SV02-06. Slave to a Vampire

by Katrina Kahler

  “I was so worried,” she whispered. “Worried you would all be dead.”

  “No, we fought them off well enough,” Liam said and motioned for Mary to come forward. “Even Mary took one of them down.”

  Catherine laughed as she hugged her friend, relieved to see them both. “I never thought I’d see any of you again,” she said glancing from Mary to Liam. Faces of those lost passed through her mind and she dashed across the room, startling them both. Her brother cursed in alarm and then spotted her by the broken windows, glaring out over the burnt and ruined fields. “I did things while I was gone,” she whispered. “Horrible things.”

  A warm hand slipped into hers and she turned to find Mary standing there. “Catherine, whatever you did, we will understand.”

  She swallowed hard and nodded. “I…I killed Charlotte,” she hissed. “And Michael…they killed him and I could not stop it!”

  When Michael had died, she had shoved the guilt aside. But now it rushed back and she cried as Mary held her close, telling her it was not her fault. But Catherine knew that it was. Michael had tried to save her and it got him killed. There was no bringing him back, as Bastian had done for her. Michael was lost forever, and it weighed heavily on her shoulders. She asked her brother how many had died on the island and his dour face told her the number was high. If she had not planned to marry Bastian, would Victoria still have attacked the plantation as she had? Killed so many innocents? Their blood, was it was all on her hands?

  And soon there will be more of it, the dark voice in her mind whispered. You are strong now and you should show it. Take what should be yours and show no mercy!

  Catherine hissed and stepped back from Mary. Liam rushed to her side to stand between them, glaring at his sister as if expecting her to attack.

  Not that she blamed him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “It’s just been a long few days and…I’m trying to adjust…I did not mean to startle you.”

  “We’re fine,” Mary insisted and shoved Liam out of the way. “You should rest.”

  Rest would be ideal, but Catherine knew the second she closed her eyes, that voice would rush right back in, and what if she dreamed of Bastian? The thought of him hitting her over the head and taking off made her hiss even louder as her hands curled into fists. The moment she saw him again, she’d pay him back in kind then make sure she kissed him hard enough so he would know he could never leave her behind like that again.

  “Catherine,” Tula called from the doorway, startling the other two. “Apologies, but I must speak with you.”

  “They can hear, too,” she told him. “Did you find the others?”

  Tula glanced at Liam and Mary, but his face remained blank. “Yes, they have gathered in the library.”

  “I’ll be right down,” she told him, glancing once more around the room, before she followed Liam and Mary. Tula waited for her outside the door and when the others were ahead of them, he took her arm. “What is it?”

  “There are fewer than I’d hoped,” he whispered. “They will not be enough to keep the plantation safe if the Master attacks again with more of his soldiers. We will have to leave this place and soon. All of us.”

  “Where will we go?” she asked tightly.

  He frowned. “I do not know yet, but we’ll discuss it with the others. Once you and the rest are safe, I will make plans to follow Bastian and Haddie.”

  “I’m going with you, Tula,” she told him. “You cannot make me stay.”

  “Even if you are needed to keep Liam and Mary safe?”

  Catherine frowned. Tula did not wait for her reply and turned for the stairs giving her no choice but to follow. She hurried behind him, glaring at the back of his head with each step she took. He would not leave without her. Somehow she would ensure Liam and Mary would be safe and then she would go. If Bastian could track her down then certainly she could do the same to find him and help him take on this Master.

  The library was filled with a number of vampires, thirteen in all, and once Catherine and Tula arrived, they nodded their heads to Catherine, a sign of respect she did not expect and frowned. “What are they doing?” she asked Tula quietly.

  “You are the lady of the house,” he told her simply.

  “But the wedding did not happen,” she said, confused.

  “No, but you were turned by him and they sense his essence on you, Catherine,” he said. “Vampires usually do not have weddings, but it is always clear when they find their rightful mate. You are now their leader, just as he was.”

  Catherine shook her head. “I cannot be in charge of them! I have never before been in charge of anyone.”

  “Pardon my lady,” a tall, dark skinned man said as he stepped forward.

  “This is Kendi,” Tula told her. “He has been with us for nearly thirty years.”

  Catherine nodded, still trying to accept what Tula had told her. “Kendi, pleasure to meet you,” she said numbly and held out her hand.

  He took it and kissed the back of it. “My lady, we are yours to command as we were under Bastian. With him gone, it is only right that his mate take over. Know that until he returns and even after, we will protect you with our lives.”

  The other vampires in the room bowed their heads again and Catherine’s chest swelled. “You all truly love him, don’t you?” she asked.

  Kendi nodded with a grin. “He is always good to those he takes under his wing, though he does not always let himself see it.”

  Catherine smiled. “No, no he thought he was a monster,” she sighed. “Right then. We should discuss our next plan of action. Tula? What did you have in mind?”

  As Tula spoke about what supplies they had on the island and the freed slaves still waiting to take a ship to Jamaica, Catherine took a moment to look at every face in the room. All of them had been created by Bastian. They were his family and now she was truly a part of that. He might have only ever seen the monster in what he was, but these vampires, they respected him with their very being. It was truly incredible, and when she saw him again she would have to remind him of that fact. He might have a darkness within him, but so did she, so did everyone, human and vampire, who had faced the horrors life had brought them.

  “Catherine? Did you hear me?” Tula asked.

  “Sorry, what was that?” she asked, thankful at least she could no longer blush as a normal human.

  “Once the island is empty of all humans, we will take refuge somewhere, maybe on the mainland.”

  “There is an abandoned monastery. It is on a small island, but close to the mainland. Bastian had stores taken there many years ago, just in case,” Kendi said.

  “In case of an attack like this? He never thought he would be found here, why plan for it?” Catherine asked frowning. “Kendi?”

  Kendi shifted before her and hung his head. “He never gave me a solid reason, but no one else knew of it. He said to keep it secret.”

  “Even from me? Why?” Tula asked.

  “He never gave a reason. Woke up one night, found me, and said that a sudden need to create a safe haven for all those under his care had come over him, but not to let anyone know.”

  Catherine was not sure what could be there that would be of use to them. She asked Kendi what exactly he had sent there. He told her it was simple supplies and a storage of blood they had buried deep within the earth, in a cave beneath the temple, one that stayed ice cold.

  “Then I believe we should head there,” she told Tula. “Maybe he left something else there as well.”

  “Such as?” Tula’s face was still blank, but the look in his eyes said he was not sure about this plan. She understood, after all he was supposed to be Bastian’s second in command and yet he knew nothing of the supplies or the temple.

  “A reason for doing what he did,” she said. “If what Kendi says is the truth, then maybe Bastian had sensed something long ago.” Too much, it was all just too much to try and process and Catherine was suddenly weary of the mysteries being thr
own their way.

  When Victoria attacked, she thought it was out of simple revenge. Then they learned of the Master and the army he had built. But it wasn’t that simple. No, she was different and so was Bastian. Different in ways she was not certain she would ever have a chance to fully understand.

  “Tula, we have no other choice,” she told him firmly. “Either we stay here and risk them coming back, or we go to the refuge and see what we can find.”

  “We’re coming with you,” Liam said stepping forward.

  Catherine shook her head. “No, you’re not. I need you both somewhere safe,” she said.

  “I killed a few vampires during the attack,” he argued. “I’m not scared of them.”

  “I never said you were,” she replied, “but Liam, this is different.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “How so? We were attacked and I managed to save quite a few people and survive. I’ll do it again if I have to, but I’m not leaving my sister behind to go off somewhere and live my life. Not while you’re in danger.”

  She glanced from him to Mary. “Is that what you want for Mary?”

  Mary laughed. “Don’t drag me into this. I already told him I’ll stand by whatever decision he makes. You’re my friend, Catherine, and I’m not going to abandon you.”

  “It’s too risky,” Kendi insisted. “Catherine is right. She is one of us now. She can defend herself, but the two of you will not stand a chance.”

  “Especially if the Master himself comes or he sends more capable men,” Tula added. “It would be folly to go with us, Liam. You are only putting yourself in the path of certain death.”

  Catherine prayed her brother would see reason but he did not budge, and his eyes narrowed even more. “I’m not leaving my sister. I thought I had lost you once, and that’s enough. We’re coming with you and we can hold our own just fine.”

  “Liam—”

  “No, Catherine, it’s settled,” he cut her off. “When do we leave?”

  Catherine’s eyes pleaded with him, but then Mary went to stand beside him, crossing her arms, too. “Fine, fine. But if there is trouble you both need to flee and hide. I can’t lose you! I won’t lose you. Do you understand me?”

  Liam nodded. “Bastian told me the same thing before he went after you.”

  Her lips twitched, knowing he would do anything to keep her by his side, but then she thought of their last few moments together and she let out a hiss. “We leave as soon as the freed men and women are gone from the island. How much longer?”

  “Sundown,” Kendi told her. “I’ll get everyone else prepared to go.”

  “Good then sundown it is,” she said. She told them all she would be in Bastian’s room resting and suggested everyone do the same if need be. A change of clothes was in order and certainly not a dress, but she needed the time alone to think.

  If they made it to this monastery, what then? How long before Tula took off to catch up to Bastian and Haddie without her? And what of her brother? She had assumed he would want to leave with the others and take Mary home, but instead they wanted to stay…because of her. She pictured Michael’s face in death and froze before the mirror in Bastian’s room. Could she cope with seeing either of them killed?

  Maybe she should sneak away before anyone noticed. That would be her best chance of ensuring no one else was hurt. Catherine studied her face in the mirror, the smoothness of her undead skin and the red glow to her eyes. She opened her mouth and smirked to see the fangs there ready for a fight. Bastian sent her away because he still thought her too weak to handle herself. She thought she had proved him wrong, but it appeared another lesson was in order. Resolve filled her as she stared at the woman in the mirror, the demon of the night ready to fight and die for the man she loved.

  You can’t hide me away forever, she thought fiercely and watched as her eyes glowed red. She could do this. It was her life now and she was going to embrace every part of it, even the darkness, no matter where it took her.

  ***

  Liam left the house and walked beside the burnt fields he had spent so many long days working in. Mary walked beside him, her hand a comfort in his, as they watched the remaining freed men and women pack their few belongings and supplies handed out by the vampires for their journey.

  “You can go,” Liam told her quietly when they came to a stop at the road leading to the dock. “I would understand. She’s my sister.”

  Mary leaned into his side. “I’m not leaving you, Liam. I already told you that.” She moved to face him and rubbed her fingers across his forehead. “You’re worried about her, aren’t you? You don’t think she’ll turn into a monster, do you?”

  Shoulders sagging, he shook his head. “Maybe? I don’t know what to think. I’m grateful she’s alive, but she’s one of them now. She drinks blood to stay alive, for God’s sake! What am I to think of that? What would our mother think?” The thought of their mother, if she was still alive, ever hearing about what had happened to her daughter, would kill her. Catherine was no longer ‘Catherine’. She was something else entirely.

  But it wasn’t just the vampire issue. She was hiding something from him. He saw it in her eyes when she stared at him, pleading him to stay away. It wasn’t only about the vampires.

  “Last chance,” he told Mary. “I won’t hold it against you.”

  She stood on her toes and kissed him, a fierce determination in her eyes. “I’ve already made up my mind. Besides, the mainland of the new world? Sounds like an adventure awaits us, and I for one, am embracing this new unpredictable life.”

  Liam pulled her close. “Right, well let’s just pray this new life doesn’t get us both killed,” he muttered, wondering if they could truly trust these creatures or if in the end, they were all just monsters.

  Chapter 5

  The sun was finally falling below the horizon and Bastian stretched his arms over his head, ready to start moving further up the coast. They were close to the mainland and once they reached it, Haddie said it was a clear shot to where the Master was supposed to meet them.

  “You should not have done that to Catherine,” Haddie said, appearing beside him.

  The cave they found was small, barely able to hold them both, but it was all they were able to find as the sun rose, cutting off their chance of reaching the mainland on their first night.

  “Women do not always forgive easily,” she warned.

  “I could not allow her to come with us,” he snapped. “It’s too risky. Bringing Catherine closer to the man who is able to penetrate her mind? I would be a fool to think that was a good idea.”

  “She made her choice and you took it away from her. Just friendly advice from a very old woman…women do not take such slights lightly. And what makes you believe she will stay away?”

  Bastian considered that the moment he watched her fall to ground unconscious, but told Tula he would do whatever necessary to keep her away until this Master was dealt with. He would not risk losing the one woman in this world who understood what he was, and loved him anyway. He hated to raise his hand to her, but that fire in her eyes told him there would be no convincing her with words.

  The moment the sunlight vanished, Bastian stepped out onto the sand, eager to be gone. They sprinted down the shore of the island and when they reached the tip of it, dove straight into the waves and swam for the mainland. According to what Haddie told Bastian, the trip inland would be longer than he anticipated, nearly twenty leagues at least. It would take an entire night to reach it, and they had to be careful. Haddie’s warning rang in his ears. There was a chance of the Master’s soldiers patrolling the wilderness, and they must be on the lookout with every step.

  By the time they reached the shore, Bastian was exhausted and realized he had not fed in several days. He needed blood and from the hungry look in Haddie’s eyes, he was not alone. Soaking wet and reeking of the sea, they crept through the trees along the coast, following the sounds of a small fishing village. Bastian was
not a fan of attacking which would lead to the risk of being exposed, but they had little choice. It was either feed or face the danger of running into soldiers or the Master himself, weakened and unable to fight back.

  Torchlight lit the edge of the village, but they steered clear of it. Bastian caught sight of two men heading back from the dock, chatting happily in Spanish about their unexpectedly large catch. No one else was around. It was their perfect chance.

  Haddie’s eyes flared red as she sidled her way up to them from the shadows. Both men came to an abrupt stop as she smiled coyly and beckoned them towards her with her finger. Bastian waited in the darkness as she led them from the dock, down the dirt path leading away from the safety of the village. The moment they were out of sight, he lunged forward and grabbed one, while Haddie trapped the other, biting down hard on his neck.

  Though their eyes widened in surprise, neither made a sound and Bastian closed his eyes, relishing the warm blood filling his mouth and sliding down his throat. He bit down harder, hunger driving him as well as fear that no matter how strong he thought he was, the Master would find a way to kill him and the woman he loved.

  “Bastian,” a woman’s voice filled his ears, but Bastian snarled and pulled the man closer to him. “Bastian! You’re killing him!”

  Two strong hands yanked on his mouth and his fangs were pried loose. He snapped his jaws as he was thrown backwards, ready to attack, when he caught sight of Haddie putting herself between him and the two men, who were still in a daze.

  He straightened slowly and closed his mouth, ashamed. “I apologize…I don’t know what came over me. Thank you,” he muttered.

  Haddie glared at him before she turned and ordered the two men on their way, ensuring they remembered nothing but walking home from their day of fishing. Once they departed, she whirled around on Bastian and snarled in his face.

  “If you cannot control yourself now, you are not ready to face this man.”

  “It won’t happen again,” he swore.