Blood Legacy: The House of Alexander (6 page)

Victor’s jaw clenched and Aeron could hear his teeth grinding together. It did not stop him however, and he moved on to stroke the boy’s cheek.

“So you must tell me, old friend,” Aeron said casually, “How you managed to produce such an amazing offspring.” He paused for effect, “Because I really quite enjoyed him.”

It was too much for Victor, who leaped toward his enemy. But Aeron had goaded the attack for a reason, and he was on his feet in an instant. He held the unconscious boy between them.

“Do you wish to challenge me?” he said mockingly, in complete control. “You know I live for that day.”

Victor was quietly sarcastic. “You would take my place in the hierarchy. Yet you just passed the opportunity to destroy my heir.”

Aeron smiled down at the prone figure he held. “I will avail myself of that opportunity some time in the future.” Aeron dropped all pretenses and dropped the boy to the ground with a thud. Victor did not glance down. He drew his sword as Aeron drew his.

The two flew into combat, swords throwing sparks as they collided with tremendous force. Aeron was flush with blood, power roaring through his veins, but Victor was fed with an inner fury that had no end. It took but three blows and both swords shattered, and the men were locked shoulder to shoulder.

It was one of the dilemmas of the most powerful of their Kind. If two were evenly-matched, it was difficult to find weapons that could withstand the fight as long as the combatants. And when reflexes were near instantaneous and skill was equal, it would come to a deadlock.

But in this case, although the pair was near evenly-matched, Victor had the slightest edge, and it was all he needed to slowly begin overpowering Aeron. This appeared to cause Aeron little concern.

He stumbled rearward, jostling a table and knocking dozens of candles over. Victor caught the gleam in his adversary’s eye, but it was too late. Aeron snatched a now flaming tapestry from the table and flung it toward him.

Victor stepped aside easily and was already moving toward his opponent. But he was half a step off as Aeron knocked more candles to the ground, lighting the woven mats covering the floor.

The room was quickly engulfed in flame and Victor realized Aeron’s intent as their eyes met. Aeron smiled a wicked smile. In a flash, he flung a flaming tapestry toward the prone figure on the floor. It was a perfect toss, settling over the crumpled form.

Victor leaped to the boy’s side, snatching the tapestry from him. The flames would not kill him, but the wounds would be painful in his weakened state. He gazed up in fury at Aeron, who observed the scene with pleasure.

“One of the downfalls of emotional entanglement,” Aeron said with thinly-veiled contempt, flames licking around him. “Unfortunately, as much as I am enjoying this little reunion, I am going to have to bring it to an end.”

Aeron slammed his shoulder into one of the weight-bearing pillars of the great room. In an instant, cracks appeared overhead as dust and rocks began to pour from the ceiling above.

Aeron winked, “I have to douse this fire somehow.”

Victor did not hesitate. He lifted the boy in his arms, and in one great leap was out the window of the room that was now collapsing behind him. Before he had landed on his feet, the castle caved inward in an explosion of rock and rubble. He moved with blinding speed out of reach of the flying debris.

Once a safe distance away, he stopped and looked down at the boy. He wanted to go back and settle this matter with Aeron, but truly his prodigy’s condition was more pressing. He was relieved to feel the boy stir.

The boy opened his eyes, focusing on Victor. He turned away. “I am sorry. I tried to resist him.”

Victor’s relief was immense, and the boy took comfort in that. Victor shook his head. “There is no need for remorse. You could not have withstood Aeron. Most do not even survive.”

Victor’s thoughts turned inward. This both puzzled and disturbed him. Aeron was known for destroying their Kind, which in itself was neither immoral nor unjust. What separated Aeron from the Others was his choice to humiliate and desecrate, seducing lesser beings to an ignoble and painful death.

Whether or not Aeron could have destroyed his progeny was debatable. He could, however, have caused injury that would have taken decades to heal.

Victor was distracted from his thoughts as the boy stirred again, fading in and out of consciousness.

“How,” the boy began, “How is it that you knew where to find me?”

“It was not so much where,” Victor replied. “As when.” His next words provided no explanation. “Time and distance are not so very different things.”

This made no sense at all to the boy, and Victor shook his head. “You need to rest. We have a long journey home.”

The boy settled his head onto Victor’s shoulder, and Victor started through the forest, his thoughts returning to Aeron. He had been furious when he felt Aeron begin to bend the boy to his will, and his concern had been great. Aeron’s atrocities were well known.

But now, in a way, Victor’s concern was even greater. He did not think that Aeron could have killed his offspring.

But it bothered him that Aeron had not even tried.

CHAPTER 6

THE SUN ROSE INTO A BRIGHT RED SKY, telling Ryan the rain from the night before would continue. Storm clouds gathering on the horizon to the west told the same story. It was good the jet was approaching. In an hour the weather would make landing impossible.

Ryan watched from the turret of the castle as the lone figure disembarked and entered a limousine. The car pulled away from the runway and onto the road leading to the gates. Ryan started downstairs.

She exited out onto the upper level of the entry stairs as the long, black car pulled to a stop at the base of the flight of steps. The lone figure stepped out of the car, waved the car off, and started the long climb.

The older man, dressed impeccably in an elegant suit, maneuvered the stairs without effort. He arrived at the landing composed and unruffled despite the fact he had just traveled three thousand miles. He stood before the young woman, then bowed deeply from the waist.

“My lord,” he said.

Ryan waited for him to stand upright, then put her hand on his shoulder.

“Edward. Welcome home.”

“It is good to be home, my lord. Although there is much that we must discuss.”

The two moved into the grand foyer and Edward continued. “I trust Dr. Ryerson reached here safely?”

“Yes, she and her son arrived as scheduled. Thank you for your diligence on that matter.”

Edward appeared somber. “It was wise for you to bring her here. I am not certain of her safety outside of your protection.”

“And I am not certain she will be safe even within my care if I am distracted by too many matters.”

It was a surprising admission and it caused Edward great concern. He glanced at his young liege, who in reality was several centuries older than him. Ryan had chosen an apt word. She did seem distracted, and her next words surprised him even more.

“I did not bring Dr. Ryerson here purely for altruistic reasons.” She paused, as if uncertain how to exactly phrase her next comment. “I, or rather my father, has need of her services.”

Edward frowned. This did not sound good, in fact, did not even sound possible.

“I trust your father is well?”

Ryan again searched for words, perplexed by the novelty of this situation. “I am not certain. He seems,” she paused, at a loss, “Well, he seems a bit under the weather.”

It was a masterful understatement. For Victor Alexander, the undisputed ruler and sovereign leader of their Kind, to even sneeze would be unthinkable. For him to display the kind of weakness that would cause Ryan concern was dreadfully significant. Edward sought to absorb the ramifications of this impossibility, his mind following every potential twist and turn of the situation. It did not take him long to arrive at his conclusions.

“What do you think is the extent of your father’s illness?” he asked quietly.

Ryan shook her head. “I really do not know. There is no precedent for this, no measure by which to judge. Perhaps it is nothing. But I cannot take that chance.”

Edwards thoughts continued to sift through every eventuality. “Who else knows of your father’s condition?”

Ryan again shook her head. “No one. You. Dr. Ryerson. And myself. That is all. Marilyn was here, but she did not sense it. Of that I am certain.”

Edward nodded. “Then Dr. Ryerson cannot leave here with this knowledge.” Edward hesitated, always reluctant to question his master. “Are you certain it was wise to involve her?”

Edward was again surprised by her answer. “No. I am not certain of the wisdom of my decision. By placing her in confidence I have placed her in jeopardy. But I have need of her knowledge right now.”

Edward was blunt. “I am more concerned that you have placed yourself or your father in jeopardy by involving so delicate a creature.”

Ryan smiled wryly. “I do not think Dr. Ryerson is the hothouse rose you believe her to be.”

Edward was firm. “And I do not think she could withstand the likes of the Others were they to learn of this development.”

“Which is why you will make certain she does not have to.”

Edward always had the good grace to know when a conversation was over. He bowed deferentially. “I live to serve you, my lord.”

Ryan put her hand on Edward’s shoulder. “Then for right now you will protect Dr. Ryerson, and god forbid, my father if he needs it.” She turned away, her expression darkening. “I have a feeling I will be otherwise occupied.”

Ryan and Edward walked into a fully functioning laboratory. If they had not just walked from a luxuriously furnished hallway, it would appear they were in a major medical research facility.

Victor sat on a table while Dr. Ryerson examined him. He nodded to Edward and Edward bowed low, remaining a respectful distance while Ryan approached.

Susan removed her stethoscope from her ears and draped it around her neck. She turned to Ryan, addressing both her and Victor.

“Well, I am as baffled by his anatomy as I am by yours. I might as well be examining an alien species.”

Ryan nodded. “This is to be expected. But I know how creative you can be when you are faced with the unknown.”

Susan addressed Victor. “As foreign as your anatomy is to me, I do have one thing to compare it to,” she said, nodding at Ryan. “And I have something of a head start because of the research I’ve been doing.”

Victor was gracious. “That is excellent news.”

Ryan began thumbing through a stack of papers that Susan had brought with her. “Well, this is all very enlightening,” she said in a tone that indicated it was anything but.

Susan took the paperwork from Ryan’s hand in a parental gesture that few would have dared. “Let me give you a synopsis.”

Ryan sprawled in an offce chair. “Please do.”

Susan shuffled the papers. “When I originally began studying you I was looking at your immune system, searching for explanations for your accelerated healing. When I realized how old you were, I also began looking for explanations as to why you do not age.”

Susan turned on the overhead display, illuminating several charts and graphs. Ryan took one look at the graphs and exchanged glances with her father behind Susan’s back. Victor looked down, hiding a smile while Susan continued unaware.

“There are several current theories of aging, and I considered all of them in the context of your physiology. The two foremost theories are that aging is genetically programmed, or that damage to DNA is cumulative and eventually the body is no longer able to repair it.”

Ryan was paying attention despite herself.

“If the former is correct,” Susan continued, “That aging is genetically programmed, then your Kind may be passing a favorable genetic mutation to one another through the process of the ‘Change.’ From what I understand, when you first share blood with a human, a physiological transition occurs in which the anatomy is radically altered in a very short time, almost an instant mutation.”

“Like the accelerated evolution you’ve mentioned before,” Ryan said.

Susan nodded, then paused. “Are you sure you’re not a vampire?”

Ryan had a look of exasperation on her face. “I don’t know how to disabuse you of that notion. Vampires are an idiotic myth that I am sure One of my Kind inspired in an insipid moment.”