Darkling

by Sabolic, Mima

  I felt my phone buzzing. Doris had texted me: ? ? ?. I replied with a smiley face, and she answered immediately: Thank God! I thought you’d leave me. I’ll drop by later.

  In the few days following the trip, I hadn’t made things easy for her; no wonder she had thought I’d leave. Well, I hadn’t been sure myself, either.

  Blake and I met Tibor for breakfast and I realized I had nothing to do before visiting the cell.

  “You guys have a free day?”

  “Yup,” Tibor answered.

  “Any plans?”

  “Drinks downtown, probably. Wanna come?”

  “When would you be back?”

  “After lunch.”

  “I need to be here at six.”

  “No problem,” he smiled.

  That’d be a nice breather. Out of here until I’d see my new working space. The cell. I didn’t know what to think of that.

  We got our coats and a car.

  “So, what’s do you usually do on Wednesdays?”

  “Tibor chases girls.”

  “And Blake holds a candle for me.” They both laughed. “But Julia is the best wingman.”

  We were quiet for a moment, thinking of why she wasn’t there. Then I thought of Lyndon, but couldn’t be bothered to ask about her day-off habits.

  We entered a pub.

  “Good thing about this weather is that every time you sit in a bar it feels like you’re having a night out, so there’s no problem with alcohol and conscience.”

  “That’s a theory,” I laughed.

  They ordered beers and I got a blueberry juice.

  “You’re always drinking red liquid,” Tibor grinned.

  “I must be turning into a bloodsucker.”

  “You know the saying: you are who you hang out with,” Blake added, smiling.

  There was a definite pleasure to joking about something that few people knew about. The mythology living parallel to ours. Living?

  “I’ve been wondering for a while now, are they living or, um, dead?” I lowered my voice.

  “Normal vamps are alive. They are born, their hearts beat and all that. However, the Vocati are dead. Were dead . . . you know what I mean,” Blake said.

  “I knew about the Vocati.”

  “But you thought of Bela Lugosi,” Tibor teased.

  “Who?” I had no idea who they were talking about. They both stared.

  “Oh, no no no. Tell me you’re joking.”

  “That’s one huge mistake, Nika.”

  I shrugged and rolled my eyes.

  “Bela Lugosi is the most famous vampire movie actor in the whole of cinematic history. Dracula! You must know his eyes and hand gestures, they’re classic!” Tibor was clearly frustrated.

  “Bauhaus has a great song ‘Bela Lugosi’s dead.’ ”

  I didn’t want to further reveal my ignorance, so I just made a mental note to check later on the Internet.

  Time passed easily with them. We were having fun, and soon enough the waitress arrived with my cheeseburger, which meant that our little venture was coming to an end. I avoided thinking of what awaited me at the compound. Facing a Vocati in its cell, and facing Belun as well, did not top my cool-with-it list. I wasn’t afraid, but it wasn’t the easiest of feelings, either.

  Everything was probably going exactly as it was meant to go. I mean, I’d made the choice to sign a contract with the devil, and hopefully I’d find some satisfaction too. It seemed like everyone was pretty happy. Everyone except Lyndon.

  The cells were in the same building as my training and meals. Belun was waiting for me at the entrance.

  “Hi,” he said, looking me in the eyes.

  “Hi.” I replied in a normal tone, but couldn’t hold his gaze for long.

  “Come on, I’ll show you our offices.”

  We walked through the hall that led away from the main lobby. We made one turn and entered a part of the building that was new for me. There were several rooms with frosted glass walls; we entered one on the right.

  In the room was a big desk with two computers and two chairs. On the opposite side were two white things that looked like safes, but were probably file cabinets.

  We climbed a spiral staircase in the corner of the room that led up to another level.

  Contrary to the rather sterile look of the lower office, this one had a more personal touch. It was more like someone’s room than a workspace.

  “This is our workplace,” said Belun.

  There were two desks made of thick wood that stood across from each other. They both held laptops. There was a dark red sofa, a glass table, a weird metal structure with circular forms around it, two interesting paintings, and one artsy photograph. Next to a small burgundy wall stood a tall dried bonsai.

  “What is this?” I pointed to the metal construction.

  Belun opened a lid on the top of it; I could see some bottles.

  “It’s a bar, but the artist called it ‘Absolution’. As in, saying goodbye to the Earth.”

  It seemed more meaningful now knowing the name.

  “You like it?”

  “Yes,” I said, wandering toward a glass case.

  There were several expensive-looking knifes, a few photos with Aidan and Doris. No photo of a wife or kids . . . which made me think: did he have any offspring? Oh, and there was no picture of Simona, which made me look at his laptop screen. But no, there was only an image of a rock with a castle on it, flying through the air.

  “Rene Magritte.”

  “Pardon?”

  “It’s a Magritte’s painting,” He motioned to the laptop.

  “It’s interesting.”

  “He’s a great artist.”

  The darkness of the forest was creeping through the window. I shifted my gaze.

  “Shall we?” he asked.

  My sniffing around was over, and the real deal was waiting. We exited through a different door in the lower office, which led us to the special room. My Vocati’s cell.

  “Can Vocati reproduce?” I asked, feeling a bit jittery.

  “They can’t. They create themselves.”

  “How?”

  “By draining the victims of their blood and giving them their own.”

  “Like a reincarnation?”

  “Something like that.” he replied, frowning.

  “And how does one create a Rogue? The same way?”

  “That is forbidden.”

  I felt the Warrior boiling inside him; he was not so happy with my questions and my casual tone.

  “Spoken like a true tin soldier,” I teased, and his eyes sliced into me.

  “They are not created in the same way.” It was all he said on the topic. Besides his usual face, he didn’t show anything else. Had I just made him angry?

  We entered a room with a one-sided mirror window, a few chairs, a small desk and a coffee machine. It looked just like something out of a TV crime show. Through the window I saw a room with a bed, closet, dining table and kitchenette.

  In our side of the room were two more guys, Lee and Jacob, also part of our team. I glanced through the mirror again, like Alice.

  Sitting at the table was the man from the hotel. He was wearing the same brown suit and had the same sadness in his eyes. His hands were on his knees, and in the middle of the table was an empty vase that was strikingly similar to the one in the dream I had had a few nights earlier.

  “Pay attention to his energy level. If he seems livelier to you at any moment, inform us or leave immediately. It’s a small chance, but you should be careful all the time. Listen for our knocks or voices. There shouldn’t be much problem because the silver is doing its job well, but always remember that he’s dangerous—be aware of it all the time,” Belun instructed. “I’ll wait here; you may enter whenever you’re ready.”

  “I’m ready,” I replied briskly, wanting this list of rules to be over already.

  He opened the door for me in such a way that I had to brush against him to get through.
I felt his gaze, but I looked straight into the room.

  The door closed and a heavy silence fell.

  I gazed at the Vocati, and found that I wasn’t as afraid as I thought I’d be, oddly enough.

  “I’ve been waiting for you,” he said, without lifting his eyes. The sound of his voice was upsetting.

  “I know. I dreamed about this.”

  He lifted his eyes and I could see surprise in them. He remained quiet, so I decided to take the lead. After all, it was my job.

  “I dreamed about you in this position at the table, and of the vase.” I paused to collect myself. “My name is Nika Young.”

  He didn’t respond, but his eyes remained on me. Maybe he found it unusual that after three weeks of solitude there was a girl in his cell—and a chatty one, at that; even while she was facing a killing machine. Him.

  “There was a reception in honor of your capture. You must be a bigwig,” I said, letting out a little laugh. And I couldn’t help but wonder who was more confused, him with his eyes that just kept getting wider, or Belun on the other side of the mirror. I bet neither had expected this.

  The Vocati was still silent.

  “So, do you know how to create a vampire?” Something inside me wanted to tease Belun who I knew was listening to our every word. I wasn’t waiting for an answer though, but—

  “They suck some of the victim’s blood and give their own.”

  Okaay…

  “Thank you, they didn’t want to tell me.”

  He looked at me with those bottomless eyes, and it was as if a grave itself was staring directly at me. All six feet. If my eyes stayed on his, the feeling would become unbearable. Nevertheless, now the abyss made more sense—after all, he was dead, or had been, at least. I wondered how much of his previous life he could remember, and how much of his earlier self had remained inside him after the transition. I would remember to ask him some other time.

  “Well, I just came to say hi. Tomorrow I’ll stay longer.” I smiled at him and headed for the door.

  “Tertius,” he said in a low voice. I turned around.

  “My name is Tertius,” he repeated, not without effort.

  “Isn’t that Latin for ‘third’?”

  He nodded.

  “Assholes, they could’ve come up with a real name.” I commented looking at him. Then I opened the door.

  What greeted me on the other side of the door was precious. Three stunned vampires. I knew that I had said some inappropriate things, but hey, if I was going to do this, it would be on my terms. Anyway, there was no team without me, and that had to count for something.

  “See you tomorrow, guys,” I said, leaving the observation room. Doris was arriving soon, I thought, walking down the hall.

  I felt him come up next to me.

  “That was very impressive and—tactful,” he said.

  “Fine by me. Whatever you think is suitable.”

  “You were much better than what I’ve heard about the others at their first meetings.”

  “This was the second meeting actually, unless you count the dreams as well.”

  “Right. What is it with the dreams?”

  “I’ll write it in my report,” I said, not wanting to prolong this conversation. I’d hoped he’d enter some office, or leave on some other business. I mean, what did he do anyway? Shouldn’t Warrior be off warring or something?

  “You skipped last night’s training.”

  “My leg was sore,” I lied, but he seemed to buy it.

  “How’s it now?”

  “Like new.” We walked in silence for a while. I picked up the pace.

  “Um, why did you come over last night? Did you need anything?” he asked, his voice softer with care.

  Those words brought to mind the image of the love-nest I had probably interrupted.

  “No. Nothing important.”

  “But you came all the way to my room… It must have been something.”

  “Really, it was nothing important.” I gave him a forced smile.

  Finally, we reached the main lobby. He mumbled goodbye and disappeared through some door. Now, didn’t that go well? Oddly, I felt a bit like a winner, and there was some joy in that. I no longer needed others to make me happy, and I felt as if I could breathe again.

  I cleaned my room a bit, expecting Doris to arrive at any second. When my phone got a text reading, I’m coming up, I went out into the hallway to meet her. As soon as she saw me, she grabbed me in a strong hug.

  “For three days I lived in fear that you were gonna bail on me! Don’t you ever do that again!” She smiled, her eyes twinkling. I hugged her back just as strongly.

  “I’d miss you too much to leave,” I said, linking my arm with hers and leading her into my suite.

  “I’ve never been in an Inquirer’s room before,” she said, sniffing around my stuff. “You need something for that wall.”

  “I know. Next week I get paid.” It sounded so weird to say that. I should be in Berkeley studying, not working as some crazy Inquisitor here in the Norwegian wilds. “Then I’ll buy something online.”

  She scanned my bookshelf.

  “And I’ll buy books too. These came with the room; the choice isn’t bad.”

  I thought that it would be nice to buy some presents for her and Julia. After all, the two of them had helped me a lot. Yes, I should definitely do that.

  She threw herself on my bed.

  “So, how are things?”

  “I visited the cell today for the first time. And it seemed to have gone better than anyone had hoped. It was so good that I left three stunned vampires in my wake.” We laughed.

  “Were you scared?” Her eyes were wide at the thought of sharing the same space with Vocati.

  “Actually, I wasn’t.”

  “I’d die if it was me in there.”

  “Well, he’s not my blood enemy after all.”

  “Don’t fool yourself, they attack innocent people as well if they’re hungry and there’s no nearby vampire to kill.”

  “Well, this Vocati is completely restrained. It takes him a huge effort even to speak. His name is Tertius and he looks rather destroyed.”

  “Keep in mind that the Original Four cannot die,” she warned.

  “Because they’re already dead?” I grinned, but she didn’t laugh.

  “No. It’s because they were invoked that way; the first four Vocati are immortals. The rest can be killed, but not these creatures. It’s a big deal that Baldur caught one, almost unreal, that’s why the people who came for the reception stayed so long. Even Kyrill sent his representatives.”

  “This Kyrill, what’s he like?”

  “Would it sound odd if I said that he’s old school?” We laughed.

  “In what way?”

  “In the way that he doesn’t agree much with Baldur’s methods. He’s into the ‘shoot first then ask questions’ sort of thing, and he didn’t gave his consent for this Project. Baldur, with all his flaws, is actually very progressive in his politics.”

  “I don’t see anything wrong in the attempt to get more familiar with your enemies,” I said.

  “Me neither, but Warriors apparently don’t share our opinion.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Ah, politics.” She rolled her eyes. “Now tell me how thing are with you-know-who?”

  Bad. Nonexistent. I don’t see why it would matter. I won’t let a guy dictate my moods and thoughts. Anyway, Mia was right about Belun and Simona—nothing in public, she said. But still, it was there. Unfortunately, Doris seemed oblivious to this. Ah, secret lovers.

  “You know there’s nothing there.” My voice was a bit harsh, and she looked confused.

  “Come on, I saw you two that night.”

  “It was just a dance.”

  She was still bewildered, but she didn’t push. Probably something on my face told her not to.

  “I know why you froze that night,” she said.

  “I didn’t freez
e, I felt ill.”

  “Whatever.”

  More silence.

  “You know, not all men are bastards.”

  “Probably.” I shrugged. Not that I thought they are.

  “Not all of them will go round your back and screw your friends,” she spat it out.

  “What does that mean?”

  “I think that you’re unaware of your reaction to men when they get close to you.”

  “I didn’t know I had a problem during the dance,” I said, defensively.

  “You didn’t, but as soon as you realized what was happening, things changed and you looked like you were about to have a seizure.”

  “It wasn’t like that.”

  “Trust me; I saw your face. His, as well.”

  “And what does that matter now?”

  “I’m just saying that I understand what the problem is. I’ve thought a lot about it and have come to the conclusion that you were hurt much more than you think, and since your brain’s not reacting, your body is.”

  Of course this was irritating, but before I said something I’d regret, I bit the inside of my lips. I needed a little distraction to calm myself down. I didn’t want to start a fight with her.

  She saw that I was angry, and laid her hand on top of mine.

  “I guess I wanted to say that you can talk to me whenever you feel like.”

  “Thank you,” I said, calmer. After all, it was nice of her to think of me and my problems; at least one of us was.

  “I had a weird dream last night,” I said, changing the subject and wondering if I should censor this version.

  “Yees?”

  “Remember that dream you had with me in it? Well, I had a similar one.”

  She gawked at me. “Tell me!”

  I told her about the first part of the dream. However, I didn’t tell of anything related to Belun, his room, his girl. . . .

  “When I woke up I saw someone in my room, and the window was open. I froze, completely went numb; the person disappeared through the window as soon as he saw me staring at him. I lay there and thought of doing something, but then I woke up again. It was all a dream. But was it?” I made a dramatic expression. “My window was still open, and I’m sure I didn’t do it.”