“If he knew one and only one thing about Rehvenge after all these years, it was that he was a male of worth. In spite of being a pimp and a club owner, a degenerate and a reprobate, an evil-hearted, sadistic SOB . . . he was, and always would be, one of the finest males Trez had ever known.” -Trez about Rehvenge
Rehvenge is the king of the sympaths, an evolutionary offshoot of the vampire race, and is of both species. He's mated to the vampire Ehlena and the two of them are main characters in the seventh book of The Black Dagger Brotherhood series by JR Ward.
Biography[]
Rehvenge was conceived when the sympath king kidnapped and raped his mother, Madalina. She kept his sympath side a secret from everyone, including his sister, Bella.
During his transition, his maternal uncle brought him a prostitute, which was when he learned he had the barb of a sympath male, a piece of anatomy that locks a couple together during sex.
Rehvenge's stepfather, Rempoon, was abusive to Madalina and Bella. One night, when Rehv was old enough and strong enough, Rempoon put Madalina in Havers' clinic for the last time. While she was there with Bella overday, Rehv arranged for the doggen to be out of the house and provoked Rempoon into a fight. Rehvenge inflicted upon him every injury that Madalina had suffered and disturbed the study to make it appear as if there had been a home invasion. Before Rehv had finished with him, he heard the doorbell and assumed it was the doggen giving him fair warning before returning, so he took off knowing that Rempoon would soon die.
Shortly after Rempoon's death, he began using dopamine to control his sympath urges, which worsened when his sister, Bella, was kidnapped by the Lessening Society.[1]
When Zsadist came to ask permission to mate Bella, in a "whose is bigger" ploy, Rehvenge asked if it was because she was pregnant with his young.[1]
When the sympath Princess learned that Xhex and Rehvenge were part sympath, Rehv took on the obligation of fulfilling her blackmail demands. For 25 years, he'd meet her every first Tuesday of the month at a cabin in the Adirondacks where he'd deliver $250,000 worth of rubies and bed her.
To pay off the Princess and keep himself and his family in glymera living standards, he founded ZeroSum and the Iron Mask with his drug, gambling, and prostitution ventures based in them.
When Rehv met Ehlena, the princess became jealous and threatened to tell his secret to the glymera if he didn't move to the sympath colony. To protect his loved ones from the fallout of that, he faked his death by blowing up ZeroSum and turned himself over to the princess. The sympath king took Rehv prisoner, intending to torture him until the princess eventually died at Lash's hands as punishment for attempting to stage a coup.
While the princess escaped to murder the sympath king, the Brotherhood, Ehlena, and Xhex came to Rehv's rescue. Rehvenge killed his half-sister, who'd killed the king, and the royal extended family chose Rehv as the new king.
Now that he has strong relationships- his shellan and the Brotherhood in addition to his trio of long-time friends- to stabilize him it's much easier to manage his instincts, but he still continues to use dopamine to allow him more energy to focus on other things rather than constantly monitoring himself.[2]
He's left the sex and drugs business to organize underground fights between humans because he feels that he can never have enough money.
Personality[]
Although he was a drug dealer, he has curious scruples. For example, when Phury buys heroin from him, Rehv warns him off of it because he knows that, that's the next step in Phury's addiction spiral. Still, he sold it to him and gave advice on how not to OD because he knew his product was good, rather than letting him go to someone else with tainted product.[1] Even though they were "only" human, Rehv looked out for his employees, especially the prostitutes since he knew what it was like to be stuck without any other options than to sell your body.
Rehv can be ruthless when it comes to his enemies, or people who aren't close to him, however he's also quite defensive of those who work for him in addition to his loved ones. Sometimes he will bend logic to justify why doing the right thing will ultimately benefit him rather than admit the possibility that he has a vestigial conscience or a handful of scruples.
According to Marissa, he is a powerful, dominant, and thorough lover.[3]
Physical Description[]
He's 6'6", has amethyst colored eyes, a thick jaw, proud cheekbones[4], and a short black mohawk. He's often seen using a cane with a sword hidden inside and wearing a long fur coat because he often feels cold due to his drug use. He has tattoos on his ribs and stomach.[3] The stars on his chest indicate in the sympath tradition that he committed patricide twice: his biological father and Rempoon; the red ink denotes royal lineage.
Skills[]
- A shrewd businessman, he developed or acquired several successful commercial ventures and managed to avoid the attention of law enforcement towards the less than legal ones, totaling approximately $50 million a year.
- Iron Mask, Sal's, and ZeroSum
Abilities[]
- As a sympath, he can read and manipulate the minds and emotions of people around him.
- Upon becoming king of the sympaths, he can control the spiders and scorpions of the sympath colony.[5]
- As king, he can exert control over the minds of his subjects.[5]
- Unlike Xhex, he can't stand the sun.
Relationships[]
Bella[]
After killing Rempoon, he took his duties of caring for his mother and sister very seriously and wanted to ensure that they had the most comfortable lives he could provide. He entered into his agreement with the princess partly to protect her from the shame of his secret getting out. When their mahmen passed, he vowed that Bella and Nalla would never know that he'd killed Rempoon to save them from the burden of that knowledge.
Ehlena[]
As her patient, Rehvenge was always attracted to her, especially when he found another isolated, lonely soul like himself. He fell in love with her intelligence, her strong sense of ethics, and her personal belief that everyone deserves saving which motivates her career in healthcare.
Madalina[]
Rehvenge had loved his mahmen dearly, but could never understand her love and pride in him given how he'd come to be; he felt he owed her for treating him better than he felt he deserved. After killing Rempoon, he took his duties of caring for his mother and sister very seriously and wanted to ensure that they had the most comfortable lives he could provide. He entered into his agreement with the princess partly to protect her from the shame of watching her son be deported.
Marissa[]
After what happened with Wrath, Marissa was left to pick someone else to feed from. Rehvenge presented himself as a willing male as he truly enjoyed Marissa’s company and looked forward to the times she called to feed. Even though he knew it could never happen due to his sympath side, he often fantasized about making her his shellan. That all ended though when Marissa became mated and ended their meetings.
Sympath Princess[]
While it made him ill just to think about, the pain he inflicted on and the power struggles with the Princess fed his sympath urges. It was the only way he could vent his evil side, allowing him to pass in normal society.
Trez[]
When Trez escaped the Territory, the first sign of habitation he came across was the cabin where Rehvenge met with the Princess. Upon their arrival, he hid and watched what happened, then cared for Rehvenge when he collapsed for the poison after she left. Thereafter, Trez was the only one Rehv trusted to go with him and watch his back. In turn, he helped Trez adjust to both human and vampire society. They became as close as brothers. They've been there for each other so many times that it's no longer a matter of debt and gratitude, but of bonds that go deeper than that.
Xhex[]
Rehvenge has been friends with Xhex for years and they fed from each other. The one time they had sex together they both knew that it was a mistake. Even though the sympath princess was slowly killing him with the scorpion venom she wore, he insisted on continuing their arrangement so that both of them could remain alive and free.
Zsadist[]
When Z came to ask Bella's family to bless their mating, Rehv tested Z by asking him if he was only doing it because he'd knocked up Bella. Z took him to task for saying such crude and demeaning things about his sister in front of her and his mahmen. Other than when Bella made plans to leave Z for not stepping up as a father, and Rehv offered to have a little chat with him, they've gotten along well.
Trivia[]
- He used dopamine to dull his sympath senses and urges
- He wears Cartier for Men.[6]
- His Bentley is bulletproof.[7]
- He eats pizza with a knife and fork.[4]
- Rehvenge sleeps with several comforters because of how cold he gets from the drugs
- The cane he uses for balance because he can't feel his feet or legs has a sword concealed inside.
- He was rendered impotent from the drugs[3]
- When Bella was 7, she called him "Rooster" because of his mohawk.[8]
- He wears a pair of Glock 40's[9]
- Properties owned:
- His Adirondacks Great Camp where the Chosen, Cormia, and Phury reside
- The northwest penthouse in the Commodore that he sold to Saxton.
- A house on the Hudson next to Xhex's and connected to hers via a tunnel.
- The safe house where Madalina lived after Bella's abduction.
- His entirely black wardrobe includes:
Appearances[]
- Lover Eternal
- Lover Awakened
- Lover Revealed
- Lover Unbound
- Lover Enshrined
- Father Mine
- Lover Avenged
- Lover Mine
- Lover Reborn
- Lover at Last
- The Shadows
- Where Winter Finds You
- Lover Unveiled
- Forever
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lover Awakened
- ↑ Where Winter Finds You, Ch. 6
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lover Revealed
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lover Avenged, Ch. 42
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lover Avenged, Ch. 70
- ↑ Lover Enshrined, Ch 6
- ↑ Lover Enshrined, Ch. 8
- ↑ Lover Enshrined, Ch. 23
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lover Enshrined, Ch. 32
- ↑ Lover Enshrined, Ch. 1
- ↑ Lover Avenged, Ch. 36
- ↑ Lover Enshrined, Ch. 35
Gallery[]
