"That was pretty intense," she called out, "And you weren't kidding about your brother. Everyone in the room was terrified of him. It felt like everyone was holding their breath until he left the pub.

"Yeah, he's pretty imposing." Gabriel admitted, "Even I get a little fl.u.s.tered sometimes when he's making the extra effort. Even after thousands of years, he still manages to get under my skin."

"Brothers are supposed to do that," Alyssa said, "Or siblings for that matter. The more time they spend together the more you know how to push each other's b.u.t.tons. I'm sure you know how to push his if you really wanted to."

"I suppose so," Gabriel said, thinking about it. "I guess I do my own thing that probably gets on his last nerve, but he's very good at hiding it. He doesn't give anything anyway, no matter what happens. That's what makes him so intimidating."

"He seemed nice at dinner," Alyssa noted, "What was that about?"

Gabriel walked out into the living room only to shrug. "I have no idea. Usually he's not very tolerant of people I a.s.sociated with, especially humans. I was just as surprised about it as everyone else."

"That is odd," Alyssa said, thinking about it. "Pablo painted him as such a villain. Have they ever met before?"

"No," Gabriel answered, "He's just working off of information from others. He was acting different today, but I'm unsure why. I realize he needs me to do this work for the council, but to the point where he's polite. We're missing something."

"That's another thing," Alyssa said as she sat up, "Why is Cornelius working for the council if he's royalty?"

"Technically he's not working for the council," Gabriel replied, "He's a member of the council, so he's working for himself. I think he likes the idea of the council cause it lets him roam about and not get bogged down with politics and feudalism. He prefers to delegate the boring stuff and do whatever he wants but still give off the impression that he's helping them."

"That's pretty smart," Alyssa concluded, "Help them to help yourself."

"Try to get some sleep," Gabriel said as he put a coat on. "I'm going to meet a few people about procuring some meds your mayor asked for. I'll probably be asleep myself when you get up. Just hang out around here, and we'll take off to return home when I wake up tomorrow night."

"Sounds good," Alyssa said, yawning at the vampire. "How many of you are in the building right now?"

Gabriel closed his eyes and concentrated for a few seconds. "There are currently seven vampires staying here, and twenty wolves guarding the tower. That's a lot more than I'm used to but chances are some are here because of the Prince."

"If he's your brother," Alyssa continued, "Doesn't that make you a prince too?"

Gabriel stood there with his arms crossed and sighed. "Yes."

"So that's why Cornelius holds that Dark Prince power over you," Alyssa said, "How far down the line are you?"

"Three after him," Gabriel answered, "But that only recently changed. I used to be first behind Cornelius but since then women are allowed to be in line for the throne, so that b.u.mped me down a few pegs."

"Hold on," Alyssa said as something clicked, "You have sisters?"

"A few," Gabriel said, "And I'm glad they're recognized, because I want nothing to do with the monarch. So the more bodies that lie between me and the d.a.m.n throne, the better as far as I'm concerned."

"I get it," Alyssa said, "You're the black sheep and everyone else falls over each other for the throne."

"To be honest, I don't think Cornelius cares that much either." Gabriel added, "He respects the throne, but doesn't act like he needs it. I think he was amused when I left Europe to come over here all those centuries ago."

"Jealous even?" Alyssa suggested, "You did the thing he was tempted to do but couldn't since he's first in line."

"Never considered it like that," Gabriel admitted, "But I doubt it. He's always been a traditionalist about the throne. He's never been shy about his duty either, which is why he's so well known and out there."

"Alright, well have a good night." Alyssa said, laying back down on the couch.

"You too." Gabriel said as he left the suite.

Alyssa had a very long day, so it took very little time for her to fall asleep and she cuddled up on the big couch with a blanket and was off the la la land. It must have been a very deep sleep because not only had Gabriel returned while she was out and he didn't bother her and went to sleep himself before the sun came up. It wasn't until between ten and eleven the next day when Alyssa woke up. It wasn't by her choice, but instead because of a soft sound the jolted her awake. There was a light rapping on the door, which caused her to jump up from where she was laying. She knew Gabriel was down, so she was scared of who might be knocking at their door. Alyssa slowly got off the couch and crept over to the door as quietly as she could. She took a quick peek through the door to see who was there and after a few seconds she sighed and took a deep breath. She opened the door to greet the man that was standing at the door, patiently waiting to be admitted.

"Good morning," Alyssa said, trying to seem friendly. "What brings the Dark Prince to my door so early? Shouldn't you be sleeping with the others?"

"I'm not tired," Cornelius admitted. "I can go three to six days without resting."

"Wow, I bet you sleep really well after a week awake." Alyssa said, as she thought about staying up so long.

"Usually when that happens, I rest for one or two days." Cornelius added, "But I rested recently so I won't be going down anytime soon. I thought you might want to join me for breakfast."

"Breakfast?" Alyssa repeated, as she forgotten that the big vampire loved to eat.

"There is a banquet hall downstairs," Cornelius explained, "We use it to host humans, wolves or anyone else who wishes to dine while going over policy. So the Chef can make anything you like."

"Oh, I see." Alyssa said, considering it.

"You will be safe," Cornelius a.s.sured her, "I would never let anything happen, as the last thing I would want to face is his wrath."

"Gabriel's wrath?" Alyssa asked.

"No, our father's." Cornelius replied, "He's far more of a traditionalist than I am. Since you are with Gabriel, so it would be against the rules for any vampire to bring harm to you. The old man would execute any of us without hesitation if that happened, and probably impale us for old time's sake. So I can a.s.sure you that you are quite safe in this building."

"Fair enough," Alyssa said, "Let me change for the hall."

"Don't overdress," Cornelius said, "It's very informal this morning."

"Okay, I'll be right back." Alyssa said as she closed the door.

She closed the door but didn't lock it, quite sure it wouldn't matter or stop the big vampire from barging in if he wanted. He waited very patiently outside while Alyssa changed into something decent but not too dressy. She left a note on the table beside the couch in case Gabriel woke up before she returned, but she doubted that would happen. Even Cornelius knew better than the worry his brother. The walked to the elevator and took the lift down to the second floor where the banquet hall was located. There were several people dining in there, but most of them were wolves as they were guests or patrons of the hall. When Cornelius walked into the room, the reception was far more formal, as everyone in the hall stood up and bowed to the Dark Prince.

"Whoa," Alyssa said, walking behind him, "You didn't get that kind of reception at the pub."

"I actually preferred it that way," Cornelius replied, "I suspect the pub wolves were too shocked to remember, but it didn't matter. I don't mind when someone makes the effort but am too lazy to demand it. It gets tiring after a few thousand years."

"How much older are you than Gabriel?" Alyssa asked.

"A lot more," Cornelius said, "But it's impolite to ask someone their age."

"I'm sorry," Alyssa said.

Cornelius laughed, "I don't care. Father and I are the two oldest vampires in the world. Sometimes I'm surprised we've both lasted this long. So many people have come and gone, and will continue to as the centuries pa.s.s."

"That has to be lonely," Alyssa observed, "Do vampires marry?"

"Of course we do," Cornelius said, they reached their table. He pulled out a chair for her. "You could say some of us are responsible for creating the formal union that was later picked up by other species and their religions."

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"I see," Alyssa said as she watched Cornelius take his own seat across from her at their table.

"You can virtually order almost anything," The big vampire told her, "Or if you don't know I can order for you."

"I appreciate that," Alyssa said, looking at her menu but it was written in a language she couldn't recognize. "What is this?"

"That is French," Cornelius said, "I should have known. My apologies."

When a waiter in a very formal suit arrived, he and Cornelius began to speak what she a.s.sumed was that language. After several minutes, the man promptly left without even asking her a single thing.

"Trust me," Cornelius said with a smile, "You will enjoy trying something new."

"Alright," Alyssa said, trying to remain calm and civil. She was still a little scared of the big man, but like the night before he was still on his best behavior. The statement about the wrath of Gabriel's father put her at ease, but Alyssa couldn't wait to tell him about it when he woke up later that day.

"Is there anything you'd like to speak about?" Cornelius asked.

"I a.s.sume you've spent most of your time overseas?" Alyssa asked.

"Correct," Cornelius answered, "I rarely visited America during it's golden years, only doing it a few times. I spent most of my time in Europe and Africa."

"How are those parts of the world doing concerning the Undead?" she asked him, curious to how they're doing.

"Some parts are just as ravaged as the Americas," Cornelius admitted, "But many parts of Europe are faring far better than you guys are. There are some countries that are completely undead free and have been for decades. Since the outbreak originated In Africa and the Middle East, we had time to fortify before things got out of control in Asia and Europe."

"How did they manage to be dead free?" She asked.

"Walls, very tall walls." Cornelius answered, "Some of them are ugly as s.h.i.+t, but they are very effective in what they were built for. Asia has fallen into chaos, just from their numbers which soon became uncontrollable. The islands are faring a lot better, since the dead can't swim. They appear to not do well in the cold either, so the cities in the north are faring better as well."

"That's fascinating," Alyssa said as the waiter arrived with drinks and a platter which had some sliced meats on it as well as some poached eggs. She could tell that the gla.s.s the vampire had was a very bright red substance which was easy to guess. Here gla.s.s was a bright orange, which surprised her.

"Fresh orange juice," Cornelius said, smiling as he raised his gla.s.s. "Cheers."

His politeness was even more creepy this morning as it had been the night before, but she didn't want to act like a scared puppy so she went along with it. They started to eat the foods that were served, and things were quiet for a while as they usually were when the food first arrived. After a few minutes, Alyssa decided to ask something that had always been on her mind.

"Who came out first?" She asked him. "Which monsters revealed themselves to the world first after the undead started to ruin the world?"

Cornelius smiled and put his gla.s.s down. "Good question. The council believes it all started about seventy years ago..."