“You’d better give me some damn answers, or I swear—”
“All right,” Erik said, holding up a hand. “All right.”
We stopped walking and turned to face each other.
“These witches are not ordinary witches,” he began. “They’re a darker breed than you’ve likely ever come across.”
Tell me about it.
“They’re a splinter group. A cult. They consider themselves to be the only hope for the revival of their race’s true glory. They are on a mission to restore the power that their distant ancestors once had. They call themselves Revivalists.” Erik paused. I stared at him, my mouth agape. “When the three sisters rescued fifty of us from Cruor,” he continued, “it was not out of the goodness of their hearts. They had a reason.”
“They wanted us for a specific ritual that they perform once or twice a month,” Helina explained. “They needed at least fifty of us to be present for it—that’s what their scrolls stated. In exchange for our cooperation, they gave us full protection from the Elders… and a supply of human blood. We also run errands for them sometimes—”
“Human blood. Those humans… where the hell do they get them all from?”
“We don’t know, Kiev,” Helina said wearily. “We don’t like to press them with too many questions. As long as they keep supplying us with them, what does it even matter?”
I rubbed my hands against my face as the gravity of the situation settled upon me.
“So basically, you’re slaves to a group of fanatics.”
“We were desperate, Kiev,” Erik said in exasperation. “How could we refuse? Besides, it’s not a big deal having the coven around here for just a few days once or twice a month. They come for three days, they dine, they perform their rituals, then they leave. We are left with the three sisters, and they’ve never been a nuisance.” He must have caught the way I was eyeing him, because he added, “And our love is real, by the way. Julisse and I fell for each other the first month that we were together here—”
“And last night,” I said, cutting through him, heat rising in my voice. “You both knowingly led me into a blood pact with these deranged zealots… while I was drunk?”
Helina stamped her foot on the ground in frustration.
“Damn it, Kiev. Last night, we had to initiate you the same way we’ve initiated every vampire on this island. Or the witches wouldn’t have allowed you to stay here. You need to understand: they’re purists.”
“Oh, I think I’ve gathered that.”
I heaved a sighed and look from one sibling to the other.
“And why you? Why did they pick you as Lord and Lady—whatever those useless titles even mean?”
“We were the oldest vampires of all of the fifty they chose,” Erik said. “The other vampires all looked up to us, even when we were back in Cruor. We were the natural choice, especially being brother and sister. They knew we’d make a good team.”
“And what exactly is this ritual they come to perform every month?” I asked, not certain that I actually wanted to know the answer.
“It’s probably best you just witness it for yourself. Though it’s not dissimilar to what you experienced last night. The main difference is that it’s the witches who drink the half-turned vampire’s blood.”
I paced up and down in front of them.
“You also occasionally run errands for them, you mentioned,” I said, looking at my sister, “Is that what you were doing when I first arrived on the island? The only person here was Damion.”
She nodded.
“What errand was that?” I asked.
Erik sighed.
“They needed a specific type of very rare and valuable seaplant that only grows near The Cove—the realm of mermaids. Rather than get it themselves, they thought we might as well do the job for them.”
“And that’s why you’re known for being such notorious pirates,” I muttered. “You plunder others on the witches’ orders. You can’t afford to fail.”
They both nodded.
“I suppose your speed and strength—which is greater than most vampires I’ve ever seen—is also due to the witches?”
They nodded again.
An unsettled feeling took hold of me as we made our way back to the castle. My siblings had boasted about how great their life was now that the Elders no longer ruled over them. They could do whatever they wanted, they’d said. It was clear now though that all that was self-delusion. They had simply put themselves under the control of a different kind of evil.
It was obvious though that my siblings didn’t appreciate my pessimism. Besides, it was true what Erik had said. It wasn’t like they had a choice in the matter. They’d traded themselves in to the witches and there was no going back. Even despite the witches’ darkness, it did seem that—at least thus far—life was better being ruled over by them rather than the Elders.
The real test would come when either the witches abandoned their blood ritual, or started making demands that we could not meet.
I wondered whether Julisse loved Erik enough to stay behind, even if her coven disapproved of her action. Somehow, I doubted it.
I was lost in thought as I made my way back up to my chambers. I wanted peace and silence to think over everything that had just been revealed to me.
Instead I was met with a stroppy-faced teenager sitting cross-legged on my bed.
I groaned. “For the love of… Not now, Celice.”
“Not now. Not now. It’s always not now,” she whined. “You can’t just make a promise to me and not keep it.”
“Well, thanks to your sisters,” I said through gritted teeth, “I have nowhere to take you anymore even if I wanted to. So take your huffing and puffing to their rooms, and leave me in peace.”
She remained seated on my bed, arms crossed over her chest. “I’m not letting you get out of this conversation that easily.” She paused and looked up at me seductively. “Novalic… If there really is nowhere to take me, then why don’t you just take me here?”
I stared at her disbelievingly as she slid out of her dress and slipped between my bedsheets. She loosened her hair and pouted her lips.
I need to stop being such a gentleman with this little wench.
“Celice,” I said, “I don’t want you. I lied when I said that I wanted to be with you. I only wanted to use you to protect my friend’s island. Now that’s all gone to hell, I have no interest in you. Absolutely none. But there are plenty of other men on this island. Go pick one of them to deflower you.”
Her face flushed. Her pupils dilated with anger. Her voice became deep and deadly as she spoke.
“Never insult a witch, Kiev.”
She yanked her clothes back on and stormed out of the room, the windows shaking from the force of her exit.
Good riddance.
Bitch.
Chapter 20: Mona
It was starting to feel like I’d never left the coven. Over the next few weeks, I slotted back into my place. Even Isolde and Efren seemed to accept that I was here to stay and stopped glaring at me so much.
The other witches and warlocks stopped whispering to themselves in the corridors whenever I walked by, and Rhys reappointed me to my former duties. These mostly consisted of assisting in creating potions for the various forms of witchcraft they were trying to master. Occasionally, I was called to join in creating magic, or more often, casting a curse.
But I was starting to forget what the potions I was helping to make were for. I was starting to forget about the sacrifices of innocent people that were going on around me in the name of restoring our kind’s former glory. It was easier not to think of these things.
Rhys was right.
I found myself wishing that I had just listened to him from the start. He’d always told me that if I followed him blindly, I would find a place of peace.
Or at least a place of numbness.
I’d caused myself so much unnecessary pain.
And when I finall
y closed my eyes to the evil we were committing and became numb to it, Rhys was also much easier to get along with. He had told me that if I just surrendered myself to him, he would make an effort with me. He kept that promise.
Each night that I shared his bed, in the morning my skin looked paler. The circles under my eyes grew darker, more prominent. The darkness that had taken root in my heart swelled and enveloped it. Accepting my surrender hungrily.
But although I felt I was dying a little more each day, it didn’t hurt as much as it used to.
Although each time Rhys touched me, it felt like I was sinking further and further into oblivion, it was less painful than trying to fight him.
And really, that was more than I could have ever hoped for from a place like this.
One morning as I woke in his arms, I looked up to find that he was already awake. He’d been watching me, waiting for me to open my eyes.
“Today’s schedule will be a little different,” he said softly, stroking my cheek with his fingers. “For all of us. In fact, the next few days are going to be different.”
I raised my eyebrows in question.
“There’s something I haven’t gotten round to telling you yet. It concerns a monthly, and sometimes bi-monthly, blood ritual we started to practice since you’ve been gone.” He got out of bed and began to dress himself. “We’ve made allies of a group of vampires.”
“Vampires?”
“Yes. You may have noticed my three sisters’ absence since you’ve been here. That’s because they no longer live here. They stay on an island near the pirate area of Triquetra. They managed to procure the vampires, and in exchange for helping us with our rituals, they have cast a spell over the island keeping them safe from invaders and spirits.”
I had to pull my pillow over my face to stifle a gasp.
These vampires must be the Black Bell pirates. Those Matteo always warned us to stay away from.
“We leave in a few hours, to start preparing for tonight’s ritual. It’s the full moon tonight. We’ll stay there for three days… three rituals. And then return.”
I nodded, trying to conceal my restricted breathing. I got dressed and once I was ready, Rhys held out his hand and said, “Come with me.”
I followed. He led me along corridors and down steps—where everybody seemed to be hurrying around getting ready for our departure—until we reached the back of the kitchen. He bent down over a large trapdoor, unbolted it, and pulled it open.
The stench that came wafting out toward us was sickening. I looked around in astonishment as we descended. The entire dungeon was crammed with cells of humans.
A wave of deja vu hit me.
This is just like the dungeons of the ogres.
But where in the world do we find all these humans?
“We need to choose three of them for the rituals,” Rhys said. “One for each night. We’ll also be bringing some others for the vampires, but I’ll have Efren and Isolde gather them together. Help me choose the three.”
I looked around in horror. There were men and women, young and old. I felt frozen to my spot, not knowing which direction to take first. Luckily, Rhys was too impatient to wait for me. He dragged out three humans from the cell nearest to us—three young men—and bound them all in chains. When they shouted and tried to scramble away in opposite directions, he cast a tranquilizing spell on them. Their mouths opened and closed while their eyes rolled wildly in their sockets, but no sounds came out. Their limbs became docile and obedient.
Rhys placed one hand on the small of my back and nudged me up the stairs while he followed behind, guiding the three humans up with us.
Once we’d reemerged in the kitchen and closed the trapdoor, I couldn’t keep myself from asking, “Where do they all come from?”
He sighed and looked down at me.
“I’ll likely tell you one day. But it’s not important for you to know now.”
Chapter 21: Mona
I shuddered as we arrived at the beach of the dark island. Being this close to where I’d spent several years in hiding on Matteo’s island felt bizarre now that I was so far away from the person I’d been then. I looked around at the crowd of witches who’d come with us. We’d all come. This was the tradition apparently. Tiarni was holding the chains of the three humans, while about two dozen other humans were being kept in check by Efren and a few other witches.
Rhys must have noticed my discomfort. He rubbed my shoulders and asked, “Are you all right?”
I nodded weakly.
An old bearded man approached us—a vampire.
“Damion,” Rhys said, reaching out his hand.
Damion smiled faintly and shook it. We followed him away from the beach and through a dark wood. We all walked in silence until we reached the end of the path, leading out into a clearing.
I was taken aback by what I saw: a tall black castle, almost identical to the one the witches had erected back in our little island.
Rhys, who seemed to still be watching me closely, nodded toward the castle and said, “My sisters’ work.”
We passed through the courtyard and were greeted by Julisse, Arielle and Celice on the doorsteps. They motioned to fling their arms around their brother, but then they caught sight of me standing behind him. Arielle and Julisse’s mouths dropped open.
“Her?” Julisse exclaimed.
I groaned internally.
Here we go again.
“Yes.” Rhys gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Mona returned to me. But we can discuss her later. We have more pressing matters to attend to now.”
Although the two elder sisters appeared reluctant to drop the matter, they nodded and wrapped their arms around Rhys. He kissed their heads one by one. They withdrew from him and Julisse surveyed the crowd.
“Tiarni,” she called. “Come with us and bring those three with you. Everyone else, go into the castle and take your seats at the table.” She looked at Efren. “You know where to put the other humans.”
The group split. Myself, Julisse, Arielle, Tiarni, Celice and Rhys went in one direction, while everyone else walked up the steps to the castle. I kept close to Rhys and wrapped my arm through his as we walked around the castle. Although I wasn’t in danger so long as Rhys was by my side, this place still gave me the creeps after all that Matteo had warned me about these vampires.
We stopped in the middle of the lawn. Arielle got on her knees and fumbled in the tall grass until her hands closed around a large ring. She pulled it upward to reveal a wooden staircase leading down to a dimly lit underground chamber.
Once we were all inside, she took the humans’ leashes from Tiarni and fastened them to the wall. She looked up and called Rhys over. I was going to follow, but Rhys shot me a glance that said I should stay put.
He exchanged a few words with his sisters in private. I assumed that they probably weren’t talking about me at that particular moment. Rhys just didn’t want me to overhear for whatever reason.
Jars of potions lined the shelves on the wall. This was a spell room. I now realized why they kept it hidden from the vampires—only a witch could set foot inside a spell room. If anyone else entered, they would have to be sacrificed, otherwise the room would become impotent. Or so the Scrolls said.
A few minutes later, Rhys returned to me and caught my hand, leading me back up the steps. Julisse and Celice followed us, but Arielle stayed behind.
“Arielle needs to start preparing one of the humans for later on,” Rhys explained.
I dreaded to think what kind of preparation they would undergo in Arielle’s hands. Once we were back out in the open, Celice closed the hidden trapdoor behind us.
“Let’s join the others in the dining hall now,” Julisse said.
We walked back round the side of the castle and climbed up the steps up to the entrance. Rhys pushed the doors open and allowed us all in before him. We crossed the giant hall and entered through another set of tall doors.
The chattering th
at had filled the air came to a standstill as we entered. Before I even had time to cast my eyes around the crowded table, two vampires holding trays of glasses filled with blood immediately came up to us.
Everyone took a glass but me. When Julisse saw this, she made a point of walking over to me.
“Lost your appetite for blood since you’ve been away?” she asked, deliberately loud enough for Rhys to hear.
I looked at Rhys, and he nodded toward the glass. Feeling the pressure, I picked up the glass, though I had no intention of drinking it. I would slowly vanish it while nobody was looking and pretend to have drunk it.
Chairs had been reserved for us—the ones closest to the entrance, at the head of the table. I took a seat between Rhys and Celice. Candles lined the table between the trays of food. They’d cooked up a feast especially for the witches, since vampires only drank blood.
As I cast my eyes around the vampires dining with us, a glint of redness caught my eye at the opposite end of the table.
Celice squealed as the glass slipped from my hand, blood soaking the tablecloth and staining our dresses.
“What’s wrong with you this evening?” Rhys whispered.
“I… I think I need some fresh air.”
Chapter 22: Kiev
She looked so different, I barely recognized her. Deathly pale skin, black shadows beneath her eyes, a much thinner face. Everything about her appeared darker—even the color of her hair. But when her blue eyes fixed on mine, and I witnessed her violent reaction to our eyes locking, any doubts I might have had about her identity were allayed.
That girl was Mona.
All conversation around me faded into background noise. Confusion shrouded me as question after question fought to the forefront of my mind.
Why has her appearance changed so drastically? What is she doing here? Who is that man next to her?
Most of all, I found myself asking: Why did she leave?
I turned to Helina who was sitting beside me.
“Do you know anything about that witch—the one sitting next to the man with wavy hair?”