The pieces he dropped back down were dirty blonde in hue, but then her hair was actually streaked with dirt now, she thought with an inward giggle. Her hair might even pass as brown now, at least at night. He turned away from her and walked back over to the metal piece he’d propped against the rocks. She watched as he ran his hands carefully through his hair, taking away the reddish tones she liked so much.
When he turned back to her, he looked like a different person with his bare face and now brown hair. Even with the completely different appearance, she realized she would know him anywhere. She’d always know the smell, feel and taste of him, but more than that, she would recognize his presence anywhere.
Her admiring gaze followed his chiseled physique as he walked around the cave. Without his cloak on, she could get a good view of his powerful thighs in his loose fitting brown pants. The flaxen shirt he wore bunched over his powerful shoulders and biceps as he gathered the supplies they would need and set the feedbag up for Achilles.
He gave the horse a firm pat on his neck before swinging his cloak around his shoulders and turning to her. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” she said and took the saddlebag he offered her. He helped her tie it around her waist and made sure it was cinched securely against her back.
Taking hold of the torch, she led the way back into the cave system and toward her home.
***
William peered over the top of the mountain they had climbed to the peak of, and stared down at the small town located within the valley below. Tempest settled into the snow beside him. On her lips, he could smell the coppery scent of the fox’s blood they’d captured and fed from before climbing up here.
He held his hand up, keeping her away from the edge as he crawled forward on his belly to see more of the town. She stayed a little ways behind him, but she refused to stay back completely. She crept forward to lay beside him in the snow.
Fires burned in the middle of the street, and from the hiss she released, he assumed more vampires or people had helped to fan those flames. Now their burning graves continued to light up the night sky.
He pressed himself deeper into the snow as he surveyed the town. Along the street, he spotted the patrolling vampire guards Tempest had told him about. The white cloaks they wore helped them blend in with their environment. The quaint homes lining the roads made it appear far more picturesque than it actually was, given the sinister presence of those vampires.
He’d been hesitant to believe her in the beginning, but he realized she’d told the truth shortly after she’d started talking. He’d still been hoping she’d been off on her estimation of the soldiers, but her guess about the numbers may have actually been on the low side.
Where had they all come from? Then he recalled the desolate town of Chester. There was no way to know how many towns had been traveled through and destroyed by these vampires.
The vampires below were the ones he could see. There was no way to tell how many were hiding in the mountains or camped out inside the houses. He lifted his gaze to scan the mountaintops surrounding them, but he didn’t see anyone moving about from his current vantage point.
He gestured for her to move back. Sliding over the peak, they settled onto a rock lip beneath it. He pressed his back against the mountain as he stared down at the lake a few thousand feet below them. The moon and stars reflected in the water; their twinkling lights looked like fireflies on its smooth surface from this far above.
“I think there’s more of them than there were before,” she muttered as she tugged the cloak closer around her face. “What do we do now? Can we get to the children?”
William rubbed at his chin, not at all used to feeling smooth skin beneath his touch again. It wasn’t the same without the beard, he missed it; his face missed it, as the cool air brushed against skin that had been protected from the elements for over a year now.
“I’m not sure,” he admitted. She blinked away the tears that filled her eyes. “But we’ll try. I want to get closer and see if I can figure out what is going on, and who the vampire declaring herself the queen is. It will be a lot easier to get into town and try to learn something useful without Braith’s troops than it would be with them. There will also be a lot less bloodshed. Maybe there’s a way to put a stop to whatever is happening before another war starts. I’ve had enough of fighting.”
He could feel her eyes burning into him, but he didn’t look at her as he stared out at the velvet black of night. The clashing ring of steel echoed in his head, the twang of bowstring and the whistle of arrows filled his ears as memories flooded his mind. The coppery stench of blood burned into his nose while screams of agony and terror filled his head. Taking a deep breath, he ran a hand through his dirt-darkened hair, tugging at the ends of it as he grappled to block out the memories washing over him.
Taking a shaky breath, he lifted his head to look at her. Instinctively, he took hold of a strand of her hair. He hated he’d had to obscure the silvery strands, but the feel of it helped to calm him. The screams and blood faded away when his fingers trailed over her silken cheeks before brushing briefly across her lips. She somehow had a way of making the brutality of his existence better.
Reluctantly, he pulled his hand away from her. “We’re going to need a couple of those cloaks,” he told her. “If we have any shot of blending in down there.”
“Do you think it was the children?” she whispered. “Those fires?”
“No,” he answered honestly. “These vampires know it will be more upsetting to those who might come to this town after they leave, if the children are left to become mad with hunger, or if they discover their dead bodies.”
He knew her tremor had nothing to do with the wind blowing down from the mountain peaks. He took hold of her hand as he glanced at the lake again. “We have to move,” he told her.
Keeping hold of her hand, he led her down the small trail they’d traversed to the mountaintop. His boots slid in the snow, but he managed to keep his balance by leaning against the rock wall beside him. Years of living in these mountains made Tempest far more adept at traversing the trails. Her feet were more nimble than his were as she walked with far more assurance than he did.
After a few hundred feet, she tugged his hand, pulling him to a stop. He leaned against the mountain as he turned to face her. She pointed by his feet and pulling down on his hand, she knelt against the mountainside. He crouched down next to her and turned his head toward hers.
“There’s a cave here,” she told him. “We’ll have to crawl into it, but it opens up once we’re inside, and it winds down into the mountain. It will save us from having to climb down the cliff for at least part of the way.”
William watched as she flattened her stomach on the rocky trail. She squiggled through the snow on her stomach until her feet vanished within a hole he never would have known was there. He didn’t want to know how she’d managed to discover its existence, but getting onto his stomach, he followed behind her. Rising up on the other side, he tried to see anything before him but the blackness was so absolute even his vampire vision couldn’t detect enough light to pick out any details.
“Stay close to me,” Tempest whispered from his right. “It’s only like this for half a mile or so, after that we’ll be able to see again.”
“You’re going to be able to find your way out of this area?”
“We may walk into a few walls in between here and there,” she said with a small chuckle. “But I’d prefer not to light another torch if we don’t have to; we need to conserve the rags.”
“Walking into walls is better than climbing down the face of the mountain,” he replied.
He’d spent a lot of time in caves, and trees, but he’d never done any mountain climbing. The climb up had been bad enough. His fingers still ached from gripping the rocks so tight, but at least he’d been able to see where he was putting his hands and feet; going back down would be nothing but a search mission for footholds.
> Her hand slid into his, taking firm possession of it. William squeezed her hand tenderly before bringing it up and pressing a kiss against her delicate flesh. She moved closer to him, her arm brushing against his as they walked deeper into the blackness. He could feel the walls closing in on them as they moved; feel the space becoming more confining. The walls didn’t brush against him, not yet, but their steps became more muffled by the encroaching rocks. He could feel the chill of them against his sides, but he didn’t touch them.
William kept her close to his side as his senses strained to pick up any noise or smell out of the ordinary amongst the damp, mossy smelling rocks. He took a step to the side when the wall brushed against his right shoulder. “It doesn’t get any narrower,” Tempest said from beside him.
He nodded before he realized she couldn’t see it. Before he could speak, he began to detect little pinpoints of light ahead of them. After a few more feet, light burst into his eyes, dilating his pupils as he finally took in the world surrounding them. The light came from a crevice in the wall above them; a single sliver that allowed the rays of the moon to filter in.
He stopped, his eyebrows raising when he spotted the wall across from him. Unlike the other caves they’d been through, this one had paintings and drawings done in reds, browns, yellows, oranges and greens on the walls. He was able to make out bears, deer and what he assumed were horses in the faded depictions. The people in the drawings were crude but he could tell the difference between the men and the women. Mountains towered high behind the people and animals; the tips of them brushed against the clouds on the wall. He cast a questioning glance at Tempest.
She smiled back at him. “They’ve been here for longer than vampires have been in this land, I think. I used to come here and wonder about the people who had painted them; what they’d been trying to say with these pictures, what their lives had been like. It was a great distraction from the orphanage.”
“I bet,” he replied as his eyes continued to run over the figures who had years ago left this world.
She tugged on his hand and pointed toward another tunnel. It didn’t become completely black again when he stepped into the constricted tunnel. A human probably wouldn’t be able to see, but enough light filtered in from somewhere in front of him that he could. Before they made it to the end of the cave, Tempest pulled him back, stopping him before he could exit.
“This is going to come out near where I pushed that man off the cliff.” Her eyes darted away from him; a small shiver ran through her before she focused on him again. “There may be more guards out there somewhere.”
William’s fangs tingled. No one would harm her. About a hundred feet ahead of them, he could see the light increasing as they neared the exit of the cave. “Stay in here,” he told her as he rested his fingers against her cheek. “I’ll check it out.”
“You can’t go out there alone,” she protested.
“I’m just going to look around, I’ll be fine,” he assured her.
Bending, he kissed her full mouth before straightening away from her. Pulling his bow from his back, he nocked an arrow against it and carefully approached the entrance to the cave. Turning sideways, he cautiously slid in between the rocks, careful not to touch anything and accidentally alert someone to his presence.
He stopped before stepping outside; he leaned his head against the wall as he strained to hear anything over the howling wind. Silently, he counted to sixty while he listened for a footstep or voices before poking his head out. He saw and heard nothing, but he wasn’t about to call Tempest out before he made sure. Glancing behind him and then ahead again, he stepped out of the cave and walked up the hill.
CHAPTER 19
When William disappeared from view, Tempest stepped away from the wall and followed him toward the mouth of the cave. She didn’t make a sound as she moved toward the exit. Sticking her head out, she blinked away the blowing snow sticking to her lashes.
She spotted William up ahead; searching to make sure no one was around. The wind blew over her hood, causing it to flap against her ears. She pushed it back in order to hear better. Glancing down the hill, she narrowed her eyes against the snow before stepping out.
William glanced back, his jaw clenched when he spotted her, but he continued onward with his bow and arrow at the ready. He took a few more steps before lowering his bow and sliding the arrow back into his quiver. He slipped the bow over his back and turned toward her again. Resting his hand against the wall, he stared down the hill at her before waving his hand in a gesture meant to tell her to get back in the cave.
Tempest frowned at him before shaking her head no. She refused to return to the cave, especially when she couldn’t understand why he wanted her to. Before she knew what was happening, he took four rapid steps forward, reached into a crevice and jerked someone from inside the slot she knew only went four feet into the mountain.
Tempest gawked at him as he unleashed a series of punches upon the figure in the white cloak. The crack of bone was so distinct she heard it above the wind, but she didn’t know what had broken, the vampire’s cheekbone, nose or jaw. Maybe all three crumpled beneath the forceful blows William continued to unleash with ruthless savagery.
Her hand flew to her mouth; her stomach twisted as his eyes shone with red fire. Before she knew what he intended, William grabbed hold of the cloak and spun the man around. He tore the cloth from him in one violent jerk. The man teetered on the edge of the walkway, his arms spinning as he fought to maintain his balance.
In a move so fast she barely registered it, William reached into his own cloak, pulled out a stake and drove it into the man’s chest. The startled cry the man released was caught up and whipped away by the wind. Lifting his leg, William leaned against the rock wall and shoved his foot into the man’s stomach. Tempest caught a glimpse of the vampire’s bulging eyes and wide-open mouth before he flipped over and tumbled out of sight.
She stood, staring at the lake as the body splashed into it. So focused on the ripples flowing across the normally pristine surface, she didn’t hear William approach until he stood beside her. “Put this on,” he instructed.
Tempest turned and focused on him. She blinked at the cloak he held out toward her. She was happy her hand didn’t shake when she took it from him. His hands were steady when he unclasped the brooch of her cloak. She forced herself not to grab hold of his hand to examine the blood staining the backs of his knuckles, or the bruises and cuts marring his skin. She didn’t think he’d appreciate her concern right now. He wasn’t in the mood to be babied; he was in the mood to do what had to be done.
He’s a fighter, she reminded herself. A warrior who has waged many battles over the years. This was what he’d been born into and trained to do his entire life. He was lethal, she’d already known that, but the brutality of what had just occurred still had her rattled.
Tugging the cloak from her shoulders, he wadded it up and threw it over the side of the mountain into the lake below. The cool breeze blowing over her slipped through her clothes and froze her already numb skin. He fitted the white cloak over her and pinned it against her throat. With a tenderness she hadn’t expected after what had just unfolded, he tugged the hood over her head and tucked her hair into it.
“You’re bleeding,” she whispered.
“Not mine,” he muttered before wiping the blood off in the snow at their feet.
Tempest swallowed at his response, when he rose over her again his face had softened, and she saw the hesitation in his gaze. He was afraid she would reject him; instead, she took hold of his hand. She ran her hand over the back of his already healed knuckles before pressing them against her cheek.
“Did you know he was there the whole time?” she asked.
“Not the whole time,” he replied. “Tempest, what you saw…”
“I understand,” she assured him. “It’s not something I’m used to, but I understand. Things are going to get worse, aren’t they?”
“Mo
st likely,” he replied honestly.
Tempest huddled deeper into the thick white cloak. It was of far better quality than the one Pallas had pieced together. “We have to get you one.”
“We will.” The gravelly, no nonsense tone of his voice made her realize she’d only seen a glimpse of what he was capable of. “Where do we go now?”
Tempest pointed down the face of the mountain. “Now there’s only one way down.”
He may be fearless about most things, but some of the color drained from his face when he leaned over to look down the side of the cliff. “Fun,” he murmured.
“I’ll lead the way,” she said.
“No, if there’s someone hiding down there, I’m not going to take the chance they could grab you.”
“There’s only footholds and shelves down this way. There are no caves or places for anyone to hide. I know the way better; it will be easier for you to follow me.”
He looked down the side of the mountain. “Are you sure there’s no way someone could be hiding down there?”
“Yes.”
A muscle next to his eye twitched, but he finally stepped away and gestured for her to go. Crouching down, she slid her foot over the side of the mountain until she found the first hold. She slipped over the side with William following behind her. Tempest easily found footholds and handholds amongst the rock face. William wasn’t having as easy of a time as his hands and feet searched over the rock.
“It’s only another fifty feet,” she told him, keeping her voice low so it wouldn’t carry.
He glanced at her before looking down. “Can they be down there?” he inquired.
“Yes.”
“Stay here.”
“William…”
“Stay here, Tempest. If something happens to me, get out of here and find Aria, Daniel, Braith or Jack. And actually stay here this time; I don’t want you to see it again if someone is down there, and I have to kill them.”