Chapter Seven

The drive to Gilroy took almost five hours and night had already fallen when they arrived at the coordinates the chief sent. Getting out of the Charger, Ari could smell the pungent odor of garlic in the air. The farming community of Gilroy was famous for their garlic crop. They parked at a small, dark farmhouse which looked barely larger than a two-car garage.

There didn't seem to be anyone in residence at the moment, but he knew if King John was expecting them, he'd wait for them to emerge from the car. It honestly gave him the chills to know that they might be walking into a trap of some sort. Even though they'd pulled their dart guns and less lethal vampire rounds out of the trunk when they'd stopped for gas fifty miles back, it still made Ari uneasy to know vampires moved faster than human eyes could track. If John Townsend meant them any harm or if other vampires had joined him, they might be in trouble. Eoghan had assured him that a big part of the job was sometimes having to trust creatures they didn't always want to.

"Where do you think he is?" Ari asked, angry at the nervousness he heard in his voice.

Eoghan glanced over at him from the driver's seat and shook his head. "I guess we're about to find out."

"You're not worried?"

Eoghan nodded. "I'd be stupid not to be nervous, wouldn't I?"

"Do you think this is a good idea? What if he thinks we're not doing anything for his people and decides to kill us out of spite?"

"First of all, you listened when the chief and I had him in the interview room and you talked to the man yourself. Did you think he sounded like the kind of person who'd kill people who let him go after promising to do everything we can to help his people?"

"No, but we haven't done anything for them."

"Then he's no worse off than he was before we caught him. I know he'll understand that we have to be cautious. He knows the I.S.R. has someone at the Agency who's working with Tillis Bradshaw." He glanced around and reached for the door handle. "Come on. Let's go, Ari."

Ari sighed and got out of the car, holding the loaded dart gun in his hand. He glanced around the dark yard of the small house noting that it was located in a desolate area completely surrounded by fields with rows of green stalked garlic bulbs on all four sides. The only way in and out to the farm was the single lane dirt road they'd driven in on and it freaked him out. He shut the door and the sound echoed off the hills in the distance as Eoghan did the same, making him feel even more jumpy.

Ari darted a glance around, turning in a circle as he tried to catch a glimpse of any movement at all. A second later, something big flew by him so fast, it would have been imperceptible if it weren't for the breeze left in its wake. Before he even had a chance to grab a flashlight off his belt or turn his head to look, he felt cold breath on the other side of his body. He slowly turned to face his worst nightmare, spotting King John Townsend's grinning mouth hovering inches from him. Several rows of razor-sharp teeth gleamed.

"Jesus Hairy Christ!" Ari shrieked, jumping backward and slamming into their vehicle as he fumbled with his gun, trying to raise it and barely getting it level with his hip before a big, strong hand caught his wrist.

"Stop, Marshal Brown," Townsend said. "If I wanted to hurt you, I could have done it before now. I mean no harm. I promise."

"Then stop that fast shit and put your goddamned fangs away," Ari said shakily.

Townsend chuckled low in his chest and let go of his wrist as he retracted the rows of dagger-like teeth. "Sorry. I just love doing that."

"Do you love seeing a man piss himself?" Ari asked, frowning as he reholstered the dart gun in its specially made holster.

"I am sorry. Truly."

"Fucking asshole." Ari blew out a long breath of relief as the king chuckled again.

"It's okay, Ari. I've had him in my sights since we got out of the car," Eoghan said.

When Ari turned to look, he was shocked to see Eoghan pointing his own dart gun at Townsend.

"And I could have killed you too, Deputy Marshal Sapphire," John said mildly. "Put your gun away now. I know you mean me no harm. We have things to discuss and I didn't drag you all the way to Gilroy just to kill you and eat you." He stepped back, holding his arms out at his sides as Eoghan lowered his weapon. He turned in a circle. "Look at me. I'm well fed and as I told you a couple of months ago, I don't kill humans. I never take what isn't freely given. I have always preferred live, compliant donors anyway."

"Glad to hear it," Ari said, breathing a little easier now that the vampire had backed off and sounded a lot more like he had at their last encounter.

"Please, come inside. I don't have electricity, but I have a couple of camping lanterns. I've so been looking forward to your visit." He held out his hand, and Ari nodded, looking at Eoghan to see him nod.

"Sure, Your Highness," Eoghan said. "We appreciate the hospitality."

"And thanks for not eating us," Ari said, following the two inside.

The vampire chuckled as he walked into the dark house. He picked up a lantern from a shelf just inside the room and lit the candle inside, before walking deeper into the room and setting it on a small table. The only other furniture was an old yellow, velvet covered sofa with three cushions and a folding camp chair. There didn't appear to be a bed anywhere but then again, judging by the windows which had no curtains of any kind, he didn't sleep in here during the day when most vamps slept.

"Please…have a seat. As you can tell, it's a little…small in here. No kitchen…but then again, that suits a vampire like me, doesn't it?" He gave a humorless laugh. "Please…please…sit. Take a load off. I know you've been driving all day. Chief Deputy Priest told me you were in Tahoe on another brave mission and I'm so glad you were close to this paradise." He absently waved around the clapboard shack. "Believe it or not, I've come to treasure the shelter it provides, humble as it is."

Ari followed Eoghan's lead and sat down on the dusty, yellow sofa which was utterly threadbare in patches where other butts had clearly sat over the years of its very long existence. The king sat in the wobbly camp chair which made him look anything but royal. A twinge of sadness coursed through Ari, much like when he'd learned that the king's mate and progeny—offspring—had been murdered by a drug trafficking, young vamp called Tillis Bradshaw who'd taken over his whole kingdom.

"Forgive me for asking, Highness—" Eoghan began.

"John. Remember? You must call me John."

"Yes, sorry, sir. Forgive me for asking but where do you rest? Clearly, it's not in here."

The king chuckled but Ari noticed it sounded quite sad. He watched the king point to a square in the floor and he realized that it was an indentation of a trap door. "There's a quite lovely cellar down below where garlic is dried and it is quite light tight, thank goodness. As for who's feeding me which will be your next question, I'm happy to say there are two lovely farmhands who are quite strapping, young humans. They've made me feel quite at home here."

Ari shot a glance at Eoghan who frowned back before they both turned to the king.

"Do you…um…do they…um—" Eoghan cleared his throat and Ari bit his lip so he didn't laugh.

"They feed me willingly if that's what you're asking. As for the other—" The king chuckled. "I don't kiss and tell, and they don't remember anything the next morning, but the memories I leave them with. Let's just say, those two young men will definitely be enamored with each other when I'm long gone out of their lives."

Eoghan chuckled. "You're quite the charmer, John."

"Yes, I am, my lad." He glanced around the room as he sobered. "I'm so sorry. I have nothing to offer you. They sometimes bring beer but they usually take their cooler with them when they leave, so I have nothing. I'm vastly embarrassed about that."

"Oh, no, that's not why we're here, sir," Ari said. "The chief said you wanted to talk with us about the case."

"Yes, I need to be brought up to speed," he said, leaning forward, clasping his hands, and resting his elbows on his knees as he peered at them in the near darkness. "Please tell me you've made progress with things. My people must be desperate. I need to get home to Flagstaff. What's been happening on the rez?"

Eoghan and Ari exchanged wary glances. Ari knew how delicate they'd have to be when telling him they weren't even the merest step closer to finding out who their mole was or how they were going to tackle the problem of the synthetic blood takeover by the murderous Tillis Bradshaw.

"I can tell you what I know about Bradshaw's operation but that's about all, I'm afraid. We still haven't been able to locate the mole at the Agency on our end and the only contact we've had with Bradshaw has been short and unfortunately not sweet," Eoghan said.

The king visibly sagged. "So, there's no telling what's happening with my clan? I guess my people are still dying." He stood and ran his hands through his hair as he paced the small room. "I can't believe I'm just sitting here while my people are dying, probably starving to death while I'm well-fed." His eyes glowed red in the dark room, and it was terrifying.

When Eoghan replied, his tone was subdued but determined, "We know only what Bradshaw allows us to know."

"And what is that, pray tell?" He stood with his hands on his hips and watched them closely.

"Not a whole lot, John. Every time our chief calls out there, she's put onto the phone with a different spokesperson who lies about everything. One of them tells her that they're diligently searching for whoever set you free and of course for you. Another one says they've given up. The only good news is that they've all said the king thinks you're probably back on the reservation. She was told that they're conducting searches of all the residents' homes and collecting whatever evidence they find of loyalty to you. It sounds like the king is worried that someone might be sheltering you."

"I told you that Bradshaw bastard is a dictator, didn't I? Clearly confiscating private property and calling it evidence is absurd," the king said bitterly. "That bastard is robbing my people!" He shook his finger at them. "Trust me, the only reason he has his jack-booted thugs going through people's homes is to steal their precious things under the guise of searching for a way to locate me. I have no doubt that's what he's doing. If he hasn't already started arresting these so called ‘loyalists,' he will. He's a monster who has to be stopped."

"He will be."

"How?" He threw up his hands and paced in a circle for a few seconds before coming to a stop in front of them. "You said your chief has been talking to his spokespeople. Clearly, that's been of no use but what has the Agency done about the situation?"

Eoghan exchanged another wary look with Ari before sighing and looking back up at the angry vampire looming over them. "The Agency tells us that everything is fine in Flagstaff," Eoghan said, "as our chief thought they would. If there's a mole at the Agency who's helping to keep Bradshaw in power, they're going about it quietly and intercepting Chief Deputy Priest every time she calls for status. Someday soon, they're going to tell her to stop calling and close the case. We're honestly hoping something happens to keep it open, but John…" Eoghan paused. "I don't know if that will happen. All I can do is be honest about it. You deserve the truth."

John looked desperate. "I had so hoped you'd have better news for me when you came out here. I guess I'm a stupid fool to think that I could save them." He looked away. "I had just hoped." He let his words trail off.

"I've told you everything I know, John," Eoghan said. "I know you're upset about it and for that I'm very sorry."

"Thank you, Marshal Sapphire," the vampire said sadly. Ari watched as the bright red light faded from his eyes, returning them to a normal shade as he sat back down. "I guess I have to accept the fact that my people will eventually be wiped out." He sat back in the rickety chair looking utterly miserable.

"What about another vampire clan? Can you get help from other vampires?" Ari asked.

John grimaced. "Unfortunately, no. No one else from that quarter will come to my aid. I don't know if you know this, but vampire clans are extremely self-contained. Before Teddy Roosevelt formed the Agency and set aside land—at our expense—for us to live on, various vampire clans were at war all the time. Often, humans were victims of violence, simply going missing, never to be found, when in truth they'd become snacks."

Ari swallowed hard. "They just killed and drained humans like they didn't care about the consequences?"

"Sometimes, of course, but a lot of those were turned and became vampires themselves…but many were just a meal. If a body was found drained, coroners wrote it off as an animal attack. We vampires were mythological creatures after all," he said with a sad smile. "Of course, once we had our own land and the live donor lists became a thing along with synthetic blood to supplement us in the interim, for the most part the violence ended…between clans that is. Vampire/human violence is a whole different can of worms. There are still vampires who go ‘off the reservation' and drain humans, and they're dealt with accordingly by clan leaders like me and my own sire before me."

"I see," Eoghan said. Ari noticed how he paused before he continued. "Well, if there's no hope for help from the Agency and no help from other vampire clans, we'll just have to keep trying to figure out another way."

John shook his head, looking dispirited. "I have a terrible feeling that my clan is destined to end. There is no hope for my people and the very thought of it breaks my heart." He pinned them with a distraught look. "Did you know the Flagstaff clan can trace our ancestry back over three thousand years?"

"I had no idea," Eoghan said.

"Our clan originated in Egypt." He looked directly at Ari and gave him a tiny smile. "Remember when I told you that Rudy, my mate, was dark like you?"

Ari nodded. "Yes. I believe you were making a pass at me." He smiled.

The king grinned as he nodded. "Yes, well, now you know why. Many of our Egyptian ancestors were dark-skinned as are many of the members of my Flagstaff clan." He sighed and broke eye contact with Ari, looking at the ground. "But it doesn't matter anymore. They'll all be gone soon if Tillis Bradshaw has his way. He has no incentive to keep any of them alive as long as there is a human population in Flagstaff. He might be making an entire army of baby vampires who're completely loyal to him as we speak."

Ari glanced at Eoghan with wide eyes. He'd never thought of that and based on the expression on Eoghan's face, he hadn't either.

"Shit," Eoghan said, glancing back at John. "You're right. This whole thing needs to be dealt with. We have to find some way to stop him."

John broke eye contact again, sighing loudly as he shook his head. They all sat still for a few minutes as they pondered where and how they could find help to save the Flagstaff clan from extinction and put Tillis Bradshaw and all his loyal vampires down once and for all.

"What about other supernaturals?" Ari asked as the idea occurred to him.

"What?" Eoghan and John asked in unison.

"I don't know. I'm new to all this, but couldn't you ask another supernatural clan to help? Shifters or werewolves or something? Surely they don't want their Agency protection to end and that's just what would happen if humans started vanishing in large numbers to become vampires."

"You mean that other clans would think Tillis Bradshaw is a threat if his vamps are out there draining humans?" Eoghan asked.

"Yes, because eventually some human of influence or power is going to figure out that the Flagstaff area is rife with missing persons and they'll make a stink about it, calling for a wider investigation or the like. Hell, they might even start speculating and inventing their own reasons why folks are up and disappearing. Flagstaff isn't that far from the Mexican border. If some stupid politician learns there's a bunch of missing persons, they might say that there's human trafficking going on down there in large numbers."

"Isn't Flagstaff a long way from the Mexican border?" Eoghan asked.

"A little more than two hundred miles as the crow flies," Ari said, "but when did that ever stop a politician from being an idiot?"

Eoghan chuckled.

"Anything could happen and if someone picks up on a lot of missing persons from one region, the Agency might get involved which would hurt all supernaturals. I'm just speculating," Ari said.

"You've got a good point," Eoghan said. "If I were Bradshaw and I'd taken over not only meth distribution but synthetic blood distribution in my area with plans to expand, I'd be making an army of baby vamps."

"And baby vampires need to eat frequently and when they drink from a human, they often can't stop. Unless they have a very watchful sire to help them understand just how much blood to take, they could cause death. Multiple young vampires could cause death in very high numbers," John said, shaking his head. "My God, this could turn out to be very bad." He looked over at Ari. "For someone new to the I.S.R., your instincts are good and sadly you're right. Eventually all of the crap that idiot Bradshaw is getting up to will be picked up by the media and then the government will be forced to act."

"Wouldn't that be a good thing…at least in terms of Bradshaw?" Eoghan asked. "Because the Agency would start with him."

"Except then we're back to having a mole at the Agency working with Bradshaw," Ari said. "Whoever this person is has a position with at least some authority to affect how the I.S.R. deals with Bradshaw. He's probably not doing what he's doing because he loves vampires. He's doing it for money." He looked between Eoghan and John. "No one answered me about bringing in other supernaturals to help."

He waited as Eoghan and John exchanged glances. "I don't know how to answer that," Eoghan said. "I don't have any experience with getting the various kinds of supes together. Most of my experience has been in helping them stay as far outside of each other's space as is possible." He addressed John. "You've lived a long life, John. What's your experience been?"

The king shrugged. "I don't know. If everyone was threatened, then maybe an understanding could be reached but honestly, the chances aren't great unless we could find at least one leader who'd see the big picture and I sure as hell haven't met one." He glanced at Eoghan. "I think you should talk to Priest. She's worked for the I.S.R. a long time, hasn't she?"

Eoghan frowned. "Yes, but how'd you know that?"

He smiled. "I do my homework. When I ‘escaped' your custody, the first thing I did was check out the woman who'd gone against her own agency, risking treason as you told me back there in the jail. Learning about her wasn't an easy thing for a man on the run to do, let me tell you. She's a good woman, your chief. Maybe she'll have some idea how to approach another shifter or werewolf clan."

"Who would we ask?" Eoghan asked.

"Well, like I said, it wouldn't be easy. Of course, the werewolves would be better but much more difficult. Wolves are bastards of the highest order, but you already know that, don't you, Marshal Sapphire?"

Eoghan narrowed his eyes at the vampire and then sat up straighter on the couch as Ari's eyes flew wide in surprise. He saw the long scars on his lover's back which had been made by the werewolf who'd attacked him down in Texas every time he made love to the man. But if that was what John Townsend was referring to, he had no idea how he'd known. Surely he hadn't seen Eoghan naked.

In response to the king's question, Eoghan nodded. "Yeah, I know what bastards werewolves can be. We might just have to go a different route if we're going to find help from another supernatural clan."

"Can I trust you to work on that?" the vampire asked.

They both nodded. "Yes," Eoghan replied.

"Well, all right then," John said, nodding as though he'd made up his mind. He stood and they both extricated themselves from the worn, velvet sofa. "Thank you for coming out here to talk to me." He took Eoghan's hand when he offered it, covering it with his other and not letting go as he looked into his eyes imploringly. "Please, promise me you'll work diligently on what we talked about here, Marshal Sapphire. Please. I have no one else to turn to."

"I will," Eoghan promised. He caught Ari's gaze. "We both will."

"It's going to have to happen soon. I will have to leave here in a few months' time."

"Why?"

He smirked as he let go of Eoghan's hand and then lifted his chin, making his point as he sniffed the air. "The garlic. You know Gilroy is the garlic capital of the country, right?"

"I guess," Eoghan said. "I never thought much about it but I can sure smell it every time I drive through this part of the state."

"Well, it is, and as such, every year the farmers all get together and throw a massive garlic festival for all the crazy, garlic eating Californians. From what I've read, they come out in droves to eat garlic soup, garlic bread, garlic ice cream, and they even have garlic drinks." He visibly shuddered. "In any case, I'm going to lose my humble lodgings when the harvest season and festival are upon us come summer. I won't be able to rest during the day. I simply can't trust someone not to stumble into my earthen hole in the ground and come upon me by accident." He looked down at the square depression in the floor.

"I'm sorry to hear about that, John," Eoghan said. "We'll try to figure out something quickly. It can't be fun for you to be living on a garlic farm."

"Yeah, I was meaning to ask you about that," Ari said as he shook the vampire's hand. "Aren't vampires supposed to be repelled by garlic?"

"We are supposed to be, yes," he said with a grin.

"And yet, here you are. Taking refuge on a garlic farm in a garlic town," Ari said.

"Ironic, isn't it?" the vampire said as they walked out into the yard and were hit once again with the pungent scent of garlic from the fields all around them.

"Actually, it is," Ari said. "What's up with that?"

"My clan has a gene which makes us immune to the effects it has on other vampires. It's the reason I came to Gilroy. I knew Bradshaw wouldn't be able to follow and because his progeny don't have the gene, they wouldn't be able to either."

"But he could always send someone else. There have got to be lots of scummy humans who'd kill you for a healthy sum of money," Eoghan said.

"And some who'd do it for less," Ari added, frowning thoughtfully.

"Or they might take payment in meth," John said. He blew out a tired breath. "It's neither here nor there. The fact is, my clan and I will be dead in a short time if this situation isn't resolved anyway."

"I'm really sorry to hear about the troubles you've been having, John," Ari said. "We'll do whatever we can."

"Thank you so much. And thank you for driving out to meet me here at my palace." He gestured absently behind him before turning back to them. "Maybe the next time we meet, I'll be back in my home, and you'll be my honored guests." He bowed deeply and a pang of sadness shot through Ari's chest like an arrow through the heart. He felt terribly sorry for the once proud vampire king who'd never hurt humans, only used human donors, and had conducted himself with dignity, other than threatening Eoghan a time or two. To be reduced to living this way was terrible. Whatever happened, he hoped it would happen fast. He really wanted a solution to the king's problems and that of his clan who were paying the ultimate price for simply losing a war against a corrupt, newly-made vampire who was utterly ruthless.

"We look forward to the day, John," Eoghan said as they both turned and walked toward their vehicle, climbing in, and driving out of the field.