Children of Shadows

by Naylor, Joleene

  “We’ll see,” Jorick murmured with no enthusiasm.

  Once Micah was gone, another guard approached them, motioning Jorick and Katelina to the docks.

  “Good luck,” Torina purred. “If Micah’s any indication, you’ll need it.”

  Katelina glared at her, but stood and followed Jorick, her hand in his. Two guards joined them. Though they were both healed, Katelina recognized them as the pair Micah had beaten up.

  She cast a sideways glance at them. They stared straight ahead but she drew away, as if they might do something.

  They were all announced and then the two councils started. They went back and forth, pointing out that Katelina’s reaction was irrational and showed that she was suspicious of the Kugsankal’s motivations, but that the guards had not followed protocol. Finally, one of the defending council members stood and announced loudly, “The human’s master was not present, so to do anything, even to speak to her, was unacceptable.”

  The other side fell to whispers and finally came back with, “The human should have told them her master wasn’t present.”

  “She did,” the defenders announced with satisfaction. “Thus, whatever followed; evading guards who were acting in an official capacity, being an accessory to assault, creating a public nuisance, and the plethora of other charges would never have occurred had the guard listened to this statement in the first place and done as he should have by leaving until the human’s master was present. It was because the guards were in a hurry that they did not follow proper procedure, and it is unfair to charge anyone with a crime because the guards failed in their duty.”

  The accusing council fell to whispers again. When it was clear they had nothing new, the gold robed vampire banged the gavel and Katelina jumped. “It is this council’s finding that the human belonging to Jorick is found inculpable of the charges. The blame belongs to the stronghold guard Burton. Jorick and human will remain in their current quarters, with no change to their liberty, as will stronghold guard Dylan. Stronghold guard Burton will be suspended for a period of three weeks, without compensation, after which time he will resume his duties and his normal pay. Appeal may be made by filing the appropriate paperwork in the judicial office. Judgment is done.”

  The gavel sounded. Katelina had a momentary glimpse of the guard’s irritated face before Jorick led her out of the box and through the courtroom. When they reached the corridor she sagged with relief and leaned her head against Jorick’s chest.

  “Thank God.”

  “I thought the guard’s punishment was too light.”

  She smiled against him. “Would you have preferred torture?”

  Jorick made a nonchalant noise and Katelina leaned up to stare at him. “Are you serious?”

  “Torturing a vampire doesn’t leave a permanent physical mark, unless they remove limbs and don’t allow them to reattach.”

  “What about the emotional scars?”

  “Then perhaps he should have proceeded properly. He’d certainly think twice before he acted rashly again.”

  Katelina couldn’t find anything to say. Moments like this reminded her of why he’d been given the nickname Hand of Death so many years ago.

  The door opened and Oren, Torina, and Loren filed out, talking in low voices.

  “—file the appeal,” Oren said. He stopped and looked at Jorick. “Perhaps it would carry more weight if your signature was on it?”

  “I can try,” Jorick said halfheartedly. “I doubt I’ve garnered any favor here.”

  “We can’t leave him in jail!” Loren cried.

  Oren scoffed. “Perhaps he’ll think twice before he jumps into another altercation.”

  The similarity to Jorick’s statement was uncanny, and Katelina could see why Jorick had turned him.

  “Micah only did it to help Katelina,” Loren said. “Any of us would have done the same thing.”

  Both Oren and Torina’s expressions hinted that not all of them would.

  Katelina ignored the siblings. “If I’m innocent because it was the guard’s fault, then Micah is, too.”

  Jorick heaved a heavy sigh. “All right. Loren, take Katelina back to the room and Oren and I will see about filing appeal papers for the imbecile.”

  “And what should I do?” Torina asked. “Drape myself over something and look pretty?”

  “You can try that,” Oren muttered. “It’s cheaper than your other pastimes.”

  Torina gave a “Humph!” and crossed her arms. “I needed those clothes!”

  “Of course. God forbid you wore the same thing twice.” Oren rolled his eyes. “Never mind. Do as you please, just refrain from spending any more money. I’m already paying for two rooms and your meals and—”

  “That’s what happens when you’re the man,” Torina replied flippantly. “Quit complaining, brother, and be glad. We could be in the free accommodations with Micah.”

  Oren grunted. “I doubt they’re free. Nothing else is.”

  Torina leaned against Jorick. “My affections are, to the right person.” She batted her green eyes and did her best sensual pout.

  Katelina glared and Jorick politely pulled away. “If we’re filing an appeal then let’s get it done.”

  “Yes, why don’t you?” Katelina gave Jorick a quick kiss and shot Torina a dirty look. Then she and Loren went in one direction while Jorick, Torina, and Oren went in the other.

  “You let her go with Jorick?” Loren asked.

  Katelina gave a disdainful sniff. “Why not?” But she knew what he meant; it was one of the reasons she was jealous of the vampiress. “Torina and Jorick’s ‘relationship’, if you can even call it that, is long over.”

  “I never said it wasn’t.” Loren stuffed his hands in his pockets. “You know she only hangs all over him when you’re around. I think it’s just to annoy you.”

  Katelina started to deny it bothered her, but there was no point. “I don’t doubt it.” Despite her words, a tiny part of her did doubt, no matter what assurances Jorick gave her. She didn’t understand how he could prefer a plain human to the busty sexpot vampiress.

  “Do you think it will work?” Loren asked.

  “What?” She jerked from her thoughts, and realized he meant the appeal. “I hope so. Otherwise we may never get out of here.” Not that she was optimistic, anyway.

  She didn’t want to go back to the room. Loren suggested a coffee shop on the fourth floor. , “Oren and I went there the other day after they arrested Micah.”

  She followed Loren to the public area of the stronghold. As they passed the sign for photo developing, she remembered the abandoned camera and ducked into the shop to pick up her photos. There was confusion because they were in Jorick’s name, not Loren’s—as if she meant nothing—but they finally sorted it out and she left clutching an envelope of prints.

  The café was filled with white clothed tables, bistro style chairs and a tall marble topped counter. If it hadn’t been for vampires wearing the usual unique mixture of modern and old fashioned clothes, the scene could have been from a magazine.

  Katelina and Loren sat at a table and she absently flipped through her photos, handing them to the teen for comments. The sunrise came out nice, as did the other day shots she’d taken earlier in the week. The rest were straight faced vampires trying to hide their fangs. As she looked at the pictures she wondered about sending them to her mother. If she thought Jorick was a hippie bum before, she was even more likely to after seeing the company he kept.

  A waiter approached and they ordered and then fell into silence. Conversations rose and fell around them, none of them happy.

  Katelina let her attention drift around the coffee shop, then noticed Loren’s pink cheeks.

  “What?”

  “Huh?” He looked up quickly and then looked away. “Oh, nothing. I wondered if you knew anything about that Ume girl.”

  “What about her?”

  “She was with Oren and Etsuko when we came here. She’s nice.” />
  “Yeah, she seems okay. A bit old for you.”

  Loren perked up defensively. “She looks about seventeen.”

  “Yeah, looks. But she was made into a vampire a long, long time ago.” She tried to calculate a date. Verchiel had once told her that Kateesha abandoned him in 1710, and they’d been together a while before that. If Ume was turned shortly after Verchiel…“She’s three hundred years older than you.”

  “So? Jorick’s like five hundred years older than you.”

  “But he doesn’t look—” she broke off. “I see your point.”

  “The whole immortal thing takes age out of the equation,” Loren said. “All that’s left is how old they look, and even that doesn’t mean a lot. Just coz someone looks fifteen doesn’t mean they have a fifteen year old personality.” He seemed suddenly irritated. “That’s the trouble. Everyone treats you like you’re still a kid, even if you’ve been around for a while.”

  Katelina didn’t have an exact age for Loren, only a guess that involved the 90s. “How long have you been around for?”

  “You’re what? Twenty-five?” She nodded and he grinned. “Longer than you.”

  It was hard to accept. His face was caught in that awkward place between child and man, with a rounded jaw and the last of the baby fat still clinging to his cheeks. She noticed for the first time that his eyes, though large and doe-like, didn’t look as young as his features. There was something in them that said he’d seen more than she had. It was an uncomfortable sensation.

  She looked away. “Well, you don’t act like it.”

  “Says who? Sometimes you don’t act twenty-five.” He tapped a random tune on the tabletop. “Speaking of that, when’s your birthday?”

  “March fifteenth.”

  The waiter interrupted them with their drinks. Katelina sipped her coffee and Loren tasted his spiced blood. “It’s cinnamon-y.” He took another drink and resurrected their conversation. “March will be here soon. It’s like the ninth of February, now. Hey! It’s almost Valentine’s. You gonna do something for Jorick?”

  The question felt strange, like discussing Christmas shopping in the middle of a war zone. “I hadn’t thought about it, what with being held prisoner in a vampire stronghold. Plus, I don’t think Valentine’s Day is his kind of thing.”

  Loren grinned. “You don’t think he’s gonna do anything for you.” He brightened. “I could totally mention it to him. You know, remind him how important chicks think it is.”

  “If you want to.”

  “No prob.” He gulped the last of the blood and then toyed with the glass. “Maybe you could, uh, return the favor and put in a good word for me with Ume? I know she and Verchiel had some kind of thing, but since he’s hiding from her I think it’s over.”

  Katelina choked on her coffee. “Sure. I can do that.” It wasn’t up to her to tell him the truth. Let one of the concerned parties do it. She thought of the video they’d seen in the library yesterday. Now that the trial was out of the way. The Children of Shadows were once again the biggest threat. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind talking to her.”

  Ume was in the room with Etsuko. Once they were seated, the Japanese woman sat and picked up her needlework. It was a large piece of dark blue cloth, big enough for a blanket. In a darker blue it was embroidered with scrolling dragons and swirls that made Katelina gape.

  “Is that the needlework you were talking about?”

  “Oh yes,” Etsuko answered. “I must remember to ask Oren-sama if I can go to the shops and buy some more thread.”

  Katelina wanted to tell her that she didn’t need permission, but knew it was pointless, so she looked to Loren and Ume. The boy bounced his leg and fidgeted with the string on his hoodie, while the girl was cool and oblivious.

  “Ume, we wanted to ask you about the Children of Shadows. Who’s in charge of them?”

  “Their leader is a mystery,” Ume answered. “He goes by the name Father of Shadows.”

  Right. Why wouldn’t he? “So why are you hunting them?”

  “We are always hunting them,” Ume said. “They’ve lain quiet for many years, and we started to think they were gone, but lately there’s been much activity. They have been amassing an army and supplies.”

  “To attack Turkey,” Loren suggested.

  Katelina shook her head. “It’s not just Turkey. They sent a video to all the governments yesterday and said they planned to attack other places. Is that why they killed everyone at the marina? Like a warm up exercise?”

  “I don’t know,” Ume said. “We were as surprised as you. At first I thought you were members because you arrived right after they did, but I’ve since thought perhaps they were lying in wait for you.”

  Which sounded believable if Cyprus was involved. “Do you know any of their names? Does Cyprus or Ronnell sound familiar?” Katelina stopped to think of Malick’s other lackeys, in case they’d also deserted. “Griselda? Arlen?”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Katelina tried not to sound sarcastic, “You’ve been hunting this group for two or three hundred years and you don’t know anything about them?”

  “I don’t know anything new,” Ume corrected. “When I left, none of our information related to their current activities. I’m sure we know more now. If we were able to leave I’d suggest you come with us and speak to Fethillen. But, since we’re trapped here...”

  Loren piped up, “Jorick probably has an escape plan.”

  Though no one spoke, Katelina knew they were all thinking the same thing, “I hope so.”

  Jorick and Oren arrived some time later and Jorick took Katelina to the restaurant for a late lunch. The atmosphere was tense.

  “Have you heard why they won’t let us leave?” a thick accented voice asked their dining partner.

  “No one will say. Only that details will follow later.”

  The first slammed a fist on the table. “How much later? I left my coven in the hands of my brother and I need to get back!”

  The table on the other side of them was much the same. A vampiress, an older vampire in a top hat, and a human girl who looked about fourteen were locked in angry conversation.

  “I heard they’re expecting an attack!” the woman said emphatically.

  “If that’s true, they should let us leave before it comes,” the man replied. He looked sharply toward Katelina and Jorick, as if he’d caught them eavesdropping. Katelina looked away, but not before she felt the telltale spark in her mind of someone poking around. Jorick growled and the vampire turned back and whispered to his companions.

  “He saw something about the Children of Shadows in your mind,” Jorick said quietly.

  Katelina stared at her plate. “I don’t know why they won’t just let everyone out.”

  “I doubt most of them planned to go anywhere until they were told they couldn’t. The best way to make a person want something is to tell them they can’t have it,” he quipped.

  They went back to their room, but Katelina was restless. What if Cyprus really did attack them?

  She tried to keep her mind off of it by watching television, and finally Jorick suggested she call her mother. “Talking to her irritates you and you forget everything else.”

  Though it was one a.m., the time difference meant her mother was probably having dinner. It took her several tries to figure out the international call, but finally she had her mother’s familiar voice on the line.

  “Hey, Mom, it’s me. Wanted to give you a call and say hi.”

  “About time. Where have you been?”

  Katelina groaned. “I told you we’d be gone for a while. Jorick’s business, remember?”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you meant a month. Are you home now?”

  Katelina hesitated. “No, we’re in Germany.”

  “What are you doing in Germany? My God, I thought he did some kind of computer thing.”

  “They have computers here, too. I guess you didn’t get the package from Russia
?”

  “What package?”

  Katelina gave an exasperated sigh. “I sent you a package while we were in Russia. Keep an eye out for it.”

  “What were you doing in Russia?”

  Katelina ignored the question. “I’m going to send you some photos too, so you can see we’re fine. The first bunch is from an island in Indonesia. Someone Jorick knows rented it. It’s a long story, but anyway—”

  “Oh my God, he sells drugs.”

  It took Katelina a moment to figure out what she meant. “No! Jorick doesn’t sell—I told you!”

  “That’s why he lives in a van and has friends who can rent private islands? I saw a movie about this kind of thing, Katelina. Those are dangerous men. I knew there was something suspicious about him the minute I met him. He may be good looking, but it takes more than that…”

  Katelina groaned while her mother went into her usual tirade. She was trying to decide whether to hang up and blame the connection when the rant stopped abruptly.

  “I’m sorry, honey, but I have to go. I have a date and I’m going to be late.”

  A date. “Not with…”

  “Yes, with Brad. We’ve been over this. Send the photos when you get a chance and I’ll look for the package, but I swear to God if there are drugs in there—”

  “It’s knick-knacks!”

  “Well then don’t tell me or you’ll spoil the surprise. I’ll talk to you later, all right. Call more often. Love you.”

  “Yeah, I love you too.”

  And then she was gone.

  “That was short,” Jorick commented.

  “She has a date with Brad.” The name came out like sour milk and Katelina dropped onto the couch. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Brad. She did. She’d liked him when he was dating her best friend, but now that he was dating her mom it was just…

  “It’s wrong,” she muttered. “She’s almost old enough to be his mother.”

  Jorick raised his eyebrows, but let it drop.

  Micah’s appeal took place the next day. The Höher Rat met in a private room. Katelina and Jorick waited in an antechamber with Oren, Torina, Loren, and, surprisingly, Verchiel. She wanted to ask about Ume, but not in front of the others.