Raven's Blood

Chapter Forty-One

  “There’s a turned vampire at the gate with a message for you,” Ian announced, sounding more tense than usual.

  “For me specifically?” Connor asked.

  “They said it was for the one who’d fucked the wood nymph. Since you’re the only one who had that pleasure, I assume they meant you,” Ian replied angrily.

  Connor’s heart seized. “Fuck,” he cursed before hurrying toward the gate on foot. It might have been smarter to drive, but he didn’t want to go back for the jeep. He just wanted to find out what had happened to Raven. Knowing about Raven didn’t mean they had her, he reminded himself. Still, his gut was telling him she was in trouble.

  The turned vampire was a young girl who couldn’t have been older than twelve. Connor was guessing they’d sent her because she was expendable. Mitchell had told them they didn’t turn females because they usually died. Her red hair was short, probably to make it easier to take care of. Her eyes were dazed, and she kept looking around like she was trying to remember something. She reminded him of Mitchell, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she could be saved.

  “What do you want?” Connor asked without emotion. He leaned casually against a tree near the gate but made no move to let the girl inside the settlement.

  “I was told to find the one who fucked the wood nymph,” she replied. “Is that you?”

  Connor nodded. Hearing such profanity from a young girl seemed strange.

  “I have this for you,” she held out a wad of papers. They were crumpled as though she’d just shoved them in her pocket. After Connor took the papers from her, she began tugging absently at her tattered brown shirt.

  Connor didn’t read the note right away. “Where’s my nymph?” he demanded. He could easily find her, thanks to the blood bond, but he didn’t want the enemy to know that. He also didn’t want to seem too eager to read the note. If they were using Raven to get to him, it was best to get as much information as possible and avoid showing them how much she meant to him.

  “They have her,” the girl mumbled without looking at him. “Like Raven. Always nice to me. Can’t let them hurt . . .” her voice trailed off as she struggled with the memory.

  “You know Raven?” Connor asked in surprise. Unease crept up his spine, but he fought it. He hated that he might have sent her to the enemy.

  “They want me to bring a reply back,” the girl told him. “Please, or they will do this to my . . . mother. It’s my mother.” She seemed relieved when the memory came to her.

  Connor scanned the message and felt the blood drain from his face.

  ‘Dear Blood Brat,

  I remember you. When Raven said your name and mentioned the scars on your back, I remembered right away. Mostly, I remember your mother. I want her back. I also want you and the others that lived with your mother to surrender yourselves to me.

  Follow the map and meet me when the sun is in the middle of the sky tomorrow. If you don’t follow these instructions exactly, I will start sending Raven back to you in pieces.

  Charles Graham IV’

  Connor wondered idly if the man used the sun’s position because they didn’t have clocks or didn’t know if the vampire communities were on the same time zone. He’d never thought to ask Raven why she always went by the position of the sun, assuming it was because she was a wood nymph. He wrote a quick reply on the blank sheet of paper with the note, agreeing to meet for negotiations. Anything more would be foolish and put Raven at greater risk. There might be no reason to keep Raven alive once she was no longer a bargaining chip.

  “Take this back to him,” he told the girl. “Do you live at the human settlement on the island?” he asked her.

  She nodded. “I always lived there.” Then her face fell. “Now, I don’t live.”

  Connor felt bad for the girl, but there was nothing he could do for her. She wasn’t breathing unless she needed to speak, meaning she was already undead. As much as he pitied the girl, it was too late, and more people would die if he didn’t find a way to stop the bastard.

  When she was far enough away she couldn’t hear him, he turned to find Ian, Simon, Jack, Shelby, Carla, and Norah standing behind him. He handed the note over so they could all read it. It got to Simon last.

  “What now?” Simon asked after reading it.

  “That’s it?” Connor had honestly expected more from Simon. “No I told you this would happen?”

  “Seriously? You really think I’m going to say I told you so?” Simon asked. “I didn’t see this coming. I remember that sick fuck. His father used to bring him out to abuse the blood whores. He always said his full name like we were supposed to be impressed. Part of me wants to say it can’t be him. He was in his twenties, maybe even thirties, back then, but it must be him. I just don’t see how he could still be alive. I know the human lifespan has increased in some countries, but it’s decreased here. That’s especially true in the human settlements because they don’t have access to modern healthcare.”

  “Now I remember him,” Connor said. “His father owned Graham Pharmaceuticals. His family was responsible for creating the Moon virus. He was the weirdo who wanted my mother to lick his boots and crap like that.”

  “Bastard,” Shelby muttered.

  “I killed his father,” Jack admitted.

  “You did?” Ian asked, obviously impressed.

  Jack nodded. “He was there when we rebelled. Guess little CG wasn’t.”

  “That’s a pity,” Norah added. “I remember him, too, and he’s one I’d like to see dead. Hopefully, we’ll get lucky and kill him this time.” Norah abhorred violence for the most part, but Connor knew Raven meant a lot to her.

  “It might be a fight to see who gets to kill that douche bag,” Carla grumbled.

  “I’m going with.”

  Connor spun around at the sound of his mother’s voice. She rarely came this close to the gate, and she hadn’t gone past it in at least a decade.

  “No,” Connor insisted, and his friends nodded their agreement.

  “What if he kills Raven when I don’t show up?” Eloise asked helplessly.

  “You’ll just be one more person for us to protect when the fighting starts,” Shelby argued. “It would be best if you and Norah stayed behind.”

  “Fuck that!” Norah snapped. “I’ve been practicing with the eskrima sticks since Raven left. I’m going with you. I’m tired of hiding in my house.”

  Connor nodded. “Norah goes with us.” He took his mother’s hands in his. “I can tell him you were killed years ago. He’ll buy it.”

  Eloise reluctantly nodded. “You’re right. I’m not much of a fighter.”

  “That’s not true,” Simon interrupted. “You fought for us for years, but it’s our turn to protect you.”

  Eloise moved away from Connor to hug Simon.

  “Jack, you can stay behind if you want,” Connor offered. “You have a wife and a new baby to consider.”

  “Muriel would kill me if I didn’t try to rescue Raven,” Jack said with a snort. “Besides, we all know there’s more than Raven’s safety at stake. This guy is trying to destroy all of us. We need to stop him.”

  “Finally,” Ian said with an anticipatory grin, “something we all agree on.”