This is the last chapter in this story. Thanks to all who reviewed and to the guest reviewers as well. Now, Josef finds out something that could cause major problems with the vampire community.

Chapter 22

The sunset was beautiful the following evening, as Josef looked over the California hills from his home. He always loved this time of day, and now that technology had provided UV protected windows, he always took advantage of the view when he could. It had been a busy 24 hours, and he'd gotten up earlier than normal. Simone was still in their freezer, as were Mick and Beth in one of the guest rooms.

Josef had called the Cleaners and alerted them to coraline's treachery. Annie took the call, and was not happy that Beth was attacked. She assured Josef they would watch the airports, but given the time since the incident, Coraline could already be back in France. Josef glumly agreed, but still wanted everyone on guard. He told her to remove the damaged furniture from the loft at Mick's request. Annie understood, and asked him to have Beth contact her when she was ready.

The next calls he made were to notify Ewan and Megan. He knew Coraline was aware of their ties to Mick and Beth, and she might come after them. Since the brother and sister both had fledgling vampires he wanted them to be on their guard.

Simone breezed into Josef's office and found him frowning at a pen on his desk. She felt his concerns and sighed to herself. He was so used to shouldering all the burdens of his territory that she knew he felt guilty for allowing Coraline to stay in LA to cause their friends grief. She squared her shoulders and decided to try some shock therapy.

She stood in front of the desk. "So, when are we leaving for the Arctic?

He looked up at her, puzzled. "What?"

"Well, you're sitting here blaming yourself for other people's actions, so I figured you'd resign as Elder and we'd slink away somewhere cold."

He frowned and slapped his hand on the smooth surface. "I'm not running away," he snarled.

"Good," she said, coming over to perch on his desk. "Because I have an idea."

He looked at her, askance. Simone's ideas tended to cause trouble.

She continued, "I want us to give a coming out party for Sofia. She needs to be introduced to the community, and it will help her in her future with the law practice."

Josef thought it wasn't a bad idea, but he was still concerned. "What if Coraline is still around and tries something?"

Simone's eyes silvered and her fangs came out. "I hope she does. I'll shred her like a piece of cheese."

Josef's eyes changed to match hers, and his libido went into high gear. He loved it when his wife got feisty. "I think she'd be a fool to try anything." He got up and moved toward her. "Are you ready to go home," he said, suggestively.

Simone smiled into his eyes. "Of course."

He brushed the hair away from her neck and kissed it, allowing his fangs to sweep her skin. "We can talk about the party on the way."

She pulled away from him, with a sexy smile. "Let's go then."

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Coraline woke in a strange freezer that smelled like antiseptic. She turned her head and saw through the iced glass she was in a small room, and could make out the shape of another freezer next to hers. Her head was fuzzy, and she smelled the remnants of blood—her blood.

She sat up quickly, remembering, but also bumping into the lid of the freezer. She pushed it aside, not caring about her nakedness. "Luc," she said in a low voice. She didn't know where she was, and was afraid.

She heard a quick step outside the room. She prepared to attack, when Luc stepped into her vision, holding a robe. He kept his eyes averted from her nudity, and said. "Oui, madam? Here is your robe."

Coraline took the garment without comment. She didn't want Luc to know she had been frightened. He turned away as she got out of the freezer and put on the clothing. She felt dizzy and hungry. "What happened? I have to feed."

Luc nodded, still not looking at her and led the way out of the freezer room. "I have some blood from yesterday, madam, but I fear we will need more soon."

He went to the refrigerator and gave her a glass of red liquid. Coraline sniffed and could tell it was losing its freshness quickly. With a grimace, she downed it. The flavor was off but it stilled the cravings she was having.

Now that she felt more herself, she glanced around the room. "Where are we?"

Luc shrugged in Gallic way. "My Lord Henri told me about this place, and had it ready in case we needed it."

He looked at her disheveled state. "Are you all right, madam?"

"Oui, of course." Coraline pulled herself together. "I thank you for bringing me to safety."

Luc bowed his head. He wanted to be much more to the lovely lady before him, but knew he was a servant, and couldn't raise his eyes to one of the aristocracy. "We should stay here until you are fully healed, madam," he said.

Coraline touched her side, and recalled she had been shot. If she were human, she would have died. Her brows furrowed as she thought about her fight with Beth. She started to pace up and down the cheaply furnished room.

She worried about her abortive attempt to kill Beth and what would happen now. The feeling of failure overwhelmed her and she stopped mid-step.

Luc looked at her in concern. "Are you in pain, madam?"

Pain? Yes, the pain of failure, the emptiness of defeat, now that Mick would know her treachery and hate her. If she had killed Beth she could have dealt with that, knowing he was in as much agony as she had been all these long years. Now it was all for nothing….

She stopped her pacing, and looked at the large vampire who was regarding her with concern. He was attractive in a bullish kind of way, and she knew he worshipped her. She forced herself to be practical. "This is a safe place?" she queried.

"Oui, madam. I have all our luggage but we will need blood soon."

"Ah, that should not be a problem. I know of places here in Los Angeles." She remembered the new blood centers the hated Beth had set up. She even knew the address of one of them.

She swished over to the table, and wrote down the information on a slip of paper. She handed it to Luc. "Go to this address. They will sell you blood. Do you have sufficient money?"

"Oui, madam. Monsieur Henri provided a large amount of American money before we left."

Coraline raised an eyebrow. Did Henri think she would fail?

Luc sensed her feelings and said, "Monsieur wanted me to protect you at any price, even to my own life." He stood a little taller, wanting her to see his sincerity.

She was comforted by the vampire's dedication to her, even if it came at Henri's direction. She nodded her head in acceptance. "Thank you, my friend."

Luc smiled, and his face became more attractive. "I will go to secure the blood we need. When you are fully healed, we can leave this misérable country.'

She took out the disposable cell phone she used to lure Simone to Mick's loft. 'I will call a taxi for you.'

When Luc had gone, she showered and dressed. She hated to slink back to France in defeat, but she knew Kostan would have the Cleaners looking for her, not to mention Mick. It was time to retreat and regroup.

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Josef sat at his desk at home. Simone was still in their freezer after a vigorous night. He drew out his cell phone and dialed a number.

Across the continent, the Head of Council answered her private number. "Yes?" Emmaline said in her gruff voice.

"It's Josef."

"What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to let you know that Coraline Duvall went off the reservation."

"Oh?"

"Yes, she tried to kill Beth St. John and my wife." Josef heard a growl from the other end.

"What happened?"

"Coraline got into their house and Beth cut her up pretty bad and shot her. Coraline ran, and I don't know where she is at the moment."

He heard a deep chuckle. "I told them not to mess with that fledgling." Emmaline said, in good humor. "Is Beth all right?"

"She had a few wounds, but she's fine now. Mick is beside himslf, as you can imagine."

"I'm sure," Emmaline said, serious now. She sighed. "Josef, remember when I told you some younglings were causing trouble with their sires out here?"

"Yes?"

"We've found there are troublemakers spreading discontent among the young ones. With all the social media, it's easy for them to communicate, even from Europe. There are factions in France, Belgium, Spain and even Germany who are suggesting we attack and enslave the humans."

Josef sat up straighter. This was bad. "Don't they realize that would cause our destruction? Once humans know we're among them, they'll find our weaknesses and figure out how to kill us."

"Of course," Emmaline growled again.

"Who is doing this?" Josef demanded.

"The main instigators are the Paris Council. They've taken on some activist members and are persuading the younger vamps to their beliefs. Not fledglings, but those fifty to one hundred years old. The radicals have convinced them that we are invinciable and we should be able to exert power over the humans."

"When did you hear this?"

Emmaline said, "Just recently. I sent some younger vampires that are loyal to us to find out what they could. I believe the Duvalls are funding it, along with a few of the old European vampire families."

"But why?" Josef asked. "Surely they can see this would destabilize the vampire community."

"I don't know, unless the think if we're divided, they could take power."

Josef thought furiously for a few moments, then said coldly, "Give me the names of whoever you think is behind this."

"Can you do something?" Emmaline, asked hopefully.

"I will decimate their finances. I have some of the best tech people, and I know business. If these vamps have no money, they can't continue this insanity."

"Hmm, that's possible. But it might be difficult. Some of the families have been around for centuries. They might have their assets well-hidden."

"I'll find them."

Now Emmaline seemed a little hesitant. "I didn't mean to drag you into this, Josef. The Council has resoureces…."

"Don't worry, Em. I have personal reasons." Josef told her of the attempted assignation on him. "I believe it was the Duvalls, and I mean to take care of them. After I'm through they won't have a franc for anything."

He heard her gravely chuckle again. "I know I can count on you, Josef. But we do have some intel on these traitors. Contact Otto and he will give you all the background. I'm glad you're on our side, lad."

Josef smirked at her comment. He was over four hundred years old, but with Emmaline's nine hundred years, he knew she thought of him as a youngster.

"Tell Otto I'll be in touch. Don't worry Em, we'll get to the bottom of this and stop it."

After Josef hung up, he paced his office. Night had fallen, and he could see the lights from the city below twinkling. He always liked the night, even when he was human, although he could barely remember that time. He was a vampire and it was his responsibility to take care of his people. That included his wife and extended family. He shook his head. For someone who had been alone for so long, he was fiercely protective of his friends and would make sure they were all safe.

He picked up his phone again and made a call. "Rider?"

"Yes boss?"

"Do you have that number yet?"

"I was just going to text you. I'm sure it's his private cell phone."

"Good." Josef hung up, and waited for the text to come through. When it did, he grimly dialed. He didn't know what time it was in France, and he didn't care.

After a few rings, a sleepy voice answered, "Oui?"

"Hello, Henri Duvall. This is Josef Kostan."

There was silence on the other end.

"I know you tried to kill me yesterday."

"How could I have done that? I am at my home in Paris."

Josef snorted. "It's simple enough to hire someone. I know, I've done it myself."

There was another silence on the other end of the phone.

"I wanted to tell you I'm still here. And if you try to kill me, or anyone of my friends, your family will be destroyed."

"You think so?" Henri sneered.

"I know so. If I'm dead, there is a seven hundred year-old vampire to take my place. He has a seven hundred year-old sister. They will hunt down your family and make sure the Duvalls are turned into dust. My friend Mick will help them, along with all my staff that is loyal to me. You can't kill them all, Duvall."

Josef was an expert at negotiation, and now he said, "I killed Lance because he came after me. That should have been the end of it. But now I find you are supporting the radical element who wants war with the humans. You won't be allowed to continue."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Henri said, but there was a tone in his voice that Josef caught.

"If you and the Paris Council continue to stir up trouble, you'll find yourself in a world of hurt."

Henri snorted, "Threats from you are meaningless, you bâtard."

"See how meaningless they are, Duvall. It's only by my authority that Mick St. John doesn't come to Paris to tear apart your family after Coraline tried to kill his wife. Believe me, I'm tempted to let him do it."

"Hah," Henri exclaimed. "He cannot do anything against us."

"Perhaps," Josef purred, "but I can. I will destroy your finances so you don't have two francs to rub together. You can retire to your castle and suck the blood of rats because you won't be able to afford anything better."

"I'd like to see you try," Henri blustered.

"I won't try, I'll do it. Hear me, Duvall. Stop whatever plans you have and call off your assassin. I know since he failed to kill me, he will probably try again. If he succeeds, your family will pay the price, I guarantee that."

Josef heard Duvall swear in French on the other end of the line. Then Henri said in a conciliatory tone. "I don't want any trouble with you, Kostan. I have no idea what you mean, but whatever Coraline did, she did not have our family's blessing. We will not be causing any problems in the new world."

Josef smiled wickedly. He knew the French vampire was a liar. "Good, see that you don't."

He hung up, knowing war had just been declared. Now it was up to Josef to see that he and those he cared about came up the winners.

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Beth woke suddenly in the darkness of their freezer. She could tell Mick was still asleep beside her. He had been horrified when he found Coraline hurt her, blaming himself as usual. She gave a minute sigh. That was her Mick, always taking on the guilt for anything that went wrong. It didn't matter that Beth said it was her fault for letting Coraline into the loft, he felt responsible that his ex-wife was in Los Angeles in the first place. She knew his fear for her stemmed from his love, and he didn't want to lose her. His concern was a holdover from when she was human but now that she was a vampire, she was a lot harder to kill. Beth had been afraid when Coraline came after her, but her training kicked in, and she wasn't going down without a fight. The memory heartened her and she put her arm around her husband in response to her thoughts.

He woke, and looked at her with that half-smile she loved. "Morning, sweetheart."

She snuggled into his body, content. "Hmm, good morning."

"Are you all right?"

"I'm always all right with you, St. John."

Mick kissed her. "Good. What's on the agenda for tonight?"

She stared at him, marveling at the emotion in his eyes. She always felt so lucky this marvelous man loved her. "We're supposed to get our new furniture delivery tonight."

He shifted a little in the freezer. "When are they coming?"

"Between eight and ten pm."

Mick glanced at his watch, the only thing he ever wore in the freezer. "It's only five now."

"Oh, good. Do you have any idea how we can spend the time until then?"

Mick moved over her, letting his body answer. "Oh yeah, lots of ideas."

Beth put her arms around Mick, and her kiss answered back.

The End

Hope you enjoyed! I stopped here because there's much more to come. Please stay tuned for the next story, Rite of Passage. Our LA vamps take on the radical vampires, and danger threatens their existence. Thanks for your support, and I hope you all stick around for what happens next.