Caged

by J. A. Belfield

  Just like before, shadows dominated the curved walkway as I stepped out and headed off to the right.

  My bearings insisted the main exit had to be on the opposite side of the building.

  No matter. I had no intention of staying in the place that long.

  It took possibly less than a minute with my rapid-tiptoed pace before I spotted illumination ahead.

  Good.

  Daytime.

  Not that it made that much difference. Even in the light, I didn’t seem to be a match for vampires.

  I picked up my speed. As soon as the space opened up to the looming windows, I ducked off into the alcove. Striding across to our exit, I scanned the outline of the panel and almost groaned upon locating the catch—fifteen feet up. I could have reached it, if I jumped, but I couldn’t do that without some kind of collision with the window, which would have resulted in more noise than any of us dared make.

  Lauren’s eyes still held their roundness—not what I’d hoped to see.

  “Lauren?” I kept my voice low.

  A tiny flutter of her lashes told me she’d heard, but I received no further response.

  “Lauren?” I tried again, a gentle prod despite the voice in my head screaming at me to hurry up. “How you feeling?”

  Her eyes flickered off to the side; a shiver raced through her rigid body.

  I lifted my head to Brook and Samuel, both staring hard at the girl like they could drill her brain into snapping out of it. Behind them, Kyle and Gabe aimed their eyes and flared nostrils toward the corridor we’d left.

  Peering back down at Lauren, I deepened my voice: “Lauren, come on.”

  Samuel took a step forward, his hands on his hips. “What’s the matter with her?” He strode round the small space before coming back full circle. “Lauren?”

  “You will frighten the girl further, growling at her that way.” Brook nudged him aside, and moved in to lean close to Lauren’s level. “We could really use your help right now, Lauren.”

  A breath hitched up from the girl’s chest—a tiny reaction, but one all the same.

  “The windows are our fastest way out of here,” Brook said, as Samuel paced left. “And you are our best chance of getting those windows open.”

  Samuel spun back. “Let me jump for it—or maybe we should just find something to break the glass.”

  “Too noisy,” Kyle said.

  “Please, Lauren.” Brook drew a straggle of the girl’s hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ear. “Time is not on our side, and I would prefer not to see ourselves back behind those bars, so if you’re listening …”

  “I can’t stand here doing nothing,” Samuel said.

  Brook sent him a glower before turning back to the young girl. “If you are listening to me at all … you must not want to go ba—”

  A screech drew all eyes to the window catch as it made a southward click.

  My lips funnelled with my expelled breath. “Nice job.” I nodded to Brook, inclined my chin toward the window. “You want to do the honours?”

  Her eyes deepened to pure amber as a smile curved her lips. “It would be my pleasure.”

  27

  Kyle’s frown creased his brow whilst his eyes scanned left and right. “Um …”

  Standing outside the castle-like building, beside the other four in our party, including a semi-alert Lauren, I mirrored his search of the landscape.

  To the left: green.

  To the right: green.

  Straight ahead: more bloody green.

  Supposing, of course, we looked beyond what appeared to be the remnant, empty ditch of a moat—around seventy feet away—that seemed to circle the entire building. If I screwed my eyes up just right, browns and oranges offered the occasional punctuation. Whichever direction we chose to travel, I figured we had some walking ahead of us.

  “I want you to switch places with me and take the lead.” I took in Kyle’s face—shadowed by the stone walls of the castle and full of concern. “Just get as far from here, as fast as you can, until you come across a bush … something … or anything to duck behind, where we can scour again for any signs of life that don’t involve vampires.”

  His gaze swung to me. “And you?”

  “Gabe and I’ll be right behind. If we lag, I’ll sniff you out.”

  “Yeah, ’cause you’ll have no chance of finding us out there in that maze.”

  The twitch of my eyebrow would have let him know I didn’t appreciate his sarcasm.

  His expression sobered. “The ditch is going to be a problem.”

  “It’s around ten feet wide, at a guess—not much different to the forest river at home. Maybe fifteen, twenty feet deep …” I pursed my lips, offered a shrug. “Not a problem for you. I’m not so sure about Brook or Lauren. You might have to go into-and-out of it, instead of over.”

  “Just what I was thinking.” Kyle nodded. “Good job it’s empty … but, with Lauren having no physical abilities, it’ll still add time on getting her across.”

  “Then quit wasting it talking to me.”

  Kyle breathed out a laugh before waving Lauren closer. “We’re going that way,”—he pointed across the endless moorland—“and I want you to stick near me, so I can help you. Okay?”

  Lauren gave him a nod.

  “Good.” To me, Kyle said, “Send the others behind me.” He strode off, covering a few metres before backtracking to take Lauren’s wrist when she failed to shadow him.

  They crossed the unshielded lawn, and when they’d gone over halfway to the moat without interruption, I nodded to Samuel to follow, and he took his turn.

  Less than a minute later, Brook’s pursuit left Gabe and me alone.

  After watching her take a few elegant bounds across the grass, I patted Gabe’s shoulder. “Come on, kid, let’s go.”

  His long-loped jog matched mine. With nothing but dusty concrete and grime to walk on for days, the soles of my feet welcomed the moist grass, and my toes curled over to embrace the blades with each union.

  Ahead of us, Kyle and Lauren made the descent into the moat until only Kyle’s shoulders remained visible. Samuel had less than fifteen yards to pass before he joined them.

  “Wh-what d’you think’s g-g-gonna h-happen?” Gabe pressed a fist to his skull—over his stutter giving him grief, I figured, as much as anything else.

  “To you?”

  “No.” He aimed his thumb in a point behind us. “This lot.”

  Ahead, Samuel had vanished from sight, and Brook neared the moat. “First things first. We get ourselves home. Then, we come back with reinforcements and clean this mess up.”

  “Wh-what if they up and go? Wh-what if you come back and everything’s already been cleaned up.” His voice grew deeper, revealing his emotions. “Who-whose gonna pay for this fuckup then?”

  “Don’t worry, Gabe. I’ve already thought of it. I need to ask you a question, though.”

  “O-k-kay.” A frown accompanied Gabe’s guarded response.

  “The other kid—your friend you were with when …” I trailed off as he faced me, pausing a beat before asking, “What happened to him?”

  Gabe’s eyes darted off to the side as a twitch of flesh seemed to linger in his shoulder. “I d-didn’t stay awake long … w-w-with what they pumped in me. I was out p-pretty quick.” His stare came back to mine. “But I st-st-stank of him … when I woke up.” He winced but kept moving. “I had C-Colum’s blood on m-m-m-me. And his p-piss …” His jaw tightened, the sudden blankness to his face telling me I’d prompted him to remember something he’d rather not. “Sick, too …” His nod arrived as a jerk.

  “Okay, Gabe.” I squeezed his shoulder, to calm as much as reassure. “It’ll be okay.”

  Nearing th
e huge ditch, I slowed to a stop.

  With one hop, Gabe landed at the bottom in the middle of the void. He slammed to halt, glanced back my way. “Aren’t you c-coming?”

  “Tell Kyle I’m heading back in to do what needs to be done,” I said, squatting on the grassy ledge.

  “Then, I’m c-coming with you.”

  “No.” I shook my head.

  “You c-can’t ask me to—”

  I held up my hand to stop him. “I’m not asking you. I’m telling you, Gabe.”

  “B-but …”

  “I vowed to get you out. I’ve done that. Now, I need you to do as I say so I can uphold that promise and keep you there—because I will not have the alternative on my conscience.”

  Reluctance coated his nod as he blew out a heavy breath.

  “Tell Kyle where I’ve gone,” I said. “Tell him to keep going forward, and I’ll find you. And, Gabe, once you’re all regrouped?” I waited until I had his full attention again. “Promise me you won’t scare the girl.”

  Something akin to pain entered his eyes. “I … I didn’t m-mean it. I didn’t—”

  “I know you didn’t. Now,”—I flicked a finger toward the far side—“get going.”

  Though his downturned mouth told me he was far from happy about my order, he turned away, and a two-step run led him into his leap for the far side.

  Only once his feet pounded grass toward where the others had headed did I turn back, and I matched his action in the opposite direction—toward the building where we’d just escaped.

  I knew exactly where to go, knew exactly what I was going in there for. I just hoped my assumption would turn out to be fruitful. The more of us there were, the more conspicuous we’d have been, and no way on earth would I have seen any of them back in a cage.

  Upon reaching the window, I stood to the side and peeked through.

  No movement met my scrutiny.

  I pried my fingers into the sliver I’d left ready for my return and swung the huge pane open until wide enough for me to pass through.

  I paused just outside, inhaled, studied.

  A twitch of my ears caught the rapid pace of running behind me. The breeze swirled the scent around my face, exposing who approached. I gritted my teeth against the curse balancing on my tongue tip, and made a slow turn to the panther racing across the grass.

  Her black coat glistened like silk in the natural light of day with each muscular thrust toward me. Five metres away, paws became feet and hands, fur departed in a tidal wave as flesh moved in, and her running frame heightened to vertical without a glitch to her stride. “You are the biggest pain in my behind I have ever met.” Her words spat out on an enraged whisper as she marched forward pointing at me. “And your idiotic … unselfish attitude”—her fingertip prodded my chest—“will more than likely get you killed.” I went to speak, but she shoved past to the opening I thought I’d done a good job of blocking. “Going back in there is a stupid idea.” Once she’d pushed the pane closed, she turned to me. “So how about you tell me what is so important you would risk going back in for it?”

  My growl of frustration tried to escape—almost succeeded. “We haven’t time for this, Brook.” I took her arm, slid her to the left of the opening. “That we got out of there at all with no more than the Blues Brothers to oppose us is a damn miracle. I doubt our luck is going to hold out for much longer.”

  Her mouth set in a line I’d come to recognise as determination. “Then condense and spit it out.”

  I tilted my face to the sky, let out a low groan, and looked back at her. “Okay, listen. This operation is run by humans.” Somebody had pulled Catherine’s strings throughout, and my money was on them—especially with the number present during the fight. “You agree?”

  Her palms lifted as her face creased.

  “Funded by humans, then? This is their enterprise the vampires are running for them.”

  She gave a small nod. “I believe that, yes.”

  “In human law, even underground fight clubs involving their own kind are highly illegal. That’s why they’re underground.” I leaned a palm against the stonework, using my other hand to brush sweaty hair from my forehead. “Usually mob-type folks are at the wheel of the enterprise. No one crosses them. Most people are afraid to open their mouths.”

  “Okay.”

  “It’s a tight run ship. Those who are in on it, or have exclusive membership into those kinds of clubs, are hand selected. Or they come by referral or recommendation.”

  “How do you know all this?”

  I stared off across the grounds, eyes squinting a little when the sun poked its face through a break in the clouds. “I watch a lot of … films.”

  Her sultry laugh drew my attention back down to her. Although her curved lips straightened, the sparkle remained in her eyes. “You have a point?”

  “My point is that I doubt any one of the humans who come in here to watch these pit-fights are permitted entry without producing ID as some form of insurance. And I’d bet each and every one of them are filed away somewhere on record—again, as insurance—should one of them talk and blow the whistle on this.” Eager to get moving, I rushed through each word to get the explanation out quicker. “Even with who—what—they have fighting, they would not want the authorities to find out about something this illegal—especially not when the level of entertainment probably brings in a way higher income than a regular underground fight club.”

  “So, you came back in to look for the records?”

  “Yes. If I can find those records, I should have a complete list of anyone who’s ever witnessed the werewolf changes, and your shifts, the vampires’ existence and abilities. This is a fucking mess, and no way on earth can any of us risk this level of exposure.” I unclenched hands I’d unconsciously fisted, relaxed my tightened jaw. “Sooner or later, one of these power hungry bastards will talk to the wrong person, even if only by accident. Don’t forget, they have each of our names, too. It won’t only be exposure for our races but for us as individuals. I’m not going to take the risk of that happening.”

  “Where do you think they’ll be—the records, that is?”

  “Only place I can imagine them being. In Catherine’s office.” I pushed away from the wall but dipped my face to her level. “Now you know that, you sure you still want to come?”

  “Of course.”

  I ducked aside to the window. “We’re so going to get caught.”

  • • •

  Back inside, I stopped where the wall of the open space curved round to join the passageway, my outstretched arm bringing Brook to a standstill.

  Sticking my head out, I peered both ways. I’d already learned the hard way that my olfactory wouldn’t detect all threats. If anyone loitered, the thudding inside my chest would have given us away, but no one jumped out at us; no one attacked.

  All’s quiet on the Western Front. Too quiet.

  Breathing out through barely parted lips, I motioned for Brook to follow, and we slipped from our spot.

  She peered back over her shoulder as we walked. ‘Where is everyone?’ she mouthed to me.

  I shrugged, though the hairs across the back of my neck stood high. We’d not only got everyone out but had managed to slip back in without deterrence, so what holes had everyone disappeared into?

  More to the point, what holes will they all jump out of?

  Straining my ears for any sounds, I kept going. Nothing but our duet of padding feet reached me, until the opening of a door rang out somewhere to our rear.

  I grabbed Brook and swung her back against the wall.

  Upon the impact, she burst out a grunt, and another when I pressed against her. I whipped my hand up, smothered her mouth to prevent further sound.

  Yeah, ‘cause this’ll hide us.


  Turning away from her wide eyes, I stared toward the sound, Brook’s rapid breaths coating my palm in condensation.

  Shoes tapped against the floor of the stone walkway, each one sending a quiet echo that seemed to boomerang from one side to the next.

  I tried to suppress my own breaths to avoid being heard, yet my chest still rose and fell hard against Brook’s cheek.

  The volume of the steps lessened. I didn’t move for a few beats. Only once they’d faded out did I allow myself to relax.

  My exhale fluttered Brook’s hair. ‘Keep moving’, I mouthed as I released her.

  Twenty more paces. No more disturbances. Still, the lack of interruption made me uneasy.

  Nudging my concerns aside, I halted outside the entrance Joseph and Chad had accompanied me through earlier.

  My gentle tug of the door revealed the spiral staircase, and I leaned in close to Brook’s ear. “Catherine’s office is through here.” I turned away to poke my face into the cool turret, listening for any signs of overhead movement. Brook’s breaths hit my shoulder, her fingers folded around my arm. When no sounds drifted down, I chanced a step inside, pausing to listen again.

  “Anything?” Brook murmured.

  Placing a finger to my lips, I twisted to enable her to see before using the same finger to point toward the stairs. At her nod, I padded forward to the first step and continued up a few more when still no noise offered concern.

  Brook’s body heat and hair swishing across my lumbar told me she’d spun and opted for a back-to-back position. Made sense with all the blind spots on the staircase—cover all angles, less chance of being taken by surprise. Her fingers grasped onto the denim of my jeans legs, and we started the climb.

  Less than two minutes later, almost overheating from Brook’s constant contact, I came to a halt and stared up at the opening into Catherine’s office.

  Brook’s hair tickled my hip as she released her grip of my jeans legs and leaned round me. She didn’t complain when I took her arm and swung her back to the wall beside me and signalled for her to stay put.

  After all, both of us striding into potential disaster would be suicide. I preferred to go in knowing I had backup the vampires hadn’t spotted.