And somewhere deep inside of me, a memory twitched. I'd seen him do that once before, but that time he'd done it to save my life.
From within the room, there was a weird ripping, popping sound, then the screaming began. High, terrible screaming.
God, I said telepathically, what the hell did you just do?
I showed them just what an old one is capable of. I do not believe Vincenta will cause you any more problems.
Did you have to kill one of them to do it? But even as I said that, I knew it was a stupid question. If Vinny was beginning to test the Directorate's authority and control, then yeah, something drastic had to be done. And whether I liked to admit it or not, the Directorate maintained authority in this city - and others - by the knowledge that they would do whatever it took to hunt down those who went against the rules.
Vinny was an emo vampire, and her methods of rebellion were far subtler - and possibly more dangerous - than regular blood vampires. We couldn't afford to have her flexing her muscles when the city was already in turmoil.
I killed the one armed with silver who was standing in the shadows of the wall curtains. It wasn't one of her main concubines.
I'm sure Vinny will appreciate that consideration.
The sarcasm in my mental voice had his lips briefly twitching, but there was little amusement in his tone as he glanced at the somewhat paler guard and said, "Open the door, or I will do it for you."
The guard stepped back and opened the door. Quinn held out his hand and added, "Give me the gun and the extra bullets."
The note of command was in his voice and the girl obeyed without question. Those bullets were silver. I felt the burn of them as Quinn pocketed both them and the weapon.
I stepped inside the warm room, my gaze sweeping the velvet lushness before stopping at what could only be described as an explosion of flesh, blood, and gore. There was no bones, no body parts, just an oozing, awful mess.
He'd vaporized her.
God.
Just...
God.
How on Earth could you do that to another living being? I flicked my gaze across to Vinny and her cozy little set up down the far end of the room. If I was shocked, then Vinny and her entourage were positively scared shitless.
And with good reason.
Damn it, Quinn, just how long have you been concealing this little ability from me?
I was born with it. It is a gift - he paused, then added darkly - or a curse of my Aedh heritage. I do not use it much, because it has severe consequences.
Yeah. I was looking at the dripping remains of them. And yet... I've seen you do something like this before?
He hesitated. Yes. A while ago, when you first started dating Kellen. One of the chameleons from Starke's underground labs came after you.
Chameleons were a rare breed of non humans who could take on any background and literally become a part of it. They were also ferocious flesh-eaters and extremely hard to kill.
How come I've only just remembered it? Or is that a stupid question?
Our relationship was still very tenuous, he said gently, I did not wish to scare you away.
I told you to keep out of my head.
And I have. As I said, this was a while ago. Before you civilized me.
I snorted softly. As if there was ever a hope of civilizing this particular vampire. He might have an urbane and polished front, but underneath he was still very much a powder keg - and just as dangerous if handled the wrong way.
And yet I felt safer with him than I ever would with Kye.
I kept striding forward. Vinny was attended by her usual passel of toga-clad teenagers, but this time the clothing of those nearest the curtain bore the splattered remains of what had once been human. Or non-human. Their faces were positively green, and I guessed it was only Vinny's influence that was keeping them in the room. There was no caressing of their master's skin, no languid eyes or secretive little smiles. It had all been annihilated by the show of Quinn's power.
Vinny had definitely paled, and her normally seductive lips were little more than thin slashes, but the abject terror I'd glimpsed earlier was gone. She met my gaze squarely and there was now a hint of steel in the brown of her eyes.
She might still be scared shitless, but she wasn't about to let on to her fledglings or us.
And for that, I had to admire her.
I stopped several feet in front of her, with Quinn standing just behind me, his breath stirring the little hairs on my neck.
"I told you once before never to mess with the Directorate, Vinny. Now you know the consequences."
She glared balefully at me for several seconds, then pointed with her chin at the man behind me. "He's not Directorate. "
"He's an advisor, so that makes him one of us." I hesitated, then added, "One fledgling dead is better than the whole nest. And trust me, that is currently an option if the Melbourne council is informed of your recent activities."
"I have no idea what you mean."
She was lying. I could taste it, even if I couldn't see it in her expression. And while there was little to be seen in her face, the toga clad teenagers behind her rustled nervously. Pale fingers reached out and began to caress Vinny's arms and shoulders, and a gentle hum of energy tinged the air.
I wondered if they were reassuring themselves or Vinny, but didn't really care enough to ask. Not when there were more important questions.
"I'm talking about your association with the man calling himself Carlos Martez."
"I have no idea who - "
"Vinny, he was seen both entering and leaving your building last night, and we all know no one can get in here without your permission."
"He was merely here paying his respects. There is nothing sinister in that, guardian."
She changed tact as swiftly as a tiger snake, and was probably just as deadly. Or would have been, if Quinn wasn't standing behind me.
"Except for the fact that Martez has just tried to kill a Directorate employee."
"He wouldn't do that. You're mistaken."
"I was there, Vinny. I saw him."
Amusement flared briefly in her eyes. "If you were there, you should have stopped him."
"It's hard to stop someone when they can escape through mirrors."
"If you've come to me for information about how to destroy such a person, I'm afraid you're out of luck. I have no idea."
Quinn didn't move, but his power whipped out again. This time, it was the barb of telepathy. Somewhere behind us a door slammed, the sound echoing across the silence.
"Do tell your people not to try and sneak up behind us," Quinn said mildly. "I'd hate to kill any more of your concubines."
Vinny's fingers clenched. With a visible effort, she flexed them again. "I've already said I can't help, so I don't understand why you are still here."
"Vinny dearest, we haven't even started." I stepped forward, grabbed the front of her gown, and yanked her out of her chair and away from the caressing, calming influence of the teenagers. She yelped and briefly struggled, her pale arms flying. I ducked the blows and shook her a little more. "Carlos Martez died over five years ago. Tell me who has assumed his identity."
"I don't - "
I shook her again, hard enough to rattle her teeth. "One of your fledglings was a witness, so you knew Martez was dead. Who did you deal that information to?"
"I can't," she said, fury mixing with fear in her eyes. "He'll kill me."
"And the Directorate will kill you if you don't," I commented. "So chose which side of the bed you want to lie on, Vinny, because these games of yours are getting a little tiresome."
Something flickered through her eyes. The snake was twisting yet again. "He is my creator. I had no choice in doing what he said."
Is that true? I asked, without turning to look at Quinn. Without my full attention, the serpent I held just might strike, even with Quinn at my back.
To a degree, yes. The power of the creator over the fledgling lessens with time, but Vinny is not old enough to be totally free of his influence.
"Give me a name, Vinny."
She hesitated, then said, "Ammon Nasser."
The man the council had all but destroyed. He obviously had to be similar in looks to Martez to be able to maintain the fraud for so long. "And why did he come here?"
"Because this is my territory. It is considered polite to state one's aims when entering the territory of another."
Also true, up to a point, Quinn said. Vampires tend to tolerate other vamps within their hunting grounds if they are not causing problems.
I knew you guys were territorial, but I didn't think it actually meant having defined territories.
Why do you think there is such a wide spread of vampires? Unlike werewolves, we can not easily live in each other's shadow.
Which had to make life in a nest interesting. Obviously, though, emo vamps had no such problems. To Vinny, I said, "Would you even have a say in him setting up another nest given you're one of his creations?" Surprise flitted through her eyes, and I smiled grimly. "Yes, we know all about it. The council is not so staid and set in their ways that they wouldn't feed the Directorate information when someone is killing them off."
Yeah, they totally wouldn't, Quinn said, his amusement running through my mind - a river of warmth that made me want to smile.
"I did warn him of that danger," Vinny said, her sincerity almost believable. Almost. "I tried to talk him out of his plans, but to no avail."
"Then why did he wait six months to begin his revenge?"
She snorted softly. "Why do you think? If he'd begun straight away, the culprit would have been obvious. He is many things, but a fool isn't one of them."
"So what was he doing in the six months since the council wiped out his nest?"
She shrugged, pulling against my grip. "I didn't ask and didn't care to ask. He keeps out of my way - mostly, anyway - and I keep out of his."
"But you know where he's currently residing?"
"No. As I said, Nasser isn't a fool." Her brief smile was amused. "Apparently, he doesn't trust me."
Obviously, Nasser was well aware that he'd raised a snake. "Is he a mirror wraith as well as well as an emo vamp ?"
She smiled. It set my nerves on edge. "Yes, he is. I'm surprised you discovered it, because not even the council would have known that."
"Why not?" I asked, more out of curiosity than any real need to know.
"Because he came into this country illegally, and therefore would not be listed on the council's books."
Wouldn't have mattered if he was, Quinn commented. The council wouldn't have shared the information with you.
The council are rather large pains in the butt. To Vinny, I said, "So why did Nasser come here last night?"
"Because he supplements his feeding by feeding off of us."
I raised my eyebrows. "And you let him?"
"I have no choice." She almost spat the words. "He is an old and hungry soul who cannot be satisfied with feeding off a woman or two. He needs the energy supplied by a nest."
Maybe that's why Vinny's nest has grown substantially in the last few months, Quinn commented. She's been supporting her creator's needs as well as her own.
She's using him as an excuse. She wants her own empire, and would be growing as fast as she could anyway. To Vinny, I added, "So he has fed apart from the nest?"
"Yes." Something flickered in her eyes. Amusement, perhaps. Or cunning.
"And is he capable of killing?"
The cunning in her brown eyes got sharper, and I suddenly realized that she wanted her creator out of the way. She'd give us what we wanted, all right - not only to save her skin but to get rid of his.
"If you're asking me if his feeding killed Renatta Bailey and Janette Crowley, then the answer is yes. He boasted about it."
"And why would he do that when he knows you're as trustworthy as a snake?"
Her smile was bitter, hard. "Because it was a reminder that he could and would do the same to this nest if I stepped out of line."
I frowned. "How could one man kill an entire nest? Even if that man is your creator?"
It might be possible to kill Vinny, but there'd still be an entire nest to cope with, and even Quinn with his Aedh powers wouldn't have an easy time of that.
"It is because he's my creator that he can do it. I cannot deny his demand that we feed him, and he could, if he wished, drain us so completely that we die."
Hence her sudden desire to use us to get rid of her master.
"And you have no idea where he is staying?"
"No. I would give him to you if I could, but I really do not know."
She telling the truth? I asked Quinn.
Unfortunately, yes.
I grunted and released my grip on Vinny. The movement was so sudden she staggered backwards and fell into the chaise lounge. The toga-clad teenagers instantly began to caress her skin, and the soft humming I'd heard early resumed.
"I appreciate your help, Vinny."
It was sarcastically said, and the old arrogance flared in her eyes. "And I'd appreciate it if you leave and never come back."
"I'm afraid that is never going to happen. It's the price you pay for empire-building."
She didn't say anything to that. I turned and walked for the door - and felt safe only because Quinn was at my back. Had I been alone, I probably would have had a dozen silver bullets in it long before I ever got there.
The outside guard swung the door open as we neared, but before I could exit, Vinny said, "Riley?"
