The woman smiled. “Come on, Tara, you should know who I am. You see me in the mirror every day, spending hours making me look just perfect for the guys you want to impress. Don’t you know your own reflection?”
I froze. “You’re not my reflection.”
The woman’s smile—which looked exactly like my own, except crueler—just widened. “Come on, girlie. You know that’s bull. I’m your dark reflection, how you would look in a warped mirror. I’m still a part of you, though, whether you accept it or not.”
“I would never wear that outfit,” I said. “It’s too—”
“Honest?” The woman ran a hand down her curves. “But I get you. You’re a good Christian girl, who’s saving herself for marriage with a good Christian man. You’re better than all of those other sluts, aren’t you? Yes, you’re daddy’s little girl, a perfect little angel who has never done anything wrong in her whole life.”
I bit my lower lip. “I don’t think I’m better than anyone because I’m a virgin. I—”
“Doesn’t matter,” said the woman, waving her hand dismissively. “What matters is that I exist only because you exist. The Maze may have brought me to life, but the raw materials that make me exist within you, whether you realize it or not.”
Given all of the strange things I’d seen in the Maze, I had to admit that I couldn’t just reject this woman’s identity right off the bat. “So you’re the dark side of me, then.”
“The honest side,” said the woman, my reflection. “The one who doesn’t pretend to be a good little Christian girl. But you can call that ‘dark’ if you want, if it makes you feel better about avoiding the ugly truth about yourself.”
My hands shook. I’d heard similar comments from girls in my high school growing up, because everyone had known that I was a pastor’s kid and a lot of the girls in my school thought that made me a hypocrite on principle. It had been a long time since I’d heard these comments, mostly because I’d matured and put it behind me and found friends who actually liked me, but for a long time I had internalized them, to some degree, and hearing them repeated by a woman who looked scarily like me was like being slapped in the face by a wet fish.
“Why do you exist?” I said. “Why are you here? What are you trying to do? Just make me relive my high school days and feel awful about myself for stuff I’ve already gotten over?”
My reflection shrugged. “I really don’t care how you feel. I just wanted to talk to you about that carving you saw. You know, the one where you kill your vampire boyfriend and are happy about it? Yeah, that one.”
“What about that one?” I said. “It’s fake. It’s a lie. It’s just the Maze messing with me.”
“A fake, huh?” said my reflection. “Like me? Yeah, right. Listen, the Maze never lies. It can’t lie. It can only be brutally honest about what it shows us, even if we don’t like it.”
“But how can the Maze know the future?” I said. “That’s impossible, isn’t it?”
“The Maze is ancient, girlie,” said my reflection. “Its magic is deeper and more primordial than anything sorcerers or even vampires can do. Who’s to say what it can and can’t do? Rather arrogant of you to decide that, if you ask me.”
“I still refuse to believe what it showed me,” I said. “I love Lucius and want what’s best for him. Killing him isn’t what’s best for him.”
“And how do you know that?” my reflection shot back. “Consider the life he leads. He’s a soulless monstrosity who exists only to kill. Yeah, maybe he has his killing impulses under control thanks to his Pure diet, but it’s obvious that he’s miserable. Killing him would be a mercy.”
“But wouldn’t he … wouldn’t he go to hell if I killed him?” I said. “Isn’t that where all vampires go when they die?”
“Would hell be any different from what he’s currently living in?” said my reflection. She smirked. “Sure, it would be a little bit hotter, maybe a bit brighter than what he likes, but overall I doubt he will be able to tell the difference. Besides, he’s going to end up there eventually. No vampire lives forever. At some point, someone—a lucky vampire hunter, another vampire who hates him—will take him out and he’ll end up in hell regardless of what you do.”
“Then I should spend as much time with him as I can until he dies,” I said, “instead of taking him for granted.”
My reflection threw her head back and laughed. “Cheesy and sentimental. God, I feel embarrassed to be part of you. Absolutely cringe worthy.”
“I’m sorry you don’t have a soul,” I said. “Because if you did, you wouldn’t be saying any of this.”
“I’m just saying what a small part of your mind has always been saying, whether you pay attention to it or not,” said my reflection. “You know that what I say is true. Lucius needs to die. It will be the most loving thing you could do for him. And you have to be the one to do it. He won’t see it coming from you, because he thinks you’re a friend and that you would never harm him for any reason.”
“He’s right,” I said. “I would never harm him, ever, no matter what anyone else, even my own reflection, says.”
“There’s the moral certitude that got you mocked in high school,” said my reflection. She brushed back her hair. “Seriously, tone down the self-righteousness. It makes you look like a Christian. Wait, that’s what you are. Never mind, then. Carry on.”
It felt surreal to be mocked by someone who looked so much like me and whose voice was exactly the same as mine. It reminded me of the depressive thoughts I had in my youth, when I would beat myself up for my own flaws. It had taken me a long time to get over those thoughts, especially after Mom died, but I did eventually and I wasn’t about to let myself fall back into them, no matter what.
“Listen, reflection or whatever you are,” I said, “I’m not going to listen to anything else you say to me. Whatever you are and whatever you’re trying to make me do, I’m not going to do it. I don’t care how persuasive your arguments are. I’m going to do what I think is right.”
“I’m not trying to make you do anything,” said my reflection. “I’m just telling you why you’re going to do what you are destined to do. That way, you won’t be surprised once it happens. I’m trying to help you, but of course you’re too pigheaded to see that.”
“You’re not helping me,” I said, pointing Domination at her. “You’re not helping anyone. You’re just trying to poison my mind with evil thoughts. You’re like a demon, maybe even like Satan.”
My reflection rolled her eyes. “Like I said, cringe worthy. Get your head out of the Bible and look at the real world. It might surprise you.”
“I’m already looking at the real world,” I said. “And I don’t like what I see, if you’re any indication of it.”
My reflection scowled. “Very well. Ultimately, it’s your choice. Well, that’s what I would say if I thought you had any choice in the matter. Given how it is your destiny, it is obvious to me that you don’t have any actual choice in it whatsoever. When the time comes, you will do exactly what you saw that carving of yourself do. And you will enjoy every second of it.”
With that, my reflection turned around and walked away. She slowly melted into a pool of shadow, until soon she was gone completely, leaving me standing all alone in the hallway again, stuck with Carving Me standing above Carving Lucius, a wicked grin on her lips.
I stood in the hallway for a long time, staring at the moving carvings on the walls. They were kind of mesmerizing to watch, even though I already knew what they showed. They showed things that had happened in the past … and possibly something that would happen in the future, too.
I turned away from the carvings again and resumed walking down the hallway. No. I would never do what my reflection said. That woman probably wasn’t even really my reflection in the first place. It was probably just an illusion created by the Maze, meant to get into my head and make me doubt myself. Probably, the Maze was trying to pit me against Lucius. I wondered if Lucius
came across a similar illusion to mine, though I had to admit that I had no idea what a ‘Dark’ Lucius would even look like, given how he already dressed pretty darkly himself. Maybe he would face a version of himself wearing a white suit or something?
It didn’t matter. What mattered was that the words of my reflection stung worse than I expected, worse than I initially let on. I still didn’t agree with it, not one bit, but I also found a lot in that reflection that was more familiar than I would like to admit.
I had never had a ‘slutty’ phase in high school or college or anything like that. As I said, I was a virgin, though I dated guys before. It always made me feel a bit awkward around other girls my age, because one thing I discovered very quickly was how different this made me from other girls. It used to bother me a lot, but once I graduated high school and realized there was more to life than sex, I didn’t obsess over it as much.
But I did always want to look like some of the other girls I’d seen. I’d always wanted to wear more revealing clothing, to be seductive. Don’t get me wrong, I value modesty and generally try to dress modestly, but the temptation to be like the other girls was definitely strong when I was younger and it seemed like the only reason I didn’t was because I feared angering Dad.
How the Maze knew that that was how my ‘dark side’ should look, I would never know. But I was starting to realize that Blake was right when he said that the Maze knows everything. Just entering the Maze was enough to give it knowledge of you, knowledge you might have never told anyone else in other situations. If the carvings were accurate, the Maze could watch you even before you entered it.
Maybe it was actually the Vampire Flame at work. That would explain a lot, though it still wouldn’t explain everything. Still, given the mysterious nature of the Vampire Flame, it wasn’t entirely far-fetched to suggest that it could potentially have been the one to read my mind and make that dark side manifestation of myself. Why it would do so was a complete mystery to me, of course, but there was a lot of things about magic that were a mystery to me and probably always would be.
Then, of course, there was still this Mistress lady I had to deal with. I still didn’t know who she was or what she was trying to do, exactly, aside from getting the Vampire Flame. Did she have any control over the Maze whatsoever? Or was she like Lucius and I, just reacting to the various ways in which it changed? She was clearly watching us. That much I knew, given how Blake showed himself to me in that illusion not long ago.
Whatever the Mistress’s plans were, I just hoped that she didn’t harm Jane. If Blake was here, I figured that Jane had to be here, too. The only question was whether Jane was well or if she was in danger. I feared that the Mistress would probably try to use Jane as a weapon against me, to make me stand down and not get in the way of her plans.
But if she was going to do that, wouldn’t Blake have told me that back in the waterfall chamber? Instead, he offered to use the Vampire Flame to make me a normal human again. He didn’t even mention Jane, from what I could remember. What did that mean? Maybe it meant nothing. Maybe Blake just didn’t see any point in mentioning her to me. It wasn’t like I didn’t know that Blake had her as his prisoner, after all.
Still, I had a very bad feeling about all of this. Jane’s kidnapping had not been a coincidence. That much I knew. The question was why the Mistress would want Jane—a Powerless human—rather than someone like me. The only explanation I could come up with was that Jane must have been able to do something that I couldn’t, though what, I had no idea.
In any case, I needed to keep my wits about myself. My confrontation with my reflection had shaken me in ways I didn’t want to admit, but I couldn’t let myself remain entirely distracted. I was still in the Maze, after all, and it would not be wise of me to let myself remain distracted when there could be all sorts of dangerous things just around the corner. I held Domination close to me as I followed the hallway farther down, going deeper and deeper into what was increasingly feeling like the belly of the beast.
Eventually, the hallway started to level out. Soon, I was walking along a flat hallway very similar to the one at the entrance, only this one was narrower and darker. I heard a strange thumping sound beyond the walls, which reminded me of a heartbeat. That made me think I was in or near the heart of the Maze itself, but that was ridiculous, because there was no way that the Maze could have a heart.
When I rounded a corner, I found myself facing a tall, ancient wooden door. Its wood was faded and even brittle in a few places, but overall it looked quite sturdy, as if it had stood here for centuries. I felt like I was in the oldest part of the Maze, and not just because of the door, either. This entire place felt like it hadn’t been walked in centuries, if not eons, and that I was the very first person in countless years to walk this hallway. Maybe that was just me being overly dramatic, but I didn’t think so.
Regardless, the only way forward was through the door. Turning back, as usual, wasn’t an option. Still, I made sure that I had Domination at the ready before I grabbed the ancient rusted handle and turned it.
Slowly but surely, the door opened at my command, until soon I opened it all the way. Without hesitation, I stepped into the room and looked around at my new surroundings to see where I was.
As usual in this place, I found myself surprised by what I found. The room was shaped like a rectangle, with branching hallways along the walls that appeared to go deeper into the maze. Strange metal chains hung off the walls, looking like shackles for prisoners, although they were currently empty. That sound of a heartbeat had grown louder, to the point where I was sure I was standing next to the source of the sound itself, but the room was devoid of people and anything else that could make a sound.
I wondered what the gimmick of this room was going to be. I didn’t see any evil spirits or riddle-loving talking statues or anything like that. It looked almost normal, but if there was one thing I had learned while in the Maze, it was that nothing in here could even be remotely described as ‘normal.’ And the image of Carving Me killing Carving Lucius was still fresh on my mind, making me even more cautious about moving forward.
I heard a door slam behind me and looked over my shoulder. The ancient door had slammed shut. And before my startled eyes, it began to fade into the stone. Soon, the door was gone, replaced by a stone wall every bit as thick as the rest.
The message was clear: I wasn’t going to be getting out of here through the way I came anytime soon.
The shuffling of footsteps made me look back toward the end of the room. There was an open hallway at the very end of the room, from which the sound of footsteps slowly making their way toward me could be heard. From a distance, I couldn’t see who was walking in there, but I doubted they were friendly. I raised Domination before me defensively, ready to take on whoever was coming through that hallway.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, someone emerged from the doorway, a person who I had not seen in a while:
It was Jane. And her skin was as pale as death.
To say I was surprised to see Jane was an understatement. Even from a distance, I had no trouble recognizing her teen-like features or her blonde hair. She still wore the same clothes she did back at Ricardo’s Place, but they looked more ragged now, as if she had been traveling through the wilderness while wearing them.
And her skin was pale. Not quite as pale as a vampire’s, but far too pale for a healthy human being. She walked into the chamber with confused eyes, her steps hesitant and unsure, as if she was walking through a pitch black room without any light by which to guide her.
“Jane?” I said, lowering Domination. “Is that you?”
Jane stopped and looked around. “Tara? I hear you, but I can’t see you. Where are you and how did you get in this place?”
I found it strange that Jane apparently couldn’t see me, but then realized that this chamber didn’t have any light. The only reason I could see her myself was because of my night vision, but
Jane, being a Powerless human, had no such advantage. No wonder she walked like she was in a pitch black room, because she technically was in a pitch black room.
“Stay where you are,” I told her. “I’m coming to you. We’re getting out of here and going back to Greensboro.”
“Oh, thank God,” said Jane, who came to a stop at the sound of my voice. “I’m so glad you’re here to save me. I woke up in a bed in another room and I wasn’t sure where I was. I thought I was in a nightmare, but maybe things are going to be better than I thought.”
“They will,” I said. “Just hold tight. We’ll find a way out of here together, however long it takes.”
I took one step toward Jane, but then I heard a familiar laughter. Smoke began to come from a vent in the ceiling I hadn’t noticed before, gradually falling toward Jane, who started coughing and hacking as she inhaled the smoke. Before my startled eyes, the smoke took a humanoid shape and gradually took on the feature of Blake, who stood behind Jane with the most awful grin on his face. He rested his large hands on Jane’s shoulders, making her start when she felt his touch.
“Don’t worry, Jane,” said Blake in a soothing voice in her ear. “It’s just me, Blake. I’m here to make sure you’re safe.”
Jane immediately relaxed under his touch. “Oh, Blake, I’m so glad you’re here. I was really scared for a moment there. I thought I was alone.”
“Oh, baby, you’re never alone as long as you’re with me,” said Blake. “You really shouldn’t have left your room like that without telling me. Otherwise, you could have gotten lost and maybe even hurt.”
“I’m sorry, Blake,” said Jane. She put her hand on one of his. “I just … I woke up and was scared and confused. I didn’t know where I was or how I got here.”
“Probably just had a nightmare,” said Blake. “Now, you should come with me back to your room. I’ll help you get back to sleep if you need it.”
The Vampire Flame (Vampire Sorceress Book 3) Page 11
