Chapter 39
Earlier that evening, Caine met with some of his more trusted vampire fledglings. Those he knew had remained loyal throughout the years. He would need the original children that he and Lillith had created in order to restore her completely. He needed Lillith’s own blood to bring her back. He called together Isaac and Sophia, Jacob and Melia, Narmada and Rudolph. They met on the rooftop of the nightclub so that Caine could discuss what he needed from each of them.
“From what I’ve pieced together over the years, we only have until the night after Halloween, All Saints' Day to break the curse. The next new moon, those were Arianne’s words. That gives us only a few nights to put everything in place. We need to track down the crusader. As far as I know, there is only one left in the lineage.”
Sophia’s eyes lit up, excitedly she squeaked, “Me, I can find him. Trust me, if he’s the last one left, then I killed his father, I’ll find him.”
“Excellent, thank you.” Caine continued. “Then we need the talisman that he guards, so we need to find a way to bait him into coming here to us. I know that this will be hard for you Sophia, but you can’t kill him. Only track him. Visibly sulking, she nodded in agreement. “Good. That’s settled. Once the talisman is broken, Lillith will awaken. When that happens, she will need blood to regain her strength. This is where I ask you all if you are willing to give her your blood as nourishment. I’m not asking for you to sacrifice yourselves, but we will need to feed her.”
They unanimously agreed. Isaac confirmed that he had delivered the invitation to Rebecca Adams. She was the only female reporter in the city to match Arianne’s description. He only hoped that it would appeal to her curiosity. Caine swore them all to secrecy. He couldn’t risk anyone outside this circle finding out. He didn’t want any interruptions to his plans. He wanted everything to go smoothly. Although he knew that Katya would probe Jacob for information. He knew she didn’t like being kept in the dark. And he knew the weakness Jacob had for her. Jacob would never be able to resist telling her. It would all be unintentional of course. Although it may be something Caine could use to his advantage. Perhaps Katya could have her uses after all.
When everyone else had gone back down into the private chambers of the nightclub, Caine took Isaac to one side to discuss the issue with Katya. He needed someone to keep an eye on her, to make sure she didn’t go too far. She was ruthless, but he wasn’t sure exactly how far she would be willing to go. He didn’t want any unfortunate accidents to happen, not this close to the finish line.
“Watch her for me, she’s devious and I don’t trust her.” Caine’s voice was slightly concerned. He looked a little pressured, and Isaac knew how important a time it was for him.
“I’ll make sure she doesn’t go anywhere she shouldn’t. Rest assured; I won’t let her become a liability.” Isaac was always faithful to Caine. He longed for the times they had enjoyed in the past. When Lillith walked amongst them. Caine had such a thirst, and it had been happier times for all of them.
“Thank you. I know you won’t let me down.” He gave Isaac a gentle pat on the shoulder as he walked past him to go inside. But Isaac could tell his maker was more than a little worried.
“What is it Sire? There’s something you’re not saying, please, I can listen.” Isaac pleaded, trying not to overstep the boundaries of their relationship but wanting to ease some of the burdens his father was carrying.
Caine paused for a moment, considering how to answer his child. “Isaac, there’s something that has never felt right and I don’t know if it’s just the agony of missing her or if there’s something else at play. But Arianne’s words from the last night ‘other forces out there ungoverned by you or I that will work against you.’ have been playing over and over in my head.” Shaking his head he looked Isaac directly in the eye and smiled. “I’m sure it’s nothing, just Arianne’s cryptic messages burrowing into my subconsciousness. Maybe it’s just hunger.” He laughed softly and unconvincingly. Isaac simply bowed his head and chose to pry no more.
There was much preparation to do for Halloween night, everyone was busy within the nightclub getting ready for the big celebration. There would be a feast of all feasts. Caine wasn’t going to put Katya off her celebratory plans. With Lillith’s return there would be every reason to celebrate.
He walked downstairs and out of the nightclub into the city. The night was drawing in and he was hungry. It was probably much too late for the chances of catching himself a young virgin. But that wasn’t the only type of meal palatable to his tastebuds. He also had a thing for sex workers, the street variety, there was something about their savvy ways, their no-nonsense resilience that he found captivating. That had been how he met Katya, she was only supposed to be a meal, disposable, but there was something about her that made him convert her. She had a sort of ruthless quality about her that he found attractive. And he loved Jacob, he wanted him to be happy. It was a mistake he had to live with every day since.