Chapter Twelve

Eoghan and Ari spent the next half hour talking to the council about King John and the Flagstaff vampire clan which had once been his. They explained how his entire family had been slaughtered along with most, if not all, of his allies within his clan including anyone he considered to be a councilor. As well as Bradshaw's ties to the drug business, how he'd been newly made, and his ties to the outlaw biker gang. Finally, Eoghan told them how they'd had been ordered to turn Townsend over to the new king, leaving out the part about having a traitor within the Agency.

Before leaving the barbeque restaurant with Joe and Alo, they'd decided that the fewer people who knew about their suspicions, the better. Not to mention the fact that neither of them fully trusted the councilors. Bringing the tribal council into this was risky on its face but Joe said no one on the rez would be willing to help the I.S.R. without their backing. They knew going into the conversation with the council that they were walking a tightrope, but Eoghan and Ari didn't think they had any choice.

"Just so that we're clear, you think this vampire, Tillis Bradshaw, is running a dangerous methamphetamine business using a Phoenix based outlaw motorcycle club?" Blackwood asked.

"The Phoenix Pagans, yes," Eoghan replied. "Bradshaw was a member of the gang when he was human."

"We suspect he's made several of the higher ranked members into vampires," Ari added. "They've also taken over the synthetic blood business in the area and are using established distribution routes to spread drugs around as well, piggybacking on them. If you think about it, synthetic blood plants exist all over the U.S. If the Pagans have taken over one—"

"They'll take over all of them," Blackwood said, thoughtfully.

Ari nodded. "Yes, sir. It's just a matter of time."

"Time to take over the routes?" one of the councilors asked. "I don't understand…if these routes already exist as you say, why would it take time?"

"You're talking about taking over more plants, right?" Blackwood asked.

Ari noticed they were all paying attention now that they'd calmed down a bit.

"No, sir," Eoghan replied. "I'm talking about time for Bradshaw to make more vampires."

"Oh," Blackwood said, sitting back in his chair as he looked between Ari and Eoghan, probably trying to decide something. He exchanged a glance with the other elders and Ari wondered whether they could communicate with each other telepathically. Eoghan had said that he believed the space faeries had been able to communicate with each other that way and he knew from the incident with John Townsend at Union Station, that they talked to each other using telepathy.

All the other councilors looked slightly green around the gills with glowing violet eyes. He wondered whether that only happened to them when they were experiencing some strong emotions or something. He'd seen the glow a few times now and it never ceased to freak him out. He'd probably never get used to it no matter how many times he saw it but it did help him establish who was supernatural and who wasn't.

Blackwood cleared his throat, turning to face them. "Is that what you think is happening? That this new vampire monarch—Bradshaw—is making new vampires?"

"Yes," Eoghan said. "It would make sense. From what King John tells us, he's starving his people, behaving like a dictator who is tightly controlling the food supply. The man who freed Townsend from the coffin where he'd been left to starve, said that he has taken over the distribution of synthetic blood, and doesn't care that his followers are killing off humans willy-nilly, draining them left and right. Not only is what he's doing stupid, but reckless. Human authorities are no doubt overwhelmed with missing persons complaints. And a sudden uptick in the number of missing persons in a relatively small area is going to get noticed. If he's eating them or turning them, it doesn't matter. They're no longer living their lives and that will eventually affect the way the authorities behave."

"What do you mean?" one of the councilors asked.

"Think about it," Eoghan said. "If people in Flagstaff are found missing in large numbers, the authorities will start following clues. If they lead back to the vampire reservation and they go asking, they're going to get met with Bradshaw's men. That's not going to be good. And when the authorities themselves turn up as missing because a newly-made vampire drains them, things will snowball. If the media gets involved, it'll be too late. I doubt even the Agency and the I.S.R.'s rapid response are capable of handling something on this type of scale."

Ari knew better. Eoghan had said that if a large incident of paranormal activity had been uncovered and brought to the attention of a particular populace, the Agency had been known to dose the water supply to erase memories. But these council members didn't need to know that.

"So, what do you need us to do?" Blackwood asked. "We're a small reservation. How can we help if this thing is already happening and possibly out of control?"

"So far, it's not out of control but that doesn't mean it won't be soon enough," Joe said.

Ari watched as Eoghan smiled at the chief. He'd become not only a friend, but an ally in a short period of time. He knew how to handle the council. Regardless of whether it was because Joe didn't get along with these pompous men, or whether he could see the true danger now that it was laid out in front of him, he was grateful for him. When Eoghan had first explained that many Native American tribes had paranormal citizens, he hadn't known what to think about it. Ari had always admired the way they were connected to the earth with a mystical quality he couldn't explain. He'd simply attributed it to a higher intelligence and a greater connection to things we just didn't know about.

"And in answer to your question, we'd like your help to contact other tribal councils on shifter reservations," Eoghan said. "The effort to get rid of Bradshaw needs to be shared. Perhaps we can ask other vampire clans and—"

"No!" Blackwood shook his head emphatically. "It's going to be hard enough to get our people to help if we decide to burden them with this mess. We'll ask other reservations to help. We have lots of connections with other tribes all over the west. I'm reluctant to ask the tribe to help but I do see the wisdom in doing so if this vampire king is such a threat." He glanced around the table before looking back at them and crossing his arms over his chest. "Honestly, I'm torn. If we start asking other reservations, how can we be certain they're not already colluding with this poisonous immortal calling himself a king?"

"But why would they?" another councilor asked, sounding outraged. "Our people don't collude with vampires!"

"Because they might have been turned," Blackwood replied. He followed the words by something in his own language and the man slumped, nodding as Blackwood resumed. He turned and directed his comments to Ari and Eoghan. "If you bring in other vampires, then no, we won't be helping. The poison started with them. The danger and the threat come from them. Besides, you don't know how many of them are friendly with this new vampire king from Flagstaff. If he has allies on other vampire reservations, that would be bad. It's one of the reasons I'm reluctantly willing to help but not if you bring in other vampire clans."

"Vampire clans are notoriously self-contained," Eoghan said. "They're bitter rivals which is why King John didn't go to them for help."

"My partner's right. Townsend didn't know who to trust," Ari said. "He told us that he believed there were spies in Vegas and took the time to run all the way to California, traveling at night on foot because he had to bypass Bradshaw's spies. When he turned up in L.A., half starved, he didn't feel safe until Marshal Sapphire arrested him and took him back to the I.S.R."

Eoghan nodded before pinning Blackwood with an intent look. "We're up against a strong foe here." He glanced over at Joe and Alo. "We know the chief and his deputy are grizzlies. Are there other predator shifters on the reservation?"

"Lots of them but most of our people are non-predators," Blackwood said. "It might be hard to convince a bunch of small animals to try to kill vampires…outsmart them, easily, but actually pose a physical danger to them? No." He shook his head. "Not unless our foes were overwhelmed by sheer numbers of our people, and I can't see that happening."

"Will you reach out to your friends in other shifter clans?" Eoghan asked. He sounded so hopeful, Ari felt for him.

Blackwood glanced around the table, stopping to look at each councilor before moving on to the next. Finally, he turned back. "Yes, we will."

"I suggest you make Severin and Invictus your first calls," Alo said. The deputy had been silent until now and everyone turned to them.

"Oh?" Blackwood said. Ari was pretty sure he saw an expression of respect cross the councilor's features as he began to nod. "Not a bad idea."

"Who're Severin and Invictus?" Eoghan asked. "I've had dealings with a lot of shifter clans and I'm sure I never met any clan leaders with those names."

"Yeah, you wouldn't. They're not from around here and we've only had the displeasure of meeting them once," Joe said.

"Where are they from?" Eoghan asked, looking utterly puzzled. "I've been to almost all the reservations in California over the years."

"They don't live on a reservation," Joe said. "They live in caves north of us, near Mount Shasta."

"What?" Eoghan looked at all of them and then turned toward Ari, shrugging his shoulders. "I have no idea who these people are."

"They're not people," Blackwood said. "They stay in shifted form most of the time. It's how they prefer it."

Ari was getting fed up. "Okay, will someone please just tell us what these…things are and how we can get a hold of them?"

"You don't want to get a hold of them, trust me," Alo said.

Ari narrowed his eyes, glaring at the deputy.

He cracked a small smile and then glanced over at Joe and the table full of councilors. "Well?" Alo seemed to be asking permission as Joe cleared his throat.

"Severin and Invictus are dragons," Joe said.

"What?" Ari and Eoghan both asked at the same time. "What are you talking about?" Eoghan asked.

"Well, technically, the I.S.R. would probably call them Draco Volans," Joe said with a bright violet glow in his eyes.

"Winged lizards?" Eoghan said. "They're a myth."

Ari transferred his gaze back and forth between Eoghan who looked like he was about to laugh, and Joe and Alo who were shaking their heads.

"No myth," Joe said.

"I don't believe you," Eoghan said. "We would have known about them." He turned to look at Ari. "Don't get me wrong. I've been with the I.S.R. for six years and I thought they were extinct. If they were real, we would have heard of them." He didn't look so sure now. "I always thought they were a myth."

"Trust me, they're not," Blackwood said.

Ari and Eoghan both looked back at him.

"They're very real," the tribal councilor went on. "There's proof enough if you're looking for it. In fact, when you drive off the reservation, take a look immediately to your right just before you reach our border with the outside world. You'll see a dense grove of four-year-old saplings. The last time the dragons came here, they practically burned down our entire forest. That grove used to be filled with two-hundred-foot trees. It was reduced to smoldering firewood after Severin threw a fit on his way out of town. He's the most ill-tempered beast I've ever met."

"They're fire-breathing dragons?" Eoghan asked, looking utterly shocked as his voice rose an octave.

Ari was glad they were sitting down because if they hadn't been, he probably would have fainted. When all the councilors began nodding, Eoghan turned to look at him.

"This is a new kind of shifter for you, I take it," Ari asked.

"Like I said…I thought they were a total myth." He shrugged. "I didn't know they were real. I accept a lot of things on this job, but this one…this is totally a new one to me, Ari, I swear." He turned back to the others who sat at the table. "Why was this dragon here and what pissed him off?"

"Our reservation is the location of a mine for a particular mineral they need in their diet," Blackwood said. "We negotiated a price. Severin wasn't happy with it but—" he stopped and looked at all the faces around the table before they nodded. He glanced back at them. "The truth is that Colt Wilkins is the arbiter of the mine and he wouldn't sell the mineral to them at a price Severin thought fair." Before anyone could interrupt, Blackwood raised both hands. "We tried to make him see the danger in dealing with Severin and Invictus unfairly and it almost cost us our forest."

"Since it's part of the diet they need to survive, yeah, I'd imagine it would piss them off," Ari said, shaking his head.

"What kind of mineral are we talking about here?" Eoghan asked.

Blackwood sighed. "To put it succinctly…jade. Of course, jade mines are located mostly on the California coast at Jade Cove in Big Sur but also Willow Creek in Monterey. There's also the Storm Cove Jade Mine in Joshua Tree."

"So, what's the problem?" Ari asked.

"The problem is, these communities don't want to sell jade to the dragons in sufficient quantities for their needs," Blackwood stated. "They are unaware that the people sent to negotiate jade prices are dragons. They're human and have no idea what and who they're dealing with."

"So, I take it there are large jade deposits on your tribal lands?" Ari asked.

All the tribal council members nodded. Most of them looked more relaxed, very different from earlier when they'd probably felt like they were being cross-examined.

"We have the largest deposit of jade in the world," one of the councilors replied.

"That's not proven, Edward," Blackwood chided.

The councilor nodded. "Yes. That's true, but nevertheless, it is a fact. When Invictus learned of our deposit, the mega-lizards came." He addressed them all as if he were the authority as Blackwood slid just a bit lower in his chair. Ari observed that this councilor hadn't contradicted him. Hmm. Maybe, Blackwood wasn't the councilor they should be directing their comments to at all. Judging by his looks, this man wasn't an elder to Blackwood. Ari decided that perhaps age wasn't the only criteria as to status among Joe and Alo's tribe.

"Sorry…Councilor—"

"Edward Matus," the older man replied.

"Perhaps Councilor Matus can fill in some blanks," Blackwood said. "His ancestors have a long history in the Tahoe area."

The man straightened in his chair, sitting forward as he spoke. "My people have been trading this green stone for centuries, long before this council."

Ari was aware of the rest of the council sitting up in their chairs as they identified Blackwood growling under his breath as Matus continued speaking.

"The green stone is what accounts for the iridescence of their scales, we're told. They ingest it in large quantities, the same as normal people would food. It's appalling to our senses but nevertheless, vital to them."

"So, if the tribe knew that the dragons would be back to buy more jade and had such a need for it in their diets, why didn't Wilkins simply set a price and sell the jade?" Eoghan said, joining the conversation.

"He did set a price. It was just ridiculously high," Joe said.

Ari looked over at Two Trees. "I don't get it. You're all shifters, albeit very different ones. I understand that your clans are vastly different from one another but that doesn't mean that you still couldn't recognize that you had a commodity that the dragons needed for their very survival. Did Colt Wilkins think that withholding food from them was the morally right thing to do?"

Blackwood shrugged. "His greed got the better of him."

"And none of you thought that asking Wilkins to negotiate in this manner was the wrong thing to do?" Ari asked. "We're talking about food here." He was heartbroken every time he heard of people having food insecurity. Lots of people in the country were poor but they got by with the help of charity and the like. But setting high prices for food which couldn't be obtained but from a few sources seemed downright cruel to him.

"I suppose he just figured that since the dragons had to have it, it would be fine to make them pay whatever he wanted," Matus said. He looked around the table. "All of us knew that he was making a vital miscalculation and several of us pointed it out to him but his wallet was more important to him than common decency or common sense. I think he thought he was doing right by the tribe."

"So that was four years ago and yet you think the dragons are still alive," Eoghan said. "Otherwise you wouldn't have suggested contacting them to help out with King John's situation. Clearly, they've been getting their jade from somewhere."

"Unless they really are all dead," Ari said.

"They aren't," Joe said. "They constantly fly over our lands. They're like storm clouds which cast shadows over the land. Every time one of them flies over, we usher our children inside. They never come down and shift to men. Since the day negotiations broke off with Wilkins, we've had no contact. None of us understand why they continue to fly overhead."

"They still want the jade," Ari said, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

"Surely Wilkins knew how this would go. Why didn't he simply offer the jade in exchange for a fair price?"

"We don't know," Matus said.

"He never said why?" Eoghan asked, sounding as outraged as Ari and probably not so sure Matus was being completely truthful. Ari had his doubts.

The older man canted his head. "I sense that you're skeptical about what I'm saying."

"A little, yes," Eoghan said.

Matus sighed. "I think Colt saw dollar signs at first," he said. "Honestly, I don't think the danger ever crossed his mind until it was too late. When they burned the forest and then came back only to fly over, we all urged Wilkins to reach out to him."

"Did he?" Eoghan asked.

"Several times," Joe said. "They never returned calls or emails from the council or from me, and like I said, they continue their terror intimidation campaign from the sky to this day."

"Well, they sound like the perfect people to ask for help," Ari said. He glanced away from the tribal council and stared at his partner. Eoghan looked as disgusted as he felt.

When Joe and Alo stood and signaled that the meeting was nearing its conclusion, Ari and Eoghan also got up.

"We will reach out to Severin and Invictus again," Blackwood said. "We'll let them know the I.S.R. wants to talk with them and that we'd like to resume negotiations now that Wilkins is going to prison."

"Do you think they'll be interested in resuming negotiations?" Eoghan said.

"They were never easy to deal with but yes, I think their problem lay with Colt Wilkins. He might have insulted them," Blackwood said.

"All right," Ari said. "If you do that and let slip that Wilkins is under arrest because Marshal Sapphire and I were the ones who helped make that happen, that would be great."

Blackwood seemed hesitant but Edward Matus nodded. "We'll make sure that they know."

"Thank you so much. Meanwhile, we'll talk to our boss about them, and we'll get back in touch with you tomorrow," Eoghan said. "Would that be okay?"

"That'll be fine," Matus said. "And we'll call a meeting with the clan for this evening to talk about joining you to help the undead in his quest to get his throne back."

Ari smiled for the first time since they'd walked into the room. He reached out and took the hand Blackwood offered, glad that they'd broken the ice with these men who'd looked like they'd wanted to eat them for lunch only a half hour before.