Free Misguided Angel by Melissa de La Cruz

Cordelia Van Alen used to describe the current era as "the twilight of the vampires"--as if a heavy velvet curtain were fal ing across the stage, and it was time for the Blue Bloods to exeunt left. (Mimi always liked those old English words. Exeunt was a vastly more interesting way to shuffle off this mortal coil--as if the vampires were ready to take their bows in front of a standing ovation rather than simply limping away into the sunset.) If this was their end, her end, then it was an intolerable one. Mimi hadn't lived a multitude of lifetimes to end up so alone, without the security blanket of Jack to steady her, without Kingsley's endearing arrogance to keep her on her toes. She wasn't going to give up so easily.
    Mimi opened the door to her new office. A week ago, ever since Forsyth Llewel yn had gone missing after the "bonding disaster"--as everyone cal ed the travesty that had been her bonding day--the Conclave had agitated for a new leader. To her surprise, it was her name that had come up in the draw. A week after the disastrous bonding, Ambrose Barlow, a sprightly gentleman of a hundred and one years (cycle extensions had been granted to al ow Emeritus members of the Conclave to serve), and Minerva Morgan, the sharp-tongued Conclave Elder who had been one of Cordelia Van Alen's closest friends, had met her after school and pressed their case. Mimi had refused to put up her name for Regis--not while Charles was stil alive somewhere--but had agreed to accept the title of Regent, the Coven's titular head in a leaderless time.
    She settled into the cushy, ergonomic office chair she'd ordered, and cal ed up the Committee database on her desktop. There was so much to do: identify the strongest Committee members and promote them to the flagging Conclave, oversee the Venator staff, induct new blood into the junior Committee--the list went on and on. Forsyth had left everything a mess--it seemed the man had had no interest in anything other than the Conclave while he had been in power, and many of the subcommittees (Health of Human Services, Transformation Centers) were grossly understaffed.
    Speaking of Forsyth: no one knew where Bliss was either. The two had probably absconded together, for al Mimi knew. Good riddance. After Forsyth Llewel yn's disappearance, the Venators had found evidence that Mimi's predecessor had been harboring their deepest enemy and was instrumental in bringing the Croatan to the attack at the cathedral. Forsyth was the traitor in the Conclave, the snake in their midst.
    As for Kingsley, Mimi could stil see his face before it had been erased by the subvertio . Looking at her with so much love in his eyes. Where was he now? Was he stil alive? Would she ever see him again? Sometimes when she thought about him, she would find she had been staring into space for hours, just staring at the same blinking cursor on a computer screen, while the hurt in her heart throbbed and ached. Nothing made her feel better, absolutely nothing. She had tried throwing a ridiculous amount of money at the problem, over-shopping on her credit cards, and had consulted an array of healers and therapists. But even after a month, nothing had helped. Without the many Conclave meetings and conference cal s that al owed her to escape her sadness for a little while, she thought she might go insane with despair.
    Of course, even though she was Regent now, she stil had to finish out her senior year. More pressing business had to wait until AP exams were over, according to Trinity, who did not accept any excuses, even the governance of the community, for missing schoolwork. Her mother only al owed her a few hours a day to devote to her new position. It had been enough of a blow that Jack was wanted and missing; Trinity wouldn't let Mimi slack off on her studies as wel .
    If at first she had been reluctant to take the title, Mimi had slowly warmed to the idea, especial y once she'd realized she could use it to her advantage. As the