78

I’d been at home for a week now and Abeloth was itching to do something more than just training for a few hours every day. Lucas was out of town on business with Jasper and Chase was either at the university or with Melissa which left me pretty much on my own.

I was heading downstairs when I heard the knock on the front door. Absent-mindedly I opened it as I was on my way out as well. I needed to just get out and do something, anything.

“Good morning Elders,” I said and bowed my head slightly.

“Morning Ryder, is your father available?” Elder Michael asked.

“I’m sorry Elder, he’s out of town on business, we expect him back on Saturday afternoon,” I said to him.

“This is quite inconvenient,” Elder Cliff said as I invited them inside.

“What’s the problem?” I asked as they looked me up and down.

“We’re headed to a meeting not far from here, but alas without your father we might have to postpone. The Grey name holds a lot of weight in these areas and we were simply wanting to take him along,” Elder Victor said.

“I’m a Grey,” I said as I leaned against the wall.

“Yes, you are indeed,” Elder Michael said and I saw the twinkle in his eye.

“Would you mind accompanying us?” Elder Cliff asked me.

“Elder I don’t want to seem rude but where are your warriors?” I asked.

“We don’t want to give the impression that we are there for trouble, but we know full well having a Grey accompany us will ensure that matters do not turn violent,” Elder Victor said as he looked at me with amusement in his eyes.

“Where are we going and what is the aim of this meeting?” I asked.

“Princeton, we’ve had some complaints from lair members that wish to remain anonymous about their Sire’s handling of things. He’s expecting us,” Elder Michael said.

“Let’s go then, it would be my honour to accompany the Elders on this mission,” I said with a smile as Abeloth eagerly nodded his head.

I followed the Elders outside and climbed in my car. They had one driver and one warrior with them and now also me. I was always armed, you never knew what would happen or where you’d end up and being with the unit had made carrying hidden weapons second nature to me.

It took us an hour and a half to reach Princeton as the driver kept to the speed limit. I was already bored by the time we stopped in front of the grand mansion on Lover’s Lane Road which was right in the middle of the forest that bordered the cemetery.

A man walked out of the front door and stood on the porch watching us as we parked the two cars and I climbed out to join the Elders. Abeloth snorted in my head as the man glared at us. I could hear voices and smell about a hundred different scents around us.

“Good morning Sire Andrew,” Elder Victor greeted him.

“Morning,” he said gruffly. I remained stoic and went into hunter mode. I knew my role here today was to act as a warrior to them and to fend off any attack should there be one. I didn’t like the look of this man and I didn’t know him. My father probably would but I would keep our name out of it for as long as possible.

“Let’s start this meeting shall we,” Elder Cliff said as they walked towards the man.

He came walking down the steps and didn’t pay me any attention. He too thought I was just an Elder warrior. He led us around the back of the house where chairs had been set up in the open half in the clearing that acted as his back yard.

“Welcome to the Matthews lair,” he said as he showed them three chairs that faced the crowd. I stood to the side of the Elders as their warrior and driver took positions up behind them.

“The purpose of our meeting today is to validate the complaints we’ve received,” Elder Cliff started.

“What complaints?” he asked rudely. I could see that he was clearly pissed off having to entertain the Elders on his property.

“Complaints of misconduct and punishments, tax amounts that seem inappropriate and the general lack of welfare of your members,” Elder Michael said.

“This is my lair and I’ll run it as I see fit,” Andrew snapped slightly.

“No, Sire Andrew, there are laws for that very reason,” Elder Victor said keeping his composure.

“I suggest you three old bats get back in your car and leave my damn territory unless it’s a war you're looking for,” he spat out and I stepped forward.

“That would be your first mistake,” I said to him and he turned to face me.

“If it’s a war you want, Sire Andrew, it can be arranged. Make no mistake we have many allies and our warriors are always ready for a good fight,” Elder Cliff said to him with a serious tone in his voice.

“Where are these so-called warriors?” he asked as he looked around.

“This Sire is a bastard,” Abeloth said.

“Keep your eyes open, I don’t like where he’s going with his threats,” I said to him.

“Are you threatening the Elders while guests on your property?” Elder Michael asked him with a frown.

“I doubt you’ll be the Elders for long,” he said and the hairs on the back of my neck stood straight up.

I saw the blurry movement as the figure made a beeline for Elder Victor who sat closest to the edge of the forest. I had slipped my knife from a side pocket of my cargo pants and timed him. As he lunged for Elder Victor I grabbed him by the neck lifting him into the air and slammed him down on the ground as the knife plunged deep into his neck a few times.

Blood was spurting from his severed aorta and Andrew's lair had taken several steps backwards as they watched me decapitate the vampire. My movements were quick and I knew exactly how to cut and ripped his head clean from his body.

I turned towards Andrew and the vampire’s head landed a few feet from where he stood looking at me in horror and anger. The Elder’s eyes were wide with shock as I heard the second vampire behind me.

He grabbed me by the shoulders in an attempt to turn me around so he could have access to my neck but my hand morphed into a claw and he looked at me with shock in his eyes as I stood with his heart in my hand. I kicked his body backwards away from me and let his heart fall to the ground.

“This is a direct attempt on an Elder’s life whilst in a peaceful meeting on your property, Sire Andrew. I hereby claim the right for a fight to the death,” I said to him.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” he bellowed at me.

“Claim approved,” Elder Cliff said angrily.

“You can only approve such a claim if it comes from someone with Sire blood,” Andrew spat out as he looked at us.

“Ryder Grey, son of Sire Lucas Grey headquartered in Aurora and currently listed as the strongest Sire in the country,” I said as I looked at him.

“Grey?” he asked me as the recognition of our name flooded him.

“Defend yourself Sire, I will not have rumours spread that I had an advantage over your shock when I kill you,” I said to him. Abeloth was itching for a fight since we had just killed two vampires and he was ready to get into it.

Andrew’s dragon separated from him and I looked at the violet dragon with pity in my eyes. They would not survive the day. The Elders had moved to a safer spot and I watched as his dragon started circling me. Abeloth was still laughing his head off and I had to nudge him twice before he separated from me.

There were audible gasps from the crowd as Abeloth towered over the violet dragon and roared at him. The dragon almost submitted immediately as he flapped his wings.

“He’s going to run,” I said to Abeloth as I kept my eye on Andrew.

Abeloth rose up into the sky and crashed down onto the smaller dragon, crushing him to the ground and keeping him in position. Abeloth had shown his superiority and now it was time for me to do the same with Andrew.

He started running towards me, a large serrated knife in his hand. His face was red with rage and I dodged the first swipe of his knife easily. We turned at the same time and my fist connected with his ear and his head snapped to the side.

I circled him quickly and pinned him down on the ground with both of his arms in my hands as I pulled them backwards. I stood up and placed my foot in between his shoulder blades and pulled on his arms. I felt his shoulders dislocate as he screamed.

“Do you yield?” I asked him loudly as he trashed around trying to get loose from my grip.

I looked at the Elders and they nodded their approval. I let go of his arms and he winced as they flopped down next to him. I grabbed his head and pulled it up exposing his throat. My hand morphed into a claw again as I gave him one last look and ripped his throat out.

His dragon whimpered once as he shimmered and disappeared back to the realm of dragons. His host was dead and he would return to Typhon’s lair and explain why he had returned alive. Abeloth blew smoke from his nostrils before merging with me again.

The members of Andrew’s lair were quiet as they watched their dead Sire on the ground in front of them. Elder Michael stepped forward and walked to where we stood as he looked in disgust at Andrew’s body.

“As Elder of this region, I announce that Ryder Grey is now the rightful Sire of this lair,” Elder Michael said.

“Whoa wait a minute,” I said as I looked at him.

“Sire Ryder, you made the claim and now you’ve taken this lair as your own, are there any disputes to this?” Elder Victor asked as he also stepped forward.

“Oh shit,” I thought to myself as Abeloth stood proudly with his nose in the air.

A man stepped forward from the crowd and stopped a few feet in front of us. He acknowledged the Elders as he bowed his head to them. He turned towards me and then he took a knee with his head bowed low.

“Sire Ryder, you’ve freed us from Andrew’s tyranny. Over the last few months we’ve had less and less freedom as he started employing rogue vampires to keep us in line with his demands. We owe you our lives and you will have this lair’s loyalty,” he said to me.

“Stand up. What’s your name?” I asked him.

“My name’s Lincoln Houseman, my father was his second in command, and killed for his insolence,” Lincoln said as he stood up.

“I think for now you should all return to your normal duties until we figure out what happens next. The Elders will take charge for now and they’ll have a meeting with you again soon,” I said to them raising my voice slightly so that they could all hear me.

“Sire Ryder, you are in charge here now,” Elder Victor said to me.

“Shit Elder, excuse my language, but I made that claim with the intention to integrate this lair with my father’s. I’ll need to speak to him first before you make any decisions. I’m not a Sire, I’m not even a future Sire,” I said as I stood there feeling very awkward.