Vermilion Justice

by Sheri Lewis Wohl

When daylight bloomed again tomorrow she had no guarantee she would once again be able to stand in the light of the sun. Whatever magic was carrying her and Ivy through the countryside unscathed on this day might fade along with the rays of today’s sunshine.

  “How are we going to find our way in this?” Adriana said, a worried expression creasing her brow. “It’s getting as dark as molasses, and we sure don’t have a clue as to the lay of the land.”

  Not an exaggeration. In this world where fire was the only source of illumination, when the sun set in the country, only the light of the moon and the stars could break up the all-encompassing blackness. Not so oddly, she found it comforting, bringing back memories she’d have thought had long faded into oblivion.

  With those memories came thoughts of Meriel, and though once upon a time they might have made her smile, now they made her shiver. She’d thought Meriel murdered on a muddy stretch of road just like this one, five centuries earlier. Not too long ago, the four of them had nearly lost their lives as they discovered the fallacy of that closely held belief.

  Like Riah, Meriel had become a creature of eternity that very same night. After centuries at Rodolphe’s side, Riah had freed herself to ultimately use her sentence to undeath in order to try to help others. Meriel had gone another direction altogether. The evil that filled Meriel’s heart still made Riah sad. Once she’d loved her deeply. In the end, she’d pitied her, and then she’d taken her head.

  Turning her gaze to Adriana, the melancholy fled and her heart lightened. It was true that when one door closed another opened. She’d found the strength within herself to make peace with her past and with her feelings for Meriel, only to discover the kind of love she’d only dreamed of with Adriana. It was a miracle that happened for other people, but one she never believed could be a reality for her. She thanked her lucky stars every single night.

  “Earth to Riah. Come on back, girlfriend.”

  “Sorry,” she said as she brought her attention back on the here and now.

  “Finding our way…in the dark? Any great thoughts? You’re the only one of us who’s been here, done that.”

  She hugged Adriana and kissed the side of her head. “Not to worry. We just have to keep heading north and we’ll run right into Tirgoviste.”

  “And we will know which way north is how?”

  “You spend too much time in the city, beautiful. All we have to do is follow the sky.”

  Adriana rolled her eyes. “Of course we do. Whatever was I thinking?”

  “She’s right.” Colin was helping Ivy mount again. “Navigation by the night sky, people have been doing it for centuries.”

  Adriana stared up at the deepening sky and grumbled, “Yeah, well, where I come from, we use a Garmin. Quicker, easier, and a heck of a lot more accurate.”

  Riah kissed her again. “Ever hear the phrase ‘when in Rome’?”

  Adriana was using a tree stump to awkwardly crawl back up on their horse. “Stupid Rome,” she muttered.

  *

  Lura would give Nicoletta credit for one thing; she knew how to lie low in a large castle teeming with people at every turn. They were everywhere and all bending over backward to not rock the boat with the good prince. What the fuck was up with that guy anyway? He had classic narcissist written all over him. She’d love an hour with him in her office, running a test or two. A serious personality disorder, or more like two or three, going on there.

  She remembered her nanny telling grand stories of how Prince Dracula defended the country from the invading Turks and saved what was to become her homeland. Lura was just a child when Sofia lulled her to sleep with vivid tales, and her descriptions always made her think of a great man on a big white horse who smiled and made all the people happy. The kind of man who kissed babies and embraced old women. She had a completely different idea of what constituted the prince.

  Not exactly what she was seeing when she faced the man in the flesh. Happy was about the last thing she noticed about him, and she hadn’t seen a single white horse. Babies would certainly scream, old women would hide. Sofia’s stories and reality were worlds apart.

  In the castle, people constantly scurried with heads low and voices quiet. That was odd enough all by itself. Throw in how Nicoletta would grab her arm and drag her into shadowy corners any time she thought the Prince might be nearby and it got even stranger. Nicoletta’s fear of the man was palpable, and she wished she could do something to help ease it.

  Finally, they were back in Nicoletta’s private chambers. The sun was beginning to dip below the mountaintops, and candles were lit to illuminate the rooms and hallways. The flickering light across Nicoletta’s face softened the worry lines that creased her brow. Though Lura tried not to stare, she just couldn’t help it. She longed to reach over and run a finger down Nicoletta’s smooth, pale skin. Something in her eyes was sad, and Lura understood. Boy, did she understand. She could take a patent out on that one.

  A stab of pain roared through her, followed by a wave of shame. This was the first time she’d thought of Vic in more hours than she could count. What a bitch. If Nicoletta had any idea what kind of woman she really was, she’d throw Lura to the wolves. She’d let the Prince run a stake through her too and be all the better for it.

  “What are you thinking?” Only then did she realize Nicoletta was staring back at her.

  “I was thinking there’s no way I’m this savior you and Alexandru are so convinced I am.”

  “Of course you are.” The sadness that only a moment before seemed to fill her expressive eyes was replaced by a brightness that shone. It turned her from simply pretty to stunning.

  She didn’t share Nicoletta’s obvious confidence. “Impossible. I’m not a good person.”

  “Why? Because you believe you did wrong to your husband? Because your feelings toward him were not those of a woman for a man? Because in your heart you desire the touch of a woman?”

  Shock made her momentarily mute. How could this woman possibly know? She’d told no one of her deception. While it was true she’d been planning to confess to Vic before she came out of the proverbial closet, she never got the chance. If the person who knew her best didn’t know her secret, how could this woman? As drawn as she was to both Nicoletta and Alexandru, she was a little scared of them too.

  The words came slowly. She wasn’t sure she really wanted to hear the answer. “How do you know?”

  Nicoletta came forward to stand in front of her. She took Lura’s hands in hers, the warmth of her skin comforting. Somehow just touching her helped. For so long she’d felt lost and alone—an imposter who spent her life helping others with their inner demons when she couldn’t begin to make peace with her own.

  In this strange world that in so many ways was an impossibility, it all seemed right. Nicoletta chased away the overwhelming loneliness. She no longer felt like a lying imposter.

  “I know,” she said in a small voice. “I know because I too feel as you do. I feel what they say we should not. I long for what is not proper. I want what is not to be spoken of.”

  Tears pricked at the back of her eyes, and Lura’s hands tightened on Nicoletta’s. “Is it true?” She could hardly believe she was hearing the words. Hope surged.

  Nicoletta nodded. “It is so. That is how I know what is in your heart and your head. You married this man you thought you loved, but here—” she tapped her chest, “in your heart you longed for something else, someone else.”

  “Yes,” Lura murmured as a tear slid down her cheek. How was it possible that Nicoletta could see so clearly into her heart when no one else ever had?

  Nicoletta ran a finger down her cheek. “You longed for a gentle touch and lips as soft as your own.”

  “Oh God, yes.” She was trembling now.

  Nicoletta slid her arms around Lura and laid her head on her chest. Lura leaned her chin on Nicoletta’s head, and her own arms found their way around her small body. Her heart beat so hard she was certain it could be he
ard in the passageway outside their chamber.

  “I know because I have felt as you do.”

  The impossibility of all this pounded at Lura’s brain. How everything in her world was so right and so wrong all at the same time boggled her mind. They’d never taught anything like this in medical school.

  Was all of this a strange dream brought on by the stress of Vic’s death? At any moment now she was going to wake up in the quaint hotel all alone, her face puffy and red from crying. Downstairs would be a very normal, very twenty-first-century Alexandru waiting to take her to pick up Vic’s ashes. No Dracula. No Nicoletta.

  Or maybe not. If this was a dream, it was a damn good one, and she didn’t want to wake up. The woman in her arms felt very real, the warmth that crept through her just as real. So did the pounding on the door.

  They jumped apart just as the door to the chamber flew open. Two burly men stepped inside, followed by the Prince. He walked through, and it struck Lura once again how noble his bearing was. He threw off power like a dog shook off water. It went everywhere, filling the room and prickling at her skin.

  Atop his long black hair that curled slightly, he wore a striking hat of fur, its brim decorated with pearls that caught the light of the candles. His jacket was likewise trimmed with the same fur and held together with buttons that looked to be made of gold. If not for his eyes, he would be the perfect vision of royal masculinity. Not that his eyes weren’t male. No, but the deep-black emptiness of them sent a chill into her bones. The package was handsome, but somehow the soul was frightening. Foreboding sat like a stone in the pit of her stomach.

  He turned those black eyes first on her and then, with an almost imperceptible shrug, toward Nicoletta. The eyes, so empty a moment ago, filled with a look that made the chill in her bones go glacial. He nodded at Nicoletta, then spun on his heel and left. He never spoke a word.

  She experienced a brief moment of relief when the Prince left the room, only to be filled with a new terror when the two men stepped forward, grabbed Nicoletta by the arms, and dragged her out the door. Lura started to follow but stopped when the men slammed the heavy door in her face.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The night seemed to grow deeper the farther they traveled. At one point, Adriana’s drooping weight let Riah know she’d fallen asleep. With her arms firmly around her lithe body, Riah held tight to her and let her sleep. It would do her good. They would all need to be on high alert once they reached the city.

  Here in the uninhabited woodlands, they could travel easily, particularly under the cover of night. No one was near to question the four strangers who were stranger than most. Once daylight exposed them, it would take a lot of quick thinking to keep to their presence in the shadows. Their only advantage was her knowledge and experience with the times. It wasn’t much, but it was more than Lura had at her disposal.

  She worried about getting to Ivy’s cousin before something terrible happened. This was a violent time in history, and a bloody man ruled this land. Granted, he often had little choice, and she could cut him some slack for that fact. It didn’t diminish the danger.

  At other times, however, she questioned the choices he consciously made. The level of his violence, at least to her, appeared to be in excess of the needs of the situation. But that was neither here nor there. What she did or didn’t think about Vlad Dracula had little bearing on anything in their present circumstances. She just needed to worry about getting their band of warriors safely out of this city and back through the rocks. A plane was on the other side of those stones that she had every intention of being on as soon as possible.

  Her mind was wandering in that direction as they moved through the trees, and at first she didn’t hear the rustling off to her right. Slowly it penetrated her deep thoughts and she peered ahead, narrowing her eyes. Must be wildlife, frightened into motion by the sound of their horses. She hoped.

  Shifting on the horse to focus more intently, her movement stirred Adriana, who slowly opened her eyes. “I can’t believe I actually fell asleep on this thing,” she muttered.

  Riah wasn’t surprised at all because she knew the beauty of a horseback ride. “This thing is a horse, and this magnificent animal is our friend.”

  Adriana patted the horse. “In my head I’m all over that. My ass, on the other hand, not so much. And for the record, this horse doesn’t feel friendly at all. Smells kinda funky too.”

  “He smells like a horse, and that’s wonderful. Now, sleep more if it helps. You’ll need all your wits about you when we arrive in Tirgoviste.”

  Yawning, Adriana shook her head. “Naw, what I got was okay, but truthfully, sleeping upright on the back of a horse trotting through a pitch-black countryside in another dimension? Well, sweetheart, that might be normal for you, but not for this city girl.”

  Riah laughed softly. “I don’t suppose it is.” She stiffened and peered around. “Did you hear that?”

  Adriana rolled her head as if trying to work out the kinks. “Didn’t hear a thing beyond the thump thump of Silver’s hoofs.”

  “Silver?”

  “Ah, come on. You gotta remember the Lone Ranger and his trusty mount Silver.”

  “That one must have slipped by me.”

  Adriana’s head dropped once more to Riah’s shoulder. “Too bad. Kind of a fun show when you’re a kid.”

  Sometimes Adriana forgot that Riah had never been a kid and seemed amazed by the thought when it occurred to her. Actually that wasn’t technically true. She had been a child, like everyone else, except it had been at least half a millennia ago for her. By the time the Lone Ranger made his appearance on American television, she’d been around for centuries and was far from interested in TV shows.

  Straining to catch the sounds again, she urged her mount forward, dismissing them as normal wilderness activity. Short of running into bears, wolves, or even a lynx, she wasn’t too concerned. The smaller wildlife wouldn’t give them much in the way of trouble. They still had a fair distance to go so it wasn’t wise to get sidetracked over squirrels and rabbits.

  Turning to make sure Colin and Ivy were still close behind, she heard the whish right before Colin let out a cry. What was it? Even though she’d grown up in this world where darkness dropped like a blackout curtain and the sounds of the night were filled more with nature than man, she’d been gone too long. What once was natural was now strange and foreign. Then the lightbulb hit a hundred watts and she understood. Despite the heavy skirts of her gown, she easily whipped her leg over the horse and was on the ground lightning fast. Adriana was right behind her, although her dismount was more like a tuck and roll than a graceful leap. Still, similar to Riah, she bounced up and ran once her feet touched earth.

  The smell of blood hit her before she was within three feet of the spot where Colin had tumbled from his horse and hit the cold earth. Ivy knelt by his side, staring at an arrow that had pierced his shoulder, through and through.

  Moments before she might have been less than alert and passing off the sounds within the trees as normal. Not now. Though the steps were light on the forest floor, she knew they weren’t the sounds of animals. No squirrels and no rabbits. Their stalkers were of the human variety. She popped back up and spun. When the second arrow came whirring through the night air, she was ready and deftly avoided its sharpened tip. The breeze it created blew cool on her skin, the scent of man carried along with it.

  “Take cover,” she whispered to Adriana. “Get Colin into the trees and tend to his wound. Get that thing out of his body.” God only knew what was on the arrow, and she wanted any kind of dirt or debris out of him. This wasn’t the place to contract an infection.

  Ivy and Adriana didn’t ask questions. Together, they grabbed Colin by his armpits and began to drag his big body toward the trees on the edge of the road. For two small women lugging a really big man, they moved with amazing speed and strength. Made her proud.

  Riah didn’t move from her spot. Head high, hands on hips
, she stood and stared into the distance. They were on her ground and her time. The night wasn’t a hindrance; it was her ally. Little did they know they were up against a creature of the darkness. Their loss.

  The trees were thick, the cover heavy. The air held a light but steady breeze, bringing with it the ever-stronger evidence of their approach. Unwashed, sweating men. She could almost hear them coming in excited gasps.

  The thick forest was perfect hunting ground for someone wanting to stay hidden. Camouflaged in the wilderness waiting for the chance to overcome the small traveling party, they probably thought they’d hit the jackpot. Two noblewomen traveling with only one man and a slight-framed boy? Easy pickings, or so the fools believed. They were undoubtedly congratulating themselves on being in the right place at the right time. She had every intention of showing them exactly how wrong they were. Their first mistake was hurting her friend. Their second, underestimating their prey.

  With Colin safe in the shelter of the trees, she left Ivy and Adriana to tend to him as she raced across the road and into the deep forest.

  *

  The worst part wasn’t being dragged from her chambers to be taken to the Prince. No, the worst part was seeing the look on Lura’s face as the guards took her from the room. Nicoletta knew what it meant and what he wanted from her. It was not the first night he and his goons had entered her chamber in such a way. The memories distressed her, and she still did not understand why she of all the women in the castle captured his fancy.

  She was far from the prettiest woman in his court. Her brown hair was not special, her face plain. Rather than the rounded curves and full breasts of most of the women he seemed to favor, she was painfully thin and her breasts small. In her mind, she should have faded into the background like the tapestries that hung from the castle walls. Everyone knew they were there, but few ever really looked at them. That is how she thought of herself, though she was wrong, at least when it came to the Prince.