Slowly they all came to full agreement, though Rose was the last one to come around. Rose had been arguing for the disconnect of individuals to proceed exactly as it had taken place with Louis and Fareed. She didn’t want to think of my heart being stopped. But when Fareed began to name all of the many individuals, and to speak of how any fledglings I ever made in the future would be connected to me—until severed—and to speak of a multitude of other difficulties, she threw up her hands and agreed.

We would do this tomorrow night while I was still in my crypt, safe from any twilight rays lingering in the night sky. And with the great door sealed, and only Fareed and Louis and Gremt with me inside. That way, if Kapetria drew any conclusions from the radio alert, I’d be protected, with Thorne and Cyril outside my door.

Fareed would give me the injection to stop my heart and he’d be there to reverse it but Gremt would also have a syringe and so would Louis.

There was some other equipment involved, drugs, something, but I couldn’t follow it. The main point was we would do it at that time when many young vampires at Court and all over Europe had not risen yet, and hope for the best.

For all we knew not all of the vampires of the Château would experience unconsciousness. It was entirely possible that the very old ones like Seth and Gregory would not at all. They might be weak, failing in vision, even limp and unable to move, but they might remain conscious and able to present a deterrent if Kapetria, intrigued by the alert, tried to enter the Château. After all Mekare and Maharet, old as they were, had managed to keep functioning when Akasha had been decapitated, but of course that was only for a few seconds…ah, but who really knew?

I could focus upon only one aspect of this: my heart would stop; the blood would stop circulating; but nothing else would really happen to my brain or my body. Amel would remain in me. I’d be safe in my coffin.

Whatever the case, the crypt of the Château was the best place to do it, and the more ancient ones would be gathered on the stairway that led down to the crypt.

Benji picked up as soon as we called.