Wulf's Redemption (Borne Vampires Book 3) (8 page)

Chuckling, he touched his finger to his nose. “I
knew you were a bright child. My family is blessed with unnaturally long life.
My grandfather lived to be a hundred and twenty-five. His only daughter, my
mother, is considered a very powerful witch amongst the Rom. Our clan is the Sinti,
the Germanic Roma. Gaeta has shown me and other how to extend our lives in
order to protect the secrets we are bound to keep.”

Eyeing
the tall man, she asked bluntly, “Which secrets are those? About Lisle or Aldric?”

Visibly
shaken by her question, Herrick made his ways to the stairs. “We protect the
Master and the estate we live upon. Master was involved with the Nazis. Germany
holds those who were either sympathetic to the Third Reich or, in most cases, unwilling
pawns, responsible and take legal means to bring justice for those who suffered
cruelly during the war. We keep his secrets safe.”

“I
understand. Thank you, Herrick.” She yawned, barely able to keep her eyes open.
“I’d better go to ground.”

“Rest.
We will continue our discussion tonight, after you and Master rise.”

“Herrick,
before you leave, I must ask you something.”

“Ja,
Miss Kai?”

“Why
do you call Alex ‘Master’?”

“He
is the sole heir to Wulf Manor and the titled lands belonging to the Wulf
family. He is the last of a powerful and noble line of Borne vampires.”

Wow,
he had truly left everything behind!

“See
you after sunset, Herrick. And thank you again for saving us.”

“It
is the least I could do for the Master, especially for what he’s done for me
and my family. Sleep well.” Herrick left the cellar.

She
waited for him to shut the door and slid the bolt in place, to ensure no one disturbed
their sleep. Returning to Alex, she snuggled close to him. Willing the dirt to
cover them, she closed her eyes and shut down her body.

And
dreamed.

Chapter Six

January 27, 1819, Wulf Manor, the Winter Ball

“General Wulf,” a young man, dressed in civilian
clothes, shouted above the music played by the hired orchestra, “Magistrate
Breber requests your immediate aid! He needs more men to search for the Lord
Mayor’s missing daughter!”

Ulrich
slashed his hand in a signal to silence the musicians.
 
He ordered gruffly, “Alexander, wait in my
study. Aldric, you follow me.” He issued to Captain Von Patterson, “Assemble
your men and await me outside, in the courtyard.” Ulrich stormed away. Aldric
cast a worried glance back at him as he followed their father out of the
ballroom.

Wondering
why Aldric was to withdraw with Ulrich and he sent to the study, Alex found
Archbishop Arturo, assigned by the Pope to oversee the morality of the Borne
who made Germany their home, standing beside him. Observing the Archbishop, who
was attended by four personal bodyguards, the old priest mumbled a prayer for
the Lord Mayor and his family, for their loss, for mercy, and the means to find
the girl and kill the beast who had taken her.

Opening
his eyes, the priest beckoned him closer, “Alexander, I must caution you to
watch your words and tread carefully with the Iron Wulf. He and others have
exhibited erratic behavior in a time when level heads and open minds are a prudent
path to find the beast hunting our children.”

“Yes,
Your Grace. I shall strive to mind my words.” Why had the priest taken a
personal interest in his dealings with his father?

The
priest did something even more puzzling, he signaled his men to close in around
them. He whispered, “The beast taking the children is unnatural. You and I both
know this. Alexander, you and your brother have done credit to your kind by participating
in the patrols. Hence, I speak to you directly and without mincing my words.”
The old man’s shrewd eyes narrowed. “Long have I watched the Iron Wolf and how
he has raised you to blend in, to act as the humans, to constantly be vigilant
for signs of turning — of losing your soul, and I have openly disagreed with
him his course concerning you and Aldric.”

“Your
Grace, I do not understand why this is a concern to you.”

The
priest offered him a sad smile. “His obsession of you turning will become his
undoing, I fear. Do not allow it be yours. To this point I make,
we know
a normal wolf cannot open windows that have been locked on the inside. Let me
ask you this, how can a wolf carry off a toddler without the child screaming
for someone to come to their aid? Why hadn’t
any
of the children cried out to their parents or nannies?”

“You
think the wolf has
a human accomplice?”

“Mayhap.” The worry and fear the Archbishop exhibited
as he glanced around them convinced Alex he thought differently. “The better
question, my young lord, is what evil prowls the streets of Magdeburg and has
the face of a neighbor or an associate? Who has
permission
to enter households?
”

Alex
caught his meaning, having wondered it himself if they dealt with one of the
Damned. The priest grabbed his arm, intent upon him. “I ask of you to seek out
the beast with any means necessary. Embrace your true nature, Alexander Wulf. Use
the powers given to you by God and end the terror griping Magdeburg this night!
I beseech of you, end this nightmare the people of Magdeburg are entwined in.
Please!”

Swallowing
hard, he said, “I must meet Ulrich, Your Grace. If a way presents itself and I
am given the opportunity, I will hunt it and end its reign of terror over the
mortals. This I vow!”
 

Nodding,
he patted his shoulder. “You are good man, Alexander. God be with you and your
brother.”

“May
God be with us all.” He bowed to the Archbishop and left the ballroom.

Dressed
in an expensive black dress coat, heavily embroidered silver thread adorned the
cuffs and collar. The white of his starched shirt stood out brilliantly against
the dark material. His black breeches fit him perfectly and were tucked into his
knee-length boots that were polished to perfection. A glittering façade to aid
the people in forgetting for a short time their grief and fear, until a rider
sent by Breber, who had declined Ulrich’s invitation, came for Blumenthal and
his wife, informing them of their only daughter’s abduction. Witnessing the
poor woman’s screams, her fear and grief as her husband took her in his arms as
they left to search for their missing child.

Entering his father’s study, he found he was
alone. Grinding his fist into the palm of his hand, he paced back and forth
across the expensive carpet, passing his father’s mammoth-sized desk. The
thought of the innocent children being slaughtered left him sick to his
stomach. His imagination played havoc as he thought of the Lord Mayor’s wife, sitting
beside the very window where the thief had snuck in and had stolen her child,
under the very nose of the sleeping nanny. If memory served, Blumenthal’s
daughter was a precocious little four-year old, possessing a bright smile, blonde
curls, and a feisty nature. Surely, the child would have called out and not
allowed herself to be taken without a fight. Why hadn’t she?

The heavy door swung open, distracting his
thoughts, admitting Aldric and their father. Their expressions were grim to say
the least. Ulrich strode around his desk and sat in the plush chair, waving a
hand to the armchairs positioned before it.

“Sit, boys. We need to speak.”

Casting an uneasy glance at each other, they did
as their father bade. The fire snapped and popped. Ulrich stared at them,
unblinking and unyielding. Finally, he addressed them.

“Alex, I am sending you to assist Breber in hunting
down the wolf responsible for taking the children from their nurseries. We must
put an end to the killings.”

Aldric leaned forward in his chair. “Father, have
they found the children’s bodies?”

Swiping a hand across his furrowed brow, Ulrich replied,
“No. Not a body, not a single scrap of their clothing or bedding taken. The
children have vanished into the mists of the Harz Mountain without a trace.”

“God
be merciful.” Aldric sat back. “Do you truly consider it is wolves abducting the
children?”

“Only
one set of tracks were found at the window where the animal snuck in and left
with its goal. A rogue wolf is guilty,” Ulrich said with such conviction that it
made Alex wary.

He
asked, “Father, are you so certain the killer is a wolf? Perhaps a demon vamp
is hunting Magdeburg?”

“You
think a demon vampyre disguises himself as a wolf to throw us off his trail and
spend our resources hunting innocent wolves, thus freeing him to hunt other children,
do you?”

“Why
not? You have always told us the Damned are clever. Why is it so farfetched one
would shape-shift to lay blame on the local pack, to cover up his tracks, so to
speak.” Bolder, he concluded, “A wolf cannot enter a locked house. Not a one
who is natural.”

“Careful,
boy,” Ulrich warned. “To think like the demon is to become the demon.”

Refusing
to back down, Alex countered, “To hunt our enemy effectively, should we not
learn to better understand them and how they think, to stop them from killing
the helpless and the innocent?”

“Enough!”
Ulrich roared, jumping to his feet. “Go and ready yourself to meet the magistrate.
Aldric, you will stay here with us.”

Furious,
Aldric demanded, “Why? What use will I be here? I can search with them, Father.”

“As
my eldest son, you are destined to carry on the Wulf name if I should die. If
some mishap should befall Alex, I have protected my bloodline.” Ulrich showed
no sign of remorse or guilt at having openly chosen between his sons.

Any
other time the bastard’s words would have angered him, not now, not when there
was so much at stake. “What about Herrick and his people? Were they freed due
to the latest abduction?”

If
possible, Herrick’s gaze hardened more. “The gypsies were cleared of the
charges by Magistrate Breber earlier today. Herrick sent word he and only four
of his men would return to serve us. The rest have chosen to abandon us to
their pagan ways.”

Alex looked away, not wishing Ulrich to see his
disgust. The gypsies were far more devout followers of God than his parents
could possibly achieve. Breber was indeed a good man to judge by evidence and
not the fear of his townspeople. He felt truly regretful having slept with the
man’s wife, a mistake he would never again make.

“Alex,” Ulrich snapped at him, forcing him to look
upon him, “my men are waiting outside for you. Ready yourself to ride to Magdeburg.
Ensure you obey what Captain Von Patterson commands you. If you should disobey,
he has orders to
make
you obey.”
Without any further instruction, Ulrich stood from his chair and left the
study, slammed the door behind him.

The thunder of it echoed in his ears, sealing his
doom. Alex stared at the empty chair behind the desk. Not to lead but to take
orders. “Ulrich exhibits such faith in his younger son, does he not?” he stated
sarcastically.

Aldric’s eyes, identical to his own, were haunted
as he slumped in his chair, appearing defeated. “No, Alex, it is far worse than
favoritism.”

“What you mean?”

“Alex, I’ve heard him speak to Mother of his
suspicions.”

“Suspicions?”

“He is convinced you are responsible for the children
missing.”

“Me? Why does he think it is I who is kidnapping
the children?”

“Because no child was taken while we patrolled the
streets of Magdeburg, is why.”

It made sense now why he was ordered to leave
while Aldric forced to stay. “Then I am to be sacrificed, to bring justice to
the good people of Magdeburg. Question is, will I be brought forth as a vampyre
or a man?” Shaken by his father’s decision, momentarily paralyzing him. “Whichever
he chooses, my fate is sealed.”

Aldric took his arm in a painful grip. “It will
not be so, brother. Our sire can go to hell. I am finished taking his orders. Ulrich
would not have lifted his pure vampyre hands to seek the beast taking the
children, if he’d not been taken to task by Archbishop Arturo for not assisting
the people of Magdeburg sooner. The bastard is trying to save face before his
peers.” In earnest, he declared, “Our fate lies within our own hands, Alex. I
say we take hold our freedom and leave this place before it is too late for us!”

Taken
aback by his brother’s rare display of fervor, he stared at Aldric. “You mean
for us to leave Wulf Manor and abandon our inheritance to the Iron Wolf’s
dynasty?”

“I
mean for us to live. We have the intelligence and drive to be our own men, to
make our own paths in the world. We could even learn to become Slayers and hunt
the Damned, just as we planned to in our youth.”

Pushing
to his feet, Alex stared into the fire, contemplating Aldric’s argument. Slayers.
Mata’s tales about the righteous Slayers who fought the Damned, protecting the
Borne and mortal alike, had lit a fire in Aldric. He, on the other hand, had
learned early to never dream. To hell with Ulrich!
 

“Aldric,
I must first find the beast before we leave Magdeburg. I cannot in good
conscience leave without ending its reign of terror.” Hoping his brother
understood, he watched as Aldric reached into his vest pocket and to his
surprise, placed a dozen silver bullets in his outstretched hand.

Staring
at them, their bright sheen caught on the golden glow of the fire, he looked up
when Aldric said, “Hedrick had these made for us as well.” Aldric reached into the
inner pocket of his black frock and withdrew a leather pouch and emptied the
contents into his hand. Two silver medallions attached to braided, silver chain
necklaces. Aldric handed one to him. Examining the mid-palm sized, circular-shaped
pendant, he saw it bore the Wulf coat of arms.

 
“Alex, Herrick bade us wear these at all
times. The Damned hate what represents God, repels them into showing their true
face and set them to flee.”

“God bless that Gypsy. What else did he say?” They
placed the necklaces over their heads, tucking the medallions inside their
shirts. The warm metal rested against his skin, giving him a sense of peace in
a time of turmoil and confusion.

“Silver wounds them, beheading kills them. Holy
water burns the flesh and disposes their bodies.”

“Does he or his clan suspect a particular person?”

“Herrick says the wise women of their clan claim
the fiend is neither man nor a wolf. They say it is the Damned.”

“Are the children dead?” Alex asked, praying the
children were held prisoner.

Aldric’s gaze dropped to the floor and he nodded.
“Their bodies will never be found.”

“Tonight, I will bring justice to the grieving
parents! I ride out as soon as I change and can fetch Saber.”

“You ride out alone?”

“You cannot come with me. You are not allowed to
venture off Wulf property, remember?”

“I don’t care about Ulrich’s orders, I’m coming
with you!”

“I appreciate your loyalty, but I need you to act
out a distraction so I can leave the manor undetected.”

“Fine, I will do as you ask. Once you are gone,
then I will leave and meet you in town. Ulrich will not keep me here. My
allegiance is to you, not him,” Aldric declared as he rose to his feet.