Chapter Seven

Mick frowned at Josef shaking his head. "How is turning myself over to the Vampire Council going to help Beth and my baby?"

"It'll tell us where she's being held so we can then mount a rescue."

"And besides you, Guillermo, Logan, and Rider, there's no one else who knows about Beth. And I highly doubt they will risk their lives to save Beth."

"Well, going in alone will be suicide, Mick. You know that," Josef returned.

"I know. We need help, and I don't know who we can trust with this information."

"You're worries about Beth and the baby. I understand that, but the Council could be keeping her anywhere in the city. Now, I don't know about you, but I haven't explored every nook and cranny of this place. We'll never find her on our own."

"And I guess that's where I come into this conversation."

Mick glanced over his shoulder toward his stairs hearing the voice. "Lance..."

Lance stepped off the bottom step and walked around the loveseat toward Josef before taking a seat on the couch beside Josef. "You seem surprised to see me, St. John."

"That's an understatement. Lance, this is my friend Josef Kostan."

Josef cleared his throat and smiled slightly. "Nice to meet you."

Mick glanced at Lance before taking a deep breath. His only concern now was finding and saving Beth before it was too late. "So, why have you come back from Europe, Lance?"

"Because my sire sent me here to speak to you and Beth. He hasn't called me back to Europe, so I never left LA."

Josef raised his eyebrows. "So, you've been here the whole time? What have you been doing?"

"I've been watching the situation. As I'm sure you've guessed, my sire is a member of the Vampire Council. He can't appear interested in Beth and her baby."

Mick frowned feeling his anger beginning to boil inside of him. "Then why didn't you save Beth from Vivian and her accomplice?"

"I could have tried and like you I would have failed miserably. I would also have alerted the Council to my sire's change of heart."

"Because you don't do anything your sire doesn't want you to do."

"Our family has our own rules like you here in LA have your rules, Kostan," Lance snapped.

Mick sighed and shook his head. "Boys, either play nice or I'll be forced to separate you. Do you know where Beth is, Lance?

"Yes, I do, but there's no way to get to her safely."

"I'm not leaving her alone, Lance," Mick stated firmly.

"And I'm not asking you to, Mick. My sire is there with her. He'll get her out as soon as he can, Lance stated as his phone began to ring. "Excuse me," he said rising to his feet answering his phone.

"I don't like this, Mick," Josef whispered.

"I don't either, but I don't want to push him too far."

"What are you thinking, Mick?"

"I don't care how we do it, Josef. We need to get to Beth."

Josef nodded his head, but Mick noticed that his eyes were focused behind him. "I agree," he said softly before frowning. "Lance, what's wrong?"

"She's no longer safe."

Mick jumped to his feet and spun around. "What?"

"He's dead," Lance said coming down the stairs.

Mick glanced beside him as Josef rose to his feet and stepped up beside him. "Whose dead?"

"My sire."

"The one person who was supposed to keep Beth safe is dead?"

"Yes, Mick, which means Beth is in greater danger now than she was before."

Josef laid his hand on his shoulder and gently squeezed. "Where is she, Lance? If your sire is dead, then we have to go in and rescue her now."

"Oh, you will have your opportunity to rescue her, Kostan. But when you do you'll have the backing of our entire family," Lance growled.

Mick nodded his head watching Lance vamp out. "Will they support me and Beth?"

"Their loyalty is to our sire, and he vowed to keep Beth safe. So, yes, they will fight for the two of you. Be ready in ten minutes," Lance growled again before spinning around on his heels.

"They're here in LA," Josef asked.

"Yes, we travel as a family. Where ever our sire goes...went we went unless one of us was sent out on a mission," Lance said over his shoulder.

Mick nodded his head in understanding. "That's why you never leave Europe. You have everything you want or need there. Except Coraline left because she wanted more."

Lance nodded his head but said nothing. A minute later, he glanced over his shoulder. "She wanted you because you look like our sire. I'll be back soon," he said disappearing upstairs.

Mick glanced at Josef before asking, "what do you make of this?"

"I don't know to be honest. I like the sound of having a large group of vampires for support. It'll make it slightly easier in rescuing Beth."

"Slightly easier?"

Josef nodded his head taking a deep breath. "We'll still have to fight if we want to have any shot of saving her."

"Yeah," Mick said nodding his head.

"What's wrong, Mick?"

"I don't know. I was thinking about what Lance said. Coraline wanted me because I look...looked like their sire."

"So, she had daddy fantasies."

"Josef, I'm serious. This is no time for jokes."

"Sorry, please carry on with your ramblings."

"Man, come on think about this for a minute. The only way for me to look like their sire is if he was at one time apart of my family."

"What like he was some sort of dark family secret no one talked about?"

"It's possible."

Josef smiled and shook his head. "It's a nice thought, Mick. But back then it didn't work like that. Families stuck together, so if he was apart of your family, then the entire family would have been turned. Which would have meant you never would have been born to later be turned by Coraline."

Mick nodded his head as he stared out the window at the bustling city. The sun had set hours ago, and Beth had been missing for twelve hours. God only knew what she and the baby were going through. He sighed and turned around glancing at Josef. He could see the concern in his friend's eyes. Josef was just as worried as he was.

"They'll be here soon, Mick."

"I know, but I'm worried."

"I know you are, but worrying isn't going to help. It'll only make you do something stupid."

"Like turning myself over to the Council?"

Josef shrugged his shoulders. "I told you I'm a lover not a fighter."

Mick smiled slightly remembering the last time Josef said those words to him. The smile froze on his face as he caught a scent in the air. Lance had returned with the rest of his family. He breathed in deeply through his nose trying to gage how many vampires Lance had with him. He soon realized there was too much decay in the air to distinguish an exact number. But from the decay all the vamps coming were very old.

"I think our company has arrived."

Mick nodded his head stepping past Josef heading for the door. "Yeah, I can tell." He opened the door nodding his head toward Lance before turning around and walking back toward Josef. After about the thirtieth vampire walked into the loft, Mick felt Josef nudge him in the ribs.

"How many family members does Lance have?"

"I don't know. Coraline was one of seven children."

"Wait, Lance is Coraline's brother?"

"Was, Josef. Coraline is dead as is some of her brothers."

"Well, then there's too many vamps here. There's no way the same sire sired all of them."

"I was thinking the same thing, but they've been in Europe for a very long time."

Lance shut the door behind the last vampire that entered before taking a few steps forward. "My brothers and sisters, I thank you for answering my call tonight."

"Yes, we're here Lance, but you have much to explain."

Lance glanced at the Vampire that spoke and nodded his head. "Yes, Larek, I know I do."

"He's the one Coraline brought into our bloodline?"

"Yes, Constance, he is," Lance answered.

"This is impossible," Larek growled. "How can he look like him?"

"I agree with Larek, Lance. This simply is not possible," Constance stated.

"I agree with all of you. It's not possible for Mick St. John to look like our sire, but he does."

"Did you say St. John?"

Mick stepped forward until he was standing beside Lance. "Yes, my name is Mick St. John. Why?"

Larek sighed glancing around the room at the other vampires. "Because our sire's name was Dominic Sinjon. St John is the Americanized version of Sinjon, and the only way for you look like him is because you must be one of his family's descendants."

Mick glanced at Josef who shrugged his shoulders before looking at Larek. "Are you saying Dominic had a brother?"

"Yes, he did. His name was Michael Sinjon, and they were twins. The first and only set for the Sinjon family," Constance replied.

Mick nodded his head finding the story interesting, but his big concern was for Beth. "As interested as I am about this information, I'm more interested…"

"In saving your human mate," Constance stated finishing his thought."

"Yes, I am."

"And the unborn child she carries," Larek added.

Mick nodded his head firmly. "Yes."

"Then we have much to discuss and not a moment to spare," Larek said nodding his head.

"Lance, I answered your call for revenge of our sure's murder by the Council not a rescue mission of a human or the abomination she carries."

Mick turned his head toward the vampire that spoke and growled at him. He was about to launch himself at him until he felt Lance grab his shoulder and squeeze. He understood the message, but he didn't like it. His child was no abomination.

Lance glanced at the vampire that spoke and nodded his head. "You're correct, Stefan. My call to arms was for revenge for Dominic's murder, but it was also about saving Beth as well. You all know his feelings toward her and her unborn child."

"And it was those feelings that got him killed," Stefan snapped.

"Perhaps they were Stefan, but you know the prophecy as well as the rest of us," Larek stated.

Mick frowned not liking where this conversation was going. "What prophecy?"

"As you know, there are vampire covens older than ours. A prophecy has been passed down for centuries from coven to coven. It shall be then, when the darkness rises once more, a forbidden love shall bring forth a vicious war. The day the sun turns dark and trees shed their leaves, a betrayal shall usher forth the end of peace. And the birth of three siblings shall bring a coven's doom, yet restore the precious balance. Once the sky burns with fire, the young one will bring an end to the monarchy."

Mick frowned watching the shared looks between the elder vampires. "I don't understand, Constance. What does that mean?"

"It means the Vampire Council's reign will one day come to an end. They always feared Dominic because of his brother Michael. Descendants of a Vampire Lord become stronger with each new generation, and if one of those descendants became a vampire then fathered a child…," Lance began.

"That child could be the child of the prophecy," Mick finished.

"Yes," Larek agreed. "If you are Dominic's descendant, then Beth carries the child that will destroy the Vampire Council."

Mick vamped out and starred at every vampire in the loft. "Then our objective is clear. We go in and rescue Beth and my unborn child. And we leave now!"