Princess Before Dawn

by E. D. Baker

  “Those vampires aren’t good enough for anyone!” Zoë said, her voice muffled. “And I’ll be sure to tell my father exactly what happened!”

  CHAPTER 12

  Highcliff Castle was only a few hours away by dragon-back, so it was still night when they finally arrived. Located on a cliff overlooking the ocean, the castle was unreachable from the land on three sides. On the fourth side, the curtain wall towered above anyone approaching, and the imposing gatehouse with multiple holes through which defenders could drop boulders would be enough to frighten away anyone but the bravest. With its high wall towers, and large bailey surrounding the keep, it looked more like a military installation than a home.

  After circling the castle, Audun swooped low over the empty field that was the bailey, startling bats that darted into the night. Even before they landed, Annie smelled something awful. She crinkled her nose in distaste and asked Francis, “What is that awful smell?”

  “Harpies,” said Francis. “They stink more than anything else in the world. I hate coming here because of the stench, but if Zoë comes here, so do I. Vampires’ sense of smell isn’t very good, so it doesn’t bother them. The duke has harpies guard the area around the castle during the day. It’s a super-effective deterrent against intruders.”

  “Are they here at night, too?” Annie asked, looking warily around as Audun landed.

  “No, they’re off doing their own thing. They’ll be back at daybreak, though.”

  Annie looked around as she climbed off the dragon’s back. Torches were placed at intervals around the walls, but they weren’t nearly enough to illuminate such a big space. What she could see of the castle was daunting, however; she really, really hoped they’d find Garrid and could leave before dawn.

  As Francis dismounted, Zoë crawled out of his pocket and fluttered to the ground. The sound of a woman screaming made Annie gasp and look around. In an instant, Francis had his sword drawn and was running in the direction of the screams. Audun launched himself into the air and soon passed Francis. The dragon circled above the bailey near the curtain wall, then flew back to land beside Francis. Annie peered into the sparsely lit bailey, trying to see what was making the terrible sound. She couldn’t understand why Francis and Audun started back, even after the woman screamed again.

  “It’s a screeching peacock,” Francis told the girls as he got closer. “It sure had me fooled. I could have sworn it was a woman in terrible danger.”

  “I thought so, too,” said Audun.

  “I don’t know why anyone keeps those birds,” Annie declared. “Their feathers are pretty, but they sound awful.” Her nerves were still jangling when she turned toward the keep door. Somehow, she didn’t think things were going to be any less frightening inside.

  “I’m not turning human all the way this time,” Audun told them as he started to change. “Sometimes dragon senses can be very useful when I’m in human form.”

  The four friends drew closer together as they approached the keep. Torches on either side of the door showed the way. There were no guards by the door, so Francis stepped up and knocked. They waited, but no one came.

  “I’ll try,” said Audun. He knocked hard enough to shake the heavy door, but there was still no response.

  “The castle isn’t abandoned, is it?” asked Annie. “Maybe no one’s here.”

  “Someone is here, all right,” said Audun. “I can hear them inside.”

  “You can hear them?” Annie said in surprise. “I can’t hear a thing through that door.”

  “Dragons have excellent hearing,” Audun declared.

  “Maybe I should just open it,” suggested Francis.

  Audun shook his head. “I should be the one …”

  “Oh, for goodness’ sake. We’ll stand here all night if we don’t just do something!” Annie said, and opened the door herself.

  Although she didn’t push it very far, it opened the rest of the way on its own, revealing a feebly lit corridor beyond. A cold breeze blew from the corridor, carrying with it the scent of freshly turned soil. Annie froze when two glowing red eyes seemed to materialize out of the dark. Something emerged from the shadows, growling deep in its throat. Annie stepped back as a black dog as big as a calf stepped into the torchlight.

  Zoë stepped forward and announced in a voice that demanded attention, “I am Her Royal Highness Princess Zoë. I order you to stop this immediately.”

  It looked as if the dog were dissolving into the darkness behind it. When it was gone, a meek-looking man dressed as a servant stood there, bowing to the princess. “I’m so sorry, Your Highness. I wasn’t sure what to do when you knocked. I’m not usually the one to answer the door, you see, but with all the confusion it somehow fell to me to see who was here and, well, I do apologize.”

  “Was that one of those illusions you told me about?” Annie asked her friend.

  Zoë nodded, but when she spoke it was to the servant. “I have come to see the duke.”

  “He isn’t here,” said the man. “We heard he’s dead and no one quite knows what to do. Vampires don’t die very often.”

  “Then I would like to speak to whoever is in charge,” Zoë told him.

  “That would be, uh, just a moment please,” the man said, and turned to someone behind him. “Finley, stop hiding in the shadows and come help me.”

  After a moment’s hesitation, a bat fluttered into the torchlight and landed beside the man. He turned into another servant who looked even meeker than the first.

  “This is Her Royal Highness Princess Zoë. She wants to speak to whoever is in charge, but I don’t know who that is. Do you?”

  Finley ducked his head and said, “That’d be Dexter, wouldn’t it, Deelio?”

  “He’s the steward, but he’s not in charge of everything,” said Deelio. “I was thinking more like Lord Reynard. His friend Maganen claims that Reynard is the new duke.”

  Annie glanced at her friends. Reynard was here without the duke. That could mean all sorts of things.

  “We’re not sure who is in charge at the moment,” Deelio told Zoë. “The duke never designated an heir, but then why would he? We all expected him to live a lot longer. If you wouldn’t mind waiting a minute, we’ll go find out.”

  He was closing the door when Audun set his hand on it and pushed. “Why don’t you invite us in while you inquire?”

  “Oh, of course!” Deelio said. “Please come in.”

  When Francis stepped forward to walk beside Zoë with his hand on the hilt of his sword, Annie dropped back to join Audun, glad that he was with them. All four of them walked with their heads turning from side to side, peering into the dark corners and down the long corridor. The few lit torches did little to dispel the gloom and Annie thought it was the darkest and ugliest castle she had ever seen.

  Sad, haunting music came from somewhere up ahead. The cool breeze caressed their faces and made Annie shiver. Bats darted above them, some coming so close that Annie could feel the brush of their wings. She was startled when Audun stopped walking suddenly, and she turned to see why. He stood outside a closed door, sniffing the air. When he turned back, he looked puzzled.

  A little farther down the corridor, they reached the doorway to the great hall. The music was louder now, and sounded even more mournful. Annie couldn’t see how large the room was because the guttering torches on the walls were few and far between. The ceiling was higher, though, and the bats no longer came so close. “You may wait here,” Deelio told them, gesturing into the hall. A moment later, he and Finley were bats fluttering down the corridor.

  Although Annie could just make out dark forms nearby and had the impression that there were many people in the hall, the only thing she could hear was the music. The lighting was so poor that she couldn’t see very well, either. “I wish I could see better,” she whispered to her friends.

  “I would ask someone if we could have more light, but I wouldn’t know who to talk to,” said Zoë. “I guess it’s up to me.”
With a flick of her hand, every torch on the wall, every candle on the tables, and every log in the enormous fireplaces at both ends of the hall lit themselves.

  The hall was bright enough now that Annie could see vampires seated around the tables blinking at the sudden light. Most of the vampires close to them were dressed as servants, while a few clusters of lesser nobles were seated throughout the room. They all remained silent as they watched Annie and her friends come farther into the hall.

  “We might as well sit down,” said Zoë, gesturing to the nearest empty table.

  “Maybe we should leave,” Annie whispered to her friends. “I don’t like the way those vampires are looking at us.”

  “We’re not going anywhere until we find out what happened to my parents,” Zoë whispered back, and led the way to the table.

  Annie tried not to be too obvious when she turned to look at the vampires. One of them was strolling between the tables, playing a lute and singing. Some were talking to their neighbors, while others played games of dice. Almost all had mugs in front of them. Annie wondered what they were drinking until Audun leaned toward her and said, “Yes, they are drinking blood. I can smell it from here.” He sniffed the air and added, “It smells old and stale.”

  Zoë nodded. “Vampires find stale blood intoxicating. I believe the duke stores it in wine barrels in the cellar. A lot of these vampires are already drunk, which means they’re bound to be even more dangerous right now. It seems that they aren’t mourning their duke as much as enjoying the chance to do whatever they please.”

  The music grew louder as the lute-playing vampire approached their table. Even when the man wasn’t singing, the song he played made Annie feel like crying. “Can’t you play something cheerful?” she asked when he paused behind her.

  “These are the only songs I know,” the vampire said, and walked on.

  Vampires walked past the table on their way to refill their mugs. When any of them passed her, Annie edged as far from them as she could get. One bumped into Audun and the dragon-turned-man looked back to glare at him. Just then, Annie felt a featherlight touch on her neck and shrieked when she realized that a vampire was preparing to bite her. She jumped up, trying to push the vampire away.

  “Leave her alone!” Francis cried, drawing his sword as he got to his feet.

  Then Audun was standing as well. With one shove, he pushed the vampire so hard that the man flew backward over the next table.

  “This place is awful,” said Annie. “The people are awful, the hall is as cold as a tomb, and there aren’t any tapestries on the walls or rushes on the floor—nothing that makes a castle comfortable.”

  “The duke must not value such things,” Francis said with a shrug.

  When Annie glanced toward the door, she saw a bat flutter into the room and head straight for their table. The moment the bat landed, he turned into the human-looking Deelio. “Please come with me, Your Highness,” he said, bowing.

  Zoë got to her feet first and led her friends from the great hall. They followed the servant down the corridor and up two flights of stairs to a closed door. Deelio knocked. When a voice called, “You may enter,” he opened the door and stuck his head in.

  “Her Royal Highness Princess Zoë,” he announced, then opened the door wide enough to let Zoë and her friends in.

  Three vampires were seated at a long table and they turned as one to face Zoë. Although the short, stout vampire wearing a steward’s medallion was unfamiliar, Annie recognized the vampires dressed as nobles. The more handsome of the two was the duke’s rude nephew, Reynard. The one with the wide-set eyes had been among the dancers in her parents’ great hall.

  “You returned from Treecrest,” said Zoë. “Did everyone leave?”

  “No, just us,” said Reynard. “We were the smart ones. The rest are still there, fighting the good fight.”

  “I see,” said Zoë. “I’ve come to speak to the duke, but I’ve been told that he’s dead.”

  “That’s right!” said the other noble. “Quite dead. Some humans killed him in a faraway kingdom, as you well know.”

  “He wasn’t dead when I saw him last,” Zoë told him.

  “He is now,” said Reynard. “As his nephew, I’m the new duke and I’m in charge here.”

  “Then I’m sure you’re very busy taking over for your uncle,” said Zoë. “I just want to know if my father came by and when he left if he was here.”

  The vampire who Annie guessed had to be Reynard’s friend Maganen spoke up. “Prince Garrid was here days ago, but he didn’t stay. He left when we told him what had happened to the duke.” Annie thought it was odd that he looked above Zoë and not directly at her.

  When she glanced at the steward, he looked smug, but she noticed that he was fiddling with his medallion.

  “I didn’t expect to see you here,” Reynard said to Zoë as he gave her an appraising look. “I wonder why you would need your father so badly that you would come all the way to Highcliff to find him. And your little human friend is a real surprise. It’s quite a shame—such a long journey only to be disappointed at the end.”

  A bell tolled somewhere in the castle and Lord Reynard turned to the steward. “Please show our guests to rooms where they may spend the day. Dawn will be upon us soon and Princess Zoë cannot leave until nightfall. The princess may stay in the royal suite.”

  “But I don’t—” Zoë began.

  “We’ll have much to discuss come evening, dear Princess. I insist that you accept the castle’s hospitality,” Reynard told her.

  “You can’t just—”

  “Ah, but I can,” said Reynard. “You’re in my castle and I’m in charge here.”

  The steward rose from his seat to open the door. He ushered them into the corridor, where they found vampires dressed as guards waiting for them. “If you will come this way, we’ll see that you have the appropriate accommodations,” Dexter said to Zoë.

  “My husband goes with me,” Zoë told the steward.

  “Of course, Your Highness,” he said, and gave her an ingratiating smile.

  They had started down the corridor when Audun appeared to drop a coin. They all waited while he looked for it, but finding the coin seemed to take a very long time. When a guard nudged him, Audun stood and started walking again, but he didn’t look happy.

  The steward and the guards took Annie and her friends down one corridor after another. When they finally stopped, Dexter opened a door and gestured to Annie, saying, “You will stay in this room today.”

  Annie didn’t want to go anywhere in the castle without her friends. “But I thought we were staying together,” she said, sounding distressed.

  “She’s right,” said Zoë. “We want to share one room.”

  “The other rooms are just down the corridor, Your Highness,” Dexter announced. “You will be more comfortable with your own accommodations.”

  Annie was about to protest when two of the guards took her by her arms and half walked, half dragged her into the room. Audun and Francis made as if to go after her, but Zoë shook her head, saying, “It’s all right, Annie. It’s almost dawn.”

  Annie watched helplessly as the vampires shut her in the room by herself. She waited until she could no longer hear footsteps before trying the door and wasn’t surprised to find that they had locked it. What had Zoë meant when she said it was almost dawn? Were the vampires going to sleep soon and would they leave her alone? Was Zoë telling her that her friends would come rescue her at daybreak? Either way, Annie wished she knew what was going to happen.

  Wrapping her arms around her body for warmth and comfort, Annie studied the room. It was cold and dark with only one lit candle on a small table by the bed. A large, dark chest took up one corner. There was also a table beside a small wooden bench. Since it was supposedly almost dawn, she started looking for a window. It took her some time to locate one, but it was boarded over and the boards were too securely attached to remove.

  Tired and d
ispirited, Annie sat on the edge of the bed. It was comfortable and the covers offered the only warmth in the room. The castle was silent, so she assumed that morning had come and the vampires had gone to sleep. Burrowing under the covers, she lay down, determined to stay awake. But in only a matter of minutes she, too, was asleep.

  CHAPTER 13

  A barely audible sound in the room woke Annie. She lay there, listening, but didn’t hear anything else. The still-burning candle was nearly as tall as it had been before she fell asleep, so she knew she hadn’t been asleep for long. She closed her eyes, her body tense beneath the covers, wondering if she should get up and try to pry the boards off the window.

  The mattress moved as if someone had bumped it and Annie felt something cold on her neck. She lurched upright, screaming as loud as she could. The vampire who was leaning over her looked startled. When she pulled her arm back and punched him in the nose with all her might, he fell to the floor, wailing.

  Annie jumped out of bed and turned to face the vampire. It was Reynard’s friend Maganen. He looked younger now than he had sitting at the table with Reynard and Dexter, but Annie knew that didn’t mean anything with vampires. Touching his nose gingerly with one hand, he glared up at Annie and said, “You hit me!”

  “You were trying to bite my neck!” Annie replied.

  “You were supposed to be asleep. If you were, you wouldn’t have felt a thing. I’m surprised the magic in that bed didn’t work. It always has in the past. A witch placed a very good spell on it years ago.”

  “Witches’ magic doesn’t work on me,” said Annie. “How did you get in?”

  “Through the secret passage,” he said, wincing when he touched the bump forming on his nose. “I think you broke it!”

  “The passage?” asked Annie.

  “No! My nose! Now I won’t be nearly so handsome,” he said with a sob.

  “Some girls find men with broken noses ruggedly handsome,” she said without really thinking. “I need to go.”