The demons were overwhelming Catheryn. Rainier felt his heart beat rapidly in his chest, but he could barely move. He could do nothing but lie there and watch Catheryn, the only woman he had ever truly loved, die.
Catheryn stumbled and fell back next to Rainier. She wasn’t looking at him, but was staring in fear at the queen as she approached.
Rainier mustered the last of his strength and moved his hand, barely touching Catheryn’s. If they were going to die, at least they were going to die together. Catheryn felt his touch and looked at him. Their eyes locked. Catheryn’s eye welled with tears, but she tried to give him a reassuring smile.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “You never should have followed me back here.”
“There is nowhere else I’d rather be,” he said with a dry raspy voice, “than at your side. I love you, Catheryn.”
“And I love you,” she said. “I admit it! I…I love you,” she repeated.
Her chest rose and fell as she took several deep breaths. Her eyes widened as though she was remembering something. She turned back to the queen. She forced herself to her feet.
“You might have millions of wicked souls giving you power, but I do have one thing you don’t,” Catheryn said.
“And what’s that?” the queen asked.
“The love of a vampire.” With that, Catheryn held out her hands, and fire spewed from them with the blazing heat of a thousand suns.
The Hoodoo Queen screamed and called to her minions. They rushed to her, surrounding her, trying to protect her from the fire, but they were instantly burned and disappeared. The queen’s horrifying screams filled the house, but soon were quieted as she turned into ash.
The queen was dead, but there was no time to rest. The house was burning. Catheryn tried to summon a harsh enough wind to extinguish the flames, but she appeared exhausted, and the light breeze only made the fire worse. It would probably take time before she could summon an element again.
Instead, she ran to Rainier’s side. “Can you walk?” she asked him. “We need to get out of here.”
Rainier tried with all his might to move his legs, but he couldn’t. “Just go,” he said. “You need to leave. I won’t make it out of here. I’ll just hold you behind. We’ll both die.”
“I’m not leaving without you,” Catheryn warned through her tears.
Catheryn took a deep breath, summoning power from deep inside her, and she picked Rainier up. Slowly but surely, she carried Rainier out of the Hoodoo Queen’s throne room and down the stairs.
The few witches that were left were also fleeing the house like rats, but outside, Eva’s thieves were waiting for them.
Catheryn stepped through the door of the burning house, and everyone gasped as though surprised she had survived. Catheryn stepped down from the porch and collapsed to her knees in the yard. She placed Rainier gently on the ground.
“Eva!” Catheryn yelled. “Beth! Help me!”
A dark haired woman who must have been Catheryn’s sister limped toward them, followed by a willowy blonde.
“You…you found her?” Rainier asked.
Catheryn nodded and held his hand tightly. “I did. I found my sister.”
Beth held a cup of water to Rainier’s mouth. He tried to drink, but he was so weak his head just fell back.
“Rainier,” Catheryn cried. “Stay with me!”
“I’m sorry, Catheryn,” he said.
“Beth!” she yelled “Do something!”
Beth shook her head. “I…I don’t see any wounds. What can I do? I can’t see what to heal.”
“Catheryn,” Rainier said softly. “Catheryn, don’t be afraid.”
“I don’t want to…can’t go on without you,” Catheryn said. “I need you. You give me strength. You give me power. I wouldn’t be a witch without you.”
“You were always a witch,” Rainier said. “I just helped you find her hiding within you. But you are on your own now. I know you can do it.”
“Rainier…” She shook her head, cradling him as tears slid down her face and dropped from her chin “Rainier, don’t you dare leave me.”
Rainier raised his hand and touched her cheek. “Human or vampire, it wouldn’t matter if I could just stay here with you.”
“Then stay with me! Stay...” she cried.
Rainier thought he heard her say something else, but the world faded to black.
Chapter 29
The Hoodoo House continued to burn. People cheered. The Hoodoo Queen was dead, and the people no longer had to live in fear of her. From the slave quarters behind the house, the slaves and vampires that had not yet been killed poured out, grateful to be alive. There was much celebrating. But in the midst of it all, Catheryn’s heart was broken.
She was weeping deep heaving sobs that couldn’t be staunched.
“Rainier! Rainier!” she cried as she held his limp body in her arms.
Eva wrapped her arms around her sister and held her. She didn’t speak, because no words would bring her sister comfort.
Catheryn felt weak and empty. Without Rainier, she didn’t think she could ever call forth her hoodoo power again. Inside the house, when the queen had almost defeated her, it was her love for Rainier that gave her the strength to succeed. She realized there was no more powerful force on earth than love.
Legend said that the love of a witch and a vampire had shattered the world, causing the Divisions as they were today. Catheryn now believed it. Her love for Rainier was not earth shattering, but it had given her the strength to defeat the Hoodoo Queen. If Rainier had lived, who knew just how strong she could get.
Catheryn was mourning Rainier, but she was also mourning for herself, for whatever within her that was dying with him. Finally, Catheryn could cry no more. Her tears were spent. She continued to hold Rainier, unable to let him go.
“Catheryn,” Eva finally said. “We should leave this place. The smoke is choking the air. And you need to rest.”
“I can’t,” Catheryn said. “I can’t leave him!”
“You don’t have to leave him,” Eva said. “Love can last, even beyond the grave. You are exhausted now, but you are still Catheryn, a pure blood hoodoo witch. You can recover.”
Catheryn only shook her head.
“I know it hurts,” Eva said. “He was a good man. If there was anything any of us could have done to save him, we would have, even if he was a vampire.”
“Where will we go?” Catheryn asked. “I can’t leave him.”
Eva rubbed her sister’s arm. “I understand,” she said, waving some of her men over. “We can bring him with us, back to the guild house. He’ll get a proper burial. I promise you.”
Catheryn nodded. She tried to stand, but she was weak, all of her energy spent on the battle and on grieving for Rainier. Beth ran over and let Catheryn lean on her. Catheryn let the men pick Rainier up, but she held his hand as they walked back to the guild house.
As they walked the streets of NOLA, word of what Catheryn had done seemed to travel faster than they did. People—human, witch, and vampire—lined the avenues and cheered as Catheryn passed.
But Catheryn could not enjoy her moment as hero of the city. Her thoughts were only of Rainier, and she couldn’t imagine a way forward without him.
Back at the guild house, the men laid Rainier on a table. Catheryn sat by his side and held his hand.
“Take all the time you need,” Eva said. “When you are ready, we can have his body prepared for burial.”
Eva took her leave. The city was celebrating for now, but the cleanup and rebuilding work would need to start soon, so Eva headed out to assess the damage.
Catheryn stroked Rainier’s face. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Beth was watching them. Her eyes were wide, and she was biting her lower lip.
“What is it?” Catheryn asked. “You look like you want to say something.”
Beth stepped closer and laid her delicate fingers on Rainier’s wrist. “I…I’m sure it’s nothing
,” she said. “I don’t know anything about vampire physiology. But…but I can’t help but wonder…”
“Wonder what?” Catheryn asked.
“How do you know when a vampire is truly dead?” she asked. “Other than staking them through the heart or cutting off the head, how do you know? They don’t breathe or have a pulse like humans, not exactly anyway.”
“What are you saying?” Catheryn asked. “Are you suggesting he is still alive?”
Beth paused, choosing her words carefully. “I don’t want to give you false hope. But I have heard that vampires, when they don’t have blood for long periods of time, they go into a torpor state, like hibernation, but it is very much like death. A frozen, waiting state.”
Catheryn nodded. She had heard this before as well.
“What happened to him?” Beth asked. She had not been in the house, had not seen what the Hoodoo Queen did to him.
“The Hoodoo Queen,” Catheryn explained. “She was draining his life force from him.”
“But you stopped her?” Beth asked. “You interrupted the…ritual, or whatever she was doing?”
Catheryn nodded.
“So what if he isn’t dead, but his body has slipped into a torpor state. To protect him, preserve him,” Beth said.
Catheryn stood up, her heart beating with excitement. “So what do we do?”
“Give him blood would be my guess,” Beth said.
“What blood?” Catheryn asked. “Human or witch?”
“He was feeding on you on the ship, right?” Beth asked. “Why not yours?”
“I don’t know,” Catheryn said. “My blood was sustaining his life, but it was draining him of his vampirism. That’s why he was too weak to fight the queen. He was very nearly human.”
“Strange,” Beth said. “I’ve never heard of that effect of witch blood on a vampire before. Maybe it is because of your hoodoo blood.”
“Whatever the cause, what if it caused more damage instead of bringing him back?” Catheryn asked.
“But his death was not caused by a lack of human blood,” Beth reasoned. “It was caused by magic. Magic is in your blood. If I was a gambling woman, I would bet that blood infused with magic would have a better chance of restoring him than boring old human blood.”
“What’s this talk about human blood?” Eva asked, walking back into the room.
“Beth thinks that Rainier might just be in torpor. That my hoodoo blood might be able to bring him back,” Catheryn said.
“That’s my woman,” Eva said. “Beauty and brains. So what are you waiting for?”
“I…I don’t know,” Catheryn said. “I really don’t think it will work. But I have hope. If I try and fail, that hope will be dashed.”
Eva pulled a dagger from her belt and handed it to Catheryn. “Hang on to that hope, sister.”
Catheryn held her breath as she took the dagger. She pricked her finger and then held it over Rainier’s mouth. One, two, three drops fell.
“Is it enough?” Catheryn asked. “Should I try more?”
“Just wait,” Beth said. “We can try by increments. No need to drain you dry just yet.”
They waited for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds.
Rainier gasped.
Chapter 30
Rainier…
Rainier heard the most beautiful voice saying his name. He thought it must have been calling him to whatever afterlife was waiting for him. He couldn’t see anything, but he had the sense he was floating. It reminded him of the night he and Catheryn were sitting in the life raft together, the night she agreed to be his devotee. The night his world changed…
Rainier…
He knew that voice. He would recognize it anywhere.
“Catheryn,” he tried to call back to her, but he could barely speak. His sweet beautiful Catheryn. His powerful goddess. God, how he loved that woman. What he wouldn’t give for just one more day with her.
“Rainier!”
He heard it more clearly that time, like she was standing right next to him. He tried to turn his head, look left and right, but all was black.
“Catheryn,” he called out, a little more clearly that time. He thought he felt a little stronger, like there was more to him than just his mind floating in space.
He was falling. He was no longer suspended in the black, but something was happening. He could feel the wind on his face. The light. He could see light.
He gasped as his eyes flew open.
“Rainier!” Catheryn cried as she held him tight.
“Catheryn,” he said as he took in his first full breath. “You’re choking me, girl!”
“Oh!” Catheryn let go, but she still gripped his shoulders and looked at him, fear and wonder in her eyes. “Are you…are you really here? Really alive?”
“I…I don’t know,” Rainier said as he touched his arms, his stomach, his legs. “What happened?”
“Beth figured it out,” Catheryn said, gesturing toward the blonde woman he had seen earlier. “She knew about torpor and said that since your death was caused by magic that maybe magic could bring you back.” Catheryn was rambling without taking a breath.
“Who is Beth?” Rainier asked. He looked around the room. He saw the woman who was probably Eva, but there were several other people around as well, all rather scruffy-looking humans. “And where am I?”
“Oh,” Catheryn said. “Right. This is Eva, and Beth is her girlfriend and a medic for the thieves’ guild.”
“Thieves’ guild?” Rainier asked.
Catheryn nodded. “Eva is their queen…of sorts.”
“You’re the Queen of Thieves?” Rainier asked, impressed.
“You’ve heard of me?” Eva sked.
“Not by name, but reputation,” he said. “So, Beth knows about magic? Is she a witch?”
“Oh, I don’t know about magic,” Beth said, humbly. “I just thought that since magic killed you, magic might bring you back.”
“It was my blood,” Catheryn said. “My blood saved you.”
“My hero,” he said. He reached up and pulled her in for a kiss. She tasted sweet. She finally pulled away, a sheepish grin on her face, most likely embarrassed to be so affectionate in front of the others.
“But there is one caveat,” Catheryn said. “I think you might be human now.”
Rainier held his hand to his chest. He felt his heart beating. Even though he still had a heartbeat as a vampire, it was weak, faint, barely discernable. Now, his heart was beating strong and clear, like a human.
“Your heartbeat is normal and your color is returning,” Beth said. “I’m sure you will feel strange at first, even weak. But eventually you will get used to a new normal.”
“I’m human…” Rainier said. He could hardly believe it. “So…mortal?”
“I have no idea how old you are,” Beth said. “But you appear to be in your late twenties. So, yes, you are probably mortal, but I expect you to still live the rest of a normal human lifespan, another forty or fifty years. Maybe more. But be careful, because you can be killed much easier, just like any of us.”
Rainier let her words sink in. Human? What would that even be like? He had thought of humans as nothing more than food for as long as he could remember. Now he was one of them? He took a deep breath.
Catheryn squeezed his hand nervously. “Are you…okay?” she asked. “I know you are probably disappointed.”
Rainier kissed her again. “How could I be disappointed knowing I get to wake up to that face every morning for fifty years?”
Catheryn laughed, but a few tears fell from her eyes. “I thought I’d lost you,” she said. “I didn’t know how I was going to go on.”
“Well, now you don’t need to worry,” he said.
“We have other things to worry about,” Eva said.
Catheryn turned to her. “What do you mean?”
“The city is in chaos,” she said. “The death of the queen has created a power vac
uum. Many people are celebrating, but the leaders of the various clans, covens, and guilds are already plotting. If we don’t act quickly, someone else could take over, someone worse than the Hoodoo Queen.”
“Who could be worse than the Hoodoo Queen?” Catheryn asked.
“I don’t want to find out,” Eva said.
Rainier sat up straighter. “So what do we do?”
“Catheryn needs to go out into the city, make an appearance. Use her powers to start rebuilding. She is the city’s savior. She needs to let the people know she won’t abandon them.”
“I…I don’t know what to do,” Catheryn said. “I’m not a leader. You know more about leading people than I do. You are already a queen. You should seize power while you have the chance.”
Eva shook her head. “I’m a leader of a small faction of humans, nothing more. If I wanted to lead the city, I’d have to do it by force. You, though. You could inspire the people. They could rally behind you. They would choose to follow you.”
“I…I don’t think I can…” Catheryn blushed and looked away, as if embarrassed by the attention.
Rainier took her hand. “I know you can.”
“You have always believed in me,” she said. “When no one else did, even me. The only reason I am even a witch is because of you.”
“No, that’s not the only reason. But now, it’s time to believe in yourself. Time to become a queen.”
She blushed again, but this time she didn’t look away.
“You’re right,” she said. “I mean, I saved you, didn’t I? Then I can save this city, too.”
Rainier hopped off the table, and he, Eva, Beth, and the rest of the thieves followed Catheryn outside.
The city was indeed in ruin, as Eva had said. Many of the shops had been looted and ransacked. Fire had razed part of the city. There were dead people and vampires strewn about. People were fighting.
Catheryn, with help from Eva and Rainier, took charge. As she walked through the city, anyone who was fighting she used chains of smoke to bind them. She used pillars of ice to keep damaged building from falling. She called up a wave from the sea to wash the streets clean.
Pirate's Curse: Division 1: The Berkano Vampire Collection Page 19
