Page 25 of Tainted Blood

“We’re missing three,” Isaiah said as his staff let him know no one else had arrived to greet. “All loners. They might be caught on the road or taking their time. Not bad.”

“Are these really all the vampires this old in the world?” I asked, realizing we hadn’t even broken forty. I knew the guest list had been short, but it felt very small now as I realized just how exclusive this age group was.

“For the most part,” Isaiah confirmed. “It grows smaller every year. We weren’t a very populous species in the beginning. A lot of vampires died early when no one really knew what we were. Other supernatural species would hunt us down if we encroached on their territories, so many of us had to be careful. I’m certain the reason vampires like Alexius here are even still alive is purely luck. Not to say Alexius isn’t a survivor in his own right, but…”

“The further back in time you go, the more dangerous the world,” Alexius said, sighing softly. “While Jacob and I lived in a relatively safe area, keeping our heads down to stay out of the attention of other supernaturals, many supernaturals had a kill-first policy for vampires. Vampires lost control too often and killed too many people. Everyone wanted us dead.”

“We have substantial evidence to say the older a vampire is, the more likely they are to lose control. That’s not including those who gave up on immortality after so long,” Isaiah added. “So, yes, this is all we have left of the oldest of our kind. There are a handful who decided not to come this year, busy with something or another in their own lives, but even with those, there are less than fifty vampires who are over two thousand years old.”

“Wow. Do all the bloodlines come from people here?” I was trying to piece things together about a history I wasn’t alive to see but these two had.

“No. There are bloodlines that none of us know what to do with. The oldest of those died a long time ago, and now there are a lot of young vampires, all vying for their place in the world. In fact, most of the vampires here have relatively small bloodlines, mine being the largest by far.”

“And how many vampires are in your bloodline?” I asked. With a snort, Isaiah shook his head and walked away.

“He’ll never answer that question,” Alexius explained as we followed him. “I don’t even know the right answer.”

“Do you have a guess?”

“It's certainly over a hundred,” he answered thoughtfully. “Possibly five generations, maybe six.”

“That’s considered large? No one else at all beats that?” It was big, but after so many years, I felt like there should at least be one or two bigger.

“I’m certain there are younger vampires out there who are part of the same bloodline, but whoever could control all of them is no longer around, so they have split into different groups. Unless you’re part of a substantial bloodline like Isaiah’s, most only look at bloodline within a few generations. Truthfully, the only vampires who could control a bloodline the size of Isaiah’s are here.”

“So, if there’s a vampire out there who’s… like, eight generations away from someone here?”

“Eight generations?” Isaiah looked over his shoulder at us and whistled softly. “No, I don’t think there are any vampires strong enough to control anyone so distant from themselves, not yet. There’s a reason I keep my bloodline as… controlled as I do. And it’s five generations, Alexius. I haven’t decided to go to a six yet. I’m not sure I would have the ability.”

“So, the more distant the relation, the harder it is,” I said, nodding as I considered that.

“If I went to a sixth generation, I would have to rely on my third or fourth generation to control whoever that person is and that's only if they are powerful enough to do it,” Isaiah confirmed. “That might work for some, but it can get out of hand. No, most bloodlines now are considered young or smaller, all broken apart due to death and time. If I died, all of my direct offspring, and Imani due to her circumstances, would become the heads of their own respective bloodlines. They would no longer be part of mine and would hold no influence over each other or each other’s offspring, just as they don’t now. I am at the top, so I bring them all together. Since I’m an Orphan like you, there’s no one above me, but the same holds true if every generation before, say, Alexius had died.”

“Is your curiosity sated? We should probably head downstairs before the others get curious themselves.” Alexius reached for the door, stopping with his hand on the knob, ready to open it for us.

“Yeah. There’s a lot, and I’m trying to put all the pieces together. I feel like I need to know everything, or I’ll make a fool of myself.”

“It takes time, and no one is going to expect you to fully grasp the nuances of our kind,” Alexius said as Isaiah nodded. Isaiah went downstairs first, then I followed, with Alexius right behind me. “But I believe you’ll do it faster than most.”

12

The first thing I noticed when we entered the lounge was the scent of blood. A lot of it. It was such a strong scent, I rocked back on my heels, my back hitting Alexius. His only reaction was to stop walking, letting me get my bearings without running into me any farther. My fangs dropped so quickly, I felt them press into my bottom lip sharply, and I wondered if I was going to break my own skin. I stopped breathing to combat the assault, my throating burning like an inferno.

It felt like an eternity, standing still as I waged a mental war with my thirst to keep from jumping for the closest available source of blood. When I felt I was ready to move, I took a single step, wondering if I could handle this.

He wouldn’t have brought me here or let me in this room if he felt I couldn’t. He would have dragged me out of the room if he thought I was going to lose control.

“Whoever’s blood was used to make her must have been decently old or powerful if she’s six months old and unable to restrain herself quickly,” someone commented. I didn’t recognize his voice yet, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at whoever was talking to see.

“Two vampires, one around a thousand years old,” Alexius explained over my head. “Blood lovers. I used the younger’s without thinking about how he took a lot of his much older lover’s blood.”

I was oddly grateful that Alexius didn’t name the two vampires. Normally, I didn’t care. We talked about Edwin and Claire and never avoided that they were part of my Turn, but tonight, I was grateful he didn’t mention them by name.

“Ah…” The vampire seemed to understand exactly what Alexius was saying.

“As an Orphan, her control is actually rather good,” Isaiah remarked brightly. “I mean, look. With all this blood in the room, she’s strong enough to combat the urge instead of lunging for the cup. Don’t be hard on her. She can take as long as she needs to adjust and join the festivities, just like many others have had to do.”

“She wouldn’t be the first young one a vampire has brought and we should respect that she's learning as others before her,” the vampire agreed. I finally tried to see who was talking—Maxwell, with his brother, Lucas, next to him. I stared for a moment, trying to focus on conversation instead of the smell of the room, and it finally clicked that they were probably related as humans as well. They looked remarkably similar. Not perfectly identical twins, but close enough I would have believed them if they said they were twins.

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