The Key to Erebus (The French Vampire Legend. Book 1)
Chapter 3
By the time it was dark I had worked myself up to a frenzy of anticipation. I wasn’t sure which emotion was foremost as I was scared half to death, but I couldn’t deny I was incredibly excited too. All the amazing creatures that would be gathering together tonight in one place, things I had believed lived only in legends and faery tales, were actually real. I figured I could quite happily go a lifetime without meeting a ghoul, but I had to admit to feeling a terrified fascination with the idea of seeing a real vampire.
Gran had picked out my most conservative and boring stuff to wear and given me an old, heavy coat which reached nearly to my ankles and a thick black shawl which she had wrapped over my hair and around most of my face. This charming ensemble made me look like a pile of old clothes destined for a charity shop, but when I’d said as much she had snapped back that that was entirely the point.
As we left the cottage Gran had given me a powerful torch and I used it to pick our way through the orchard. It was tricky walking through the low branches and over the rough ground at night but at least there was a bright full moon to help us.
I was worried about Gran getting up to the caves, but she told me not to fret about her and sounded irritable. In the end it was me who needed help when I got the shawl snagged in a bramble just as we reached the edge of the woods, where we were apparently supposed to meet up with Felix.
As I was waiting for Gran to untangle me, something silky smooth bumped against my hand and a warm, sandpaper tongue licked the ends of my fingers. I nearly leaped out of my skin and screamed at the top of my lungs, until Gran grabbed hold of me and gave me a violent shake.
“Sssh!” she hissed, “it’s only Felix.”
I looked around, wondering what the hell he thought he was playing at - licking me, for God’s sake - when the torchlight illuminated a sleek, black panther that was sitting meekly beside Gran. I could swear it was grinning.
“Bloody hell!” I gasped, as I remembered Gran had said he was a shape-shifter. The panther raised his head and made a low growling noise. “Er, hi, Felix.” I gave a half-hearted wave. I was really going to have to get better at this. He got up and sprang with incredible grace onto a big granite boulder and roared, clawing at thin air with one massive paw.
We started to climb and I watched in awe as Gran steadily progressed up the hillside. It was hard going though, wearing the big coat and shawl and I tripped over the hem as I scrambled up the last rock and smacked my knee hard. Cursing under my breath I yanked the coat aside and pulled myself up. Felix of course was waiting for us at the top and to my surprise, so was Gran. She smiled at me smugly as we went into the first small entrance to the cave.
The corridor I had walked though earlier was now lit up with flaming torches and our shadows made mad shapes flicker on the rough walls. I could hear voices now and my heart began hammering as the reality of what was happening really struck me. It was too late to back out now though and we entered the main room of the caves.
At first I was disappointed. I glanced around the room and saw nothing that seemed especially out of the ordinary. Alright, a group of people meeting at night in a cave wasn’t exactly normal, but neither did I see unicorns or winged faeries flying around.
Reina saw us come in and walked over to greet us. She was dressed extravagantly once again, and I wondered how the hell she’d got here in those killer heels. Even barefoot she’d have been a good head taller than me, but now she made me feel small and very insignificant.
She glanced at me curiously, making me feel even more like a walking bin bag and then turned her back on me and began talking in hushed tones with Gran. I used her impressive frame as a kind of camouflage, clearly no one was going to be looking at me when she was there, and peered around her back to get a better look at the room.
A massive fire was blazing in the middle of the vast opening and I looked at the group of people who were closest to us on my right. I realised, with a sinking feeling, that these were the ghouls. In actual fact, they didn’t look quite as gruesome as I had feared they might, though certainly not the picture of health. I wondered if they’d picked up a ‘new outfit’ for the occasion. I pushed the thought aside as my stomach gave a lurch in protest. This wasn’t helped when I noticed a faint but nasty smell coming from their general direction. I swallowed hard and decided to focus on the group next to them. Felix was among them. He had changed back to his human form now and was dressed in tailored trousers and an expensive looking shirt. I wondered how he’d brought the clothes in his panther form.
He was approached by a lovely little blonde with beautiful rosy cheeks who offered him something from a small red tin. He rewarded her with a flash of his dazzling smile and took what looked like a chocolate from the container.
“Wait, rosy cheeks, chocolate - oh right, Light Fae!”
The faerie returned to her companions looking very pleased and slightly dazed. I was glad it wasn’t just me he had that effect on.
Arranged in a circle round the fire were a dozen ornate chairs. They were massive, like ancient thrones and carved in a heavy dark wood. Each one seemed to have a different design on the back, which I guessed was significant to the owner. I assumed these were for the council leaders of each group to take their place.
Most of the council that had gathered at the meeting were standing around in groups talking animatedly and waiting for things to get going. But at the far end of the room I noticed one man had picked up one of the large wooden chairs and moved it to lean back against the wall of the cave.
He looked utterly bored, and was lounging with his long legs stretched out in front of him. I peeked further out from behind Reina to get a better look and felt something stir in my chest.
Even from a distance I could tell he was incredibly good-looking, not pretty like Felix, but more ruggedly handsome and very powerfully built. His hair was on the long side and fairly scruffy, light blond strands fell across his face and over his eyes, with dirty blond tendrils brushing against the base of his neck. He was wearing a pair of ragged jeans that were torn at the hem, and a plain black t-shirt that displayed smooth, muscular arms that were folded across his chest. There was nothing elaborate or adorned about him. He wasn’t wearing expensive jewellery like Reina, or fancy clothes like Felix. So I assumed he wasn’t a Nagual. What then?
I felt the almost overwhelming desire to know more about him and moved from behind Reina and edged along the back of the cave, keeping my head down and out of sight, staying behind the crowd until I could get a better view.
As I was casting my mind over the list of creatures Gran had told me about before we left the cottage, he shifted position and lifted his head. He stared across the cave and looked directly at me so I could finally see his eyes, which even from this distance were a piercing, cobalt blue that glittered in the firelight. There was something entrancing about them, then a flash of something dark… Oh crap. Vampire!
Despite the heat in the caves I felt chilled and darted back out of sight behind a large group, hoping his attention would turn elsewhere. My breathing had turned ragged and laboured from the shock and I closed my eyes for a moment to steady myself. I realised I could feel a tremor in the air, like it had been electrically charged. Waves of energy washed around me. I caught my breath and held it, as I realised he was the source of the power. My skin prickled and with a crawling feeling I realised I'd felt this sensation before. The day I'd arrived in France the taxi that had taken me to Gran's had detoured off the road into the woods. It was dark and I was alone and I'd been sure I was about to become a sensational headline in the next weeks papers. Only the prickling feeling had been there too, and moments later the driver, looking white as a sheet had apologised profusely, claiming engine trouble and taken me straight to Gran.
I frowned, perplexed and after a few moments the feeling subsided. I chanced a look in his direction once more. Behind him stood a tall dark haired man, also extremely handsome and looking at m
e with an intensity that made my skin itch. But it was the bored blonde male who fascinated me and my eyes returned to him like they had no choice, only to see him in conversation with a stunning young woman. She looked older than me, twenty-five maybe, and was wearing black leggings and boots with a very short denim skirt and a cropped jumper which showed off a tiny waist. She had draped herself over the side of the chair and was whispering to the man and flicking her blonde hair around artfully, fully aware of the picture she was making. I decided I hated her.
I turned to walk back to Gran, feeling unreasonably irritated, and came face to face with Felix.
“That’s Amelia.” He nodded in the blonde’s direction. “She’s quite something, isn’t she?”
“She’s certainly very beautiful.” I felt my irritation increase with the admission.
“Hmm, I find she’s not to my taste. I prefer something rather more … warm-blooded.” He smiled and brushed his finger gently down my cheek and I felt my skin burn in response. Combined with the woolly shawl and the flush in my cheeks I must have presented quite a picture of my own. I imagined it didn’t compare favourably with Amelia.
“Who’s the guy?” I tried not to sound too interested.
“Oh him.” Felix grimaced. “That’s Corvus. He’s the Master of the vampires.”
“The Master?” I glanced back at him and looked quickly away as something in my stomach fluttered. “He must be pretty old then I guess?”
Felix frowned at the expression in my eyes and looked over at Corvus himself, scowling harder and snorting in disgust. “Yeah, he’s practically a fossil.”
I raised my eyebrows at Felix, surprised at the sarky remark.
“So if he's the Master, does that mean he’s head vampire or something?”
Felix pouted and shrugged as though it was of little interest to him either way. “Yes, I suppose it does. Nobody messes with Corvus unless they want to wind up dead, so stay away from him, he’s dangerous.” He sounded snappy and aggravated now but he was just repeating what Gran had said so I figured he was just worried for me.
“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.” I grinned and walked with him over to Gran.
Despite all the warnings I couldn't help myself and glanced back at Corvus once more. He had resumed his previous position and was staring into the fire. The flames cast terrible shadows across the strong lines of his face, making his eyes look haunted and full of pain. I felt a jolt of sorrow and something else I couldn’t identify deep in my heart, fear perhaps. I shuddered as a strange, desperate feeling settled over me and pulled the shawl further over my head. I reminded myself of Gran's warning and made myself look away, following Felix to where Gran was taking her place with the other council members.
A small, neat-looking French man with white hair and a trim white beard called the council to order. He waffled on for some time, obviously following the order of ceremony which was usual at these events. I let his words wash over me, finding it hard to follow his rather flowery French, and instead looked at the heads of the council.
Gran was sitting next to one of the ghouls, who caught my eye and winked at me. I tried to smile back at him as he seemed friendly, but I was afraid it was more of a grimace. The heat in the cave was intensifying and the smell of the ghouls was getting stronger. I felt my eyes drawn unwillingly back to Corvus. The flames dancing between us seemed suddenly threatening, like some premonition of disaster and my heart began to thud.
I felt a bead of sweat trickle between my shoulder blades and tried to loosen the shawl a little to allow some air around my neck. I could feel my damp hair sticking to me and the scratchy wool of the shawl was driving me mad.
On Gran’s other side was Reina, who had crossed her long elegant legs, I wondered how she had the nerve to sit down in a skirt that short. Not that she appeared to be the shy and retiring type.
Everyone looked up at a commotion which had begun at the entrance to the cave and the whole of the cave's attention was taken by a gorgeous woman. She had long, auburn hair that seemed to have a strange sheen to it like liquid gold. Moving slowly and purposefully toward the council circle she took up position in one of the two remaining chairs. I gasped as she turned around as she had a pair of large black leathery wings on her back.
Felix grinned at my expression and whispered to me. “Celeste always likes to make an entrance. She’s a siren.”
Celeste had arranged herself in the chair and was staring at Corvus with an intense expression that could only be described as hungry. I watched with interest as Corvus kept up his position of staring darkly at the fire and steadfastly ignored all her flirtatious attempts to gain his attention. I grinned smugly as her every attempt was met with cool distaste and then wondered what the hell I was playing at. I tried to focus on something else to keep my attention from wandering back him.
“Who’s the last chair for?” I indicated a vacant space next to Celeste.
“Garou. He used to speak for the wolves but he disappeared years ago. Everyone says he's dead. There are hardly any wolf shifters anymore..”
I raised my eyebrows in question and he continued.
“Those that remain tend to keep to their wolf form, they don't mix with the human world at all and avoid all but their own kind. They never had much interest in the council to begin with.”
I looked around, fascinated and overwhelmed by all the information. “What about the Fae? I've seen the Light Fae, what about Dark Fae and the Elves?”
He shook his head. “The gates to the Fae Lands are out of bounds, they're not supposed to cross over at all but some still do of course. The Light Fae though.” He nodded at the pretty fairy I'd noticed earlier. “Their King, Auberren, he's never liked the gates being closed, you get all sorts of trade coming from that Kingdom.”
“Like?” I asked, my curiosity peeked.
He shrugged. “Drugs, slaves, weapons.”
I looked back at the pretty fairy with new eyes and frowned but at last the speaker appeared to have arrived at the point of the meeting and had begun to discuss the murder of the keeper.
Suddenly the pretty blonde vampire Felix had called Amelia, hissed and moved with incredible speed so that she was right up in Reina’s face, fangs bared and hands reaching for her neck.
“What did you say, worm?” she snarled, her grip tightening around Reina’s throat. Before anyone could even react there was a blur of movement and Corvus pulled Amelia from the Nagual and threw her to the floor.
A deathly hush fell on the room. Corvus spoke to the quivering girl, now lying in the dirt. His voice was quiet but seemed to burn into my mind, there was no doubt that everyone had heard him.
“If you cannot control yourself you will no longer be welcome at the council meetings, Amelia.” He sounded seductive and deadly at the same time and she cowered at his feet like a dog.
“But, Corvus, she said it was a vampire that killed the keeper.” She kept her eyes on the floor, her voice quavering as she spoke.
Corvus stared down at her before turning to face Reina, who flinched under the weight of his cold blue gaze.
“We have no idea who is responsible for these murders,” he said, watching her steadily, “so I would prefer if you refrained from accusing us so quickly, Reina.”
The air around him seemed almost to blur with the power he radiated. Reina nodded, looking more than a little shaken and sat down without a word.
Corvus turned and dragged Amelia to her feet and returned her to her place outside the circle, silently resuming his chair. Everyone watched him, it was impossible not to. We were all trapped in the cave with a beautiful monster, moving with the deadly grace of the predator that he was, the icy blue of his eyes travelling over each council member in turn.
“I do have some information on that matter for the council however,” he continued as though nothing untoward had happened.
The small white haired man gestured for Corvus to continue. He hadn’t moved
an inch during the interruption.
Corvus frowned, drawing his thick blond brows together, which only served to make him look more devilish in the firelight.
“We believe someone has created a fledgling vampire without the consent of the Senate.”
A ripple of alarm went around the room and I glanced at Felix to gauge his reaction. He looked at me and bent his head to whisper. “It is against vampire law to create another without the consent of the Senate. It would mean the fledgling and the maker would be hunted and killed.”
“Why would anyone risk it?”
Felix shrugged, it was becoming a familiar response.
“How do you kill a vampire anyhow, I thought they were immortal.” I kept my voice as low as possible, not wanting anyone to think I was getting ideas.
“They are pretty much,” he admitted, though he looked chagrined by the admission. “But some things can kill them, silver and the sun mainly. As punishment for a crime they stake them to the ground with silver chains so they cannot escape when the sun comes up. For a fledgling it would be a matter of seconds but for an old vampire, it could take hours and hours to die. It would be very painful.”
Felix seemed quite taken with this idea and appeared to be about to expand on the theme when the speaker interrupted.
“The matter of a fledgling vampire must be taken very seriously. Although no one is suggesting a vampire is responsible for these reprehensible events all avenues must be explored. Corvus, you have the matter in hand?”
Corvus nodded. “Everything is being done to find and deal with those involved. I will of course keep the council informed of any progress made.”
The little French man seemed satisfied with this, though I heard Gran snort in disgust, and he continued to speak.
“Then we must proceed with the evidence.” He briskly gestured to two ghouls who bent and lifted a massive rock between them. They moved awkwardly with the weight and bumped Corvus’ chair on their way past. He scowled at them and they quailed under his gaze as he got up.
“Allow me.” He took the rock from the ghouls as if it was nothing and placed it with care in front of Gran. He nodded at her, stiff but polite before returning to his seat. I was astonished by the look of sheer hatred she gave him. I knew Gran was no fan of vampires but I had no idea quite how intense that hatred was.
Reina was looking equally disgusted and still a little shaken, but she was watching Gran intently.
“Inés,” said the speaker. “This is the only remaining evidence of the crime. I have been assured that a little of the keeper’s blood has been spilt on it. Will it be enough?”
“We shall see.” Her face was grim in the firelight as she got up from her seat and knelt beside the stone. Bending forwards she placed her fingers lightly on the surface and closed her eyes. Her mouth moved forming silent words I could only guess at, and to my amazement tiny white lights danced over the surface of the rock. A sweet familiar smell grew around her and I realised that this was what magic smelt like, that strange cloying perfume that always hung around Gran’s cottage and seeped into everything around her.
Suddenly she stopped and her hands slammed flat against the stone as though it was a magnet pulling her down. Her face was drawn with concentration and I felt suddenly very afraid for her. She was in pain, I was sure. I grabbed Felix’s arm.
“Felix, do something, help her, it’s hurting her.” But Felix just patted my hand and returned a reassuring smile.
“Don’t worry, querida, she's a powerful witch, she is perfectly OK.”
I turned back to Gran who was at that moment released from the stone’s grip and seemed to slump down into a heap. I gasped and ran to her.
“Gran! Gran are you OK?” I helped her to sit up a little and smoothed the hair back from her forehead. The shawl fell over my face as I sank down beside her and I pulled it off impatiently. She blinked at me, confused for a second, and then smiled.
“Oh, Jéhenne, chérie, oui, oui, ça va. I’m fine now. There was just such violence, such pain.” She looked up at the speaker who was watching her with concern.
“Inés?”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, Remé, I could see nothing that would help identify the killer. I could only feel the fear and pain of the keeper. He was so brave, so courageous. He did not reveal the whereabouts of the stone, of that I am sure.”
The speaker sighed. ”Well, that is a great blessing. We must give thanks to the goddess and pray his soul finds peace in the next world.” Gran nodded her agreement. The speaker turned to Corvus.
“Corvus, would you mind removing the stone, before its dark energy corrupts the sanctity of the circle?”
Corvus nodded walked over towards us and I felt my heartbeat quicken as he came closer. So close I could have reached out to touch him. He bent to grasp the massive rock and I watched, my mouth dry with awed fascination at the sight of the powerful muscles working under his marble white skin.
He straightened up with no visible effort and was about to turn away when his gaze found mine and for a moment I was certain the world stopped spinning. Our eyes met and a pain lanced through my heart like a lightening strike. I cried out and the rock slipped from his grasp and hit the stone floor with such force the noise echoed and vibrated around the cave. It split in two with the impact and his eyes, which never left my face, widened with shock. I was no more capable of looking away than he seemed to be and I saw so many emotions in his eyes I had no idea what was happening, but I felt sure one had been pure joy.
Before I could even begin to wonder what that could mean he was snarling with fury and a wave of energy hit me and threw me to the floor. He leapt forward in a blur of movement and grabbed Gran, lifting her like a doll and shaking her violently. There was an explosion of light and he roared in pain, dropping her to the floor.
“You will never lay hands on me, night crawler,” she spat at him.
He bared his fangs at her and growled in fury, a terrible sound that echoed around the cavernous space, the agonised pain behind all that incandescent rage making it all the more dreadful.
“What is the meaning of this?”
His voice thundered around the cave and I realised with astonishment that he was pointing at me.
“She is my granddaughter, she is a Corbeaux, of my blood!” said my Grandmother, her tiny frame standing defiantly against him.
“You cannot expect me to believe this is not a result of your sorcery?” His face was stark with confusion and horror and despite my terror I found I could feel nothing but pity for him.
“I neither know nor care what you believe, Corvus. I have business to settle with you and I will have my revenge, make no mistake,” Gran said, her green eyes blazing. “But I swear to you she is innocent and you will stay away from her, or so help me I will make you pay.”
Corvus looked back at me those blue eyes wide with longing for something I didn't understand. He shook his head.
“No!” He sounded furious all over again. “No, it is not possible, it is a trick,” he bellowed.
I looked from him to Gran and back again, utterly bewildered and terrified. My heart was beating so hard I felt sure it would give out at any moment and I couldn't seem to breath. I tried to manoeuvre myself away from him, inching away by degrees, but suddenly he was there, right in front of me. I gasped, as he stilled, his face so close to me. His eyes searched mine and I saw in his expression such desperate sadness and loneliness that it made my throat tight. He reached out his hand, moving slowly, as though he was the one who was afraid and tentatively took a lock of my hair in his fingers, stroking it with his thumb. I heard his breath catch.
“It’s not possible,” he whispered as though talking to himself. I fought back against the urge to reach out and touch his face. The part of my brain that was still functioning was screaming at me that I might as well be thinking of petting a cobra, but something deep inside me wanted to comfort him, wanted more than anything to t
ake that pain from his eyes. He dropped his hand suddenly and glared at Gran.
“I will discover what you plan, Inés, you will not entrap me so easily.” Gesturing towards me he hissed. “This ... is an abomination!” And then suddenly he was gone.
I looked at Gran, my breath coming in gasps and my head beginning to spin. She ran to me and gathered me in her embrace.
“It’s all right, child, you’re safe. I won't let him harm you,” she crooned, as though I was five years old again and had just scraped my knee.
My head was filled with questions but I couldn’t breathe, the heat plus the smell of the ghouls and the magic was making my head hurt and I felt sick to my stomach.
“Need some air!” I managed to gasp.
Gran nodded. “Felix will take you home. You’ll be safe with him.”
I staggered to my feet trying to ignore the incredulous faces and frantic whispering that was filling the cave with a buzzing noise that made me want to scream. I fled towards the exit, stumbling on the uneven ground and didn’t stop until I was outside in the freezing air. I gulped in great mouthfuls like I was drowning and steadied myself against a tree. I was sweating and trembling and it was all too much. The force of the terror and overwhelming emotion of the past few minutes hit me again and I retched and vomited until there was nothing left.
Felix, thank God, had kept a discreet distance but now handed me a small silver hip flask. I fished in my pocket and found a tissue, wiped my nose and mouth and took the flask from him. I sipped at it cautiously and found it to be brandy. I would have preferred a glass of water, but at least it got rid of the taste.
I thanked him and handed back the flask with a trembling hand. We walked in silence until we reached Gran’s cottage.
“What was that about, Jéhenne?” he asked, his voice quiet.
I remembered the terrible pain in those beautiful blue eyes and my heart ached despite the terror I'd felt.”I have no idea. I was hoping you could tell me?”
Felix shook his head.
“I’ve never seen Corvus like that. Not ever. He never loses his cool. It’s what makes him so dangerous.” He looked at me, his expression appraising and curious. “It was unbelievable … like he knew you.”
I felt so cold at that moment I didn’t think I would ever be warm again. My hands were shaking and I was drained, exhausted. All I wanted was to get into my bed and pretend tonight had never happened.
“I’m sorry, Felix,” I said as I reached to open the front door. “I can’t talk about this right now.”
“Of course, I understand. I’ll see you soon though.” He smiled and raised his hand to wave at me.
I tried to smile back but my face didn’t seem to be working so I just thanked him for walking me home and went indoors.
I stood for a moment in the darkness of the cottage trying to let my nerves settle but it was useless. I walked up the stairs to my room, left Gran’s coat where it fell and laid down on the bed fully clothed.
My mind whirled with the events of the evening but I just couldn’t get rid of the image of Corvus’ face. Those blue eyes … But the harder I tried to think about it the further it slipped from my grasp.
Eventually I slept, my mind filled with flames and uneasy thoughts of being lost in the darkness.