Friday Flash Fiction

Amy C at Romance Book Wyrm and Dottie atTink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate - you publish your Fiction Flash  on Friday - 350 words, give or take. Here is the picture posted this Monday:

Lovely old trees... a perfect place for a relaxing walk...and my story continues .

Whenever she felt agitated, angry, sad or confused, Lilian always went for a walk. Dreane Manor was surrounded by a vast park which turned into an old forest right outside the fence; she felt there at home, knowing every path and every bigger tree. As nobody had time to hear her out right now, she decided to go outside and transform her pent-up irritation into a brisk walking, breaking from time to time into a jog. She knew it would bring her a peace of mind and a clearer head. She didn't expect any company but the company arrived.


When entering the forest she glimpsed a slender silhouette approaching her fast. She thought it might be one of manservants running an errant but she was wrong. Henri the vampire joined her soon afterwards, as quick as a wind and as silent as an owl. One moment he was just a dark shadow in the background the next he was standing right behind to her. He bowed slightly and she answered with a curtsey - it would be rude not to acknowledge his greeting. Her father invited him to their house and he approved of him after all.


"Mademoiselle? I hope I am not bothering you?" he asked shyly.


"Pas du tout, monsieur," she answered, proud of her school French. Henri simled but continued mostly in English.


"I noticed you were a bit perplexed while listening to your father in the study. You are new to all this, n'est-ce pas? "


Lilian half laughed half snorted, too agitated to care whether these sounds were actually ladylike. The words broke a metaphorical dam in her head and her outrage started flowing round her body like a strong current. She kept walking faster and faster as she talked but the vampire didn't have any problem with following her.


"Perplexed? Monsieur Henri, what an understatement! You know, not so long ago I was just a boring country miss living in a manor. Then I decided to do something stupid and the pandemonium started. First I was lost in that horrible book kept by my father in his secret library. Then I was saved by faeries, I saw a ghost of a girl in my park and right afterwards I was told that, because of my actions, we were at war with a vampiress called Lara. I didn't know these...creatures existed at all. My father is all of a sudden too busy to explain anything to me or talk to me at all. In fact the lowest of my servants seem to know more about the world around me than I do. Then that Lara arrives and she...gets rather busy with another vampire in one of the sitting rooms I helped to furnish and keep clean. My father kind of orchestrated all the event. Perplexed? I feel as if somebody took me to another country but never explained why because I was considered too stupid to understand. I've been treated like a mentaly retarded person, like an animal, and believe me, I do not appreciate it at all. I am so angry that I might actually hit somebody, even my own father, for doing it to me."


"Would it help if I offered you some explanation, then?" asked Henri quietly.


She stopped walking and turned to him.


"I guess it would. Why would you be so kind, monsieur?"


"Maybe because I could relate."


"Have you been kept in the dark yourself?"


Henri gave an almost silent chuckle and Lilian blushed. Bad choice of words.


" A double entendre, I know. Je suis désolée...I didn't want to offend you."


"No offence taken. What would you like to know?"


The question made her almost gag. She wanted to know so many things but she had to start with something simple. The first set of questions was formed even before she realized that it might be a bit too personal and revealing.


"Why is Mark so smitten with that Lara? What's wrong with him?"


Henri smiled but his smile turned a bit wistful.


"Lara...Elle est très belle, a striking woman. She drank his blood and formed a bond with him. He migth stop longing for her but it will take time. Don't be angry with him, it's completely beyond his control. A vampire's charm is not easy to overcome, believe me. Even vampires might have a lot of problems with it."


"Do you...did you...you was Lara's...well..."


All of the sudden Lilian blushed even more profusely. She couldn't pronounce the word "lover" in front of a total stranger, vampire or not, especially having a pretty good idea what had happened in one of the smaller sitting rooms in her manor. The conversation made her wanting to run away and hide like a child in a closet.


"You blush rather prettily," said Henri calmly. "Oui, I was her lover; in fact I was hoping to be even something more but malheureusement I was wrong. Lara was looking for servants and lieges, not partners. Néanmoins I know the feeling very well."


His honest response put her at ease quicker than any brisk walk would do.


"What does it take to build a vampire coven?" she asked, almost perfectly calm now.


"A good leader and four-five vampires at the beginning. He or she must have some charisma, be old and strong. The proper age is not enough, though, neither is the strenght. Other vampires must trust you, respect you and feel safe on your teritory. Lara had been deceiving me for some time but after a while I knew she wasn't the proper queen."


"What will happen to Lara now?"


"I think nothing bad. I suppose she is actually very lucky. Lawrence seems to fancy her and she might like her new position of a master's favourite better than she thinks."


"How do you create a vampire?"


Lilian felt perfectly at ease now, her previous embarassment completely forgotten. She was full of questions and she had somebody well-informed and willing to share his knowledge. The calm, peaceful manner of Henri influenced her mood. As they got immersed more and more in the discussion their jog turned into a walk and then into a slow stroll.

Review: Drink Deep (Chicagoland Vampires 05) by Chloe Neill

Book info:
Format: e-book, Kindle edition
Genre: urban fantasy (I would add PNR but I am not sure)
Target audience: those unfortunate creatures who have read previous parts and got addictes e.g. me (adults)


Synopsis:


Drink Deep catches up two months after Hard Bitten ends. Malik Washington is now in charge of Cadogan House and, surprise, surprise, he faces many problems. Well, a problem-free life for a vampire Master in Chicago? You must be kidding, right?

So, firstly the new mayor believes vampires have received special treatment so far and has decided to put a stop to it; she is strongly influenced by a man with an unreasonable hatred for vampires, believing they must be evil. Next the water in Lake Michigan and the Chicago river has turned black and stopped moving. The public is quick to blame the vampires, but they have had nothing to do with it. Still their task is to get to the bottom of this mystery before lynches start. Merit, as Sentinel, turns to Jonah, the captain of the guards for Grey House, for help. Jonah is also secretly a member of the Red Guard - he has tried to persuade Merit to join them. With the offer still standing he agrees to help investigate this weird disturbance.

Meanwhile Franklin Cabot has been appointed receiver of Cadogan House. The GP has decided they didn't like the way the House was run by Ethan, so he was sent in to evaluate the damage and improve things. Frank is clearly a power-obsessed bureaucrat and soon he becomes a complete pain in the ass for everyone that lives at Cadogan House, limiting their blood consumption and making free speech illegal. Merit knows it can’t last long, especially as she is having vivid dreams or rather nightmares of Ethan. When the sky suddenly turns red, all supernatural creatures and humans realize they must solve this riddle before their city is destroyed by some evil forces.

What I liked:

The book was short. I didn't waste a lot of time.

What I didn’t like (highlight to read the spoilers):

It will be one of sadder reviews. It proves me wrong - sometimes I am simply too optimistic when it comes to such novels, hoping for the best, expecting some logic and reason...

In my very humble opinion the whole series lost all steam and sparkle. To me it felt like Ms. Neill had just a deadline to meet and a book to write – a task, not creative pleasure. She did what she was supposed to do and what she was paid for but, apparently, she lacked skills and/or courage to continue the series in a logical way. Basically her story seems more or less like a dull repetition of old tricks, known from previous parts. I am sure any fanfic writer could have written such a book – perhaps actually some of them would have done  a better job.

First of all Merit doesn’t seem to be developing as a character. It is a huge drawback in a character-driven plot. For example she doesn’t seem to be mourning for her ex-lover and master. Not really. Although she is sad, basically  she gets back to work and fighting. I think I expected to see her undergoing some intense depression, to be lost in a staggering state of grief; well, maybe vampires are more resilient than humans but she is more or less ok, continuously making the same decisions and having the same inner turmoil, just with different man. It seemed strange. True, she has those Ethan-themed nightmares but who doesn’t have nightmares from time to time…

The book narration circles around a mystery which was quite obvious to me even at the very beginning. Repeatedly throughout the book there are references made to sorcerers being the only ones who could have initiated the elemental magic yet Merit and Jonah, her heavily educated partner with four doctorates, need the entire book to reach that conclusion, ultimately discovering it was Mallory. Merit claims repeatedly Mallory is like a close sister to her but still she doesn't manage to put two and two together. It seems that Ethan took  a big chunk of of her intelligence to his urn.


By the way I would have liked to have seen at least some build up indicating Mallory had a dark side. From the beginning of the series, Mallory was always like a  level-headed and kind sidekick. Out of the blue, she is embracing evil ,becoming a power-crazy bitch and nearly destroying the city – why?

In the end a blow that left a really bad taste in my mouth. Ethan rises from the ashes. Like a phoenix. Just my luck – I never liked the guy and he is back. Honestly, I have read a lot of paranormal novels and I do understand that ordinary rules do not apply in that crazy world but this one seemed to be really too clumsily done and too far fetched, even for this genre. To be back, with the full sense of yourself from a pile of dust two months old? Yeah, yeah, sure, whatever…just why nobody had thought about it before? Mind you the spell that resurrected Ethan was interrupted, yet still he is here, fully formed with no apparent consequences…it was so sloppy, wrong and preposterous that almost anticlimactic. The deus ex machina gone way too far. Bad literature. Yawn.

I suppose I know what happened. I bet the author got cold feet about killing off one of her main characters. She must have spooked that so many fans were complaining and she took the most opportunistic decision - ok, here you have your Ethan back, enjoy, be happy and please, keep ordering the next installment. As if happiness was so easy to achieve…I suppose even the author herself doesn’t believe in the success of such a strategy – she has already started another series…guess why.

Final verdict:

Unfortunately for me, this book fell very flat, ruining what appeared to be a very promising series. Pity. Chicagoland Vampries – farewell! Flames to dust...I think I need a hug. Perhaps I don't deserve one for starting the series in the first place but if we got only what we deserve...

Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Book form: e-book, mobi format

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (September 27, 2011)L

Language: English

Target group: older YA  (like 16+) and adults who like the genres
Genre: gothic urban fantasy, paranormal romance

Synopsis:

Meet Karou, a reclusive seventeen-year old art student who lives in Prague. She is a girl with incredible blue hair and a collection of strange tattoos, including one on each wrist (reading "True" and "Story") and open eyes (hamsas) in the centre of each palm. She draws fantastical creatures called chimaeras, made up of mish-mash body parts taken from different animals. She tells equally fantastic stories about them with a cynical grin and people think she just has colourful imagination like every artist. The problem is that these stories are true and she really leads a double life – something not always easy to combine, especially if you are a school- attending teenager and you'd rather hang out with your friends doing stuff... 

Karou lives on the fringes of two words, never sure where she really belongs and who or what she is. Her chimaera family is hardly willing to reveal any secrets and more and more frequently her foster father, called Brimstone, sends her out on strange and dangerous missions around the globe to buy teeth of different creatures, human teeth among them, in underworld black markets. Karou brings them back to his secretive magical workshop but she is never told what he needs them for and why so many are needed at all. She becomes sick and tired of these missions and secrecy.


When scorched black handprints starts appearing on doors to different magical portals all over the world, rumors start flying of angel sightings. The acpocalypse seems to be drawing near. But it's not until Karou comes face-to-face with one of these angels, a seraph warrior to boot, in a back alley in Marrakesh that she realizes what it really means to her.  It seems the apocalypse will be something very personal. The angel, treating her as an enemy at first, tries to kill her but then, unexpectedly, he decides against it. It seems that he recognized her and Karou is drawn to him as if they were meant to be together and she has been looking for him all along. Is he really the one? 

What I liked:

The way the book starts. It is a paranormal romance but it starts where usually such novels never dare to thread – Karou rejects, like for the umpteen time, a clumsy attempt to kiss and make up, made by a boy called Kazimir who is a devastatingly handsome young actor and a selfish orifice in one (quite a mish-mash, don't you think?)- as soon as he took Karou’s virginity he boasted of it to all Prague and the immediate vicinity in minute detail; he also started cheating on her with one of their mutual friends in no time at all. Now he wants Karou back because... she can help him earn more money. Isn't he a sweetie? Such a piece of normality in an YA book I always like and appreciate. The way Karou treated the said orifice boy (ok: an asshole, here you go) was also great – her feelings were hurt but she still showed a great sense of humour and a lot of integrity. Let’s face it, integrity is something most contemporary teens seem never heard of so it was a fantastic lesson delivered without moralizing. Well done!

The setting. Prague is a magical city and it was obvious the author has felt that charm as well. The fact that this book’s narration takes place mostly there I found really enticing and I must mention we get a few nice descriptions of different streets and places. What a pity we never hear Zuzana or Karou actually speak Czech.

As I’ve already mentioning the setting…the narration pace is not bad either! Laini Taylor weaves words together beautifully and she crafts the plot so that you are completely pulled into her world, captivated and forced to read on. You simply devour her creations and her unique fantasy Prague. I liked demons a.k.a. chimeras the best.

The sense of humour. You got one sample in my Tuesday Teaser not so long ago. It is always easier to make me like a book when one or several of characters are cynically sweet. Here the dialogues between Karou and her friend Zuzana were my favourite scenes. That and the little creature called Kishmish – I simply adore the name! If you don’t know any Slavonic language you might wonder why – here is the explanation. I use this word from time to time if I want to describe something that doesn’t resemble really anything at all. Kishmish, as its name indicates, is a mixture of different animals, in this case a bat and a crow or a raven.  A great idea for a name of a small demonic entity!

Finally...the wishes. You know the saying - be careful what you wish for because sometimes you can get it. It is a recurrent theme in this book as well - emphasizing the fact that plenty of people don't think about their wishes at all despite the fact that they should do it for their own good.  Brimstone pays for the teeth he buys with wishes currency in the form of beads or metal discs; some of these wishes are innocuous - they can do little more than make another person sneeze or itch; the others can be so enormous that the rippling consequences are impossible to predict. The whole premise brings new meaning to the saying, quoted above. I like new meanings so I enjoyed it very much. I hope that narrative theme will be continued.

What I didn’t like:

 Well…angels. As simple as that. No surprises, I know - more often than not I have issues with them. In this novel angels are not only divided into males and females (the same is true for demons) and I somehow always find such a division deeply wrong, but they also come as heavily muscled, incredibly handsome/beautiful beings which, nevertheless, have to use a bathroom (gasp!) and shave (a double gasp!) Of course I am thinking about the males but I suppose she-angels shave as well, maybe just different body parts; anyway I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. Well, would it actually hurt if these angels turned into humans? Ok, I might have survived angels and their shaving issues if not for another, bigger snag. Enter Akiva, the bane of the book!

Akiva the seraph warrior and the main squeeze of our sweet Karou is too handsome and too schematic for his own good. Almost no sense of humour, just a lot of attitude, soldier training and two big wings which can set a house on fire. No fun. To tell you the truth while I was truly engrossed in the first half of this book, by the time Akiva was introduced and the story began describing his love with Madrigal (a demon girlfriend from his past, I say no more because it is a major spoiler) I had slowly begun to lose interest. I simply knew what would happen next as if a malevolent fallen angel whispered it in my ear. Unfortunately I was right every single time. No good - omniscience is bad for your morale.


Then the pinkish romantic thread hit me like a ton of rose petals (always nicer than a ton of bricks but equally heavy and a bit stifling after a while) - Romeo and Julliet, the star-crossed lovers and their tragic story haunted me all over again throughout the second part plus some reincarnation as condiment and an eternal battle between…er…two evils…well…anyway these were the most silly parts in otherwise quite original YA book. I can clearly see the direction in which the author is going and so I am half in half out for the next installment that, I am sure, will be published in the near future. I fear it might ruin the initial premise for me. It would be such a pity. What's more, we might not return to Prague any time soon although I do hope we will. We’ll see.

Final verdict:

Not bad start for an YA romantic book but...I have a feeling it might get worse. A lot worse. I do hope I am wrong. Still, before I get the second installment I will have to read some reliable reviews.

Monday Can Be Fun (but usually isn't) # 2

Hi everybody!

It's Monday, how are you? 

Bad Monday morning (or maybe evening) in Ireland

One Monday Paddy and Seamus were walking home from the pub.  Paddy says to Seamus, 'What a beautiful night, look at the moon.'

Seamus stops and looks at Paddy, 'You are wrong, that's not the moon, that's the sun.' Both started arguing for a while when they come upon a drunk walking in the other direction, so they stopped him.

'Sir, could you please help settle our argument?Tell us what that thing is up in the sky that's shining. Is it the moon or the sun?'

The drunk thought about the problem a bit, looked at the sky, looked at them, and finally said:

'Sorry, I am stranger here myself.'

Shop Signs - they have been undoubtedly written one Monday morning...by somebody feeling great...

Outside a dress shop, Hong Kong: LADIES HAVE FITS UPSTAIRS.

Tailor shop, Rhodes: ORDER YOUR SUMMERS SUIT. BECAUSE IS BIG RUSH, WE WILL EXECUTE CUSTOMERS IN STRICT ROTATION.

Airline ticket office, Copenhagen: WE TAKE YOUR BAGS AND SEND THEM IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

On the door of a Moscow hotel room: IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST VISIT TO THE USSR, YOU ARE WELCOME TO IT.

Cocktail lounge, Norway: LADIES ARE REQUESTED NOT TO HAVE CHILDREN IN THE BAR.

At a Budapest zoo: PLEASE DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS.
IF YOU HAVE ANY SUITABLE FOOD, GIVE IT TO THE GUARD ON DUTY (I suppose it is one of the perks of being a zoo guard - you get plenty of food for free...)

If you want to have a bigger chance for a great Monday, prepare beforehand...

A senior citizen drove his brand new BMW Z4 convertible straight out of the car saleroom. Taking off down the motorway, he floored it to 90 mph, enjoying the wind blowing through what little hair he had left.
‘Amazing!’ he thought as he flew down the M40, enjoying pushing the pedal to the metal even more. Looking in his rear view mirror, he saw a police car behind him, blue lights flashing and siren blaring.’ I can get away from him – no problem!’ thought the elderly gent as he floored it to 110 mph, then 120, then 130 mph.

Suddenly, he thought, ‘What on earth am I doing? I’m too old for this nonsense! I can have an accident and die prematurely!’ So he pulled over to the side of the road and waited for the police car to catch up with him.

Pulling in behind him, the police officer walked up to the driver’s side of the BMW, looked at his watch and said, ‘Sir, my shift ends in 10 minutes. Today is Friday and I’m taking off for the weekend. What's more, I want to go back to work on Monday with my conscience clear and with a smile. If you can give me a reason why you were speeding that I’ve never heard before, I’ll let you go.’

The man looked very seriously at the policeman and replied, ‘Years ago, my wife ran off with a policeman. I thought you were bringing her back.’

‘Have a good day, Sir,’ said the policeman.

It could be my portrait early in the morning on Monday

Have a great Monday anyway!

Mini review: Hitler’s Ashes How Hitler's Assassination Leads to the Development of Germany's Atomic Bomb by John T.Cox

This book was provided by the author's publisher via my lady Blodeuedd's excellent blog in return for an honest review. I haven't been compensated for writing the said review in any way and the fact that the book came free of charge didn't influence me in any way.

Genre: historical fiction
Target audience: adults
Publisher: iUniverse

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Hermann Göering, Joseph Goebbels, Heinrich Himmler and Martin Bormann are also dead. And the leader of the assassination plot, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, is the new Chancellor of Germany.

Stauffenberg unleashes Germany's wonder weapons, the Messerschmitt 262 jet fighter, the Arado 234 Blitz Bomber, and the Type 21 super submarine. But it may be too late. The massive Soviet army is marching relentlessly to the west. And the Americans and British are bombing Germany day and night, wrecking its war machine, killing hundreds of thousands, and paving the way for an invasion in 1944.

Germany is running out of time. But it still has one super weapon left, and that's the atomic bomb, originally approved by Hitler in 1934 but abandoned by him in 1940. Professor Werner Heisenberg and his team of nuclear scientists, now decimated by Hitler's anti-Jewish hysteria, are Germany's only hope.

Can Germany snatch victory from the jaws of defeat by unlocking the secrets of the atomic bomb before the scientists of the Manhattan Project? Can this terrible weapon be used against the Americans and the British to force them out of the war, and then smash the Soviet Union? Can Hitler's dream of a thousand-year Reich be achieved even as his ashes lie at the bottom of a lake on the outskirts of Berlin?

What I liked:

I certainly was impressed by the historical premise and the author’s imagination. Mr Cox tried to answer the question what would happen if the last attempt to assassinate Hitler while having a conference in the Wolf’s Lair headquarters actually succeeded. The era pf WWII is often an enticing subject, at least to me. Mr. Cox even continued his story till nearly contemporary times although he did it in a rather sketchy way. Still I am sure it took him a lot of preparation and it seems he did his homework and then some. For example his military knowledge concerning weaponry used during WWII is, as far as I know, extensive At the end of the book Cox presents e.g. information regarding some technological problems, including the Junkers jet engines and their short operating life time. 

What I didn’t like:

Firstly let me say that, as a reader, I had huge issues with the way of narration was led. We are told about different dramatic events just “overhearing” the conversation of three friends, one  of them condemned to death and awaiting an execution in a prison cell. Leaving aside the question whether a man who is going to die in just few hours would like to lead such a conversation at all, I must admit that I didn’t enjoy being a fly on the wall. It also bugged me that so many chapters were introduced by a well-worn phrase:” It started like this…” or “ It looks like it happened this way…” which made me think of these old silent movies with faded-out jumps between particular parts. Perhaps it is just me but in my very humble opinion a normal, typically novel narration (like third or first person) would work definitely better.

Also the characters were cardboard thin and underdeveloped to say the least of it. It’s a pity we almost never know what they think and how they feel, we just listen to them and see them doing this or doing that. There was a very weak attempt at describing some romance in the second part of the book, between one of the main characters, Johann Rinehard, and a voluptuous Swedish nurse. It revealed how painfully cumbersome the writing style was – we are given firstly a rough description of Rinehard’s recovery, featuring the said nurse but just as a prop, and then, all of a sudden, bam, we are in the middle of a sex scene. It was so artificial that it made me laugh out loud. While the author can defend himself describing action scenes, romance is definitely not his cup of tea and he should steer clear of it or get some training. Overall I had a feeling I was reading a movie script, not a novel. Once again it was a pity because there was certainly a lot of material for a fully-fledged, enthralling historical thriller.

Now a bit about history. I am far from being an expert on the World War II or Hitler but I had some issues.  Firstly, in order to have the technology available for the development of a German atomic bomb Cox stated that the origin of German atomic research happened two years earlier than it really took place. He also places the assassination plot in November of 1943 so about 8 months before the July 20, 1944 date of the actual attempt by Count von Stauffenberg, at the “Wolf’s Lair” headquarters in East Prussia (currently Poland). This date actually coincides with another attempt on Hitler’s life, organized by Axel Freiherr von dem Bussche-Streithorst but that officer was never mentioned in the book. 

Taking into account the fact that there had been about 20 attempts on Hitler’s life before November 1943 and he never moved anywhere without an active corps of bodyguards, it was unlikely that any assassination attempt would have gone as smoothly as Cox has it happen. After getting rid of Hitler and his cronies everything goes on very smoothly – which is as far from the reality as you can get. I know this book is just a fiction but still…

Final verdict:

This book was a bit of a damp squib. It is unfortunate that something with such an interesting premise ends up providing you with definitely less than you expected.

Silent Saturday

photo courtesy of my brother

A tip - click on it if you want to see it in full beauty. The white background is not perfect but I don't want to change it just for this photo.

Friday Flash Fiction

Amy C at Romance Book Wyrm and Dottie atTink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate - you publish your Fiction Flash  on Friday - 350 words, give or take. Here is the picture posted this Monday:

And here comes my totally fluffy story...

When Lilian entered her father's study Lord Dreane was in the middle of one of his famous long-winded speeches. She knew better than to interrupt him - she sat down at the back and observed other people present in the room. There was of course the butler, her father's most reliable helper; next to him sat Mark and two other young men, unknown to her; one black-haired and pale who, she tought, looked so foreign that he must have been Henri the vampire and the other with straw-blond hair and pale grey eyes. All of them were listening avidly and she had to admit her father's speech was quite interesting that time. It concerned their current problems with Lara the rouge vampiress.

"As you know, using my ghosts I've contacted Master Lawrence, who kindly accepted my invitation and is here with us, and other Masters as well; I've found out a lot of interesting info about Lara's past. It seems she's been very unlucky so far - her previous Masters were ruthless rakes, abusing her trust and selling her body to strangers for favours and money. Small wonder she is so eager to gain  independence. Unfortunately she doesn't have  necessary qualities to build her own coven which puts her in a very dangerous situation indeed - that of a lonely vampiress. You must know that vampires are basically social creatures - definitely more social than humans. If left alone for too long they get mad and become very, very agressive. As a result, they attack and kill their victims or even other vampires without any reason so sooner or later they have to be eliminated. It is called psy-rabies as far as I remember. I really feel responsible for Lara and our local Master Vampire hinted more than once he is rather fond of her too and he would be loath to let her fall ill and die. After making him swear that Lara won't be abused again we agreed that we must interfere on her behalf even if it means using some kind of force - letting her loose in London or elsewhere would be indeed thoughtless, cruel and irresponsible. Of course right now, being very agitated and...uhm...er...rather angry with me she might see the matters in a different light...anyway we decided to create a trap in my house. By the way please greet Henri, another vampire, present  here -  I will  keep him for the time being as my helper as he agreed with such an arrangement. Right... there is just one thing to be done - prepare our trap and wait. Actually I have a good idea of what kind of trap we should prepare but I will need some professional help..."

Lilian noticed a ghost of a smile on Master Lawrence's face - he was the man or rather the vampire with straw hair. She also saw how excited Mark became at the mere mention of Lara and her visit. It made her very confused. She would say the boy was insanely happy at the mere prospect of seeing that monster again.

"My lord, will you need my assistance?" asked Mark grinning widely, all eagerness and zeal.

Lord Dreane eyed him and shook his head.

"No my boy, it is obvious you can't come close to Lara yet. This time I will ask for help my old friend and butler, Roze, who has been working with me longer and is far more experienced than you. Thanks for offering, though, I do appreciate. We will need all help we can get."

Lilian could see at once that Mark didn't appreciate that answer at all for a change - he looked like a deflated baloon now. She frowned. Wasn't he supposed to be just a little bit in love with her? Why wasn't he afraid of that horrible monster who treated him so cruelly?  Only questions, no answers...She noticed the dark-haired vampire glancing at her and blushed. The blushing made her even more angry with herself and, strangely, with Mark as well. She bit her lips. It seems everybody was right now too busy to take care of her curiosity. In other words nothing new. She sighed.

***

Lara was never one for strategic planning. When she played any game, cards or chess, she always tried to charm her way to victory. Usually, if the dress was sufficiently low-cut she succeeded nine times out of ten so she didn't see any reason why change her tactics. Her current situation was different, though. Lord Dreane was immune to vampire charms and she didn't know who else she might face in his manor. She also didn't have any backup plan or allies. It made her recklessly mad. Her prospects were bleak anyway so why bother with a backup plan or any plan at all? She did the first thing that came to her head - died her hair ash blonde, combed them and let them down, put the last clean low-cut dress on, went to Dreane Manor and knocked at the door as cool as cucumber. The door was opened by a butler. He looked at her impassively for some moments as if unsure how to proceed, and finally asked:

"Ma'am?"

"Good afternoon, my dear butler. I am lady Larissa Hawe and I am visiting friends in this area. Unfortunately my coach has been immobilized not so long ago. It seems one of the horses broke a leg, stupid animal. I sent the coachman for help but I am thirsty. Could you be so kind and offer me a glass of water?"

The butler didn't even blink. All was going exactly as predicted by his lordship - a lady arrived alone, dressed quite inappropriately for the occasion, and her story was as cock-and-bull as you could think of at short notice. It was her. He relaxed and smiled.

"Of course. Please, do come in my lady. Would you like some tea? Maybe wine? Or brandy? Such a horrible misadventure would have been a trial on anybody's nerves..." he was chattering pleasantly while ushering Lara to a comfortable armchair in one of the smaller sitting rooms.

"I think I will take some tea, thank you," answered Lara graciously.

 She sat down, preparing herself for a quick dash out of the room as soon as possible but, to her dismay, the butler didn't go out to bring her the cup but just ringed a bell. A maid entered the room, she was ordered to bring some tea and she returned with a tray in no time. "Very efficient service," thought Lara but somehow it didn't make her suspicious.

The butler, as he had been told earlier, stood all the time in a reverential pose next to the doors. As soon as the tray was put on a little table next to the armchair he poured Lara her cup and handed it to her with a polite bow. She smiled and took a small sip, preparing herself for bland, barely tepid mixture of tea leaves and water, usually served in England. To her utter surprise the tea tasted splendidly; in fact drinking it was a bilss. She continued until the last drop found its way to her mouth and the cup was empty. The butler filled it again immediately, without even asking her permission. She simply gulped it, not even trying to stop herself. It tasted like heaven and she wanted more.

"I never knew I was that thirsty. Could you pour me another cup, please?"

"Of course, ma'am," the butler poured her a third cup with a pleasant face, simply emanating sympathy and friendliness. She drank it as quick as the second one. A tingling warmth spread along her shoulders and arms, reached her chest and tights. She felt good, relaxed and cheerful, all her anger and sadness forgotten. At that point the butler ringed again and a cloaked figure entered the room. Lara recognized him at once - it was Lawrence, the local vampire Master. He bowed his head and asked:

"Lara, are you ready to give me your answer?"

Lara smiled almost despite herself. No-nonsense, straight to the point - she loved such a direct approach. Something stirred her memories, some dark thoughts and warning bells, but she couldn't focus long enough to remind herself what they were supposed to mean. Lawrence's scent was so enticing...it was similar to the tea she's just drunk. Sweet, lovely and desirable. She went closer to him even before she decided she wanted to do so, pulled as if by an invisible magnet. He extended his hand and she took it without any hestiation.

"Yes, Master Lawrence. Whatever you want," murmured Lara dreamily.

"I want you in my coven and under my protection."

"Of course."

"Will you take an oath of fealty right now?"

"Yes, I will." Why shouldn't she? It sounded like such a good idea.

She kneeled and kissed his hand. He raised her and kissed her vulnerable, exposed neck. Warmed by the tea Lara craved more skin contact after that kiss. She looked straight into his eyes and attacked his lips in one ferocious and determined movement. While he was kissing her back quite enthusiastically, her fangs scratched his lips. A coppery, salty-sweet taste exploded on her tongue, making her moan with delight. It was the taste of her tea. Her tea had been spiked with the Master vampire blood. Strangely that revelation didn't make Lara angry, quite the opposite - she finally let herself melt into his arms, his body, and his kiss as if it was the most natural thing to do, then she started tracing his jaw with her tongue and bitting his neck. The blood she drew was delicious - ten times better than anything she had tried so far - and all of a sudden it made her mad with desire. Lawrence started to nuzzle her generous décolletage, leaving a trail of his own teeth marks. She began shedding her clothes. He joined her after a moment. They were so busy they didn't realize that the smirking butler went out, giving them some privacy. 'Mission accomplished', he announced quietly to Lord Dreane, waiting outside. Both men shook hands and smiled knowingly.

Image by Steve-h via Flickr