Balance (The Divine, Book One) (19 page)

A vampiress after my own heart.
I felt an
instant unknown kinship with Merov’s daughter. We were both in a vast minority
after all.

“Is
she here?” I asked him. “I’m most interested in learning more about her ideas
for survival without our primary food source.”

He
laughed. “Do you have any idea how much of my money she’s sunk into researching
vampire physiology, trying to figure out exactly what’s in human blood that we
need to survive? She’s even had me try some of her sample synthetics. You could
live on it, but it tastes like sewage. And that’s ignoring the fact that such a
thing would put me out of business. Can you believe I’m financing my own
destruction?”

He
started leading me through the throng, acknowledging all of the guests who
noticed him. When they saw him coming, they would turn, fall to one knee, and
bow their head.

“Besides,”
he continued, “humans are meant to be cattle to us. We’re superior in every
way, am I right?”

I
wanted to crush his melon head between my hands. “Right,” I said instead.

“Anyway,
she hasn’t shown up yet. She doesn’t know about the party, so I’m hopeful that
she’ll respect her father’s wishes for once. She’s a handful, but she’s my only
child and I love her as much as my cold heart will allow.”

He
was taking me past the gathering, towards the more private living spaces on the
northern end of the apartment.

“I
wouldn’t know,” I said. “I have never had a desire for offspring.”

He
nodded at the two burly guards as he brought me past them and into a long
hallway. Looking at them as I passed, I realized they weren’t vampires. I felt
a small stirring in my soul. Weres.

“I
didn’t either,” Merov said. “Reyka’s mother was a Succubus. She tricked me into
it. At first, I was so angry I almost had her killed. Then, I decided to wait
until my little girl was born. I was curious about what kind of demon the union
would produce. After I saw her, I claimed her as my own, and removed her
mother’s head myself. I think that’s where she gets her soft spot for humans.
Her mother always had a thing for them. She said they were most creative.”

Merov
stopped at a set of double-doors near the end of the long hallway, then fumbled
around in his pants pockets, looking for the keys.

“Anyway,
enough about my daughter. If you’d like I can introduce you when she arrives.
What I’d really like to speak with you about is my interest in working out a
trade agreement. I have a number of parties interested in getting their fangs
on a good European source. My servants have told me you have quite a
reputation, and that you are a mystery to most.”

“I
try to keep a low profile,” I agreed. “The element of surprise can be quite
powerful.”

He
finally found what he was looking for, a small coin that he pressed against a
flat panel attached to one of the doors. It beeped, and the door unlocked.

“That’s
how I came to power here,” he said. “This apartment used to belong to another,
before I claimed it and threw him from the roof. But not before I took this.”

He held
up the small coin. It wasn’t a coin after all, but a round piece of glass with
the edge of a finger nestled inside. He needed the prior inhabitant’s
fingerprint to get into the room.

He
was about to push the door open when one of the were guards stepped up to us.
“Pardon me sirs,” he said. He sounded like he was chewing on gravel. “Mr.
Solen, your daughter has arrived.”

Merov
sighed. “Perfect timing as usual,” he said, turning to me. “We will talk again
later, after the party.”

It
wasn’t a suggestion, but a command. He didn’t wait for me to react. He turned
and started walking back towards the elevators, leaving me standing there with
the were. He ushered me back to the party.

When
I stepped back out into the main reception area I looked up to try to catch a
glimpse of Merov’s daughter Reyka. I could see Merov making his way up the
steps, but the angle was no good to see more than a few feet past the landing.
Oh well, I could wait. Merov had said he would introduce us. I moved into the
crowd, focusing my attention on the conversations swirling around me.

“It’s
just ridiculous,” one of the vampires was saying to a group of five or six.
“The market is just flooded with poor quality. Every vampire who has ever
hunted is trying to start their own exchange service, and they think that we
can’t tell the difference between a debutante and a prostitute.”

“Give
me an angel any day,” his companion said. She looked like she was fifty or
sixty years old, but solid as a rock. “I still remember the last time I had an
angel. It cost me a fortune, but it was so worth it.”

“I
heard the Masters have a new weapon in the war,” said a third. This one got my
attention. “Some kind of amulet that makes the wearer completely
indestructible.”

The
others expressed their shock and awe. “Where did they get it from?” asked the
older vampire woman.

I
didn’t get to hear the response. An immediate hush fell over the whole crowd,
and they turned as one to face the landing. I was the odd man out, not catching
on to whatever invisible signal had been sent. I turned to look just as they
all shouted, “Surprise!”

It
sure was a surprise. Reyka was Rebecca.

She
was stunning in a perfect little black dress and black pumps, her long black hair
piled up on top of her head. The contrast of all of the black against her white
skin accentuated everything about her perfect form, and it almost drove me to
the point of distraction. I could tell by her reaction that she was less than
pleased with the surprise. Not that any of the other attendees would have
noticed, because she was an expert at faking the enthusiasm. I knew she was
lying though, as she laughed and gave her father a big hug.

He
turned her and faced her back out to the gathering below, and they applauded
her. Stealing glances, I saw the feeling was mutual. The crowd wasn’t cheering
for Rebecca. They were cheering because Merov expected them to cheer. To them,
Rebecca was every bit the outcast she had explained herself to be. I could guess
why she had given me an alternate name.

After
a satisfactory length of applause, Merov raised his hand to quiet the
gathering. Once he had achieved silence, he took Rebecca by the hands and spoke
to her loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“My
dearest daughter,” he said. “Every year as this day comes I am so very grateful
that you were brought into my world. You’re smile is the blood on which I
thrive.”

Merov
motioned with his head, and Tarly stepped over, holding a small gilded box.
Merov let go of his daughter’s hands and took the box from the servant, holding
it out to her and opening it. I couldn’t see the contents, so I watched her
reaction instead - surprise, confusion, and a hint of disgust? Those were her
real feelings. To her father, she showed only joy.

Merov
reached into the box with one hand and withdrew a long silver necklace, at the
end of which hung a crystal. It looked red from the distance, but I knew the
crystal was clear. The red came from the blood trapped inside. Just for
confirmation, I reached into my tuxedo pocket and withdrew the business end of
the necklace I had taken from Ulnyx. It was a near perfect match.

“May
you always stay safe from harm,” he said as he placed it over her head. “Happy
birthday dear.”

The
applause started up again and I could almost feel Rebecca cringing at the pomp
of it all. She turned and waved at the crowd, holding up the crystal for them
all to get a better look at her gift. That was when I felt her eyes meet mine,
and my heart fell out of my chest. She recognized me.

I had
an option to either be bold or submissive. I went for bold, keeping my eyes
locked on hers, letting them tell her that I knew that she knew it was me. I
saw a slight smile crease the corner of her lip, so I winked at her. She winked
back, then turned and gave her father a big hug. They talked privately for a
minute, and then started down the steps. On the way, Rebecca not-too-subtly
pointed at me and asked him who I was. I gave them my best bow.

“Stefan,”
Merov said as he reached the bottom of the stairs, Rebecca on his arm. “I’d
like you to meet my daughter, Reyka.”

Rebecca
unhooked herself and held her hand forward. I dropped to my knee and kissed it,
dizzied by the smell of her.

“A
pleasure,” I said as I rose back to somewhat shaky feet. She was smiling, a
beautiful, honest smile. She really was happy to see me.

“Sir
Giovanni,” she said with a hint of playfulness. “You are too kind.”

“Nonsense,”
Merov said. “You are always a pleasure my dear. If you don’t mind, I have some
other people I need to speak with. Stefan, take good care of my daughter.”
Again with the command.

“As
you wish, Sir Solen,” I replied. Merov leaned up to kiss Rebecca on the cheek,
and then wandered off to speak with some of the other guests. “What’s with
that?” I whispered to her as soon as he was out of range.

She
leaned in close so we could speak without being overheard. Her proximity was
intoxicating. Half-succubus, I remembered. “He’s trying to Command you,” she
said. “He doesn’t know you’re resistant to demonic possession.”

There
went the half-succubus excuse. She was giving me heart palpitations on her own
merit. It had to be the perfume.

“What
are you doing here?” she asked. “Do you know what will happen if anyone figures
out who or what you are?”

“Your
necklace,” I said.

She
looked down at it.
“What about it?”

“That’s
what I’m doing here. I’d tell you more, but you aren’t on my side. Needless to
say, it’s worth the risk to me. Finding you here is an unexpected bonus.”

I
hadn’t intended to say the last part out loud, but it found its way through my
lips of its own accord. Rebecca’s face flushed.

“Your
father was very eager to have us meet,” I said, loud enough for those nearby to
hear. I didn’t want anyone to suspect we already knew one another.

“My
father is trying to find me a suitable mate,” she said. There went my heart
again, right into my throat. “He knows none of the meat around here can control
me.”

“Nor
should they seek to,” I told her. “He was telling me of the research you are conducting.
Perhaps these lesser nosferatu find the idea uninspired, but I think it is a
fascinating endeavor.” I could tell she was trying not to laugh at my faux
snobbishness.

She
sighed a sigh that could launch a thousand ships. “You have no idea how
refreshing it is to speak to someone with vision, Sir Giovanni.”

I
could feel the sets of eyes on me, trying to figure out
who
the fruitcake that thought not killing humans for food was. Our conversation
was momentarily interrupted when the elevator opened again and a human band
rushed out, set up their instruments on the landing, and began playing.

“I
hate when he does that,” she said to me. I assumed Merov had
Commanded
the band to come and play, and they had literally jumped at the opportunity.

“Shall
we Miss Solen?” I asked, holding out my arm to lead her to where a makeshift
dance floor was opening around the fountain.

She
reached out and took it, the warmth of her touch sending a hot shiver down my
entire arm. My prom date with Carly hadn’t been a total waste.

I
don’t know what the song was, or even if there was music. When Rebecca looked
at me, all I could see was her face. When she spoke, all I could hear was her
voice. She hadn’t affected me like this the last time we met, but maybe I had
been too afraid to take full notice of her. We moved with such fluid grace it
was
like we were destined to be dance partners. Her
closeness felt so natural, so perfect.

“How
did you know who I was as soon as you saw me?” I asked her. The dance had
afforded us the opportunity to get super close, and the music aided in drowning
out any possibility of being overheard.

“Your
glamour doesn’t work on me,” she replied.
“Didn’t the Outcast
tell you not all demons could be tricked?”

“Because
of your mother? I seem to be doing okay with the rest of the room.”

“My
father told you about her?” She seemed surprised. “He must like you.”

I
spun her around and expertly regained the step, leading her forward without
hesitation. “He likes who he thinks I am, a big shot Lord from Venice. You know
what he did to your mother?”

I
felt her grip tighten on me, threatening to break my skin. “I know,” she said,
the anger obvious in her voice. “He’s never tried to keep it a secret. He’s
quite proud of himself. Once a succubus has you, it’s very difficult to
escape.”

“And
..
.”

“And
what? He’s my father. I am obligated to either obey, or overthrow. There is no
middle ground.”

“Overthrow?”
I knew what the word meant. I knew what it sounded like. It was just weird to
hear someone say it about
their
family.