It did worry Atreides and his brother, because there was always the chance that the fringe vampires would gather under an emergent leader and try to force the current leadership out. There could be chaos, a civil war between vampire clans. They needed to stay strong, to ensure that they weren't persecuted by the hunters, and work together.
But there were always those who couldn't abide by rules. And it was like that before the Black Death had turned them. He'd heard there was some dissent in the way the League of Hunters operated also, and that they had a fringe group of hunters too. Atreides wondered if they ever got the upper hand, would it be better or worse for the vampires?
Order came at a price, but chaos, a bigger one and he knew if either of the fringe groups were to gain a decisive foothold into the ruling powers, chaos would ensue.
Right now, they had peace between the hunters and vampires—of a sort—and they tried to keep it that way.
"Who's volunteering to check out the fringe groups?" Atreides asked.
None of his friends volunteered.
Atreides shook his head.
"Hey, I had a fight on my hands, the one time I went there to speak with some of them on your behalf," Renault said. "I didn't think I would come out of that alive."
"Your brother counts on you to deal with them because you have such a magnetic power about you," Colt said to Atreides.
"You ought to go and take Selena with you," Basil said.
"You don't think they would see her as a threat?" Though Atreides had another thought. What if she could identify the vampire who stalked her? He would have to be a wolf, but maybe she could smell his scent, or maybe he would act nervous if she turned up. Maybe he told others what he had done and one of them would out him.
"I think she might figure out who he is," Basil said.
"Let's retire then to bed." The day was going to be stormy tomorrow and Atreides figured they could be out and about during the day. Though he would sleep some midday and go out again at night when the rogue hunters might be on the prowl. He wanted to know who was on the hunters' terminal lists also, and he thought to ask either Rosa or her brother to see if they knew. He wasn't sure if Selena would know that or not.
Everyone went to their respective bedrooms and he want to his suite. After showering, he climbed into bed and telepathically communicated to Selena in a whispered voice, just in case she was sound asleep, "I'm taking you to the fringe groups in the morning, if you are up to it."
She didn't respond. He assumed she was asleep.
"Fringe vampires?" she finally asked, her voice sleepy.
He knew it. She was one of his kind! That was the first time she'd actually communicated telepathically with them. He was over the moon. He smiled, closed his eyes, and said, "Yeah. Vampires."
She sighed and then he left her alone so she and he could sleep. They would have a busy morning and evening tomorrow so he needed some sleep tonight.
He was just drifting off when she appeared in his bedroom, touching his shoulder, stirring him awake.
"You think the vampire who bit me was a fringe vampire?"
"Possibly." He pulled her into his bed with him. "And the vampiress he might have been talking about could have been a fringe vampire also. We don't have very good records of who they all are. I try to, but they move around so much, it's hard to know who and where they are at all times."
"I never would have thought that. What if the hunters who killed the vampiresses were on the fringe also?"
"Hell. Well, if that's the case, it exonerates the rule-abiding hunters and vampires."
"Except for Cliff and his brother and their friends. They worked directly for the League," she said.
"He just had a hidden agenda. The vampiress was carrying Cliff’s brother’s child and he had to hide the fact, probably using the other murderer's technique so that the League and the vampire clan would believe it was the work of another group of hunters. If that is the case."
"Fringe. I never think of them because the hunters that are on the fringe really never cause any trouble. They might not live by League rules, but that doesn’t mean they’re rogues. Now I wonder though.”
All he cared about was that the huntress had joined him in bed.
Chapter 13
Selena didn't believe she would be staying with Atreides in his bed tonight, but when he'd spoken to her and she realized he wasn't in the bed with her as close as he seemed, she went looking for him. And found him in his own room, nearly asleep. That was when she realized he had communicated with her telepathically and she'd heard him! No way could she do that unless she had become one of them. She still didn't seem to have any other symptoms of being a vampire except for the telepathic communication. Which was pretty cool, really. She could listen in on vampires talking to each other and for a while, they might not know that she could.
She thought the moving from place to place like they did could be a neat way to deal with rogue vampires and hunters also. She realized she would be able to do a lot of things that she couldn't do before. Good things. So it wasn't all bad. And from what she knew of Tezra's new condition, she wasn't limited to moving around in daylight only on cloudy days. Which worked for her. She wasn't a night owl normally, though taking down rogue vampires did often mean doing some night work.
She sighed as she planned to stay on the other side of the bed, but Atreides seemed to want her close and after they had danced so close, she was feeling the same way about him. She couldn't figure out why she felt a connection with the vampire, when she had figured her genetics would preclude it. But she was really glad to be working with him.
And learning from him how to deal with all the changes she would be experiencing. She really didn't want to drink blood, but she suspected once it came to that she would feel differently.
She snuggled against him, loving the feel of his hot body and muscular form. She knew he got it from all the sword fighting they did. Not against rogues all the time, but she knew they practiced sword fighting with each other, just like the hunters did so when they took on the vampires, they would be in shape to win against their enemy.
"Sleep," Atreides said. "Tomorrow will come soon enough." His voice was soothing, and she closed her eyes.
But her mind wouldn't shut down. She kept wondering if she could transport somewhere, how would she make it happen? She thought of being in the kitchen and getting a glass of water. And then she was in the kitchen, standing beside the sink, amazed. Was she dreaming?
Suddenly, Atreides was standing next to her and she blinked at him.
"Did you need something," he asked.
"Water. But I wanted to see if I could really…I can't believe I can…or that I'm…one of you."
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her lightly on the lips. "It will all come as a surprise to you, all your new abilities, I'm sure. I would have a celebration, welcoming you to our clan, but I need to wait until Daemon returns. Even though I'm in charge while he's away, it still would only be right if I do this when he's here."
She sighed and kissed him back. "I guess now I really won't be welcome in hunter clubs. And I'm still not sure about vampire clubs."