A Shade of Vampire (A Shade of Vampire, #1)(20)

Not long after Sofia left us to discuss whatever it was that Vivienne saw as too confidential for her to hear, my siblings took me on a tour of the island, mainly the Crimson Fortress and how they’d fortified it over the past centuries. What used to be just what it was – a wall surrounding the island – was now home to over three hundred vampire guards and scouts who sought refuge at the Blood Shade and swore to defend it.

At certain key areas of the fortress, there were large stone houses with distinct pointed turrets in front of the buildings that lined the wall. I was told that several of the men and women belonging to the Elite trained for battle and were called Knights. The homes were theirs for times when they were called to duty at the wall.

The Elite consisted of the twenty original clans who swore allegiance to our family. They were those who fought and bled with us, hunted down by shadow hunters until we finally found sanctuary at the Blood Shade. Everyone else – guards, scouts and the lodgers – came only after the wall was built and Cora’s spell was able to provide permanent protection to the Blood Shade.

“Where do most of the human slaves stay?”

“Aside from the beauties that we keep at our homes for our entertainment, all the humans stay at Black Heights.” Lucas’ eyes twinkled at the mention of “the beauties”. My brother always had quite a penchant for beautiful young women.

I raised a brow. “The mountains?”

“We divided the network of caves we found there into the Cells and the slave quarters. Prisoners and newfound human captives – before they are assigned – are sent to the Cells. Humans live at the slave quarters, which they call the Catacombs,” Vivienne explained.

“The Catacombs?” I asked curiously.

“It’s supposed to be irony.” Lucas rolled his eyes. “In the Shade, it is the living who get to reside at the Catacombs.”

I shrugged it off and eyed the height of the wall protecting us. “Everything seems alright. I don’t understand why it is necessary that I wake from my sleep.”

“Things won’t always be alright, Derek,” Vivienne enthused. “The shadow hunters are more powerful than ever. They’re technologically advanced and have the support of wealthy and influential people. The Blood Shade remains undiscovered and safe, but other covens aren’t. The Shade is no longer a secret in vampire communities and other covens have threatened to attack us or expose us unless we take them in or find them a refuge of their own.”

I frowned. These same covens were the ones that shunned us and left us out to die when we needed their help against the hunters. They were then threatening to spill our blood if we don’t save them?

“What have we been doing about this then?”

“As we’ve already told you, father is meeting with the heads of other covens. From the last we heard of him, all covens will be dispatching their leaders or at least an ambassador to arrive here so we can talk further about a compromise.”

“And I need to be awake for these talks because…?”

“My thoughts exactly,” Lucas mumbled.

I gave him a wary glance, wondering how it was possible that he didn’t mature a single bit after all this time. In his head, we were still obviously competing… for what, I had no idea.

“Aside from the fact that you command respect from all the other covens in a way none of us could, they know what you did. They will listen to you,” Vivienne said empathically. “And it’s not just that. I really don’t think that we can keep the Blood Shade a secret from shadow hunters for long. Not even with Corrine maintaining Cora’s spell. The hunters have been wondering where all these vampires have been disappearing to. And with us needing the humans and having to abduct them just to stay alive… that won’t just go away. Investigations are being done by several security agencies about all these missing people. We can’t keep this up for long.”

I clenched my fists, my muscles tensing as I tightened my jaw. “What makes you think that I would know how to fix this, Vivienne? I did my part. I brought you to sanctuary just like your prophecy said. Why can’t someone else take this on? Why not Father?”

“The prophecy was that your reign alone can provide our kind true sanctuary. The Blood Shade has been a sanctuary for a limited number of our kind, but it isn’t yet a true sanctuary until we either find all vampires a safe haven and manage a way to survive without the need of humans or…”

“Or what?” I asked, casting a stern look at my sister.

She said the blood-curdling words I knew she would say. “We have to end the shadow hunters once and for all.”

“You’re talking about war and bloodshed that we can’t even imagine. How long has it even been since the Shade’s guards have been in actual battle?”

All I got from both my brother and sister was silence.

We continued our trek through the island, leaving the issue hanging in the air. It weighed heavily on me for the rest of the time I spent with them. To say that I wasn’t burdened by what I was told was a lie. I didn’t understand why I had to stand as the leader. I was younger than a lot of the men there. That they would look to me for guidance was beyond my comprehension. The fact that it was me they looked to also gained me a lot of resentment from two people – my father and brother. I wasn’t even awake for a full day and already, I found myself exhausted and longing to once again escape.