Amaranthine Special Edition Vol II

by Naylor, Joleene

  Horror tinted her voice, “You’re not going with me?”

  The guard made an impatient noise, and Jorick nudged her towards him. She slowly followed him to the dais. Though she looked down at her uncertain feet, she could feel Malick’s eyes burning into her like two spots of fire.

  They came to a stop and two of the Lesser Council hurried to them. One lugged a thick book of loose leaf paper, his finger on a crudely drawn illustration. The second one made a show of looking down his nose at her. “Where is your mark, human?”

  Her terrified tongue refused to work and Malick’s amusement shivered over her.

  “Where is your mark?” the vampire demanded again. She managed to point to the spot above her right collar bone. The council member made an impatient noise and roughly jerked her coat and shirt collar aside. “A bite with a cross underneath.”

  The vampire with the book nodded. “That is the mark registered to the vampire Jorick, fledgling of Malick. It is also registered officially to three others and unofficially to at least ten more. Recommend comparison of the bite mark to ensure proper identification-”

  Eileifr interrupted him, “Thank you.”

  The council members moved away from her and back to their table. Katelina’s eyes swept the chamber and landed on another familiar face fringed in dark hair with a scar running across one cheek. What in the hell was Joseff doing there?

  Eileifr turned towards Jorick. “Jorick, do you claim this human and take responsibility for her actions?”

  “Yes.”

  Eileifr nodded and his gray eyes moved to Katelina. “You may take your seat. Jorick, the council will speak to you.”

  Jorick stood and made his way to the front of the room. He stopped next to Katelina and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Sit down, little one. It’s all right.”

  As if his voice broke a spell, she hurried back to her chair, her stomach a tight knot of fear. Why didn’t he understand that his doom also meant hers?

  Her eyes were glued to Jorick. He squared his shoulders and met Malick’s gaze. The white haired vampire stared back and finally broke into a smile. The room collectively held its breath, waiting for Malick to say what he’d seen in Jorick’s mind. Instead, he spoke conversationally to his offspring. “You’ve been busy since last we met.”

  The muscle in Jorick’s jaw twitched.

  “Or should I say your human has been busy? Nine counts of murder. Perhaps I underestimated her?”

  Jorick’s eyes smoldered, and he said coldly, “You know that she’s innocent.”

  “Do I? You must admit the evidence is stacked against her. Shall I repeat it for you, or are you already aware? There were four incidents or perhaps five? All occurred within so many miles of you and your human, and at the last a witness-” he indicated Joseff, “-claims to have seen the human commit the act. What do you say to this?”

  “Rachel took her own life. As to the others, I don’t know.”

  “Were you not at the scene of the first attack, after the fact?”

  The onlookers murmured and Jorick’s chin rose a notch. “I was asked to look around.”

  “By whom? The human?”

  “My fledgling. The survivors joined his coven, and he wanted proof their story was true.”

  A sly smile curved over Malick’s lips. “His coven? Or another’s?”

  “Traven’s,” Jorick snapped. “They have an association.”

  Malick’s smile grew. “What association might that be?”

  “I fail to see how this relates to a murder neither of us committed!”

  Malick laughed softly. “Perhaps it does. For you see, Jorick, if your words are true, then it means that someone not only targeted vampires who lived near your den, but went so far as to follow you to the coven of a vampire named Kale and kill nearby. If you and your human are innocent of these crimes, then someone has taken great pains to make you appear guilty. If that is the case, one must ask themselves why.” He leaned back in his chair and looked thoughtful. “Can you shed light on this? Who so desires your blood? What have you been involved in, besides a badly botched rescue attempt?”

  Jorick clenched his teeth. “More importantly, why did Kale need to be rescued? How is it that humans possess a gas that can incapacitate a vampire; the same gas your Executioners used to bring me here?” He turned and stared accusingly at Senya. “How is it that Kale didn’t know his kidnapper was there until she’d taken him? How many master Phantoms are there who have access to The Guild’s resources?”

  Katelina gasped with everyone else. Senya growled and Eileifr asked quickly, “What are you implying?”

  “I’ve made it clear. Senya took great pains to take Kale alive and hand him over to humans who intended to use his blood to make themselves stronger, so they could wage a war against us!” He spun to face the High Council. “She should be the one on trial!”

  Malick’s laughter was unexpected. It started low and grew, a rich sound that rolled through the room like a wave of amused sunlight. “I applaud you, but you think too small, my son. What would Senya stand to gain from an act that would throw our world into chaos and warfare? Why would she take it upon herself to do such a thing?”

  Confusion flashed in Jorick’s eyes, then his face grew hard. “Because she was told to.”

  Malick laughed again and all eyes turned to him in surprise. Eileifr half rose from his chair. “Malick, is this true?”

  He made a dismissive gesture with his hand. “What do you think?”

  Celandine looked from Jorick to his Master. “That is not an answer.”

  Malick stood and turned to face the unsettled High Council. “Am I beholden to you? Am I beneath you that you would question me?”

  “The councils were created for a reason,” Celadine argued. “You do not have supreme rule.”

  “And who will follow those words with action?” Malick turned to face the rest of his captivated audience. “Is there one among you who can overpower me?” He turned back to the council members. “One of you perhaps? Eileifr? Obi? Heng?” Nobody moved. “As I thought, there is no one.”

  He resumed his seat and looked back to Jorick. “You and your human may be innocent of those charges, but not of the others. Do you deny the theft of Guild property?”

  Jorick snorted contemptuously. “If you mean the car, then I do. It was already stolen when it was given to me.”

  “Was it? Perhaps it was a stroke of luck that you took it. Without its tracking device, we would not have been sure where you’d gone.” Malick smiled as Jorick’s eyes narrowed. “You were right, my son. It was bad luck.”

  He leaned back in the chair. “And what of the murder of my Executioners? In the last month we have come to replace three, thanks to you and yours, and a fourth may yet be needed. Do you not find that number excessive?”

  “They were killed in self-defense.”

  “According to a statement made by the lone survivor of the last fracas, the attack was unprovoked, except that they expressed suspicion towards your human. Would an entire coven fight for her?” He pointed to Katelina and all eyes followed. Her cheeks turned scarlet at the sudden attention and hostility. “Is she so exceptional? Or was she merely an excuse for more ambitious plans?”

  “It had nothing to do with her.”

  “Then explain this to me. Why were Dismas and Zuri murdered so mercilessly?”

  “Zuri is still alive. Or was.”

  “Regardless, why were you and your fledgling so eager to attack?”

  Jorick’s mouth snapped shut and he looked away.

  “You have no answer?” He stood. “I have reached a conclusion.” He waited for the clamor to die down. “On the nine counts of murder I find Jorick and his marked human innocent. She does not possess the disposition for such acts, whether ordered to do so or no. But,” he paused and a slow smile spread over his face. “I find Jorick guilty of assisting in the unprovoked murder of one Executioner and the kidnapping and imprisonment of another.
”

  Though Jorick didn’t flinch, Katelina had to cover her mouth. Her terrified eyes darted around the room in search of a miracle. If Verchiel was going to appear, now was the time, though God only knew what difference he could make.

  “I will now pass sentence. Jorick, you believe you have the right to take the lives of those you deem unworthy. Perhaps when next you meet one of our agents, you will not be so quick to pass your own sentence on them, for you will make recompense for what you have taken away. As you are directly responsible for the death of at least one Executioner, you will take his place.”

  The Hall burst into shouts of outrage and surprise. The smug expression slipped from Senya’s face and she howled, “He’s a criminal! He shouldn’t be rewarded!”

  “You can’t be serious?” Eileifr demanded.

  Jorick shouted over the noise, “No! You can replace them with one of the greater guards! That’s why they exist!”

  Eileifr stood and a precarious silence descended. “He speaks true. We have many able bodied guards who could fill the post.”

  “Bah!” The word echoed from the walls, as if the room vibrated with Malick’s disdain. “How many masters are there? How old is the eldest guard? Three hundred? Jorick is older by at least two centuries! That is why he can kill them at a whim! Where are our powerful vampires? Where are our ancients? They are gone! They are dust, and we are left with these excuses for valor and power!” He made a sweeping motion to indicate the room’s occupants. “The time has come to gather our strengths together, to rid ourselves of the weak and the powerless, to purge the vampire bloodlines!”

  The room erupted in a chorus of angry disapproval. Katelina stared with horrified eyes. Malick was insane!

  Obi shook his head. “What you speak is-”

  “The truth.” Malick smiled with self importance. “I have made my decree and, unless any can challenge me, it will stand.” He swept up his robes and descended from the platform. Without a glance at Jorick’s furious face and shaking hands, he marched towards the chamber doors and called back, “Greneth, show the human to her new quarters. Jorick, to me!”

  No one moved. Then the Executioners split up. Jamie and Beldren took Jorick’s arms and tried to haul him after their master. He growled and shook them off. His dark eyes cut across the room and met Katelina’s. Their depths burned with a scorching fury she’d never seen before.

  Greneth grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. Jorick bounded towards them. She was barely upright before he slammed Greneth to the floor. The room full of vampires shouted and clamored. Obi and Eileifr quickly dismissed the council and ordered everyone out.

  Greneth leapt to his feet, his fists ready and Jorick snarled, “Keep your hands off her or they’ll be short another Executioner!”

  Greneth snorted in contempt. “I’m not afraid of you.”

  They crashed into one another and grappled furiously. The surrounding clamor grew less and less as the bystanders scurried away. When Celandine shouted, her words echoed, “How can you make him an Executioner? You can’t even control him!”

  “Of course I can.” Malick nodded once at Senya. She moved quickly and grabbed Katelina, one arm around her neck and the other around her middle. Katelina was torn between terror and fury, then settled on the latter. One day she was going to kill Senya herself!

  Jorick threw Greneth to the floor and Malick shouted, “Stop!”

  Jorick looked up to see Katelina’s captivity and his face twisted. He growled; a long, low sound that reminded Katelina of a cornered animal. His white knuckled fists clenched and unclenched. “Let her go, Senya.”

  “And so she shall, once you have done as you’re told.” Malick snapped his fingers and pointed to the space next to him. “To me!”

  Indecision was chased across Jorick’s face by rage. “Let her go,” he commanded, then, he strode to his master.

  Malick’s smile was smug as he turned to the shocked council members. “You see? He is controlled easily enough.” He turned to the others. “Jamie, take her to her room. I believe something on the fifth floor will suffice until Dismas’s quarters can be cleaned out. Greneth, Senya, Beldren, Griselda, with me.”

  Senya half threw Katelina to Jamie. He caught her with a single hand and held her up while she caught her balance. She looked to Jorick but he refused to meet her eyes as he followed Malick out of the room.

  Jamie tried to smile. “Come. We’ll find you a room.”

  She hesitated as he started for the door, her eyes on the Masters.

  “This is outrageous!” Celandine cried. “This cannot be allowed!”

  Heng shook his head. “It is as it is. None of us can challenge him.”

  “But to employ a promotion as punishment?” Celandine insisted. “How long can he use the human as a means of control? It is a mistake!”

  Eileifr nodded. “Yes, it is, but it is his mistake, and it will be his undoing.” He turned his head and gazed into Katelina’s startled eyes. “Go. Your escort waits.”

  Without question, she hurried after Jamie, her heart racing in her chest.

  **********

  Chapter Sixteen

  Katelina was escorted to a room just off the fifth floor terrace. Jamie told her she could order food to be delivered and then left her. Though he wasn’t as terrifying as most of the others, she was glad to be free of him.

  Her new accommodations were like the ones she’d shared with Oren and Jorick on their last visit, though the furniture was different. Instead of three coffins and two twin beds, this one had a double bed and one coffin. The seating area was the same: a couch, two chairs and a low table, though they’d gained a TV and a mini fridge. The closet and bathroom were the same and, instead of a window, there was a painting whose blue and green hues were probably meant to imitate ocean waves. Outside, the terrace overlooked the six story atrium, but she couldn’t bring herself to go look at it.

  She dropped into a chair and stared at her hands. Malick couldn’t really make Jorick work for them! He couldn’t!

  Her stomach growled and she realized she hadn’t had anything to eat since breakfast yesterday. She found the number for the sixth floor restaurant on a laminated sheet and called in her order. The meal was delivered by a young man with thick scars on his neck. He handed her food over and gave her a conspiratorial wink before he disappeared; one vampire lover acknowledging another. Only she wasn’t really. She wasn’t a junkie like the others. She wasn’t addicted.

  She played at eating and took a shower, then flopped on the bed and turned on the TV. With the immediate danger past, her wrist throbbed. She thought of pain killers. With no one else to ask, she called the restaurant. The woman who answered was curt, but the same young man returned with an unopened bottle of aspirin and a glass of milk.

  The news had a recap of last night’s New Year’s celebrations and she all but smacked herself in the forehead. She’d wanted to do something special at midnight; instead she and Jorick had been unconscious, traveling on an airplane to the citadel. If that was really a sign of the year to come, then it was a year she would happily skip!

  Hours passed. She expected Verchiel to show up, but he still hadn’t by the time Jorick slammed the door and stalked into the room, his muscles tense with fury.

  Katelina threw herself at him and he wrapped his arms around her. It was a moment before he spoke.

  “You’re all right?”

  She nodded against his chest. “I ordered dinner and watched TV all night.”

  He drew back to gaze at her. His face softened, but anger stayed in his eyes.

  Her smile faltered. “Why is he doing this?”

  Jorick released her. He moved to the couch and sat down wearily. “Malick is amusing himself.”

  “What about all those things he said about wiping out weak vampires?”

  Jorick snorted. “That’s the point. I should have seen it, especially after our conversation the last time we were here.” He ran an irritated hand thr
ough his hair. “He deems the vampires weak and hoped for a ‘worthy adversary’ from genetically enhanced humans. He had Senya kidnap Kale and give him to the humans, after he’d used another human to help them renovate their facilities.”

  Katelina sat down next to him and laid a comforting hand on his knee. “Then why did he send Verchiel and Senya?”

  Jorick scowled at the name. “The Executioners he sent were ordered to kill Kale and leave the research intact. Officially, Kale would have been killed by the humans.”

  She bit her lip. “Then why did Verchiel let us go?”

  “I don’t know! Maybe you should ask him?” She flinched at his anger and he relented. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what he was thinking.”

  Next was the question she was afraid to ask. “How long are we going to be here?”

  “Until Malick has been sufficiently amused.” She sagged and he added, “The council doesn’t approve. Malick acts as though he alone is in charge. This time he may have gone too far.”

  She remembered the masters’ conversation and nodded. Despite Jorick’s optimism, she had a bad feeling.

  A knock woke them the next evening. It was Beldren. He surveyed Jorick coolly. “Malick has called for you.”

  Jorick was equally frosty and far more sarcastic. “Thank you, Beldren.”

  “I’m sorry, but you can’t expect to be welcomed back when Zuri is still missing.”

  “I never asked for your welcome.” They stared at one another and then Jorick added, “I had nothing to do with him. Senya was my target.”

  “You might suggest your fledgling release him.”

  “I already have.”

  They stared at one another a moment longer and then Beldren broke away. He turned back to add, “Malick said for you to hurry.”

  “You can tell him I hurry for no one.” Then Jorick slammed the door.

  Katelina propped herself up on one elbow and asked mournfully, “Again?”