“And a margarita which you chugged like a man in a desert finally tasting water. Followed by a bloody Mary that you drank half of before giving it to the vampire. So, yes, until you sober up more.”
“I can still pool you under the table, sir,” I replied. Bryon just nodded without listening as he gathered my empty glasses. Lucien watched our interaction with a twinge of jealousy in his eyes. I laid my head on his shoulder, snapping him from his thoughts. “How are vampires made?”
He took a moment to reply, most likely shocked by my sudden question. It was the first thing that had come to my mind in my drunken state. Curiosity had been a major factor since none of this new world had really been explained besides random information overloads at certain times.
I had learned of vampires, werewolves, witches, different fae and hunters so far, but I knew there had to be much more to Shadowhaven beyond those groups. I was curious about how they came to be, how many were there, what variations were there and everything beyond.
Lucien finally responded, “Vampires are made by the exchange of blood. Your Hollywood films have gotten that part right, but it’s deeper than that as well. We share a part of ourselves when we turn someone, part of our essence and many times these made vampires will take on the characteristics of their maker. Shadowhaven makes sure that such things are monitored to keep certain people from being turned. Those that show signs of aggression in their human lives will not be allowed to turn because their aggression will only be magnetized. And for obvious reasons children cannot be turned.”
“I feel as though that part is self-explanatory as to why,” I agreed. I lifted my head from his shoulder to rest it on my hand on the bar counter. “Can you only make a human into a pure blood by being a coven leader? Or is there another way?”
“I’m not turning you today, if that’s what you’re asking,” Lucien teased with a crooked smile. Something flashed in his eyes, as if he was trying to deflect the answer with his charms.
“Tell me. Is it bad?”
Dropping his smile, he furrowed his brows in thought. “Yes and no. The only other way is for a pure blood vampire to relinquish their magical essence during transition. It’s only considered taboo because losing that part of yourself is irreversible. You feel that ember inside of you when you tap into your magic? That warmth, imagine it gone forever and living your entire existence without it. They will remain a pure blood, but without that magic essence, they will always feel that missing piece. I have seen some vampires take their own lives over the absence. That is why we will wait until I take over the coven.”
I nodded, my fingers on my necklace as I envisioned the feeling he described. The cold that would take over my body without the warmth of magic would be agonizing and I had only held it for a couple weeks.
All conversation came to a sudden halt as the doors to the Saddleback flew open by Henry, the mailman, with eyes crazed. Bryon rushed across the bar to him, checking to see if he was fine, but Henry pushed him off.
“There was another attack!”
The room filled with ‘what, when, who’ and the likes until someone let out a splitting whistle that silenced it all. When the room fully quieted, Bryon was still waiting for Henry to catch his breath to ask, “Who was it, Henry?”
“Dr. Bailey. Her mouth was sewn shut. They took her heart. It was—.” Henry began breaking down into tears. I had never seen Henry so freaked out before. Nothing seemed to truly bring his spirits down, but this had been so bad that he could not wear his normal smile.
“She was a Weaver,” Lucien whispered in my ear. “Hunters usually kill Weavers in such a fashion, but Weavers are passive. They only feed on pain, but never inflict it. They’re also hard to kill. It had to be someone she trusted.”
That hardly narrows down the list.
Lucien pulled me a little closer, as if scared the killer would come for me next. The room then exploded into chaos as many left to return home while others began crying with Henry as they felt the loss of another in our town. Dr. Bailey would make that the fifth victim in this killing spree. I felt as if we were drawing to a close.
Who would be the final victim? Would we be able to find the person before it was too late?
The questions kept building in my mind until Lucien had to help me out of the bar. He told me words of comfort as he sat me at one of the outside tables.
“Mel, breathe, we will find the killer if the authorities don’t. I will make sure this all comes to an end. If you need comfort, find comfort in that.”
I nodded, my breathing ragged. Lucien was here. Lucien would protect me. Lucien would protect those I cared about. I trusted that and I trusted him. But, why did I feel so hollow all of a sudden? As if none of his comfort could penetrate the anxiety I felt within the emptiness inside me.
“Can you close the tab with Bryon? Here, use my card.” I tried to pull out my card, but he placed a hand over mine to stop me.
When our eyes met, he gave me a soft kiss and left me there with the truck keys in case I wanted to wait for him there. I decided to do just that, sliding into the passenger seat with a sigh. When I stretched across the seat to start the truck, I noticed a map wedged between the middle and driver’s seat.
Curious, I retrieved it.
I looked at the map, red circles in every place a body was found, even Dr. Bailey’s office was circled.
Why did my dad have this?How could he know that Dr. Bailey would die?
I knew the answer, but I needed more proof. My dad’s truck came with GPS so the map was already a red flag.
I pulled up the GPS to find that the last place he visited had in fact been Dr. Bailey. I continued to scroll until every piece of evidence was laid in front of me and I could no longer deny the truth.
Chapter Nineteen
Melinda
