The Vampire Evolution Trilogy (Book 3): Blood of Gold Read online

Actually, now that he thought about it, Rod had heard the name Awbrey. The street they were on was Awbrey Lane. When he’d gone around to the neighbors to introduce himself and try to buy livestock, more than one of them had said not to bother with the guy at the end of the street, that he’d just slam the door in his face. “Lee Awbrey thinks he owns this street because it all used to belong to his family,” one of them had said. “It’s nobody’s fault but his own that he sold everything to buy more booze.”

  Rod had taken their advice and had never gone to the house in the overgrown lot at the dead end of Awbrey Lane.

  “Oh, Stephen!” Rod said, as if he’d just remembered the name. “He’s the guy renting this place to us.”

  Lee Awbrey had calmed down a little, and now looked slightly puzzled.

  “Who is it, dear?” Rod heard a voice call from the other room. Simone came around the corner, and Rod saw her as Awbrey must have seen her: tall and sleek, with shining black hair and dark eyes, looking like an exotic flower in the dirt and grime of the countryside. She walked up beside him and took his arm, as if they were a long-established couple. Rod really liked the sensation. It was easy for him to imagine it was true, that they were a comfortable couple who could read each other, who could finish each other’s sentences.

  “This is our neighbor, Lee Awbrey. He’s the uncle of the fellow who rented this place to us,” Rod explained.

  “Nice to meet you, sir,” she said sweetly.

  “Like hell!” Awbrey was flaring up again. “He’d have told me.”

  Simone’s voice hardened. “I don’t see what business it is of yours, mister.”

  At the tone of her voice, Awbrey seemed to go a little crazy. “It is my business, you little bitch!” he shouted. “As soon as I can get ahold of Stephen, I’m coming back. And next time I’m bringing my shotgun!”

  “Hey, hey, no need to call her names,” Rod was saying when Awbrey surged toward him, all two hundred fifty pounds of him, and pushed Rod against the door. Rod heard a hiss, and saw out of the corner of his eye that Simone had extended her fangs and claws, then quickly retracted them.

  The big man let go of him abruptly. “I… uh, I’m sorry,” he said to Rod. His eyes flicked toward Simone in fear. He couldn’t have seen her split-second transformation, but he must have sensed something.

  Awbrey backed away. “I’ll get ahold of Stephen and see if we can’t clear all this up,” he mumbled, then turned and hurried off.

  “Do you think he saw?” Simone asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Rod said. “But I think humans have a sense of when something supernatural is happening.”

  “I’m sorry. I think I made things worse. I saw how, when you confronted him, he seemed to back down, so I tried the same thing.”

  “Yeah, but the difference is, you’re a woman. I don’t think this guy likes women.”

  They went back to the kitchen and sat down at the table. They sat in silence for a few moments, then Simone reached out and took Rod’s hand. “I’m sorry,” she said again. “For everything. I never should have dragged you into this. You should get out of here while you can.”

  He squeezed her hand. Her expression made him wonder. She didn’t look like she really wanted him to go, he realized. She looked like she wanted him to…

  He leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips.

  She grabbed his neck and kept him there, pressing her mouth more tightly to his. Rod didn’t know how long they spent awkwardly bent toward each other, kissing; it seemed like hours, but when it was over, it seemed like only a moment had gone by.

  Simone smiled. “I’m glad we finally did that.”

  “Me to,” he said. “I mean, I’ve been wanting to.”

  “I know, Rod. Thanks for waiting until I was ready.”

  There was nothing to do after that but to stand and hug, and the hug turned into another kiss. Rod was holding Simone so tightly that he was lifting her an inch off the ground. Realizing this, he started shuffling toward the bedroom, his lips still locked on hers. She started to guffaw into his mouth, and he began laughing too, their lips still locked together as they trembled with laughter.

  He stumbled to the bedroom and fell backward on the bed with Simone on top of him. They stopped laughing then and looked deep into each other’s eyes. To Rod, it was if they were one set of eyes, their souls mirroring each other.

  We really should get out of here, he thought. We don’t have time for this.

  But when she pulled at his shirt, he let her draw it over his head. Then it was his turn to take off her shirt. They fondled each other for a while, bare skin to bare skin, then broke apart and eagerly scrambled out of the rest of their clothing.

  The bed was old and it creaked, and they started laughing again, at the absurd rhythm of the squeaks, but they didn’t stop.

  #

  “What do we do now?” Simone asked after a long silence in the afterglow of their love.

  “I think we’ll have to leave,” Rod said. “As soon as we can.”

  There was, of course, another solution. They were both thinking it. Rod was proud of her for not mentioning the option of tracking down Lee Awbrey and silencing him. Rod could never have followed through with that, but he didn’t know about Simone. He loved her with all his heart, but she was a vampire, and though he felt safe with her, he couldn’t be completely sure how she might react to anyone else.

  “What about Patty and Laura?” she asked. “What if they come back?”

  “We can try to leave a note. Somewhere only they could find it.”

  Again they fell silent, both of them racking their brains trying to figure out a solution.

  “All right,” Simone said finally. “I think you’re right. We have to leave. But where do we go?”

  “We’ll go to my house,” Rod said. “We’ll be left alone there. I hardly know my neighbors.”

  Simone got up and started putting on her clothes. Rod watched her, still not believing his luck in finding such a beautiful girl. She glanced back at him shyly. “I’ll get ready. We can leave tonight.”

  He nodded reluctantly, then followed her example and started dressing.

  #

  The knock at the door came before they were ready to leave. Simone wanted at least a couple of hours of darkness to escape in, but they were still scrambling around for a place in the shadows where they could leave a note. They had just decided on the closet, which they knew Laura would check if the two girls returned together. At the sound of insistent knocking, they exchanged glances and, without a word, moved quickly and quietly toward the back door. Rod opened it, and they headed for the stand of trees. A voice out of nowhere spoke directly into his ear. “Hey, don’t leave yet.”

  They whirled around. A young man––or rather, a vampire who looked like a young man––was standing only a few feet away. Simone snarled, which made the stranger jump back. “I’m not here to fight,” he said, stepping out of the darkness of the trees. He was kind of nerdy-looking, with dark, shaggy hair and heavy black-rimmed glasses. “No need for violence!” he said. “We’re on your side!”

  From the direction of the house, a second vampire emerged. Even in the darkness, Rod could make out her features. She was tall, with long, wavy blonde hair, and pale skin and eyes. She looked grim, and when she tried to put on a reassuring smile, it was anything but. “Terrill sent us,” she said.

  “Terrill?” Simone looked puzzled, but Rod quickly broke in.

  “Thank God you came!” he said with relief.

  “Don’t thank God,” the male vampire said. “Thank Terrill.”

  The tall female vampire rolled her eyes. “Yeah, thank Terrill, who had to be convinced by me that we needed to investigate. Could you give it a rest, Marc? Terrill isn’t some revered being, he’s just like us.”

  The vampire she’d called Marc didn’t seem convinced. He shook his head. “Someday you’ll see, Clarkson. He is nothing like us.”

  “I still don�
��t understand,” Simone said. “Who are you, and why are you here?”

  Rod put his arm around her waist. “Remember when I told you of The Testament of Michael? How there was a powerful vampire who preached coexistence with mankind? I left him a message on the Internet. I hoped if Terrill was as powerful as he was rumored to be, he’d find us.”

  Clarkson nodded. “I found your blog.”

  “On the Internet?” Simone repeated doubtfully. Even though she had spent hours exploring Rod’s cellphone apps, it was clear she still didn’t get how far-reaching the technology was that had developed while she was a captive. But even the relatively tech-savvy Rod couldn’t help but be impressed by how quickly the vampires had found them.

  “If we found you, others can too,” Clarkson said, all business. “The message mentioned there were three women. Where are the other two?”

  “They’re gone,” Rod said. “I’m not sure they would have wanted to join us anyway, but we were planning to leave them a message.”

  Clarkson nodded. “Hurry,” she said. “When you’re ready, come with us.” She walked toward the front of the house, followed by Marc. There was a big black SUV parked in front, with tinted windows, which was a good thing, since dawn was only an hour away.

  Just as Clarkson’s hand reached for the door handle, a loud voice boomed at them from near the doorway of the house. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  Rod turned and instinctively tried to shield Simone when he saw Awbrey standing there pointing a shotgun at them. Simone gently pushed him to one side and stood in front of him instead, which made more sense, he admitted to himself.

  Awbrey edged around them so he could get a clear shot at all of them. Clarkson tensed, and for a moment, Rod wondered if she would attack. From what he understood, these Golden Vampires wouldn’t kill humans. But what about in self-defense? he wondered.

  “I called my nephew,” Awbrey said. “Stephen’s never heard of you. You’re squatters. So I’m thinking you owe us some rent money.”

  “We’d gladly pay you,” Rod said, “but if we had any money, we wouldn’t have been squatting.”

  Awbrey snorted. “Worthless pieces of shit.” He put the shotgun under one arm and fumbled with a cellphone. “Why don’t we let the sheriff sort it all out, then? You can work for the county for a while in an orange jumpsuit, and we’ll garnish your wages.”

  “Hello, dispatch? I got a situation here. I g-” His voice cut off abruptly and a strange look came over his face. He made a gargling sound, and a gush of blood flowed out of his mouth. He dropped to the ground, unmoving, his head semi-detached from his neck.

  From the darkness behind him emerged a vampire who was nearly as massive as Awbrey, but taller, wider in the chest and narrower in the waist.

  Simone gasped. “The Monster!”

  Chapter 16

  Hoss was cloistered in his hotel, which was on the opposite side of London from the Council of Vampires’ offices and chambers. It was obvious to him now that the distance was deliberate. While Peterson was paying for the lodgings and was constantly telling Hoss how important his “New World” viewpoint was, the old vampire clearly had no intention of letting him get mixed up in politics, whether or not he was a Council member.

  New World? Hoss thought. How is America new to anyone who isn’t centuries old? It’s ridiculous.

  He’d asked to check out the IT services at the hotel, and Peterson had looked at him as if he had no idea what Hoss was talking about. “Oh, computers!” he’d finally said. “I think we have a room for that somewhere around here.”

  After exploring the lower warrens of the skyscraper, Hoss found the little room on his own.

  He entered quietly, stood in the back and watched the vampires there. It felt so familiar to him, as if he’d finally come home. They were so engrossed in their work that they didn’t notice him at first. Finally, the tall, rawboned vampire who was walking from station to station supervising their efforts turned around. He was dark-haired and lanky, and wore loose-fitting shorts and a baggy T-shirt, which made him look even thinner. He was growing a beard, but it looked more like he’d accidentally forgotten to shave than a deliberate effort.

  When he saw Hoss, he literally jumped in surprise. “Who the hell are you?” he shouted.

  “My name is Hoss.”

  “As in Councilor Hoss?” The lanky vampire stared at him suspiciously. “The newly elected councilor from America?”

  “That’s me,” Hoss said.

  “Wow,” the vampire said. “You’re the first one to ever visit us.”

  Then Hoss asked a question about some coding one of the vampires was doing. The IT guy looked surprised, but eagerly answered. The conversation quickly evolved into technicalities. Time flew by, and before Hoss knew it, it was quitting time for the IT gang. The tall vampire stuck out his hand. “I’m Jared,” he said. “Come by any time, Councilor Hoss. I think you’re the first lord high mucky-muck to understand what’s going on in the world.”

  So it was that Hoss embedded himself with the group of young vampires, who were frustrated and angry at being ignored by the old guard.

  “So ignore them back,” Hoss said after a few nights of listening to the IT gang complain. “Let’s do what needs to be done, and to hell with asking permission. I’m a Council member. I’ll take the heat.”

  It was as if he’d freed them from chains. They had a thousand ideas, some good, some bad: some of them were fully fleshed out and only awaiting permission to be implemented. Hoss was happy to provide that permission. “Information is always good,” he said. “Go ahead.” Of course, he took great pains to make sure none of this activity could be traced back to its source. But little by little, the Rules of Vampire were reaching a wider and wider audience, promulgated throughout social networks and going viral in exponential leaps.

  Public surveys were showing that a larger and larger segment of the population was beginning to believe that vampires were real. Hoss had decided they couldn’t stop that; there was too much hard evidence out there. Sure, they’d existed in secret for most of history, but that was before camera phones. There were dozens of very convincing YouTube videos from the Crescent City incident alone.

  Hoss had realized that though they couldn’t hide their existence any longer, they could try to shape how vampires were perceived.

  He wasn’t going to promise that vampires were harmless to humans; it would be many centuries, if ever, before most vampires could peacefully coexist with humans. It was the rare vampire who could turn Golden. Even Hoss had little inclination to follow Terrill’s lead. He liked feeding on humans too much. So they couldn’t pretend to be innocent. That was out. The message Hoss tried to shape was that vampires weren’t numerous enough or dangerous enough for most humans to be worried about. He argued, through a thousand Internet sock puppets and proxies, that if people took precautions to avoid vampires, vampires would probably avoid them. Becoming the victim of a vampire attack was like being attacked by a cougar while out jogging: the chances were so slim that you might as well not worry about it.

  Of course, even as he argued this, Hoss was out on the town every night, looking for victims. He felt a twinge of guilt, but not enough to stop doing it. He was being practical. Vampires had been discovered, vampires were going to feed; there was no getting around that. The Rules of Vampire were the best way to keep the situation from getting out of control.

  His two young friends, Jimmy and Pete, were out with some of the younger vampires every night, painting the town red––literally. Jodie was even more voracious. She still crawled into Hoss’s bed at night, but he was certain that he was only one among many to whom she granted her favors. That was all right. He was losing interest in her. She was a simple soul, vicious and insatiable. If it weren’t for him, she probably would have gone Wildering. When Jimmy began paying more and more attention to her, Hoss signaled that it was fine with him.

  Sometimes Combs asked him over. At a sumpt
uous banquet table, he was fed a nice young victim, one who was usually completely intoxicated or drugged so he could get a good buzz on.

  “Why do we have to kill them?” he asked one night. “Why can’t we just take their blood?”

  “Have you ever tried?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “And how did that go?”

  “I couldn’t stop feeding once I started,” Hoss admitted.

  “We are vampire,” Combs said simply.

  They went back to eating the prostitute, whom Combs or one of his surrogates had picked up off a local street corner. She was diseased, but such things didn’t seem to affect vampires and indeed added a little flavor to the meal. Hoss wondered if vampires had evolved to feed off less-fortunate humans, to cull the herd, which was beneficial to both vampire and human.

  “I’ve been watching your activity online,” Combs said, looking up and wiping his mouth. “I approve. However, I think you need to be careful. Most of the old vampires don’t completely understand this new way of exchanging information. They might think that you’re breaking the Rules of Vampire.”

  “I doubt they’ll even notice,” Hoss said. “I think Peterson wakes up at dusk and asks his servants to bring around the horse and buggy.”

  Combs laughed. “He probably does. But then he fully wakes up and gets into his Ferrari. Don’t underestimate us old vampires. Over the centuries, we’ve had to learn to adjust to change. Fitzsimmons especially has become very adept with the new technologies.”

  “Then Fitzsimmons had better damn well return from wherever he is,” Hoss said. “He should be taking care of business. Peterson has done nothing. He seems to only care about consolidating his personal power.”

  “It’s possible Fitzsimmons can’t return,” Combs said.

  “What do you mean? You’ve hinted at this before. If you know something, just tell me.”

  “As you said, young Hoss, Peterson is consolidating his power. How do you suppose he is doing that? And why is Fitzsimmons letting him?”