The Merciless Alpha(erotica)

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Across town . . .

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Officer Matt Devlin sat very much alone in the recesses of the Starbucks just inside the boundaries of West End. He had a mountain of research materials on his desk, involving every aspect of vampiric existence. In order to be chosen from the Registry, you had to be able to explain vampire physiology, laws involving Turning and registration, laws involving feeding, and the history of the vampire race. Knowing the lineage of the great families didn’t hurt either.

“Officer Devlin?” came a smooth voice from behind him, making him jump. It was a vampire to be sure, dressed like he was an FBI agent. He also had an charismatic air around his handsome features.

“Yes?”

“Hi, I’m Terrence McDermott.”

Devlin let out a sigh of relief. On Sadie’s suggestion, he had called the (relatively) recently Turned vamp, and Terrence was happy to oblige. Devlin was pretty convinced that the vamp was just trying to get brownie points with the Arbiter, for which he couldn’t really be blamed. “Thanks for coming. I didn’t realize how much studying there was going to have to be.”

“It’s harder when you’re trying to come up through the registry. If you can get invited to some of the upcoming official events, it may give you a chance to meet more of the higher up and see if they’re looking and/or able to expand their broods. I’d invite you, but I’m not allowed.”

“Not allowed?”Please check at N/ôvel(D)rama.Org.

“Yes, as Lord Frost’s employee, I can’t bring guests.”

“Oh! I thought it was some vampire rule I hadn’t read yet.”

Terrence grinned. “There are a lot of them, aren’t there? No, it’s a more mundane problem. I’m sure Lord Frost and the mayor will try to make Sadie show up to more, so see if she can score you an invite.”

“By my calculations, Arbiter Hewitt is going to try and avoid those events like the plague, and I’m not exactly her favorite person. She probably just wanted me to talk to you so that you might scare me out of wanting to go forward with the process.” He frowned. “I don’t know what her problem is.”

Terrence shrugged. “That woman dances to her own drummer, and the rest of us can only imagine what the beat sounds like. But it isn’t a decision you should make lightly. Just ask me your questions, and I’ll give you honest responses.”

“Okay . . . is it as hard as she says? Losing friends I mean?”

“Kind of a difficult question. I was just Turned five years ago, so most of my friends and family are still alive. I was turned by Lord Frost, seeing as he was looking to expand his brood and needed someone to keep the riff raff in line. Anyway, I’m military, so I’m not entirely unused to the idea of my friends dying around me. But my niece just turned seven in January, and it occurred to me that I might be a pall bearer at her funeral. It was a sobering thought. I’ve wondered if I should just start cutting myself off now, or enjoy them while I can. I think I like Miss Hewitt’s stance of embracing mortals. It might be heart-breaking, but it’ll help keep things in perspective for me. My boss thinks I’m being silly and sentimental, but hey . . . he can’t control my thoughts.”

“Does being a vamp help with the chicks?” Matt asked, giving a smile.

“Oh yeah!” Terrence leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “And the guys too.”

“I’m not into that.”

“You will be.”

“I don’t –”

McDermott was shaking his head. “Sexual attraction for all species is to help ensure reproduction and survival. Sometimes the wires get crossed a bit and a same sex relationship happens, but it’s not a real threat to the species as a whole. Vampires can Turn either male or female, so gender doesn’t enter into the equation for us. In order to help propagate the race, we need to be more open. I used to be just like you. I was a man’s man and while homosexuality didn’t bother me, it wasn’t my thing. After a year or so, my way of thinking changed.” He leaned forward. “Sexual attraction helps keeps potential vamps in thrall and helps with casual feeding. For a while, my old self kept trying to hold on to my former prejudices, but finally I just gave in. Found out that I could get just as much of a thrill from being with a guy as a girl. Now, it doesn’t matter. I like playing lady’s man, but I won’t turn down a handsome young man either. It’s an idea that you’d better get used to.”

Devlin just couldn’t imagine it, and he felt a twinge of nervousness.

“I mean, I wouldn’t stress out about it. Just go ahead and deny that it would ever happen to you but if you get Turned, it’ll change. Of course, the change will happen easier if you don’t try and fight it. I know one woman who tried to keep her religious views intact, and it almost drove her insane. Pleasure is pleasure, Officer Devlin. In the dark, it all feels good.”

Devlin badly wanted to change the subject. ‘But this is what you came here for,’ he reminded himself. “Uhm . . . let’s talk about laws.”

That subject was easier for him to handle, and the young human was confident that he knew the rules for Turning and registering Turns. Then they discussed the ritual itself, the hierarchical nature of vampire society, and how to identify the great families.

“And how much history do we need to know?”

“Not much. Just the basics, like when the Book of Names was created, major turning points in relations between vamps and the other species, and that sort of thing. Oh, and the Provenance.”

“I thought that was just hocus pocus and superstition.”

“Oh, don’t EVER tell one of the Lords that. They take the creation legend seriously. So let’s hear what you know.”

“Okay. Let’s see . . . about seven thousand years ago, a human woman named Lillith, via immaculate conception, gave birth to the first three vampires. These were Adam, Eve, and Solomon the Blood Saint. The three siblings grew up and were granted by the Lord immortality. Adam and Solomon wanted to create a vampire homeland, or Paradise, where they might live in peace with their mortal neighbors. But Eve was jealous of her brothers and made war against them. Eve, also known as the Betrayer, and Adam were both killed in the conflict, and Solomon was struck with the wound that never healed. He believed it was a sign and punishment from God for not being able to bring peace to his family. That’s why they call him the Blood Saint, because he bleeds constantly from a scratch on his forehead and has a large brood to help keep him replenished.”

“Good so far,” Terrence said with a nod. The boy had done his homework.

“Solomon wept over the destruction and fled to what is now Moscow, living amongst nomadic tribes while praying for forgiveness and feeding on whatever he could to stay alive. Finally he made friends of the local people and discovered that he had the ability to create more of his species. But he was afraid that if the wrong people were chosen to be Turned, that it might lead to another conflict. So the race has built slowly up, controlled by dictates of the Vampire Council, the Blood Saint himself, and the mortal races.”

“And that would make the Blood Saint –” Terrence looked over the young man carefully, waiting for a reply.

“The oldest creature on Earth?”

“More importantly, the oldest VAMPIRE on Earth. Remember, vampires tend to care more about history as it relates to them than the other races. We’re an arrogant people, and remembering that and appeasing it might help your case.”

“Thanks.” Devlin was feeling better. He would’ve been tempted to ask Terrence to sponsor him, but you had to have been a vampire for at least ten years before you can Turn someone. It kept new vamps from going out and just Turning all of their friends. “I guess I owe Sadie an apology. This isn’t quite so easy after all.”

“It can be traumatic, but it has its rewards.” Terrence looked a little misty eyed. “I feel the world in a way I could never imagine before. But if you want to walk in Paradise, sometimes you have to tread on the grounds of Hell.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

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A few days later . . .

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Sadie pulled the SUV into the parking lot and switched off the engine. She’d gotten a call about a breaking and entering in the warehouse district on the outermost edge of the Gravestones. These were mostly human owned businesses, so there shouldn’t be anyone poking their heads around at two o’clock in the morning.

She was once again partnerless, but this time by her own design. Vladimir was still in grunt-and-avoid mode, and Devlin actually had the night off. She’d considered riding with Fitzpatrick, but he had already gotten a partner for the night. And she didn’t mind being alone: she’d been alone before.

“This is Arbiter Hewitt,” she said into her walkie talkie. “I’ve arrived on the scene. Don’t see anything yet. Found where someone cut through the perimeter fence. Got a name or contents for this building yet?”