Children of Shadows

by Naylor, Joleene

  The door opened and a guard handed them a piece of folded paper sealed with red wax.

  Jorick snapped it open and skimmed the contents. “He’s to be released tomorrow. ‘It is the ruling of this council that as stronghold guard Burton was found in error, the accused cannot be held solely responsible for the violence, and so his sentence is commuted to two days, to finish on the evening of February, 11th…’” He broke off and then picked up again, “This judgment is final and may not be appealed.”

  “Well that’s that,” Oren said with satisfaction.

  Loren heaved a sigh of relief. “I’ve been worried about what they’d do to him.”

  “Probably nothing he wouldn’t like.” Torina laughed, and then stood and stretched provocatively. “I’m in the mood for lunch. Anyone care to join me?”

  Verchiel didn’t jump at the chance, so Loren enthusiastically took his place. “I will.”

  Torina chucked him under the chin. “Aw, you’re only a little vampire-ling. But I suppose even a boy needs to grow up sometime.” She gave her brother a wink, and then took Loren’s good arm. “You can buy.”

  The doors closed behind them and Oren commented, “At least I won’t have to pay for her.”

  “It was your idea to turn her,” Jorick reminded him. “I did warn you not to.”

  “Yes,” Oren said dryly. “And some days I wish I’d listened.”

  They ate lunch in the restaurant. Katelina was halfway through her roast beef sandwich when Sadihra appeared. Her expression was neutral, but her eyes were worried. She whispered something in Jorick’s ear, then motioned him to follow and left as quickly as she’d come.

  “What was that?” Katelina asked.

  “There’s been another attack.” Jorick stood. “I’ll be back.”

  Katelina started to follow, but he waved her back to her chair. “Finish your lunch. Oren will look after you.”

  “I don’t need looked after!” she called as he hurried away. She glared at the sandwich as though it was at fault. “Why can’t I go?”

  “That’s the problem with dating the hero,” Verchiel quipped. “He’s always busy being heroic, and you’re left on your own.”

  “Who said he’s the hero?” Oren asked coldly.

  “He thinks he is.” The redhead grinned. “I can babysit if you’d rather go look for your sister.”

  “Hardly.” Oren fidgeted a moment with his empty glass, and his amber eyes moved to the door. “I need to take that… human some food, I suppose.”

  “Etsuko? Yeah, you don’t want her starve to death.” Verchiel gave Katelina a wink.

  “She’s not a pet,” Katelina snapped.

  “I dunno.” Verchiel leaned back in his chair. “Humans make good pets, and the best part is they don’t need collars and tags since they can tell people where they belong when they get lost.”

  Katelina kicked him under the table, and he laughed. “At least the good humans do.”

  Oren fidgeted a moment longer, then announced, “I assume you can behave yourselves in public long enough for me to take the human some food?” He gave Verchiel an extra hard look.

  The redhead held his hands up and wiggled his fingers. “No touchy? Ah, now you’ve taken all the fun out of it.”

  Katelina kicked him again and Oren said, “Yes, that is exactly what I mean. I’ll be back.”

  He strode purposefully toward the front counter, and Katelina watched as he rang the bell and made his order.

  “It’s kind of sweet, isn’t it?” Verchiel said.

  “What is?”

  “How he’s taking care of her.”

  Katelina choked on her tea. “Are you joking? He treats her like crap!”

  Verchiel cocked his head to one side. “Nah.” He emptied his glass and plunked it on the table. “No. I haven’t talked to Ume.”

  “What?”

  “Earlier.” He met her eyes, all the humor gone from his face. “You wanted to know if I’d talked to her yet , and no, I haven’t. I imagine we’ll take her with us when we leave, so I’ll have plenty of opportunity.”

  “Why would we take her?” Katelina wanted to, but hadn’t figured out how to accomplish it.

  “Because she’s a member of the group who’s hunting our new favorite enemy. Best to join forces with them, don’t you think?”

  “You’ve put some thought into this.”

  “Not really. Genius like that comes naturally.” He tapped the side of his head. “So what do you say? You wanna blow this joint before Mr. Gloom-n-Doom gets back and go find a private broom cupboard somewhere?”

  “Only if I’m stashing your body in it.” she said, then took a savage bite of her sandwich.

  Chapter Nine

  Jorick returned before Oren and motioned Katelina and Verchiel to follow him. They reached the lobby of the movie theater just as it was getting out. A group of vampires swarmed past, talking loudly about the movie and the lockdown. That was when Jorick leaned close to Katelina and said, “Sadihra will help us get out.”

  “Really?” A wave of relief swept through her.

  “Why?” Verchiel asked.

  “There’s been an attack in Syria. Like Turkey, there were few survivors. Wolfe is in the field and since the attack she hasn’t been able to reach him. She’s worried he was injured or killed and since she can’t go herself she wants us to. She’s still suspended for her last rash vacation. If she leaves without permission again she’s likely to be permanently relieved.”

  “Which is what caused the rift between her and Wolfe in the first place,” Katelina said. “He wanted her to quit being a Scharfrichterin and she refused.”

  Jorick nodded. “If she gets relieved of duty then all of that was for nothing.”

  Katelina understood but it was still hard to believe. “I’m surprised she trusts us to go in her place.”

  Jorick smiled. “She doesn’t, but she can’t think of another solution.”

  Katelina was suspicious. “Did she think of this one on her own?”

  “Of course.”

  She swore she saw something less than innocent in his eyes, but she swallowed her objections. “How are we going to get out?”

  Jorick glanced at the dwindling crowd. “Sadihra fears there will be a revolt in the stronghold soon, and I agree. We’ll wait until it’s started and sneak out during the bedlam. Sadihra knows of a maintenance shaft that leads to the garage and she will arrange for a plane at the airfield.”

  “And if we get caught?” Katelina asked.

  Verchiel grinned. “Best not to be, I imagine. Sounds like fun. When do we leave?” The crowd was thinning and any moment they’d be the only ones left.

  “As soon as they revolt.” Jorick caught Katelina’s hand. “It wouldn’t hurt if someone made sure the revolution started at a convenient moment. I suppose we’ll have to wait until that moron is out of prison tomorrow. It would be better to go while he was there, more unexpected, but I doubt Oren would come. He has a bizarre sense of loyalty.”

  “Probably because Micah joined him in his war on The Guild,” Katelina suggested.

  Verchiel lit up. “So shall we spend time among the masses?”

  “I believe that’s a job for you,” Jorick said.

  They met the crew at the café the next day. It was teeming with vampires, and Katelina couldn’t figure out why Jorick had chosen to meet there. “It’s hardly discreet.”

  “The best place to hide is in plain sight,” he answered. “This way the cameras won’t be able to catch our conversation.”

  “What do they need with cameras when they have so many mind readers? Not to mention the Kugsankal in the basement.”

  “Because they’re open to all the thoughts, all of the time. It would be near to impossible for them to keep them constantly untangled.”

  “Do you have that problem?”

  Before he could answer they discovered Oren and the gang at a pair of tables. Micah leaned back in his chair and held his arms out
. “What, Lunch, no ‘yay you’re out of jail’ hug?”

  “It takes more than that to get affection around here,” Torina teased.

  Before they could get derailed, Jorick took a seat and motioned them to silence. In a low voice he explained that Sadihra had offered to help them escape during the rebellion.

  “What rebellion?” Torina asked. “We’ve only been locked down for five days.”

  “That’s why it hadn’t gotten very far,” Verchiel said. “Luckily I prodded a bit. It might take another day or two to get organized.”

  Jorick nodded toward the corridor. “When the fighting starts we’ll meet at the elevators near the coffee shop.”

  “Are you inviting Ume and I to go with you?” Quenby asked suspiciously.

  Jorick nodded. “We want to meet with the Black Vigil.”

  “It was my idea,” Ume said. “They need answers only Fethillen has.”

  Micah downed his blood in a single gulp. “Where is this Black Vigil at?”

  “Northern Finland,” Ume said.

  Jorick interrupted. “Since we don’t know when we’ll leave, it’s best to pack early and be ready. Take only what you must. The smaller your luggage, the better.”

  “What about all of my dresses?” Torina cried.

  Oren snorted. “I suggest you learn to live with fewer.”

  The conversation fell off. Katelina turned to her pastry and tried not to seem conspicuously nervous. On the other hand, a human having lunch with eight vampires probably should be worried. She tried to ignore it, but vampires – even vampires she liked – were feeding off of humans in one way or another. The stronghold might sanitize it by getting it from blood banks and donors, putting it in glasses, and even adding cinnamon, but human blood was human blood.

  When they’d finished eating, Jorick turned to Katelina. “Come, little one. I’m afraid you’ll have to pare down your luggage, as well.”

  She soon learned that Jorick’s idea of luggage was a large purse from one of the stronghold’s shops.

  “Not to sound like Torina, but you’re joking?”

  “We can get more clothing later,” he said. “We cannot get out later. As soon as Wolfe surfaces , Sadihra’s offer will evaporate.”

  “You think he will?” Katelina dumped her clothes and accessories out on the bed and started sorting. The overwhelming heaviness of the stronghold was there, but in the background, like a toothache dulled by painkillers.

  “Yes. I imagine he’s fine.” Jorick pulled out a single shirt, a pair of trousers, the plastic soap holder and his toothbrush. “That should be more than enough for me. Traveling in luxury, really.” He gave her a wink.

  She gathered all her clean underwear into a wad and glared at him. “Hardly. If you think Wolfe’s all right, then aren’t we using Sadihra?”

  “It depends on how you look at it. You might skip your pajamas. They’re not necessary.”

  She hated to admit it, but he was right. Depending on their sleeping arrangements she might sleep fully clothed. “And that doesn’t bother you?”

  “What? Your sleeping without pajamas?” He grinned lasciviously. “Not at all.”

  “No! I mean using Sadihra!”

  “She’d use us if she deemed it necessary, as would anyone. People are not as self-sacrificing as you think.”

  “Maybe they’re not as self-centered as you think?”

  He gave her an indulgent smile. “I’m afraid in five hundred years I’ve found the opposite is true. Never mind. Hang on to your optimistic innocence. It’s one of the things I find so interesting about you.”

  “Only one?”

  “Yes, there’s quite a list.” He picked up a Ziploc baggie that held random odds and ends; rubber bands, chap stick, nail polish, some gum, a tarnished metal cross. “I imagine you’ll want this?”

  She snatched it from him. “Do you really think we’ll be able to get everyone out?”

  “We’ll have to. I can’t leave Oren behind, and he refuses to go without his new coven. He’ll never get the hang of being free of one.”

  “Not like you? Or am I the start of your coven?” she joked as she sifted through socks.

  “You have to be a vampire to belong to a coven.” He smirked. “Until then you’re just a slave.”

  “I’ll show you slave.”

  He leaned over her shoulder and murmured suggestively in her ear, “I might like to see it some time. You could start by calling me master.”

  He expertly dodged the shoe.

  The next evening they were still at the stronghold. Katelina watched TV and tried to hide from the nearness of the Kugsankal. It didn’t feel as if they were purposefully bothering her, just crushing her by proximity. She wondered how the usual residents put up with it.

  Jorick paced restlessly around the room and finally announced he needed to see Oren.

  He’d been gone some time when a knock sounded on the door and she opened it to find Verchiel.

  “My, you are way down here, aren’t you? Metaphorically speaking, how would you like to get some air?”

  She thought about Jorick’s reaction, but he’d let her go with Sadihra the other day. If he thought the Scharfrichterin was capable of taking care of her then Verchiel should be. He was probably older. . “Yeah, sure.”

  “Better grab your coat and your luggage.” He held up his own leather bag. “Just in case.”

  She rolled her eyes, but donned her long black coat, a hand me down from Jorick, and then grabbed the bulky purse and slung it over her shoulder. “There.”

  They left the lower levels behind and roamed through the public floors, past shops full of things she couldn’t buy—there was no more room in her bag—and groups of vampires. There was something palpable in the air; like heavy anger, and more than once she caught angry glares, until she wondered if there was something wrong with her.

  “You’re a human,” Verchiel said cheerfully. “And an American, neither of which make you an ideal companion, but it’s not you.” He rubbed his hands together. “I think the time is ripe. Let’s go have some fun.”

  His idea of fun was an elevator ride to the crowded entrance hall. Guards holding silver maces and armed Scharfrichter ringed the room. In the middle was a seething mass of angry vampires.

  “Better hold on.” Verchiel offered her his arm and she took it uncertainly. He plunged into the multitude, worming his way through the crush of the crowd toward the stairs where the guards and Scharfrichter were the thickest.

  He pulled to a stop and whispered in her ear, “Stay here.” Then he pushed forward and evaporated, leaving her grabbing after thin air.

  The crowd moved around her and knocked her into a large, burly vampire. He growled down at her. “Watch it!”

  “Sorry,” she said quickly. What in the hell was Verchiel thinking?

  “Let us out!” a voice shouted from the front of the crowd.

  There was a murmur of agreement and someone else called, “Why are you keeping us here?”

  Another vampire shouted, “Yeah, let me leave! I got stuff to do! I only came to visit my sister for a week!”

  A female with bright maroon hair yelled, “I don’t want out, just let my girlfriend in! She’s stuck out there, in Munich, with nowhere to go!”

  “You don’t want her in here,” someone hollered from the far side. “They’ll charge her a boatload and refuse to let her out.”

  “They’re taking our money!” another one cried from the back of the group. “That’s why they won’t let us leave!”

  The idea permeated the crowd, and the anger got thicker.

  “Yeah,” a woman near Katelina said. “If they want us to stay then they shouldn’t charge us.”

  “Right, prisoners get free room and board!”

  Verchiel popped up next to Katelina, as though he’d crawled through the crowd and stood. He gave Katelina a wink, then met the eyes of the bulky vampire next to her. The vampire’s face went slack, then he shouted, “Tha
t’s what we are! Prisoners! And we’re payin’ for the privilege.”

  Verchiel patted Katelina on the shoulder, then dropped and disappeared. The bulky vampire didn’t seem to notice that he’d been under any influence and added, “You’re as good as stealing our money!”

  There was a chorus of agreement that melted into individual complaints. Someone from the back started to chant, “Let us out! Let us out!” and soon the whole mass took it up.

  Their voices echoed off the marble walls and Katelina covered her ears. The guards gripped their weapons and the Scharfrichter shouted, “Stop and disperse! We are authorized to use force if necessary!”

  “Force?” someone bellowed. “You’ll kill us so you can keep charging us?”

  “That’s the way it works with The Sodalitas!” a male with a thick accent called.

  The chant started up again and someone in the front pushed one of the guards. The guard gave a cry and lashed back with his mace. The weapon connected with a crunch and knocked the vampire back into the crowd.

  “Did you see that?” a female screamed. “They killed him!”

  The answer was a roar of anger, and the crowd surged forward. Katelina was swept along, squashed between angry, writhing bodies. She struggled, but they didn’t seem to notice. She could hear shouts and cries as the front of the group clashed with the guards and the Scharfrichter. A splatter of blood splashed up above the crowd and Katelina cried in horror as it fell over them like a shower. She was far enough back that only a few drops splattered on her face, but it was enough.

  “Kately!” The call came from behind her and she tried to turn against the tide. She could see the top of Verchiel’s bright red hair sticking up among the mob, but the throng forced her forward.

  There was a great cry from the front of the line, and they were all pushed backwards, as if a wall had come down. Katelina stumbled and fell against the bulky vampire. He pushed her off, taking no notice, and bellowed toward the Scharfrichter, “Your fucking tricks won’t do any good!”