Chapter 34
Phil led me though the tangle of woodland until we reached a large crack in the hillside.
“That’s it?” I asked in alarm. It was barely wide enough for me to squeeze though.
“Oui Jéhenne. I didn’t think you’d want to announce yourself at the front door.” He raised his eyebrows at me.
“No, obviously, but are you sure it’s safe? Is there a drop the other side? I mean … I still have a body remember. I can’t float through walls.”
He snorted and shook his head at me. “You’re about to go up against an army of vampires and a necromancer, and you’re worrying you might graze your knees?”
“No!” I retorted crossly. “I’d just like to make it to the vampires before I get myself killed.”
Phil rolled his eyes. “It’s fine, come on.”
Not feeling at all reassured, I turned on the torch and squeezed myself into the crack. I immediately lost my footing and slid on my backside down a steep slope, dropping the torch in the process which hit the floor and went out. Somehow I managed not to scream, though my heart was beating so loud I might as well have been yelling, “come and get it,” if there were any vampires in the area.
“Umm, ça va?” said a voice in the darkness.
“Perfect,” I grumbled.
I rubbed my bruised behind and fished around for the torch, flicking it back on and then looking up in stunned amazement as the light picked out my surroundings.
I had landed in an underground chamber which looked like the entrance to the snow queen’s palace. Every surface was covered with tiny stalagmites and stalactites which glittered like white ice.
“Oh!”
“Vache! C’est incroyable.”
I felt sad that such an amazing place was being tainted by such evil but there was no time to enjoy the scenery.
I scrambled to my feet, brushed myself down and followed Phil through what proceeded to be a maze of tunnels and corridors. I fervently hoped I wouldn’t have to find my way out alone, and swallowed the thought that I was unlikely to come out at all before I had time to think too much about it.
We were about to turn yet another corner when there was a crash and the corridor was filled with light. I could hear fighting and another explosion rocked the ground under our feet.
“Attends ici!” Phil hissed and disappeared around the corner before I had time to protest. Seconds later he was back and gestured for me to follow. Around the corner the floor was thick with ash.
“What’s this?” I asked, as my feet kicked up little clouds of dust.
“Dead vampires,” he said with a grimace.
“What?” I felt another wave of nausea roll around in my stomach and swallowed hard.
“Don’t worry, they weren’t yours,” he said, grinning at me. “I couldn’t get a good look at who did it, he took off too fast, but he was like you.”
I frowned at him. “What do you mean, like me?”
“Well.” he shrugged. “A witch … I mean, he was a guy though … a wizard?”
“A wizard?” I could smell the magic on the air and knew that Phil was right. A spell had killed the vampires. I didn’t know who he was but I was glad he was on our side.
“Avance!” Phil floated ahead of me. “Come on, we’re getting close.”
We descended further and deeper into the cave complex and were accompanied by a dull roar that grew in volume with every step, until finally we were overlooking a scene of complete chaos.
Spread out some fifty feet below us was the biggest cave I had ever seen. It was as long and wide as Wembley stadium and every inch of the ceiling and walls were covered with stalagmites and stalactites from tiny thread like needles to great pillars that spanned from floor to ceiling. Torches blazed all around the vast cavern and the firelight glinted and sparkled off every surface. It looked as though the gods had melted every candle in the heavens and dripped them one by one, into this massive space. It was utterly breathtaking and not one of the hundreds of vampires and creatures below me was taking the slightest bit of notice - they were fighting for their lives.
The speed of the battle was incredible and the noise reverberated in my ears. The smash of swords and yelling and screaming joined the thunder of spells being thrown and the roar of flames as another vampire met his end.
The floor was thick with ash and the taste of it on the air made me retch. I frantically scanned the room for Corvus and saw that his family had been corralled into the centre of the room and was hopelessly outnumbered. I could see Cyd and Lucas battling together against six other vampires and watched as Lucas reached up to pull a large stalactite from the ceiling before plunging it into a vampire's chest. He didn’t burst into flames as it wasn’t wood, but it certainly slowed him down. Cyd took the chance to grab the sword from his hand and swung it in a balletic arc, taking his head clean from his shoulders. The body flamed and the remaining tower of ash hit the floor. Before I had time to throw up, a blue fireball shot past Cyd and Lucas and took out four of the five remaining vampires they were occupied with. I followed the path that the spell had taken and saw Inés standing high on a ledge throwing spells with wild abandon all around the room. Her black hair was fanned out around her face with the static electricity from the magic and her eyes were blazing with excitement. Well at least someone was enjoying themselves. Of course, taking down vampires was kind of her raison d’être. I prayed she was being selective.
I noticed then figures, stationed like sentries around the room, unmoving and staring dead eyed at the carnage in front of them. They were wearing black robes and were utterly still, like living statues. The bodies were obviously long dead and I shuddered at the sight of their glassy eyed stares.
Finally I spotted Corvus and felt, for a moment, like I could breathe again, until I saw what he was up against. As fast as he cut a vampire down, another stepped up to take its place. As I watched, he thrust out his hands and a ripple seemed to disturb the air with a dull boom of sound. Every vampire within ten metres of him went down instantly. Those closest flamed and burned with appalling shrieks, whilst the others dragged themselves away dazed and disorientated. Their places were immediately taken by a new batch, hungry to fight and I anxiously wondered how long he could keep using such vast amounts of energy as another line of vampires hit the floor.
I began to scramble down, to get closer, so I could do some good instead of just standing and watching.
I slipped and slid, wildly out of control, down a treacherous incline and once at the bottom ploughed straight into one of the zombies - as that must be what they were. It didn’t react, or even blink and my skin crawled madly as I leapt away from it. I could no longer see Phil, I’d told him to keep out of sight, so I hoped he was safe.
I was now close enough to join the fray and began flinging spells at the seemingly endless supply of creatures that were keeping Corvus and his family pinned down. I tried throwing fire at them, but although this seemed to seriously upset the vampires, it didn’t kill them and if Corvus was to have any chance at all, I couldn’t hold back. I gathered every ounce of energy I had and repeated the spell that had killed Reina and the newborn.
To my relief, the spell made contact and actually took out two vampires. Guillaume, who had tried to snack on me at Corvus' party, looked up in surprise. Seeing where the spell had come from, he grinned and gave a theatrical bow before his attention was taken once again.
Feeling more confident now, I got to work in earnest. I discovered if I really focused and aimed at a big group I could kill three or four and seriously injure several others in one go. OK they’d heal, but not any time soon.
I couldn’t stop to think about the reality of what I was doing. Killing Reina, even though it had been self-defence had troubled me deeply and yet here I was taking down dozens at a time. But it was that or Corvus, Gran and everyone else, including me might as well cut our own throats.
After what seemed like hours, but was probably more like minutes, sw
eat was beading on my forehead and I felt it begin to trickle down my face, I rubbed it away in annoyance. I was throwing everything I had at these bastards, as was Inés, Corvus and everyone else, and still they kept coming. We weren’t the only ones either.
Whoever the mad wizard was, he was pretty bloody effective. Waves of vampires fell whenever he threw a spell, though I could never catch more than a glimpse of him as he moved so fast. I just saw a gleam of red-gold hair and he’d be gone again.
By this time I had attracted a certain amount of attention and far from being able to help anyone else became totally focused on staying alive.
I was exceedingly grateful that Tacitus had no witches on his side as I was a sitting duck in the exposed position I'd chosen. I felt a wave of exhaustion pass through me and wanted nothing more than to go and be sick in a corner. My arms were screaming with pain and my hands were literally aflame from the sheer amount of magic passing through them. I could hardly see to focus on what I was doing, the constant flare of the spells was blinding at close quarters, but I kept going. There was simply no choice, one slip up, one lapse of concentration and I was dead.
Too late it occurred to me to wonder exactly where Tacitus was. By the time I had thought to search him out I felt a hand on my shoulder and spun around in alarm.
“I’m so glad to see you, my dear. I thought perhaps Corvus had forgotten to invite you.”
His voice rang clearly through my head despite the sheer volume of noise and the fact he hadn’t said anything out loud.
I tried to raise my hands to throw a spell at him and found that I couldn’t move them. It appeared I was being held captive … by ghosts.
The cold from their touch sent chills over my skin and deep into my bones. I felt my teeth begin to chatter, although that may have been terror. I struggled wildly and screamed at them to let me go. I even increased the fire spell so that my whole body was engulfed in flames, but apparently ghosts don’t worry about such things. They didn’t budge, didn’t react in any way, and just stared with the same dead-eyed look I’d seen on the zombies.
“How can they do that?” I asked in stunned amazement. I knew that some ghosts could move objects, but they were incredibly rare and picking up a book was not the same thing as holding a living person in place. How the hell did they get so strong?
“Ah yes. Well that would be thanks to my associate. I don’t believe you have met Mr. Smith? Mr. Smith, this is Jéhenne.”
A man moved out from the shadows, he was wearing a shabby black suit and rather bizarrely, a bright yellow shirt with a matching hankie that stuck out of his jacket pocket at a jaunty angle.
At first I thought I was looking at another zombie, his face was haggard and sunken and he looked emaciated. It seemed as though every ounce of goodness had been sucked out of him and all that was left was a bitter shell. He radiated malevolence.
He was no zombie though, one glance and the maniacal glint in his eyes confirmed he was very much alive, and was undoubtedly the scariest thing I’d seen all night.
“Such a pleasure, dear Jéhenne, to meet you at last.” His voice was soft and he held out his hand to shake mine. I looked at him in disgust and he actually giggled.
“Oh, silly me, you’re a bit … tied up,” he said, covering his mouth with a bony hand.
Well damn, a necromancer with a sense of humour. “What did you do to them?” I demanded in fury.
He wagged a cadaverous finger at me. “Ah that’s the secret, isn’t it?” he said and then clapped his hands together with delight. “Though I suppose you’re not going to tell anyone, so I’ll let you in on it.” He looked around as though he was checking no one was listening in and then brought his face close to mine. I could smell him, all stale breath and BO, and I turned my head away in distaste but he whispered in my ear.
“Human sacrifices, my dear. They feed on newly dead souls. They are so bright, so full of energy. It only sustains them for a few days of course,” he added with a sad smile.
I felt sick to my stomach, how many had died tonight to get to me? I heard laughter then, and realised that Tacitus was laughing at me, but this time the sound echoed around the cavern. I looked about and saw with sickening understanding how he used the zombies. Each one of them was laughing open mouthed, though the dead eyed expression remained unchanged. I looked back at him, overwhelmed by hatred. He laughed again and I noted with disgust his tattoo, two snakes intertwined that wound themselves slowly around his neck before disappearing into his hair, and I shuddered with revulsion.
“Friends,” he said, his voice thundering around the cavernous space. “It appears we have the key.”
His voice spoke from the dead mouths at every corner of the cave and I saw Corvus, saw his eyes meet mine, at the moment he realised Tacitus had captured me.
I knew I would never forget his expression, the despair on his face, for as long as I lived, though my chances of getting through even the next few minutes were diminishing rapidly.
Before I could even blink he was gone and the next thing I knew, he was trying to attack Tacitus. What he couldn’t see though was the wall of spirits surrounding both Tacitus and Mr. Smith. No matter what he did, he couldn’t break through. He threw bolt after bolt of energy into them but the ghosts just absorbed it so that it did little more than ruffle Mr. Smith’s lank grey hair.
Tacitus looked smug and I itched with the need to wipe the damn smile off his face.
“Release her!” roared Corvus in fury. Tacitus shrugged and nodded at Mr. Smith, who in turn instructed the spirits to let me go.
As I was released I sank to the floor and the circulation began to return to my arms with a burst of hot pain and maddening pins and needles. I looked up at the spirits that had been holding me and it was only then that I noticed what was above us. The ceiling of the cave was now thick with ghosts, thousands and thousands of them, all with the same vacant look. Mr. Smith flicked his hand at them and they drifted up and out of sight, but not before I had realised something. He may have a hold on them, but they despised him with a staggering intensity. Whatever he was doing to them, it was against their will and they were seriously pissed off about it. Somehow the knowledge made me feel better.
I felt Corvus lift me to my feet and pull me against him.
“You should never have come,” he whispered, the anguish clear in his eyes.
“Couldn’t let you have all the fun!” I said, forcing a smile.
He hugged me fiercely before pushing me behind him.
“Oh, how sweet,” piped up Mr. Smith. Tacitus just smiled.
“You are nothing if not predictable Corvus, always willing to rescue your damsel in distress.”
Fury blazed as I glared at him, damsel in distress my arse, I fumed. Though admittedly I wouldn't be adverse to a helping hand right now.
“Let her go Tacitus,” Corvus said, staring at Tacitus. “Let her and my family go and I will give myself up to you. I won’t fight … you have my word.”
“No! Corvus, don’t,” I screamed, but the zombies just laughed in unison.
“Why do I need you to give me something I already have? You are defeated, Corvus, you just don’t realise it yet.”
Mr. Smith smiled benignly at us and gave a nod to the spirits. They poured from the roof of the cavern and fastened themselves around Corvus. I could see the shock on his face as he realised how strong they were and the chill seeped into him. He struggled and fought violently but there were just so many of them, it was impossible.
“There now, I believe we understand each other.” Tacitus turned and smiled at me, the smug bastard.
“Quite so,” added Mr. Smith, nodding in agreement.
“What do you want Tacitus?” I asked, knowing full well what the answer was.
“Come, come, Jéhenne, no games. It appears you are the key, though you tried to hide it from me. I should punish you for that you know,” he scolded. “However, I am not - as you might imagine - without feeli
ng, therefore I am going to offer you a choice.” He had addressed this last sentence to Corvus, whose eyes were blazing with fury. “It seems that I cannot retrieve the key unless this young lady meets another untimely end … a shame, I know, but you can’t make an omelette etcetera,” he said, waving his hand as though this was a trifling matter.
There was a murmur of amusement from the enemy vampires and Tacitus tilted his head with a self-deprecating smile to acknowledge his audience.
“However, I am prepared to offer you a bargain, Corvus. I could kill her myself, and believe me I would enjoy doing so very much.” He paused with a far away look in his eyes, apparently considering the idea with pleasure. “I think I would take my time about it,” he mused, pursing his lips. “Perhaps she has some other secrets to share with me before her departure.” I watched in disgust as he grinned at Corvus, enjoying himself far too much. “Or - and you understand, this is a very generous offer on my part … you can do it yourself.
With mounting horror I stared from Tacitus to Corvus. My limbs were trembling now, my mouth had gone dry and my heart was beating so hard it sounded like thunder in my ears. Corvus met my eyes and then dropped his head and looked away. He looked … defeated.
“No,” I whispered, shaking my head madly. “No! No! Corvus please don’t!”
I didn’t know what Tacitus had in mind, and I didn’t want to, but if I was going to die I was going to go kicking and screaming, not welcome it with open arms. I knew Corvus would save me from pain … but I couldn’t bear it, couldn’t bear knowing he had taken my life. Tacitus smiled cruelly, knowing this was hurting us both more than anything else could. Physical pain ends … this we would remember for all eternity.
“Please,” I wept, hot tears streaming down my face. “Please Corvus, don’t do it.”
Corvus looked around and I followed his gaze. His family was pinned down by thousands of spirits, they couldn’t move an inch and even if they had, there were still hundreds of Tacitus’ vampires to take their places. Inés was being held down too, though she was struggling like a wild cat, her hands and arms ablaze with magic. He looked back at me and I could see that there was no hope. He would never let Tacitus torture me, and I knew I should be grateful, I knew how much he would suffer himself and yet I couldn’t stand it.
My knees finally gave out and I fell to the floor and wept.
“Oh, isn’t she lovely.” Mr. Smith clasped his hands together over his chest and pulled the yellow handkerchief from his pocket dabbing at his eyes. “She’d have made a wonderful Juliet,” he suggested to Tacitus who scowled at him.
“Well Corvus, I haven’t got all night.”
Corvus was staring at him with utter fury. The smouldering anger and hatred in his eyes that had burned within him for millennia, and was now on the brink of inferno. “I will not rest until I have made you pay for this, Tacitus,” he promised, his voice cold and hard. “You will never be safe, never be free of me. I promise you this.”
“Yes, yes.” Tacitus waved his hand as though the whole affair was beginning to bore him. “You are not really in a position to make threats, and that doesn’t answer my question.”
I watched, resigned, as Corvus' shoulders slumped. “I would never let you hurt, Jéhenne, you know that.”
Tacitus chuckled. I had never in my life wanted to anyone harm as much as this man. “Very well, release him.”
The spirits let Corvus go, though I had noticed that the whole time their attention had never left Mr. Smith. Corvus came over and lifted me into his arms, I struggled against him half-heartedly, but I knew it was pointless.
“It won’t do you any good, you know,” I hissed at Tacitus. “If I die the key will go with me, back to Hekatê.”
“Oh no, dear,” said Mr. Smith, smiling at me kindly, as though I was thinking the worst only because I had misunderstood. “Your soul will stay with us,” he whispered. “And therefore the key too.”
“Oh God!” I realised in that moment that dying was not the worst thing that could happen to me. It wasn’t about to end, in fact the nightmare was only just beginning.
“Well then Corvus, get on with it,” snapped Tacitus, who was obviously growing weary of the preliminaries and just wanted to get his hands on the key.
“No!” Corvus spat. “Not here, give us a little privacy at least.”
Tacitus looked disgusted and was about to open his mouth but Mr. Smith butted in. “Oh yes … a final goodbye,” he gave a heavy sigh. “How romantic.”
Tacitus rolled his eyes to the heavens. “For the love of the gods…” he thundered. “Very well, just get on with it.”
Mr. Smith gestured behind him to an opening in the wall and Corvus carried me through. It was a small chamber with one torch that cast a warm glow over the white glittering walls.
Corvus took us to the furthest corner before kneeling down and arranging me on his lap.
I had stopped crying by now, I guessed I was in shock and besides, what was the point? Everything was lost. I couldn’t believe Corvus was giving up, I had never thought it possible.
“Jéhenne,” he said, his voice soft as he stroked my hair. He tilted my head up to look at me but I found I couldn’t meet his eyes.
“Just do it,” I said, my voice flat.
He held me close to him. “I’m so sorry, my heart,” he whispered. “If there was any other way…”
“There was another way,” I raged, my temper dragging me away from resignation and back to sheer fury. “We could have gone out fighting,” I shouted, flames blazing at my wrists.
I saw the pain in his eyes, but could do nothing to relieve it, I felt so utterly let down. I would have happily died for him or with him, but this ...
He was silent for a moment as my temper faded. The situation was too bleak to stay angry. I was heart broken. “Jéhenne, do you love me?” he asked as though he had read my thoughts.
I looked up and despite the fact of what he was about to do, it didn’t change anything.
“You know I do.” And then I heard his voice in my head.
“Then trust in me, Jéhenne, don’t fight this. I won’t let you down.”
His blue eyes blazed into mine. He seemed to be willing me to understand, but what, I didn’t know. Either way I had no choice, so I nodded. He bent and brushed his lips against mine.
“We will be together always. I promise,” he whispered and before I had a chance to react, his fangs had sunk deep into my neck.
There was a brief burning sensation and then peace. I relaxed into his arms and felt him pull me close to him. I was enveloped in a feeling of warmth and security. A tiny part of my brain was screaming at me that this was a lie, that I was far from safe, but the further I drifted, the quieter the voice became. I felt hazy, ethereal and I thought I could hear a drum beating softly, somewhere far away, but eventually that stopped too and I floated in darkness.
In some distant place I could still hear Corvus, hear his voice in my head. He was saying something … no not speaking, chanting. The words sounded odd … foreign and suddenly they were getting louder, repeating over and over until I could recite them myself. I didn’t know what they meant, but I knew it was important that I follow the words so I repeated them to myself.
I felt a warm liquid in my mouth, it tasted weird, like old pennies and I gagged, but the chanting continued. It was stronger now, insistent and somehow it calmed me. I swallowed and kept drinking until the chanting stopped and then I opened my eyes.
I looked down in astonishment. I could see my body cradled in Corvus' arms but I was floating just above him. I moved my arms and legs experimentally and noticed with a jolt that I was bound to him. Tiny silver threads wound from my wrists and ankles and joined his in the same places - I was literally tied to him.
I wondered what on earth he had done. I was obviously dead, but what did the silver threads mean? Was I a vampire, had he turned me? The chanting was important, some kind of ritual I guessed, but what fo
r?
As I floated I began to be aware of something else - a golden glow, almost a heat that was spreading through me, fighting the chill that had begun since I left my body. I closed my eyes and suddenly I could see it, feel it… the key.
This whole time I had been wondering where on earth it was, how to access its power and suddenly there it was, it was so very easy, all I needed to do was to get back to my body.
I opened my eyes once more and watched as Corvus kissed me tenderly, lifted my body and returned to the cave.
Tacitus looked at the body and smiled at Corvus, triumph burning in his eyes.
“Mr. Smith, bring me the key” he demanded.
But Mr. Smith was looking quizzically around the room. He held his hands up and said something under his breath. He looked around furiously and repeated the words louder and stronger. I felt a slight tug, like someone pulling gently on my hand, but nothing more.
“He’s done something,” Mr. Smith said, looking increasingly agitated.
“No!” Tacitus turned furiously to Corvus who looked placidly back at him. “What have you done? Give her to me.”
Corvus frowned, but there was the faintest trace of a smile at his lips. “I don’t know what you mean, Tacitus. Perhaps Mr. Smith is playing games with you,” he suggested. “Perhaps he wants the key all to himself.”
Tacitus turned on Mr. Smith and grabbed him by the throat.
My Smith squealed in alarm. “No, Tacitus … I swear … I wouldn’t,” he spluttered. “He’s done something. She’s here but I can’t get a grip on her.”
Tacitus dropped him in disgust. “No. This is your doing, Corvus, and I won’t have it. You will give her to me.”
Corvus smiled and shook his head. “No, Tacitus. That is something I will never do.”
The Key to Erebus (The French Vampire Legend. Book 1) Page 42
