him out before any more damage could be done. That is something, I suppose. Had Vincent found him before you did, I don’t think Jason would still be…alive.”
“But Vincent knows of his presence?”
She raised a shaky hand to her red lips and bit down on the knuckles. “He knows a tall, dark haired vampire attacked one under his protection. He knows you and Jason left without me. He knows this is the first he’s heard of such an attack in Centennial. Luckily, Jason didn’t tell her his name. With that, Vincent would be well within his rights to come here and kill him.”
“That’s murder,” I said. “Things must be done…diplomatically now.”
Her eyes widened and she laughed hysterically, head thrown back in complete abandon. “Diplomatic? Vampires? Oh my dear, sweet, girl. You think we are diplomatic? That is simply a facade we show to the human world. Otherwise, we’d be hunted down like wolves and we’d never survive. We might be strong, but you humans are annoyingly persistent. And it is this persistence that spells our doom.Yes, it’s true we follow the rules, but we only follow the rules when it suits our purpose. Surely you know this?”
So much to learn. It was a humbling experience to come to the conclusion that when it came to vampires and their culture, I really knew nothing at all. “There was a vampire with me when I found Jason.”
“Which one?” she asked, voice sharp.
“Ryder.”
She let out a sigh of relief. “A better one we could not ask for. He respects Vincent, but he was not created by him. Ryder will give him information but only when it suits his purpose.”
“Vincent’s human emissary saw us going downstairs. I told her I was looking for…something.”
Reiko looked thoughtful. “But she has not said anything. She is cautious. That is a good sign,” she said and then shook her head. “Still. Too much at stake. Vincent will come here, eventually. Jason cannot be here. Vincent will want to examine him…and he will find out the truth.”
I tried to choose my words with care. “You must care for him greatly.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Who?”
“Jason.”
She looked at me, her age so very apparent in the deep pools of black, and it was all I could do to stay still and relaxed when I wanted to throw myself behind the sofa, just to get away from the gaze that peeled away everything in me, exposed myself to the very core of my being.
“Don’t mistake my care for such a paltry emotion like love. If we were both hanging from a precipice, I would think nothing of kicking him to save myself. However, if word were to get out that my Turning has given fruit to…him, my House will suffer greatly, and that I will not allow.”
“Then why not kill him?”
Was that fear in her eyes? “I…cannot. He is of my blood. To hurt him would be to hurt me. I would prefer to postpone that pain for as long as possible.”
An interesting idea and one I had never come across. “So to kill the offspring would be to harm the maker?”
She nodded, warily. “I can see you are thinking. Have you killed many vampires?”
I shrugged, stared at the hands on my knees. “A few. They were all quite young. I can’t imagine the pain to be more than fleeting.”
“Be that as it may, the maker will feel it. Every time,” she said and looked up. “You can’t stay here, you know. You and Jason will have to flee. Vincent cannot prosecute my House if he cannot find evidence.”
I stood up slowly, stretched, but my muscles refused to relax. “Where do we go?”
She rubbed a hand along her lower lip, spreading lipstick like paint across her gently curved chin. “I’m sure there’s some place for you to hide. Jason seems to enjoy accumulating real estate. There will be a place for you to go.”
She sounded so sure of herself. “We will leave now?”
Jason appeared behind her, damp hair slicked back, dressed in a simple white button-down shirt and khakis, a duffel bag over one shoulder, mine hanging from his hand.
“Yes. We leave now.”
10
It took all of ten minutes to throw our baggage into the backseat of a Hyundai SUV, me behind the driver’s seat. Hadn’t been my choice, but more or less relegated to me when Jason tossed me the keys.
Reiko had been waiting at the door, arms crossed, her ever-present Marcus standing at attention behind her. “Don’t contact me. If I know