talk where we can get a late breakfast. You're buying.”

He strode toward the door with apparently no doubt Jacob would follow.

Jacob reflected darkly that there appeared to be far too many people in his life who thought they could order him about.

This day was just getting better and better.

O
N
principle, Jacob made Gideon wait, paging through Debra's romance novel. He found a scene or two that engaged his prurient male interest, with at least one interesting idea to try out on his sensual lady. When he finally departed the library, he found Gideon as well as Elijah Ingram waiting in the parking area. Elijah sat in the driver's side of his limo, while Gideon leaned against the side of his own car close by, thumbs through the belt loops of his jeans.

Standing, Gideon looked even more like the mean son of a bitch he was. A couple of inches taller and broader than Jacob, he'd inherited their father's dark hair rather than their mother's auburn brown mix as Jacob had. They shared the blue eyes, and though Gideon shaved, the dark shadow along his jaw never fully went away. He was pure muscle. There were no soft spots anywhere on Gideon, unless one counted the mush behind the rock-solid skull.

He and Elijah were eyeing one another. Since each possessed the skill to take the measure of the other within three blinks, they'd settled down like a couple of yard dogs determined not to fight, ignoring each other while not missing a single twitch.

“This man says he's your brother,” the limo driver offered as Jacob approached.

“Funny. Last time I saw him he said the exact opposite.”

“Mmm.” Elijah squinted through the open window. “You still need a ride? I don't have anywhere to be until late this afternoon.”

“I guess not.” Jacob cut a look at his silent sibling. “If you can run the things you picked up by the house and just leave them in the lockbox behind the column at the security gate, that'll be good. Be sure and send me a bill for your time and gas. Gideon'll give me a ride after he says his peace. If not, this is a college area. I've still got a working thumb.”

“Don't let no cute college girl pick you up. Might do something you'll regret. Get the other arm broke.”

“Or he might realize the smart thing is to go home with her and not look back. But he's never been all that smart. If you can't be smart, be pretty.” Gideon straightened.

“If you think that, seems to me you got the cuter ass,” Ingram observed, deadpan. Jacob stifled a chuckle as Gideon's lips twitched.

“Seems you've been making friends without me,” his brother said.

“They're easier to make and keep without you around,” Jacob said without rancor. “You don't tend to approve of my choices in friends.”

The humor disappeared. “Lady Lyssa isn't your friend, Jacob. Whatever else you think she is, fine. But I can promise you, she's not your friend.”

It was uncomfortably close to what Debra had just told him. Jacob wasn't in the mood for it. “If that's going to be the tone of this conversation, I'll just ride home with Elijah here.”

Gideon scowled. “Oh, pull the railroad spike out of your ass and get in the damn car.”

“There's that brotherly affection I know and love.” Jacob nodded to Mr. Ingram. The driver turned over the ignition.

“You have my number, son.”

“He's a little protective of you,” Gideon noted as the limo pulled out of the parking lot. “When did you break your arm?”

“Your spies are falling down on the job. A while ago.”

As Gideon turned to open the car door, Jacob noted his brother had a new scar at his temple, disappearing into the hairline. It looked like an impact wound, possibly from having his head smashed against a brick wall. He wondered what their parents would think of them now. The parents they'd last seen alive on an idyllic day at the beach, when the only vampires were in movies and the imaginations of young boys. Even there they hadn't dwelled long, for a child's mind was a crowded merry-go-round of graphic possibilities.

As if he were following the direction of his thoughts, Gideon's expression altered from hard purpose to grudging affection. “There's a good diner around the corner. Let's go there and talk.”

 

The brunch offering was good. As if they both were aware of the potential for disruption if they tried to talk before satisfying their appetites, they ordered and consumed the special in silence. The portions were sizeable, catering to the construction workers who came in from their work on new office buildings to refuel on the higher calorie count they needed. The exception was one table near the two men, where a pair of elderly women shared a postbreakfast pot of coffee.

Since the construction workers were similarly indisposed to talking while eating, the diner was relatively quiet except for the comforting chatter of the two women.

Gideon flipped up the top of the ketchup, pushing it and salt toward Jacob's left side just as he thought about needing it. While Lyssa would call it more evidence of the psychic intuition she suspected ran through his family, Jacob knew it more likely was long familiarity. Gideon had always been good at taking care of his younger brother. He thought he knew Jacob through and through, and in a way, he did. Gideon just preferred to pretend certain things didn't exist.

As they both slowed down and came up for air, Jacob laid down his fork.
Here goes nothing.
“How long have you been in town?” he asked.

“A couple weeks. When Carnal left his territory, we thought we might have a shot at catching him vulnerable. No such luck, though.”

“You're hunting Carnal?” The day might be looking up.

“He likes to think he's a badass. He takes out his full Council-sanctioned quota of humans every year. We suspect he's gotten cockier and is taking more, though he's good at covering his tracks. Most of his victims in the past two years have been violent criminals. Unless you count his servants.”

Draining a person infected with evil spurred the natural aggressiveness of a vampire to a higher level, increasing the problem of uncontrolled bloodlust that would encourage unwelcome attention from human society. Jacob knew Carnal didn't need any encouragement in that direction. A vampire needed blood to live, but actually only needed to fully drain one human annually to maintain their full strength and faculties. Lyssa had argued strongly for limiting the number of human lives taken by a vampire to one kill per year as a result. The Vampire Council had compromised with a higher number to placate those like Carnal who were strongly opposed to any limits at all.

“Lately he's been in the mood for sweeter meat. Seven women, all young. He's found a loophole. There's no limit on the number of servants a vamp is allowed to kill in the course of a year. We figure he's going to pay Lyssa a visit while he's here, etiquette and all, and because he's always had such an obsession with her. So we thought—”

“Don't, Gideon.” Jacob held up a hand. “I can't hear any of your plans.”

“Are you listening to me? Seven women. Young girls he seduces, then traps into being his servant for a while so they don't ‘count' toward the quota.”

“You're not telling me anything I don't know.” Jacob struggled to keep it easy, friendly. “Let's not talk shop. What's going on with you, other than staking vampires?”

Gideon stared at him. “You don't want to hear anything about a guy murdering innocent girls? Even if you're in a position to help? We're trying to—”

“Gideon,” Jacob said sharply, “shut up. I'm carrying a third mark.”

His brother went stock-still, his fork frozen in midgesture. His hand shot forward, fork still in it, forgotten so that when Jacob intercepted, slamming his brother's wrist to the table between them, the silverware clanged. Water glasses and plates jumped, drawing startled glances. “You don't have to see it,” Jacob said evenly.

Gideon jerked back. “I knew you'd lost your fucking mind. Your moronic pacifist ideas about vampires—”

“Not pacifist. I just don't believe being a vampire should be a death sentence.”

“No, of course not. Just because they kill humans, it doesn't make them all bad.”

“Contrary to popular myth, you know vampires only have one food source,” Jacob retorted. “Human blood, taken fresh. They have the right to survive. They're predators, Gideon. Like wolves or lions. They're not automatically minions of evil.”

Gideon blew out a ferocious breath. “Yeah, Carnal's just your basic trying-to-survive guy. Tell that to the sixteen-year-old homeless runaway corpse he drained. But hey, guess we can consider it charity, since it interrupted the burgeoning kiddie porn career her pimp boyfriend planned for her.”

Jacob shook his head. “I'm not saying Carnal isn't scum. I'd stake him myself given the chance. I'm saying they aren't all like that.”

“But Lady Lyssa isn't like you, Jacob. Don't make the mistake of thinking she is.” Gideon enunciated each syllable between clenched teeth. When Jacob pointedly picked up his juice, took a swig, he blew out another exasperated breath. “I completely lose touch with you for months except for the occasional postcard, and then you resurface right under my nose as some vampire bitch queen's lackey. Did you even think about what's involved? She seduced you, is that it?”

“Gideon.” Jacob put down the glass carefully. “I'm not twelve. I need you to listen to me.”

His brother brightened. “That's it, isn't it? She compelled you, whatever you want to call it. You can break out of it, Jacob. Shit, she's queen of all of them. She can screw with any man's head. It doesn't matter if you did it in the heat of the moment. That's their talent, seduction. Even this bastard Carnal, when he turns on the charm, no woman can say no to him.”

“Gideon—”

“We could trick her. Get her into a coffin, bury her underground or put her in the center of a concrete slab. She couldn't do anything to control you—”

“You even think about hurting her, I'll kill you.”

While most of their conversation had been pitched low enough that the remarkable parts of it were lost in the women's chatter and the sounds of utensils and waitstaff, the cold statement hit a pocket of dead air.

Jacob paid no attention to the turning heads, furtive glances. He kept his gaze locked on Gideon's. In his most dangerous moment, he'd never thought himself as intimidating as his brother. However, the startled look that flashed across Gideon's face made him suspect he might have grown in that regard since Gideon had seen him last. Perhaps because he finally had something he'd defend with everything he was. No matter what she did to him.

“I'm sorry.” Jacob wiped his mouth, set aside his napkin. “I didn't mean to throw it down like that, but you don't listen. I trained to be her servant for almost a year. I have lash scars on my back, my fealty oath.” Thomas had given him those fifty lashes on the cold stone floor of the monastery before he'd ever come and offered himself to her. Now those marks were overlaid by the serpentine scarring of the third mark, and Jacob felt their presence at all times, like her physical and mental touches. “I've committed myself to her. She's the woman I'm meant to be with. To protect.”

My lady.
He would have said it, but he didn't want Gideon to mock him. Truth was, he hadn't wanted to say any of it, knowing how Gideon would react. But Gideon was his only family, his only constant in life except the restless desire that had driven him to find his lady. For that reason alone he had to say the simple truth.

Maybe it would have been better if they'd fought before the meal. He'd still be hungry, but hunger was better than having the breakfast roiling in his stomach and this leaden weight in his chest.

“She dies, you die. You understand that? You stupid, fucking idiot.” Gideon shook his head, ignoring the sharp looks from the women across the aisle from them. “I don't get this at all. Does this have something to do with us? With our parents? What?”

“It's a choice I made, and it has nothing to do with you. I don't agree with everything you do, but I've helped you kill vampires that crossed the lines.” Jacob inclined his head. “There's a balance in nature, and vampires are part of it.”

“They threaten our survival—”

“How?” Jacob demanded. “Billions of us, less than five thousand of them. Their offspring are rare, while we breed like rabbits.”

“What if the Council is overruled and more made vampires are allowed? What if those like Carnal get the upper hand? What then?” Gideon's eyes narrowed. “Yeah, I'm not as dumb as you think I am. We do have our spies. We know the political climate is changing. The first imperative is human survival, Jacob.”

“The first imperative is honor. Integrity.”

“Oh, Jesus.” Gideon sat back in the booth, scrubbing his hand over his unshaven face. “The chivalry bullshit—”

“Yeah, that bullshit,” Jacob interrupted him, his own annoyance kicking up. “You used to remember it. Believe in it. It's why you started doing what you do, and that's why I followed you, at first. But there's a difference between killing for a just cause and murdering to satisfy the emptiness in your own soul. You need love to remember that, Gideon. To balance it.”

His brother stopped pressing at his temple and stared at him. “I love you. Look how well that's turned out.”

“Cheap shot,” Jacob said. “She's been alive for centuries. You've never hunted her. Why is that? You could have taken her out the first night I saw her, when I was with you. When her husband broke her arm and she was off by herself.”

Gideon picked up his iced tea and took a swallow as if he tasted something bad. “She keeps the bigger monsters in line. The Council she created serves that purpose.”

“No, that wouldn't be enough. It's more personal, Gideon. Why isn't she a target?”

“She saved my life. Once.” He swiped at his mouth with a napkin. “Got knocked out in a fight with a vamp. Nasty one that was killing anything that moved. Apparently one of her and Rex's territory vamps. Woke up in an alley with her sitting next to me and the vamp dead. She nodded to me, walked away. Well”—he shrugged irritably—“after she told me I was an idiot and that I'd have a longer life as a Christian missionary in the Sudan.”