for the malignant words, and I felt my throat constrict in fear.
‘You will address the master with respect, bloodsuck er, or I’ll introduce you to a whole new meaning of pain.’
‘Sigurd, chill out, man. There’s no need to use unnecessary force.’
What ? I thought to myself. Did he really just say that ? A magician showing something close to compassion for my kind. That was unheard of.
‘Let her go. She’s not the one we were looking for , anyway. Let’s try to talk like civilized people.’
I wa s so shocked by his gesture I had no idea how to react.
‘But, Master Calvin, that would be very reckless of us –’
‘Don’t argue with me, Sigurd, please.’
He clearly disliked the idea, but obeyed by saying, ‘As you wish.’ Then to me, ‘Don’t try anything silly, you gnat.’
In a single quick motion, he lifted me into an upright position.
Once he broke his hold on my neck, I seriously considered heading for the hills, so to speak, but thought better of it, as spirits were known to be swifter than vampires.
‘Are you one of Pyrna’s daughters?’
I stayed silent, an ugly grimace on my pale face.
‘Did you not hear the master?’ the genie erupted. ‘Or do you need some encouraging , girl?’
I remembered all the countless stories I knew about spirit possession, and the detailed descriptions of the terrible torture they administered to their victims. That was enough to get me talking. ‘I am.’
‘Which one?’
‘Ranka,’ I replied reluctantly, staring this Calvin guy square in the eye.
‘Well, it’s your lucky day, Ranka,’ he informed me, all the while sizing me up. Suddenly, I couldn’t help thinking he was checking me out. ‘You’re free to go.’
‘What?’ I said, dumbfounded. ‘You will let me live?’
‘Yeah,’ he said, looking a bit – I don’t know – something. A sudden thought crossed my mind: Was the idiot falling for me because of my looks? That was highly unlikely. No, to hit the nail on the head, that was an absolute impossibility.
‘How come we’ re letting her go, Master Calvin?’ Sigurd demanded, palpably outraged.
Calvin, who was probably my age – sixteen – or a little older, seemed to be lost for words, before saying, ‘We wouldn’t want her mother to get to o upset. After all, there are rumors of potential negotiations between our people. If we kill her, we’ll only undo any such possibility.’
With those words, he turned sharply on his heel and strode down the empty street. He stopped after having taken a few steps and added, ‘Don’t do anything as stupid as this again…Ranka.’
Displeased by how things had played out, h is genie eyed me balefully, almost said something, changed his mind and then trailed after his master, shaking his head in disappointment, as well as cursing under his breath.
Chapter 2
I never went back to the club, but instead wrote a text to Andreas saying I’d meet him back at our coven’s residence in Southampton. I had a fake driver’s license that said I was twenty-three years old, and used the falsified documents to get back home in my sister’s Ferrari.
The guards , all dressed in black, parted the gates to my mother’s huge compound upon my arrival, and seconds later, I was bounding up a long flight of stairs.
Just like any other day, o ur entire big ‘family’ was there, having a little party of sorts. Over three hundred members strong, we had the most powerful and influential vampire coven in the world. That said, there was still plenty of competition and rivalry between the families. Our main enemy were the Boltons, a family of only seventy, mostly men. Yet, they somehow always managed to get in our way.
‘I hope you haven’t crashed my car,’ Adisa said, once I crossed the giant entrance hall dotted with bevies of men and women to walk up the staircase leading to my bedroom.
‘Even if I had wrecked it, Mom would just get you a new one, Adisa.’ I chucked her the car keys .
‘You will address the master with respect, bloodsuck er, or I’ll introduce you to a whole new meaning of pain.’
‘Sigurd, chill out, man. There’s no need to use unnecessary force.’
What ? I thought to myself. Did he really just say that ? A magician showing something close to compassion for my kind. That was unheard of.
‘Let her go. She’s not the one we were looking for , anyway. Let’s try to talk like civilized people.’
I wa s so shocked by his gesture I had no idea how to react.
‘But, Master Calvin, that would be very reckless of us –’
‘Don’t argue with me, Sigurd, please.’
He clearly disliked the idea, but obeyed by saying, ‘As you wish.’ Then to me, ‘Don’t try anything silly, you gnat.’
In a single quick motion, he lifted me into an upright position.
Once he broke his hold on my neck, I seriously considered heading for the hills, so to speak, but thought better of it, as spirits were known to be swifter than vampires.
‘Are you one of Pyrna’s daughters?’
I stayed silent, an ugly grimace on my pale face.
‘Did you not hear the master?’ the genie erupted. ‘Or do you need some encouraging , girl?’
I remembered all the countless stories I knew about spirit possession, and the detailed descriptions of the terrible torture they administered to their victims. That was enough to get me talking. ‘I am.’
‘Which one?’
‘Ranka,’ I replied reluctantly, staring this Calvin guy square in the eye.
‘Well, it’s your lucky day, Ranka,’ he informed me, all the while sizing me up. Suddenly, I couldn’t help thinking he was checking me out. ‘You’re free to go.’
‘What?’ I said, dumbfounded. ‘You will let me live?’
‘Yeah,’ he said, looking a bit – I don’t know – something. A sudden thought crossed my mind: Was the idiot falling for me because of my looks? That was highly unlikely. No, to hit the nail on the head, that was an absolute impossibility.
‘How come we’ re letting her go, Master Calvin?’ Sigurd demanded, palpably outraged.
Calvin, who was probably my age – sixteen – or a little older, seemed to be lost for words, before saying, ‘We wouldn’t want her mother to get to o upset. After all, there are rumors of potential negotiations between our people. If we kill her, we’ll only undo any such possibility.’
With those words, he turned sharply on his heel and strode down the empty street. He stopped after having taken a few steps and added, ‘Don’t do anything as stupid as this again…Ranka.’
Displeased by how things had played out, h is genie eyed me balefully, almost said something, changed his mind and then trailed after his master, shaking his head in disappointment, as well as cursing under his breath.
Chapter 2
I never went back to the club, but instead wrote a text to Andreas saying I’d meet him back at our coven’s residence in Southampton. I had a fake driver’s license that said I was twenty-three years old, and used the falsified documents to get back home in my sister’s Ferrari.
The guards , all dressed in black, parted the gates to my mother’s huge compound upon my arrival, and seconds later, I was bounding up a long flight of stairs.
Just like any other day, o ur entire big ‘family’ was there, having a little party of sorts. Over three hundred members strong, we had the most powerful and influential vampire coven in the world. That said, there was still plenty of competition and rivalry between the families. Our main enemy were the Boltons, a family of only seventy, mostly men. Yet, they somehow always managed to get in our way.
‘I hope you haven’t crashed my car,’ Adisa said, once I crossed the giant entrance hall dotted with bevies of men and women to walk up the staircase leading to my bedroom.
‘Even if I had wrecked it, Mom would just get you a new one, Adisa.’ I chucked her the car keys .
Similar Books
