Blackwood Farm (The Vampire Chronicles 9)

" 'What rules?' she inquired. She continued to stride back and forth, almost to the windows and then again to the murals, her eyes sweeping the room around her and then seeming to drift over the stars.

" 'Oh, all right. Rules,' she said. 'You never disclose to any mortal what you are or what we are. How's that for a rule? You never kill one of our kind. Is that enough for you, Arion? I don't know that I remember anything else. ¡¯

" 'You know you do,' he said. He too was looking at the chessboard. He made a move with his queen.

" 'You cover up the kill as to bring no notice to yourself,' she said with a flair, 'and always, always!' she stopped and stared at me, pointing her finger in a declarative manner. 'Always, you respect your Maker as your Master, and to strike out at your Maker, your Master, is to merit destruction at his or her hands. How's that?¡¯

" 'That's all very good,' said the Old Man in his deep bass with his jowls trembling. He squeezed my shoulder and smiled at me with his big loose mouth. 'Now give him the warnings. He needs warnings. ¡¯

" 'Such as what!' said Petronia disgustedly. 'Don't be scared of your own shadow!' she said pointedly. 'Don't act like you're old when you're immortal! What else?¡¯

" 'The Talamasca, tell him about the Talamasca,' said the Old Man, nodding at me, mouth turned up in the manner of a fish. 'They know about us, they do!' he said with an emphatic nod. 'And you mustn't ever fall for their blandishments. Do you know that word, my son? They flatter you with their curiosity, which is what they do to everyone! Flattery is their calling card. But you must never yield to them. They're a secret order of psychics and magicians, and they want us! They want to lock us up in their castles here in Europe and study us in their laboratories as though we were rats!¡¯

"I was speechless. I tried to wipe my mind clean of all thought of Stirling. But the Old Man was peering at me in a probing fashion.

" 'Ah, what do I see but that you've known them? They've already invited themselves into your life because you were a seer of spirits! Oh, this is most dangerous. What is this? A plantation house? You must never risk being in the vicinity of them again. ¡¯

" 'It was all broken off a long time ago,' I said. 'I saw spirits, yes. I'll probably continue to see them. ¡¯

"Arion shook his head no. 'Ghosts don't come to our kind, Quinn,' he said quietly.

" 'No, indeed not,' said Petronia, walking and walking. 'You'll find that your familiar has vanished should ever you go back to spy perhaps on those you used to know and love. ¡¯

"I said nothing.

"I looked at the chessboard. I watched the Old Man put Arion's queen in check.

" 'What other rules are there?' I asked.

" 'Don't make others,' said Arion, 'without the permission of your Maker, or the eldest of those who make up the group in which you live. ¡¯

" 'You mean I can make another?' I asked.

" 'Of course you can,' said Arion, 'but you must resist the temptation. As I told you, you can do it only with the permission of Petronia, or in reality, my permission, as you are in my house. ¡¯

"Petronia made a contemptuous scoffing sound.

" 'That may come to be your worst temptation,' said Arion. 'But you're too young and too weak to make the transformation. Remember it, what I'm telling you. Don't be a fool in this. Don't share eternity with someone you may come to despise or even hate. ¡¯

"I nodded.

"There was a long silence during which time Petronia stopped at the window and looked out at the stars.

" 'There is one other warning,' she said. She turned back and looked at me. 'If you go back to the swampland, and some night you might, just to spy on your beloved aunt, that great lady, or for some other simple reason, don't be tempted to hunt New Orleans. The Talamasca keeps a tight watch for us there, and though they're bumbling mortals they can do us harm. But there is one other danger and that is a powerful Blood Hunter who styles himself the Vampire Lestat. He rules New Orleans and he destroys young Blood Hunters. He's ruthless, iconoclastic and self-centered. He's written books about us which pass as fiction. A lot of the stories in those books are true. ¡¯

"I was quiet for a long time.

"She came over to the table, and, drawing up a chair, she put her arm around Arion and she watched the game. Arion had saved his queen, but just barely, and was now about to be checkmated in a very sly way. I saw it coming but I saw he didn't by the pieces he was moving and what his eyes were doing, and then quite suddenly there came the Old Man's surprise move, and Arion sat back, amazed and then smiling and shaking his head.

" 'Another game!' he said. He started laughing. 'I demand it. ¡¯

" 'And so you shall have it!' said the Old Man, his face all atremble.

"As the Old Man was setting up the pieces I slowly rose to my feet.

" 'I'm going to leave you, gentlemen,' I said. 'I thank you for your hospitality and your gifts. ¡¯

" 'What are you talking about?' said Petronia.