Page 65 of Blood Descendants
“Why?” Ares questions.
James takes in a deep breath, settling back into his seat. This is a lot to explain. My brain is spinning with it all, and I’m not even sure I believe every bit of it. “Because when Cyrus forced his wife into vampirism, he cursed himself yet again, and her. He was cursed to lose that which he loved most, over and over. While Sevan was a vampire and should have been immortal, after ninety or so years, she began to wither. To starve. Blood wasn’t enough to sate her thirst. And she died.”
Ares’ brows furrow. “She starved to death?”
“Essentially,” James nods. “And the king grieved. Deeply. But fifty-one years years later, a woman came to the castle. And she had all of Sevan’s memories. She looked different, had a different name. But she remembered every detail of their life together.”
“Are you talking about reincarnation?” I gape.
Once again, James nods. “She was Sevan, reincarnated in the Royal line. And she and Cyrus were reunited for over a century. Until she withered again, and died again. And it has been a vicious cycle for two millennia now. Sevan alwaysreincarnates in the Royal line. And so, he keeps tabs on any female Royals like you wouldn’t believe.”
“Isn’t that kind of… incest?” I ask, my nose wrinkling as I put it together. “If I’m understanding it right, every single vampire can trace their origins back to Cyrus and Sevan. So, if Sevan reincarnates in their own line, in the Royals, isn’t that their own descendants?”
James shrugs. “I guess so. But if you’ve ever studied genealogy, you’d understand how wide family trees spread, and quickly. The relation dilutes rapidly. It would hardly be any different than the relation between you and Ares.”
I look over at Ares, and while I have a moment ofew, I think James is right. When I think of how many generations there have been over two thousand years, there’s a whole lot of DNA in the gene pool.
“Sevan last died over 250 years ago,” James continues his story. “She’s never stayed dead for so long. Cyrus turns into more and more of an asshole while he searches for her. You’d be wise to stay clear of his radar at all costs. The man is a psychopath. He literally tortured the leader of the House of Conrath a few years back. He was convinced she was Sevan. And she might have led him on. He didn’t take it well when it turned out she wasn’t. Currently, he’s keeping an eye on the Royal of the House of Marshals. She’s two.”
“That’s disgusting,” I point out.
James shrugs. “I only said he’s keeping an eye on her. He will wait until she’s of age, obviously. And he’ll be keeping an eye on any other females born in the Royal lines.”
“You say the House of Marshals rules over our region, but their Royal is two. Who is her father? I assume he’s in charge?” Ares asks.
A smirk comes to James’ face. “Things are rarely that simple or straightforward when it comes to the Houses. The girl’s mother was taken against her will and inseminated by a Royal bastard she killed while she was still pregnant. Since the little girl is the rightful heir to that House, she obviously isn’t old enough. So, for now, her stepdad and her mom are pseudo in charge of a ‘House,’ along with Aleah and Duncan Steele, until she’s old enough. Thus, it’s called the House of Marshals. Because they’re keeping stewardship until she’s old enough.”
My brain is spinning. It was overwhelming when Ares told me about the reality of vampires. Little did we know that was only a tiny portion of this all. The history runs thousands of years deep and reaches into the present day.
“So, that’s what I meant when I said that Born at the apartments was going off about calling the House of Marshals and Aleah.”
Shit.
This all is way more complicated than we thought.
“I don’t think any of the Barons know about this,” Ares says. He laces his fingers together and brushes his thumb over his bottom lip. “They’re risking a war if they knew of the double coverage of the Barons and the House. So, I don’t think I’m the only ignorant idiot in New York.”
James mulls that over for a moment. “New York is shockingly unconnected with the rest of the vampiric population, with a surprisingly low number of vampires, considering the overall population. But you’re right, it would come to war if the Houses, if Cyrus, knew there was another organization trying to control the city. You need to consider the future very carefully, Ares.”
Ares continues to stare at James for several longmoments, and I can’t help but wonder what’s going through his head right now. His whole world has just been turned upside down. “You said the House of Marshals are in Boston?”
James nods. “Elle and Lexington Dawes are the parents. They’re good, reasonable people. If you decide to talk to them, I think that would go okay. Just probably don’t mention the Barons.”
He’s quiet for a moment longer, considering this. “Is that all of it, James?” Ares asks.
James takes a moment, considering. How do you effectively cover two thousand years of history in an hour-long conversation? “I mean, there’s plenty more you could learn about the Houses, but the core of it, the basis of everything, yeah, I think that’s it.”
Ares gives a small, slight nod. “Thank you, James. This is important information, and the fact that it’s new to me, I hope you’ll understand that it’s to both our advantages to keep it to yourself.”
That sounded a bit like a threat. And from the cold, composed look on Ares’ face, I think it was.
“Understood,” James says, not balking but somehow in agreement.
“You can go,” Ares says, dismissing his assistant.
James stands. “Lana,” he says, nodding to me in goodbye. I give a little wave, and James slips out the door. Just a few seconds later, I hear him exit the office door, and it swings closed behind him.
There’s a tense moment of silence, the weight of everything hanging in the air. My eyes slide back to Ares, who is staring at the surface of his desk, not seeing anything.
