BloodSworn

by Stacey Brutger

  The first of the people entered the passageway in pairs, the witches to check for traps, while the wolves kept them safe. They got along better than she expected given their tense relationship the past few years. If some of the witches were leery of blindly following the shifters, it was nothing compared to the shifters hyper-vigilance, as if they expected to feel a collar strapped around their throats and kept as guard dogs of old.

  Merrick crowded behind her, his presence the only thing that prevented her from bolting. No one spoke as they descended. Dust coated the air until it felt like they were breathing dirt, the grit pushing down on her chest. The flashlights barely lit the darkness in the narrow tunnel. The sharp smell of moss clung to the room, warning that vampires frequented the place, but there was no mold or decay as she’d expected. The temperature dropped the farther they went. The walls were stone and dry and so very narrow, they could only walk single file.

  Everything appeared so clean that she never would’ve guessed they were in a graveyard.

  Then she saw something that sent a shiver through her, and the last illusions of peace vanished. Near the base of the steps were pale scratches, broken fingernails and dried blood.

  The nails were human. It was as if the vampires had let their victims get close to freedom, tasted the hope of escaping, before they dragged them back into hell.

  Drew stepped closer to Dorian, and she couldn’t say she blamed him. She’d tried to get him to stay behind, but the stubborn fool wouldn’t listen to reason, sprouting some nonsense of finishing what he’d started.

  When she pushed, he said that as the pack Familiarian, it was his right to join the hunt. She wished she’d brought her medical bag so she could knock him out. Unethical? Maybe, but at least he’d remain alive. Merrick had sided with Drew, saying that they might need him.

  After twenty feet, the tunnel widened a fraction, so she could no longer touch each wall simultaneously. The ceiling no longer brushed the men’s head, easing the feeling that the tunnel could collapse at any second. But that’s when she saw the shadowy shapes in the darkness. She reached out, half-expecting to feel cool stone under palms, thinking that her mind was playing tricks on her.

  Instead, she brushed against hard steel.

  Jerking back, she grabbed Merrick’s arm, directing his flashlight to the wall and nearly leaping out of her skin when the dim beam flickered off a coffin.

  It was stupid. They were in a crypt, of course there would be coffins. A metal plaque was centered on the casket. Name, town, birth and death were listed along with a number.

  There was no dust or grime on the lid. When she directed the flashlight upward, vibrant flowers rested lovingly on top.

  “They are the ones who died during the change.” Merrick crowded her back, urging her to catch up with the others.

  She didn’t want to see the vampires as anything but monsters. Since she was a child, that’s all they were to her. Now she wondered what her blood meant to these people. She couldn’t excuse or justify their behavior, but Trina understood how desperation could claw at one’s soul.

  Row after row of coffins lined both walls, stacked on top of each other, all neatly labeled. The underground passageways looped around and went on for miles. That meant there had to be thousands of them down here.

  The closer they drew toward Galloway, the higher the tension built. The stones grew rougher, the coffin cubby holes changed from stone to dirt as if they’d had run out of room and had to dig more. Stacked bones lay in forgotten piles at the edges of the floor awaiting burial…or had been snacks to be disposed.

  Each step weighed down her heart. The memorial to the dead would haunt her dreams. As the pathway widened, she hurried, eager to get away from the clinging sadness.

  Only to turn the corner and find three sentries.

  Both sides froze, a toss-up as to who was more surprised.

  The vampires were playing cards in a pool of candlelight.

  Then one of the vampires smiled. Fangs flashed, and all three shot to their feet.

  A witch near the front flung a spell, but the vampire was faster, dodging out of the way and shoving the vampire next to him in the line of fire.

  The hapless vampire instantly collapsed.

  Swords were unsheathed, but space in the passageway was limited. It was a bad spot for anything other than hand-to-hand combat. The vampire must have realized as well and laughed, darting into the tunnel behind him.

  “Don’t let him get away.” Judith barked the command. “And don’t let him split you up or he’ll pick you off.”

  The two shifters nodded and sprinted after their prey.

  The last vampire wasn’t as quick, a spell catching him in the back as he tried to escape. He slumped against the wall like a puppet with its strings cut, so very life-like it was creepy.

  “Is he dead?”

  “In a way. The spell is geared to stop the heart, but the virus is already rebuilding the damage.”

  “Why not just kill them?” Drew nudged the nearest vampire with his foot.

  “Death spells cost a lot of money, use a lot of power and hurt like a bitch. You could just stake it, but its maker will know the instant the vampire dies.”

  “So at the warehouse, no one cast this spell because—”

  “It’s too complicated. It needs time to be prepared. The older the vampire, the faster they can repair.”

  “We need to keep moving, people.” Judith pushed them onward.

  Everyone was silent, trying to determine if more vampires were lurking near. They rounded another corner to find the two shifters standing over what was left of the vampire who’d run. One shifter was bandaging his wounds, a series of bites and claw marks that went up his right arm. The other sported a blackened eye, a broken nose, and those were only the injuries that she could spot from a distance.

  The two injured shifters fell in step with the group. After another hundred feet of tunnels, they ran across the first signs of civilization.

  Electric lights.

  Despite the fact that more vampires could be waiting, her feet picked up speed. The shadowy darkness was eroding her nerves.

  The tunnel opened up to a cavernous room, the lights placed infrequently in the cave, and she halted on the threshold. Her breath caught in her throat as coffin after coffin was revealed. All she wanted to do was tiptoe back the way they came, even if she had to go alone.

  The chamber was circular with hundreds of coffins lining the walls, each stacked one atop of another in roughly hewn cubby holes. The ceiling disappeared into darkness. There was something different about these coffins as if the weight of the bodies inside was pressing down on her.

  Merrick frowned at her and halted at her side. “What is it?”

  “Something’s not right.” She couldn’t explain her unease or pinpoint what’d set it off.

  She was grateful when Dorian returned.

  Not so much when Judith followed.

  The wolf didn’t call her a coward. She didn’t have to when her expression said it so well.

  Before Dorian spoke, Trina blurted out her question. “Is there another spell on this room like there was above?”

  Instead of answering, he surveyed the room with greater detail. He finally shook his head. “The only spell we’ve encountered was at the entrance. What do you sense?”

  “Magic. A whole lot of magic, but it doesn’t feel right. It’s darker. Violent.” It crawled over and coated her like cold, slick oil. “I can’t smell anything but the vampires.”

  Dorian stiffened and signaled to his witches. They grabbed their stakes and blades, backs toward the center of the room as they surveyed the walls. The shifters quickly followed. None transformed, but a portion of them bulked up. Judith rolled her eyes, but drew her weapons as well.

  For the first time since the warehouse, magic returned to her in more than just quick glimpses. It glinted in the room, shining off their weapons. The lead team used hand-signals and spread out,
watching the caskets with suspicions.

  Drew came to her side and stepped in front as if to protect her, mumbling to himself. “Can’t feel anything but creeped out.”

  She agreed. The first team reached the opposite end of the room without incident. “Clear.”

  All eyes turned toward her. Feeling foolish, Trina swallowed her unease and stepped into the room. Merrick hovered near, so close that his breath brushed her ear, ready to leap at the first sign of danger.

  Nothing happened.

  Judith snorted and walked away.

  Merrick didn’t relax any. “She wouldn’t have said anything if she didn’t sense something.”

  Dorian nodded and kept up his guard. The rest took their cue from them, but there were too many caskets to cover all the angles.

  When they were halfway across the dirt-packed floor, a frantic scratching filled the silence.

  Like a choreographed dance, everyone whirled.

  The sounds came from one coffin first, like mice had taken up residence, and then a second one started across the room.

  Everyone increased their pace. Spooked, Trina half-expected the coffins to break open and spill the contents down upon them.

  “Really big rats?” Drew gave a nervous laugh then gulped.

  Trina grabbed his arm and pulled him behind her.

  Merrick inhaled, grunting as he caught a scent. “Vampires.”

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Heavy chains encased the coffins, padlocks securing them, but that didn’t offer Trina any comfort. The noise grew deafening until it sounded like hundreds of them all desperate to get out and take a bite of them.

  Half of the team rushed forward while the other half dropped back to protect the rear. By the time they reached the far side of the room, everyone was breathing hard.

  Merrick looked grim. “Someone explain.”

  One of the witches stepped forward. “It’s a live crypt. They put insane vampires in here, the newly turned who can’t be controlled and will kill both vampires and humans alike.”

  “A fucking army.”

  And they were starving.

  No one needed to mention that shifters were the favorite snacks of choice. Hunger from the caged vampires beat against them, their desperation to get out obvious in the way their nails chipped at the coffins.

  “They lock them away, some for years, to see if they can gain control.”

  Drew piped up. “It would make me lose it.”

  “They are supposedly monitored, but most that go in don’t come out. The virus eventually burns some of them out.”

  “All of these are new vampires?”

  The witch shrugged. “No, the rest are sent here for punishment.”

  Trina glanced back, horrified by how many vampires were in one room. “How do you know so much?”

  “My brother is in one of them. He came to us, ranting, raving and asking for protection. Apparently, he wasn’t prepared to follow all the rules. He thought he could be changed and just go on his merry way.

  “Vampires will never kill one of their own. There are too few turned. They can’t waste even one life. So they bring them here.”

  “You didn’t try to stop them?” Trina didn’t understand the witch’s calmness.

  “It’s vampire business. If we interfered, they would have cause to retaliate. We couldn’t afford an incident.”

  Drew scratched his chin, his eyes still focused on the doorway behind them, clearly spooked. “What woke them?”

  Trina nodded to the shifters with the fresh wounds. “Food.”

  “But you knew they were there before they woke.” Judith glared, all but accusing her of something.

  “I didn’t cast if that’s what you’re asking.” She’d be damned if she took the blame for something she didn’t do. “If they’ve been in there for years, your breathing could have woken them.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We need to be gone before someone notices the noise and comes to investigate.” Merrick stepped between them.

  “We’re getting close.” Judith nodded to the passageway. “We take the second set of stairs. After that, we’re on our own.”

  The wolves kept their swords at the ready and led the way. The upward climb seemed endless, the steps too steep and narrow to allow for anything other than single-handed combat, which gave vampires the advantage.

  Lights from above lit the staircase. Lights meant civilization, away from the oppressive darkness from the stairwell. After so much darkness, it should’ve given her hope. It only left her colder. She inched closer to Merrick, clenching and unclenching her hands, ready to throw magic and protect him at the first hint of trouble.

  Then her head shot up.

  Magic was near.

  Familiar magic.

  Her sister had been somewhere near and recently.

  Reaching the top of the steps was anticlimactic. No one greeted them with guns or fangs bared as it were. The stairs led in two directions.

  Peopled glanced at Judith, and she shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I told you my informant could get us inside. Anything beyond this point is all us.”

  Merrick and two other shifters went a little way down each direction. Cobwebs covered everything, the dust thick enough to choke anything too close to the floor. Drew peeked down the dark hallway after them. “Neither direction looks promising.”

  One of the witches snorted. “Did you expect a sign? We’ll split up.”

  Dorian raised his hand, and the sniping stopped. “We stick together. With vampires, our strength is in numbers.”

  “Do you hear that?” Everyone fell silent at Merrick’s words.

  After a few seconds, Trina heard them, too. “Voices.”

  And if they could hear the vampires, the vampires could hear them. She crept closer to the wall and noticed it was a latticed alcove where you could view the room below. People in medieval times used similar methods to spy and not be seen. It was ingenious really, since a vampire’s vision could penetrate shadows but not walls.

  She leaned forward, curious despite herself. The stone walls were darkened by smoke. The two fireplaces were great black pits. The floors were bare, the room dominated by two large banquet tables…with cuffs dangling from them. Humans scurried around, preparing what could only be considered the main hall for when the vampires woke. Their freedom shocked her. “None of them are bound.”

  “They are bound by much more than chains. They are both food and servants to their masters.” Merrick grabbed her arm and shook her when she would’ve spoken. “They don’t want to be free. Anything you do will only get us killed.”

  She scanned the faces, but after the first half dozen, she prayed she didn’t find her sister amongst them. Though a few of the people were somewhat healthy, the majority of them were obviously more food than servant.

  There was a desperation in them, a wild hope to be turned. And each had to know that they would most likely die before that ever happened.

  “Look up.” Drew stood beside her, his voice grim as he stared at the ceiling.

  Knowing she wouldn’t like what she found, she followed his gaze. Cages hung from the rafters.

  They were not empty.

  People were in them, some alive, others in various stages of decomposition. A smattering of smells wafted to her, a symphony that made her glad she wasn’t a shifter with their acute sense of smell.

  Trina couldn’t comprehend why anyone would willingly sign themselves over to a vampire. There was only one possible outcome.

  Trina scanned the room again, both disappointed and relieved not to see her sister. “She’s not here.”

  Dorian’s lips tightened. “He must be keeping her somewhere else.”

  Trina glanced at her watch, conscious of time ticking down too fast. “We only have a few hours to find her and get out before the majority of the vampires rise, the ones not old enough to remain awake during daylight. Can you locate her by heartbeat?”

  Merrick shook hi
s head. “Too many humans around to pick out just one.”

  “Then we best search quickly.”

  Merrick took one stepped back when he paused. Trina inched closer to see what caught his attention when Merrick’s whole body went ridged.

  “Is that him?” The calm in his voice belied the rage that brewed on his face at the man who dared to threaten what was his.

  Trina didn’t have to ask whom he meant. Her childish mind had built up her parents’ killer into a monster. When she stepped back to the alcove, she hadn’t realized how distorted her memory had become.

  “You saw the girl?” The question was directed to the remaining twin and part of her was disappointed that he’d survived the attack at the warehouse. Damned things didn’t know when to die.

  Then all of her focus landed on the man next to him. At a distance, the immaculately dressed man resembled a preppy college kid…from a hundred years ago. Slim and blond, he moved in a liquid way that had servants bowing and scurrying out of their path. The intensity in his voice sent chills down her spine until her blood seemed to slow in her veins and time stopped.

  It was him.

  The man who’d tried to kill her and would stop at nothing to get her back.

  The vampire King.

  * * *

  Merrick saw Trina’s pallor and slipped his arm around her waist to soothe her. It was the first time she didn’t react to his nearness. He didn’t even think she knew he was there.

  The conversation below drew his attention. The remaining Ferguson twin spoke to the King, looking a little worse for wear with torn, bloody clothes. Bruises were still healing. “She made an alliance with the shifters. The last time we clashed, she slipped away with help from the witches.”

  “Keep hunting them. They’ll have to head this way soon.”

  “The shifter who killed my brother is mine.”

  The King waved him away. “All in good time. We need her compliance first.”