Chapter 5

Jessamine

Under the lighting of the kitchen, I could really focus on the scores of bite marks on Jessamine and for the first time I understood what Archie had told me in Phoenix. Despite her average looking appearance, at least to my old eyes but now with my new vampire eyes I could see the raised marks on her skin. I had never seen a vampire with any blemishes before this. Instinctively I locked down in a defensive crouch and felt a warning hiss escape my chest. I couldn't help it. Every mark on her skin was a warning to other vampires; a warning that it would take an extremely skilled opponent to bring her down.

Jessamine just started laughing at whatever I was feeling. "Calm down Beau," she said and I felt a wave of calm shoot though me, and I straightened out of my crouch. "I'm not dangerous to any of the family. I promise," she added shooting me a playful wink. "Well, unless we're sparring." Edythe had my right arm in her hands, gently rubbing it which further calmed me. Instinctively I just smiled again wanting to kiss her.

Edythe released my arm as I felt myself just starting to be drawn closer to Jessamine out of curiosity. My hand, as if a magnet being drawn to the piece of metal that was her arm, hovered less than an inch from her right arm. "Can I?"

Jessamine had a look I couldn't describe. It looked playful but warning at the same time. "Go head," she challenged, her look still inviting.

In every instance when I touched one of the other's skin, it was perfectly smooth and flawless, even where they were bitten, but Jessamine's was so different. Every raised scar, even if in actuality they were raised only a few millimeters, felt like they were raised more than a foot and they were all incredibly hot compared to the cool marble of the rest of her skin. "Whoa!" I gasped. "What happened?" I finally asked.

"The same thing that would have happened to you if Edythe had been able to get all the venom out of you and kept you human. The only scars that show on us are from another vampire's venom, and you would have been cursed with the mark if she had been able to save you repeated thousands of times over." She started to slip the very top of sweater lower on her left arm. "This one is from Archie, but that's the only mark that I'm gonna show you from him," again her answer accented with a playful wink. "The rest of these are all from my former role in this world."

"I don't understand," I said as I knew my head had tilted slightly the way a confused dog normally would.

"You've been hanging around those mutts too much," Eleanor chuckled out.

I shrugged ignoring her. "I mean, I don't have any marks on my skin, not from Joss or Edythe afterwards."

"Not yet, at least," Eleanor added with a huge smirk, again a knowing look on her face.

Don't lose your temper, I had to tell myself. Eleanor was really getting close to the line where things that were none of her business were. My brain went to the gutter for a second wondering how many hickeys that Royal and El had put on each other. "But anyway," I said trying to ignore Eleanor's innuendos and focusing back on Jessamine, "how?"

"Venom is the only thing that will scar our skin," Jessamine said calmly. "When one is transformed, when the venom is inside the bloodstream, it smooths out every blemish, scar, and imperfect that they had before the conversion. However afterwards, when the skin is impermeable, venom cannon penetrate and it mars the skin. Unfortunately I've been bitten more times than I can count, since I didn't have quite the sheltered upbringing as my adoptive brothers and sisters, although that is not their fault. But Beau, you must understand that there are places in our world where the lifespan of the never aging is measured in weeks, not centuries."

Jessamine paused to let her words sink in. "Vampires who only live weeks?" I questioned more to myself, though it was out loud.

"Armies of newborn vampires, where the creators are only thinking about conquest rather than family" Jessamine said coldly, as if she was a history teacher giving a lecture. "They were very common in the south after a young vampire named Bernice came up with the idea shortly after the new world was discovered by the Europeans. In fact, the results of the vampiric wars on the native peoples was blamed on the explorers; that the Europeans were accused of inflicting mass genocide on the native peoples around that time. What is now believed by humans to be the result of diseases brought by the Spanish conquistadors was in reality caused by the changing and feeding of armies of new vampires."

I looked questioningly at Jessamine again. "But where do you fit into this?"

Jessamine gave a quick chuckle. She was in her element here. "I'll get to that in a bit, but first you must understand that vampires in the north tend to be very civilized. We associate with humans and let them think there is very little different about us than them," a sinister smile coming from Jess which made me a little nervous, "until we get thirsty that is. We enjoy the day as well as night. But in the south, vampires only come out at night. Indeed, many of the stereotypes about vampires on this continent come from the south.

But back to the story; it came to one vampire's attention that if they were the only vampire in a major city, at first Mexico City that was the target, then they could feed every night, twice and no human would be any the wiser. So covens began to fight over territory." Jessamine could see that I wasn't getting everything she wanted me to, so she broke it down even simpler. "Think of a map Beau, where the denser the population the redder a map would be. In this instance, the covens would fight for control of the thickest red."

"But what about this Bernice?" I asked not sure where she fit into the story.

Jessamine nodded. "I was getting to her. She was rumored to have recently lost her mate in one of the battles around Monterrey, and became very vindictive as she sought a way to eliminate all of the vampires she assumed had wronged her. Vengeance is a common desire for many of our kind; something that we all can be consumed by easily. She started small, with only a handful of newborns, pointing them at a coven of four experienced vampires. The next time any nomad passed though their territory, all they saw was the damage that the battle had left behind, but no sign of any immortals.

According to the story, Bernice kept growing more and more confident in her ability to control her newborns, which eventually was her downfall. When the Volturi eventually came to investigate what was happening in the new world, anyone with a newborn in Mexico was summarily executed. And since almost all of the vampires in Mexico and southern Texas were all trying to defend themselves from Bernice, the area was for a time, cleared out of vampires. But you know what they say about power abhorring a vacuum? That was the case in Mexico. Covens in southern Texas began to battle for the available territory. And that's where my three creators come into the story."

I was enamored with her story. Her tone actually sounded like she was grateful that the Volturi had intervened and slaughtered all of the vampires there. "My creator and his allies were the remnants of one of the vampire battles around Laredo. They found each other, all three vowing to help avenge the losses of the others. Mario was clearly the leader; he was the most experienced and oldest vampire in the alliance. It was his job to change their soldiers. But their plan was much different than Bernice's. Bernice never intended her newborns to be skilled, so she just relied on their strength. The three of them would train their soldiers and tell them just enough about the Volturi's laws to demand their inconspicuousness. They all lied to their newborns, telling them the common myth that the sun would cause one of us to instantly burst into flame. Also we were told that we must make sure to carefully dispose of our meals remains in a way that they were sure to never be found. Things that whoever it is in Seattle is not bothering to do. If they were," Jessamine was deep in thought and I knew she was speculating on the motives of whoever was behind the mess in Seattle, "none of the corpses would have been identifiable. I know that sounds harsh; making the victims' families only think that their loved ones had perished, while never being certain but it is the safest way for our kind to feed."

I didn't even think about why I asked it but I did, "How do you?"

Jessamine knew what I was asking and answered before I finished asking. "Fire or water are the two best means of disposing of a corpse. Burning is always preferable since it cleanses the remains of many means of identifying a cause of death. Submersing the corpse in water is second, since numerous fish will feed on the corpse while it is in the water, but care must be taken to ensure the body will not surface for months. Fire is preferred because it is quicker, but it is also more conspicuous. Humans would notice a dumpster fire."

If I had still be capable of being sick, I'm sure I would have puked. What Jessamine was saying, while disgusting was simply a way of life for many of our kind. Feeding on humans required careful planning. Even our nourishment involved some disposal of the carcasses. Carnivores wouldn't touch anything that we drained since our scent lingered for a long time. That was why Earnest learned how to butcher almost everything we hunted and would then donate the meat to food banks which would not ask questions as to where we got it from.

While I thought about what she said, Jessamine continued. "In 1861, when Texas seceded from the Union, my brother immediately joined the Confederate Army. I had wanted to as well, but making war was not considered a ladylike role at the time. Since all the men were off at war, I eventually was able to join a mounted militia regiment in Galveston. When the Union navy arrived in Galveston Bay, we knew it was only a matter of time before they would disembark from their ships and there was no one to protect the civilians. We had heard rumors about the sailors being granted license to do what they would with the citizenry, even rape, theft, and worse. As a precaution, my unit began to escort all the ladies and children of Galveston inland to the areas surrounding Houston. I'd led two runs already that day and secured a fresh horse before heading back towards Galveston for another gaggle. That's when I saw them.

All three of them were very young; the youngest, Lucas was barely beyond a boy. At that time, that meant he was fourteen at the oldest. Neville was maybe sixteen when he was changed and Mario was about twenty. All of them were veterans of other newborn battles who managed to escape their creators when their creators were destroyed.

Mario had the idea that if he was very selective in whom he chose to create and trained them well, that he would be able to limit his losses during battle. He was right to that point, as more of their creations were killed in squabbles with each other than were killed by others covens prior to my creation.

When I saw the three I was drawn to them. They were just so beautiful, as you've seen what Edythe meant about us being attractive to our prey." I nodded. Even though the memory of us in the meadow the first time was cloudy like most of my human memories, the ones I had of Edythe I wanted to keep with me. Royal had said that if I focused on the memories I wanted to remember repeatedly, they would remain. "The smallest said, 'He's speechless,' as he turned to the one just older than himself. Knowing vampiric nature like I do now, I assumed that they were about to feed off me right then and there. But Mario had another plan. He said softly, 'Patience Lucas. There's something special about her that I'd like to keep.' The youngest two went off towards Galveston to hunt as Mario said, 'What is you name beautiful?'"

I pictured it; the young boys hunting the terrified people of Galveston. Knowing what I do now, I hated even picturing our kind hunting innocent people. But wasn't this what was going on in Seattle right now?

Jessamine, seeing I was lost in my thoughts, cleared her throat to bring my mind back to her story. "I was stunned since I was still in the uniform of my militia company. 'Major Jessamine Whitlock,' I answered hoping that my falsehood wouldn't be discovered, even though this was one of the first times I had used my real name for the first time while I was in uniform. I deliberately kept my hair cropped short so that I wouldn't be discovered just in case someone thought I might be a lady. He looked at me with what I thought at the time were soft eyes as he said, 'I hope you survive, Jessamine. I have a feeling you will be of great use to me.' Then he leaned in, I assumed to kiss me but instead he bit me. Four days later I awoke to the new life.

It was about a month after my rebirth that I finally understood why Mario was so interested in me; that's when my gift started to show itself. I could manipulate the emotions of those around me, which meant that I could give our side great courage when a battle was about to begin and also make the other suffer intense fear. Also I could bind our side even closer and I could feel the feeling of others around me, so I could tell when something was bothering them. This ended up being as much of a curse as a blessing later in my new life. No longer did Mario have to worry about our unit fighting with each other, and our numbers grew as the three leaders didn't have to replace nearly as many from intra-squad squabbles. But Mario was careful not to cause too much notoriety. That meant carefully training our soldiers but also dispatching of them quickly and decisively when they did something that the Volturi would certainly object to.

We also purged our ranks regularly. Mario wanted newborns that were at their maximum strength, which meant very few lasted longer than their first year, even if they survived the fighting. That became my job. Those nights of purging were very difficult ones as I could feel everything that those I slaughtered were feeling before I decapitated and then burned them.

After a decade, even my gift couldn't keep Lucas and Neville from turning on us. I felt them coming closer to this move, of course but it still didn't make it easy when I had to fight them. They had been converting many of the newborns to their vision; one whereby they would eventually grow strong enough to battle the Volturi for supremacy over our kind. Mario was never that foolish; he knew that the Volturi would be difficult to conquer, even if their gifts could be neutralized. We were able to defeat the two of them with relative ease, but it still cost of nearly half of our force, since Neville and Lucas both knew intimately of our tactics.

I thought what the two of us had was love but it was I was never more than her puppet. He called the tune and I danced, despite the fact that we were intimate more times than I could count. He used me and I was foolish enough to think we were meant to be mates.

In the two decades after Lucas's and Neville's mutiny, Mario's goals of conquest became less frequent. We still held onto the area surrounding San Antonio, which gave our twenty or so newborns an adequate supply of humans to feed on. But still, Mario insisted on having that many newborns at all times just in case.

Finally I had enough of the bloodshed just after the turn of the century. It took me a while before I found the right reasons to leave him, as I thought he loved me but he just loved my gift. It was 1918 when after a night of purging, one of the newborns who had made it thought her first three years and still showed immense talent that I left. Patricia was a dear friend, but her mood soured the longer the night went. I finally discovered why at the very end.

The last newborn we summoned for his execution was just past his year mark. Charles had shown some skill in hand to hand combat, since Mario had found him at Fort Hood, preparing to deploy to Europe after his basic training was complete. It didn't take long to learn of Patricia's romantic attachment to Charles when I summoned him to be destroyed. The two took off running and thought I could have pursued them, I didn't want to. Seeing her disgust at Mario was enough to make me want to leave too.

It was three years after that when by chance, the two of them returned to Texas. They told me of their time in the north, living among humans and even finding some of their company worth the struggle of dealing with their thirst. The lifestyle they discussed intrigued me. I left with them and never went back.

Twenty years later I found Archie in a diner in Philadelphia. He'd seen me coming, naturally but I've never looked back since. This is a climate I enjoy. Of course when he described his visions of Carine's lifestyle, at first I balked but then realized that never again having to worry about feeling the pain and terror of my prey was worth the struggle."

"They scared the living hell out of us though," Edythe cut in. "Here was this broad covered head to toe in battle scars, towing along this big freak who addressed all of us by name when El and I returned from a hunting trip," she said as Edythe wrapped a loving arm around Archie's neck, "Naturally Eleanor and I nearly ripped their heads off but Carine stopped us and allowed the two of them to explain everything. I was even more shocked when all of my stuff had been moved into the garage when we got back."

"Your room had the best view," Archie said returning the hug to Edythe, "and besides everything worked out alright."

"That's a nice story," I said realizing that I had to sound insane to them judging by the looks I got from Jessamine and Edythe, "I mean the end where you found Archie."

"Archie has made all the difference. This is a climate that suits me very well."

"An army," Archie gasped in realization.

"I thought I had been missing the signs,"Jessamine said contemplating what she thought must have been going on in Seattle. "Seattle makes no sense for such an action. No one claims it and nomads pass though all the time."

"Did it ever occur to you that the only thing that could warrant the creation on an army would be us?" Royal said thinking of any possible cause. Was he warming up to me now too?

"Tavar's family is nearby too," Edythe interjected. I had already began to assemble the similarities from what Jessamine had told us about her first few decades of vampiric life to the present situation in Seattle.

"The newborns aren't ravaging Juneau or Anchorage" Royal added to press her point. "They're in Seattle for a reason."

Carine was deep in her analytical thoughts now murmuring, "The Volturi would never violate their own laws like this for any reason. Yes Sulpicia would certainly crave Edythe's gift and she'd also surely desire Archie's, but they'd still never authorize this."

Then it hit me; I knew who was behind this. Who else could have sent for Lauren? It had to be Victor. But how was his future hidden from Archie? Shouldn't he be able to see his planning this?

Removed from my thoughts, the others were throwing out possibilities, which included dozens of names I didn't recognize yet; the only vampires I really knew about where the Alaskans and even them I'd yet to meet.

"Sulpicia is the only one who could permit this blatant violation of the law," Jessamine said.

"She'd never knowingly violate her own laws, or allow anyone else to; not like this anyway," Carine said sounding completely confident.

I finally realized that no one else was going to make the connection I already had. "What about Victor?" I said.

"Victor?" Edythe said in reply. Sometimes, my thoughts being mute to her was such a pain.

"Oh no!" Archie gasped in absolute horror, which was mirrored on Edythe's face as well.

"What's wrong?" Earnest asked softly.

"It's Charlie," he whispered, is looked still terrified by whatever he saw. "He's in already in Seattle." Archie's eyes were blank, distant, and still horrified from what he saw. "He's gonna meet one of the newborns soon and I can't see him after that."

It didn't take me long to know what that meant. Charlie was doomed unless we had enough time to stop him. But if he was already in Seattle, we wouldn't have enough time. Even if I ran there, it would still take half an hour. "Dad!" I gasped in horror. My dad was a goner and even though I knew there'd never be enough time for us to get to Seattle, I knew I had to try. I started running towards the eastern forests but I should have known better. Edythe was so much faster than I was and caught me within two minutes.

"Where do you think you're going Beau?" She asked as she tackled me.

My right eyebrow raised automatically. It was always a nervous twitch I had since I was about six. "To save my dad," I said, my tone adding the word 'duh' to it even though I didn't say it. How could she not know that I'd do whatever I could to spare him the fate of all those in Seattle?

"There's one major flaw in your course of action Beau," she said as she helped me up.

I was getting irritated. I hadn't noticed that the mid afternoon sky was unusually clear for the peninsula. Her skin sparkled like it had in the meadow that fateful day when we both realized that we were deeply in love. "Oh," I said as I realized that I had to relent myself to whatever my dad's fate would be.

"We'll look for him tonight Beau," Edythe said as she helped me up.

I don't really know what I hoped for when we left a couple of hours later, when darkness was near. Five of us piled into Carine's Mercedes: Carine, Earnest, Edythe, Archie, and myself. The other three were willing to come, but we realized that Eleanor would be too willing to start a fight if he confronted any of the newborns and Jessamine's scars would force the new ones to attack.

I prepared myself for the worse, picturing what the one of the local papers would report about my dad's disappearance. I pictured the headline reading something like 'Local Police Chief Missing in Seattle: Feared Dead'.

As we searched Seattle, there was no sign of Charlie anywhere. We found the cruiser just outside of a parking lot in the SoDo area, not far from the stadiums. There was no sign of him after a few hundred feet from the car and there was also very little evidence of any vampires. Even Edythe, who had the best sense of smell couldn't find anything. It was hopeless. My dad was dead and I didn't know what to do. I really needed Royal's help now in dealing with this.