Regardless, we were being overly protective even though the building was heavily guarded. None of us wanted to take a chance if we had another mole.
I brought up the video of Sam and Steven’s interview.
I’d been distracted during the live show. Luna had started crying that night, then Ellie followed suit. Both had been showing similar symptoms for the last several days to the ones that Rorie had when we’d been at Jo’s house in Maine—warm to the touch and crying even after they’d been fed. I suspected they were hungry for blood, and it turned out that I was right. Now I was adding blood into all their formulas.
I had my pen and pad poised to take notes as I fast-forwarded past the small talk at the beginning of the segment.
Violet Keller sat in a fabric chair while Steven, Sam, and Eugene were seated on a couch angled toward Violet.
“Steven,” the brunette reporter said. “What you’re telling us is that humans can’t become vampires by being bitten from someone like you?”
Steven nodded, his black hair tied at his nape, shining in the studio lights. “That’s correct. As natural-born vampires, we have nothing in our physiology that can make a human into one of us. The recessive gene we’re born with only allows us to turn if we so choose. Even then, there could be factors that prevent us from becoming immortal. We need our vampire father’s blood to make the change. If he’s dead, then we can’t activate our recessive gene.”
Like his dad, Sam wore his hair in a low ponytail, looking deliciously scrumptious in his white shirt that was open at the collar. No tie for Sam. They made him feel too claustrophobic. Both Steven and Sam had their shirtsleeves rolled three quarters of the way up their forearms, displaying large-faced, black-strapped watches that were designed for military missions.
I was so caught up in ogling my husband that I’d missed Violet’s next question, so I toggled back a few seconds.
Violet leaned in slightly toward Steven. “Which means that if a vampire chooses not to activate their gene, then they’ll grow old and will eventually die like a human. Correct?”
“That’s right,” Steven said.
Violet curled her dark hair around her ear in a flirty sort of way. The pretty reporter was dressed in a red skirt that crept above the knee, showing off her long, tanned legs and red-and-black pointy-tip heels that had to be at least three inches high. “If your people have a choice on immortality and the vampire father is alive, why wouldn’t they choose eternal life?”
Sam’s dimples were showing as he chuckled. “One reason is family. Natural-born females can’t have children if they turn.”
“This is all very interesting, and I have many more questions related to how you grow your population, but we are pressed for time. And I want to discuss a problem we’re seeing in this country.” She set her attention on Eugene. “Mr. Delgado, what is the human government doing to halt Adam Emery’s genetic-altering program? It’s been deadly to several humans, as we know from interviews they’ve done with the media. But is Mr. Emery and his corporation, Intech, still in business?”
The hefty man in a sharp suit and shiny shoes sat up straighter. “I can’t divulge classified information. What I can say is Camden Industries and Intech Corporation had been supplying weapons and technology for our military forces. We have severed ties and dissolved all contracts with them. We’re also working closely with Steven Mason and his organization to provide for those families who have recently suffered from the genetic-altering program.”
Violet’s short, bobbed hair fell forward as she briefly lowered her gaze to the notecards in her lap. “Sam, your father explained a little about your physiology, and it’s not the folklore humans have read in books or watched on TV. So tell us, how exactly does Adam’s program change a human into the animallike creatures we’ve seen so far? To give our viewers a reminder of a product of the program, on-screen are before and after images of Rianne Aberdeen.”
I shivered seeing my sister as a normal human, then as something that would probably scare a tiger. Her cheekbones and forehead extended outward. Her nails were sharp and long, curling toward her fingertips, and her canines sent a chill through me.
“I’m not an expert on the genetics of Adam’s program,” Sam said. “But the animallike image of Rianne is proof that the program does not produce a vampire or what Adam deems super soldiers. More importantly, we know of two other victims like Rianne. They’ve come to us for help. Unfortunately, the outcome is short-lived. In fact, death can be instant if the candidate has a compromised immune system or suffers from an incurable disease. If not, then it’s only a matter of time. Anyone on the programwilldie.”
“There’s no cure or a way to reverse the process?” Violet asked.
“Not at this time,” Steven said. “Will there be? It’s hard to say.”
Violet crossed her ankles. “I want to go back to the natural-born concept. You were born human with a distinctive gene that can turn you into an immortal creature during puberty. How do you think vampires evolved? Is it the same as human evolution where genetic variations started to adapt? And what is a vampire’s purpose on earth?”
Sam and Mr. Delgado looked at Steven.
Steven grinned. “To answer your first question, we would need a lot more time to discuss the evolution of a vampire. But like humans, we arose from a species of organisms that developed through the natural selection process. As for your second question about what our purpose is on this planet, I would ask you the same. What’s a human’s purpose? Why are humans here? For that matter, why are animals, insects, etc.? You get my drift.”
Violet’s manicured eyebrows lifted as she smiled at Steven. “Point taken. We only have time for one more question. How do the vampire and human governments plan on stopping Adam Emery?”
“All we can say on the matter is, we’re in talks right now about that,” Steven said. “I would like to reiterate that we will take care of those victims’ families who have been affected by Adam’s one-hundred-thousand-dollar offer to sign up for his program. How? Well, we’re also in discussions on several different options to help the victims. We realize that whatever we do won’t bring back loved ones, but we hope that our efforts will help in some way.”
“Any final comments?” Violet asked.
“Yes,” Sam said. “To add to what my father said, our mission is and has always been to protect those who can’t protect themselves, which includes humans as well as vampires. We have laws and a military just like our human counterparts. We want peace. We strive for freedom, prosperity, and to raise our families in a safe environment. We’re not the enemy.”
“Over the coming months,” Steven said, “Our plan is to start a dialogue with humans and listen to how our government can help them.”
Violet straightened. “This interview has been informative, and I thank each of you for joining me tonight. I know there are more questions my viewers have that we haven’t touched on.” She faced the camera. “If you have questions for Steven Mason, Sam Mason, or Eugene Delgado, you can email them or send your letters via our postal system. The information is scrolling at the bottom of your screen. Until next time, I’m Violet Keller, CBC 4.”
I clicked out of the video and jotted down a couple of notes, underlining the one about contacting Violet. She’d given her viewers the TV station’s email address, and I wanted to ask if she would forward their emails to me. If we were to get along with humans, then I needed to read every piece of correspondence.
