A Vampire's Christmas Carol Read Online Free PDF Page A

don’t meet his eyes, but he can
always find me and everyone else in the vampire community
acknowledges his rights over me. He can make it very…uncomfortable
to refuse him, and if I do forget and meet his eyes, even for a
second, he does control me.” He drew a deep breath and let it out
slowly, pushing hair back from his eyes. “As I found out the night
I discovered how truly monstrous a creature I’d become.”
    His eyes closed for a moment and his mouth
squeezed in a tight grimace before it relaxed as he spoke
again.
    “Antoine had been training me for some months
by then, but it was mostly routine stuff… Staying out of sunlight,
sleeping underground in a locked room, understanding the vampire
hierarchy and how to spot the older, higher ranking vampires, how
to fight. A lot of how to fight. They do a lot of fighting among
themselves. I got…rather good at it.”
    It should have sounded boastful, but the
words held no trace of pride.
    “He also taught me how to attack humans. The
trick is either to get them from behind before they even know
you’re there or to let them run away and catch up from behind. You
don’t want to give them a chance to beg or plead or cry. Especially
not cry. Human tears are not good for a vampire. Of course, I
didn’t have to put that into practice since the hunger hadn’t
roused. I was living with it well enough, other than having to
spend so much time with Antoine.
    “Then, about a year after I woke, Antoine
took me to my first vampire feast.”
    * * * * *
    The house looked almost shockingly normal as
Antoine’s brand-new horseless carriage rumbled up the drive toward
a large, two-story house, built in the Victorian style with
porches, towers and a few bits of elaborate trim. Dim, sullen light
shone from all the downstairs windows and a few of the upper
ones.
    The carriage pulled under the porte cochere
and they got out. Antoine didn’t knock or wait for acknowledgement,
but turned the knob and pushed the door open. Michael followed him
into an entrance hall lit by a pair of candelabras. He had learned
to see the aura of power surrounding the undead and the different
levels of vampires. The strength of the aura signaling power and
rank. Men and women—vampires all—floated around the area, in
costumes that ranged from the ordinary suits he and Antoine wore to
the stunningly exotic. Kimonos from the Orient mingled with rougher
wear from the Western states, tunics and saris from India, as well
as togas and gowns from ages long gone.
    “You didn’t tell me this was a costume
party,” Michael said.
    Antoine shook his head. “It’s not. They’re
dressed as they were accustomed to in their before life. Or
sometimes as whimsy takes them. Come over to the bars.”
    There were two of them, a blood bar and one
serving other beverages. Michael gratefully requested a beer.
Though it tasted as good as he remembered, he was disappointed to
find the alcohol no longer brought him the comfort it once did.
    Antoine introduced him to one vampire after
another. Michael wouldn’t remember the names afterward and he
struggled to recognize the titles and respond accordingly. He
realized about twenty minutes into the party that Antoine was
testing him with the rest of the local vampire society. He thought
he passed. He did forget to bow to a vampire referred to as
“Minister” and addressed a director as “Sir” rather than “Your
Honor”, but he got it right more often than not.
    The event marked something of a debut for him
as well, he realized. when Antoine escorted him into what once had
been an office or den. It now functioned as a de facto throne room
for the man who lay lengthwise on a loveseat that sat on a raised
platform. The recliner looked up lazily as they entered the room.
Five large men and three attractive women surrounded him. They went
tense and watchful as Antoine and Michael approached.
    “Your Majesty.” Antoine went to one knee
before him and Michael followed his