by J. D. Brown
“Then out with it.” Nikolas sounded bored, but his golden eyes fixated on Jesu and I could tell the king was pondering something.
“His name is Enki—”
“We’ve no one registered with that name in this clan,” Tancred smiled, triumphant.
“I never said he was Alpan.” I narrowed my gaze at Tancred and then faced King Nikolas with what I hoped was a softer expression. “He’s from the Middle East, the Sumerian clan… um…”
“The Ekimmuen clan.” Cecelia supplied the name for me.
I nodded. “Yes, thank you. He’s an Ekimmuen vampyre named Enki and he’s very ancient, possibly first generation. I recognized the caduceus symbol and the cuneiform script tattooed on his body.”
“Now this is more interesting.” Tancred crossed his arms over his chest and widened his stance. “But still sadly flawed. That Enki has been dead for nearly ten-thousand years.”
“Maybe someone brought him back from the dead,” I snapped.
“Ema,” Jesu pleaded. “Stop.”
“No, please continue,” Tancred snickered. “I want to hear the lass’ theory on who raised a dead vampyre.”
“King Apollyon did it,” I said. “He’s alive too.”
Tancred laughed. “And who might have raised Apollyon, the Easter Bunny?”
“Leena,” Jesu interjected before I could give myself away. “That is how she died.”
Tancred opened his irritating mouth, but Nikolas silenced him with a wave of his palm.
“If this is a joke—”
“It’s not,” I promised.
Nikolas glared at me and then at Jesu. “If this is true, then why is this the first time I am hearing about it?”
Jesu stole an accusing glance in my direction. “Neo-Draugrian business. I am sure my brother never meant for things to get out of hand.”
“Yes, well, this wouldn’t be the first time,” the king grunted.
“Nikolas,” Cecelia scolded. “We don’t know the nature of all this.” She reached for his arm, but he jerked away and stood. My gaze traveled up, and up, and up. My breath hitched at Nikolas’ full size. He easily dwarfed everyone in the room.
“Do either of you have proof of your claim? I warn you, I will triple your sentence if I find out this is all a falsehood.”
I swallowed hard and glanced at Jesu. He gazed to the side for a long moment and then said, “Yes… yes, I imagine we do. The whole Neo-Draugrian clan must know by now. Call any of the Arms, speak with them yourself. The Hands cannot answer you, they were forced to abandoned their position and resort to honoring old debts owed to my father, but speak with anyone else.”
Nikolas glowered at us. He stepped over his wife’s ample legs in one smooth stride and continued to the back of the room.
“Watch them,” he growled over his shoulder at Tancred.
Once Nikolas reached the vending machine, he pulled a small cellphone from his pants pocket and dialed a number. I strained to listen as he pressed the phone to his ear.
“Your Majesty,” Jesu murmured to the queen. “I had truly hoped not to involve you—”
“Yet you fled to Berlin to hide behind my husband, did you not?”
Jesu hesitated.
“There, there,” she said gently. “No one expects a mere vampire to handle these miss-happenings, even one of good breeding.”
Meanwhile, Nikolas requested that the voice on the other end of the phone—someone named Stefán—meet with him at his home as immediately as possible. He closed and pocketed his phone and then returned to the center of the room. All four of us glanced up expectantly.
He sighed deeply and his brow pinched as he regarded me seriously for the first time that morning. “I spoke with Stefán á Drekann. Not only is Apollyon alive, but he launched an attack on their Council.”
Jesu’s breath caught, as did mine.
“Are they okay?” I asked.
“Half of them are dead.”
Cecelia gasped and her fair skin paled a shade.
I expected a reaction from Jesu—shouting or something equally frantic—but he was silent as he chewed his lip.
“I told Stefán you are with me,” Nikolas continued. “He has agreed to meet with us at my estate.”
Jesu simply nodded at this. I wanted to shake him and my fists clenched at my sides, the odd empty gap on my right hand a rude reminder of all the reasons I had to be angry. My plan was working exactly as I had hoped, yet everything still spiraled out of control.
When was it ever in my control to begin with? Not since Jalmari abducted me.
Tancred approached me and yanked my arms forth.
“What the are you—”
“Leave those on her,” Nikolas demanded. I realized then that he referred to the metal bands on my wrists and I was sorry I had struggled against Tancred. He dropped my arms and then handed back our sunglasses.
“You two will come with my wife and me and stay at the castle until further notice. You are not to return to the R.E.D. hotel under any circumstances, understood?”
“What about our stuff?” I asked, thinking of my father’s scroll and Jesu’s newspaper clipping.
“I will send Rudo to retrieve your things,” Cecelia offered.
Well, that would have to be good enough. I nodded my agreement to Nikolas—not that I had any choice in the matter. At least I wasn’t being exiled.
Chapter 11
Tancred, Jesu, and I sat facing the back windshield in the royal stretch limousine. Jesu kept his expression blank, though his emerald gaze remained fixed on the pockets of my cardigan, where my hands hid. Nikolas and his wife sat across from us. Cecelia’s bright features hummed along with a German tune playing over the radio, as if no mention of Apollyon had ever been made.
Nikolas’ yellow-gold eyes studied me. The irises narrowed, then widened, then narrowed again in quick flickers, like a predator assessing its prey. My shoulders curled forward and I shrank back. Did he still think we were lying? I didn’t want him to see me sweat under the weight of his staring, so I faced the window and watched the scenery roll by behind the tinted glass.
We traveled a great distance from the city until the freeway became a narrow road coated in a thin layer of dirt, weeds sprouting along the sides and between cracks in the tar. The sun stood at its peak, dousing the earth in washed-out shades of yellow, blurring details with its ultraviolet rays. Squinting, I could just make out the rolling hills surrounding both sides of the road, covered in what appeared to be pale-yellow grass and fields of pale-yellow tilled earth. Vegetables I couldn’t recognize poked through the carefully plotted gardens. The occasional tree or farmhouse separate the miles of crops. The homes here didn’t look like ones I’d seen in the United States, where farmhouses were very large yet broken looking. Here the houses were small single level cottages with Hansel and Gretel accents, straight out of a storybook. It was innocent and creepy at the same time.
A low mountain range covered in pine trees enclosed the entire scene. The mountains grew as we neared them. The driver turned down a cobblestone lane just wide enough to fit the limo’s width. Branches brushed roughly against the sides of the vehicle as we bounced over the uneven terrain, each of us trying not to grab onto the other for balance.
I couldn’t see what lay ahead, but instinct told me we were closing in on our destination. When I looked out the window again, we were advancing over a bridge. Trees and shrubs overflowed from the deep groove of land beneath. The vegetation covered the hillsides, meeting us once again on the other end of the bridge.
We rolled to an idle pause. A grinding squeal, like metal against rock, screeched through the air. I winced and curled my fingers until my nails dug through the sweater and into my lap as the annoying sound carried on for several agonizing minutes. It stopped and we continued driving. We rolled past a tall stone fence and I discovered the source of the terrible sound was in fact an iron gate. Two men standing outside pushed the gate closed behind us. The iron sto
ppers once again screamed in protest as they dragged along the cobblestone ground like nails against a chalkboard.
Once inside, the stone fence surrounded us. The land flattened, completely lined in smooth gray rock. The limo rolled to a stop and the engine died. The driver came around and opened the passenger door. Nikolas exited first, followed by his wife and then Tancred. I slid out last, after Jesu.
The castle stood like a giant directly in front of us, made entirely of the same cobblestone as the bridge and fence. It was impossible to tell the construction’s true height or width while standing so close to the base, but it was easily twice the size of Jalmari’s castle and three times as old. A huge navy blue banner hung from a tarnished brass pole, the ends of which brushed the top of the door frame. Depicted on the large banner were two wolves in profile, one black and one gray. Standing on their hind legs, their front paws aimed at each other’s chests, claws and teeth bared as if about to attack each other. Nestled between them was a chalice that was gray on the left and black on the right, opposing the wolves’ colors.
The two men—vampyres or vampires, whatever they were—who had opened the iron gate now rushed to pull open the vast double doors of the castle for their king and queen. A hand gripped my elbow and I jumped in surprise. My chest heaved a sigh as I realized it was only Jesu urging me forward. He had a peculiar look in his eyes, his brow slightly pinched. I couldn’t tell if he was angry, annoyed, or just plain tired and wanting the day to be over. He broke away from me once we entered the spacious foyer.
The bi-level room could have easily fit a third story beneath the vaulted ceiling. Polished wood panels lined the walls with decorative five-petaled flowers carved into the molding. Two wide arched doors stood in the front corners along the left and right walls. Stairways sat close to the side doors, rising along the walls and coming together overhead in a broad balcony. Two navy blue tapestries draped over the balcony railing; the left with a black wolf and the right with a gray wolf. They matched the larger pair hanging outside. Tucked beneath the balcony, a handsome brown leather seating arrangement complimented a cast iron fireplace. Two narrow hallways opened from the back corners underneath the stairs. A black grandfather piano sat in the center. Nestle all around were vases full of white lilies and small statues of naked men with lion heads instead of human or vampyre ones.
Cecelia said something in German to one of the servants and then gestured to Jesu and me. “Eber will show you to the guest rooms in case you’d like to freshen up before breakfast.”
I nodded, thinking of how loosely she used the word guest. My hands wrung over the metal bands still tightly wrapped around my wrists. I remembered how Jalmari and Maria both called me their guest when I woke in Finland. Jalmari was lying, of course, but Maria actually was very kind. I sighed inwardly, missing her. There was something comforting about her presence.
That’s why I’m doing this, I told myself. To get Maria and Naamah back, and to send Apollyon back to hell.
Eber marched swiftly up the right-hand stair case. Jesu and I followed. The black carpeting of the foyer continued along the wood steps. The balusters twisted in wooden spirals connecting the gleaming hand rail to the sleek panels. As we neared the top, I noticed several thick boxed newels placed between the balusters, each one topped with the head of a different animal. One was a panther, another a hawk, then a bear, and what looked like a hyena, and one, of course, was a wolf.
On the second floor landing were five more doors. Eber opened the second door from the right and waited as Jesu and I entered. A short hallway opened before us, followed by more stairs. These were narrow and plain compared to the foyer, but still polished and covered in a plush red carpet. The stairs curved slightly as if ascending a wide tower. There were no windows, but a few small candles placed in little catacombs in the stone walls kept the stairway plenty lit.
I didn’t know how many flights we climbed, but a dull ache began seeping into my calves, and I considered levitating the rest of the way when we finally came to a stop in front of yet another door. This one opened to reveal a wide corridor with several more doors on either side.
Eber gestured to the first two on the left and then waited with his hands behind his back. He watched us expectantly. Jesu went to the second door and let himself in. I gripped the knob of the first and opened it. That seemed to please Eber. The Alpan vampire nodded and then turned and went back down the winding stairs.
I closed the bedroom door behind me and then turned to choked on my own breath. The room was stunning. A king-sized four poster bed sat to the left, made up in a pale blue and gold fringe comforter with matching blue and gold pillows. A dark wooden headboard stretched along the height of the wall. Blue and gold fabric draped in elegant bunches from a partial canopy was tied back on wielded hooks at the sides of the massive headboard.
Two nightstands, polished to a shine with curvy legs, stood on either side of the bed. A mirror and ivory hair brush sat on top of one, while the other held a telephone and a brass alarm clock—the type that had to be wound manually. Cream and pale blue triangle tiles lined the floor in an intricate pattern. Cream-colored Victorian wallpaper lined the three inner walls. The outer wall was made of the grey cobblestone from outside. Thick wooden beams crisscrossed the ceiling, polished to the same dark glimmer as the bedposts and the nightstands.
A lovely cream-colored mantle stood in the center of the right wall. No logs graced the hearth, and I imagined the room must have felt cold, yet the fireplace gave the false appearance of warmth and royal comfort, and a vampyre really didn’t need any of it anyway. The der Wölfes were loaded and took no shame in flaunting it.
On either side of the fireplace was a wide arched opening. Brass polls with thick maroon-colored curtains hung over the arches. The curtains were drawn open, but could be pulled closed for privacy. I could see the edge of a sink peeking from behind the left arch and knew it was a bathroom. The right arch stood just a few feet from me, revealing what I could only describe as a dressing room. It was just wide enough to comfortably fit a love seat upholstered in red and gold striped fabric, a large armoire with glass doors, and a full-length mirror.
I sucked in a deep breath, taking in the scents of wood, lacquer, paper, stone, and fine fabrics, and released a long sigh. My chest ached with a strange emptiness, as though I had been holding that sigh in all night. There was a sense of relief, but it was quickly overshadowed by doubt. Had I done the right thing, telling King Nikolas about Apollyon? My whole world had changed in an instant for the third time in just a few short months. What if I regretted it later?
I crossed the room to the arch on the left and passed the decorative curtains. The bathroom was modernized with a wide his-and-hers sink. I turned on the water and splashed handfuls of it on my face, hoping I looked less freaked out than I felt. A pile of plush white hand towels sat neatly folded in the corner and I patted myself dry with one, making sure to rub all the water away from my lips before I licked them.
My reflection in the wall-sized mirror looked soggy. My eyelashes stuck together and my lips pouted. I smiled, but my heart wasn’t in it.
The bathroom was much narrower than the one at the hotel, but twice as fancy. The bath was a perfect concave circle carved into a large square block set into the wall. Four pillars stood in the corners and the ceiling directly above the bath was carved into a dome that mirrored the size and shape of the tub, like two halves of a sphere. The inside was painted navy blue and specks of twinkly silver tile embedded the center like stars.
A stand-up shower stood across from the bath, its opening nothing more than a large arch with a heavy gold brocade curtain draped across brass hooks protruding over the arch’s keystone and cornerstones. Light brown tiles lined the inside with tiny cream tiles arranged in a swirling flower pattern.
Between the shower and the toilet stood a door. My brow arched. Why was there a door in the back of the bathroom? I pressed my ear to the wood and heard someone shuffling arou
nd on the other side.
Jesu.
I clenched my fists and fought the urge to barge into his room. Instead, I knocked softly on the door. Silence ensued. Then, quick footsteps coupled with Jesu’s spring rain scent neared the entrance. The door gave way and his figure filled the frame. He glanced at me, his expression dark.
“Ema.”
“Jesu.” I shook my head and sighed out loud. “Please tell me you have a plan.”
“I thought you were calling the shots.” His tone was callous, but he stepped aside, allowing me to pass.
“I’m sorry,” I said while entering his room. It matched mine in appearance.
“How much is true? Enki and the attack?”
“All of it, although I might have switched the order of events… and I may have left out a lot of detail.”
“Would you mind telling me the truth now?”
Would you? I wondered while thinking of Bridget. I bit my tongue instead of voicing the thought.
Jesu’s gaze lowered to my right side. He drew in a deep, shaky breath as his eyes widened. I realized with a sudden start that he looked at my uncovered maimed hand. I sank against the edge of the bed and hid both hands between my thighs. He made a noise like whimper and I scowled, not sure what he was complaining about. He wasn’t the one missing a finger.
“The phasing fiasco happened exactly how I told you before. What I didn’t tell you was that after I landed in the alley, I was attacked by a… a thing.”
Jesu ran his fingers through his long hair, pushing it away from his face momentarily before it fell back over his shoulders. “You told Nikolas it was a vampyre.”
I nodded. “It was Enki, I’m sure of it. I’m just not sure if he’s the same Enki he was ten-thousand years ago. His flesh was rotted through like a carcass. It was like the only thing holding him together and animating him were his tattoos. When I ran, he transformed into a giant snake and caught me.” I looked Jesu in the eye. “Is that a normal power for an Ekimmuen vampyre?”
