by Stead, Nick
“Who’s there?” Selina called out. We both stood listening for an answer, but the minutes ticked by with no response. “Did you want something? Maybe we can help?”
Still there was no answer and the smell of decay was beginning to fade.
“I think it’s gone,” I said.
“I’m not surprised with that temper of yours. They’re not all bad, you know.”
“Then why do they keep looking at me like I’m some kind of exotic meat? It wouldn’t have hesitated to attack you either – seems like they’ll go for anything if they’re hungry enough, even those of us meant to be their allies.”
“There’s more to them than that,” she insisted. “And this encounter was about more than attempting a kill. I suppose we’ll never know what it wanted, unless it comes back later.” She sat down on the hard stone again, resting against the passage wall with her head back and her eyes closed. “For now I’m going back to sleep.”
I realised I didn’t really know anything about ghouls yet, other than the fact they had an appetite to rival my own which seemed to be the driving force behind everything they did. Lady Sarah had said as much the first night I’d come into contact with any, when we’d battled the Slayers for my hometown. But she’d never told me anything more than that. I had no idea how they were created or how intelligent they were underneath their base desire for flesh. Zee had said not particularly, but what exactly did that mean? I’d heard them talk before so they couldn’t be all instinct.
I didn’t even know if they had any purpose beyond devouring all the meat they could get their rotten hands on. The vampires were still able to enjoy some of the hobbies they’d had as humans when given the chance, and my love of reading and video games hadn’t changed upon becoming a werewolf, even though circumstances hadn’t allowed me to do a great deal of either since then. Was the same true for ghouls? Was there enough humanity left in them to find pleasure in their old pastimes, or had it rotted away with their flesh, leaving nothing but the hunger?
I couldn’t get back to sleep with the rival predator lurking somewhere down there in the caves with us, and all the things I’d never thought to ask about its race continued to chase round my skull for what felt like hours. Eventually my thoughts turned back to Gwyn. Again I wondered if he was in a cave like this one, revelling in the freedom darkness gave him and tormenting ghouls and whatever else might be hiding beneath the earth. Wherever he was, I hoped he was okay.
CHAPTER SEVEN
House of the Dead
I was still awake when the imitation of life sighed through the vampires, like wind through a graveyard. But instead of making branches wave and fallen leaves stir, this breath brought the twitching of digits and restored a little colour to dead flesh, turning blackened lips to a healthier pink and taking some of the paleness from their skin.
Like a frightened child, I’d left the torch on, and in its beam, I watched two sets of eyes open. Lady Sarah was the first to sit up, closely followed by Zee. They blinked in the light and looked at me questioningly.
“We thought we were under attack again, but it turned out it was only ghosts. We didn’t find that out till after we’d fled deeper into the cave. There’s a couple of bodies in this tunnel – I found this torch on one of them.”
Alarm flashed across Zee’s face as his hand shot to his hip, checking for his cutlass. Then he grinned. “Sounds like you had an eventful day.”
Our voices woke Selina. She yawned, her stomach rumbling.
“And it sounds like our witch needs to eat soon!”
Lady Sarah got to her feet in one fluid motion, her eyes fixing further along the passage. “She is not the only one.”
“Aye.” Zee stood just as gracefully and offered Selina a hand up. “Let’s get out of these caves.”
“That might take a while,” Selina said, accepting his help.
“Yeah,” I agreed, picking myself up. “We had to drop you two down a hole when we thought the threat was real, to keep you safe. I’ve no idea where this passage leads – it was just the safest place to wait for you both to wake.”
“Then we go back the way we came,” Zee answered.
“I’m not sure we can. It was only a narrow hole – I’m not sure you’ll fit through as bats and it’s probably too wet and slippery to climb up.”
Lady Sarah was still staring ahead, as though she could see through the stone, all the way to the other side of the hills. “We will try following this passage and see where it leads. One of us could run on ahead, to save Selina any unnecessary walking.”
“I’m not that weak!”
“I did not mean to imply that you were, sister. But you are the slowest of us, and if we have to double back on ourselves it will take longer as a group.”
“Why not send Varin on?” I growled. “Wouldn’t he be capable of finding a way out and leading us to it?”
“He is, as long as we don’t need the added set of jaws,” Selina said.
Lady Sarah raised an eyebrow. “You think living Slayers will find their way here?”
“It’s possible,” I answered, “but it’s not them I’m worried about right now. There’s at least one ghoul down here.” I gave them a quick run through of everything that had happened while they’d slept.
Selina shook her head. “I’m telling you, this ghoul wasn’t just looking for another meal.”
“I am inclined to agree with my sister,” Lady Sarah said. I suspected she was only saying that to keep Selina happy, after her other comment had been taken the wrong way.
Zee flashed me one of his fierce fighting grins. “We’ve dealt with ghouls before, we’ll deal with them again. Let Selina send Varin to find the quickest path.”
The barghest left on his mistress’s command, leaving us with nothing to do but wait for his return. I was a little more relaxed now that the vampires were awake and able to fight, but not much. The ghoul had left me on edge and I kept expecting it to come back at any moment.
It wasn’t long before Varin returned. He seemed to materialise from the very shadows his spirit body looked to be made from, those glowing red eyes reappearing like two lights switching on. They fixed us with a calm canine gaze, then he turned away and started back down the tunnel, and this time we followed.
We turned down a side passage. It sloped upwards, and eventually there came the smell of fresh air. A slit in the stone was just visible and we squeezed through, out into a moonless night. But I could sense it up there, full for the final time that month and lurking behind the clouds. My own hunger made itself known and the desire to hunt burned strong.
I looked at the vampires. “Where now?”
Lady Sarah closed her eyes and breathed deep, her nose to the wind. “There is a village nearby.”
I was amazed. After all those nights insisting we only feed on small prey, now she wanted to go hunting humans? “Don’t think I’m complaining, but isn’t that a bit risky?”
Her eyes sprang open again, hunger flashing across those predatory blue discs. “Selina cannot live on raw meat, and it will be quicker to take what we need from humans than it will for her to cook leftovers from one of our kills.”
Selina nodded. “I think it’s a risk we have to take tonight. With any luck, we’ll find a few supplies to keep us going, at least till we reach the coast.”
“It’s settled then,” Zee said. “To the village.”
We followed our noses until the soft glow of streetlamps slid into view. All was quiet. A few lights filtered through drawn curtains and locked doors, but it would take more than that to keep us out.
“There,” Zee whispered, pointing at a row of old cottages. There was a shower of sparks and the smash of breaking glass, and the street plunged into darkness. He started forward.
Lady Sarah shot him a disapproving look, her hand grabbing his shoulder. “Not yet! Your foolishness is bound to have attracted the Slayers.”
Zee turned and bared his fangs. “Are you questioning my lea
dership?”
Her lips pulled back into a similar hiss and she withdrew her hand, her body settling into a fighting stance. “Nobody appointed you leader!”
My eyes darted to Selina but she was already moving to position herself between the two, her hand gentle but firm on her sister’s arm. I moved over to Zee and grabbed his sword arm.
Selina’s voice was calm and steady when she spoke. “We’ll only make things worse by fighting among ourselves. If the Slayers turn up, we’ll just have to find somewhere else for you to hunt.”
“So Zeerin can lead them to us there, as well? Stay out of this, sister. It is a matter we must settle, or this quest is doomed before it has even truly begun.”
“No one’s forcing you to come! Nick needs my nautical skills, but nobody said you have to come with us.”
“Selina’s right,” I said. “Come on, Zee, let’s wait a few minutes and see if the Slayers show up, then we’ll go from there.”
The two vampires glared at each other a moment longer. It was Zee who backed down, holding his hands up in submission and taking a step backwards. “My apologies. I will be more cautious next time.”
Lady Sarah dipped her head ever so slightly, but her eyes remained frosty and I could sense her anger still brimming beneath her mask of indifference. I gave Zee a sympathetic look. After all the times she’d ignited my own anger, I couldn’t blame him for losing his temper.
Zee looked away, his eyes on the row of cottages once more. The minutes ticked by but there was no hint of anyone coming to investigate, and he turned to Lady Sarah again, his face as calm as he could make it. “I trust you are satisfied, your ladyship?”
She glared at him but didn’t deign to answer, stalking towards the houses with her head held high. I glanced at Selina again. She gave a wry smile and shook her head, and the three of us followed after her sister.
Zee gripped the hilt of his sword and I sensed he was itching to take the lead. But he forced himself to keep back, until Lady Sarah came to a stop, studying the old cottages.
“This one.” She pointed at the nearest house on the end.
“My thoughts exactly,” Zee said. “May I?”
Her nod was more curt than regal. Zee’s eyes flashed with fresh anger as he strode forward, down the side of the house and round to the back door. I slunk after him and the two sisters brought up the rear.
The wood proved a flimsy barrier, splintering under the force of Zee’s boot with one single, powerful kick. He placed his hands on either side of the hole and pulled apart what was left. Frightened shouts came from within.
“What was that?”
“Are we being burgled?”
“Call the police!”
I could hear their hearts pounding; two males and a female. They never had the chance to ring for help, the vampires rushing through the cottage in a blur of movement. I tossed the torch onto the kitchen table and bounded along behind, leaving Selina to raid the fridge. Varin stayed by the door. He didn’t seem to need the same earthly sustenance as the rest of us, creature of spirit that he was.
Lady Sarah had the man and his teenage son in her grip, fixing each in turn with her icy stare. “You can no longer speak.”
The screaming hadn’t started yet, it had all happened so suddenly, and now it was as if their vocal cords had ceased to work. Their mouths opened in terror but the cries they wanted to make wouldn’t come.
Zee had hold of the woman and he placed her under the same effect with the words “Your voice is lost. You will make no sounds unless I say so, not even a scream.”
Her jaws were as wide as the men’s but it was as though someone had hit the mute button. The power of the vampires was absolute. Only killing them would break their spell, and such a feat was beyond these three urban dwellers, unarmed and untrained as they were, and untested by nature’s oldest law. They’d never known the struggle of the wilderness, never had to kill to survive. They never had a chance.
Lady Sarah released the boy and pushed him towards me. He didn’t look to be much older than I was but that didn’t stop me lunging forward and sinking my fangs into his leg. I pulled him to the ground, growling as his other leg connected with my muzzle. The blow felt weak compared to all the other adversaries I’d fought over the last few days, and the pain it created was only a minor background ache. It wouldn’t slow me and it certainly wasn’t enough to stop me.
The boy wriggled and lashed out some more, but his fate had already been sealed the moment we entered the house. I released his limb, only to grab him with my clawed hands and pull him further towards me, his belly now level with my snout. Eyes widened in terror and limbs thrashed more violently at the realisation of what was coming, mouth working its silent cries for help. Yet no sound escaped that delicate throat.
I ripped into his stomach and tasted more blood. Lumps of flesh came free in my jaws and slid down my gullet in waves of ecstasy, my darker nature never happier than in these moments of killing and feeding. But my excitement was muted somewhat, just like his voice. It just wasn’t the same without those screams of pain and terror which would usually fill my ears and send my bloodlust soaring to ever greater heights. And I resented him for it, irrational though that was.
My frustration brought a greater brutality than I’d allowed myself the night before. The humane thing to do would have been to kill him with a single bite to his throat, like I’d given my animal victims, when the dream of hope and a place in the world had been fresh in my mind. It would have been quick and relatively painless, and he needn’t have suffered for long. The vampires could even have used their power to spare the three humans the horror of these final moments. But this was the world of men and we were all monsters here. We were all born of the darkness at the heart of mankind, the darkness that feeds on bloodshed and violence. Given the chance, the family would have done the same to us. And besides, where was the joy in being humane?
The boy’s struggles grew feebler the more I took from him, blood spraying and gushing with each bite. It only drove me into a greater frenzy, scattering viscera and crunching bone in my quest for the tastiest morsels the human had to offer. It was a kill as far removed from the respectful end I’d brought the moose in my dream as possible, but mercy was the last thing on my mind that night.
He was still alive when I took his ribcage in my hands and pulled it apart with a loud crack, sheets of muscle tearing wetly and hanging in gruesome red rags. I had a good idea of the agony I’d brought him, but still he couldn’t voice the fear and pain of his death. Blood was bubbling up in his open mouth and he managed to raise a hand, reaching out for his mother and father. I wrapped my great maw around his heart and wrenched it free of its veiny fetters in another shower of crimson, the hand falling the instant the organ was removed. He’d been fading fast, the loss of his heart the final act needed to douse the last flicker of life dancing behind his eyes. A final breath rattled through him and he was still.
I forgot the need to be quiet, swallowing the organ and giving a triumphant howl. Then I ravaged the boy’s corpse until it was unrecognisable, rising from my kill only once my hunger was sated and the bloodlust had begun to die back down.
The vampires were just finishing their own meals, both victims drained dry. Desiccated and discoloured, the two bodies fell to the floor like grotesque twins, equally as unrecognisable as their son.
“Let’s go,” Zee said, licking the blood from his fangs. His mood had improved again, his anger swept away by the euphoric river of blood.
I growled my agreement but Lady Sarah seemed distracted. Her eyes roamed around the room, taking in the modern furniture and the blood splattered photos. The parents and son smiled through the grisly filter, their precious memories of family holidays and other momentous events tainted by our visit. We hadn’t just killed their physical bodies. We’d corrupted their home and their possessions – all those things that express individuality and add character to a house.
If I didn’t know h
er any better, I might have assumed such thoughts were troubling Lady Sarah. But there was no way she was feeling any kind of guilt at taking the three lives, so what was holding her back?
“My Lady?” Zee said, daring to place a hand on her shoulder. His other hand rested on the hilt of his cutlass, as though he expected the Slayers to show up at any minute.
“Yes, I heard you!” She shook his hand off and stalked back through to the kitchen.
I traded a look with Zee and we shrugged, then followed after her. But I noticed the way her head continued to turn as if scanning the walls for something.
Selina looked to have found a good stash of food and bottled drinks. Several sandwiches had been made and now lay on the kitchen table, bagged for later. She was still eating the microwave meal she’d found, the smell of spices strong and unappetising to my lupine palate.
“Ready?” Zee asked. “We’ll help you carry the food so you can finish that while we walk. Better not to stay here too long – you never know who’s watching.”
“Not yet.” Her words came out garbled through a mouthful of curry. She gulped it down as quickly as she could, waving a hand over her mouth at the heat of it. “There are more supplies to be had here than just food.”
“I doubt that,” Lady Sarah said. “There was a time when homes were filled with the practical and anyone with wealth would have owned a sword. The pictures I understand – portraits of our families and paintings of all that pleases us have long decorated our walls. But what use is any of it if you leave yourself undefended?”
