Danielle was staring at me. And I wasn't looking away. The grey eyes were dreary and sad, but I didn't care about his emotions. First of all, I was already tuning in to the right wave. If talking to Duke can only take a bitch, you give a creepy bitch! It's a pity everyone else is suffering in the process. But I had no choice. There was also a second reason. Now I had to save two hides. And one of them was mine. It's very stimulating. The vampire couldn't take it first.
- I'm going to the lodge. We have to arrange our prisoner.
- Okay, great. Take care of him. Have lunch, or whatever... I'll come myself as soon as I can!
Danielle got out of the car dutifully. He opened the front door, pulled out the driver, intercepted him across his body, and carried him to the house like a doll - easily and with no visible effort. I shook my head. I shaken my head. Okay! Then I'll calm him down! And now...
I went through my bag taking my cell phone out. Oh, by the way! The phone was fully charged. An hour for three active conversations is enough for me, and then something else will turn up. I put Andre's number on the screen, which was dictated to me by that cute werewolf - and pressed the call firmly.
Duke didn't call back right away. But I wouldn't confuse his lazy voice with anything else.
- Yes?
- Mr. André?
- Oh, is that you, Curly?
That's a phrase I thought about two minutes before we talked. The very moment I regained consciousness.
- Yes, I am. Should I congratulate you or read the epitaph to your grave?
- Excuse me?
- I will not forgive you," I answered. - Shall I repeat the question or explain it to you?
- Explain, curly.
Damn, is that nickname glued to me for life now?! Fuck it! How much life is left in there?! A day? Two? It's not like there's a nickname!
- Well, you have a lot to congratulate, I was lazy. - Isn't the power rival finally visiting you?
- Not yet. He was just being brought here," the voice was so happy that I wanted to start the phone in the next snowdrift. I restrained myself with willpower and thought that I'd hold off on killing Mieczysław when all this was over. And bigger, bigger. Enough of a couple of his visits to the institute for all my friends to take a break from envy! And to the dean's office so I don't have to clean up my tails anymore!
- Well, it won't be long. It will be. I'm sure they will. So congratulations.
- Thank you, curly. Should I regard this as the beginning of the surrender?
- Should I consider your question as beginning sclerosis? - I don't owe you one.
The vampire on the other end of the wire laughed a little. I could feel his laughter as if a handful of peas had been spilled over my head, and I turned my whole body. It's disgusting!
- Yes, Curly, you said something about an epitaph. Well, what was it?
- Oh, almost nothing! It's just that you'll soon be lying in the ground like a dead man. And you're going to need them. Here I am, on a sworn friendship, and I called.
- You called to threaten me, Curly?
- Me?! You?! Who do you think I am?!
The question was rhetorical, but Duke did answer.
- To a little, stupid, cheeky girl, gifted with enormous power. That's why I'm talking to you.
- I have always believed that impudence is the second happiness, in the absence of beauty, intelligence and luck. - But in fact, I'm not calling to threaten, but to bargain.
- Oh, yeah? - This time I heard surprise in my voice. - And what are you going to offer me, Curly?
I got some air in my chest.
- It's nothing. Your life and your freedom. Your city's under pressure.
The silence cut through the ears. Then, a few seconds later, a surprised voice was heard.
- You're gonna kill me - and you want me to pay for your refusal to make a stupid attempt?
- No way! I was laughing now. - How do you imagine that?! I'm wearing a helmet, a bulletproof vest, a gun in one hand, a vial of holy water in the other, pissing everybody right and left, breaking into your basement under the club?!
I imagined myself like this, added black and green camouflage stripes to my face - and almost choked to death with laughter. But it was a complete surprise for Duchka. I wonder, what did he expect?
- Really funny," he finally agreed. - And then what?
- Not what, but who. Your own Council of Elders. Is that what it's called?
Silence.
- Yes, Council of Elders.
- And the emissary, who will come next night to witness the result of the fight, - I added logs to the fire.
- The Emissary?
- Ask Mieczysław. In the meantime, do you feel that I'm not lying to you?
- You're not lying, Curly. Okay. The emissary will come and I'll show him the body of the challenger.
- Brutally wrong, I'm a vampire's "pleasure". - You will present them with a living challenger. Alive, safe and sound.
- What are you talking about? - the poison in a vampire's voice would be enough for a dozen royal cobras. Well, we don't do shih paws either!
- I predict the future for you. Why?
- And you expect me to listen to you?!
- I'm just sure of it!
Duke laughed. No, I'm definitely going to be a dentist! And with the first surgery, I'm gonna remove all the fangs from that laughing guy! With a brick!
- Put your trumps out there, curly. And I will look at them.
- You'll have nothing to hit," I snapped. - Get it and sign it! Let's say you kill Mieczysław.
- No admissions.
- Okay, great. We won't have any clearance. You kill him, and I - all so tragic, up to my ears in grief, sorrow and mourning (and black always came to me) - meet with the Emissary of the Council of Elders. And, sprinkling ashes and sequins on my head, I tell you about a dishonest game.
- Isn't that dishonest, Curly?
- Two fights out of three were won by us. You must give Medislav a fair fight in the presence of all vampires, me and the Emissary of the Council.
- I don't see the point.
- Why not? I'm gonna knock on the Council about you cheating! I won't return the sword, but they'll make meatballs out of you, those paws and souls. And meat pate.
- Curly, what makes you think your words will interest the Council?
I got air in my chest. Come on, Jane! Go, r-r-r-e-ed!
- I am the man who killed a vampire in one of the fights. By prayer and faith. This will interest the Council. Danielle is next to me. He'll help me get in touch with them.
- So what? You'll be studied like a guinea pig, but no one will listen to you.
I was laughing. It's my turn at last! I wonder if Andre is dreaming of a career as a dentist now.
- I'm not just a person. I'm not just a person. Your Council has strict laws about family names. Even if they don't get all four Seals.
I was bluffing here, but not much. I don't think the Council, which has painstakingly painted everything and everything about fights, has any laws on my account. A hundred poods, there will be! And, judging by the grinding of teeth in the tube - not too nice.
- And whose name are you, Curly? Mecislava?!
I'm internally assembled.
- Yesterday, Danielle... I mean, this morning... I lost a sense of time with your nightly walks... Well, this morning, he put the First Seal on me.
Silence. Then a careful voice.
- You're not lying to me, Curly.
- I swear on my mother's heart!
I swore to be perfectly calm. I'm telling the truth! I just didn't say I had two more Seals on me before and after that. I sighed from the tube.
- You're not lying, Curly. That's too bad. I'd like to make you my own name.
- I was told I was very strong.
Now came the most important moment for which I removed Daniel from the car. There's a reason I kicked him out!
- I am so strong that I can bear the death of my master.
That's what Mecislav thinks. Especially since Danielle has only put one seal on me.
- Why are you telling me this, Curly?
The voice was so indifferent that I knew it was biting! Hooray, hooray, hooray, hooray, hooray, hooray...
- By killing Mieczysław for nothing, you will achieve nothing. If you kill him in a fight, you get three birds at once. Me, Daniel and the dead challenger. And you also stay lily clean before the Council. It's expensive, isn't it?
Andre kept silent for a long time, and then he was born.
- It's worth something. But you're being insincere somewhere, curly.
I laughed back.
- Yes, I'm insincere. Honestly, I hope I don't have to pay. In your fight, I bet on Mieczysław. And I really want him to rip your head off.
And again, the silence. Holy shit, I'm not nervous enough! I'm alive after all! Mom, get me out of here, I don't want to live like this!
Mom didn't hear. Which means we have to figure it out on our own.
- Curly?
- Am I listening?
I put my fingernails in my palm. The pain helped to contain the emotions a little.
- I accept your offer.
The vampire's voice had some kind of pasty tone. But even if he was up to it, it doesn't matter now. The main thing is that Mecislav will stay alive! We'll buy time! Otherwise, I'll lie entirely on his mind. I'll try to sleep again - and we'll talk again. As long as we are united - we are invincible! Old wisdom, and what faithful wisdom.
- Okay, great. I suppose the fight should take place in my presence?
- Yours and Danielle's, curly.
- Absolutely. And the Emissary of the Council, right?
- Of course.
It was too good to take your word for it. Where's the horseshoe?
- Andre!
- Yes, curly?
- Mecislav must participate in the fight, being safe and sound, okay?! If he enters the circle in the same condition as Danielle - that is, cut into shreds or without any body parts - our contract is cancelled. Immediately!
- Fair enough, curly. What about the other two vampires of his vertical you don't want to ask?
- Boris and Vadim. I want to. And you want to answer it?
- No, - Andre said that word as if he had been honeyed. Or blood, given the tastes of vampires. - No, I don't. You'll get it at the same time as your friend, Curly. If you want it, it's even in one bag.
- And I will cry for a long time," I said. - Come on! There's not enough fertilizer at our summer house, the dahlias are withering. It'll be all good!
- You're so cocky, curly.
- Then I'll take advantage of that quality to the end. What about my friend?
- Which one, curly? Anna or the nurse who helped you hide?
I couldn't breathe from such sweet news. Does he have the nadka?! Supreme Powers! Is she alive?! Or has he decided to cook another vampire?! But I coped with the emotions.
- Let's start with Anna. How is she feeling?
- Beautiful. She's already been drinking blood, and she says hi now.
- And the same to her.
And her and her, and you, too...
- What about Nadia? Is she alive?
That question worried me a lot more. The Katya dragged me into it. But I dragged Nadya into it. It was me. And if she... It's better not to think about it, or she's still pulling to break her head on a lamppost.
- Yes, even more than that.
- Excuse me?
- Your girlfriend, Curly, will be growing fur in a month.
- WHAT?!
- Well, yeah. The wound from the claws of a werewolf in animal form is contagious. If the wounded person survives, he becomes a werewolf himself.
- Oh, shit!
I was shaken by the news like that. But I had to pull myself together right away. The important thing is that I'm alive. The rest is from next Monday. Anyway, I'll think about it later! There you go!
- Does that upset you, Curly?
- I can't be upset that my friend survived. I always thought she was a strong woman. But here she is... I don't think she wanted to run... By the way, who is she going to run now?
- It was initiated by a werewolf, a curly one.
- The wolf? - I don't get it.
- No, it's not, Wolpe. It's the name of the fox werewolf. And your girlfriend makes a great fox.
- Oh, I see.
- They're taking her to my place, too. So you'll see her tomorrow.
- You're not gonna kill her?
- Of course not! This is a meaningless waste of valuable material!
- All the better for us. What time is the fight tomorrow?
- At midnight, of course.
- Then I'll call you back tonight, at the same number. Ciao, bambino!
- Arrivederci, curly," Andre said.
I turned my cell phone off and I was thinking deeply.
So many things, so many things... But first of all we have to consult with Mieczysław. It's a pity that this dream we're in can only be sent to me by a vampire himself. I wrapped up tighter in a sheepskin and got out of the car. The ice wind hit me in the face, and I drove. Higher Powers, how nice it would be to be home now, in front of the TV, with a cup of hot coffee and ice cream. No, I'd rather not have ice cream. Where the hell is the house?!
I slapped twice in the snow, wet the whole sheepskin and almost broke my leg while walking twenty meters to the house. Danielle never came out to help me. She was upset. That's right. Well, let her! I have a reason to be offended, too! Someone took advantage of my gullibility to put a stamp on me. And I don't like it very much. With that thought, I pushed the door of the house, if you can call the box four by four meters. But it was quite cozy inside. The vampire didn't need the light, but he pulled out a lantern from somewhere and put it under the table. Now the whole room was lit up with soft, diffuse light. Our driver was tied up in the corner. Danielle turned the man face to the wall so I couldn't see his eye. And that was very helpful. There was almost nothing in the cabin. There was a narrow bed in the corner, a table and two knuckled chairs. A vampire sat on the bed and looked at me frowning. I took a breath and exhaled. I have to, Jane. No one can convince him to help me. It's just me. And there's no other way to do it. If there's a split in the team, we need to cement it. Otherwise, defeat is imminent. I went up to the vampire and knelt down next to the bed.
- Danielle...
Silence.
- Danielle, please, look at me!
There's no reaction. I put my hand on his knee.
- Danielle, I don't deserve this. I understand that you're hurt, but you have to understand me too!
Here we go! Finally!
The vampire turned to me so fast, my hair was flushed with a blurry chestnut strip.
- Have you talked to Andre yet, Curly?
The last word, he just bit his fangs off the air. And spit it out at me with a teeth grinder.
- I talked to you.
- And now you need me? - There was a cruel irony in my voice.
- You know I always need you, I didn't curve my soul. You shouldn't lie to a vampire. But you can't tell the truth either. And I found a way. I made myself believe. Believe what I'm saying. I love daniel! And I believe in his love! We just have to clear the air, and we'll be happy! We will be happy!
- And why is that?! You don't care about pictures?
I can't take it anymore. And I don't give a damn about any wise calculations!
- Danielle! Don't you dare say that! Your paintings are brilliant!
The vampire's face has softened a little. There was no more pain in the big gray eyes. But now there was sadness. And this is much worse.
- Do you really think so?
- Yes.
I put my other hand on his knee. The vampire's palm lay on top of my fingers and began to gently grab them. I smiled at the vampire.
- How's your hand?
- It's healing. I've put a lot of effort into it, but I've already fed, and
the bone's about to grow back.
- That's good.
- I'm glad you see something good in this situation.
I'm glad, too. But if you've decided to go on the offensive, dear, you've made a terrible mistake.
- Danielle, don't get me wrong. You're a vampire. I am a human being. You look like a normal person, but internally we're very different. I couldn't just switch from one case to another like you, like other vampires! I had to be a bitch, and I became a bitch. Otherwise, I could never have talked to Duke. Talk the right way. And bargain. To my life and yours, by the way!
- Jane!
Well, there you go. Now there's a righteous outrage. But it's better than resentment. And now he can't even think of accusing me.
- But we have no other choice. Are you scared? Yes! Is it painful, sad, nauseous?! That, too. But if only a bastard can save us, you bastard! And I'm sorry if I seemed like a bastard for the time being. I couldn't behave well with you and badly with Duke. I just couldn't help it, Danielle. But I'm not that scum at all.
- I never thought of you like that!
- Oh, really?
- Jane, I was just offended... You said yourself you shouldn't judge a vampire by human standards! Well, don't judge me!
Perfect! Fleeing?! I'll get you now!
- But you're judging me now, aren't you?! Danielle, I have to remind you that my own life also depends on the life of Mieczysław. By the way, can a vampire survive the death of his family?
- Not always, but maybe.
- Then yours, too. Not only am I connected to you, but you're also connected to me. You may survive my death, but why take the risk?
- Jane...
I raised my hand, stopping him.
- Danielle, you have to understand me. I love you. I told you that. And I'll say it again... if you want me to. But in order to say it, I have to survive. And I'm sorry, I can't go any further in this shit. The day after tomorrow night, we'll be looking at the stars and talking about our relationship for a long time. We'll figure out what to do and how to do it. If you want to leave me, so be it. I'll try to get over it. The important thing is to keep you alive. And for me to be alive. Everything else will come along.
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