I hissed, fury igniting deep inside as I felt the full weight of my loss alongside the sharp agony of betrayal. How could the women I had loved so deeply betray me?
Did our love truly mean nothing to them?
Seething with rage, I tried to summon their faces into my mind but came up empty. Only small things drifted through the fog. A seductive purr. A panicked whimper.
Lush red lips.
Long white dresses.
Smokey voices in the distance and the wailing of peasants.
I pressed my fingers to my temples, diving deeper. Trying to find something. A moment.
A single moment.
Of joy.
And found nothing. Only mocking laughter and unslaked thirst for blood.
Suddenly, as though a string inside me had been plucked, I felt a memory thrum through my mind. I was walking down a moonlit corridor. Into a room drenched in shadow.
A woman in a long nightdress. Hunched over a crib. The muted cry of a child cut off suddenly with a moist slurp.
My voice, distant to my ears; "What are you doing, Lucy?"
The woman whirled. Blood on her lips. Eyes glowing red. A smile forming as she held the tiny corpse tight to her breast.
"Would you like some, Master? I think there's still a few drops left." Her free hand reached for me, fingertip streaked with red. Madness warped her smile into a fiendish grin. "Or there's another morsel in the next room. We can share it if you like…"
A wave of revulsion crashed into me, and I flinched from her in disgust.
A finger brushed my shoulder and I scowled. "Sabetha. You brought her to this place?"
The other vampire shrugged as she stepped around me, her body moving with languid grace. "Desires must be fed, Master. You know this. You showed us desire, didn't you?"
I heard someone screaming in my ears. A high-pitched shriek which knotted grief with agony.
Then it was gone.
As the memory slipped through my fingers like sand, I tried to snatch at it. Trying to capture their faces again. But they sank deep into the murky depths before I could snatch them.
What had I just seen?
How soon after this was I betrayed?
The revulsion simmered inside me. Lucy had been feeding on a child.
The Bloofer Lady.
The words crept into my head like a spider.
Clutching my head, I could almost feel venomous fangs sinking slowly into my brain. My memories were clearly broken.
I had been ash for too long.
Could I trust them? Was my love just the broken shard of memory? Had it been real? Or was I blinded by their eager smiles?
"Sabetha." My voice grated through my teeth. Closing my eyes, I fell back in the chair and forced myself to remain calm. "What happened to her?"
Vela glanced at the others before answering. "After the Betrayal, she moved to Paris. Then Italy. Finally, to America like all the others. She's now leader of The Cloaked, a Clan of spies and assassins. Vampires Turned by them are able to hide in the shadows."
"They're spooky," Molly mumbled.
I nodded. It sounded like her. She would have wanted that part of me.
"Therese?"
"Countess Dolingen is leader of The Hungering. They work as mercenaries and enforcers." She shuddered. "Their tactics are brutal."
My strength. She stole my strength.
"And Lucy." I twisted my lips into a bitter smile. "She has my ability to control minds."
"Yes, Master," Vela nodded. "Her Clan is called The Whispering. She has thrived, infiltrating the mortal world more closely than the others. Because of her influence, governments all over the world allow the chaos to continue."
I glanced at the Cheerleader bound on the table. She had squeezed her eyes shut. She looked like she was praying.
"That leaves Elizabeth. And Clarimonde."
"Countess Bathory is leader of The Shifting," Vela said. "Shapechangers. But their ranks are thin. Not many can endure the change very well. Some of them mutate into monsters who roam the streets. Most are insane."
"Weirdos," Molly offered.
I grunted.
Shifting forms was something which required discipline and preparation. Elizabeth had always coveted that power.
She had obviously underestimated its effects.
"And Clarimonde is leader of The Sanguine," Vela finished. "They practice Blood Magic Rituals. Theirs is the most secretive of the major Clans. While the others took some Renfields as servants in the early years, they never did. We know very little about them or what they do."
"Clarimonde was the most paranoid of us," I sighed. I felt even more empty than before. "She never trusted mortals. Not even those whose minds I dominated. Speaking of which. You claim to be Renfields. How is it you remained loyal this long?"
"Umm…" Vela's cheeks flushed bright pink. "Our recruitment process is, umm, selective?"
"Selective?"
"Yes," she said. "Very selective. We only accept people who have proven themselves to be completely loyal to you, Master. We're very strict about it, too. The Brides have tried many times to infiltrate our ranks. But we've become very good at identifying them early in the process."
I leaned forward in my chair, not quite trusting her.
My Brides had already betrayed me. I would not be betrayed again. I lifted her chin with my fingers, staring deep into her blue eyes.
I tried to push my mind into hers, to dominate it. I wanted to pull the truth out of her.
But my power refused to respond. The girl's thoughts remained too distant to reach.
Hiding my snarl, I kept my voice even. "Tell me how you prove yourself to me."
She let out a little squeak. "Well, first we have to be an active member of the association for three years!"
"Active member?"
"Yes."
I thought about that. Having the resources of a secret society might be helpful. Especially if its members belonged to an elite class.
Illuminati. Rosicrucians. Freemasons.
I felt these words drift up from my fragmented memories. I had belonged to these groups. They had made it easier for me to travel.
Yes. It would be helpful.
"That means they must make regular posts on our forums," Molly put in, her cheeks just as pink. But she didn't look afraid. In fact, she seemed to be bouncing with excited energy. "And signing up to our Newsletter. Also, showing up to all our cons."
I blinked at her. "Cons?"
"Conventions," Hina said. "And it is not acceptable to miss one for any reason."
"And they have to buy merch," Molly said with a nervous giggle.
I blinked again. "Merch?"
"Hai," Hina said seriously. "We track what they buy, too. Buying little things isn't enough. They have to buy everything. At least one of everything. They must show their commitment and devotion to you by buying it all. Especially the panties."
The girls nodded as one.
"If they don't buy the panties, they're definitely not committed enough to be a Renfield," Vela said. "It's one of their first tests when we meet a Renfield. If they're wearing the panties, then we know they're very serious about becoming one of us."
"I have them all," Molly gushed, her voice bursting out like an excited hiccup. "In fact, I have seven of every design ever released. One for every day of the week. Including the Ultra Limited Edition black lace g-string with the little red heart with purple bat wings on them! They're so cute!"
I pressed myself deeper into my chair, feeling like a drowning man flailing in the waves many miles from shore. I had no idea what they were talking about. But it was starting to sound suspiciously like witchcraft.
Or demonology.
"Panties?"
Hina nodded. "Panties."
I couldn't see the connection.
Seeing my confusion, the girls lifted their skirts as one to show off their little panties. Each were pristine white cotton with a simple bat motif and my name in flowing decorative script.
Pink.
I blinked at them.
Looked up at their faces, which were blushing but filled with near-religious zeal.
Back down at their panties.
Then realised what I was looking at.
"What?" I struggled to understand. On the table, the Cheerleader looked almost as shocked as I was. "What is this?"
"It's how we prove we're part of the Association," Vela said, holding her head high with pride.
"What Association?"
She beamed at me. "The Damsel Revenants And Clandestine Undying Lovers Association."
Molly nodded enthusiastically, her eyes bright. "D.R.A.C.U.L.A."
Then, as one, the girls cheered; "Dracula!"
The Cheerleader fainted.
I understood her reaction.