by Adele Clee
As two, they would struggle to overpower Nikolai.
As four, they stood a much greater chance.
Strength came in the form of loyal friendships forged during times of hardship. It came from knowing others loved you enough to sacrifice their own happiness to stand at your side. It came from the realisation that, despite all thoughts to the contrary, you were not alone.
A smirk touched the corners of Nikolai’s mouth as his gaze drifted over them. “My, you have been busy, Ivana. I have underestimated your skill in combat it seems. You have amassed an army of night creatures to do your bidding.”
“We are not creatures.” Leo squared his shoulders as his lips curled down in disdain. “We are brothers. We are men willing to stand together for what we believe in. Now you will put your sword on the floor as instructed.”
Nikolai’s expression remained impassive. When he surrendered his weapon, he showed no sign it was because he had been compelled to do so.
“Kick the sword away,” Elliot commanded, and Nikolai obliged without question.
Nikolai tugged at the ends of his coat sleeves. “What is it you want?”
Ivana turned and looked at Leo. An hour earlier, he would have been happy for Nikolai to walk away. But he knew they could not trust him. Should Nikolai escape, he would return. He would kill them all one by one. He would seek retribution.
Nonetheless, one thought took precedence and refused to be tempered. Nikolai knew of an answer to all of their prayers. “There is only one thing you have that interests us.”
Nikolai narrowed his gaze. “You speak of the cure. You wish for an end to your nightmare.”
He heard his brothers gasp, could sense their shock and disbelief. “We will all take the cure together.” Leo’s heart soared at the thought that there could be a tonic or a pill to swallow that would eradicate all the horrendous effects of their affliction. “Only then will we all be equal men. Only then will we let you leave here.”
A heavy silence permeated the air.
“That is not an option,” Nikolai said with a sinister chuckle. “I will not surrender the cure. Not under any circumstances. You will just have to kill me. If you think you can.”
“I knew it was all a lie.” Ivana threw her arms up, her anger evident in her venomous tone. “He finds amusement in other people’s misery. He gives hope when he knows there is none.”
But Nikolai had returned for something important, something worth killing for. Hope blossomed in Leo’s chest. To feel the sun warm his face again would be a dream he had never believed possible.
“Perhaps you could be persuaded.” Leo kept his voice calm for fear of revealing a hint of desperation.
What if they combined their efforts and compelled Nikolai to do their bidding? But to do so, would give him open access to their thoughts. There was a chance Nikolai would manipulate one of them, force a mutiny amongst ranks.
Nikolai dropped into the chair with languid grace. “Of course, I am willing to fight for the right to leave, fight to the death if necessary. If you win, you would have access to the cure.”
The temptation to accept was great indeed.
“You think you are a match for all of us?” Leo asked incredulously though he suspected Nikolai knew a way to even the odds.
“No, Leo,” he replied with a smirk as he folded his arms across his chest. “I think I am a match for you. As a gentleman, it is a question of honour. This is my home, and you have come here and taken something that belongs to me—”
“I belong to no man,” Ivana yelled.
“There is a debt to be paid,” Nikolai said in an amused tone. “To refuse would mean you deem Ivana unworthy. To refuse would mean you are a coward.”
Damn him! The man was a master of manipulation.
Leo’s respect for Ivana, his pride, and years of aristocratic breeding forced him to accept. “It would need to be a fair fight. It—”
“No!” Ivana turned to him, gripped his arms and made him look at her. “It is a trick. He will kill you and then we will be too weak in our grief to stop him. Let us just kill him now and be done with it.”
Leo doubted it would be so simple. He shook his head, glanced at his brothers’ solemn expressions. “It is a matter of integrity, Ivana. Nikolai has laid down the challenge, and I must accept. I must fight for you. I must fight for us.”
“No. I won’t let you. Do you hear me?” She thumped his chest with her clenched fists, the sound like a hollow drum. “I don’t want you. I lied when I said I loved you.” She fell to her knees, wrapped her arms around his leg and hugged it tight as she sobbed.
Leo glanced back over his shoulder. He locked gazes with Alexander, who came towards them and helped Ivana to her feet. “You are certain this is what you want to do?” Alexander said as he held Ivana to his chest.
“It is the only way. Would you not do the same in my situation?”
Showing some reluctance, Alexander nodded.
Elliot stepped closer and placed his hand on Leo’s shoulder. “After all that has happened, I cannot lose your friendship now. But I understand your desire to do what is right, what is needed.” He sighed deeply. “Forgive me, for the way I acted earlier. Know that I will never fail you again.”
“There is nothing to forgive. You have been my constant companion these last few years and during all that time you have always had my best interests at heart.”
“All this sentimental talk makes me feel nauseous,” Nikolai complained. “Well, are you man enough to accept the challenge, Leo?”
Leo’s mouth curled into an arrogant grin. “I think you know the answer.”
Leo did not wish to reveal his preferred method of engagement, but he suspected from Nikolai’s dress and cane that a sword would be his weapon of choice. Or, at least, he hoped that was the case. Besides, a fight to the death meant one of them must lose their head. Hence, a blade was a necessity. “Are we to fight in hand-to-hand combat?” he said feigning ignorance.
Nikolai sneered. “There is something so unrefined, something so vulgar about using one’s fists.”
“If we are to duel, I doubt you will find someone to act as your second.”
“A pistol is the weapon of a coward. There is little skill involved, and I am not a man who gambles his life on the efficiency of a trigger. We will fight as our ancestors did. We will fight with swords.”
Leo grinned inwardly. He would soon discover if Calvino’s tutoring had been worth the extortionate price he had paid. “As you have chosen the weapon, I feel it only fair I should choose the place.”
Nikolai rose from the chair and gave a dandified wave. “As you wish.”
Spatial awareness was the key to winning any fight. Leo knew he must choose an environment that worked to his advantage. His tuition had taken place in an empty room. Calvino believed one must not rely on barriers or objects as a means of defence. To hide behind a chair or table only served to weaken the mind: it gave a false sense of security. A swordsman must possess the skill necessary to defend in the dark. He should not need to see his opponent to anticipate his movements.
“I choose the courtyard.”
Nikolai appeared surprised.
Elliot bent his head and whispered, “It is raining. The cobblestones will be slippery underfoot.”
Leo suppressed a grin. “I know.”
The terrain must never be a disadvantage. Calvino’s words drifted through his mind as he recalled the time he had ridiculed his teacher for forcing him to parry whilst standing in a pit filled with small lead balls.
Ivana looked up at him. “Please, Leo. We will find some other way. If you care for me at all, please do not do this.”
Leo cupped her cheek, wiped a tear away with the pad of his thumb. “I love you, Ivana.” He felt the truth of it as the words left his lips. “But there is no other option open to us. I will not take a man’s life when he is outnumbered. To do so, would make me a coward, a murderer.”
“But he wants to
kill you.”
“Yes. And I will defend myself when necessary.”
She clutched his shirt. “I can’t watch you die.”
“Have a little faith,” he said knowing that all of their lives were dependent upon the outcome of this battle. “But know that whatever happens, I believe death brings peace. It brings freedom from our affliction.”
“Don’t say that.” She wrapped her arms around him. “Don’t leave me again.”
Leo could feel sorrow’s empty cavern opening up in his chest. Such an emotional exchange was not the best way to prepare for combat. He nodded to Elliot, who understood his concern without him needing to say a word.
“Come, Ivana,” Elliot said, taking her by her arms and guiding her away. “We must let him prepare.”
Calvino’s methods were influenced by many philosophies from the ancient world. A warrior must embrace battle not fear it. The mind must be calm, focused, the body relaxed. In combat, one must follow a code of honour. Leo had an unusually long reach, which had served him well on many occasions. He suspected Nikolai would use any tactic necessary to win. And so, he would need to be prepared to do the same.
“There are many swords littered about the walls of the castle,” Nikolai said. “You may take any one of them.”
“That will not be necessary. I have my own sword.” Leo noted the faint flicker of surprise in the blackguard’s eyes. Indeed, Leo’s sword was an extension of himself. It felt comfortable, almost weightless in his hand.
Nikolai inclined his head. “Then I shall meet you in the courtyard.”
Just like the night he challenged Ivana outside Herr Bruhn’s house, the rain lashed against the castle’s facade, bounced off the cobblestones, hammered on the rooftops. Leo glanced at the puddles, noting their number, estimating their depth. He stood in the centre, closed his eyes briefly in order to feel at one with his surroundings.
Nikolai stood opposite him. Without his fancy coat, he appeared less menacing and so twirled his sword in a figure of eight as means to intimidate. Leo ignored the slicing sound, the way the blade whipped at the air. The vigorous movements would only serve to tire him, and the thought gave Leo a little more confidence in his ability to succeed.
Elliot, Alexander, and Ivana stood near the large oak door. Despite Elliot’s initial anger over his relationship with Ivana, his friend held her close to his chest, rubbed her arm to offer comfort. Sylvester and Julia joined them too, and Leo wondered if they were aware their own lives hinged on the outcome of this fight.
Leo’s heart swelled with love for his friends, and for the only woman he had ever truly wanted. But he knew he must detach from all feelings of sentimentality if he had any hope of beating Nikolai. The mind was a fragile thing. Calvino once told him that armour was worn not just as a means of protection, but as a way to sever emotional ties. Dress a beggar in the clothes of a prince and he will behave with more decorum. A suit of steel worked to harden the heart and Leo imagined donning a vest of chain mail for the same reason.
Nikolai stopped his twirling and flexed his fingers before firming his grip on the hilt. “Are you ready?”
Are you ready to die?
Nikolai’s voice permeated his thoughts, and he batted it away as though it were nought but an annoying little fly.
Wearing an arrogant grin, Nikolai stepped forward, his linen shirt sodden as it clung to his lithe frame.
Leo inhaled deeply, blinked away the rivulets of rain clinging to his lashes. He held his sword in front of him, the tip pointing at Nikolai's throat, and waited for him to attack.
Nikolai swung first, the movement controlled as their blades clashed. The sound of meeting metal vibrated through the air like the crack of a thunderbolt hurled down by the gods. Leo defended the first flurry of attacks. It gave him an opportunity to gauge Nikolai’s experience. As suspected, the man had skill, but his movements were predictable.
The majority of sword fights lasted no more than thirty seconds. Leo followed the set routine, a sequence of moves intended to lure one’s opponent into making his first error. With Leo’s speed, he managed to avert an attack, his long reach catching his opponent by surprise as the tip of his blade scratched Nikolai’s jaw.
The sight of the thin sliver of blood bolstered Leo’s confidence. But he knew he had to remain calm and composed. There was a natural flow in all things. One must find and settle into the pace, for to fight against the current only serves to drain one’s strength.
“So you think you know how to handle a blade.” Nikolai’s condescending tone did not distract him.
“It’s been said I am the finest swordsman in England.” It was not his intention to boast but to chip away at Nikolai’s confidence.
Of course, he came back at him with a comment as disabling as the most vicious blow. “When I’ve killed you, Leo, know that I shall take pleasure in torturing Ivana. You will hear her screams from the pits of Hell.”
Ivana gasped.
Nikolai had found the chink in his armour. A host of terrifying images flashed through his mind. Ivana would always be his weakness, and he found his gaze drawn to her if only for a fraction of a second.
It was enough to give Nikolai an advantage. Underestimating the force of his opponents offensive, Leo stumbled, losing his balance on the wet stones as he defended against another barrage of attacks.
Ivana’s ear-piercing cry only served to divert his attention further.
As he tumbled back, his sword flew from his hand, was sent skittering across the courtyard and out of reach. Nikolai charged at him, flashed a devilish grin as he raised his sword to deliver the final fatal blow. But Nikolai was reckless in his eagerness to win. Overconfidence was a weakness too. In an attempt to dodge the attack, Leo rolled onto his side. He continued rolling until he came within an inch of his sword. As his hand curled around the hilt, he turned and thrust sharply, the point of his blade almost touching the hard lump in Nikolai’s throat as the man towered over him holding his sword aloft.
“Surrender your weapon,” Leo commanded. “You will surrender your weapon now.”
“Never! Your mind manipulation will not work on me.” Nikolai narrowed his gaze, his black eyes showing no fear. “You will lower your sword.” Nikolai’s firm command caused Leo’s arm to tremble. “You will do as I say. You will lower your sword.”
Be strong, Leo.
Elliot’s words invaded his thoughts, but Nikolai’s words were like thick vines creeping through his body to strangle his limbs.
Please, Leo, you must fight it.
Ivana’s plea only served to weaken his resolve.
“Lower you sword,” Nikolai repeated.
Leo’s arm had a will of its own and he heard Ivana scream when the weapon fell from his grasp.
Nikolai smiled. “Did you think I would let you win? Abiding by your gentlemanly code of honour was your downfall. You should have pooled your resources. You should have bared your fangs. You should have turned into the creatures you detest. Yes, one or two of you would have died, but it was the only way for you to have your victory.”
Lying on the cobblestones, Leo glanced at his friends expecting to see fear and terror in their eyes. But Elliot’s calm countenance surprised him.
“Say goodbye, Leo.” Nikolai sneered. “I may even take Ivana to my bed before I put her out of her misery.”
Anger flared in Leo’s chest. With his hand near a puddle, he flicked the water, splashing Nikolai in the eyes. It was as though time slowed. Nikolai blinked and sputtered as he raised his sword a few inches above his head to gain more momentum. Ivana fell to her knees with her hands clasped in prayer.
“Roll to the left, Leo,” Elliot shouted just as the tip of an iron spear burst through Nikolai’s chest.
Leo rolled away as Nikolai’s eyes grew wide with shock, his mouth falling open as he gasped for breath. He stumbled forward, the weight of his sword suddenly becoming a heavy burden.
“I’ve never been one for gentlemanly
conduct,” Sylvester said as he pushed Nikolai to the floor and twisted the spear further into his back. He bent down and picked up Leo’s sword. “I’ve got no patience for men who threaten women, either.”
As Nikolai groaned and cried out in his mother tongue, Sylvester grabbed him by the hair and with one mighty swing banished the devil from their door for good.
Chapter 16
Ivana stared at Nikolai’s body lying on the wet cobblestones.
A sudden sense of relief obliterated the fear that had been her constant companion for many years. Any memories lost to her by Nikolai’s hand sprung to life in her mind like fresh buds unfurling in spring. She remembered it all. She remembered everything.
Nikolai had not lied.
There was a cure. It lay hidden somewhere in the dark depths of the castle though he had never told her where. Despite her burning curiosity, she shook head to clear her thoughts before fanciful notions of being human again took hold.
There was only one thing that truly mattered to her: Leo was alive. He was still sitting on the ground staring in disbelief as the rain pelted Nikolai’s lifeless body.
Swallowing down a rush of emotion, she ran over to him, knelt down and threw herself into his arms. “For a second, I thought I had lost you.” She rained kisses over his damp face, combed her fingers through his hair to convince herself what she had witnessed was not just another form of mind manipulation.
“I thought so, too,” he replied before kissing her softly on the mouth. “I still can’t believe he’s dead.”
Loud cheers behind them captured their attention and Ivana turned to see Elliot and Alexander embracing Sylvester’s hulking frame. They took it in turns to pick him up and twirl him around. For the first time in years, her loyal servant’s mouth curled up in genuine amusement.
She wanted to hug him, too, for risking his life to save them.
“Can you bloody well believe it,” Elliot shouted shaking Sylvester by the shoulders. “I’ve never been one for gentlemanly conduct.” Elliot mimicked Sylvester’s words before turning and thrusting his arm forward in an attempt to re-enact the moment the spear pierced Nikolai’s chest.