“So, answer my question. What are we going to do now?” Kiev said.
I fixed my eyes determinedly on my fish. I knew I couldn’t delay answering him for much longer. Of course, I’d known exactly where we’d have to head the moment I’d realized Kiev had been telling the truth about the hawks at The Cove. The safest and nearest place was The Tavern. It was also the most likely place that my crew would have headed to, assuming they had managed to escape from The Cove before the hawks took over.
I finished chewing before answering. “A small island a few hours away. The Tavern.”
“The Tavern,” he muttered. “And whose territory is that?”
“Nobody’s in particular.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was founded by a group of pirates,” I said. “They claimed the island as their own and built a wall around it. But over the years, it’s become a place of respite for all wanderers and pirates.”
“Will I be able to stay there permanently?”
“You’ll be better off there than The Cove.”
I’d already decided that I’d show him who to talk to once we arrived there in order for him to obtain permanent residency. And after that, he’d be their problem.
Just a few more hours to go.
I washed my face and led the dolphins back to their harnesses. Kiev and I resumed our seats on the boat. As we moved forward, I couldn’t deny that part of me felt guilty that I hadn’t offered to drop him at The Tavern to start with. It hadn’t been that far out of my way. And it was without question safer for him than The Cove.
Of course I knew why I hadn’t done it; I’d just wanted him out of my sight as soon as possible. I hadn’t even given myself a chance to think of any alternatives to the merfolk’s realm.
Now that the silence between us had returned, so did my embarrassment. Sitting so close to him didn’t help. I doubted that I would have asked those personal questions of him had I known our journey would be delayed like this.
I felt thankful for the cool breeze wafting through the cabin, calming my blazing cheeks.
Chapter 9: Kiev
As soon as the silhouette of The Tavern came into view, Mona slowed the boat. I got up and stepped out on deck. I scanned the area for any sign of hawks. Nothing stuck out as suspicious to me.
A high black wall surrounded the island. Lanterns were scattered at intervals around it and an orange glow emanated up into the sky from behind the walls. Faint chattering and music drifted toward us.
I walked back to the cabin and resumed my seat next to Mona.
“It’s safe,” I muttered.
She nodded and we continued ahead at full speed until the dolphins approached shallower water and slowed down. When the boat hit the sand, we both jumped out. Mona loosed the dolphins from their harnesses and, to my surprise, let them go swimming off.
“I’ve trained them well enough. They’ll stay around the area and be here when I need them again.”
I helped Mona push the boat onto the sand. Wordlessly, she started walking toward the wall. I followed her, scanning the length of the structure. We were headed toward a large oak door carved into it. On approaching it, Mona knocked three times.
“Who is it?” a gruff voice shouted out from behind the door.
“Mona,” she replied.
The door swung open. Standing in front of us was possibly the most grotesque creature I’d ever laid eyes on. His body was tall and wide, and his skin coarse like leather. Two small tusks grew out of his bottom jaw. His nose was squashed and small like a button. And one of his eyes was missing; the eye that remained was a bright orange color and bulged in its socket.
“Who’s that?” he said, peering down at me curiously.
“It’s okay. He’s with me.”
His face split into a crooked smile. “So Mona the witch finally got herself a man. About time.” He broke out into raucous laughter.
“Shut it, Ronan,” Mona snapped. “I’m just dropping him off here.”
She pushed past the creature to escape his jeers. I sped by to catch up with her.
“What is that thing?” I asked, once I was sure we were out of earshot.
“An ogre,” she muttered. “And don’t be surprised. You get all sorts here.”
We walked through a dark tunnel and up a dozen stone steps. We emerged into the borders of a town. Shabby buildings made of logs and bricks lined a wide dirt street. The place was lit with lanterns hanging from trees that gave off a warm glow.
Mona was right; an array of various creatures milled about. Vampires, werewolves and ogres were the only creatures I recognized. I tried to satisfy my curiosity about the others, but she ignored my questions, her eyes set firmly ahead as she sped forward. I couldn’t help but notice how many of them had some kind of physical impairment, be it a missing leg or arm, or some other kind of disability. I even caught sight of some in makeshift wheelchairs.
I had no idea where Mona was leading me. She moved fast and dodged through crowds as she hurried forward.
Eventually we stopped outside a large stone building. “The Blue Tavern” was inscribed on a creaking wooden sign that swung above an old oak door. When we entered, bitter smoke invaded my nostrils, enough to induce a coughing fit. The lively tune of an accordion filled my ears.
A stout female vampire stood behind the bar taking orders. Mona asked for some water. The vampire turned her round face toward me and raised her eyebrows.
“You want something?”
I looked up at the menu scrawled on some wooden boards in white chalk. The most appealing thing on there appeared to be fish blood, which said a lot about the menu.
“No.”
“Michelle, will you ask Elizabeth to come down briefly?” Mona asked. “I need to talk to her urgently about something.”
Michelle nodded and said, “I’ll check if she hasn’t gone to bed already.”
Mona thanked her and scanned the room. She walked toward the far corner of the room. We sat down at opposite ends of a creaking wood table. She took a sip of the water, her eyes on the table.
“You don’t have to pay for that?” I asked.
“Payment in these parts is different to anything you’re used to. As you’ll soon find out.”
She chugged down the glass of water in a few more gulps and left for a refill. She was gone for more than fifteen minutes and when she returned, she was accompanied by a large brown werewolf. It being night time, the wolf was in full transformation.
“Oh, hello,” the wolf said on noticing me at the table. “Who are you?” Although the wolf’s voice was gruff, I could still tell that this was a female.
“His name is Kiev,” Mona answered for me.
The wolf reached out a paw to shake mine, her beady grey eyes gazing at me. I obliged her.
“I’m Saira,” she said. “I take it that you’re Mona’s friend. Will you be joining our crew?”
“He’s not my friend,” Mona said. “I barely even know him.” She said the words without looking at me. “And no. He won’t be joining us. It’s a long story, but I just agreed to drop him off here.” She tapped her fingers on the table and craned her neck toward the direction of the bar. “I’m just waiting for Elizabeth so I can go up to bed…”
Barely had she said the words when a tall vampire wearing a long dress and an apron snaked her way around the tables and stood in front of Mona. She smiled briefly at each of us.
“Nice to see you again, Mona. How are you?”
“Fine, thanks. I’m actually planning to stay the night. Do you have an extra guest room available?”
“I’m sure we can arrange for that.” Elizabeth pulled out a small ledger from her apron pocket and flipped through it. “Room forty is available. You can get the keys from Michelle behind the bar. Anything else you wanted?”
“Yes.” Mona gestured toward my direction. “This vampire here… his name is Kiev Novalic. He wants to become a resident. I think you’re the best person fo
r him to speak to?”
Elizabeth looked me over before nodding her head. “Yes,” she said. “I can assist with that.”
“Good!” Mona sighed. She finished the rest of her second glass of water and stood up. “I’m going up to my room now.”
“My room isn’t far from yours,” Saira said.
Mona didn’t so much as glance at me as she nodded and left with the wolf. Elizabeth took a seat next to me and eyed me cautiously once again.
“Well,” she said. “First of all I suppose I should welcome you to The Tavern, Kiev. Did Mona brief you at all on how things work here? Or should I start at the beginning?”
“You’d better start at the beginning.”
“Very well.” She cleared her throat and settled down into a more comfortable position in her chair. “I first need you to answer some questions about yourself. Who are you, where have you come from, and why do you want to stay here?”
Who am I?
That question again.
Who am I… or who do I want to be?
I settled for the same answer I’d given Mona. “I escaped from Aviary where I was being held hostage. I simply seek shelter, a place I can live without my life being at risk.”
“Very well,” Elizabeth said, peering at me from across the table. “Sounds simple enough. If you want to live here, you’ll have to contribute. You’ll have to take part in daily service, which can range from manning the gates, to fetching food, to helping with construction projects… Are you willing to be part of a community?”
“Yes,” I said without thinking. “I’ll do whatever it takes to be accepted here.”
The truth was, absolutely anything sounded better than my previous existence. I really was willing to do whatever was required to give myself a chance to breathe and experience my own thoughts.
“That’s what we like to hear.” Elizabeth smiled. “Well, I suggest you get some rest now and I’ll talk with you more about the details of your service tomorrow. I’ll also go over the rules you must obey if you are to live here without getting into trouble. I’m too exhausted to go through all of that with you now. I’ve had a long day.” She closed her ledger. “For tonight, we’ll lodge you in one of the pub’s guest rooms. But tomorrow, we’ll move you to the vampires’ quarters, which is much better suited to your needs.”
She got up and led me over to the bar. “Hand me the key to room fifty-three please, Michelle. Oh, and is there a spare parasol somewhere behind the counter?”
Michelle handed her a key and a folded umbrella made of straw. We proceeded through a back door and up a winding staircase. We walked along several dim, carpeted corridors until we reached a small, tidy room that contained nothing but a single bed and a narrow window.
“Thank you,” I said. “I think I’ll take a walk before resting.”
“As you wish.” She handed me the umbrella. “Keep this for walking around in the daytime. It’ll save you getting burned to a crisp.”
With that, she left the room and shut the door behind her. I looked out of the window. The building wasn’t high enough to allow a view of the sea. All I could see were large trees.
I left the room and headed downstairs. The pub was much emptier now, and as I stepped outside, so were the streets. I tried to remember where the door was that Ronan had let us through. I ended up asking a couple of vampires who were still out late. They soon pointed me in the right direction. When I reached the door, Ronan was slumped down in a chair sleeping, an empty bottle of rum on his lap.
Unwilling to wake him, I unlatched the door myself and stepped out, closing it behind me as silently as possible.
The fresh sea air blew against my face and I breathed in deeply. I could get used to living in a place like this. There were many people, but I had gotten the impression from Mona that not many were full-time residents. That would make it easier to blend in with the crowds. Notorious as I was back in the human realm, most vampires here wouldn’t know me. Hopefully this isn’t just my wishful thinking.
As I walked further along the beach, a bonfire blazed in the distance. A group of vampires sat around it, chatting and drinking. As I drew nearer, one of them shouted out.
“Who goes there?”
“Uh… a vampire,” I called back.
“Yes, I can see that! What’s your name?”
I paused for a moment before responding.
“Kiev.”
A blond vampire with grey eyes got up and staggered toward me, a half-finished bottle of rum in one hand. He grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me toward the group.
“Come join us!” he said with a grin.
Pulling away from him would have looked awkward, so I acquiesced. I sat down on the sand near the edge of the circle.
“Do you want some, Kiev?” the vampire nearest to me asked. He had a slight European accent. I looked up to see a dark-haired man—probably not much older than me—with warm brown eyes holding up a jug of rum.
I didn’t trust myself in a sober state, let alone a state of intoxication.
“I don’t drink,” I said.
“Suit yourself.” He smiled at me, topping up his own cup.
When I looked at him more closely, something about his appearance made my breath hitch. His dark features and warm brown eyes were eerily familiar.
“You’re new here, aren’t you?” His expression was that of mild curiosity.
“Yes.”
“How are you liking it?”
“So far, it seems to be a welcoming place.”
“That it is,” he said. “Providing you follow the rules and don’t push any boundaries, The Tavern is a safe place. One of the safest you’ll find in these parts.” He paused to take another sip from his cup. “What brings you here anyway?”
I repeated the same lie I’d told Mona and Elizabeth. I kept my explanation as brief as possible without sounding rude.
“Makes sense why you’d want to come here after that. Makes sense…” He nodded his head, his eyes glazing over a little. “I left the human realm a few centuries ago. I was taken to Cruor, the Elders’ realm. Managed to escape during a raid by the hawks. Then Aviary eventually decided I wasn’t useful to them. They let me go, and I’ve been a pirate ever since… I’m Matteo, by the way. Matteo Borgia. Pleased to meet you.”
Borgia.
No.
It can’t be.
He held out his hand. I shook it, fighting to conceal the shock that was now coursing through my body.
“Are you alone here, or with company?” he asked.
“Alone.” My stomach writhed as I spoke. “Actually, I’m feeling exhausted from my journey. I’m going to head off.”
“Of course.” He patted me on the shoulder. “I’ll be leaving the island soon, but I wish you the best of luck with everything.”
I stood up and walked back toward the gate. As the group’s chattering and laughter faded away in the distance, my mind still felt frozen with shock. I racked my brain for any indication of a relative named Matteo throughout the time I had known Natalie. She had once mentioned an older brother, but I didn’t recall her ever telling me his name. If his surname and appearance were not some wild coincidence, and Matteo was indeed Natalie’s brother, at least I could take comfort in one thing: he didn’t know who I was. Which meant that there was a possibility he didn’t even know that Natalie was dead.
I smiled bitterly. I had been hoping that this place would provide a fresh start. Seeing Matteo was like a splash of cold water. It instilled a chilling doubt in me that perhaps I never would escape the shadows of my past.
Still, as I reached my room and settled on the bed, I tried to convince myself that this was just a fluke. Matteo would be gone soon, and with him, the last painful reminder of the man I no longer wanted to be. I’d meet Elizabeth early the next morning and she’d assign me work.
Despite the shock of seeing Matteo, all in all, The Tavern still felt like the best option I had for recovery: a place where nobod
y knew who I was beneath the façade.
Chapter 10: Kiev
I woke to my skin stinging. I’d forgotten to shut the curtains the night before. The early morning sun’s rays had just begun to stream into my room. I stood up and closed the curtains.
I was hungry again. I decided to go down to the bar to see if anyone could serve me breakfast. Even fish blood seemed tempting at that moment. I exited my room and locked the door behind me. I walked along the corridor and down the winding steps, but instead of proceeding directly to the ground floor, I stopped when I saw the sign for the fourth floor.
Room forty.
I could see it from where I was standing. I left the staircase and walked toward the room. The door was ajar. I knocked twice.
“Witch?”
No reply.
I pushed the door open. The room was empty, the bed sheets folded. There was no sign of any of her belongings. I wondered where she might have gone. But it was just as well. I doubted that I would have left the room without claiming at least a few gulps of her blood had she been there. And I didn’t know how Elizabeth would have felt about that.
I pulled the door closed and continued down the staircase. Michelle was already behind the bar and looked up to greet me when I entered.
“Some eel blood,” I said, even as I grimaced. “And do you know if Elizabeth is awake yet? I’m supposed to be meeting with her this morning.”
“She should be down in less than an hour.”
Michelle handed me a glass of blood and I made my way over to a table in the far corner of the room. I gingerly drank the blood and gazed around the empty pub. It appeared quite different now without the smoke and flickering lanterns. Tapestries made of snakeskin adorned the dark stone walls and skeletons of predatory fish hung from the low ceiling.
I looked back toward Michelle, sweeping the floors behind the counter.
“How did this place come to be?” I asked. Mona had never given me a satisfying explanation.
Michelle stopped sweeping and leant her large elbows on the counter.
“Well, that’s rather a long story. But seeing as I’m down here early, I guess I can spare a few minutes to fill you in on some history.”