Sharkbait Down Under

Consuela Mardona’s POV

My Mermaid lawyer, Francisco de Leon, booked me on a flight for Australia that left just before midnight on January first. Of course, nothing in my new life was easy. A week after my shotgun wedding to Master Vespucci, followed by my betrayal of my Coven, a new Master was in place for Mexico City.

Emily and the Masters had cleaned house, and only a dozen Mexican vampires above newborn age remained. Esmerelda, the petite vampire from the Cancun branch, was the oldest of the remaining Mexican vampires and claimed leadership. The way Esmerelda helped Alpha Steven in the takedown of Mateo and the other Cancun vampires was in her favor. She was strong enough to hold it for now, and Emily’s recommendation sealed it with Cyprian.

It wasn’t without controversy; some Vampire Council members wanted to destroy every Mexican Coven vampire and start over.

Other Masters wanted to keep the Coven but install new leadership of their choice. Emily explained that as vampires became strong enough to threaten leadership, they either had to move “up or out.” Moving out meant going to another Coven. Moving up meant killing your Master.

There were plenty of strong vampires eager to fill the power void. The prospect of controlling Vespucci’s fortune by controlling me made it even more attractive. I was glad that Cyprian and other Masters stood up for me and said no. The Supreme Vampire would not allow me to be used as a pawn again. I’d risked too much to become a plaything for another vampire.

That didn't mean they were happy with the situation. Esmerelda was the new Master, and everyone knew Esmerelda had betrayed her Coven. How could she be trusted to follow Council rules?

I was a youngling, and everyone knew what I’d done. I’d betrayed my Coven to the werewolves, then poisoned my Master and the next two in line with tainted blood. How could I be trusted in a Coven?

I didn’t trust Esmerelda, and she couldn’t trust me or control my fortune. I declined continued Mexico City Coven membership politely, leaving me without a Master for now. Under Council law, Newborns and Younglings by Council law must be under the supervision of a Master who could train us properly. It made sense; vampirism required you to learn how to entrance, feed, and move on without endangering the Coven. Undisciplined and feral vampires risked exposing all supernaturals. Rogue vampires were a danger to everyone, so they are killed on sight.

Emily carefully examined each of the Mexico City survivors, disposing of those who didn’t possess the skills for our world. Esmerelda was allowed to keep two in Mexico City, while eight different North American covens took one each. The Council made exceptions for those Covens to exceed their maximum size limits.

I was no exception to that rule. Emily gave me a week to choose before she left for Australia. Her coven in Boston, along with Masters Pontalba’s in New Orleans, Master Bongino’s in Chicago, and Master Molari’s in Sydney, all had open offers. I chose to go to Australia for three reasons; Vicki trusted Master Alessandro, he promised I could live on my own, and there were far fewer vampires on his territory.

All of this was going through my mind as I took the tickets from him. “You’re a rich woman, Consuela, and your name and face are out there. Vampire or not, there are people out there who might want to take advantage of you.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Not traveling alone, for one. It would be best if you traveled with a supernatural or two that you could trust to watch your back. When you travel, stay with supernaturals if you can. Can you ask one of the local vampires to protect you?”

I thought about it for a bit. I had been a vampire for a little more than a year, and I’d learned not to trust anyone. I’d learned quickly to avoid the older vampires and limit my interactions with the other new turns in the Coven. “I need protection FROM vampires more than anything else.”

He laughed, knowing my whole story. “I didn’t expect you would. All the werewolves are long gone, so that’s out. Talk to Master Alessandro; he might be able to send someone. I have an idea too, but I need to make a phone call first.”

I caught Master Alessandro right after he dropped Master Cyprian and Master Emily at the airport in Sydney. She was getting ready to board her flights back to Boston after attending Vicki’s wedding. “All other Coven vampires have left Mexico City by now,” he said after I described the concern. “You’re connecting through Los Angeles, so perhaps I can ask Master Caroline Grey to help?”

I laughed at that. “I don’t know Master Grey or any of the people she might send.”

“Give me some time, and I’ll see what I can do. Do you think you’ll be safe flying to Los Angeles?”

“I think so,” I said. That is how I ended up in an armored limousine, escorted by security contractors to the airport with my travel companions. I wasn’t surprised to see my lawyer flying with me as far as Los Angeles, but I was surprised when he introduced me to Maribel and said she’d be with me to Sydney.

The young mermaid was friendly, and she reminded me of what I was like before my forced change. “You realize we’re going to be in an airplane together for a whole day,” I said.

“I know, isn’t it great? I’ve never been outside Mexico,” she said.

“Why go?”

She told me about Mermaids and the difficulties they had in finding husbands with how scattered their population was. “It was Master Alessandro who recommended it. Now that Vicki is free and married, Alessandro is planning to meet in Sydney with the werewolves and mermaids. He hopes they can reach an agreement on the structure of the Australian Council.”

Alessandro had told me about the structure they had planned; it was truly revolutionary. When I got trained as a newly-turned vampire, mermaids and werewolves were our enemies. “Are you moving to Australia?”

“Only if I find a husband there. Vicki insisted that all single mermaids of age attend, whether they were heads of families or not. She’s even paying for tickets and hotel rooms for those who can’t afford to come otherwise. Alessandro said I might be able to meet a hundred single Mermen in one place. Watching you and being stuck on a plane for a day is a small price to pay for the chance to meet ten times as many eligible bachelors as I’ve met before.”

It made sense once she explained it. Vampires didn’t have emotions, we didn’t love like that, and we didn’t have mates. We were highly sexual, both for feeding and pleasure, and we had our favorites, but nothing like the wolves.

We arrived in Los Angeles without incident. Francisco arranged for Airport Security to escort us to the first class lounge to wait for our connecting flight. We were relaxing with drinks in a private area when I heard high heels rushing across the floor towards us.

“Consuela!”

“I can’t believe you’re here,” her identical twin said as she hugged me. “We can’t thank you enough for your help escaping from those men,” Makani whispered. “Consuela, these are my parents, Jack and Kaia.”

Her mother pulled me into a hug. “Thank you,” she said as she cried on my shoulder.

“Pull that table over and join us,” I told them after introductions were complete. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Alessandro called Steven, and Steven suggested we take a vacation down under since we missed the wedding,” Noelani said. “Mom and Dad came down to San Diego with us to drop our men off at the base.”

“We couldn’t turn down a free Australian vacation,” Jack agreed. “We’re your extra security.”

Four werewolves and a mermaid ought to do it.

We exchanged stories about what happened after I left them in the cell that last time. “I feel so bad that this happened,” I said. “Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?”

“None of it was your fault,” Noelani said.

“You risked yourself to get us out, and you refused the reward,” Makani added.

“I don’t need the money; I have more than I know what to do with now.”

Francisco nodded at that. “There is something you could do,” he said. “Sue her.”

They looked at Francisco like he had two heads. Kaia spoke first. “What? Aren’t you supposed to be her lawyer?”

“I’m supposed to help her with what she needs,” Francisco replied. “You six sue Vespucci’s estate over your kidnapping. We settle the lawsuit quickly and quietly, so don’t let a lawyer bend you over for a percentage; pay them by the hour because legal fees aren’t tax-deductible. You six get millions in compensation, and I work my magic so the money comes out of assets that we may not recover anyway. I can work out a deal with the government to call it victim compensation, after all.”

“Will they go for that,” I asked.

“Of course. It will mean giving up claims on a chunk of your estate, but I doubt you’d see it anyway. As long as you aren’t personally profiting from the illegal activities, the government will be satisfied.” He looked over at the twins. “I’m sure you’ve been hearing from lawyers already.”

“Only a hundred or so,” Makani agreed.

“I’m sure there is a werewolf lawyer you can bring in on this, and I know Mermaid lawyers in Mexico they can work with on the lawsuit. Everyone wins.”

“I’ll talk to the others,” Noelani said.

Our talks had taken us to the boarding call. I thanked Francisco for his help, and we boarded the plane to Australia.

It was going to be a fun trip.