Page 2 of Thicker than Blood

“But why now?” I ask no one in particular. Obviously none of us know.

The sound of static and buzzing draws our attention to the digital billboard above the courthouse, installed five years ago when the first wave of vampires attacked. It’s been nothing but images of our city’s amenities for years now, but as the images blur and a terrifying face appears, I’m hit with memories of the day we all learned that vampires do indeed exist, and they aren’t a friendly bunch.

The man on the screen has a maniacal grin on his face, his red tinged fangs on full display. Inadvertently, I move closer to Meredith as foreboding spreads through me. His eyes glow bright blue, and he’s so pale that the veins beneath his skin are visible across his broad forehead.

“Surprise,” the man says, his voice deep and raspy. “I hope you enjoy our gift. We certainly enjoyed procuring it for you.”

The longer he talks, the more uneasy I feel, as if his voice is a virus pricking at my cells.

“In case it isn’t obvious,” he says, “not all vampires agree to the terms of yourpeacetreaty.”

The more he speaks, the more I detect an accent of some kind, but not one I’ve heard before.

“Why should we be treated as mere citizens, forced to repress our nature for your comfort? So we can go to the coffee shop?” He scoffs, and tittering laughter sounds from behind him. “We don’t even drink coffee.”

Luci whispers something to Bernard that I can’t hear, but my focus is drawn back to the screen as the strange vampire continues.

“We propose a new treaty. One where the vampires take their rightful place and you take yours—on your knees, mortals, bowing down before us.”

“Fuck,” Meredith says, glancing at me, her eyes saying far more than her words do.

We’re in trouble. Big trouble.

“Tonight is just a taste of what we’re capable of. We can decimate your cities before the sun rises if we choose to.”

Luci squeezes her temples.

“In case you’re wondering how you can stop us,” the vampire continues, “you can’t. You are powerless against us. We will no longer stay in the shadows, masquerading as mortals. If you want to live, my only suggestion is to accept the inevitable. The vampires will prevail.”

The screen goes black, leaving us all in stunned silence for several minutes. I’ve gone numb, unable to process the reality of what’s happening. Even the bitter cold can’t touch me. Memories of the original war and all I lost still haunt my dreams.

“What do we do now?” an officer behind us asks.

Meredith glances over her shoulder, her face a mask of the determination I’ve come to know.

“We fight back.”

ELIAS

My late-night reading is abruptly disrupted by the heady scent of mortal blood saturating the air. It’s been ages since it’s been so strong, and I’m drawn to my feet and lured to the window to investigate.

I shove the window up and stick my head out, inhaling deeply. My eyelids flutter as my fangs involuntarily descend. What is happening? Why so much?

Before I can ponder the situation any further, there’s a knock at my library door.

“Enter.”

“Elias, sir.”

I turn around to see Benicio, my faithful, very platonic companion. His expression is unusually panicked for the reserved man, and his black hair, normally slicked smooth, sticks up wildly.

“What is it?”

“There’s been a breach of the treaty. A pack of vampires, quantity unknown, launched attacks around the entire city. They hacked the alert system and announced their plans to wage war on the mortals.”

“That makes absolutely no sense. Why?”

“All they said was that they don’t want to be equal or submissive to mortals any longer. They’ve killed, Elias. A lot. Hundreds.”

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