Urban Vampire The Turning

  Kaniji suddenly grew serious. "When you visit Alexis you tell him that you want to exchange your life for Tige's. That's how you can save him. Even though he broke a law, he did it for you. And because of that you can take his punishment and he can go free. Tony knows that and so does Tige. If you ask Alexis he cannot lie and he will tell you the truth." I stared at her speechless. "You know that I do not lie about this matter?"

  I nodded slightly. I felt hollow inside.

  Kaniji smiled. "Well you have a good evening." She turned around and disappeared in a slight rustle of air.

  I didn't budge for a long time. This time I had a lot to think about. I sat in a chair in the bathroom while Monica brushed and tried to tame my afro. I asked her to pull it back into a pontytail. Then she brought me a black dress that ran long to the floor but I didn't want it. I told her what I wanted and she about flipped. It was my black jeans that I wanted. The ones I had brought from home.

  "You can't be serious. You're going to have your first appointment shortly and you don't look very intimidating." I just nodded but I wasn't going to change my mind. She sighed.

  I wouldn't wear any of the blouses from my closet so she had to bring me one of her own tops. It was a black t-shirt that she only wore during the day when Johan slept.

  "Monica." I said finally. "I need a silver chain; a long one, thin, like you'd wear around your belly, five crucifixes on silver chains to wear around your neck, and some black duct tape."

  "Kim...what are you going to do?" She asked suspiciously.

  "Hurry, Monica. Before the first appointments arrive."

  She hurried and made some phone calls. I fingered the crucifix. It nestled there between my cleavage in plain sight. I had to make sure I survived tonight, I had to protect the ladies. At any cost my life had to be preserved if for no other reason than to be a bargaining tool for Tige. After that...

  Kat, Mara, Karen and Tyler arrived together in a limo. I was happy to see them all but especially glad to see Mara was healthy.

  Again the ladies were all dressed like they were going out clubbing, while again I looked quite grunge.

  I don't know how she did it but Monica worked some mojo and came up with everything I had requested.

  "Where's Paul." Karen asked. "He's only bugged us all day about getting here on time and he's not even here!"

  I looked at her. "Paul left. He won't be back." Unwittingly I had settled at least one lose end.

  Karen looked at Monica and wanted to ask questions. Monica silently shook her head to stop any further questions.

  "Karen." I thought to her.

  "Yes?" Karen responded quickly.

  "Tyler?"

  "Yes?" Tyler responded.

  I tested each of them to see if they could hear my thoughts and each could.

  "Each of you take a necklace and crucifix. I want you to wear it each time we have a meeting with Vampires from the outside."

  Tyler looked at me confused. "It's forbidden-"

  "I don't care." I said softly. "Your safety is more important than rules that serve only to protect Vampire interests." I chewed my lip cautiously. "Today is the first day of the rest of your lives ladies. I'm going to make sure that anyone who means us harms remembers that."

  We went to my personal office where we would hold the interviews. Monica had brought leather chairs to face my desk. My desk had been pushed back a number of feet and larger chairs for my personal Council had been set up next to mine. There was a file on my desk, thick. When I opened it I saw that it contained each issue that we needed to deliberate over. It also contained comments from both parties. Paul had done this. I closed my eyes briefly.

  It still hurt me and I didn't want to hurt right now. But I was going to have to in order to finish what I needed to do.

  "Monica put the silver chain on the table.” She opened a large cardboard jewelry box and I saw a long, beautiful, silver chain nestled on cotton.

  Tyler gasped. "Kim, what are you going to do?!"

  "Unhook it and spread it out straight."

  She didn't like it but she did it.

  The doorbell rang. The first of our appointees had arrived. Monica wouldn't leave. Karen was the Alpha dog so she wouldn't answer the door and Mara being freshly hospitalized got what she wanted by default. Kat ignored the ringing of the door so it was Tyler that reluctantly hurried out to greet our subjects.

  "Kim, what are you going to do with that?"

  "Kim, please be careful." Mara pleaded. "You might lose a limb, Mi querido."

  I studied the chain. I took a deep breath and laid my wrist against it.

  The pain was immediate. The ladies screamed and rushed me but they didn't need to. The pain threw me back and out of the chair. I howled but could still hear a faint sizzling. My inner wrist was blistered and raw from the brief contact.

  "What the hell are you doing?!" Monica screamed at me. They were all holding my arms as if they could stop me from doing anything I wanted.

  Tyler opened the door, afraid.

  "Don't let anyone in here!" I growled in pain. "I need to finish it before it heals!" "What?!" Monica screamed as Tyler slammed the door shut behind her so that anyone in the front room wouldn't see what was happening.

  I shook them off me and they went flying. I stood up and clenched my teeth. Swiftly I turned my arm in and laid my right wrist against the silver. Knowing what to expect didn't make it any less painful. More because it was sizzling against a fresh wound. The pain spun me around but somehow I kept my balance. I bit back the screams and tried to concentrate on staying blank as I shakily laid the left wrist across the chain. This time the pain blew me against the far wall where I slid down it to collapse on the floor in a fetal position, panting. It hurt so badly! It was still sizzling even though the silver was no longer touching me!

  I put my forehead on the hard floor and groaned, clenching and unclenching my fists. Finally the pain ebbed away into something more bearable and I could stop rocking against the floor.

  I stood up. The ladies were huddled together staring at me in horror and fear. Breathing heavily I brought up both arms and showed them what I had done.

  I had branded a crucifix against both wrists.

  "Oh my God..." Monica said. "A wound from a crucifix won't ever heal. That won't heal like silver...it could be permanent."

  I was shaking so bad I could barely do what I had to do next.

  The doorbell rang again. More were coming. I sat down and studied the silver once more.

  "Kim," Mara whispered. "What are you going to do now?"

  I looked at her with glassy eyes. "I'm making sure we survive tonight."

  I studied the chain again. Bits of my flesh were stuck to the silver and I sobbed involuntarily. But I wasn't going to bleed from my eyes anymore today...or ever. I ripped off a piece of duct tape and stuck it to the end of the chain. Carefully I wrapped it around until I had two inches of a handle. I repeated the move on the other end. Now I could safely pick up the chain.

  I carefully swung it above my head. I felt like Xena the Warrior Princess!

  Now they could see what I could see; a vampire that would dare to use a silver chain as a weapon when that very same silver chain could kill her was one bad assed vampire. Karen jumped up and down and clapped happily. "You go, Girl!"

  I carefully stopped swinging it by allowing it to slap against the thick denim that my leg was clad in. Next was the difficult part...believe it or not. I had to belt it through the loops of my pants as if it was an actual belt. This was difficult because I didn't want to accidentally burn myself in two at the waist. I let the ends dangle in front. I probably would burn myself yet again if I had to pull it from the loops like a weapon...and I planned on doing just that tonight.

  "Paul said that he had arranged some protection." I said carefully neutral. What is it?"

  "Oh." Monica opened a cabinet. I raised my eyes. There was an arsenal in there! I knew nothing about guns but I think one of them was
an UZI!

  "They're all loaded with silver bullets...except for these." She held up two plastic toy guns.

  "What is it?" I asked. "Loaded with holy water?"

  "Exactly." I hadn't tested holy water. Religious relics didn't affect me so I didn't see how holy water would. Still I had reached my pain threshold for the night and wasn't interested in testing it right now.

  "Kim!" Tyler was projecting to me. I looked up quickly. "The natives are getting restless."

  "How many appointments do we have tonight?"

  "Thirty." Damn! This could take all night and I still had to see Alexis.

  "Bring in the first." I said with a sigh. I turned to the rest of my Council. "Put away the weapons. If you talk to me I want you to do it telepathically." I glanced down at my wrist. The crucifixes were perfect. Now I didn't just have weapons. I was a weapon.

  They sat in their chairs surrounding mine quickly. I worried about Tyler's ability to handle a crowd of Vamps.

  "Kat. I want you to take a weapon and I want you to go out and replace Tyler. I want her in here and you to control the crowd. If you have any problems...you have my permission to kill. No humans."

  Kat nodded. She hurried to the door which opened as soon as she reached it. Tyler entered with two people. Wordlessly Kat left and Tyler took the seat that she had just vacated.

  "Please have a seat." Monica said to the two. They were both Vamps. I opened the folder. The two Vamps stared at the crucifix around my neck. They dropped teeth.

  I stared at them.

  One was a tall thin, slick dressed man. He reminded me of a pimp. His hair was dark and tied behind him in a long ponytail. The other was small and weasly. What criteria did Master's use when turning Vamps? These two looked like two-bit thugs.

  The tall one growled. "We heard rumors that you were like a human." He gestured to my crucifix. "That's fucking low class to do that."

  "When you come into my home you come under my rules." I touched the crucifix. "If you don't like it...get out."

  He frowned. "I don't need this shit-"

  "But if you leave," I continued, "I'll rule in his favor."

  The tall vamp froze. The weasly guy finally sat down.

  The tall one looked at all of us women then he smiled. "I heard how you faked your way on Council. You're not fooling anybody, bitch you ain't going to make it longer then tonight. As a matter of fact-"

  With lightening speed I stood and whipped out my silver belt/chain. I don't think dude even saw me do it. All he knew is that the chain was wrapping around his throat. I had leaped over the desk and as soon as it wrapped around his neck I grabbed the other end and tugged. It went through his flesh like butter and his head fell backwards and rolled across the floor. He turned to ash seconds later but we all could still hear the searing of his flesh in our ears.

  I slapped the chain against my leg and looked at the weasly guy who was cowering in his chair.

  "What was your issue?" I asked while swinging the chain lightly back and forth across my leg.

  "I...I. He...he was working territory that belongs to me."

  "Working territory?"

  "Yes. My humans own those blocks-"

  "You're talking about prostitution?"

  "Yeah." Mr. Weasel said.

  I turned my back to him confident that he would be too afraid to try anything. I sat down in my chair again and placed the chain on the desk.

  "Is this legal?" I projected to each of my Council simultaneously.

  "Unfortunately, Yes." Mara answered.

  "Mostly prostitution is consensual." Karen projected. "And mutually beneficial. Mostly."

  I opened the folder and scanned the notes that had been made. It was pretty much what he had said.

  "Since...Terrence is no longer with us, you win the case."

  "Kim, we now have a new issue. Terrence now leaves property and possessions." Mara thought. It sucked that they couldn't read each other's mind so I had to translate every one's thoughts. But between the five of us we determined that Mr. Weasel, whose real name was Bobcat (go figure) would get Terrence's possessions of both real property and assets—not including Terrence's prostitutes. These he would have to negotiate his own deal with. I was not going to be in the business of assigning prostitutes to pimps!

  Bobcat was about to protest this last but thought again when he looked at the ash on the floor.

  He stood. "Thank you Master." Then he bowed.

  Master? Well I was that...

  "Bobcat." I said before he left. "If I hear that you have enslaved any of your prostitutes I will send an emissary to kill you. No trial, no questions asked. Do you understand?"

  Bobcat swallowed and thought hard. He nodded and practically ran from the room. As soon as the door shut behind him my shoulders sank and I lowered my head into my hands and covered my face. I was trembling all over. If the first was any indication of how the rest of the night would go...then it was truly going to be a deadly night.

  The ladies remained quiet, leaving me to mourn my actions. I heard Tyler get up to get rid of Terrence's remains.

  "Leave it. It'll be a deterrent for the next Vampire." I said without raising my head. Finally I stood and re-belted the chain. I had Kat send in the next subject.

  Evidently the mood had changed in the waiting room. All had seen two go in but only one leave and that one was running as if for dear life. When the next three came in they were subdued although equally uncomfortable with the display of our crucifixes.

  They remained quiet while I read their issue within the file.

  This time there was a dispute over who was the rightful owner of...surprise, another prostitute. The prostitute in question was present. I studied her. She was really pretty. Didn't look like a crack whore, but like a high class call girl.

  "Who do you want to be with?" I asked. She looked at an older Vamp that was dressed conservatively.

  "Marcus." She said nervously.

  The other spoke quickly. "He uses mind tricks to seduce her away from me. He takes my most beautiful women-"

  "That's a lie!" Marcus replied angrily.

  I thought the two would fight. I stood and all eyes were on me.

  "Ladies...what do we do?"

  Monica was the first to respond. "A human bespelled still speaks the truth. We can't be controlled like zombies. Ask her if she has been bespelled. Something Johan would never do."

  Tyler spoke next. "She seems afraid to me. We should find out if she's a slave. We need a safe house." Tyler said quietly.

  I looked at her and repeated her comment to everyone.

  We all agreed. Mara said that Johan owned many homes, if I was serious about ending forced slavery then the homes would fill up fast.

  "First things first." I said to each. "Tyler, take her to a private room and talk to her." I thought Tyler was best for the job. She was still so scarred by Johan and hopefully the lady would be inclined to open up to her.

  Tyler stood and walked to the woman. "Follow me please." Both vamps looked confused. Marcus stood as if he would prevent her from going.

  "She'll be okay, don't worry." I said in a neutral voice. I checked the file. Her name was Mandy. "Mandy, Tyler won't let anything happen to you." Tyler looked at me in appreciation.

  When they were gone I turned my eyes back on them. "By the way, I should tell you that we have a new policy. Forced slavery is now punishable...by death. No trial, no explanation...no chances. If my Assistant tells me that Mandy was enslaved by either of you two...neither of you will walk out of here alive."

  Marcus moved with such speed that the human eye would not have detected it. The girls actually didn't even know that he was no longer in his seat until I raised my forearm to block his attack and he howled in pain and crumpled to the floor. His hand was smoking where he had grabbed my wrist.

  The other Vamp was still in his chair looking confused. He didn't know what had happened.

  Marcus was shaking his hand and when he saw t
hat it was still smoking he screamed one blood curdling scream after another. You see he had my brand now branded into his hand and it was burrowing through his flesh. He leaped up and tried to run out of the room.

  I wouldn't let him. I took hold of his arm and heard a loud crack and then there was a streak of fire where my hand touched him.

  Screaming, Marcus dropped to the floor as if I had shot him.

  I looked at the ladies, confused. But they were, too, all except Mara. She was fingering her crucifix with a haunted look.