Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods 1)

But she wavered - and sat back down again. It seemed too rude and against her better judgment. There were so many things they were talking about that made sense. The blue marks on her arms, for instance. Apparently their blood was shining through the skin because it was starting to assert itself, starting to reconnect with all the old knowledge and wisdom and memories of their past lives. Because it was their blood that was alive - that was what made them undead - their blood was thousands of years old, from the beginning of time, a living database of their own immortal consciousness. It had a will of its own, and growing up as a Blue Blood meant that you learned how to access and control the vast intelligence that was available inside of you.

Your physical shell expired after a hundred years and then you rested, evolving until they called you up for the next phase in the cycle. Or you could choose not to rest, and instead keep the same physical shell and become Enmortal - like some of the Elders, but you had to be awarded a special dispensation for that. Most Blue Bloods went through the cycle. What did they call it? The three stages of vampire life: Expression, Evolution, Expulsion.

And the bit about the bloodhound - she couldn't argue with that. Beauty had followed her home one day, and it felt like the creature was part of her. Mrs. DuPont explained that their canine familiars were actually a part of their soul that had transferred to the physical world to protect them. The years from fifteen to twenty-one were called the Sunset Years for the Blue Bloods - their most vulnerable time in the cycle of Expression when they shed their human selves for vampire ones. The Blood Manifest, which brought about the memory shock, the dizziness, the sickness, made them weak, and their dogs were their guardians, ministering angels who made sure the Blue Bloods made it to the next phase intact.

Still, it was all just so unbelievable. She'd been convinced that The Committee had been playing a Halloween trick when they lit up like that. Even Jack. So that's why he was all lit up that night at the dance. Why she could see him in the dark.

Wait until she told Oliver!

But, oh. She wasn't supposed to. The Red Bloods - the humans - they couldn't know. Although human familiars - those people whom you performed some Latin thing with - their fancy name for blood-sucking - they could know, but then the ceremony made them forget it or something. There was some kind of hypnotic essence in the process that made them amnesiac, and loyal to the Blue Bloods. Schuyler couldn't imagine wanting to suck anyone's blood. It just seemed gross. But anyway, she had forgotten that she couldn't tell Oliver because he wasn't speaking to her.

Then there were all these rules that governed bloodsucking - like you could only have several human familiars at one time, and you were only allowed to use them once every forty-eight hours. Apparently, life as a vampire wasn't at all like she'd read in books or television, which were just red herrings created by The Conspiracy, a subset of The Committee dedicated to keeping the Red Bloods from knowing their true existence. A Hungarian Blue Blood with a macabre sense of humor had been responsible for the myth of "Count Dracula." The Conspiracy disseminated false information. All those things that were supposed to kill vampires - a crucifix, garlic, the sun - were all just made up. Their idea of a joke.

Because, according to The Committee, nothing could kill vampires. Nothing. Death was merely an illusion.

Schuyler found out the reason Blue Bloods didn't like the crucifix was because it reminded them of their downfall, their banishment from the kingdom of Heaven. (These people were truly deluded, Schuyler thought to herself. They actually thought they were former angels or something. Just what the world needed. More self-aggrandizing rich people.) It turned out garlic was a no-no simply because of the smell. Mrs. DuPont waxed on and on about how Blue Bloods were a very aesthetic-minded race, who favored beauty and harmony above all (and that ruled out Italian food?). And as for sunlight - well, again, it just reminded them of the paradise they'd been expelled from, but most vampires loved the sun - hence the major killer tans on most of The Committee members.

They lived forever, but not as the same person, and not always at the same time. There were only Four Hundred of them at every Cycle. They could ingest food, but most did it out of habit, or simply to be social. Once they reached a certain age, only human blood was needed to keep them recharged. Schuyler found out that taking a human to Full Consumption - draining him or her completely of all blood, effectively killing the human, was the biggest taboo of all. It was the first commandment in the Code of the Vampires - that no harm must come to their human familiars.

Since humans could only take so much blood-letting, most Blue Bloods had several human familiars whom they rotated in their feeding schedule, in the guise of various love affairs. So that was why Mimi had all those boyfriends. It was all part of the Blue Blood lifestyle. And Kitty Mullins - was she one of Jack's human familiars? She had to be, since Kitty wasn't in the assembled group. Schuyler suddenly wasn't very jealous of Kitty Muffins. She felt sorry for her.

The Warden told them that the foremost mission of their kind was to cycle through Expression to evolve into a point where God could forgive them and take them back into heaven again.

Right.

Schuyler didn't believe a word of it. This was someone's sick and not-funny idea of a really stupid prank. She almost expected a reality TV camera crew to pop out of one of the cabinets. But everyone else was muttering, and some of the people next to her were crying with relief.

"I was so worried I was going crazy." She heard Bliss Llewellyn say.

The papers they'd signed to join were also their commitment to the Blue Blood Code. The Code was like the Ten Commandments of the Blue Bloods - the laws of creation - and they were bound to its rules.

Every Monday they would learn more about their history, as well as how to control their powers. Vampire powers manifested in different ways, the most common were hyper-intelligence and supernatural strength. Most vampires could read human minds, but only the most powerful ones could perform mind-control, the suggestive forcing of their will on a weaker being. A few were shape-shifters who were able to change their physical form at will. The most rare power of all was the ability to stop time, but only one Blue Blood in recorded history had ever been able to demonstrate this power, and had only done so once in all the centuries they had been on earth.

The meetings were also intended to help the younger vampires choose a purpose for that cycle. Schuyler learned that the Blue Bloods were behind the foundation of almost all of the city's most important cultural resources, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Frick Collection, the Guggenheim, the New York City Ballet, and the Metropolitan Opera. Blue Bloods sat on the boards, hired curators, and organized fundraisers. It was Blue Blood money that kept all of those wonderful institutions alive.

Mrs. DuPont explained that as they grew older, they would have a chance to serve on all the different committees. Already, the younger generation of Blue Bloods were making an impact, organizing the Save Venice ball, the Young Collectors evenings at the Whitney, and benefits for the High Line, among other worthy causes.

Oh, and of course, they also planned the yearly Four Hundred ball. The biggest social dance of the year, which was held at the St. Regis Hotel Ballroom in December was part of a tradition started during the Gilded Age by a bunch of Blue Bloods. It was called the Patrician Ball then.

But Schuyler didn't believe a word of it. After they were dismissed, several of the newest members huddled, talking to the juniors and seniors to ask more questions. Schuyler walked out quickly by herself. She didn't notice that someone had followed her.

He appeared in front of her without warning.

"Hey." Jack Force smiled. His hair was adorably disheveled as usual. His eyes were green emeralds in his sculpted, handsome face.

"God, how'd you do that?" she demanded.

Jack shrugged. "They'll teach you. It's one of the things we can do."

"Well, 'we' are not going to stick around to find out," she said, elbowing him out of her way.

"Schuyler, wait."

"Why?"

"It's not supposed to happen like this. This meeting was called too early. Usually, this happens in the spring. And by then, almost everyone has figured it out, from the memories. You start to know who you are before anyone has to tell you. The meeting is just a formality. Usually when you're taken into The Committee, you already know."

"Huh?"