“Give me one moment.” The professor vacated his chair and the sounds of him puttering around his library sizzled through the computer speakers.
Gnawing on her thumbnail, Cassandra waited anxiously. Her emotions were a tangled mix. Obviously, if she went to West Texas she would be going into a trap, but she couldn’t ignore Aimee’s plea if it was sincere.
Huffing a little, Dr. Summerfield settled into his creaky chair with a very old-looking book clasped in his veiny hands. “Okay, according to this account, vampires have been attempting to enslave witches for thousands of years, but have found it very difficult to actually accomplish for an extended period of time. There have been multiple attempted purges of the full-blood witches. Vampires fear them because they cannot control them.”
“So Aimee is not enslaved to the vampire?” Cassandra frowned at the thought. The woman’s distress had felt genuine in the dream, but then again, it had been just a dream.
“Well, she might be. Vampires apparently can enslave a witch, but it’s not on the same level they can enslave a human. Once a vampire feeds a human its blood a few times, that human will do anything for the vampire. The human feels an intense, passionate love for the vampire.” Dr. Summerfield read a few more passages, turning a page. “Witches, though, are not fully captivated. Though the bond forces them to obey, they don’t ever feel the euphoric love the humans do. Therefore, witches were known to find ways around the blood bond to betray their vampire masters and destroy them.”
“Such as contacting a dhamphir in a dream and asking her to go help you kill your vampire master.” Cassandra rubbed her face vigorously and groaned. “So she’s legit, and I’m really doing this.”
Dr. Summerfield set the book down and rested his hands on it. It bothered Cassandra to see how his fingers trembled. He had suffered a minor stroke a few months back and Jeff was worried about him. Cassandra could understand why. If anything happened to her mother, she didn’t know how she could handle it.
“Cassandra, I don’t like asking you to go into dangerous situations, but if this Aimee is a real, true full-blood witch, you must save her and bring her to me. A witch is very rare and should be protected.”
“So it’s not enough that she’s an innocent woman being forced into slavery by a man?” Cassandra asked sarcastically.
With a weary sigh, the old man shook his head. “Cassandra, please. You know what I’m saying. Aimee is a rarity. The vampires did a very good job eliminating the race. The black witches have only a smidgen of their abilities and that’s why they turn to demons for power. Aimee could be a great force for good in this world if she were free of this vampire. The Assembly could use her.”
“I get that,” Cassandra answered. “But she’s also a young woman who is being forced into slavery. That’s enough reason for me to want to go save her and not turn her over to your cronies.”
“Cassandra,” Dr. Summerfield leaned in toward the webcam, “I have told you before that there are dark forces gathering. The Assembly has been hearing murmurings of something dire percolating in the world of the supernatural.”
“You make it sound like the vampire hunters think the baddies are making coffee.” Cassandra shrugged. “I’m not joining any of your secret societies, vampire hunting groups, or the mysterious Assembly. I’m just trying to live my life and provide for my mother.”
Dr. Summerfield sighed, rubbing his forehead lightly. “You give me such headaches.”
“Look, I’ll go save Aimee. But once she’s free of this bozo, she can do what she wants. It’s her life.”
“It would be safer for her if she came here,” Dr. Summerfield protested.
“I don’t know that.”
“Throughout your childhood I made sure you were safe.”
“And now I take care of myself and my mom.” Cassandra folded her arms over her knees and glared over them. “Look, I knew contacting you would possibly dredge up the whole ‘Cassandra, you should be a vampire hunter’ argument, but I don’t have the need to go kill daddy over and over again like other dhamphirs. Haven’t you driven it into my head my whole life how my father sent my mother away so she would be safe? That it was a noble thing to do?”
“Your father is a good man,” Dr. Summerfield said a tad defensively. “I consider him a friend.”
“And yet you keep me a big ol’ secret.”
“Because it’s the right thing to do.” Dr. Summerfield sounded weary. “I do what I feel is right.”
“Exactly. And I have to do what I feel is right. I love you, you know that. But I’m not going to turn Aimee over to you or your cronies.”
“Will you at least tell her about me and my work and give her the option?”
With a sharp exhalation, Cassandra lifted a shoulder.
“What does that mean?” Dr. Summerfield smiled.
“Sure. I’ll tell her.”
“Thank you. And you really should consider joining the Assembly.”
“Uh huh. Whatevs.”
The old man sighed. “Ah, Cassandra. As stubborn as your father.”