"Fear not," a male voice said from close by, "the ropes aren't tight enough to cut off your circulation. We want to keep you alive for as long as possible."
"Who are you?" Kenzie asked, hoping she sounded brave. Then she saw it. The red glow, two dots not five feet away from her. There was no mistake that this was the same vampire who had been looking at her through her window the previous night. It also had to be the same one who had bitten Cecelia and the other victims.
"That's right," the vampire said, reading her thoughts. "And your meddling has gone on long enough. I'll enjoy drinking your blood."
"That'll do, son," a familiar voice said. Out of the shadows stepped the same woman that Kenzie saw last night. The vampire authority who'd taken the criminal-killing vampires away. She wore the same gown as she had the previous evening and her eyes seemed even more sinister than before. But this time, instead of looking angry, she looked smug. In fact, Kenzie was almost sure she was smiling.
"Welcome to my domain," the woman said. "You've done very well getting closer and closer to the truth. But we can't allow that to happen."
At that moment, a third figure stepped out of the candle's shadows. It was another young man, and he looked younger than the one with red eyes. This one's eyes glowed an eerie yellow. He seemed to share the red-eyed vampire's appetite.
The two brother vampires actually bowed to Kenzie. She struggled effortlessly against the ropes some more.
"Mother, this girl likes wolves," the vampire with yellow eyes, Xander, laughed. "All the more reason to devour her."
"In time, son. We must have patience."
They weren't going to drink her blood right away? What were they waiting on?
"We're waiting on a special guest," Dante said, reading her thoughts.
There was no point in thinking anymore. Kenzie just started talking out loud.
"What's to stop me from screaming?" she asked. "You haven't put anything over my mouth. Anyone could hear me screaming."
"My dear, you don't realize where you are, do you?" Serrina said. "You're in the mausoleum, very far down. No one will be able to hear you. And if they did, they wouldn't be able to save you."
Kenzie managed to sit up. She looked around for the first time and saw skeletons littered about.
Cockroaches scurried across the floor, and there were probably a few rats hidden in the darkness as well. Kenzie was an animal lover, but not enough to enjoy bugs and rodents that she couldn't see.
"You've more to fear than a few rodents," Serrina assured her, showing very pointed teeth. Her sons grinned as well.
"You're the vampire authority," Kenzie said. "You're supposed to deal with vampires that break the law. Just last night you took two of them away. What do you do to them?"
"I'd never kill one of my own kind. Any vampires that break human laws remain down here, but in a few days' time, they return to the surface to feed, much more cautious than before. None of the vampires down here has been caught a second time. Why should we bend to the rules of humans? They're nothing to us. We can easily overtake them."
"You say you don't want to listen to human laws. Well, by disciplining vampires, you're doing just that."
"On the contrary. I'm not destroying fellow vampires. I'm making the humans think that's what I have done. We are vampires, created to drink the blood of humans. That's precisely what we shall do. The more of us there are, the easier it will be."
"So all the vampire criminals you were supposed to destroy? You've kept them down here and they come out at night to eat people?"
"Indeed. It is, after all, what we were created for."
"But why me? Why did you pick me?"
"You're getting too close to the truth, my dear. You've become very close to another vampire, who is all too willing to provide you with information. I must admit I'm surprised there is a cure for this gift, but that matters not. The cure will be destroyed easily enough and the blood drained of humans."
"And what happens when you drink the blood of every human in the world?"
"We feed sparingly. Human blood keeps us strong and fed much longer than plasma juice and fruit. Even between hundreds of us, there will always be enough humans left to last us forever."
"Why have you been leaving the bodies out to be found though? Why not hide them?"
"I think it fitting to inform the humans of what awaits them. Unfortunately, some were so frightened they fled Bridgeport, but there are plenty of other cities."
"But why are you turning people into vampires? Why not just drink their blood? The less of you there are, the more blood there will be to drink."
Serrina actually looked confused. "We haven't been creating more vampires. I speak of the vampires already in existence."
"Then your son has. The one with the red eyes." Kenzie indicated Dante. "I met a girl today who said she and several other people got turned into vampires against their will by a vampire with red eyes."
Serrina faced her older son. "Dante, is this true?"
Dante lowered his head. "Yes, Mother. But my intentions were good. Why not have a world full of nothing but vampires? Why have humans in it at all, even to feed? Why shouldn't vampires exert their dominance and take over? Perhaps we could even enslave humans, and they would be punished by us drinking their blood."
"Intriguing idea, but there would not be enough blood for all vampires if this were to occur. And if you have been turning others into one of us, why have you not brought them here?"
"I wanted it to be a surprise for you when the time came."
"Well, I am surprised, but not in the manner you wish. Now we must share precious blood with strangers due to your foolishness."
Dante lowered his head even farther. "I'm sorry, Mother."
Serrina took her son in her arms. "It's all right, dear. We all make mistakes."
"Perhaps the cure..."
"Yes, we shall steal the cure and use it on these new vampires. In fact, we shall turn all vampires back into humans so that we are the only three vampires left. We'll have plenty of blood to last us until the end of the world. Then we'll destroy any remaining cure. The humans must never have the power to revert us to our pathetic forms."
"You dare call humans pathetic when you're the ones acting in such a manner?" a voice asked from the doorway.
Everyone turned and Kenzie almost shouted with relief and surprise at the sight of Isaiah.
"So you've come at last," Serrina said, releasing Dante. "We've been expecting you."
"Enough is enough," Isaiah stated. "This has gone on for too long. I was blind to not have realized it was you behind all these brutal murders all along."
"Murders? Why, I find that to be a strong word for feeding."
"There are laws and you've broken them. You're supposed to be the one who enforces the laws for vampires, and instead you commit the very crimes other vampires are destroyed for doing."
"I've not destroyed a single vampire. They all remain here, emerging at night to feed, which is what they were made to do."
"But they were reluctant to do so I presume. They know it's against the law."
"Actually, they were quite willing to let nature take its course. Upon realizing I was their authority and I insisted they drink blood, they were ecstatic."
"You're disgusting."
"You think we'll allow ourselves to be dominated by mere humans? You're a disgrace."
"I'd rather be a disgrace than a criminal."
"You think it's a crime to do what we were made for?"
"We weren't made for anything; and you were the one who chose this life for us. I wanted nothing to do with it."
Upon hearing these words, Kenzie realized why Isaiah had stiffened the night before. Why Serrina was waiting for him to show up. Why Isaiah was reluctant to talk about his past.
"You disappoint me, son," Serrina said to Isaiah.
"Not as much as you've shamed me, Mother," Isaiah replied.
"I merely wanted to keep you with me for all time. What happened all those years ago was out of my control."
"Back then there was no cure for vampirism. You were bitten, yes. But you could have consulted us before you changed us."
"Is it so wrong for a mother to want to be with her children forever? I could not bear to outlive my children. I didn't want to watch you die. I'd already lost your father; I didn't want to lose my children as well."
"That's how life is supposed to be. You're supposed to live naturally and die naturally. We've been turned into monsters."
Serrina looked taken aback. "Monsters? Why, this life is far superior to that of a human's."
"I don't care. I never wanted this, and now that I know there's a cure, I'm going to do everything in my power to obtain it."
"You'll do no such thing! I won't lose any of my children."
"I'm afraid you lost me long ago, Mother. The day you chose my fate for me was the day I lost all hope and respect for you."
"I won't allow you to become a human. But if you are so adamant about dying before me, then so be it. But I will not be the one to take your life, for I already gave you life. However, you will have one final chance to redeem yourself."
Serrina turned to her other two sons. "Dante, Xander. Extract some blood from this woman." She indicated Kenzie. "Allow your brother to drink the blood of someone he truly cares for and savor the delicious taste of sweet blood. If he still does not recognize the error of his ways, then do away with him. I no longer wish to listen to his nonsense."
Dante jumped toward Isaiah before he could leap in front of Kenzie. Xander extracted a knife from his pocket and walked toward Kenzie. Instead of cutting her, however, he cut the ropes that held her in place.
"Why did you do that?" Kenzie asked.
"It will be more entertaining knowing that you're free and able to run, but that you won't be able to escape us."
Kenzie stood up and began slowly backing toward the exit. But she didn't want to leave Isaiah there. He was strong, but not strong enough to take on three other vampires, family or not.
"Concerned for my son, are you?" Serrina asked with a laugh. "You'll be joining him soon enough, one way or the other. Perhaps you'll enter his body through your blood, or he'll join you in death. Either way benefits me."
"You're sick," Kenzie said. "You're disowning your own son for having his own beliefs. You're a monster just like he says!"
"Enough!" Xander said angrily, raising the knife. Then he lunged forward.
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