by J. C. Diem
He has no idea that I’m going to end up in two pieces once this is all done. The thought depressed me but I tried to hide it. I wasn’t about to turn down help from a possible ally.
“Where do you think she’ll head next?” Luc asked.
“She’s been heading due north for the past few days,” Gregor mused. “Isabella’s estate would be the next logical target for her if she remains on this course.”
“Great, give Isabella a call and see if the imposter has come knocking,” I suggested and received twin wry looks in response.
“Isabella does not use a telephone,” Luc said as if I should have known this.
Of course not, that would be too convenient. “Don’t tell me,” I held up a hand to stop any explanations from being voiced. “She’s as ancient as dirt and doesn’t believe in using modern technology like electricity and plumbing.”
“Correct,” Gregor said with a nod. “If we hurry, we can make it to her estate within two hours.”
“I suggest we leave immediately,” Luc responded and stood. He retrieved his sword while Gregor called for a guard. He asked for a replacement coat and for a vehicle to be readied. The guard gave a curt nod and a quick salute then took off at a run.
“To the Batmobile,” I muttered quietly and hurried after the two men when they headed for the door.
·~·
Chapter Thirty-Two
Luc and I sat in our car and waited for Gregor to reappear. He’d disappeared around the side of the mansion, followed by a couple of guards. After a short wait, our ally made his appearance in the front passenger seat of a van. My acute hearing told me the black vehicle was crammed full of guards. The window tinting was dark enough that I could only just make out the curtains that had been hung on the inside. Even the windscreen had a curtain ready to be drawn against the sun’s deadly rays.
There were no such handy precautions in our car. We were hoping to search Isabella’s place, take care of the imposter then hole up somewhere before dawn could rise up and strike us down. I had serious doubts we’d really catch up to her so quickly but we had to be prepared for a confrontation. Luc took the lead and Gregor’s van followed closely behind.
“Why do you trust Gregor?” I asked to break a silence that was quickly becoming monotonous. The country road we were on was rough and potholed. The car sank into a dip then bounced back out again. I came close to biting off the tip of my tongue.
“We have a long history,” Luc explained unhelpfully and swerved to avoid the next divot.
“Try not to overwhelm me with information, Luc.”
He slanted a look at me then returned to the road. “When my master was...killed, I needed some time away from the Court. I’d met Gregor several times when he was forced to attend meetings held by the Councillors. Usually, they were in relation to the Japanese vampires. Gregor saw how I was treated and offered me refuge if I ever won my way free.”
“Who killed your master?” I asked for the second time. There had been something fishy about the way he’d said that that raised my curiosity.
“The Comtesse,” he said in a clipped tone.
“Surprise, surprise,” I murmured, completely unsurprised. I was surprised that he’d answered me honestly this time. “Why did she kill her?”
“For treason.” From the way his lips thinned, I guessed I wouldn’t get much more about that particular subject from him.
“So, after your master died, you went to visit Gregor and he let you stay with him for a while?”
“Yes,” Luc inclined his head. “He showed me what life could be like outside of the Court. It doesn’t all have to be about blood and sex.”
“You gave up the sex part,” I remembered.
“And I am glad it is part of my life once more,” he said silkily. Picking up my hand by the fingertips, he carefully avoided my palm and placed a kiss on the back of it.
“You’re smooth,” I complimented him and wished we could pull over for a quickie. If Gregor and his van full of guards hadn’t been right behind us, I might have suggested it.
“Centuries of practice,” he said then his mood turned dark again.
“What happens after I kill the imposter?”
Startled at the turn of conversation, Luc frowned at the road ahead. “I really have no idea what the future will hold for either of us once you have accomplished that task.”
“If I’m supposed to be the doom of us all, does that mean I’ll go on a vampire killing spree?” I didn’t feel in a very killing spree sort of mood right now but I couldn’t read the future either. Something bad could happen that might change my mind and make killing anything that sprouted fangs seem like a good idea.
“Let’s just take one step at a time,” Luc suggested.
Against my will, my head turned until I was looking at the back seat. Luc’s sword, shiny and silver, lay there waiting to be used. Hi there, Nat, I could almost hear it thinking with cheerful malevolence. We have an appointment to keep and I’m really looking forward to it!
I tried to tell myself that I had years, possibly centuries before my head would depart from my neck. It would take time to track down most of the vampires in the world and turn them into puddles of slime. So why did I feel like the end was lurking just around the corner?
·~·
Chapter Thirty-Three
Isabella’s estate was a smaller version of Gregor’s. Her mansion was similar but had only two stories instead of three. It was ominously quiet and no movement could be seen from the building or grounds as we pulled into the driveway. Gregor’s van followed us closely enough that I could see his concerned expression when I turned to stare over my shoulder. His driver’s face was stony and grim.
Crows, up way past their bedtime, lined the low stone fence that ran down either side of the driveway. They seemed to stare right at me as we drove past. A stiff breeze ruffled their feathers. One gave a low caw that sounded like a prophecy of doom.
Shivering, I turned my attention to the grounds. They were well kept but no late night gardeners toiled away at their duties. Twice, we drove over suspicious dark spots on the gravel driveway. The remains of vampire guards? I was pretty sure they weren’t simply oil slicks from leaking cars. Not with the empty clothing and dropped weapons that accompanied the stains.
Twin doors made of dark red wood that might have been mahogany, stood open in a parody of invitation. As we stepped out of the car, we spied more suspicious moist patches on the driveway and steps. Gregor joined us as we hesitated at the entrance. His brows drew down and he shook his head as his contingent of guards drew short swords. “That will not be necessary, gentlemen,” he told his uneasy men. “The damage has already been done, I fear, and the culprit is long gone.”
I agreed with his assessment of the situation. If anyone had survived, they had fled from the scene. Luc and I followed Gregor when he stepped inside. Signs of battle could be seen throughout the entryway. The imposter had fought her way into the mansion and up the staircase, going by the gouges and tears in the wallpaper where stray sword blows had landed. Once immaculate wooden balustrades had been splintered in places and hacked apart in others. Puddles and empty clothing of the fallen marked the carpeted staircases as we made our way up to the second floor.
We followed the path of destruction to the end of a hallway. Uselessly, several vampires had tried to guard the bedchamber of the mistress of the estate. Pushing open the remaining half of the door, Luc stepped over their vestiges and into the ornate bedroom. The furniture was a bit girly and fussy for me. My tastes didn’t tend toward so much pink and pillows with frills on them. Isabella’s clearly had.
A gigantic four poster bed showed clear signs of a struggle. Feathers littered the bed and floor from a pale pink pillow that had been stabbed to death. Satin sheets in hot pink had been sliced right through to the mattress. A filmy nightie, pink of course, lay in the middle of the bed. Streaks of black gore splattered the walls. The spreading blemish on the linen
must have belonged to the late Isabella. A heavy gold necklace and multitude of rings were scattered throughout the mess.
“Isabella put up a hell of a fight,” Gregor said and I believed I detected grief in his gaze before he averted his face.
“Where would she head next?” Luc asked grimly. His hand was clenched around his sword hilt in a white knuckled grip.
Rousing himself from his despair, Gregor didn’t have to contemplate long. “The Stravovsky estate would be the next place to attack.”
“I don’t suppose they have a phone?” I muttered.
“As a matter of fact,” Luc said as he pulled his mobile phone out of his pocket, “he does. I only hope our warning will not come too late.”
Gregor and I listened in on the conversation, able to hear both sides easily enough. Luc warned a guard at Stravovsky’s place that the imposter was on her way. Fortunately, she hadn’t arrived yet. It was too late for her to attack now, dawn was too close. She would arrive not long after nightfall was his guess. The guard replied that he would make sure the place was fortified and that they would try to hold on until we got there.
Igor arrived as the conversation wound down. He gave me a curt nod and Gregor a more respectful one. Geordie was nowhere to be seen. He was probably hiding out in the car. I wished I could join him and leave the hunt up to people better equipped to deal with it than I was.
“We missed her,” Igor said flatly as Luc hung up the phone.
“We’ll get her tomorrow,” was Luc’s grim promise. A glance was enough to warn Gregor to keep my identity a secret. Everyone would find out about me soon enough. Too soon for my liking if we did catch up with the imposter tomorrow night. Then the screaming and fleeing would begin. Gregor’s lips twisted wryly, indicating that he would keep his peace, for now.
We all chose bedrooms in Isabella’s empty mansion to spend the day in. Luc didn’t follow me into the room I’d picked as I’d secretly hoped he would. He gave me a distracted smile and headed down the corridor. He obviously wasn’t in the mood for naked acrobatics. Shutting the door, I slid the bolt then wondered if I should leave it unlocked in case he changed his mind. The thought that Geordie was slinking somewhere around the mansion prevented me from unbolting it. I didn’t want to wake up with him in my bed again. Once had been enough.
Tired but restless, I wandered over to the window and drew the curtain. Boards had been nailed over the glass from the inside. I remembered seeing shutters on the outside as we’d driven up. Isabella hadn’t taken any chances. The curtain was thick and was backed by heavy sun-blocking fabric. After one quick peek, I’d picked this room because it didn’t have girly frills. It was decorated in shades of soothing green. I could use some soothing right about now. It had been sorely lacking in my life lately.
I felt the dawn coming and hurried over to the bed. Stripping down to my shirt, I slid beneath the covers and waited to fall asleep. The sun rose, heat baked against the triple layer of protection on the window, but I didn’t drift off. Lying there, wide awake, I wondered what the hell was going on. Just like an ancient vampire, I could now resist the magic that made us die at dawn. It hadn’t just been a once off as I’d hoped.
For several hours I lay in bed, worrying about the future. Then I grew bored. Closing my eyes, I willed myself to sleep. It worked and I fell into a doze. A dark and disturbing dream formed.
Luc stood before me wearing an expression of misery. His sword was in his hand with the tip resting on the floor. He said something to me but it came out without sound. Then the silver blade was in the air, swinging at me in a deadly arc. It moved too fast to be avoided even if I hadn’t been rooted to the ground with shock.
The blade connected and my head flew through the air. It bounced on a white marbled floor and rolled for a few feet before coming to rest at an angle where I could see my body. I watched as my body fell to its knees in slow motion. Several vampire lackeys fell on it with their swords swinging. Dark red blood flew as they dismembered my limbs. My mouth opened but the scream I wanted to voice remained silent.
Choking on my dream scream, I started at a knock. “Natalie, it is time to go,” Luc said through the door.
“Be there in a minute,” I called back, forgetting that yelling wasn’t necessary with our enhanced hearing. By the time I was dressed, I had calmed down. It’s just a dream. There’s no way that is going to happen to you. Luc might be destined to behead me but I was fairly certain he wouldn’t let anyone hack my body to pieces afterwards.
Geordie made an appearance when we gathered in a large dining hall on the first floor. He looked as sullen as ever but flicked me a small smile. He’d upgraded his weapon from a meat cleaver to a short sword but didn’t handle it with any more confidence.
“We will head directly to Strovovsky’s estate,” Luc was saying to the gathering. “It should only take us an hour to travel there. If we are lucky, we will find the imposter still on the grounds.”
“Why do you call her that?” one of Gregor’s men asked. “I saw the holy marks on her hands. She is Mortis.” Superstitious fright ran through the crowd. I felt the beginnings of panic stirring amongst them.
“I assure you, she is not,” Gregor said and put a hand on the frightened man’s shoulder. “She has only one of the signs and they could be easily manufactured.” The vamp allowed himself to be soothed and relaxed under the calm stare of his boss. “She ran from holy water just as fast as you or I would.”
“You mean the real Mortis is immune to holy water?” one of the other men asked in dismay. I sure am, I thought cheerfully but hid my private glee. There are lots of things that don’t hurt me. The couple of things that could hurt me very badly were sunlight and having my head chopped off. My brief good mood evaporated at the reminder.
“Yes,” Luc responded. “She will also be able to handle holy objects and fire will have no effect on her.”
“How do you know this?” the second guard asked.
“He has read the same texts as I have,” Gregor interjected smoothly. “The Prophet’s ramblings have been documented on the few occasions he has made sense. The Councillors have copies and make them available to Lords and Ladies who wish to read them.”
I hid my amusement at the paltry explanation. I had possession of a text that no man, save Luc, had ever seen. The prophet’s journal was currently hidden in the boot of Luc’s car, alongside the book about the demi-god. Something fluttered at the back of my mind about Alexander’s book. An idea had been niggling in the back of my mind. It tried once more to form but then we were on the move and I had to shelve it. If it was important, it would come back to me. We had a more immediate problem to deal with right now. It’s time to take down the imposter. I mentally cracked my knuckles in nervous preparation.
By sticking to twenty kilometres above the speed limit, we made it to Strovovsky’s place in less than an hour. Sounds of mayhem reached us as our vehicles bolted through the open gates one after the other. A fight was raging within the mansion. Luc slammed on the brakes and we skidded to a halt on the loose gravel. He was leaping out of the car and opening the back door to reach for his weapon before I’d even unbuckled myself. Sword in hand, he was first through the smashed front doors.
Following much more slowly, Geordie and I allowed the group to precede us and brought up the rear. Eyes wide and solemn, Geordie looked more human than vampire in his fright and even younger than his mortal years. “I do not like this, chérie,” he whispered and huddled closer to me.
“Me either, Geordie.” Since I was almost twice his age in mortal years, I felt I should at least try to be braver than he was and headed inside.
Noisome blotches, empty clothing and dropped weapons made temporary headstones where the inhabitants had fallen. Entering a large sitting room, equipped with impressive antique furniture, I halted at the sight of our quarry. Luc, Igor, Gregor and his six men surrounded a lone female. So, that’s my imposter, I thought with grim fascination.
We were exactly the same height, I noticed straight away. She was as slender as me but infinitely more deadly. Dressed from head to toe in black leather, she looked like a fifteen year old boy’s wet dream. Long midnight black hair was held back in a high ponytail. Throwing knives hung from a belt slung low over her hips. I was relieved to see my dream had been only partially true; her black leather suit was the same but her face wasn’t made of shadow. Her famous spear twirled in a deadly circle as she dared the men to close in.
Luc lunged forward then danced back as the wickedly sharp spear suddenly arced in his direction. Igor dived in and slashed at the imposter. With a girlish laugh, she back-flipped gracefully out of his reach then playfully shook a finger at him. “You’ll have to do better than that,” she taunted. Not just her dark eyes were oriental, her accent was as well.
Foolishly, one of Gregor’s men took a chance and rushed the imposter. Moving with lightning speed, she whirled in a tight circle and chopped the man’s sword arm off. Screaming in agony, he clutched at his sluggishly spurting stump. Gregor uttered a wordless cry as the imposter almost casually spitted his man through the heart, ending his agony and his life.
Taking the flask I’d picked up off Gregor’s floor out of my back pocket, I uncapped it. I’d had the vague idea that it might come in handy and now it would. Lobbing it in a high arc, I yelled out a warning: “Fire in the hole!” I’d always wanted to say that but had never imagined I’d use it in a scenario like this.
Startled, Luc, Igor and Gregor looked back at me over their shoulders. Luc saw the object spinning through the air and went into motion. Faster than I’d ever seen a vampire move before, he dove at Igor and Gregor, knocking them out of the way.
Turning in mid-air, liquid sloshed out of the flask and splashed on one of Gregor’s men. Smoke rose, he shrieked and began stripping off his pants. The imposter whipped her gaze up to the flask, spear held ready. Finally realizing that death was flying at her and that her spear would be of no help, she turned to run. The flask of holy water hit her squarely in the back and it was her turn to scream. I expected her to disintegrate but she defied my expectations. Crashing through a boarded over window, she was gone.