Lord of the Night

by Robin T. Popp

  Michael’s gaze turned cold and empty. “If you keep hitting them like that, then there won’t be anything left for me to kill.” He turned his attention back to Kacie’s manacles. “Now, can you get me the key?”

  “Of course, but I really think you should leave her chained.”

  Michael held out his hand and glared at Ty. “The key. Now.”

  Kacie kept an eye on both of them, wondering if she’d have a chance to attack once she was free. The problem was that there were two of them and her father was unconscious. She couldn’t leave him behind.

  Ty handed the key to Michael, who used it to unlock one of the manacles around her wrist. As it came off, he handed her the key and stepped beyond her reach. “Slowly, unlock the other one.”

  She didn’t have a choice. There was no way to fight them if she was still chained to the wall.

  As soon as she was free, she faced Michael again, her expression openly defying him, but he only smiled.

  Then she heard the sound of running footsteps and she turned, along with the two vampires, to see Erik appear in the entryway.

  “Michael!” Erik shouted, running forward and then coming to a stop just inside the dungeon. “Don’t do this.”

  In a burst of speed too fast to follow, Michael was behind her, holding her captive much the same way Carrington had held her father earlier.

  “It’s a trap,” she shouted before Michael jerked her to silence.

  “Have you come to say good-bye?” Michael sneered.

  “Let her go, Michael,” Erik said, his voice carefully controlled. “Let them both go and I’ll stay in their place.”

  “Why would I do that?” Michael asked. “She’s the one who killed Sedrick.”

  “I’m offering myself in trade,” Erik said. “I’m the one who failed. I’m the one who didn’t keep an eye on the family and allowed Sedrick to be killed.”

  “True,” Michael agreed. “Ty, undo the old man’s chains.”

  Kacie couldn’t see the other vampire’s face, but she heard the shock in his voice. “Michael, you can’t be serious. You’re not actually thinking of trading them for him, are you?”

  “Just do as I say, Ty,” Michael ordered, snatching the key from Kacie’s hand and tossing it to his brother.

  Kacie tried to catch Erik’s eye, needing to know that he had a better plan than trading his life for theirs. Try as she might, though, he wouldn’t look at her. His attention was focused on making sure Ty actually unlocked the manacles on her father’s wrists.

  She heard the clank of metal against the rock floor as first one and then the other manacle came off.

  Erik walked slowly forward.

  “Ty, help Gerard to his feet,” Michael ordered.

  Reluctantly it seemed, Ty complied. A second later, he appeared in her line of vision, supporting her father.

  “Take him,” Michael told her.

  Michael was still holding her, so she accepted her father’s weight as best she could, grateful she was a changeling. As soon as she did, she was surprised to feel Michael loosen his grip. Was he really going to let her go?

  She searched Erik’s face, wondering what he expected her to do. There was no way she was leaving him behind and yet, she had to save her father.

  The wheels of her mind started turning as she tried to think of a plan.

  “Okay,” Michael said, still not releasing her entirely. “They’re both free. It’s time for you to keep your end of it.”

  Erik nodded and walked forward. When he reached her, he cupped her face between his hands and peered deep into her eyes. “I want you to leave and don’t stop until you get to the castle. Lock the doors and wait for morning.”

  “Not without you,” she whispered, unable to keep the catch from her voice. She didn’t want this to be the last time she saw him.

  “I have to know that you’re safe,” he responded.

  “Enough,” Michael said, cutting off the rest of what they might have said. “Put on the manacle, Erik. I can’t have you changing your mind as soon as she walks out of here.”

  Kacie watched as Erik obediently went to the wall, picked up a manacle, and snapped it around his wrist. Then Michael took the key from Ty and locked the manacle in place. Then, to her utter amazement, he gave her a small shove toward the archway. “Go, before I change my mind.”

  Kacie didn’t know what else to do. She knew she had to get her father out of there, but she vowed to come back.

  Starting for the entrance, she had only taken a couple of steps when the sound of slow applause caused her to stop and look back.

  “Bravo! Bravo!” Ty shouted, looking at all of them, but Michael in particular. “I haven’t seen a performance like that in years.” His tone was heavily laden with sarcasm. “But please. How gullible do you think I am?”

  Confused by what was happening, Kacie looked first at Ty, then at Michael and finally at Erik. When she saw the look on his face, she finally understood. He and Michael were still reconciled. This had been their rescue attempt. And it had failed.

  “What gave me away?” Michael asked, sounding grim.

  Kacie watched Ty pretend to give the question some thought.

  “I’d have to say it was when you set your brother’s supposed murderer free and agreed to kill your best friend in her place.”

  Chapter 16

  Ty shook his head as he stared at them. “It was that last phone call, wasn’t it? That’s what gave me away.”

  “Your plan might have worked,” Michael agreed, “if Erik and I hadn’t already reconciled.”

  Ty laughed. “My plan might have worked? Dear brother, maybe you should take a look around. Do you really think you stand a chance against us?”

  “I think we stand a better chance than you think,” Erik said, pulling his hand free of the manacle that had been around his wrist. The look of surprise on Ty’s face would have been more satisfying if he hadn’t then laughed.

  “Very nice sleight of hand, Michael. Pretending to lock Erik in chains. Are you ready for my next trick? Carrington,” he said loudly. “Won’t you join us? And bring our friends.”

  Carrington came into the room, a smug expression on his face. He was followed by thirty vampires, ten of whom were wearing collars and leashes, like dogs, and were restrained only by the combined efforts of the two vampires holding them. Their eyes shone with a wild red light and their faces were twisted as they snarled and pulled against their handlers.

  “These poor creatures are progeny that we converted months ago.” He gestured to the leashed primes. “They’ve completely lost their capacity for rational thought. Now, all they’re interested in is feeding. Of course, we don’t let them feed often, so they’re ravenous.”

  There was a sudden blur of movement as the handlers released the progeny, who rushed forward. One creature fixated on Kacie. Still holding her father, she couldn’t move out of the way fast enough. She waited to feel the creature’s talons ripping her flesh and his teeth sinking into her neck, then Erik was there, swinging his fist. The creature’s head snapped to the side, but even as it went down another attacked.

  “Stay behind me,” Erik told her, his attention on the progeny. Not far off, Michael was fighting a losing battle.

  Kacie wanted so badly to lay her father down and help, but knew the moment she did, he’d be vulnerable to attack while her back was turned. She couldn’t risk that.

  A guttural cry drew her attention and she watched as Michael disappeared beneath a pile of the creatures. Erik dived into the melee to help.

  Kacie gave a small cry when he was also dragged under as she stood by watching helplessly.

  “Call them off,” Ty ordered. Carrington issued commands in a language she didn’t understand and the handlers surged forward, deftly catching hold of the collars and bringing the progeny to heel.

  Michael and Erik lay on the floor, bloody scratches covering their bodies. They weren’t moving and Kacie feared the worst.


  Keeping an eye on the handlers to make sure they didn’t release their charges, she eased her father to the floor and hurried to Erik’s side.

  “Erik?” She smoothed the hair from his face and gingerly laid her hand on his chest, waiting to feel the slow rise and fall that would tell her he was still alive. When it came, she felt like she could breathe again herself.

  “Get them up,” Ty ordered, coming over to her. Carrington clapped his hands and several more vampires walked into the room. Kacie didn’t know what Ty had planned, but she knew she couldn’t let him hurt Erik any more. She prepared to defend his life with hers and turned to keep the approaching vampires in sight.

  “Get away from him!” Ty shouted, catching her by surprise. He grabbed her hair and jerked her up. She stumbled to her feet, but didn’t have time to collect herself before he shoved her against the wall so hard she saw stars.

  Her field of vision narrowed and a ringing started in her ears. She felt as if she were on the verge of passing out. When a pair of hands hauled her up, she tried to hit her captor, but failed. Within minutes, she’d been manacled to the wall again.

  By the time her head cleared, she had company. Erik had been manacled to her left and Michael and her father had been manacled to her right. All three had regained consciousness and were straining against their bonds.

  “I’m sorry it has to end this way,” Ty said, not sounding the least bit sorry.

  “At least tell us why,” Michael bit out. Then he gasped. “You killed Sedrick, didn’t you?”

  “I hadn’t planned to,” Ty admitted. “I’m afraid he was in the right place at the wrong time. He ran into me in town while I was enjoying a particularly tasty little dish. I’m afraid he wasn’t happy with me for breaking the pact and insisted I come back to the lair for my punishment.” He raised his hands to make quotation marks in the air as he said that last phrase. “That’s when we saw that Kacie was back in town. Since Erik usually tells us when she’s coming back—so we can avoid her—we figured he didn’t know.”

  Kacie glanced at Erik and Michael to see how they were taking Ty’s revelation. Both of their faces were blank masks, revealing no emotion.

  “When we spotted Kacie, she was fighting a progeny,” Ty continued. “Sedrick reminded me of the vow Erik had made to protect Kacie and said in his absence, we should help. We pulled our swords and started to cross the street. That’s when inspiration struck me.” He chuckled. “Or rather, it struck Sedrick.” He looked at Michael. “If it’s any consolation, brother, Sedrick never even knew what happened. When the deed was done, I looked up to see if Kacie had seen or heard anything, but she had disappeared and the progeny she’d been fighting lay dead. The little silver knife was lying nearby; I don’t think she knew she’d lost it. I saw an opportunity to turn you against one another and took it. The rest you can probably guess. I arranged for it to look like Kacie had killed Sedrick and then I disposed of the other body.”

  “But why?” Erik asked.

  “Because when you and Sedrick went on your big hunt to find the creature that would make you immortal, you invited me to go along without bothering to tell me why. I was so excited just to be included, I didn’t stop to question you.” He paused to catch his breath. “I was seventeen! Too old to be a child and too young to be a man. Did you really think I’d want to be trapped in this body for all eternity? Talk about torture. Give that a try.” His laugh sounded crazed. “Four hundred years later, I’m still being treated like a kid. Really, when we’re all over four hundred years old, does the eight years between us really make that much of a difference?” He paused and looked around the room like he was trying to steady his emotions. “You stole my chance to be a man—an equal. Hell, I didn’t even get an ossuary in the family mausoleum. That’s why.”

  “But you liked Sedrick,” Michael pointed out, sounding both exasperated and deflated.

  “I did,” Ty agreed. “But when he started scolding me like I was still a kid—I’m afraid I just snapped.”

  “The minute you killed him, you had to know that Erik and I would eventually learn the truth and come after you,” Michael told him quietly.

  “Yes, I did,” Ty agreed. “But really”—he gestured to the chains imprisoning them—“you’ll forgive me if I don’t consider you much of a threat.”

  “Nice room you have here,” Erik commented as if they were sitting around taking tea instead of standing in an underground chamber chained to the wall. Ty had walked out of the room an hour ago and there’d been no sight or sound of him since. Though many of Erik’s wounds still oozed blood, that wasn’t his primary concern. He rattled the chains and pulled, testing their strength. “Is this early Spanish Inquisition? Or maybe it’s French Revolution. I’m a little fuzzy on my history of manacles and chains in home décor.”

  “Damn it,” Michael swore. “I knew I should have gotten rid of this shit.”

  “Why didn’t you?” Erik asked.

  “Because Ty thought they were an important part of our history—at least, that’s the argument he used at the time.”

  “So, how old are they?” Erik asked, focusing on that critical bit of information.

  “A couple hundred years, at least,” Michael said. “Sedrick and I brought them over before the old estate was sold back in the 1720s. Why?”

  “Because I’m hoping we can pull them out of the wall.” He clenched his hands into fists and extended his arms as far in front of him as the chains would permit, straining against them. After several minutes, he stopped to catch his breath. The bolts hadn’t even budged.

  “Dad?” Kacie called out, catching Erik’s attention. He leaned forward to see Gerard, who looked decidedly worse for wear. He wasn’t a young man anymore, and he was human, which made him the most vulnerable of the four.

  Erik saw the older man blink as he looked around and managed to catch his eye. “How are you doing?”

  “Is Kacie . . . ?” Gerard tried to ask.

  “I’m fine, Dad,” she hurried to assure him. “I’m worried about you.”

  “My fault,” he mumbled.

  “What is?” Erik asked.

  “This. If I’d been more careful coming home, they might not have caught me by surprise—”

  “It’s not your fault,” Michael told him. “Ty would have found another way to lure us here. Isn’t that right, Ty?”

  “Indeed,” Ty said, coming through the archway and into the room. “Sooner or later, an opportunity would have presented itself and, as I’ve told you, I’ve learned to be very patient.”

  “Let’s go, Ty,” Carrington shouted, walking into the room carrying a small device in his hands. He was followed by several other vampires walking in pairs, each couple carrying an unconscious body between them. “Put them there,” he ordered, gesturing to the far wall.

  “What’s this?” Michael asked.

  Ty turned to him and smiled. “This is good-bye, brother. Carrington and I have decided to move the lair and I really can’t afford to leave you and Erik alive to try and stop us, so we’ve arranged a proper send-off for you.” He pointed to the ten male bodies on the floor. “These unfortunates were killed the other night. That means, of course, that they’ll be rising sometime tonight. When they do, your blood will be the first thing they sense. The four of you should provide a tasty meal for them. You and Erik will naturally take a little longer to die, simply because”—he smiled—“you’re already dead. The process, according to our earlier experiments, should take several days.”

  Erik listened to the plan with a new appreciation for how much Ty really hated them.

  “And just to make sure you don’t escape,” Carrington added, holding up the small device, “we’re going to seal the entrance to the lair.” He set the device down and Erik could see red numbers, frozen at 15:00, on its face.

  “You planted a bomb?”

  “Don’t worry,” Ty assured him. “The explosion is small enough that you won’t be touched here in this room. J
ust the main entrance will be affected. I want these crazed creatures to be able to feed off you for a long, long time.”

  “You bastard,” Michael swore.

  Ty shot him an irritated look. “Yes, I think we’ve already established that.” He turned to Carrington. “Is it set?”

  “I still say we should put the bomb in here,” Carrington grumbled.

  “No,” Ty said quickly. When he looked at Michael, Erik thought he caught a flicker of regret in his expression, but it was quickly masked. “The entrance to the lair will be good enough.”

  “It’s set then,” Carrington assured him.

  “Then we should be off,” Ty said.

  “Ty, it’s not too late to change your mind,” Erik told him. “You can still put an end to this.”

  “That’s exactly what I’m doing, Erik.” He looked at Kacie. “It was nothing personal. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.” He turned and headed for the arch, but stopped when Carrington walked over to Kacie. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m not leaving without her,” Carrington said, pulling a key from his pocket. “She and I have unfinished business.”

  “Leave her here,” Ty argued. “She’ll just slow us down.”

  “She’s not going to be a problem,” Carrington growled. When he turned, he backhanded Kacie so hard that her head snapped around and slammed against the wall of the cave.

  Impotent rage coursed through Erik as he watched Kacie collapse. Only the chains holding her kept her from hitting the ground. “I’m going to kill you, Carrington,” he shouted.

  Carrington shot him a sideways glance and smiled. “Is that right?”

  “Don’t touch her.”

  He started unlocking the cuffs around her wrists, laughing. “Oh, I’m going to do a lot more than touch her.”

  “Leave her here,” Ty commanded, striding forward. “Leave her here or you can stay with them.”

  Carrington turned and Erik saw a look of irritation cross his face. “Careful, Ty. I put up with your orders because they served my purpose. Don’t push me.”