Chapter 2: Bait

Six months ago Raven met Sally at a rave party and the two instantly clicked. Sally captivated Raven with the way she let out all her emotions on the dance floor. Their feet pounded the floor to the rhythmic thumping beat as they danced all night long.

Six weeks ago Raven asked to move in with Sally under some poor excuse about being kicked out. Reality was, Raven wanted to see Sally more than just on the weekends or on dates. Sally caved before she could even finish.

Six minutes ago, Raven walked into the living room of their small apartment and saw Sally breathe her last breath. Her roommate—her girlfriend—was limp in the arms of another woman as blood raced down from bleeding wounds on her neck. The female vampire that held Sally’s body slurped liquid like a messy toddler getting into a juicebox.

Six seconds ago Raven had finally stopped yelling at the woman who simply dabbed her bloody chin.

“Are you quite done now child? Honestly, if you’re going to play with your food don’t blame another for indulging.” The murderous woman sat unperturbed in a chair. She had sat through the entire tirade in silence.

Her voice was annoyingly materialistic and parental. Raven knew who she was, Elizabeth of Nightblood, but the last thing that woman was to Raven was a mother.

“Fuck you.”

“Again, I do apologize. Not all of us are as gifted as you are. I. Must. Eat.”

Raven’s mouth flopped shut and she felt her brow furrow. There was no retort for this tactic when Elizabeth used it. Raven was punished for her gift.

“I don’t mean to gaslight you or whatever it is the kids say now. I drained her because I wanted to. Humans are our prey.”

“We were humans once.” Raven quipped, barely able to edge a word in.

“Butterflies were once caterpillars. We can’t pretend to undo our transformation. You can’t continue to live…like this.” Elizabeth gestured downward but Raven held her gaze.

“You tricked her.” Raven accused. “Charmed her and then-”

A raised hand stopped Raven and the accompanying sharp laugh cut at her. Elizabeth leaned forward conspiratorially.

“I’ve been seducing lovely little lambs before I had fangs. I didn’t need my vampiric hypnosis for her.” Elizabeth pointed again, rigid and stern. Raven’s gaze crawled in the direction of the bloody floor to Sally’s topless corpse. The girl had always been a bit pale but the color truly faded from her skin now.

“No.” Raven refused to believe it.

“You know the truth. I could charm her but I had no need to. I’m…sorry.” Elizabeth’s switch gave Raven whiplash. The vampire master was suddenly apologetic and sounded sincere. It was somehow worse than the cutting laugh. Nothing felt right.

It hadn’t felt right long before Elizabeth arrived. For a month Sally had been distant and hidden. Sally was going to leave me. Raven thought.

“She wasn’t worthy of you. Barely worthy of being a fucking snack.” Elizabeth hissed then softened. “Come back to us. Even if you can walk in the day, you’re still a vampire. Humans aren’t your people.”

“My people? I don’t consider any of those other bloodsuckers under you or any other master vampire to be my people.” Raven stated. She hated every other vampire of similar rank to herself that she’d met. They were all blood and sex crazed thrill seekers or incompetents overcompensating.

“I am your people. I may not have birthed you but you are still my daughter.”

And that was the hook, Raven realized. Her eyes met Elizabeth’s and her shoulders went slack. The master vampire, her sire, Mistress of the Nightbloods welcomed her back. There was a catch—nothing was free.

“So what do you need, mother?” Raven forced the sharpness out even if she knew no matter what it was, she’d agree. Not because Elizabeth was right but because it was better than being alone again.

The sides of Elizabeth’s lips tugged into a smirk as her victory settled in. Raven knew this was likely what the vampiress schemed towards the whole time.

“There is an opportunity to strike a blow at a bloated family of mages in London. They want to kill me.”

“And how am I supposed to stop them? I can walk in the sun without losing any power. But I don’t have powers to kill the squad of executioner mages they’ll send for you.” Raven waved her hand dismissively. It was suicide for her. For both of them.

“No, they’ll only send one.” Elizabeth assured as she rose from the chair and joined her daughter. “And not one of their important ones either but someone still capable. They know the location of one of my shelters in Essex. So they’ll try to attack during the day. I’m uncertain if they’ll send the boy or the girl but you’ll be able to handle either one.”

Raven felt Elizabeth’s cold hand on her shoulder. It made her shudder. She felt used and pressed but didn’t resist regardless of how her mind roared.

“So you’ve fed some mages false information and want me to be the bait for your trap?”

“No, I’m the bait. You’re the hammer. They’ll come for me, encounter you, and be killed. Step by step, piece by piece we can take London from the mages.” Elizabeth flicked her fingers and droplets of blood rose from the floor, sailed through the air then formed into a dagger that she grabbed. “We will be the dagger in the side of the Mage Society.”

Raven stared at the blood forged weapon and touched the edge and whispered softly. “Together.”

****

Raven was alone in the port warehouse watching security monitors for hours before she spotted the mage. It was hard to tell through the screen but it was definitely a woman from the glimpses. Every step she took as she navigated the port yard was purposeful and graceful like a tigress.

“That’s a shame. She’s my type.” Raven muttered as if someone was with her. She knew her role though and understood it meant this was a solo operation.

With a quick motion Raven left the office of the warehouse, eyed the chair and chains in the main room of the storage area then exited the building a few minutes before the mage arrived.

Raven heard someone enter the front door. She waited a few minutes, circled the building once, then plastered a smile on her face as she entered the front door.

A tense moment passed. Neither of them moved as they watched one another. Raven thought to turn, to leave this trap alone. To leave Elizabeth to her own schemes. Alone.

To leave and be alone. Again.

Raven smiled wider as she cut her own palm open behind her back. Then she waved enthusiastically before her blood formed a blade and launched at the mage’s head in a flash of crimson.