by Fawn Lowery
He grasped the amulet in one fist. “It is you and I who must bargain.” He glanced over his shoulder, sensing the sudden anger of the assembled army of Gideons. “And bring forth Miriam. I want to see that she is unharmed.”
Drucella opened her mouth and hissed loudly. She waved one hand and a bolt of lightning struck the barren ground beside Duella’s feet.
He stood fast, aware that his words would draw her anger. He watched her eyes as she stared at the amulet, then locked gazes with him. She’s fearful of what I’m capable of. The realization that he was right bolstered his courage. He braced his feet apart, lending further credence to his mastery.
Drucella swept her gaze across the gathering of Gideons and they quietly dispersed.
A relieved breath escaped Duella’s throat. Now that he had the upper hand-- “Bring Miriam to me.”
“The talisman first.”
He shook his head. “There’s no room for argument. Where is Miriam?”
Drucella cursed and spat. She waved her arms and sent shards of fire slamming into the ground around his body. She conjured up a dust storm and made it swirl about his form, choking his nose and throat and irritating his eyes. He covered his face with one hand and waited out the onslaught.
When the dust storm subsided, Drucella was nowhere in sight. Duella looked around for her, searching for a trail leading off in one direction or other. Sighing, he admitted that she had vanished from sight again, leaving him wondering. He waited, believing she would return once her anger subsided. He smiled in spite of things. The witch liked to be in control at all times. He clutched the amulet. Aside from holding the one thing she desired, he had little leverage with which to acquire Miriam’s release.
The space surrounding the barren wasteland darkened. He gazed overhead. Though the area appeared encapsulated, the semblance of sky spanned overhead, reaching as far as the eye could see. He looked on as storm clouds appeared on the horizon, then moved rapidly toward him. He sought shelter, but finally concluded there was no place to take refuge from the impending storm.
A loud clap of thunder sounded, piercing his hearing with a resounding echo. He cursed and covered his ears with his hands. The dark clouds rolled onward, drawing closer until finally darkness consumed him. He blinked his eyes against the murkiness, wondering what Drucella intended next.
Silence reigned abruptly. He could hear his own breaths as he pulled air into his lungs. Slowly the area directly in front of him began to clear, grow light. He stood still and waited, aware that Drucella was playing out her game with him. A patch of barren ground directly in front of him appeared, growing larger as the darkness subsided. He stared at the growing patch of light and made out a figure sprawled on the ground.
“Miriam!” He rushed forward, disregarding the threat to his own safety. She lay so still that at first he wondered if she was dead. But upon drawing closer, he saw her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath. He stooped beside her and lifted her upper body into his arms. “Miriam. Oh Miriam.” He cradled her against his chest, thankful that she was alive.
“Duella?” Her voice was weak. She clutched at his arm with her fingers. “Take me away from this place.”
He glanced around, fearful of taking his eyes off Miriam even for a second, but needing to know if Drucella was nearby, watching them. As earlier, when he had searched for the witch, he saw nothing. He slid one arm beneath Miriam’s knees, shifted the other beneath her shoulders and lifted her into his arms. Turning, he tried to find his way back to the wooden gate that he had entered leading to the green valley and the entry tunnel to the underground hideaway. The darkness was all consuming. He couldn’t see beyond Miriam clutched against his chest. Each step was tentative, slowing inching his foot forward in search of solid ground, before risking the next.
Miriam pushed her face into his shoulder and clung to his neck, her arms wrapped tightly. He could sense her distress and fear. He tightened his arms around her, reassuring her that he wouldn’t leave her again. Forging onward, he slid his feet along the ground. Calling upon his vampire abilities, he listened intently for sounds that might alert him to the witch’s coming or the reappearance of the Gideon army.
Hearing nothing, he inched along, Miriam clutched tightly against his chest. He knew better then to become too over confident. Drucella wasn’t to be trusted. He chided himself for having ever thought otherwise about the evil creature. He strained his eyes trying to see through the intense blackness—a murky spell cast by the devious witch. Rage grew inside him. He had let down his guard and Drucella had taken advantage of the moment.
“We can’t escape the witch, Duella.”
He glanced down at Miriam. Her face was barely visible through the inky blackness but he could sense her despair. He sought to bolster her courage. “We can’t let her win, Miriam. Don’t despair. We’ll find the way out of this hellhole.”
“It’s almost daylight. She has calculated her plan well. She knows neither of us can stand the daylight. She knows the sun burns us.”
“Have courage. I will keep you safe. I promise.” As the words left his mouth, he wondered how he could possibly do as he vowed. The sun was a vampire’s bane, a source of annihilation that must be feared.
Chapter Eighteen
Duella trudged along clutching Miriam in his arms until his strength began to wane. He slowed his pace, glancing about the ebony darkness surrounding them. He loathed admitting that he couldn’t find his way back to the green valley. He sighed and set Miriam’s feet on the ground. Holding onto her hand for fear she would become lost to him again, he drew her against his side while he considered their situation.
Anger threatened to overtake his senses as he felt the presence of the witch very near. She had consented to letting him have Miriam only because she knew she could prevent his escaping. He hung his head, overcome with a sense of foreboding. “Show yourself!” He bellowed loudly into the darkness, his tone threatening.
Soft laughter, filled with menace and hate, sounded very near his ear.
He whirled around, dragging Miriam along and almost knocking her off her feet. Drucella appeared right before his eyes, smiling and sending ire raging through his veins. He gnashed his teeth and snarled.
“You know the price for your release, Duella.”
He tightened his hold on Miriam’s hand and clutched the amulet in one fist. He had no choice but to try and remove the amulet from his neck. He tightened his hold on the gem and raised the chain, making to lift it over his head.
Drucella drew closer-- drool slid from the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were vivid topaz, wide and expectant. She reached out both hands in lieu of receiving the talisman.
The witch is very eager to have the gem. He paused and stared at Drucella, trying to fully understand the lustful gleam in her eyes. He took note of her eager fingers reaching toward his chest, almost touching the gem in her haste to possess it. His brow furrowed. Puzzlement formed in his mind. He became aware of others gathered around he and Miriam. The army of Gideons had returned and appeared just as eager as their mistress. Their large eyes were pinned on the jewel in his hand and drool dripped from their chins.
“Give it to me! Give it to me!”
He closed his fist over the gem. It seemed too important to merely hand over. If only he could have an inkling as to its worth.
“Give it to me!”
Drucella’s pleading command drew his attention. He saw the witch’s outstretched hands and the sudden clash of emotions materialize on her face. She glanced about the gathering of Gideons as though fearful of the little creatures. The Gideons crowded closer to Drucella, pushing their bodies against hers and vying for the space closest to Duella. They reached their long arms out as though hoping to snatch the gem before the witch could get her hands on it.
Duella sought Drucella in the midst of the foray. She appeared worried by the eager Gideons although she professed they were her servants. She pushed at the little creatures, shovi
ng them behind her as she fought her way to the front of the crowd. Bickering mutterings sounded from the group.
“It appears the gem is much revered.” Duella smirked, holding the gem away from his body and suspending it on its gold link chain.
“It belongs to me! Hand it over!”
“Give it to us! Give it to us!”
He lowered his gaze to the mob of Gideons.
“The amulet belongs to our people. Give it to us!”
“Do tell?” Duella looked at Drucella.
The witch gnashed her teeth and flung her arms, sending the Gideons scurrying from around her. “Don’t listen to them. They lie. The amulet is mine.”
Duella released the gem inside his shirt. He rubbed his chin with one fingertip. “Prove that the amulet belongs to you, Drucella.”
She lunged at him, teeth bared, eyes flashing. She grasped him by the front of his shirt and lifted him off the ground. In the next instant, he was hurtling through the air and crashing against the wooden gate he sought to escape the barren garden. He slid to the ground, his body in terrible pain.
Drucella was nose to nose with him as he tried to right himself. She lifted him from the ground, her hand around his throat and flung him into the air.
Duella sought to transform, calling upon his vampire ability to change into a bird before he landed on the ground again. He managed to change, flapping his wings hard to avoid the crash landing. He turned his course, flew directly toward Drucella, then veered sharply as he spied Miriam lifting into the air.
He led the way over the wooden fence and into the green garden. Following the winding path back to the waterfall, he spied the lighted tunnel he had walked down to reach the opening. He soared through it with Miriam close behind. The dark shaft that led up to the cemetery appeared ahead and he directed his flight path up it.
He burst through the covering of grass and earth to spy the newly awakening day. Seeing the sun break the horizon send a shard of fear racing through his insides. He headed for the mansion, needing to get to safety before the sun burned his body and destroyed him forever.
* * * *
A sound, ever so slight, penetrated Duella’s brain. An odor, uncommon in his vampire chamber, came to his nose. Alarmed, he jerked his eyes open, his body alert in a way that unnerved him. He saw her just moments before she raised the mallet in her hand and drove the wooden stake against his chest. He bounded upward, grasping the stake with one hand while grabbing at the hand holding the hammer.
Drucella was hurled backward as Duella left his bed and sought to overpower her. The stake broke the skin on his chest and brought blood oozing down his skin. He roared in outrage as he thrust the stake from his body and kicked the hammer from the witch’s hand. He grasped her by the hair and slammed her against the wall of the room, only to fend her off again when she regained her footing.
She came at him teeth gnashing, fingernails turning into clawing daggers. He raised a foot and kicked her in the stomach, bending her over, then levered a sharp uppercut to her chin, sending her sprawling against the floor. She slid across the carpet and hit the wall with a loud thud, coming to rest in a heap.
Duella halted his assault, aware that his worst nightmare had come true. Drucella had invaded his sanctuary and tried to kill him while he slept. He glanced down at his bleeding chest, then thought of Miriam. He whirled around, only to see Miriam in a pool of blood, her eyes wide and staring as she clutched the stake stabbing her chest. He roared his outrage and leapt to her savagely mutilated body. He grabbed the stake and pulled it free, tossing it across the room while his rage engulfed his senses.
Miriam sucked in a shallow breath, clutched her chest and stared at Duella with wild eyes.
He pressed his hand against her breast, stemming the flow of blood and lending his vampire skills of healing. Fury engulfed his big body, his fangs appeared as he snarled his rage, turning his red glowing gaze on Drucella as she lay limp and unconscious across the room.
Miriam clutched his hand, splayed her fingers across his and gasped in deep breaths, trying to survive as the flow of blood waned and the jagged hole in her chest began to mend. Slowly the frightened look in her eyes grew less until she managed to smile weakly at Duella.
He tried to control his rage while he held his hand against her chest. Fear of losing her congealed inside him, sending the rage he harbored toward Drucella magnifying. He stared across the room at the witch. He had underestimated her. She was not to be trusted under any circumstance. There was nothing she was not capable of. He gnashed his teeth, his rage coming to the fore again.
Unable to contain his urge to destroy the witch any longer, he pulled his hand from Miriam’s chest and crossed the bedroom in long angry strides. He grasped Drucella by the hair and raised her body into the air. Wrapping his hands around her throat, he sought to strangle her, applying as much pressure as his strength would allow.
The witch hung limply from his fist. The bones of her neck cracked and splintered, her head fell to one side. Duella threw her on the floor and stood glowering down at her. In his gut, he knew he hadn’t killed her—but he didn’t fully understand why he had failed. He thought again of his brother casting her into the fireplace and her ultimate coming back. He turned to check on Miriam.
Seated on the side of the bed, her gaze riveted to him, she smiled at his approach. She held out her arms.
He walked into her embrace.
She snuggled her cheek against his chest. “Thanks for coming to my rescue.”
He smoothed one hand across her hair. His anger was such that he didn’t trust himself to kiss her. He tightened his arms around her and held her close.
Drucella roused behind him, shuffling her body around on the floor and getting to her feet. She vanished the moment he glanced at her, leaving the room with a foul smelling odor in her wake.
Duella shook his head. “There has to be a way to destroy that bitch!”
Miriam soothed him, turning her head and kissing his naked chest. “The amulet you wear holds the secret of her existence. Unlock the mystery and she will bother us no longer, my love.” She pulled back and looked up at him. “I am only glad that you awakened before she drove the stake through your heart.” Tears filled her eyes instantly. “I couldn’t go on without you. I love you.”
He caressed her cheek. Her display of tenderness completely dispelled his body of rage. He drew in a long breath. “And I love you, too, Miriam.” He felt better for having uttered the words. Joy shown in Miriam’s eyes and he leaned down and kissed her softly.
“Come. We must feed. You lost a lot of blood.” Pain cut across his chest at his words. The sight of Miriam laying there, her blood pooling around her body, the gaping wound in her chest, the wooden stake protruding from her flesh— It was a horrible sight and one he wanted desperately to forget. He helped Miriam to the door of the bedroom.
She paused and placed one hand against his chest. “Promise me that you will be careful, Duella.”
He covered her hand with his.
She bit her lower lip, her eyes pleading.
He smiled down at her, grateful for her love.
Chapter Nineteen
Duella sat on the park bench and held his head in his hands. Everywhere he turned he saw Drucella or one of her Gideon servants. He rubbed his eyes with one hand, aware that his imagination was playing tricks on him, but at a loss as to what to do about it.
He had kept the incidents from Miriam, reluctant to tell her for fear she would insist they return to the mansion and bar the doors. He chuckled slightly. If the situation weren’t so pathetic it would be laughable. Vampire tormented by witch. Who would believe that?
He raised his head and watched Miriam feed in the alley. She had taken two men into the darkness and, so far, she had drunk from one and lowered his body to the ground at her feet. He watched her grab the second and drag him into position so she could sink her fangs into his neck. He fought her only briefly before giving in.
Miriam is a pawn in Drucella’s deadly game. He grimaced. He failed to understand the noncompliance of the amulet he wore. He couldn’t remove it yet he couldn’t communicate with it either. What good is the damn thing?
Thoughts flashed in his mind—reminders of his new existence as a businessman in New Orleans and the mansion he currently resided in. He groaned. He knew the amulet had brought about his good fortune and perhaps Miriam as well. She was a good companion. A willing sex partner. Who would believe a vampire could have sex?
He rose to his feet. Miriam’s two victims emerged from the alley, wobbly on their feet, but moving on their own powers nonetheless. He watched her appear at the mouth of the alley, staring across the park in his direction. He smiled and started toward her. As he drew near, he felt her relief and joy at seeing him. He took her hand and they walked back into the dark alley. Once safely hidden in the darkness, they transformed and took to the air.
The darkness and the wind beneath his wings seemed to soothe him, relieving his mind of all the danger and mystery surrounding Drucella and her band of Gideons. He rose higher, sensing Miriam following his lead unquestioningly, riding the moist air currents over the city. The sky was inky with the threat of rain. Thick black clouds obscured the moon and the stars. He folded his wings and swooped toward the water at the edge of the city. He could see angry waves slamming against the shore, washing beyond the normal channel. A storm brewed.
“I sense your rage and discontent, Duella.” Miriam slid her hand into his as they chose a spot to sit near the encroaching water.
