Page 3 of Never Run from an Immortal

There was never anything worthwhile discovering if they were in Rush, he’d learnt; these weren’t the kind of humans that were of any concern. Those were far from this quarter of Demesia, holed up in the south in the shadow of the mountains, no doubt working away at their schematics and whatever bullshit plans they were cooking up to give him yet another of his daily headaches.

Vampires were going missing just as frequently as humans and Fae, and his kind were far too proud to admit it. Coupled with the increased activity from the human factions—groups opposing the way Vampires ran things in the city—Aidan was certain they were involved. He just hadn’t yet figured out how.

The human opposite shot a shy smile and violet eyes—a colouring Aidan suspected was a market-bought spell—at the Gerentis a few seats down. A lesser of his kind with barely anymagic worth detecting, though he could just about taste the metallic tang of it in the air. Fire. Faint but there.

The Gerentis made his way over to the human as she finished her call, and Aidan’s PAD vibrated in his pocket. More reports. Another dead Vampire tied back to Omnia, again. The newest of the human factions. His guests had just entered the club a floor below, the press of their combined power leaving an acid taste on his tongue.

At last, he threw back the glass of visk and let it burn away the unwelcome presence of his fellow Providents. Though he wished the title was all they had in common, Aidan was learning he was more like his Councillors than he cared to admit.

Music thumped, a slightly more tolerable beat than usual, and Aidan waited as the Providents came to him. These meetings were traditionally held at the Lord’s manor, but there wasn’t a fucking chance in Hel that Aidan would allow them to set foot in his house. Not without his magic.

Not his Provident abilities—those remained unrivalled—no, his other ability. The one that had been gone for far too long. The empty space it should have occupied in his veins echoed with its absence day and night, taunting him, a secret he didn’t know how much longer he could contain with what lay ahead.

Providents had fought each other for the Lord’s position for centuries, and Aidan needed his missing magic to keep them all in check. To keep the council on his side for everything that was to come.

Nine figures approached, calculating eyes assessing him, all dressed in their finest attire, pressed and preened within an inch of their lives. Layers of bullshit, and Aidan had time for none of it. He’d put on a shirt for this, but he refused to come dressed to every meeting looking like one of them. More than nine families remained amongst the Providents, but the council representedwhat the house had always considered to be their elite. Aidan sneered at the thought.

“My lord,” the Provident leading the group addressed him.

“Sysmus.” He’d vied for Aidan’s position more than once, yet he was the biggest ass-kisser of them all. If Aidan had held out a hand, as all the Vampire Lords that preceded him would have, Sysmus would have kissed the fucking ring on his finger.

Aidan didn’t address the remaining eight, turning instead to lead the way to the VIP area. It was no place for a meeting with the councillors, but none of them complained. They’d all likely go and sample what the club had to offer after the meeting was over, some of them taking more than one human home with them for the night to sate their need for fucking just as much as feeding.

The moment Baelin, his Ascendant, prepared a more suitable location, Aidan would have the councillors meet him there instead, but secure venues were becoming increasingly difficult to find in Demesia.

He passed through the wards—all five of them, because he wasn’t taking any chances—and waved over the humans who tested the drinks for the councillors.

“Let’s cut to the chase,” Aidan said as he took his seat at the head of the table, about as much ceremony as he was willing to permit for the evening. His own drink he poured from a decanter of visk, untested, because he’d be able to detect any traces of tampering. The echoes of emotion left behind on the bottle, the glass, and the vibration of the liquid were all enough for him to go on. His Provident abilities had always put a mark on his back amongst his kind, and Aidan had the scars to show for it.

He swirled the amber liquid in his glass as he surveyed his councillors, knowing all too well which way this was about to go down. “You’re all here because you want to know my plans for the Fae military presence on the southern border ofDemesia.” Liberalists, though they were damned close to the Royalist’s Court with only the mountain range that bordered the city between them. The Fae that resided in the city, mostly of Royalist descent, had long since abandoned their lineage, and now they were merely caught in the middle of everything; they didn’t care about centuries-old feuds and just wanted to live their lives, though the Liberalists were trying their hardest to change that. “I’m here to tell you that they are not our only concern, and any proposals will need to take that into account.”

Nine voices erupted in protest.

Aidan raised a hand to silence them. Outside, a few of his bouncers were arguing with some drunk revellers, the tremor of their dispute ricocheting over his skin. Someone was trying to bring a gun into the club, trying their luck against the wards that prevented anyone with a firearm from entering. Another human invention. The bouncers were handling it, and that was all he needed to know.

The other Providents hadn’t noticed, but there was no surprise there. They were strong, but not strong enough to know what was going on beyond the five wards, let aloneoutsidethe club. A few of them were too weak to even reach the ground floor with their limited abilities.

Thadlia sat to his right. One leg crossed over the other, an expanse of copper skin on display, her skirt riding up her thigh a little more than it would have had she not subtly tried to slide it up before she sat down. Her mother was a Gerentis, a magic wielder, and Aidan had often wondered if Lia had inherited a little of the ability. Air, if he recalled correctly. Providents were incredibly close-lipped about inter-marrying, despite their Ascendants, something Lia’s Provident father would have worked hard to make sure many forgot before he died. Fortunately, Aidan had an excellent memory.

He met each of his councillors’ gazes in turn. “Humans have been trying to drive the Orders out of Demesia for months, and we can’t ignore them any longer.” An all-out war was coming between humans and Orders, but he knew better than to try and convince his council of that tonight.

Sysmus laughed dryly to his left. “My lord, you can’t mean to tell us that the humans concern you more than the immortal Fae?”

Aidan shot him a glare, lips pressed together. The Provident’s glass fell from his fingertips, smashing on the floor as he clutched at his throat.

“Do not twist my words, Sysmus,” Aidan said flatly with no hint of effort at the pain he was inflicting on the Vampire beside him. “Perhaps the music is too loud for your ageing ears. I can repeat myself if necessary.” Sysmus clawed at his throat, nails drawing blood as he gasped for air. None of the other Providents moved to help him.

“Any strategy we agree on needs to be twofold, humansandFae,” Aidan continued. “Any advances will be coordinated between the families, is that understood?” He released his hold on Sysmus, the Provident slumping forwards against the table, sucking in deep breaths, shoulders heaving. He nodded almost imperceptibly. Beside him, Lorsan shifted, his disagreement palpable. Aidan despised sloppy abilities.

“We risk the border forces amassing more troops by waiting,” Lorsan offered. The Vampire was one of the oldest amongst them, over five hundred if Aidan had to guess even though he didn’t look a day over thirty-five. He had never adjusted to the advancements in the past century or so, and Aidan could sense it was because Lorsan’s mind was struggling to keep up with it.

“They won’t attack the city with so many of their own within it. The Eastern Quarter is almost entirely Fae at this point, though it’s merely a power play. The Fae have been a problem for as longas any of us can remember, but the humans are resourceful, and my sources have been investigating a possible alliance between them.”

Thadlia scoffed. “Elred would never stoop so low.”

The Fae king was on his deathbed, but Aidan saw no use telling his councillors that particular piece of information. They’d hear for themselves soon enough. “Be that as it may, we’d be incredibly short-sighted to rule it out. I called you all here because I trust you to work together on this. Is my trust misplaced?”

An echo of, “No, my lord,” was murmured throughout the group. The fighting outside had abated, his bouncers seeming content with the outcome. Yet the night air—something about the way it pressed at their skin—Aidan couldn’t put his finger on it.

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