The Vampire & the Rebel (Completed)

Part 2: Chapter 17

"I'll ask you one final time, then, Jamie. Do you want to join me and help with my plans?"

I had already made up my mind, so the answer came easily. "Yes."

She looked pleased with my answer, but there was no gloating as I had thought there might be. After all, was I not finally doing what she wanted?

But I was also doing what I wanted and from that brought a calm comfort. I wanted to be a part of whatever would finally free humans from the clutches of the leeches. I wanted to kill more of them, at least more of the worst of them.

I met her eyes. They looked so incredibly human, not a trace of red to be seen. "But no more of your games."

She sighed heavily. "That's a difficult thing you're asking. You're asking a leopard to change her spots, and that might just be impossible."

She smiled as I continued to meet her eyes steadily. If she wanted my cooperation as I believed she did, I was not going to fall back into being a toy for her amusement. I could practically see her thinking through my words behind that beautiful face, and finally she responded.

"I can't guarantee that, Jamie, but I can promise to try."

That was likely the best I was going to get. I nodded.

"So, I suppose you're wondering what happens next, now that you've agreed to join my rebellion. It's a good question. You'll still have to act the slave as the others do around outsiders, including humans who are unaware—which is most of them, except my guards and the humans at New Haven—and around all vampires. This means wearing the collar, the whole 'Mistress' thing anytime we could possibly be heard by anyone who is not in my inner circle, etcetera, etcetera. I have my reputation as an excellent breaker of humans to maintain." She laughed softly as if it were the most amusing thing she had ever imagined.

There was a certain sweetness in the way she was playing while undermining the other vampires that I could definitely appreciate.

"Obviously, the secret to my perfectly obedient humans is that my closest humans want to do as I say for their own reasons. Most other vampires compel and coerce, but not me Of course, like all the others you'll have to follow the chain of command for the good of the cause. Now I just need to figure out where to put you."

She was watching me as if trying to figure out a puzzle. "I've wanted you as one of my guards since the moment I saw you, but sadly, I can't keep you here with me, because you're a liability. Too many of the uninvolved know you staked me and ran. I think you'd be wasted in my factories and then there's also the issue that you are no longer branded, unless you'd like to rectify that?"

"No."

She smiled at my refusal as if greatly amused yet again. "I suppose that means we'll have to find you a place at New Haven."

My memories of that place were mostly of the storage room and guilty frustration, but it was also a beacon of hope in a way. I nodded.

She smiled. "Perhaps I shall give you to Connor as an assistant. Yes. That might work, and like Leif, he needs more help, and you've got certain experiences that will be quite invaluable. The fact that you've prevailed in multiple fights with vampires should also be most encouraging for the other humans. They have a tendency to feel pessimistic from time to time."

"Most of my kills were self-defense when I got into tight spots," I reminded her, although in truth taking them out had felt extremely good. She was the only vampire that I had not enjoyed staking, so far.

"I know. But isn't that the truth for every time you fight a vampire, when you get down to the heart of the matter? Prey versus predator?"

"Seems so. Or maybe host versus parasite."