Sequel: The Gin House Blues ›
Status: In progress :)
The Shadows' Child
A Meeting
"They're late," Tristan grumbled.
"We were supposed to meet here at eight o'clock, Tristan, it's only five past."
"And? They're still late." He huddled into his heavy pea coat; dark navy with brass buttons, more of a fashion statement than a necessity.
Ceara answered with a roll of her eyes, trying to ignore his griping. Why was he so uptight about this whole thing anyway?
"It's common courtesy to be on time for meetings," Tristan continued. He tapped his cigarette agitatedly, ash scattering onto the icy frost of the pavement. He took another drag, not taking the time to savour it, then blew the smoke to the sky. He bounced on his heels a little.
The night was crisp and clear, the January air still biting at the heels of February. The cold bothered neither of them though. They barely felt the chill as they stood outside of the meeting place of Neutral Zone Five. There were six zones distributed evenly throughout the city, Neutral Zone Five being the most southerly. These patches of unclaimed territory were situated on strips of land between districts and it was here that vampires could hold gatherings without infringing on border codes; when two or more broods entered a district without its owner's permission, it was seen as a declaration of blood war. In a city with such a high vampire population, neutral zones were an indispensable part of life.
Just like the neutral zones, districts and their borders were also essential here. Vampires were touchy about territory by default and it was because of this that every vampire-settled city in the country was separated into districts. Each vampire brood in the city had one; a piece of territory on which they lived and hunted. At the moment, there were eight districts altogether, each carefully marked and numbered; from District One in the North right down to District Eight, Tristan and Ceara's district, in the south. There were still occasional disputes over territory obviously, especially between those sharing their borders with multiple broods, but, for the most part, the districts kept the city's vampire population content and, therefore, undetected by their human neighbours.
Neutral Zone Five's meeting place had at one time been a thriving community centre, but now it sat derelict and empty; an ugly husk with its windows boarded and its cheerful lemon paint turned a sallow, sickly grey-yellow from pollution and grime. Not the prettiest location, granted, but it served their purpose; no one would venture close enough to it to disturb their gathering.
Ceara sighed now as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat and watched Tristan disapprovingly. He had just finished one cigarette, flicking it to the ground quickly, hardly allowing for the last of the smoke to clear away with the breeze before he rummaged in his pocket and brought out the crumpled pack. He slid out another.
"Hey, what's up with you?"
"What? Nothing," Tristan mumbled quickly around the cigarette. He lit it and took a deliberately slow and careful drag. Calm. Contrived.
"Really? ‘Cause you're twitchy as hell and you've chain smoked, like, half a pack of cigarettes in the past fifteen minutes.”
Her eyes drilled into his and Tristan responded with a look of such innocent confusion that it only served to fuel her suspicions. "Not half a pack," he said, avoiding the real question behind her words. He looked down at his feet, scraping the toe of his shoe against the ice.
Ceara pursed her mouth and narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re hiding something."
“You’re paranoid.”
“I think the word is ‘perceptive’; ‘paranoid’ implies that I’m suspicious for no reason.”
“Exactly...there is no reason, ‘cause I’m not hiding anything .”
Ceara examined her nails nonchalantly. “I’ll find out eventually, y’know.”
Tristan took a determined pull on his cigarette and released the smoke in a sigh. “So paranoid...”
“Who’s paranoid?”
Ceara remained unaffected by the sudden appearance of the vampire; Tristan however, almost swallowed his cigarette. He coughed instinctively and turned around to glare at the woman in front of them. She was uncommonly beautiful, her skin a rich, dark, caramel colour and her hair falling in tight, black curls to her shoulders. Her eyes were a brown so dark they were almost black. She was smiling with lips that were full and lush, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes.
“Adrienne,” Ceara said calmly.
“Ceara, nice to see you again,” Adrienne smirked, “you too, Tristan.”
“Yeah, it’s been a while.” Tristan tossed his unfinished cigarette to the ground, Adrienne’s cold, dark eyes followed it.
“I see you’re still smoking those filthy things.”
Tristan gave her a look which didn't exactly constitute a glare, but it was close. "Can we just get this over with?"
Adrienne gave a short laugh, low and sultry. "Oh come now, Tristan, don't act like you haven't missed me."
"Miss you? Miss you? Don't make me laugh! God, if I-"
Ceara interrupted Tristan swiftly, clearing her throat and causing them both to turn their heads to look at her. She addressed Adrienne. “So, where are the rest of your brood?”
Adrienne looked over her shoulder, listening for a moment before turning back to Ceara. “They’ll be here in a minute.” She looked Tristan up and down before she raised one cleanly manicured hand and indicated the half-boarded door of the centre. “Shall we go in?”
Tristan nodded and went forward, easily pulling aside a sheet of plywood, he waved at the two women. “Ladies first,” he said dryly.
“A real gentleman, isn’t he?” Adrienne drawled, making her way into the centre as Tristan held back the plank.
Tristan put his lips to Ceara's ear as she passed him. "A real pain in the ass, isn't she?" He whispered conspiratorially.
Ceara almost laughed but bit her lip just in time, she elbowed him. "Be nice," she hissed, barely loud enough for him to hear.
"Only if she is."
Ceara rolled her eyes at him and followed Adrienne into the middle of the centre's large hall. Tristan let the plywood fall back into place and trailed after them into the gloom.
There was an uncomfortable moment of silence where the three of them simply stood there; Adrienne glancing disinterestedly at her nails, Ceara fidgeting with her coat button and Tristan checking his pocket watch impatiently. Luckily, however, the awkwardness was broken in less than a minute with the sure-footed sound of footsteps crunching through the ice outside.
Ceara recognised the first vampire as Helen. She was small and beautifully formed, all softly sculpted curves and unblemished skin. Serious and well spoken too, if Ceara remembered correctly. Ceara had always found Helen a pleasant enough sort of person, much less intimidating than the rest of her brood. She even gave them a small smile as she entered, nodding towards them genially and shaking both their hands before joining Adrienne.
"Sorry we're a bit late," she said.
Ceara waved the apology away, nudging Tristan's foot with her own when she heard him give a low grumble. "It's fine," Ceara reassured her. "Is-"
Her words were ended abruptly by Michael striding in, each step measured and careful. At first glance, Michael appeared relatively harmless and unassuming; fair blond hair and pale skin making him seem washed out and a little sickly. Anemic. When he spoke, his voice was soft and his shoulders hunched in a little. But, to use that old cliché, appearances are often deceptive. Underneath the placid meekness, Michael was one of the most ruthless men Ceara knew. He was an infamously efficient killer with a wicked temper and a reputation for holding grudges. Dangerous? Unquestionably so. However he was just as loyal as he was deadly and he protected his friends with fierce conviction. He was definitely someone you would want on your side.
Right now though, his eyes, just as pale as the rest of him, flickered over the assembly with quiet calculation. "Hello," he said softly, his stare still jumping between Ceara and Tristan as he hovered near his brood. Ceara determinedly fought against the icy prickle of unease stealing over her skin and lifted her chin, just a fraction. She made no move to shake his hand.
"Hello, Michael," she said.
"Good to see you, Michael." Tristan's voice acted as a gentle reassurance to Ceara's failing nerve. He stepped a little closer to her and rested a hand on her shoulder; Ceara found herself standing straighter.
Michael's mouth twitched a bit but he said nothing. Tristan began to speak. "So, now that all of us are here-"
"Not quite," Adrienne cut in. Tristan looked a bit confused and so Adrienne gestured to the door.
The last to enter was a vampire Ceara had never seen before. He was tall, around the same height as Tristan, but broader in the shoulders; more muscular. His skin was a muted olive colour and his eyes were brown and lively. He spotted them instantly and loped over, his gait strangely agile for someone so strongly built. He smiled at them, sharp and white. "Hello."
Tristan nodded in acknowledgement and Ceara did the same. Adrienne put a hand on his shoulder, at around six foot she was still a head smaller than him. "This," she said, looking up at the man and then back down to them, "is Luca. He's our...new arrival."
Tristan was silent and tense behind her, he never did like surprises and so Adrienne's new acquisition was worrying. They were already outnumbered as it was. Ceara sensed Tristan's unease, but he covered it up abruptly. She felt his hand tighten briefly on her shoulder before it fell away and he held it out to shake Luca's hand.
"Tristan," he offered, years of etiquette lessons taking over in a fraction of a second. "It's nice to meet you,"
Luca grasped Tristan's proffered hand firmly and with a wide grin. "Nice to meet you also," he replied. His voice was deep and his words rose and fell oddly, as if he had had an accent once, but it had become faded with time and travelling. Ceara couldn't place it.
Automatically, Ceara stuck out her hand after Tristan. "Ceara," she said. Instead of shaking her hand though, Luca stepped closer and bowed down a little, raising her the back of her hand to his mouth in a quick kiss. Ceara jolted a bit in shock at the unexpected gesture. She couldn't remember the last time someone had kissed her hand in greeting, well, she could...but it had been decades ago.
"A pleasure to meet you," Luca said smoothly. Too smoothly. Ceara resisted the urge to yank her hand away and instead smiled politely and tried to ignore the disapproving noise Tristan made behind her.
"Likewise." Her answer was a little cool but it didn't seem to register with Luca. He held onto her hand for just a moment too long before he let go and stepped back into line with his brood.
Tristan immediately moved forward standing just slightly in front of Ceara, crossing his arms. He spoke to Adrienne as she ran her hand happily up and down Luca's arm, not even looking in their direction. “So, now that all the pleasantries are out of the way, I think it's about time we got down to business, don't you?”
Adrienne stopped fussing over Luca abruptly and turned to look at Tristan with a strange light in her eyes. Her chin tilted upwards and she sauntered towards them, not stopping until she was almost nose to nose with Tristan. Tristan, to his credit, didn't even flinch; but Ceara could sense how tensely he held his shoulders. Adrienne was peering into his face when she spoke again.
“You're awfully serious, sweetheart,” Tristan's nose wrinkled at the term of endearment but Adrienne either didn't notice or she didn't care and carried on.“Very well, we'll...'get down to business', as you so eloquently phrased it.” She was smirking again and Ceara could almost hear Tristan grinding his teeth together.
“Right then,” Ceara stepped forwards and out of Tristan's shadow, “so, basically, we've been having some...issues with hunting. More specifically, we've starting encountering humans after we've fed on them...”
“Yes, I can see how that could become an issue. Why not just move?” Adrienne crossed her arms.
“Well, we don't want to leave. We like it here,” Ceara said.
Adrienne snorted. “What do you want us to do about it?”
“Not really our problem, is it?” Michael chimed in.
Ceara's jaw tightened. “I was just wondering if you'd be willing to negotiate with regards to borders.”
“Wait a minute,” Adrienne said slowly, “you really think that we would even consider altering our borders?” She laughed. “Really, Ceara, I thought you were a bit smarter than that.”
Helen piped up, “Adrienne, I think that's enough, don't-”
“Quiet, Helen,” Adrienne snapped, then looked again to Ceara, she cocked her head, “ I mean it's kind of sweet really, that you'd so naive as to think that your little problem would bother us in the slightest. Are you that-”
Tristan, who had been quietly simmering in the background, suddenly interrupted. “How many vampires do you have in your brood now, Adrienne?”
The vampire was only temporarily sidetracked by Tristan's question, she answered waspishly, “Have you lost the ability to count, Tristan dear? Are you as dull as your little friend?”
“How many?” Tristan, seemingly unruffled, walked forward until Michael stood out in front of him; blocking his path to Adrienne.
“Down, boy,” Adrienne swatted Michael's shoulder and stepped around him to face Tristan. “Four,” she told him.
“Your new addition,” Tristan looked at Luca and then back to Adrienne, “how tall is he?”
“Six foot five inches,” Luca answered, a little confused.
Tristan smiled.“Thank you, Luca. Not exactly small, is he? Not easily fed either, I would imagine.” At this Adrienne's face began to take on a look of comprehension, Tristan went on, “ How many feeds would he need a night? Not the average two or three I'm guessing, you want to help me out here, Luca?”
“Five,” Luca responded.
“Thank you again, Luca, most helpful.” Tristan nodded at Luca and then grinned at Adrienne. “So you see, Adrienne, for now your blood supply might be varied enough but after about...six months? Well, our little problem might become your little problem too, wouldn't you say?”
Ceara smiled, Tristan had Adrienne's attention now; she was twisting a black curl around her finger, feigning nonchalance.“You can't be sure of that.”
Tristan smirked. “You want to chance it, Adrienne? I didn't think you were so...naive.”
“What were you planning to do about it? You can forget about re-drawing borders if that's what you're thinking,” Adrienne snapped.
“I want to organise a time-share,” Ceara said.
“A time-share?”
“It's when-”
Adrienne clicked her tongue impatiently. “I know what a damn time-share is, Ceara. How is it meant to help us exactly?”
“Yes, right, sorry. Well if we were to agree to swap hunting territories for about two weeks out of every month, each of our broods could get fresh blood sources and prevent-”
“Prevent us from bumping into last night's dinner. I get it.”
“What do you think?”
Adrienne pursed her lips. “It's a deal.”
In her peripheral vision, Ceara saw the smirk slide off Michael's face and she almost laughed. “Good,” she said. “Brilliant. How about we start this Monday and see how things go?”
“What the Hell are you thinking, Adrienne?” Michael hissed.
“I'm thinking that you should stop questioning my authority, Michael,” Adrienne responded, her voice so full of ice that it held no room for argument. Adrienne was a lot older and her power over Michael was clear as his mouth snapped shut abruptly.
Adrienne turned to Ceara and Tristan haughtily. “Monday it is. See you soon,” she purred. She chucked Tristan under the chin, much to his annoyance, and then strode out of the hall; her brood trailing after her.
“God I hate that woman,” Tristan said, rubbing a hand over his forehead.
Ceara chuckled and hooked her arm into his as they left the neutral zone. “At least we managed to convince her. Thanks for the back-up, by the way.”
“Any time.” Tristan patted her arm lightly as they neared the front door to their flat. Ceara pulled her key from her pocket and opened the door, but Tristan hung back. She turned and raised an eyebrow at him.
“You do realise that we were invited in by the landlord, don't you?”
“Yes, Ceara.”
“Then get your ass in here, it's freezing.”
Tristan rolled his eyes. “You're a vampire, you don't get cold. Anyway,” he shoved his hands into his pockets, “I'm just going to head down to the shop for a pack of cigarettes.”
Ceara tutted and stuck her head round the door, watching him walk down the street. “It's still a dirty habit!” she shouted after him.
Tristan gave a wave over his shoulder. “ I won't be long.”
Ceara shook her head as she shut the door.
*****
“You're late.”
Tristan lit his cigarette, only glancing up at his companion after taking a deep drag. “Makes a difference from you being late, doesn't it?”
“Yes, yes, you're hilarious. Now come on.”
He followed her into the darkness of the alley and leaned against the wall. “Any news?” he asked.
“Another hit.”
“Where?”
“Up in District Two.”
“How many?”
“The whole brood.”
Tristan's jaw tightened. “What? All six of them?”
“That's what I said, didn't I?” Adrienne barked. She pinched the bridge of her nose in agitation. “I don't know what to do. If They can take down six vampires, including two over five hundred years old, we have no chance. None.” She looked up at Tristan as he stood still casually smoking his cigarette.
“We only have one option then.”
“And what's that?” she asked.
“We go after Them.”
Adrienne laughed. She took in Tristan's blank expression. “What? You're being serious? Oh God, Tristan, you've lost your mind, haven't you?”
“What other choice do we have? We have to try and close down the operation from the inside.”
“There's no way we'll find a rat among Them, They're completely brainwashed.”
Tristan tapped his cigarette and rubbed his neck. “We have to do something,” he sighed, “I'll try to come up with some sort of plan.”
“I was considering just moving my brood,” Adrienne confessed, crossing her arms.
Tristan stared at her. “They'll track you down. You know that.”
“I know. I just hate all this...inaction.” She curled a piece of hair around her finger as she leaned against the wall next to Tristan. “Have you told Ceara yet?”
“No.”
Adrienne turned and plucked the cigarette from his mouth, placing it between her lips. “You are going to, aren't you?”
“I thought you didn't smoke those filthy things.”
“You didn't answer my question.” Tristan remained quiet, Adrienne took a drag before dropping the butt. “You can't keep her in the dark forever, Tristan,” she reminded him.
“I know, I know.”
The silence fell heavy between them, Adrienne cleared her throat and pushed herself away from the wall. “I'd better be going," she said. "You'll let me know if you think of anything won't you?" She stopped for a moment and turned back to face him. "Oh, and thanks for the cigarette," she winked at him, "I'll see you around.”
Tristan waved her away. “I sincerely hope not.”
Adrienne laughed. “Goodbye, Tristan.” Then she was gone.
Tristan watched her stride away. With a frown he crushed the glowing butt of the cigarette under his heel. "Damn Them," he whispered. He kicked the butt angrily, took a deep breath and then started for home.
"We were supposed to meet here at eight o'clock, Tristan, it's only five past."
"And? They're still late." He huddled into his heavy pea coat; dark navy with brass buttons, more of a fashion statement than a necessity.
Ceara answered with a roll of her eyes, trying to ignore his griping. Why was he so uptight about this whole thing anyway?
"It's common courtesy to be on time for meetings," Tristan continued. He tapped his cigarette agitatedly, ash scattering onto the icy frost of the pavement. He took another drag, not taking the time to savour it, then blew the smoke to the sky. He bounced on his heels a little.
The night was crisp and clear, the January air still biting at the heels of February. The cold bothered neither of them though. They barely felt the chill as they stood outside of the meeting place of Neutral Zone Five. There were six zones distributed evenly throughout the city, Neutral Zone Five being the most southerly. These patches of unclaimed territory were situated on strips of land between districts and it was here that vampires could hold gatherings without infringing on border codes; when two or more broods entered a district without its owner's permission, it was seen as a declaration of blood war. In a city with such a high vampire population, neutral zones were an indispensable part of life.
Just like the neutral zones, districts and their borders were also essential here. Vampires were touchy about territory by default and it was because of this that every vampire-settled city in the country was separated into districts. Each vampire brood in the city had one; a piece of territory on which they lived and hunted. At the moment, there were eight districts altogether, each carefully marked and numbered; from District One in the North right down to District Eight, Tristan and Ceara's district, in the south. There were still occasional disputes over territory obviously, especially between those sharing their borders with multiple broods, but, for the most part, the districts kept the city's vampire population content and, therefore, undetected by their human neighbours.
Neutral Zone Five's meeting place had at one time been a thriving community centre, but now it sat derelict and empty; an ugly husk with its windows boarded and its cheerful lemon paint turned a sallow, sickly grey-yellow from pollution and grime. Not the prettiest location, granted, but it served their purpose; no one would venture close enough to it to disturb their gathering.
Ceara sighed now as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat and watched Tristan disapprovingly. He had just finished one cigarette, flicking it to the ground quickly, hardly allowing for the last of the smoke to clear away with the breeze before he rummaged in his pocket and brought out the crumpled pack. He slid out another.
"Hey, what's up with you?"
"What? Nothing," Tristan mumbled quickly around the cigarette. He lit it and took a deliberately slow and careful drag. Calm. Contrived.
"Really? ‘Cause you're twitchy as hell and you've chain smoked, like, half a pack of cigarettes in the past fifteen minutes.”
Her eyes drilled into his and Tristan responded with a look of such innocent confusion that it only served to fuel her suspicions. "Not half a pack," he said, avoiding the real question behind her words. He looked down at his feet, scraping the toe of his shoe against the ice.
Ceara pursed her mouth and narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re hiding something."
“You’re paranoid.”
“I think the word is ‘perceptive’; ‘paranoid’ implies that I’m suspicious for no reason.”
“Exactly...there is no reason, ‘cause I’m not hiding anything .”
Ceara examined her nails nonchalantly. “I’ll find out eventually, y’know.”
Tristan took a determined pull on his cigarette and released the smoke in a sigh. “So paranoid...”
“Who’s paranoid?”
Ceara remained unaffected by the sudden appearance of the vampire; Tristan however, almost swallowed his cigarette. He coughed instinctively and turned around to glare at the woman in front of them. She was uncommonly beautiful, her skin a rich, dark, caramel colour and her hair falling in tight, black curls to her shoulders. Her eyes were a brown so dark they were almost black. She was smiling with lips that were full and lush, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes.
“Adrienne,” Ceara said calmly.
“Ceara, nice to see you again,” Adrienne smirked, “you too, Tristan.”
“Yeah, it’s been a while.” Tristan tossed his unfinished cigarette to the ground, Adrienne’s cold, dark eyes followed it.
“I see you’re still smoking those filthy things.”
Tristan gave her a look which didn't exactly constitute a glare, but it was close. "Can we just get this over with?"
Adrienne gave a short laugh, low and sultry. "Oh come now, Tristan, don't act like you haven't missed me."
"Miss you? Miss you? Don't make me laugh! God, if I-"
Ceara interrupted Tristan swiftly, clearing her throat and causing them both to turn their heads to look at her. She addressed Adrienne. “So, where are the rest of your brood?”
Adrienne looked over her shoulder, listening for a moment before turning back to Ceara. “They’ll be here in a minute.” She looked Tristan up and down before she raised one cleanly manicured hand and indicated the half-boarded door of the centre. “Shall we go in?”
Tristan nodded and went forward, easily pulling aside a sheet of plywood, he waved at the two women. “Ladies first,” he said dryly.
“A real gentleman, isn’t he?” Adrienne drawled, making her way into the centre as Tristan held back the plank.
Tristan put his lips to Ceara's ear as she passed him. "A real pain in the ass, isn't she?" He whispered conspiratorially.
Ceara almost laughed but bit her lip just in time, she elbowed him. "Be nice," she hissed, barely loud enough for him to hear.
"Only if she is."
Ceara rolled her eyes at him and followed Adrienne into the middle of the centre's large hall. Tristan let the plywood fall back into place and trailed after them into the gloom.
There was an uncomfortable moment of silence where the three of them simply stood there; Adrienne glancing disinterestedly at her nails, Ceara fidgeting with her coat button and Tristan checking his pocket watch impatiently. Luckily, however, the awkwardness was broken in less than a minute with the sure-footed sound of footsteps crunching through the ice outside.
Ceara recognised the first vampire as Helen. She was small and beautifully formed, all softly sculpted curves and unblemished skin. Serious and well spoken too, if Ceara remembered correctly. Ceara had always found Helen a pleasant enough sort of person, much less intimidating than the rest of her brood. She even gave them a small smile as she entered, nodding towards them genially and shaking both their hands before joining Adrienne.
"Sorry we're a bit late," she said.
Ceara waved the apology away, nudging Tristan's foot with her own when she heard him give a low grumble. "It's fine," Ceara reassured her. "Is-"
Her words were ended abruptly by Michael striding in, each step measured and careful. At first glance, Michael appeared relatively harmless and unassuming; fair blond hair and pale skin making him seem washed out and a little sickly. Anemic. When he spoke, his voice was soft and his shoulders hunched in a little. But, to use that old cliché, appearances are often deceptive. Underneath the placid meekness, Michael was one of the most ruthless men Ceara knew. He was an infamously efficient killer with a wicked temper and a reputation for holding grudges. Dangerous? Unquestionably so. However he was just as loyal as he was deadly and he protected his friends with fierce conviction. He was definitely someone you would want on your side.
Right now though, his eyes, just as pale as the rest of him, flickered over the assembly with quiet calculation. "Hello," he said softly, his stare still jumping between Ceara and Tristan as he hovered near his brood. Ceara determinedly fought against the icy prickle of unease stealing over her skin and lifted her chin, just a fraction. She made no move to shake his hand.
"Hello, Michael," she said.
"Good to see you, Michael." Tristan's voice acted as a gentle reassurance to Ceara's failing nerve. He stepped a little closer to her and rested a hand on her shoulder; Ceara found herself standing straighter.
Michael's mouth twitched a bit but he said nothing. Tristan began to speak. "So, now that all of us are here-"
"Not quite," Adrienne cut in. Tristan looked a bit confused and so Adrienne gestured to the door.
The last to enter was a vampire Ceara had never seen before. He was tall, around the same height as Tristan, but broader in the shoulders; more muscular. His skin was a muted olive colour and his eyes were brown and lively. He spotted them instantly and loped over, his gait strangely agile for someone so strongly built. He smiled at them, sharp and white. "Hello."
Tristan nodded in acknowledgement and Ceara did the same. Adrienne put a hand on his shoulder, at around six foot she was still a head smaller than him. "This," she said, looking up at the man and then back down to them, "is Luca. He's our...new arrival."
Tristan was silent and tense behind her, he never did like surprises and so Adrienne's new acquisition was worrying. They were already outnumbered as it was. Ceara sensed Tristan's unease, but he covered it up abruptly. She felt his hand tighten briefly on her shoulder before it fell away and he held it out to shake Luca's hand.
"Tristan," he offered, years of etiquette lessons taking over in a fraction of a second. "It's nice to meet you,"
Luca grasped Tristan's proffered hand firmly and with a wide grin. "Nice to meet you also," he replied. His voice was deep and his words rose and fell oddly, as if he had had an accent once, but it had become faded with time and travelling. Ceara couldn't place it.
Automatically, Ceara stuck out her hand after Tristan. "Ceara," she said. Instead of shaking her hand though, Luca stepped closer and bowed down a little, raising her the back of her hand to his mouth in a quick kiss. Ceara jolted a bit in shock at the unexpected gesture. She couldn't remember the last time someone had kissed her hand in greeting, well, she could...but it had been decades ago.
"A pleasure to meet you," Luca said smoothly. Too smoothly. Ceara resisted the urge to yank her hand away and instead smiled politely and tried to ignore the disapproving noise Tristan made behind her.
"Likewise." Her answer was a little cool but it didn't seem to register with Luca. He held onto her hand for just a moment too long before he let go and stepped back into line with his brood.
Tristan immediately moved forward standing just slightly in front of Ceara, crossing his arms. He spoke to Adrienne as she ran her hand happily up and down Luca's arm, not even looking in their direction. “So, now that all the pleasantries are out of the way, I think it's about time we got down to business, don't you?”
Adrienne stopped fussing over Luca abruptly and turned to look at Tristan with a strange light in her eyes. Her chin tilted upwards and she sauntered towards them, not stopping until she was almost nose to nose with Tristan. Tristan, to his credit, didn't even flinch; but Ceara could sense how tensely he held his shoulders. Adrienne was peering into his face when she spoke again.
“You're awfully serious, sweetheart,” Tristan's nose wrinkled at the term of endearment but Adrienne either didn't notice or she didn't care and carried on.“Very well, we'll...'get down to business', as you so eloquently phrased it.” She was smirking again and Ceara could almost hear Tristan grinding his teeth together.
“Right then,” Ceara stepped forwards and out of Tristan's shadow, “so, basically, we've been having some...issues with hunting. More specifically, we've starting encountering humans after we've fed on them...”
“Yes, I can see how that could become an issue. Why not just move?” Adrienne crossed her arms.
“Well, we don't want to leave. We like it here,” Ceara said.
Adrienne snorted. “What do you want us to do about it?”
“Not really our problem, is it?” Michael chimed in.
Ceara's jaw tightened. “I was just wondering if you'd be willing to negotiate with regards to borders.”
“Wait a minute,” Adrienne said slowly, “you really think that we would even consider altering our borders?” She laughed. “Really, Ceara, I thought you were a bit smarter than that.”
Helen piped up, “Adrienne, I think that's enough, don't-”
“Quiet, Helen,” Adrienne snapped, then looked again to Ceara, she cocked her head, “ I mean it's kind of sweet really, that you'd so naive as to think that your little problem would bother us in the slightest. Are you that-”
Tristan, who had been quietly simmering in the background, suddenly interrupted. “How many vampires do you have in your brood now, Adrienne?”
The vampire was only temporarily sidetracked by Tristan's question, she answered waspishly, “Have you lost the ability to count, Tristan dear? Are you as dull as your little friend?”
“How many?” Tristan, seemingly unruffled, walked forward until Michael stood out in front of him; blocking his path to Adrienne.
“Down, boy,” Adrienne swatted Michael's shoulder and stepped around him to face Tristan. “Four,” she told him.
“Your new addition,” Tristan looked at Luca and then back to Adrienne, “how tall is he?”
“Six foot five inches,” Luca answered, a little confused.
Tristan smiled.“Thank you, Luca. Not exactly small, is he? Not easily fed either, I would imagine.” At this Adrienne's face began to take on a look of comprehension, Tristan went on, “ How many feeds would he need a night? Not the average two or three I'm guessing, you want to help me out here, Luca?”
“Five,” Luca responded.
“Thank you again, Luca, most helpful.” Tristan nodded at Luca and then grinned at Adrienne. “So you see, Adrienne, for now your blood supply might be varied enough but after about...six months? Well, our little problem might become your little problem too, wouldn't you say?”
Ceara smiled, Tristan had Adrienne's attention now; she was twisting a black curl around her finger, feigning nonchalance.“You can't be sure of that.”
Tristan smirked. “You want to chance it, Adrienne? I didn't think you were so...naive.”
“What were you planning to do about it? You can forget about re-drawing borders if that's what you're thinking,” Adrienne snapped.
“I want to organise a time-share,” Ceara said.
“A time-share?”
“It's when-”
Adrienne clicked her tongue impatiently. “I know what a damn time-share is, Ceara. How is it meant to help us exactly?”
“Yes, right, sorry. Well if we were to agree to swap hunting territories for about two weeks out of every month, each of our broods could get fresh blood sources and prevent-”
“Prevent us from bumping into last night's dinner. I get it.”
“What do you think?”
Adrienne pursed her lips. “It's a deal.”
In her peripheral vision, Ceara saw the smirk slide off Michael's face and she almost laughed. “Good,” she said. “Brilliant. How about we start this Monday and see how things go?”
“What the Hell are you thinking, Adrienne?” Michael hissed.
“I'm thinking that you should stop questioning my authority, Michael,” Adrienne responded, her voice so full of ice that it held no room for argument. Adrienne was a lot older and her power over Michael was clear as his mouth snapped shut abruptly.
Adrienne turned to Ceara and Tristan haughtily. “Monday it is. See you soon,” she purred. She chucked Tristan under the chin, much to his annoyance, and then strode out of the hall; her brood trailing after her.
“God I hate that woman,” Tristan said, rubbing a hand over his forehead.
Ceara chuckled and hooked her arm into his as they left the neutral zone. “At least we managed to convince her. Thanks for the back-up, by the way.”
“Any time.” Tristan patted her arm lightly as they neared the front door to their flat. Ceara pulled her key from her pocket and opened the door, but Tristan hung back. She turned and raised an eyebrow at him.
“You do realise that we were invited in by the landlord, don't you?”
“Yes, Ceara.”
“Then get your ass in here, it's freezing.”
Tristan rolled his eyes. “You're a vampire, you don't get cold. Anyway,” he shoved his hands into his pockets, “I'm just going to head down to the shop for a pack of cigarettes.”
Ceara tutted and stuck her head round the door, watching him walk down the street. “It's still a dirty habit!” she shouted after him.
Tristan gave a wave over his shoulder. “ I won't be long.”
Ceara shook her head as she shut the door.
*****
“You're late.”
Tristan lit his cigarette, only glancing up at his companion after taking a deep drag. “Makes a difference from you being late, doesn't it?”
“Yes, yes, you're hilarious. Now come on.”
He followed her into the darkness of the alley and leaned against the wall. “Any news?” he asked.
“Another hit.”
“Where?”
“Up in District Two.”
“How many?”
“The whole brood.”
Tristan's jaw tightened. “What? All six of them?”
“That's what I said, didn't I?” Adrienne barked. She pinched the bridge of her nose in agitation. “I don't know what to do. If They can take down six vampires, including two over five hundred years old, we have no chance. None.” She looked up at Tristan as he stood still casually smoking his cigarette.
“We only have one option then.”
“And what's that?” she asked.
“We go after Them.”
Adrienne laughed. She took in Tristan's blank expression. “What? You're being serious? Oh God, Tristan, you've lost your mind, haven't you?”
“What other choice do we have? We have to try and close down the operation from the inside.”
“There's no way we'll find a rat among Them, They're completely brainwashed.”
Tristan tapped his cigarette and rubbed his neck. “We have to do something,” he sighed, “I'll try to come up with some sort of plan.”
“I was considering just moving my brood,” Adrienne confessed, crossing her arms.
Tristan stared at her. “They'll track you down. You know that.”
“I know. I just hate all this...inaction.” She curled a piece of hair around her finger as she leaned against the wall next to Tristan. “Have you told Ceara yet?”
“No.”
Adrienne turned and plucked the cigarette from his mouth, placing it between her lips. “You are going to, aren't you?”
“I thought you didn't smoke those filthy things.”
“You didn't answer my question.” Tristan remained quiet, Adrienne took a drag before dropping the butt. “You can't keep her in the dark forever, Tristan,” she reminded him.
“I know, I know.”
The silence fell heavy between them, Adrienne cleared her throat and pushed herself away from the wall. “I'd better be going," she said. "You'll let me know if you think of anything won't you?" She stopped for a moment and turned back to face him. "Oh, and thanks for the cigarette," she winked at him, "I'll see you around.”
Tristan waved her away. “I sincerely hope not.”
Adrienne laughed. “Goodbye, Tristan.” Then she was gone.
Tristan watched her stride away. With a frown he crushed the glowing butt of the cigarette under his heel. "Damn Them," he whispered. He kicked the butt angrily, took a deep breath and then started for home.
♠ ♠ ♠
(Kay, you guys, warning, HUGE author's note to follow.)1) I'm SO sorry for not updating in so long :( It's just that school has kept me ridiculous amounts of busy this year and A-Levels suck etc. But I'm back and can promise at least semi-regular updates 'cause my stupid exams are finally over \o/
2) After reading over the story, I realised my writing style has changed and developed quite a bit in the span of 12-ish months so I may (possibly) be re-writing parts in the future. Don't worry though, the story line will remain the same so you won't have to re-read (unless you want to, which is, of course, totally fine by me).
3)Thank you so much for all the comments! I haven't had time to come on here in so long and so I was reading all the ones I'd missed and oh my God you're all so sweet I almost effin' cried. I also really value all the constructive criticism that's been left, it helps so much when I'm trying to improve my work, so thank you!
4) Finally, last year I wrote a series of one shots on how Tristan and Ceara met and their early years as vampires. I was planning on posting them after I'd finished this story, but if you guys wanna read one now just let me know in the comments and I'll put it up. :)