by Eric Asher
Casper frowned at the parrot. “Do you think he’s sending more spies?”
The parrot gave what amounted to a shrug. “If Zola and the innkeeper think something’s a good idea, doubting them is generally a bad idea.”
Alexandra gave an exaggerated sigh as she made her way back through the saloon-style doors and shivered. “I don’t think I’ve ever had that happen before. I have to make a mental note never to shift around the cu siths. That was disgusting.”
Bubbles and Peanut trotted along, happily panting and rubbing up against either side of Alexandra.
“Dimitri dropped by earlier.” Frank pulled a long black metal case out from behind the counter and set it in front of Casper as he undid the latches. Inside was a rifle that looked more like a cannon, and nestled in the top of the case were dozens of bomb lances.
“How are Dimitri and Andi?” Graybeard asked. “Not sure if Dimitri shouldn’t have held onto that beast himself.”
“I tried to talk him into that.” Frank ran his fingers across the stock. “He said I should take it so I have a better chance of protecting Sam.” A ghost of a smile flickered across Frank’s face. “But they’re good. As good as you can expect. They don’t understand exactly what happened to Damian, but they know he’s in danger.”
“I don’t know that any of us understand exactly what happened to him,” Alexandra said, picking up a bomb lance. It looked like a miniature torpedo and she ran her fingers along one of the fins.
“True enough.”
Bubbles whined at Alexandra’s feet. She reached down and scratched the cu sith’s ruff.
“Aye, well it do no good for them to get themselves killed. Perhaps it be for the best for him to give you that cannon.”
“So you think I should keep it?”
“Absolutely.” Casper took the bomb lance from Alexandra and laid it back into the case. “Bubbles and Peanut have done an excellent job guarding Death’s Door. But what if something shows up that’s beyond them?”
“Beyond the cu siths?” Frank laughed. “I’ll be too dead to worry about that.”
Alexandra pursed her lips. “That’s probably a fair point.”
Frank shrugged. “I’d been thinking about driving back over to Dimitri’s to give it back to him. But maybe I’ll hold on to it. Just in case.” He shut the lid, but this time he didn’t lock it.
“Jerky?” Casper asked, holding the bag out to Graybeard.
“That garbage has more fires than the Burning Lands. Last thing I need.”
“Yeah,” Alexandra said, dragging out the word. “There’s not much that can set a water witch on fire, but that qualifies.”
Frank grinned. “I’ll take that as a testimonial, thank you very much.”
Casper’s phone buzzed, and she frowned at the screen. It was an expression Frank had seen more than once, and it was rarely followed by anything good.
“What’s wrong?”
Casper glanced up from her phone. “More Fae sightings. They don’t think they were Unseelie, but I’m afraid most of us don’t trust our eyes right now. Those spies, the ones who fell under the Unseelie control, it kind of fucked with our brains.”
Alexandra nodded. “I have to hand it to Nudd for that infiltration. It was brilliant in a terrible way. And I can see how it would leave a lasting damage among your people.”
“Lasting?” Casper said with a laugh. “It hasn’t even been a week. But yeah, I understand what you’re saying. That’s not something we can unsee.” She typed something into her phone. “Frank, I’ll let you know if I hear more. But be on your guard.”
“I’m sure if any Fae comes here looking for trouble, Bubbles and Peanut will just eat them again.”
Alexandra froze as she was petting the cu sith. “Is that what’s so sticky in their fur right now?”
Frank hid a laugh behind a cough. “No, no, I’m quite sure we got any residuals washed out of their fur. That’s probably the peanut butter.”
Alexandra grimaced and rubbed her fingers together. “I guess that’s better.”
They stayed there for a time, chatting and catching up, before the sirens roared to life outside.
CHAPTER FIVE
Sam cursed as she watched Cizin step to the edge of the well and jump in. When he’d first told her they had to go into the well, and there they’d find an entrance to a hidden cave, she thought it was a joke. If it had been Damian, it definitely would’ve been a joke. But Cizin didn’t seem to have that sense of humor, and even as she protested, she realized he had no reason to joke about it here.
“I am not getting my fur in that,” Luna muttered, peering down the well beside Sam. “Cizin might be able to hide his fur, but I can’t.”
Vicky glanced at the hole and then back at Luna. “I’ll wait with Luna. In case you need any help.”
Sam turned back to the well and hid the small smile on her face.
“I’ll stay with them,” Dominic said. “My shoulders aren’t going to fit down that hole.”
Sam grinned at the wide enforcer.
“Very well.” Vik shuffled into the springhouse next to Sam. “I’ll follow right behind you.”
“That way we can drown together? Awesome.”
Vik blinked at Sam. “Have you … ever tried to hold your breath as a vampire?”
Sam frowned. “No.”
A slow smile spread across Vik’s face. “You can probably worry a little less about drowning.” The old vampire patted her on the back.
“You staying here?” Sam asked the furball on her shoulder.
Jasper chuffed at her.
“Suit yourself.”
Sam took a deep breath and looked down into the hole. Wherever Cizin had gone, she could now see a pale light barely reaching into the well below her from an opening. Without thinking any more, Sam jumped in.
The frigid water soaked her to the bone, and she had a brief moment of panic when she realized she hadn’t taken her phone out of her pocket. The panic subsided as she used the well’s stone sides to push herself deeper into the water. The new phones Vik had gotten for the Pit were waterproof, something else she’d have to remember.
Her mind trailed off, remembering the various phones and electronics she and Damian had killed off over the years. Some lost to a traditional drowning in a toilet, others beneath a tidal wave of soda or beer, and the occasional device to a prank gone wrong.
Jasper nuzzled into her neck, and she was grateful for the warmth in that cold water.
Her feet still hadn’t reached the bottom when the light blossomed in front of her, and the wall curled in where it led to the glow emanating from a narrow pipe. Sam thought it was probably a very good thing Dominic had stayed on the surface. There was no way in hell that vampire was squeezing into that tube.
Sam didn’t think of herself as claustrophobic, but as her toes and heels banged against the pipe, barely moving enough to propel herself forward, she felt a small panic rising in her chest. Before it could take hold, her fingertips found the edge of the pipe, and she pulled herself through.
Above her, water shimmered, and Cizin’s shadow moved around the small damp chamber. Sam broke the surface and gasped for air. But Vik had a point. Her lungs weren’t burning like when she used to dive to the bottom of the pool with Damian. The gasp was more out of habit than an actual need for air.
Jasper shook himself on her shoulder, sending a cascade of water splattering up into her face and splashing on the walls around them. It missed the already soaked Cizin before he held out his hand and pulled Sam up into the circular chamber.
A domed roof crowned the room, not unlike the springhouse itself, but this dome was complete. Sam brushed wet black hair out of her eyes and her thanks to Cizin died on her lips when she saw the wall beyond him.
A bookcase, at least 3 feet wide, and 5 feet high, held an array of old tomes in the reflection of the blinding flashlight in Cizin’s hand. Every book looked like it should’ve been in the vampire archives. Sam didn’t turn aro
und when water splashed behind her. Vik’s voice filled the room as Cizin helped him out of the pool. Sam slid one of the old books off the shelf and flipped it over. She wasn’t surprised when she found the preservation runes etched into the cover. The entire chamber could flood, and no harm would come to those books.
“This looks like Vassili, alright.”
Sam turned around to face Vik and held up a book. “I think it’s in German.”
Vik nodded. “Austrian.” He took the book from Sam and ran his fingers over the aged green leather. It had likely been centuries old before someone carved the preservation runes into it. “We thought all of these were lost.”
“What are they?” Cizin asked.
“Our history.” Vik looked up at Sam and glanced at Cizin. “From the elder migrations across Europe to our time in the Caribbean. There was a time we were sheltered in the Bahamas, or what is now known as the Bahamas, when our ship was stolen.”
Vik frowned at the bookcase and stepped toward it. He slid the old tome back into place and ran his finger across the spines. “Vassili told us all of this was lost. He must have hidden it, but why? And why bring it here?”
Cizin grunted. “It is easier to control a people who do not know their past. It is not only books in this place.”
Sam and Vik both turned toward the death bat. There, mounted to the wall above an ancient steel folding chair, was a small shelf of knickknacks. Sam didn’t think much of what she saw, although she assumed the small silver boxes and ornate crosses held significant value.
But Vik stopped in his tracks. “That’s not possible.”
Sam stepped closer to get a better look. “What is it?”
“A long time ago, centuries, a small church gave us shelter. Near the border of France and Germany. They had crypts on unconsecrated ground. They gave us a blessing, mounted with the bloodstones of demons, and said to be their order’s most powerful artifact.”
Sam looked again at the cross, at the four stones laid into each branch. They weren’t rubies as she’d first thought, but bloodstones, trapped demons, and who knew how long those things had been there.
“All signs of that church were obliterated. Burned down, their congregation hung for heresy. I thought every bit of them had been lost, every trace of their history, except for our memory. And now, here, why would Vassili have this?”
“He has some pretty weird shit in the archives, too,” Sam said. “I mean, I guess it’s our weird shit now, but he put a lot of it in there.”
“We’ll get everything back to the archives when we can,” Vik said. “If I don’t survive this, please preserve this place. There is more history in these books than you can imagine. The fact he would’ve hidden it from his own Pit is distressing.”
“I’ll do what I can,” Cizin said.
Sam nodded in agreement as bubbles rose in the water behind them. The sudden splashing drew the attention of all three vampires. Luna exploded out of the pipe, wet fur dripping water down her face and wings.
“It got Dominic!” she shouted, her voice echoing all around them.
Sam froze, but Jasper dove into the water, hurrying back through the pipe and tunnel they’d come in from.
“What did?” Vik crouched and held his hand out to Luna.
The death bat shook her head. “Hurry!”
With that, Luna disappeared under the water, and panic mixed with anger blossomed in Sam’s chest.
CHAPTER SIX
Sam broke through the surface of the water a second behind Luna. Jasper was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Vicky. The dim light and the distant glow of Springfield felt like an oppressive weight on Sam’s chest.
Luna’s ears twitched back and forth as if trying to hear where their friends had gone. It was then Sam saw the footprints in the mud leading back toward the woods. Vik and Cizin splashed out of the spring a moment later.
Something blotted out the stars above them, and relief flooded Sam’s chest when she saw Vicky riding Jasper in a lazy circle. She gestured for the pair to come back down, and Jasper slowly decreased the height of his circles.
The dragon landed on top of the springhouse, and Sam worried that the weight might collapse the old stone building.
“What happened?”
“I don’t know,” Vicky said. “It was some kind of shadow, some kind of monster. It took two steps out of the woods and just …” She shook her head.
“It ate him!” Luna shrieked. “It fucking ate him!”
“What?” Vik said. “And you were unable to intercede? As it ate him?”
“One bite.” Vicky leaned forward across Jasper’s spines. “It took him in one bite.”
Sam crouched and pointed at the earth. “Look at the footprints. They’re massive.”
Vik stepped up beside her and studied them before stiffening. “We don’t have much time.”
“It ate him!” Luna grabbed Sam’s jacket and pulled her up to her feet. “What does he mean we don’t have much time? Are there more coming?”
Sam gently placed her hands over Luna’s claws and turned to Vik. “What is it?” What do you know?”
Vik hesitated.
“I know you well enough to know when you’re hiding something. Spill it.”
“I was just remembering when I came to trust Dominic.” Vik shook his head. “That’s not important now. Tell me what the creature looked like.”
“Tall,” Luna said. “Like really tall, I’m thinking over ten feet?”
Vicky nodded in agreement.
Luna continued. “And it looks too thin, almost like it was a shadow itself. But then its mouth opened, and it just ate Dominic.” The death bat shuddered.
Vik grimaced. “I have little doubt it’s a nigh behind.”
“What the fuck is a nigh behind?” Sam snapped.
Jasper growled, and Vicky patted his neck.
“There are many stories, and many different creatures have borne the name, but from what Luna described, it’s an ancient vampire. They’ve been gone for centuries.”
“Not all of them, apparently.” Sam looked back at the tree line, before returning her gaze to Vik. “Can we kill it?”
“It may not be our enemy.”
Sam blinked. “Excuse me? Then what are we doing?”
“It will take time for the creature to digest Dominic. We must find it, but its camouflage is among the best of any vampire.”
Sam cursed. “We don’t have time for this shit. We need to find Vassili.”
“It is heavier with Dominic in its stomach. You would never see the footprints unless a nigh behind had eaten. Follow the tracks.”
“Can you see them?” Vicky asked as she leaned down toward Jasper’s head. The dragon chuffed in response. “Then let’s go.” Vicky pulled back on the dragon’s spines, and Jasper took to the air. Luna launched herself after them while the others ran across the ground.
“They travel in packs or anything?” Sam asked as the vampires crashed through the underbrush.
Vik’s response didn’t fill Sam with confidence. “Rarely.”
* * *
Sam picked up her phone when it buzzed in her pocket. Vicky had started texting her so they didn’t have to shout to communicate.
“Vicky said they lost the trail in a dense section of the forest up ahead.”
Vik nodded. “If she doesn’t see the trail coming out the other side, we may be nearing its lair.”
Sam knew there was a time to ask questions, and a time to focus on the task at hand, but she also knew you could get a more honest answer at a bad time. “You didn’t always trust Dominic?”
She caught the grimace on Vik’s face, but he didn’t protest the question.
“Yes, there was a time I didn’t trust Dominic. He was loyal to Vassili long before I was, having fought with the vampire in the Dark Ages.”
“What changed your mind?”
Vik surged around the tree, and Sam paused beside him. Three long scrapes cut through the b
ark of an old ash tree.
Vik sighed and looked at Sam. “Long ago we were raiders, those of us in our Pit. Friends to pirates more than commoners. Even so, we kept a low profile, and killed rarely. But in the Caribbean, whenever a vampire from our crew was caught feeding by the commoners, Vassili would sentence the town to death. He condoned wholesale slaughter over the chance of us being discovered.”
Sam muttered under her breath. “Wow.”
“I had taken to smuggling commoners away from the slaughter when I could. It was Dominic who caught me. We were on the island that became known as St. Maarten. I came around a sand dune where several of the commoners had their boats tied up. Dominic was there, helping them load up their families so they could set sail before Vassili could find them.”
Vik turned away from the scratches in the tree and squinted into the shadows. “And that, Sam, is why I will trust Dominic until the end of my days.”
They continued the search around the woods, inspecting every shadow, every hollow in the trees, as if the nigh behind might still be standing right beside them. The entire experience kept Sam’s teeth on edge. Hunting for something that seemed invisible was an unsettling thing.
At the edge of the clearing, about six feet up in the branches, Luna spotted more claw marks.
“Marking its territory?” Cizin wondered aloud.
Vik nodded. “It could be. That would make the first tree we saw the other end of its domain. It has to be in here somewhere.”
Sam texted Vicky to ask if she’d seen anything exiting the woods. There was still no sign of it, no sign of Dominic, which meant wherever it was, and whatever it was, they were close.
The footing was poor around the base of some of the larger trees. Years of rot and fallen leaves had grown slick. Sam carefully made her way over a large arch of a root, but when she put her foot down on the other side, there was no ground to hold her weight.
She yelped as she tried to catch herself, but her back crashed against another root, and she slid downward, the starlight above vanishing into the darkness of shadow.
“Sam?”
She could barely hear Luna calling her name above. Her first instinct was to yell out, but then she heard something moving behind her. The clatter of metal and the snort of a thing unseen made her skin crawl.
