Unraveling Mordecai by Marisa Maichel (types of ebook readers txt) 📕

The driver pulled up to the station building. Across the street were religious protestors-it looked like Westboro Baptist Church members. I showed my ID and was led to a makeup room. A man with caramel skin and silver eyeliner introduced himself as Jimmy, and he said he would do my makeup and hair.
“How long have you been growing out your hair?” he asked, picking up a brush that I recognized as a Mason Pearson brush.
“It’s been long since I was fourteen,” I told him. “The white tips are a trait of our family. Even Louis has white tips, and he’s the only one who doesn’t have yellow eyes. Emerson eyes, some call them.”
“Whatever you call them, they’re beautiful,” Jimmy complimented. “Now, how much makeup do you usually wear?”
“I used to wear eyeliner and black lipstick,” I said. “But I stopped doing that except for special occasions a few years ago. Now I usually go au naturel. I also used to wear earrings.”
“I can see the scars,” Jimmy said, examining my face. “You’ve got a nice complexion. Small pores. What kind of blood do you drink, human or animal?”
“Human,” I responded.
“That explains it. Animal drinkers usually rot from the inside out unless they have human blood every now and then. It’s a slow death.”
“My father always said that animal drinkers were an abomination.”
Jimmy laughed. “I’m an animal drinker.”
Well, that was embarrassing. For me, I mean.
“But you say that animal drinkers rot?”
“Eventually, but it takes years and years,” Jimmy said. “I think I’ve got time.”
“You could always drink bagged blood.”
“Tried it. Hated it. Okay, is your hair naturally straight, or do you straighten it? I’m thinking a low ponytail. Is that okay with you?”
I answered his questions and consented to the ponytail. He fixed my hair up and used a black elastic to keep it tied together. Then he applied a thin layer of foundation and powder, and then lined my eyes in black. After some thought, he decided to paint my lips a slightly pinker color.
I actually looked handsome when he was done.
“Do you usually prefer prey or predator?” I asked.
“I actually prefer wolf, if I can get it,” he said. “But if I can’t, cow’s blood will work. It’s against my religion to eat any pork products.”
“My girlfriend’s Jewish.”
He laughed. “So am I.”
“Stay away from her.”
“No worries-I only like men. Particularly rich, handsome men. I wouldn’t go for her, but I might go for your dad.”
I nearly barfed. He laughed at the look on my face, and finished my makeup by spraying a finishing spray.
The wardrobe girl handed me an expensive white shirt and black pants with dress shoes and socks. She allowed me a curtain, at least, so I could dress in private. Her name was Sheila.

I sat on a couch beside my father a few minutes later, David on his other side. Sarah sat beside me, dressed in a formal knee-length crimson dress with rose detailing. Her hair was done up in an intricate curly updo, her makeup applied perfectly by Jimmy. Her lips were a brownish red, her eyes had silver and blue makeup around them.
Her ring was clearly visible on her finger, her nails painted a dark red. I’d never noticed before how unusual she was. Her skin was dark, but her eyes were bright green, her hair was thick and curly, almost always tied up, and she seemed too beautiful to be real.
I reached for her hand, and she smiled at me.
“Okay,” said a man coming over with a microphone clipped to his shirt and earbuds in. “It’s nice to meet you, Your Excellency,” he said to my father, shaking his hand. “I’m Cal Zigg. I’m the producer of your show.”
“It is nice to meet you, as well,” Father said. “As you know, I am Prince Mordecai, and these are my sons, Reese and David, and Reese’s betrothed, Sarah.”
Cal shook all of our hands and kissed Sarah’s knuckles. Someone started playing gothic music and then Kate Un appeared. Oh, great. I knew that Uncle Soren had promised her a position on this station in order to keep her mouth shut about their brief affair.
I sat up straight and urged Sarah to do the same. David looked nervous. He kept messing with his collar, and Father had to keep adjusting it.
Kate Un sat in the host’s chair and greeted us with a nod. Then she plastered a fake smile on her face as the assistant cameraman counted down.
“We are on in three, two…one.”
“Hello, and welcome to Live Talk, the only live show on the first ever vampire channel. I’m here with Prince Mordecai and some other very special guests. Prince Mordecai, why don’t you introduce us?”
Insolent bitch.
“Twenty-six years ago, I met a young woman,” Father said. “This was before I married Marina Santorino and produced Reese, who, as you can see, is on my left, along with his beautiful fiancee, Sarah Cresley. On my right, there is a child I didn’t know existed until very recently. He found me and told me who he was, and I believe him. Now, there have been many fakes and attempts to claim familial bonding, but this is a true connection. I know it is, because my gut instinct is never wrong. This is my son, David.”
The camera panned to David, who abashedly looked at his lap. Then he looked up.
“I never knew who my father was until three weeks ago,” he said. “There has never been a man in my life. I had to learn how to be a man on my own. Now that I know who my father is, I’m eager to get to know him, along with my brother and other relatives.”
“How did you find Prince Mordecai?” Kate asked.
“After my mother…” He cleared his throat. “After my mother passed away, I went through her old journals and found Prince Mordecai’s name. I read the whole book, and learned about the affair. I looked him up by name, and found his photo online. I felt an instant connection when I saw him. I mean, the similarities, the hair and eyes alone, it’s uncanny.”
My father wrapped his arm around David’s shoulders and pecked him on the cheek.
“Prince Reese, what are your thoughts about all of this?” Kate asked.
“I’m as excited as Dad is,” I said. “I’ve always wanted an older brother. Little did I know that I actually had one all along.”
“Sarah?” Kate asked. “How do you feel about all this?”
“I’m happy for Reese and his family,” she said. “It’s like getting a brand-new family member. There’s always room for more.”
“Sarah is correct,” Father said. “Like she said, there’s always room for more. I’ve gotten many, many fakes, vampires claiming to be related to us, but they’ve always been proven false. This one is real. David is, in fact, my son.”
“What fantastic news,” Kate said, layering on the sweetness. “A new family member for the Emerson-Nicolai clan! This is Kate Un, reporting for Live Talk on the new station VTV!”
Sarah clung to me and gave a big smooch on the cheek.
Then Uncle Soren began raging.
“Outrageous!” he shouted. He pointed at David. “That boy is no more your son than Alexander is mine! This is absolutely ridiculous! I don’t believe for one second that he’s related to us! I don’t care what your goal, is, boy, but it ends here and now!”
He moved toward David threateningly, but Father planted himself in front of David.
“Touch him and I’ll rip your arms off, Soren,” he promised. “The DNA test will prove that he’s my son. I don’t care what you do to me, but if you hurt David, Louis will have a father to bury.”
“That was dark, Uncle Mordecai,” Louis said. My father and his father both ignored him. Uncle Soren continued to glare at David, who cowered and quavered under the look of the most powerful vampire in the world.
Sarah clung even tighter, and I realized without looking at her that my uncle had frightened her.
Beckett appeared. He looked at Sarah. “Ca va, Sarah?”
“Oui, Daddy, je vais bien,” She replied.
“Il t’a blessé ?”
“Non, je vais bien, papa, vraiment. Qu’est-ce que tu fais ici de toute façon?”
“Je suis venu aider Mordecai. J’ai été engagé comme producteur pour un de ses spectacles.” He nodded to me. “Reese.”
When he left, I asked Sarah what that was about.
“He heard Soren’s yelling and came to check on me,” she said. “Your dad hired him as a producer for one of the new shows.”
“That’s…good,” I said.
“It’s fantastic,” Sarah said. “Daddy needs money. He and Mom are finally getting officially divorced.”
“He’s still wearing his glasses.”
“He says it’s due to habit, but I think his vision hasn’t improved any. That’s the tough part about being part human. You’ll always have some human qualities.”
“He doesn’t like me.”
“No, Reese, that’s not the case. It’s actually…I shouldn’t say this, but you’ll find out anyway. He’s jealous of you.”
“Jealous? Of me? Why?” I asked suspiciously.
“You’ve been able to protect me better than he ever has. You’re young and virile, and he wishes he had your body. He also thinks you’re more attractive than he is. He’s jealous because you’re my first love, and he wasn’t around to see me fall for you. He’s also a little wary, since you’re a vampire.”
“He’s a vampire, too.”
“But he wasn’t until recently, and he had to have the help of a goddess. Our ancestor, even. I still can’t believe I’m part goddess. But anyway, you shouldn’t take his rudeness seriously. I’ll have a talk with him if that makes you feel better.”
She pecked my jaw. And then we realized that the cameras were still recording everything.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Shit, shit, shit.” Father paced around the living room. “Shit, damn, fuck. Fucking bitch. Who knows how many people saw that nastiness? The one that is my brother?”
“Approximately a hundred million, give or take,” Louis said. Father glared at him.
Sarah was in our room, singing “Top of the World” by the Carpenters. I was sitting on the couch. Sarah came down, wearing gray yoga pants and a white jacket.
“Aren’t you hot, babe?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, “But not because of the jacket.”
I grinned at her sudden burst of vanity. But a part inside of me groaned. She sat between me and Louis, who was currently flipping through cartoons. He settled on Baby Looney Tunes. While he and Sarah laughed at the characters’ antics, I wondered what was wrong with me. Sarah never used to annoy me this much. Okay, maybe I did blame her a bit for saying too much on camera, but it really wasn’t her fault.
I’d long ago accepted that she wasn’t perfect…or had I?