Page 26 of The Clash of the Damned
Amelia holds out her hand in an offer to dance. After a moment’s hesitation, I take it as she leads me to the dance floor, pushing through all the bodies. The singer performs a soulful jazz number about lost love, and Amelia pulls me close, our bodies flush against each other. We sway from side to side in silence, comfortable in her arms even after being away from her for so long.
“This doesn’t mean anything,” I remind her.
“I know. I needed to know that you are okay after everything that’s happened. I almost lost my brother twice this week, and I needed to see you were still alive after the news this morning.” The vulnerability she displays is enough to disarm my defenses for a moment.
“Do you ever wonder what Sloane’s end game is, considering she’s just like us? The cult’s is easier to figure out.”
“Eden wants to be believed, and with Sloane’s help, she’s finally getting that. As much as it pains me to admit it, Sloane is a better strategist than we all gave her credit for. In a way, I can understand her motives. I was on a similar path until recently. But I’ve found things that mean more to me than revenge.” I don’t miss the double meaning in her words, but I don’t know if I can give her what she wants. The temporary truce between us over, I step away from her.
“Are you ever going to tell me how you killed my mom?”
“Will it make any difference if I do?”
We fight so hard for the truth, kill for it in our case, but when confronted with it, I wonder if living in denial is easier. So I do the best thing I can; I walk away from her, again. My brain screams at me to stay, and from my peripheral, I see Amelia return to her brother’s side, the black sequins on her mini dress shimmering under the club lights. Giada looks out of place amongst the Supernaturals, and Dom looks ridiculous in his checkered bell bottoms. It almost makes me want to hire a stylist for him. His whole ensemble is outside of his normal three piece, which pains me. While we’re all working together to plan how to deal with Sloane, Jude and Jayden have still decided to party in a separate area to them.
That’s the thing about introducing alcohol and drugs into the equation. Sober wishes aren’t always the same under the influence of drugs. Even forsomeone that recovers as quickly as Sebastian. Like a train wreck, I watch him stomp over to where Jude parties on her side of the club, like a child, and watch them bicker. Like we all don’t know it’s their version of foreplay. Sighing, I make a beeline for them. I need to deal with them before it gets worse.
“Ugh! You know not everything is about you–”
“How can you pretend like–”
“Enough, Sebastian! Tonight is about Luca. Leave us alone, and don’t ruin it for her. Go back to your Stepford wife.”
“Jude, enough. I will take care of it,” I reprimand her, standing behind Sebastian. Grabbing his wrist, I try to pull him back, but he resists. “Don’t make me use my blood magic on you, because I will, even in front of humans.” He backs down and follows me back to his part of the club. “If you do that again, I will kick you out myself. Yes, we used to be friends, but after that shit you pulled, I tolerate you now. Understood? And yes, Jude told me about the meadow, so get your shit together and decide what you want, and stop making the rest of us pay for it.”
I don’t give him a chance to respond as I make my way to Silva behind the bar, checking the turnover report. She gives me her signature smile, which tells me that we’re doing well. “I don’t want us to get ahead of ourselves, but a few more nights like this and we can make some more investments, like getting that accountant you were thinking about.” She frowns as a thought occurs to her. “On the other hand, we’ve had a few more police raids than usual, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that cult was behind it. Let’s sit on the money for a while longer in case we need it.
She motions in Amelia’s direction. “You know Drusilla and Renfield’s story as well as anyone. Dru would have given anything for anothermoment with Renfield. Don’t waste the time you have with Amelia over a misunderstanding.” We’re interrupted by Silva’s phone. When she looks down at it, a moment of rage flits over her face.
“But that will have to wait until later. I’ve received word that the Undead who killed your father is here. It took me a long time to figure out who he is, but now that seems less important. He’s here tonight to challenge you for leadership.”
Chapter 20 | Freak Like Me
Luca
It’s hard to believe my father’s murderer is in the same building as me. While they’re clearly a threat to my life, I see it more as an opportunity for the revenge I’m owed. One I wasn’t sure I’d ever have. “Well, I’m ready for life to go back to normal, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to get what I want either.”
“You don’t understand Luca–”
“Then help me understand.”
“There is a fight room in the basement of Tao. It doesn’t get used often, and with everything that’s happened, it hasn’t been my priority to get you up to speed on it.” Silva pauses to double check the text that set these events in motion. “We’re needed there now, and if you don’t show, you will automatically forfeit leadership of our empire and possibly your life too.” Disturbed by how quickly I’m watching Silva unravel when nothing fazes her normally, I decide to ignore my better judgement and follow her. “I thought we had more time–”
“Well, we don’t, so give me the crib notes version.” While I’m pissed off at being pushed into another situation where the truth has been kept from me, my priority now is to survive. Following Silva through the winding passages of Tao, we begin our descent into the deeper levels.
“This fight room is something we don’t advertise to the other empires. They have their secret ways, so do we. Most of the time, we like to pretend we’re civilized and can resolve things without violence. The rest of the time, we resort to ourbaserinstincts.” She stops at a door and offers up her wrist, the hardware extracting a droplet of her blood to verify who she is. It’s tech we’ve possessed for years, but I’ve rarely seen it used.
“The room didn’t see much use after your mom challenged your grandfather for leadership. She was supposed to tell you about it, but well, she had her reasons for not. I kept an eye on it since then, in case it was ever needed again. Since her death, it’s picked up practice and gained popularity as no one in leadership is limiting it.”
I’ve been following Silva closely up until now, but her latest admission makes me stop. “Let me get this straight. If we have a disagreement amongst the Undead, we fight it out?”
“Exactly.” Silva hurries me along. “When our kind left Romania, there was only one of us each. Well, two if you look at the Druids, but that’s not important.” Her mouth opens and shuts before she continues her explanation. “As our families grew, we needed a place where we didn’t have to hide our nature, and this was the solution. It’s not ideal, but it works. It’s why we created so many rules around its use.”
We stop at a door, and Silva is as serious as I’ve ever seen her. “Since you’re being challenged, once you walk in here, you can only leave if you’re victorious, or if you’re dead. Do you understand the risk?”
“Do I have a choice?”
“No, you don’t.” I follow Silva into the fight room, and I’m assaulted with the noise of a cheering crowd as I step into another world. The smell of blood, both old and fresh, overwhelms my senses, indicating a fight has just concluded. If there is one thing I have to give my parents, it’s that they had high expectations of me. Sure, I needed to train, but these Undead instincts I’m hearing about seem completely foreign to me. It’s like my parents were trying to train it out of me, wanting me to be the perfect business woman instead. It wasn’t until this moment that I’ve gotten the full picture of the brutality of my kind.
