Sharkbait Down Under

Consuela (Mardona) Vespucci’s POV

I stopped under a streetlight after walking a few blocks from the warehouse and looked through my purse. I still had the bottle of bloodroot extract in there, and I couldn’t afford to get caught with it. It was too valuable to throw away, so I compromised. I grabbed a syringe from my medical kit and filled it with the deadly poison. I tossed the empty bottle into the trash, then capped the needle and slid it into a pen holder in my purse. If I had time, I’d taint some of the other blood bags.

I got back to the mansion about six-fifty at night. I waved to the guard at the gate, then walked into the mansion. I needed to shower and change, and all my stuff was now in Master Vespucci’s bedroom. I was just about to the stairway leading there when Hector, Master Vespucci’s right-hand man, stopped me. “Paco said he needs to see you immediately,” he said.

Shit. “Did he say why?”

“He doesn’t have to, bitch. Get your ass downstairs and find out.” I could see that my new marital status hadn’t gained me any respect among the older vampires. At least he didn’t smack me around, which was an improvement. Our Master was sure to be a jealous husband and wouldn’t want his property damaged unless he did it himself.

I turned around and headed for the library instead. Opening the hidden door, I walked down the narrow stairway and waited at the bottom until the door opened. Paco was waiting for me at the security desk.

“You asked to see me?”

“I ordered you to see me, Consuela. Don’t forget your place.”

“Yes, sir,” I said.

“You’ve been a naughty little girl, haven’t you?”

My stomach dropped. Was I caught? Did he know? I looked around for other guards, expecting I’d be dragged off and tortured until I spilled my secrets. “What are you talking about?”

“Sit down, Mrs. Vespucci.” He gestured to a chair next to him, and I sat down. He pulled up security camera footage on his computer screen. I froze when I realized what it was; I didn’t even know there WERE cameras in the storage room with the refrigerator. He hit play, and I recognized the feed from earlier. “I went back and reviewed the tape after you left tonight. Imagine my shock when I saw you unload your blood from the hospital, then go into the segregated storage for the werewolf blood.” The video played on, showing me pulling out the syringe and injecting into the two bags of Vicki’s blood before re-crimping the bags. Paco didn’t say anything as it kept playing; he watched me replace that blood, then swap out the rest of the werewolf blood with human blood I’d marked as werewolf blood.

I was so fucking dead. I mean, I was a vampire, so I was technically undead, but soon I’d be REALLY, no shit, 100% fucking DEAD. Master Vespucci would make an example of me.

I was afraid to say or do anything that might set Paco off. I nervously grabbed my purse, moving it to my lap. I moved a finger towards the syringe; killing myself would be better than what they would do to a traitor.

“As I said, you’ve been a naughty girl. I went into the fridge and swapped the blood bags back, all except the two bags of Vicki’s blood. I know that you tampered with them. What I want to know is what you put in there?”

I just shook my head, unable to even move my lips. Paco turned on me, grabbing me by my neck and slamming me to the floor. My head spun from the impact, my vampire healing clearing it a moment later. “WHAT. WAS. IT.”

He knew I’d poisoned the blood, so there was no getting out of this. “Bloodroot extract,” I said.

He pulled me back up, dropping me back into the chair. “The same poison Vicki used to kill Master Alexander.”

“Yes. It eats the body away from the inside, and by the time you recognize the poison, it’s too late to save you.”

He didn’t say anything; he just leaned back and looked at me. “Did you ever wonder why Master Vespucci married you this morning?” I nodded my head. “Oh, it’s official. The priest filed the paperwork when the offices opened, and as far as the Mexican Government is concerned, you’re now his wife. It’s going to be a very short marriage, I expect. Has he even consummated it yet?”

I shook my head, no. “He used my mouth before I went to work.”

Paco laughed. “Well, he’s more of an ass man, but I expect you already know that.” I did, as every female vampire did, and most of the males. “Back on topic. Vampire masters often get married to another vampire for purely financial reasons. With our long lives, they accumulate fortunes in the human world that must be protected. We can’t die, and we don’t age; humans will figure out something is wrong eventually. That means the Master has to do what every three to five decades?”

It was so obvious, and I hadn’t thought of it. “Change his identity and maybe his location,” I said.

“Exactly. Master Vespucci is getting ready to make a change. He will challenge and defeat Master Cyprian and take over the New Orleans Coven. With the move, Hernando will fake his death here and reappear in the United States under a new name. Hector’s promised the Mexico City Coven, but he won’t get much of Vespucci’s money. After the Master’s tragic ‘death,’ his estate will turn over to you, his grieving widow. His plans require a legal wife, thus the sudden marriage ceremony.”

It suddenly made sense why he wanted me kept safe. “When is this happening?”

“After the new year,” Paco said. “Now, for the rest of the story. Master Vespucci doesn’t care about you; you are unremarkable, young, and weak, and he is incapable of love. He picked you because he can command you to obey him, and you aren’t as unstable as the newly turned. After your move to New Orleans, Master will force you to marry him under his new name to regain his fortune. After some time passes, you’ll have a fatal accident. He gets the money, and you die after serving your purpose. What do you think about your future now, Consuela?”

“I didn’t know,” I said. “I didn’t ask for this.”

“It doesn’t matter whether you know or not. Like your marriage this morning, you have no choice in the matter. Master will command, and you will obey. I’ll give you a choice, though, IF you help me.”

“How?” How could I help Paco, and more importantly, why would I aid a man who was so cruel to me?

“Hector and Hernando have their deal, but it leaves me out. I want Mexico City. You want Hernando dead while you live. Our desires intersect here, and if we work together, we can both get what we want. You make sure they drink the tainted blood, and I will be the one marrying the widow and taking over the Vespucci fortune. In return, I’ll set you up with a business that provides you a good income and allow you to operate independently in a smaller Mexican city. You’ll be free from me and any Coven responsibilities. Are we in agreement?” He held out his hand to me.

“Yes,” I said as I shook it. What choice did I have? If Vespucci ever saw that video, I’d spend months in agony, begging for death.

“Good. Get out of here, kid.” I stood up, my legs shaking so badly I hand to put a hand on the table to steady myself. I was just starting to move when motion alarms started going off. Paco took one look at the cameras and hit the alarm button. “We’re under attack, dozens coming onto the property,” he said over the internal speaker system to the entire mansion.

So many vampires were training at the warehouse that only a few were here. Hector came running down the stairs, and Paco let him in the door. Master Vespucci arrived a moment later via the fire pole from the bedroom. “What’s going on,” the Master asked.

“Vampires are coming in from all sides,” Paco said as he showed them the screens. “At least a dozen and they’ve breached the house in three places.”

Paco pointed to the camera at the mansion’s main entrance. The attackers moved with incredible speed and skill, quickly overwhelming and killing the guards. Master Vespucci snarled when he recognized the leader of the attack. “Master Cyprian isn’t waiting for my challenge, the fool,” he said. He looked at me. “Fetch me Vicki’s blood, both bags, and get some Beta blood for Paco. They won’t be able to take us with that boost.”

“Yes, Master.” I ran off to the storage area, happy to be out of their way. I grabbed the two bags of Vicki’s blood, then one bag of Amy’s. Running back out, Hector grabbed a bag from my hand before I could react. He checked the label, then started downing it. “Here’s your blood, Master.”

Master Vespucci checked it, then bit into the bag, and started to drink.

Ten seconds later, the toxin was starting to work. Hector was first to react, tossing the bag away, but he’d already sucked the pint bag dry. He grabbed at his throat, screaming out in pain before his mouth and nose started to bleed. He fell to the ground, rolling around in pain.

Master Vespucci stopped drinking after two long pulls when he saw Hector’s reaction. Hernando looked at the half-empty bag in horror, then turned to me. “You BITCH,” he said as he realized who had poisoned him. “Kill… her,” he ordered Paco as he dropped to his knees.

Paco stood up, placing himself in between us. “The great Vampire Master, dead at the hands of the young vampire he married just this morning,” he said as Vespucci’s mouth started to foam and bleed. He knelt over him as Vespucci dropped to the ground and onto his back. “I’m going enjoy fucking your widow over your dead body.”

No! No, Paco wouldn’t live to do that to me. I wouldn’t trade one abusive master for another. I removed the syringe from my purse and popped the cap off the needle with my thumb. Turning it over, I plunged the needle into his shoulder. I’d injected the poison before his hand could knock it free. He turned towards me, trying to grab me but his arm no longer worked. He tried to stand, but the poison rapidly spread through his body and overwhelmed him. I waited until he was on his back, bloody foam coming out his mouth and nose, and then I talked. “I choose to be free, you bastard,” I told him as he died.

All three vampires were gone now, their healing capability overwhelmed by the rapid action of the poison. I sat down at the desk and looked at the monitors; all of the Mexico City vampires upstairs were dead, and five were trying to open the door leading to the safe room. I pressed the button for the internal speakers. “My name is Consuela Mardona, and Master Vespucci and his men are dead. I’m the new Master of Mexico City, and I’m also the one who told you where the girls were.” I gave my codeword from the tip line to prove it. “I’m letting you in now.” I hit the door release for the library entrance, allowing them to come in, and opened the door at the bottom as well. I was sitting with my hands in plain sight when the big vampires entered the room, looking for a fight. “I’m not a threat to you,” I told them.

Master Cyprian and two other Vampire Masters waited until his men verified the basement was secure before they came down the stairs. I was still sitting at the desk, a rather large vampire standing guard behind me. The Supreme Master looked at the three deceased vampires, then kicked one of the blood bags with his foot. “You did this?”

“Yes,” I said nervously. “Bloodroot extract. I knew that Vespucci would drink Vicki’s blood if his life is in danger, and I was right. Hector was a bonus. I injected Paco with the poison as he did his victory dance over his dying coven leaders.”

“Smart and resourceful,” he said with admiration. “How old are you?”

In the vampire world, this meant how long since your turn, since we never aged physically. “Fourteen months.”

“That’s impressive.” He waved forward two of his men. “Show these men where the blood storage is so we can get it out of here. The rest of you clean up the rest of the house; I want no evidence of a fight left behind. Leave these three where they are, but take the blood bags and the needle.” The Supreme Vampire turned to me. “I’ve got an idea, provided you don’t mind giving up some of Vespucci’s estate.”

“I’ll do whatever you think is right, Supreme Vampire.” I just wanted to live through tonight, and this was my best chance.