A Shade of Blood (A Shade of Vampire #2)(82)

Thoughts of Sofia made my blood pound and my senses tingle. “You’ll be mine someday, Sofia. Oh, you’ll be mine.”

CHAPTER 47: DEREK

News spread quickly throughout the island that Sofia had directly defied a vampire – a member of the Elite at that – and got away with it. Outrage followed soon after.

“What if the rest of the humans follow her example and decide they can start defying their masters?” Felix, one of my most distrusted among the Elite, brought up during a council meeting at the dome.

“We can’t afford to have another human uprising, Derek,” Xavier voiced his concern – one which I also shared.

Felix scoffed, his hands raised in the air. “A human uprising! Perhaps it’s best… With the abductions halted, all the bloodshed an uprising would cause will give us all the blood we need for years to come.”

Eli, the only one at the stand amidst all the talk being thrown from the seats of the council, stared at Felix as if he were insane. Despite the tension in the room, I couldn’t help but notice the reaction on Eli’s face. He always did look at Felix as if he had no patience for the man.

Eli spoke: “There’s a reason we avoided touching the Naturals, prince. They are the backbone of this island. All the labor required to keep The Shade in its self-sufficient state is done by the humans born out of generations of humans loyal to the work they were given on this island.”

“We cannot continue to abduct humans from the outside if that’s what you’re trying to imply, Eli.” In this, I was not to be dissuaded. “They endanger The Shade by risking discovery from the hunters.”

“We’ve been abducting humans for years, Derek,” Cameron chimed in. “We’ve never been discovered. The Scouts are trained to be stealthy enough not to risk discovery.”

“The hunters grow more powerful as we speak. We cannot press our luck. Eli can attest to the hunters’ power based on the little information he managed to squeeze out of one of them we’ve taken captive.”

“Yet another human slave you seem to favor,” Claudia hissed. “I take punishment for aiding one of our own – our prince, your own brother. These slaves defy everything we stand for and yet they run free.”

“They are my slaves and I will do with them as I see fit. That’s the end of this discussion.” I stood up to better make my point. “There will be no abductions and while we still have a reserve of blood from the last culling in the chilling chambers, no humans will be taken from the Catacombs.”

“And when the blood runs out?” Xavier asked.

My gut clenched at what I knew was necessary to be done. “Then we conduct another culling.”

“I want fresh blood,” Felix demanded, seconded by ayes and yeahs echoing throughout the dome.

“Your wants don’t concern me, Felix. It’s what this island needs that is of greater priority.”

“We fear the human slave you favor – Sofia, is it? – has made you weak, prince,” he pressed on, rising from his seat and walking toward the stand.

I feared the same thing. The guilt, the pressure and the shame that I felt whenever Sofia asked me to use my rule in order to cause a change to the kingdom weighed heavily upon me. She did not understand the pressures of ruling a kingdom, of serving one’s subjects and making tough decisions on their behalf. And yet she moved me like no other. Even though she’d been spending the past few days ignoring my existence and had barely spoken a word to me for reasons I couldn’t fathom, I found myself satisfied just knowing that she was there.

I stared at Felix for a moment before speeding toward him, my claws sinking into the skin on his chest. Fear sparked in his eyes when he realized that he’d gone too far and that I could still break his neck in two with my bare hands should I choose to do so.

“Broach the subject again, Felix, and I will demonstrate just how weak I am by ripping your heart out with my bare hands. Her name is never to escape your lips again. Do you understand?”

He nodded. “Yes. Of course. My apologies.”

With no further attempt to address the rest of the council, I walked out of the dome only to have Cameron and Liana trailing behind me afterward.

“You’re treading dangerous waters, prince,” Cameron warned as he stepped to one side of me while Liana stepped to the other.

“There hasn’t been this much unrest with the vampires in centuries,” Liana added. “Word is out that some of the Elite have already sent scouts to retrieve your father and get him back here in order to take you under control.”

“Get to the point.”

“You can’t keep making enemies out of the Elite, Derek.” Cameron’s voice was tinged with concern. “Even those who have been loyal to you from the very beginning – the Vaughns and Lazaroffs – are finding it difficult to defend the direction you’re taking this kingdom toward.”

“What would you have me do, Cameron? We both know that the tides are about to turn. War is brewing. You agreed with me on this, did you not?”

“Yes, I did, but the importance you place upon this girl of yours… enough that you would make enemies out of Claudia and even your own brother on her behalf…” Cameron paused, careful not to offend, but finding the necessity to do so in order to speak his mind. “Is she worth it, prince?”