Blood Descendants (St. Clair Vampires Book 1) (25 page)

It didn’t escape
my notice that none of the participants wanted to cross the finish
line first. The closer each one got, the slower they walked. There
were several Fare and Stewards just feet from the finish line and all
of them started to laugh; hugging and slapping each other on the
backs. Fueled by Gretchen's recovery, the entire group made a
decision. They lined up, grabbed onto the hand of the person next to
them, Steward next to Fare, and jumped over the finish line as one.

The affect of their
solidarity almost buckled my knees. So I bowed. Not some small
insignificant bow for informal occasions. This was the low, deep bow
usually reserved for the head monarch of a clan. A bow so low that my
forehead touched the ground. As if our youth and sense of rebellious
nature drew us together, the Vampire Royals and clan members at the
finish line imitated my bow, making this a show of commonality like
no other. This act silenced the participants and the spectators
alike. You could hear the proverbial pin drop.

Slow to stand, not
wanting to look like I was ashamed of my act, I stayed down as long
as my legs would allow me. But when I did stand, I was met with the
unabashed tears of the people standing in front of me. Here stood the
Stewards and Fare, people who were bred to cater to my Vampire
relatives and peers; our Coetus Essentialis. They were the literal
life blood of my future existence and I refused to let the moment
pass without each of them knowing my feelings about their sacrifice.

Turning towards the
stands I searched for Efia, completely prepared for the lecture I
would get. When I realized that the entire St. Clair viewing box had
emptied, I went into a panic. I scanned the crowd to see an empty
Miklos box as well. Certain that I had just shamed my family like
Wyatt had, I refused to regret my actions. I wasn't raised in this
culture, but I was absolutely going to give credit where credit was
due, even if I disappointed my loved ones. Before my heart could
start to break, a hand squeezed my shoulder.

“
Well
done, Cheyenne, well done!” Efia whispered in my ear.

The St. Clair and
Miklos clans had indeed cleared the stands, but they hadn't done so
to abandon me in shame. They had joined me in my bow to our Stewards
and Fare and several of them were only just then beginning to stand.
Chloe embraced Tabitha and Jordan; Violeta grabbed my hand and held
tight.

Chapter 18

The events of the
night and the Steward camera footage was kept under wraps. Governor
Ezekiel and the Royals wanted to be certain they had all of the
information before letting the masses view it. The Robesons were
being shunned by the High Caste Fare and there was no doubt that the
upcoming hearing would result in a loss of social standing. The only
thing that Matthias Robeson could hope for was a strong royal family
selecting his son at the Pro Vita Eligamus.

The royal families and
their clans had just entered into the ballroom but, unlike previous
nights, the chatter amongst the 600 plus people didn’t stop. In
fact, several of the Fare who were members of clans sought out and
questioned their patrons. I watched as each patron gave only the
Council approved report. The older Fare seemed appeased by the
information and returned to their seats. The younger Fare, however,
looked to the younger clan members like Chloe and me. They looked at
us with the knowledge that things were being kept from them and they
weren't happy. I had been kept in the dark for the past two months,
so I definitely knew how it felt.

I glanced over at the
Miklos table to signal Tabitha that we needed to talk when I felt a
burning in my throat. At first I thought I just needed to clear it a
bit, but the action just intensified the pain. Well, not pain
actually, more like a sensation. I tried to ignore it, telling myself
it was stress, but that didn’t work. The more I ignored it or
tried to clear my throat the worse it got. So, trying to identify
what is was, I concentrated on the feeling. I visualized where it was
coming from and was nearly overwhelmed with the desire to drink.
Silly me, I grabbed my water glass and tipped it back, forgetting
that the glass had yet to be filled. Frantic for a drink, I began
looking around the room trying to locate the vessel that would quench
my thirst. I started to rise when Chloe nudged me.

“
Do
you know who you want?” Chloe was looking at me with a sparkle
in her eyes. “I mean, I know that you are going to pick Rillae
but you get two; a male and a female. And, you know that there are
other benefits to having a Fare.”

Shaking my head, I
turned to look out into the crowd, not surprised that Chloe had
brought this up, again. One day Efia, having overheard her talking
about Providence and a particular male Fare, laughed so hard that we
thought she would stop breathing. Efia maintained that those types of
relationships were strictly forbidden, but we weren’t fooled.
Male Fare were bred to be the very best looking men I had ever seen,
in person or in print. Attractiveness and friendship made it less
likely that the relationship would be prematurely dissolved. Although
rare, some dissolutions could possibly result in the immediate death
of the Fare. Needless to say, it was extremely important that each
patron selected their Fare with intelligence and practicality.

With this in mind, I
wondered who would be the best choice for me. Even though the thought
of parents raising their children just to be Vamp food for the rest
of their days still made me sick, I had been feeling hunger pains for
the last few days. Part of it was from being in close proximity to so
many Fare and the other part from ingesting Efia’s blood on a
daily basis. As much as this still felt like a fairytale to me, I had
to remind myself that fairytales only happened in your dreams; and I
was wide awake.

One by one the Fare
noticed that Chloe and I were looking around the room. It was beyond
me how any of them could put aside the events of last night and still
be excited. But then I remembered the hushed conversation Veronica
and I had on the flight. She told me that being Tabitha’s Fare
was the most rewarding thing she could have ever hoped to become. She
knew that she was an intelligent girl with a plethora of options open
to her in the human world, but still believed her purpose in life was
to be Sanguine Fare for Tabitha. Although I still thought this
practice barbaric at best, I didn’t doubt that Veronica
believed what she was telling me.

Several minutes later
the room grew quiet. The Robesons, whom I hadn’t realized were
absent, entered the room. Since the main entrance doors were at the
rear of the room, the family had to walk past all of the other
occupants to reach their table. Each and every one of them had their
heads held high as if they still had the prestige to back up such
arrogance. Passing the Lower Caste Fare, they had the nerve to glare
at them. This act, though accepted by the others just days earlier,
earned them looks of contempt from the Middle Cast and High Cast
Fare. Undeterred, they took seats at their table, positioned directly
in front of the St. Clair clan tables.

As soon as Wyatt
reached his seat, he looked at me and smiled. He had that kind of
politician smile that told you not to trust anything that came out of
his mouth. He stared into my eyes as a challenge and, for the very
first time since I left New Mexico, I was glad I was a royal. Taking
his challenge head on, I simply arched an eyebrow, proud that I'd
finally mastered it after watching myself in the mirror for weeks. He
took my gesture as interest and winked in response. He made me sick.

I turned my attention
toward the two figures who had just walked up to our table. Governor
Ezekiel and a very large, very male Steward were standing there.

“
Hello,
Princess Cheyenne. Princess Chloe.”

The Steward bowed
nearly to the ground and came up more gracefully than anyone his size
should have been able to. Reminding me of those big cats from
National Geographic, he was so handsome with his white teeth and
golden skin that you might forget just how dangerous he could be. He
stood at attention while the governor whispered something in Efia’s
ear. The conversation was quick but it earned the attention of the
entire room, all Royals included.

“
My
Sovereigns,” Governor Ezekiel was saying from his podium, “I
proudly present to you this year’s Electus,” the Steward
took a deep breath, pausing for dramatic effect before calling off
each name.

Each Electus, Steward
and Fare alike, stood and walked to the entrance doors. Once all were
assembled, they began to walk to the front and parade themselves in
front of the clan tables and then the Royals. Most of them simply
walked while others decided to strut and sway. Some of the Vampires
reacted to the differences and I wondered if the Electus would be
chosen based on the way they marched around the room.

After the last name was
called and the Electus attributes were listed, they stood before the
Vampire clans. Some of them had all of the confidence in the world
while others were so nervous they had to hold hands with the Electus
next to them. Governor Ezekiel waited for the Steward Guard to give
the all clear before he drew a breath and began to speak again.

“
Today,
you take the first steps toward your destiny. The rest of your life
is before you. Our continued peace and safety depends on your
willingness to provide for your Vampire patron to the best of your
abilities. Do each of you understand what is expected of you?”

Each Electus nodded
their agreement. As the Governor continued to speak, the burning
sensation in my throat returned tenfold. This time the source seemed
to be closer and I was driven to seek it out. Examining every Electus
in front of us, my gaze stopped on Wyatt Robeson. His long wavy hair
was pulled back into a ponytail and the vein in his neck pulsed in
time with my heart. The longer I looked the more my throat burned. To
keep myself from standing, I placed both hands on the table to gain
control while praying that no one would notice and that I wouldn’t
faint or vomit.

Governor Ezekiel kept
talking about the importance of this and the destiny of that and all
I could think of was breaking the flesh on this boy’s neck and
fueling my body. I continued to stare at him until he lifted his eyes
and looked straight at me. We held each other’s gaze for a few
moments. The look was nothing romantic or sensual; rather it was that
of predator and prey if said prey had no fear. In the midst of my
craving, I felt like such a hypocrite and looked away. Governor
Ezekiel finished his monologue and proceeded to have each of the
Electus walk back to their seats.

My control had vanished
and the burning intensified, so I pushed my chair out and started to
walk around the table. A hand squeezed my shoulder and in an instant
the burning thirst subsided. Shaking from pain and thirst, I looked
at Pleasant who was staring at me. I saw understanding and compassion
in her eyes as she gently squeezed once more.

“
I’m
not sure what’s happening.” I said to her, hopelessly in
pain.

“
It’s
the hunger. It is never easy to explain what it feels like, but it
can be triggered by stimulus. Some of the Electus Fare oxygenate
their blood before these events making it more appealing to a first
time patron. The Robeson clan is notorious for blood doping.”

I discovered only too
late that the pain had subsided when Pleasant’s hand was on my
arm and that now in its absence, the pain came flooding back. I
reached under the table and placed my hand on her chair so that my
fingers touched her thigh. She jumped a little at first until she saw
the relief on my face and realized what had happened.

“
Wyatt
Robeson, please leave the building!” Governor Ezekiel announced
over the sounds of the room.

“
Sovereign,
I beg your pardon. Wyatt has done nothing wrong.”

Matthias was groveling
like a fool and a laugh slipped out of my lips before I could stop
it. In an attempt to cover for me, Chloe began coughing, but the man
gave me a look that could kill anyway.

“
Matthias,”
Efia spit out, “if you think that I believe for one second that
someone did not dope that boy’s blood then you are more of a
fool than I think you are. For goodness sake, I am almost foaming at
the mouth because of him. It is a rude and dangerous game you are
playing. Remove the boy!”

Matthias looked as if
he was going to argue but several large Steward Guards stepped
forward to escort his entire table out of the building. Muffled
conversations rippled throughout the room as the doors closed behind
the Robeson clan. Releasing Pleasant’s hand, I fully expecting
the pain to return. It didn't.

The stress of the
situation was visible in the Electus. Ethan Piedmont exhaled sharply
in relief. I stared at his neck to test its appeal and when nothing
happened, I closed my eyes and covered my face with a hand.

Chloe leaned over to
whisper in my ear. Apparently, any unattached Fare bitten by a
Vampire, Embraced or not, was theirs for life. It kept the Vampires
from sampling too much product. This meant that Wyatt and his family
were trying to induce my thirst in the hopes that I would bite him,
making him my Fare by default. First, the mess at the Ludos, then
blatant manipulation. What a jerk.

The day would not be
over soon enough for me, so I looked forward to the next portion of
the ceremony with mixed emotions. Chloe was looking into the crowd
between Landon Bishop and Nicole Martenson. I figured that she wanted
to make sure Landon and Nicole were evenly matched since they would
be spending a very long time together. There were two important
factors to consider when selecting your Fare; were they compatible
with the Vampire and were they compatible with each other. A Fare
could live for at least a century and not choosing wisely was
considered a waste.