Simmer (25 page)

"How is that possible?" she said, feeling
more like herself with each passing second.

"I don't know." Tristan dropped her face,
letting Kira look behind him at her best friend.

But Luke wouldn't come any closer. Tears
welled in Kira's eyes and she reached her hand out to him. She
couldn't stand the look on his face, the one that regarded her as a
stranger.

"Luke?" She asked, her voice cracking. They
looked at one another in a standoff: Luke finally realizing Kira
was sometimes beyond his saving and Kira finally realizing what it
felt like to lose his love even if only for an instant.

Like they always do, the moment passed. Luke
stepped over offering her a hug, stiff but still a hug. Kira
returned it, holding him tight against her body.

"Just don't turn into a Smurf on me, okay?"
He whispered into her hair. Kira laughed into his shoulder.
Everything was going to be fine.

And then the door behind them burst open.

Kira, Tristan and Luke turned around
instantly.

Two vampires stood in the massive wooden
doorway. Kira recognized Bronson from the other day in the park.
His crooked nose gave him away, but the man next to him was a
mystery. His light brown hair was slicked back. His eyes were such
a dark blue that they seemed all together black. He was tall and
thin, making the shorter Bronson look stocky, and each man had on
elegant tuxedos. But while Bronson searched the room, his eyes
darting in circles, the other man looked only at Kira.

Tristan jumped in front of her, blocking her
view of everything but the curve of his back, and he held her there
with his arm.

"Aldrich," he sneered.

"My dear Tristan," Aldrich said warmly, "it's
been far too long."

"Where's Diana?" Bronson interrupted in a
deep voice.

"If you mean the pile of ash formerly known
as Diana, she's in the corner," Luke said, moving to stand next to
Tristan, effectively blocking Kira completely.

"Pity," Aldrich said, but Kira heard no
remorse in the words.

"How is that possible?" Bronson asked with a
quiver in his voice, "I gave her the blood myself."

Kira put a hand on either boy. She pushed
Luke and Tristan to the side as if they were curtains. Feeding off
of the dramatic effect, Kira said, "I killed her. And I will kill
you both if you don't tell me where my mother is."

Aldrich stepped forward and walked up to
Kira, who held Tristan and Luke at bay. He cupped her chin, tilting
her head back so he could look at her eyes.

"Marvelous," he said with a grin, as if he
had been expecting them to be blue.

"My mother?" Kira asked.

"Safe and sound," he said.

"I seriously doubt that." Kira slapped his
hand from her chin.

"I'm not keeping her prisoner, Kira."

"You're lying," Kira said. She couldn't help
it, the obstinate words popped out unwittingly. She wouldn't
believe his lies, even if something in his voice sounded strangely
sincere.

"Spoken like the child you aren't," he chided
her.

Before Kira could think up a snappy retort,
another vampire suddenly appeared next to Aldrich, jerking him away
from Kira. She recognized the blonde in the pink high heels, the
first vampire she saw enter the party.

"We have to leave," the woman said urgently
while yanking him away. Aldrich pushed her aside, throwing her
against the books on the wall. Bronson just watched it happen,
uncaring.

"You step above yourself, Clarissa. You may
have finally landed an invitation to the red rose ball, but you do
not order me around."

"I'm sorry," she said, bowing her head. "It's
just that—"

And then the windows shattered, throwing
glass everywhere. Flames rolled past Kira and Luke, smacking into
all four vampires and sending them flying.

Chapter
Fifteen

Kira spun just in time to see three
Protectors soar through the windows to land neatly on their feet,
never once waning in their powers. Like a swat team or something,
they had come sailing in from the roof, using rope to catapult
themselves through the old and easily breakable windows. Kira
wanted to look at Luke and roll her eyes — he watched far too many
movies. It was so obviously his genius plan for them to come
storming inside rather than take a stealth approach.

Unfortunately, there was no time to make fun
of Luke because one of those vampires stuck like a bug against the
wall was Tristan. And Aldrich, closest to the hallway, was slowly
inching past the conduit flames to slip away.

Kira grabbed Luke's hand.

"You need to stop them!" She shouted.

"What? We need to nail these guys," Luke
said, bewildered.

Kira looked around. All three of the blond
men who had come flying inside were determined. Sweat dropped down
their faces, but none of them moved or let their powers weaken.

"What are they going to do?" Kira had never
seen a conduit mission in action before. It was a lot more intense
than she realized. One man reached into his belt to pull out a long
curved knife. "Luke!"

"It's fine," he tried to calm her, but it
wasn't easy when her boyfriend was easy prey and flames were still
roaring all around them. "We have to drain their blood. It'll
weaken them enough for us to interrogate them. We need to find out
where they're keeping their Punishers."

"But Tristan!" Kira pointed at the wall. All
of the vampires were slowly slinking away, as if the flames were
causing them to move in slow motion. Aldrich, Kira realized,
already had half of his body out the door. The conduits went to
work. The Protector with the knife moved to the woman first and cut
her wrist open, sending splatters of blood down the wall and to the
floor. The other two conduits controlled their powers, each with
one hand focused on a single vampire.

"Luke, you have to help him," Kira said,
pushing him towards Tristan. He wasn't supposed to be caught up in
this. Typical Tristan, she thought, he hadn't wanted to take too
much of her blood so he had lost the immunity before he was
supposed to. She thought the feeding had gone by rather quickly. He
had only taken enough to be immune to the Punisher at the door, but
not enough to stay that way. Quickly, she eyed Aldrich, her gaze
torn between both vampires. "I have to go, but please, promise me
you'll keep him safe."

Luke followed her gaze, seeing Aldrich about
to sneak away, and nodded. He knew exactly what she was up to.
"Just be careful, okay Kira?"

She smiled and instinctively kissed his cheek
before looking through the flames one more time. Both of the female
vampire's wrists were sliced open and the conduit was moving to
other areas as well. She was getting visibly paler and she couldn't
even move through the flames anymore. Tristan was next.

Kira met Tristan's gaze, smiling, and mouthed
'I love you' before chasing after Aldrich, who was, at that very
moment, on the outskirts of the flames and disappearing through the
door.

Kira pushed her way into the ballroom just in
time to see Aldrich sneak around another set of conduits. There
were maybe forty people in the gigantic room, but Kira tried to
ignore the flames haphazardly dancing around her and vampires
moaning in pain as the blood was drained from their veins. Broken
shards of glass and trampled red roses covered the floor, mixing
with the blood. Aldrich was already past the conduits, all too
concentrated on their prey to notice him, and he pushed another set
of wooden doors wide open. Kira dashed after him, trying not to
slip on the blood.

She threw herself through the doors, only to
have them shut loudly behind her.

Quickly, Kira stood up to face Aldrich as he
bolted her one escape closed. She put her hands in front of her in
warning.

"I don't want to hurt you, just tell me what
you know about my mother."

"My my, you are a determined little thing,
aren't you?" He said while taking a seat. Looking around, Kira
realized they had made their way into the formal dining room. A
huge wooden table surrounded by wooden chairs with green silk
cushions filled the space. A sweeping chandelier cast a soft glow
around the room, lightly illuminating paintings of hunting scenes
on the walls. "Please, join me." He motioned to the chair next to
him.

"I would rather stand, thanks. Now, what did
you mean when you said my mother wasn't trapped?"

"I see being with Tristan has given you a
false sense of security around us," he said, ignoring Kira's
question. "But when I tell you to sit, it is not a polite request."
Suddenly, the chair shot out from the table behind Kira, slamming
hard into her legs. Her knees buckled beneath her and she landed
heavily on the padded cushion.

"What the?"

"Tristan," Aldrich said, cutting her off,
"has the perfect physical composition, which was why I chose him so
long ago. But he lacks the mental authority one needs to become
truly powerful. You however," he said, grabbing Kira's chin again,
"are different. I can feel the power churning inside of you. I have
plans for you, very big plans."

Kira let a flame rise on her palm as she
grabbed his hand from her chin. "Do not touch me," she said,
feeling the burn seep into his skin.

He laughed, the excited mirth of a boy with a
new toy. "Oh, I understand now why Tristan has been following you
around like a little puppy. You're so exciting," he said while
slipping free of her hold. "Nothing like the girls I used to bring
him. They were weak and terrified, I should have known he would
want a challenge."

"Stop talking about Tristan like you know
him," Kira said while crossing her arms and trying not to picture
these kidnapped girls. "It's not like that."

"Oh, but it is, with a vampire it always is.
You'll see."

Frustrated, Kira released her power on him,
trying to break through his shield like she did with Diana. She
needed to intimidate him.

Instead, a bowl knocked against her hands,
banging them to the side so her power went harmlessly flying
towards an empty wall. Shocked, Kira stopped.

"Yes, before you ask, my vampiric abilities
came not in the way of force like your Tristan, but in mental
power. Try burning me again and I will send something larger at
your head." There was no anger or frustration or remorse in his
tone. His voice was like steel, cold and unemotional, and it sent a
shiver down Kira's back. For the first time in a long time, she
felt very afraid to be facing a vampire, especially on her own.

"Now, where were we?" Aldrich ran a hand over
the top of his head, smoothing his hair back while he took a moment
to think. "Oh yes, your mother. I'm sure she would love to see you.
I—"

"Where are you keeping her?" Kira
interrupted, trying to find the strength to stand up to him. He
flashed annoyed eyes in her direction and the chandelier above her
head began to wobble, chiming as the pieces of glass clinked
together.

"This conversation grows tiring. She lives
with me—"

A loud bang on the door stopped him
mid-sentence.

"Aldrich!"

Kira heard a pained scream from the other
side of the door. It took a second to realize the mangled voice
belonged to Tristan.

Another boom reverberated along the walls as
Tristan slammed into the door again, making the entire room shake
with his strength. Kira looked at Aldrich. He sat calmly in his
chair, not bothered by Tristan in the slightest.

"He tried to leave me once, maybe a year
after I turned him," Aldrich said, turning to Kira conversationally
and ignoring the yells beyond the door. "He banged and banged on
the door until even his vampiric skin was breaking open and bloody,
not an easy feat I assure you. But, he always forgets that physical
strength is the weakest kind. With my mind holding the door shut,
he will never break through."

"Why'd you let him go then?" Kira asked,
intrigued despite her fear.

"A moment of weakness I regretted for a long
time," he said. Kira almost believe the honesty in his words.

A loud crack caught her attention and she
eyed the door in time to see a huge fissure splinter the wood.
Another bang and scraps flew off, landing against the floor and
leaving a hole in the door.

Through it, Kira could see Tristan back up
and prepare for another charge. He looked beyond coherent thought
with tears streaming down his face and his muscles bulging.

"Well, it seems he has gained a little more
mental control in the hundred years since I've seen him." Aldrich's
voice was one of happy surprise. Kira thought he even sounded proud
for a moment. "It seems I must bid you farewell."

He picked up Kira's hand and lifted it to his
lips. Though she was afraid, Kira kept her powers inside. She
didn't want to test Aldrich and she had the oddest sensation that
he really didn't want to hurt her, that if he wanted to hurt her
she would already be dead. He had other plans in mind — big plans
like he said before, something far worse than killing her. Kira
forced herself not to pull her hand from his grip as fear crept
further into her mind.

In the same instant that his mouth brushed
against her skin, the door behind Kira flew off of its hinges.

"Aldrich!" Tristan bellowed, but Aldrich was
gone. He disappeared out the window and into the night.

Tristan ran to Kira and embraced her, pulling
her hard against his body. Kira hugged him back, throwing her arms
over his shoulders. It was only after her hands met at the base of
his neck that she realized there was a small paper stuck to her
palm.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He pulled her
back and examined her face.

"No. I'm fine. I promise. We were just
talking," Kira said. Quickly, she stuck her hand in her back
pocket, dropping the little paper there for later. Curiosity was
almost killing her: she needed to know what Aldrich had
written.