Once they were all seated, Sarah served the first course to those who were eating —a hardy mushroom soup.
“You know, I could have bothered with goat and boar and all that, but—”
“Sarah, this is more than necessary,” Valek chided, resulting in more bouts of laughter from the blood-drinkers in the group. Charlotte loved the way the corners of his eyes crinkled when he laughed. Her heart tugged.
By the time she’d finished with her goose and the traditional Czech potato salad, the Vampires had gone through about a dozen glasses of blood each. A small question about how Sarah facilitated all the ichor hovered around Charlotte’s mind, but she didn’t dare ask. As she peered down at the goose meat still left on her plate, and then over to the half-eaten rabbit stew on Sarah’s, she decided she didn’t really want to know where the blood came from.
Mr. Třínožka and Edwin disappeared from the group after they’d both cleared their plates. The way they both snickered out of the room was an obvious indication they were up to something.
“You know,” Charlotte began. “Francis would have loved this. He would have been really proud of you, Sarah.”
The group responded differently. Both Valek and Sarah frowned in deep thought. Dusana and Jorge voiced how much they missed their brat leader, and Sasha and Lusian saluted a new glass of blood to him, the crystal clinking loud enough Charlotte thought their glasses might break.
“To Francis! For once, I think even he would say there’s too much glitter,” chuckled Lusian.
“Nonsense. If Francis were here, you’d really experience a dinner party,” mused Sarah, smiling solemnly. She leaned back in her chair, her hands patting her swollen stomach. “I need a break before desert. Who wants to open gifts?”
“Gifts!” cheered the twins collectively.
Bells twinkling from the hallway captured everyone’s attention before Mr. Třínožka burst into the dining room once more. Now, he was dressed head to toe (all four sets of toes) in scarlet with gold trimming. Around his ears, he wore a frazzled, fake beard, his head topped with a pointed Wizard’s hat, red velvet embroidered with gold stars.
“Har har har,” his voice boomed.
“Think you’ve got the wrong laugh,” Jorge began. “Isn’t it—”
“Listen here! I happen ta know the real Saint Nicholas.” Mr. Třínožka wagged his finger at him. “Once good friends, he and I, an believe it er not, the laugh went ‘har har har!’ None a this ‘ho ho ho’ nonsense.”
Edwin stood meekly beside the great spider, looking sheepish in an emerald green get-up and pointy shoes. “I feel r-r-ridiculous.”
“Santa of my nightmares,” grumbled Lusian in an undertone, glowering at Mr. Třínožka’s eight appendages and beetle-black eyes.
Sarah hopped up, grasping Edwin’s shoulders. “Oh, you both look wonderful!” And then she planted a kiss right on his nose. He teetered a bit.
“Ready!” came Jorge’s voice from the study.
The group, once more, clamored from one side of the hallway to the other, each of them finding seats around the hearth and the tree.
Where there wasn’t before, now the floor beneath the fat pine was cluttered with shiny packages. Some tall, some wide and round, large and misshapen. They were all wrapped in shimmering red and green. Valek pulled Charlotte to sit next to him on the fainting sofa, keeping her hand folded in his.
“I see one with my name on it!” called Lusian.
“Very well,” Sarah sighed, throwing him the little present from Dusana.
He caught it in his claws, releasing an excitable roar as he tore the paper to shreds.
“It’s a new nose ring,” Dusana admitted with a satisfied grin.
“You’re not supposed to tell me,” whined Lusian. But as he finished unwrapping, his grin grew wider and he crushed her in an enormous hug.
There were too many presents to pay attention to what everyone was given. Charlotte noticed a pair of matching black dresses for Ana and Aneta from Sarah—the latest in Gothic trends from Prague. Charlotte and Valek gifted Sarah with a brand-new grimoire, a Witch’s book of shadows.
Sarah opened it immediately, marveling at the intricate purple lettering on the front.
“Written by Baba Yaga herself,” she gasped.
“It’s limited addition,” Valek explained proudly.
“But…the pages are blank.” A little frown creased Sarah’s brow.
“You have to ask it something specific,” explained Charlotte. “I tried it myself, but it’ll only work if you’re a Witch.” Disappointment blossomed in her stomach, but Valek squeezed her hand tighter, forcing a new smile.
“Thank you both. So much,” the Witch crooned as she ran her palm across the pages. “This means everything.”
“Use it well,” said Valek.
Edwin wrapped up a bottle of the finest maple sap for Ludo, and an entire set of Fae-wing tea along with a new set of cups and saucers for Mr. Třínožka who hurrahed his appreciation for such a thoughtful present.
Dusana placed some edgy black nail polish into a small box for Charlotte, Valek gave Jorge the entire works of William Shakespeare unabridged in beautiful hard cover editions and an antique puzzle dating back to the Renaissance. The intricate, wooden thing would take Jorge all of five minutes to figure out, but it was beautiful.
At last, Valek opened his gift from Charlotte:
It had taken her weeks to make perfect, but she finally completed an enormous graphite drawing of their home and the entirety of their new family. The work was elaborate. The shading itself cost her several afternoons. The house was perfectly detailed. The trees. Everyone was featured. There wasn’t a blank spot. Drawing had always been her gift—there was just something about a blank sheet of paper.
The whole room marveled at it.
“Wow, Charlotte. What a talent!” crowed Ludo.
“B-b-brilliant,” said Edwin.
Taking it from Valek, Sarah added with wide eyes, “We must find the absolute perfect place for this.”
Bringing himself to his feet, Valek took Charlotte’s face in his hands again.
“It’s masterful. You are a sensation.” He kissed her forehead very lightly before pulling away. “Of course, I have something for you, as well.”
And suddenly everyone’s attention was on the two of them. Nerves turned in her stomach as the whole room fell quiet. Vampire energy was a lot to bear.
Valek’s smile warmed his whole face. Reaching into his pocket, he produced a velvet box, small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.
The non-mind-readers in the room gasped. The box was most assuredly ring-sized. Charlotte’s own breath turned solid in her lungs.
“No, no,” Valek chuckled, shaking his head. “Nothing like that. Lottie…” He stepped closer to her.
Her throat closed and her chest felt heavy. Maybe it wasn’t what she originally thought, but whatever it was must be something of great importance. The severity in his eyes held her.
“I want you to have this. I know…she…would want you to have it.” He pushed the small box at her and she took it in both hands.
Heart hammering, she opened it, revealing a simple golden band. Her breath hitched again. She’d seen this before.
“But… this is Andela’s,” she realized.
Valek’s smile remained, though faded into an expression more thoughtful.
“Yes.” He cleared his throat. “You and I are fated to one another. At one time, this ring was an undying symbol of devotion. Andela gave it to me before she….” He didn’t bother finishing the thought, the strength in his expression fading. “I have an idea about why she chose to give it to me. It was a promise, maybe. Once I found you after you were taken, she never wanted me to lose sight of you again. She wanted you to have it, I think. So you will always feel protected. So you will always feel loved. By her and by all of us.”
Charlotte batted a tear away from her cheek. She slipped it on her right ring finger. H
er fate-line was on her right palm, after all.
“Valek,” she breathed, admiring the way it glinted in the light. “I love it. I will never take it off. Never. Thank you.”
He brushed his thumb over her cheek. “Of course, Lottie.”
“Well, that ended nicely,” said Sarah.
“Wait, wait,” called Sasha, shaking his finger toward the tree. “There’s still one left!”
The group silenced again, all peering at the lone package hidden under the lowest branch. Sarah had thrown around so much tinsel the silver box was difficult to notice there.
“Hmm.” Sarah placed her fists on her hips. “I don’t remember wrapping that one.”
Mr. Třínožka stretched one of his long arms past Charlotte and pulled the present out from its hiding spot.
In the firelight, everyone analyzed at the simple elegance of it. Prismatic silver wrapping with faint, swirling patterns surrounded by a black ribbon. Near the bow, there was a tag made of metal. It didn’t match any of the earlier gifts at all.
“Well? Who is it addressed to?” Sasha asked.
Mr. Třínožka set the present over the knit area rug in the middle of the room. Everyone leaned in to examine it, but the one who spoke first was—
“It’s for Charlotte,” Jorge muttered ominously.
A sudden chill crept up her arms. The only sound in the room was the crackling fire and the branches scraping against the roof outside
A few eyes turned to Valek, but he only shrugged, looking bewildered. “It isn’t from me.”
“What say you, boyo?” Mr. Třínožka asked Edwin.
Usually, the ragdoll boy was good at sensing danger. At the first notion of it, he’d sputter and twitch until he eventually tuckered himself out and collapsed. But this time…
“I s-say, open it, Ch-Charlotte.” He slid the gift across the floor to her.
The attention was on her once again. Something still felt off. A chill lingered. She glanced up at Valek. There were still many reasons to be cautious. She couldn’t help but think they should have separated Aiden’s head from the rest of his body when they had the chance—just to be sure.
This weird present was mysterious to say the least, but there was no reason to believe it was sinister. Still, though, how long would she have to keep looking over her shoulder just in case?
“It’s all right.” Valek gestured toward the box.
“You’re surrounded by an entire gang of murderous beasts,” Lusian jeered. “We just overthrew an entire magical government. What could go wrong?”
Reaching first for the ribbon, she unraveled the bow, which freed the tag. It was embossed. Not silver. Something darker. Pewter? Examining it closer, she found her name scrawled in cursive. She lifted the present into her lap, noting the weight, the size, and how it shifted in the wrapping.
“It’s a book,” she whispered.
Dusana snorted. “I was the same way when I was a child. I could always tell when my nan gifted me a book.” She rolled her eyes, collapsing against Lusian’s shoulder looking bored. “At least it’s not socks.”
“But, I like books,” Charlotte said before she pulled the paper away from the sides and then the bottom.
She was right. It indeed was a book. But not just any book.
A few soft gasps resonated in the room when she discarded the paper from the thick volume bound in black leather with silver scrawl on the front and shiny red along the page edges.
* * *
THE ANATOMY OF VAMPIRES:
VOLUME TWO
* * *
It looked like a modern edition with a seal on the front cover that read: Regime-Banned Literature.
How curious…
The silence about the room grew weightier. Even the crackling in the hearth seemed to whisper at the book’s presence.
Charlotte’s fingers trembled as they hovered around its edges. She regarded Valek again. Everyone watched Valek.
His gaze hardened, but his eyes were wide. She could see his chest balloon as he inhaled deeply. His spine went rigid, his fists curling. His jaw tensed and all the sudden, he looked very, very angry.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” It was a deadly whisper directed at her.
“I-I thought you knew,” her voice cracked. Her pulse picked up.
“Knew what?” Sarah piped up, sounding worried. She was one of the only people in the room who wasn’t a mind-reader. Save for the spider and Edwin, the rest of them already knew why Valek became so upset.
Without waiting for more of an explanation, he stormed up to Charlotte and ripped the book from her grasp. She winced and recoiled.
“Who sent this to you?”
His eyes were wild as he examined the thing, flipping open the cover and tearing through the pages.
“It was a note I received months ago,” she rushed to explain, tears filling her eyes as she bolted to her feet. Her knees wobbled, all the blood draining out of her face. “When we first arrived home, someone left me a note. Someone with the initials C.D.” She tore through her memory for more details about the mysterious letter. “Why didn’t you see it in my mind?” He usually liked to listen to everything in her mind.
“I don’t know. I don’t know why,” Valek muttered, still fuming.
He squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose, the book tucked under his arm. She couldn’t imagine why he was suddenly so affected. Was it something to do with the Regime?
“Where is it?”
“Where is what?”
“The letter!” He exploded and everyone in the room flinched.
Details of what it said came back to her:
* * *
Charlotte,
Please see Volume Two.
Yours most sincerely,
~ C.D.
* * *
“There, now, Valek. No need ta get upset—” Mr. Třínožka attempted to soothe.
“I didn’t see it in her mind, either,” Jorge offered.
A tear slipped down Charlotte’s face. “You were…resting. For days,” she rushed to explain. “But the time you woke up, I’d forgotten all about it. I was so thrilled you were okay, and—”
“My apologies. Please…Lottie.” He held the top of her arms and spoke more gently. “I need to see it. You don’t understand. This could be cause to panic.”
“More Light magic trickery?” questioned Dusana.
“No, Dusana. Not this time, I’m afraid,” he said.
Charlotte couldn’t understand his reaction. Who was C.D? Did Valek know? More secrets. Her heart sank. Months ago, when they were hiding in the bowels of Francis’s townhouse, Valek promised her there would be no more secrets.
“I’m sorry,” he said, answering her thoughts. “I will explain myself in time.” He was undoubtedly tearing through her mind for an answer. “This is a potential threat to our safety. All of us. Please. Where is the note?”
Face burning horribly, she indicated the bookcase against the far wall. “The third shelf. I t-tucked it between The Tempest and my copy of Volume One. I’m…sorry. I’d forgotten about it. I was sure you heard it in my thoughts. I meant to ask you about it.”
Valek bounded up to the mahogany shelf, furiously tearing books away until he clutched the crumpled piece of parchment in his trembling fist. Sarah rushed to gather up the strewn books from the floor.
Valek visibly shook as he examined the letter in front of his nose before balling it up and chucking it, too, into the fire. The flames reacted with bright red sparks before the fire turned black as swamp bile.
“Will someone please tell me what in Goddess’s name is going on?” Sarah blanched.
“You are forbidden from touching this book, Charlotte.” Valek’s voice was a distant thunder rumble. The whites of his eyes flooded red and he blinked bloody tears away. “If I catch you reading this, God help me—”
“God help you what?” Charlotte challenged. She felt her inner fire race up her esophagus and out of he
r mouth. “What are you going to do? Punish me? I thought we were beyond that now. But I guess not, considering how you’ve been acting lately.” The last part came out sad. “I suppose there are certain things you…regret.”
Valek’s jaw muscles tensed and he glowered at her.
“You will tell me what’s going on, Valek. You will tell me the truth. You owe it to me.”
Various gazes dashed from one face to the other about the room. Lusian looked like he was rather enjoying this, collapsing back on the couch, a new glassful of blood in his hand and a lazy grin on his face.
“Don’t touch it, Charlotte. I mean it,” Valek repeated sharply. His anger was quiet again. Blue fire. “Do you understand?”
“You cannot demand anything of me, Valek. I am not a child anymore.”
What if there was something this C.D. person wanted her to know? Someone from the Light would never send her knowledge about the Dark.
Maybe this was someone trying to reach out to her. To help. Vladislov was dead, but the uprising wasn’t over yet. Meredith and the rest of the Price family was still at large. No one knew what state Aiden was in. There were others. Sympathizers. This was the world’s issue, now.
Valek was in denial.
Charlotte had been hoarding copies of the Weekly Cackle in her room…searching for any evidence—any sign of the Regime building strength again. Even the smallest sliver of a relevant headline. She could feel it in her bones, despite all the hopeful nonsense Valek liked to fill her head with: Aiden isn’t coming back.
Yeah, right.
“I will tell you what you need to know in time,” he whispered. “But for now, I need you to trust me. This is very dangerous. I am serious.”
Then, a small scarlet-colored envelope slid out from between the pages and fluttered to the floor. Charlotte glanced down at it, and then back up at Valek before dashing to the ground at once, grasping for it. He lunged as well, but she’d already gotten hold of the thing, scampering out of his reach.
Of Blood and Magic Page 7
