The items had cascaded all over the floor but as I looked down at the items, wallet, keys to a car that hadn’t been found since Robert had tried to kidnap and trade me, a cell phone no one ever called me on, I realized I didn’t use any of it. I didn’t need any of it. Even my suitcase was too light to matter. What I had packed could have been easily replaced. Even the suitcase was replaceable. I had come back time and again for the things I had packed and each time it had been my undoing.
I went over to my purse and fished the only thing still in it - the crumpled up copy of notes that Tommy had made for me. Anyone that would have wandered in would have been privy to information that could have changed my life. I crouched there on the floor, smoothed out the pages and tried to read the barely legible handwriting.
“You’re going to end up dead,” said Lydia, a pity in her tone and a touch of amusement.
The unexpected sound of her voice startled me so much that I jumped. Hearing Lydia behind me, I quickly folded up the papers and shoved them back into my purse. Leaving the rest of the items on the floor, I held firmly onto the straps of my purse and retreated to my bed.
“No, I’m not,” I said.
I didn’t believe the words even as I said them. Regret echoed in my heart as I faced the reality that I had, technically, already died and come back - as what I was now. Immortal.
Lydia leaned casually up against the door frame of my room. I don’t know when the relationship between Lydia and I had transitioned from a fiery hate to a slow burning and smoldering hate but I still hated her. Just the sight of her put a scowl on my face.
Whenever possible, I avoided running into her. It had been nice not seeing her in a while, but here she was to pop her head back up and to be a pain in the rear again. She wore her signature skintight dress, no straps or bra for that matter. Her heels were black and high, very high. Her face with that permanent smug aloof look. Everywhere she went, Lydia was judging the world. I glared at her from where I sat on my bed, holding tightly to the purse and wishing that Lydia would leave. She had to have more important things to be doing with her time right now…like trying to steal somebody’s boyfriend for fun or, you know, murdering them when she doesn’t get her way.
“How aren’t you dead yet,” asked Lydia, “Seriously, because…you’ve done your share of stupid things. Statistically speaking, one of those stupid decisions should have ended you,”
I let out a deep sigh, laying back on my bed and staring at the ceiling. I didn’t want to explain it to Lydia. It wasn’t any of her business, anyway. And if I thought I could count Lydia as a person I could trust, I would need to check myself into a mental institution. It had been few and far in between occasions when trusting Lydia had been the right thing to do. But she had a point.
“That’s my secret power,” I mumbled up at the white ceiling, too caught up in my situation to even care that Lydia was still being Lydia, nosy even when I clearly was not in the mood to entertain her annoying questions.
“You wait around much longer,” said Lydia, her voice trailing off, “I don’t think you’re super power is going to do you much good,”
I lifted my head up off of the bed high enough to give Lydia a dirty look. She was being particularly negative tonight. I didn’t really need it. I had come to realize that Lydia took great pleasure in other people’s failures and pain. And I happened to know that Lydia didn’t hang around just for the sake of hanging around. Which made me suspicious.
I still blamed her for Robert; even though I knew she wasn’t the reason Robert had become a vampire. She had still left him for dead. When I think back to that night, the night Jasper, Josephine, and Robert and I met in that dark cemetery, sometimes I wished that Lydia had killed him. If she had, it would’ve saved me a lot of pain. But Lydia wasn’t about doing anything that wasn’t to benefit her, that much was obvious. And I was tired of politics and riddles.
“You know what,” I said, sitting up with a big smile plastered on my face, “You’re right,”
“I am?” asked Lydia.
“But here I am,” I said, flailing my arms, “So I might as well just buckle up and enjoy the ride,”
“Well, with that attitude you won’t last ten minutes when this war finally gets going,” snorted Lydia, “I know you get lucky, really lucky, but luck isn’t going to help you when vampires are ripping you limb from limb,”
“I'm not fast. I’m not strong. I don’t stand a chance. I’m as worthless as a human,” I wailed.
“Honey, I hate to break it to you but you are human,” said Lydia, looking at me sideways.
I started crying. I had no idea what I would do but I could absolutely see something like that happening to me. I could see me spending eternity without arms and legs. Tommy and I had barely scratched the surface of my real weaknesses. That’s all there seemed to be, weaknesses.
“You could always…hide, I guess,” muttered Lydia, obviously uncomfortable about the Niagara Falls situation on my face.
“They would find me,” I mumbled through tears, “They always find me,”
“Well, then you better learn to fight. You have to learn to stand your ground and…” Lydia sighed, “You know what? You’re pretty much screwed.”
“At least I have Sebastian to watch out for me,” I said.
“Fat chance,” said Lydia, “He’ll be in the thick of it. He’s a Prince second and a war hero first, groomed for war since he was born,”
“He’s not going to fight. We’re supposed to leave but…I’m pretty sure the Queen will come up with yet another reason to force us to stay.”
“Sebastian’s leaving?” asked Lydia, quietly.
“We’re supposed to be going on our honeymoon,” I said, looking up. But she was gone. What a relief.
I dried my tears and quickly retrieved Tommy’s notes from my purse. I hated that Lydia was right, but she was. I needed to leave. But first I needed to make sure I wasn’t leaving a trail. I couldn’t risk that these would fall into the wrong hands. I scanned the pages. Most of Tommy’s notes were illegible. His handwriting was scrawling in some areas and chicken scratch in others. I could only make out a few words and phrases. I didn’t have much time as I tried to focus on what looked important, paying special attention to the parts that he had circled or underlined.
Can be completely drained. Water introduced; will rebound quickly, Tommy had scrawled on half a page, cure and the weapon was written clearly in the margins of another page, with ‘weapon’ circled several times hastily. I had a moment of pause as I looked at the notes as a whole. They were rushed and detailed. There were entire pages I couldn’t make out for the life of me. And there were little notes in the margins of every page. Tommy had been thorough but his notes made me wonder where his mind went as he studied me.
Each phrase that was circled or underlined had been so hastily written that it was nearly impossible to understand. I began to wonder if that had been his intention. I didn’t have time to try and decode Tommy’s poor handwriting.
I crumpled all of the pages up in a large ball and looked around on the floor for the lighter that had scattered along with the other items that had been in my purse. I fished it out from just under the bed skirt of my bed and headed to the decorative little waste can next to my desk.
I flicked the flame to life on that little lighter and lit the corner of the pieces of paper as the fire sprang to life, hanging on the edge of the page and working its way quickly across the paper. Before the flame took it, my eye caught on the two words that were written in the corner of that page. No sooner had I read them than the entire ball of Tommy’s notes became engulfed in flame. I could barely make out the handwriting. Human trials had been written in that corner with an enormous question mark and the hurried swirl of three circles around the scribble. My mouth fell open for a moment as I contemplated what might have been on the rest of that page, or near it. But the ball of notes, lit into a blazing furnace in the small waste basket, had consumed the
answer to my curiosity. Perhaps when I next saw Tommy I would ask him. But now, at this moment, I had to focus on more pressing matters. I had to leave before anyone noticed, before the castle calmed down enough for anyone to notice that I was gone.
I left the fire to burn unattended, not wanting to wait around for someone to get curious about the origin of the black smoke that had begun to billow up out of the waste basket and would no doubt spread throughout the room and down the hallway. Someone would come to investigate and I wasn’t going to be hanging around to answer questions or be pinned down with anymore requests or demands.
I tossed the lighter on the desk and made hurried steps past my bed. I didn’t pick up my suitcase. I left my purse on the bed. I kicked away the discarded items from my purse that still remained scattered on the floor as I made my way to the hallway. My heart picked up a faster beat as I neared the door.
The last time I had been sneaking around I had seen Jasper walk past the door and ended up in a fight for my life. Now…I hesitated a moment. I held my breath and listened, trying to be as quiet as I could. No one passed. I couldn’t hear anyone moving down the hall.
I strained to hear as best I could. I cursed the softness of the hallway carpet which made it nearly impossible to hear the steps of anyone approaching. After a moment, I pushed aside my anxiety and let my fear fuel my courage. It was false courage but I would take whatever I could get. I stepped out in the hall and braced myself, waiting to hear my name called expectantly. But nothing. No one rushed to my side. No one stepped forward to drag me off.
I looked behind me, down the long hallway that led towards the Queen’s chambers and the office of the Chancellor, my office. There was no one. I looked ahead of me, down the hall towards what I knew would eventually turn into the entry way, and finally the front door manned by Charlie. I saw no one. I could hear a few voices rising, echoing here and there, but I didn’t see anyone. I let my breath out and began making my way hastily towards the front door.
I tried to stay calm, to avoid looking suspicious, as I made my way towards where I knew Charlie would be standing, offering a polite smile and a little nod as he would open the door. I braced myself yet again as I stepped out of the safety of the corridor and into the more open walk way that led past the sitting area and towards the entry way. I was within a few yards of the entrance. No one noticed me. Not even Charlie had noticed me.
I took a few cautious steps as I scanned the sitting area to my left and not a single vampire looked over at me. There were a few, milling about gossiping. Whatever they were talking about was far more interesting than me, looking like an escaped mental patient as usual, I was sure.
My shoulders, hunched high with anxiety I didn’t realize I was showing, relaxed as I realized that no one was paying me any attention. I even felt a smile crease my face and turned my attention back to looking as inconspicuous as possible. I continued to walk towards Charlie, manning the front door as vigilant as ever.
Charlie gave me only a passing glance when he moved to open the door. But I frowned. I was still 20 feet or more away from the door. Charlie never opened the door so early. He always waited until I was closer and I usually had to ask for my coat or a driver.
My footsteps slowed as Charlie opened the door, his back to me, as I realized that Charlie was not opening the door for me. He was opening the door for someone else. And when I saw him my heart plummeted to my stomach and my feet became stuck like quicksand in the silent, plush carpet. My face twisted in mortified horror.
Charlie stood with the door open and his back to me, taking the coat of the one person on earth I had both loved and hated deep in my heart and soul. Robert wore a smile that made me sick. I felt my desire for self preservation kick in before reason or sanity. Without another second of thought, I turned and sprinted, not wanting our eyes to meet.
I sprinted to the hallway that led to my room. Once I was out of sight, my body hid behind the curve of the hallway, I watched Robert in horror. Charlie took Robert’s coat and nodded politely as he did so. I could hear the melodic laughter of Robert and the words messenger and Patricia float through the air to slap me cold in the face. I tiptoed backwards, not wanting to be spotted, until I was sure I was completely out of sight and ran towards the passageway that led to the dungeon. Creeping quietly down the steps, I hit the bottom of the stairs and sprinted down the dark passageway, nearly slipping half a dozen times as my feet landed on pile after pile of straw that had been scattered, kicked and tracked everywhere.
When I got to the dungeon, the wooden door was closed and my body slammed hard into it. I hadn't realized how fast I had been running. When my body collided with the solid door, it rocked at the violence with which I had hit and then threw me back. I landed in the dirt, my feet going overhead and my breath lost, heaving in deep breaths to the point of hyperventilation. The door opened and light spilled out of the dungeon, the flicker of candles casting a halo around the form that stood over me.
“Have you lost your mind?” demanded Sebastian, frustration, concern and bewilderment on his face as he looked down at me, hands on his hips.
After a second, he offered his hand to me, helping me up out of the dirt. I couldn’t speak. My shoulders heaved up and down. My chest ached with the sharpness of each full breath as I gasped for air. I wanted so much to tell Sebastian, to scream at him, who I had seen. But my lungs betrayed my voice. And my fear had gotten the best of me. Sebastian helped me into the dungeon and tried to calm me. Still gasping for air, my eyes went wide as I saw that John Campbell and Sebastian had worked quickly.
John Campbell wasn’t here, but I recognized the chair in the middle of the room and saw the glint of tools laid out on the table that had been brought down, ready to slice skin and flesh. But what disturbed me most was that they had prepared the ‘interview’ so quickly. Just as surely as I recognized that metal chair, I recognized the vampire in it. And now I knew exactly why the Queen had asked me to take her place and ensure justice was done and the truth found out.
“Ah, Princess Prussia, so nice to see you again,” said Duke Rutlidge, strapped to the metal chair with leather bands at every bend in his body to secure him where he sat.
“I just sent someone to find you,” said Sebastian, helping me to stand, “What’s wrong? What’s happened?”
I still gasped at the air though my breathing became slower. I stared at the Duke and all I could think of was how I had seen him earlier that day, and how surprised he had been to see me. It sent chills over me. I didn’t want to think what it meant but I couldn’t help it. I wondered if he had told anyone that he had seen me. If he really was a spy, if he worked for Queen Patricia, had he told her I was alive? And if Queen Patricia knew…did Josephine already know? My heart raced on but my breathing calmed.
“Messenger,” I said, still trying to control my breathing, “Robert,”
Sebastian’s face turned from a look of worry to eyes lit with the fires of hatred. I grasped for Sebastian’s arm, wanting to keep him here, not wanting for him to get involved, wishing as I always did that we had left sooner. I felt tears well up in my eyes. The possibility of leaving without Sebastian getting involved with this war whisked down the corridor, following on the heels of Sebastian.
I looked around the dungeon and realized that I was alone with the Duke. My breath slowed, almost stopping, as I realized we were alone. The Duke was tied up, true, but I didn’t like how he was looking at me. He stared at me as though ravenous, prepared to rip me to pieces, as if he weren’t tied to a chair at all but waiting until it suited him to feast on my flesh. I regained my composure and stood up, brushing the straw off of me as I tried not to let his constant stare unnerve me. But it did.
“How unfortunate that you would be in this position,” I commented to the Duke as I walked towards the door of the dungeon, looking down the long dark passageway for signs of Sebastian, anyone. But there was no one. Not even the echo of my voice carried.
“I will b
e released soon enough,” said the Duke.
“You are innocent?” I asked, turning back to look at him, unable to hide the surprise in my voice and on my face.
The Duke snorted at me, indignant. He didn’t say anything. I looked back down the corridor. I wanted to know what Sebastian was doing. I wanted to know what was going on. As much as I hated Robert for what he had done, I didn’t want him to be harmed either. I was torn. My heart was torn into tiny, irrational, painful pieces. And my curiosity got the better of me.
I looked back at the Duke, sitting silently, menacing with a touch of smugness as he starred me down. I felt a chill crawl across my skin and didn’t want to be left alone with the Duke for a moment more. I pulled the dungeon door closed behind me and locked it with the slide lock.
I made quiet and quick footsteps towards the end of the passageway, keeping my footsteps moving as fast as they would carry me without running. I didn’t want to slip. And if the Duke had told Queen Patricia about me, there was no use hiding from Robert. He would know as well. I tiptoed up the stone stairs that led into the castle. I stopped just at the doorway and peered both ways.
Deadly Lovers (The Prussia Series) Page 3
