Asylum (Causal Enchantment #2)(35)
A chill ran down my spine. “And who would help them do that?” I asked slowly.
Another puff of his pipe, this one long. I noticed that Julian was hanging off the couch beside me now as well, his attention riveted to Leo. We locked eyes for a moment and he offered a sympathetic smile.
The old man finally spoke. “My kind. A highly skilled sorcerer. Or sorceress.”
I swallowed around a painful lump suddenly filling my throat and asked weakly, “You can do that sort of thing?”
Leo chuckled. “Me? No. I can’t. But . . . I wouldn’t put it past someone to figure it out.” He snorted. “And of course Viggo would find that witch. He’s resourceful, that one.”
I remembered Sofie’s earlier words about witches and vampires. “I thought your kind hated their kind. Where does Viggo keep finding these witches to help him?”
He nodded. “They do hate vampires. Yes. So much that they’ll do anything to rid the world of them.” He leaned forward to inspect the fire. I recognized it as a sign that he was going to launch into a story. “Don’t you ever wonder how vampires were created?”
“I haven’t gotten to that point yet. I’m still stuck at the fact that they exist,” I answered dryly. I heard Julian’s low chuckle beside me.
“Fair enough.” Leo’s head bobbed in understanding as he leaned back into his chair. “We created them. My kind. Vampires are the result of a Causal Enchantment.”
I don’t know why this shocked me, given everything I’d seen lately, but it did. I realized my jaw was hanging open and slowly closed my mouth. Julian leaned forward beside me, his elbows on his knees, hanging on the old warlock’s every word. Words that so few would ever hear.
Leo grinned, clearly enjoying our reaction. “About five thousand years ago, a sorceress was searching for eternal youth and immortality for herself. She started messing around with that dark magic. The Fates. Nasty business, I tell you. Anyone who gets involved with them is absolutely crazy.” Leo scowled. “Anyway, they granted her Causal Enchantment. They gave her eternal youth and immortality.” The ghost of a smug smile touched Leo’s mouth. “All she needed to do was drink blood. She became the first vampire, the most unexpected outcome of a spell. And the witches have been trying to correct that mistake ever since.” He added under his breath, “Creating all kinds of other disasters along the way.”
“The first vampire was a witch?” I whispered in disbelief. “So was she like Sofie? With powers? What happened to her?”
“Oh, my kind isn’t privy to that much detail. She was ostracized as soon as the transformation happened. It’s said she held on to a few of her powers, but I don’t know. We think Viggo knows, but he won’t tell Sofie. It’s his one secret over her.”
Of course he knew. Viggo was now the oldest vampire, but he hadn’t always been the oldest vampire. I didn’t doubt that he had something to do with this first vampire’s death. He was such a conniving monster. I shuddered, imagining him storming through the side door at that moment. If I never saw him again, I’d be happy. Mortimer . . . I didn’t fear him as much, not since he’d dropped his mask for that millisecond in the atrium that day. I knew without a doubt that he’d still kill me to get to the pendant, but I also knew he wouldn’t take sadistic pleasure in it. That brought me some small level of comfort. “So do you think they’d actually trust another one?”
He shrugged, sighing loudly. “Who knows? I should suspect not, given the last ‘arrangement’ Viggo made, but who can say, with that psychopath? When he’s desperate, he gets reckless.” Bitterness tinged his voice.
I thought a moment. “So if he did find a witch to help him and Sofie doesn’t send you messages, then no one finds me and everything’s fine, right?”
Leo’s laughter rang hollow. “Yes. For us, everything’s peachy.”
I frowned. I didn’t understand this old man’s sense of humor sometimes.
Leo sighed. “There are a few other issues that could be . . . distracting her.”
My stomach did another sickly dive to my feet. “Other issues besides witches?”
Leo nodded. “Remember that day in Central Park? When you were attacked?”
“Yeah, I seem to recall something.” I glanced sideways at the dogs as another memory flashed in my mind—this one of the mutt Badger’s decapitated head. I shuddered.
“Those men with Ursula . . . they weren’t just hired thugs,” Leo explained. “They were hired ‘People’s Sentinel’ thugs.”
I felt my forehead crease as I wracked my memory for something to link to the name. No bells. “Have you mentioned them before?”
Leo groaned heavily. “Why must I be the one to explain everything? The People’s Sentinel is a long-standing secret society of humans fighting for humankind against vampires. Against anything nonhuman, actually. Even against witches. They’ve existed for thousands of years now. You heard of women burned for being witches?” Julian and I nodded in unison. “The handiwork of the Sentinel. In the past, their society numbered in the thousands. Then they fell into the background like a sleeper cell, where they’ve remained for several hundred years. Only now they’ve resurfaced and they’re stronger than ever. We’re not sure how many are involved. Mortimer and Viggo had been lying low for years while this mess with Veronique was getting settled—hence the Foreros’ involvement. However, we’ve started seeing them around again.”