The Vampires of Soldiers Cove: Sacrificial Children

by Jessica MacIntyre

Rachel looked shocked. “You mean kill them?”

  “Yes, they are dangerous. Our human men are at risk of drowning and so are the satyrs.”

  Gavin couldn’t help his cynical attitude toward the satyrs. So what if a few of them drowned? No loss. Given the things they did to women themselves it really seemed like a little bit of poetic justice. Any other time he would have been happy to hand a naiad a satyr and let her drown him to her heart’s content. Now, however, Ryan needed them and so he stilled his anger.

  “We’ll have to warn them,” Rachel said. Gavin felt her emotions just then, and although she appeared rock steady and calm on the surface, she was a raging storm of anxiety on the inside. Her thoughts were for Ryan as well. “Gavin and I will go tonight.”

  Jacob leaned forward, a cynical smile and raised eyebrow saying one thing, the tone in his voice saying another. “Are you sure that’s wise?”

  “Gavin will be with me. As leader it is my responsibility to warn them. Nobody else.”

  “Of course.”

  “Is there anything else?” A silence filled the room for a few moments and when it was clear nobody was going to speak again Rachel stood. “Very good. We will reconvene at a later date. Adjourned.”

  Polite nods were expressed all around and everyone left, including Duncan and John. When he was finally alone with her again she said, “Well, that certainly makes me feel better about what I saw on the pond tonight.”

  Naiads would be a good explanation, but Gavin wasn’t so sure that was it. “You think so?”

  “Yeah. When Ian had taken you from the sanctuary and hidden you in the pond Holly and I went looking in there for you. I felt a hand on my shoulder and when I turned around…I don’t know…I don’t remember exactly. My memory is not good right now, but I know it wasn’t Holly. Maybe it was one of them. Maybe it was a naiad.”

  “Well, it’s possible. I wonder how long they’ve been awake.”

  “God knows. I don’t know anything about them. Do you?”

  “Nothing really.”

  “All right,” she said taking a deep breath. “We better get this over with. Let’s go warn Aries.”

  “I could do that alone you know.”

  “I’m pretty sure he’d never show his face to only you. I’m the quickest way to do this. He’ll scent me and find us. Then we can just give him a quick warning and get out of there.”

  As much as he hated it, Gavin relented. “Fine, but I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

  “I’d expect nothing less,” she smiled. Then she pushed herself up against him and gave him a long, sweet, lingering kiss. In that moment he was overcome with longing for her. He missed her in that way and it had been so long.

  “I can’t wait until all of this is over,” he said.

  “That makes two of us. But, Gavin, in the meantime you have to keep searching for an answer. We’re running out of time.”

  He closed his eyes as he took her face in his hands. “I know. I promise as soon as I get a chance…”

  “If you don’t get the chance you have to make the chance. You have to make it a priority.”

  “I have to be with you.”

  Rachel let out a long, frustrated sigh. “You have to search for answers. You have to spend less time with me and more time with the children.”

  How could she say that? “Of course I want to be with the children, Rachel, but you do realize you were almost murdered yesterday, and it wasn’t the first time. The orphans are trying to kill you. If I hadn’t been there …”

  “If you hadn’t been there perhaps Ryan would be better off. I want you to think of him before me. Ryan and Jade are what matters and whatever happens during the running of this clan happens. I need you to stay close to Leiv too. Duncan and Holly have done a good job, but it just isn’t the same.”

  Gavin clenched his jaw and turned his back on her for a moment before turning around again, opening his mouth to speak but then saying nothing as he realized that even if she was dead wrong, there would be no way to talk her out of it. After a moment he simply nodded. “All right.”

  Chapter Four

  They took their time walking through the wooded area between the sanctuary and the house. This was a journey they had made several times but each time they were on the lookout for Aries, Gavin could feel himself bristle. He hardly thought anyone could blame him, given everything Aries had put them through, but it was a feeling he never grew used to just the same. There was nothing he wanted more than to grab that oversized, arrogant, musclebound waste of oxygen and twist both his horns off before snapping his neck. They may have lived long healthy lives, but, like all creatures, twisting the head completely off meant death.

  If only Aries wasn’t Ryan’s only hope at existing if the transformation didn’t work Gavin would have hunted him down and killed him long ago. Gavin often thought how lucky Aries was that Ryan existed. He created quite a nice insurance policy against being murdered, but then again, maybe that was the plan.

  Soon they realized they were almost back home, and still there was no sign of Aries. “That’s strange,” Rachel said. “Every time I’ve travelled out here with the intent to see him he’s always appeared.”

  It was true and it was something else that irked Gavin beyond words. “I know where their camp is,” he said. “You want to go there?”

  “Yes, we should.”

  Gavin led the way. This was a journey that would take no more than a few moments if he could run, but he really didn’t want to ask Rachel to do that. Running might sap her strength, and god knows she needed it. After the blood and human food she looked almost like herself, but too much activity would tire her, and so they walked on in silence, taking their time.

  Soon the flicker of flames and smell of smoke filled the air. Up ahead the light shining through the trees let them know that another group of people were close by. Carefully they approached so as not to startle the small group of five satyrs that were seated by the fire. There were three elders and two very young ones. All of them strong and striking as they were known to be. There was, however, no sign of Aries.

  One of the young ones spotted them and his eyes lit up as he saw Rachel. He appeared to know her. “Rachel! It’s an honor to see you once again.”

  Rachel gave him her warmest, yet most diplomatic smile. Something she was getting increasingly good at. “Hello, Ramsay. It’s nice to see you again. We were hoping we could speak to Aries, but we haven’t been able to find him.”

  An awkward silence fell over the group as they all exchanged uncomfortable looks. “We’re not here to hurt him,” she said. “We just have something important he needs to know. Do you know where he is?”

  “Oh, yes. We know where he is,” Ramsay said. “But he doesn’t wish to be disturbed.”

  Gavin couldn’t imagine Aries ever turning down a visit from Rachel. He seemed to have a sick obsession with her. “I’m sure if you just mention Rachel’s name he’ll talk to us,” Gavin said.

  One of the elders nodded slowly at Gavin and rose to his feet. As tall and strong as he was this seemed to be an effort for the older grey haired male and he scowled slightly as he stretched out his muscles, preparing to move about. “Follow me,” he said, motioning them forward.

  In silence they followed as the others stayed behind and the three of them walked on until they were greeted by the sound of rushing water. A small brook ran through this area and Aries was sitting, head in his hands, listening to the soft babble of the water and taking no notice of them as they approached.

  “Aries,” the elder said. No response. The second time he spoke the elder raised his voice by an octave and said his name again. “Aries!”

  As if having been suddenly awakened from a deep sleep, Aries jerked his neck upward and looked at them with frightened eyes as if startled to see them all. “Aries?” Rachel said, soft and low. “What are you doing?”

  The elder turned to leave and disappeared as quickly as if his hair had been o
n fire. “Little one?”

  Gavin hated when Aries called Rachel that. Normally it increased his overwhelming need to viciously attack him, but tonight his voice was meek, his trademark arrogance gone and more than that, it looked like he’d lost some of his bulk. He appeared smaller, weaker and most absurdly, frightened.

  Rachel crouched down next to him, getting close. Normally he would have pounced and gotten in the middle, but tonight he instinctively knew he had nothing to fear from the creature. He may have been a danger to Rachel at other times, but tonight his troubles obviously lay elsewhere.

  “What’s happened?” she said, laying a hand on his shoulder.

  Tears came to his eyes all at once and he covered his face with his hands as if feeling a wave of shame wash over him. Gavin found himself stepping closer as well.

  “I wish I knew, Rachel,” he said. “If I knew what was going on I would do something to stop it, but I can’t stop it. I couldn’t stop it, and all that’s left now is the six of us, and gods know how long we’ll last.”

  Gavin frowned. “Aries, what are you talking about? Where are the others?”

  The satyr’s hands shook as wildly as if he’d been stricken with some neurological disease. “Gone. All gone. The gods have cursed us. I’ve prayed, I’ve fasted, I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do and all to no avail. All for nothing…nothing!” he was yelling now. “There are no answers, there is no mercy, there is only silence. Horrible, deadly silence, and the silence itself is a burden. I don’t know what to do.” He brought his knees up to his chest and cried like a little lost child. “You needn’t worry about me anymore, bloodsucker,” he said, addressing Gavin.

  “There’ll be no more procreation. Our time is in the past. The gods have decided to exterminate us, and soon, we will be no more.”

  “But, Ryan…” he began.

  “Ryan. My beautiful boy. Our beautiful boy,” he said locking eyes with Rachel. “Best to let him die. There’s no life here for him. I can’t keep my people safe anymore. I’m sorry, Rachel. By the time the boy reaches fifteen we’ll only be a memory and in a hundred years we will be but a myth even to your kind.”

  Gavin’s fury grew as the satyr spoke. How could he say that about Ryan? Best to let him die? No. There was no circumstance under which Gavin would ever accept that outcome. None. “No!” he screamed.

  Aries jumped at the sound, his nerves raw and jangled. His hands trembled again and upon looking at him more closely it would appear that even some of his hair had fallen out. “Please, little one,” he said in a soft whisper to Rachel. “Help him accept what is. He loves the boy, I know he does, but it’s no good. He can never come here. We are dying.”

  “Aries are you saying that the others just disappeared? How many and how long ago?”

  “Twenty two, over the last five months. Some disappeared on their own before that but they were elders and it’s not uncommon for our old ones to go off alone to die in private.”

  Rachel asked, “When was that?”

  “Perhaps five or six years ago.”

  Rachel’s eyes lit up and she stood, turning to face Gavin. “Oh my god. It all makes sense now.”

  “You don’t think…”

  “Yes. I think they’ve been awake for quite some time, and maybe just now they’re starting to get more aggressive.”

  Aries braced himself against the trunk of a tree and slowly stood himself up, looking as though doing so was causing him great pain. “Do you know something? Do you know what’s happened to my brothers?”

  Rachel turned back to Aries. “Maybe, but there’s only one way to find out. We have to search the pond. We’ll gather all the vampires we can and do it tomorrow night.”

  “Search the pond? For what, little one?”

  “Naiads. I’m pretty sure this may have something to do with them.”

  “Naiads? Are they not myths?”

  “When a race of people disappear for hundreds of years at a time they can become myths. You pretty much said the same thing yourself just now. We were alerted to this tonight and were actually coming here to warn you, but it looks like we may have been too late.”

  There were lines around the satyr’s eyes where there had been none before and his gaze hardened, making them stand out. “I want to search for myself,” he said.

  “No,” Rachel said. “You meet us at the edge of the pond closest to the sanctuary at midnight tomorrow. Don’t under any circumstances go near there until then. If they’re responsible for this then that might really kill the rest of you. Go back to your camp. Tell your people to stay safe and stay together until we can confirm this tomorrow. Then if we find out this is what’s going on we can come up with a plan to stop it together.”

  Aries nodded with the confidence of a leader, something Gavin had not seen in him tonight until now. “Very well. I’ll go back to camp and let them know what is happening.”

  Aries reached out and put his arms around Rachel. Gavin wanted to run up to him and break both his arms off. A few years ago this race of people dying off would not have been something Gavin considered a tragedy, but now, his son might have to join them and so reluctantly he was going to join the search and do what he had to do to keep them alive.

  “We will owe you and your people quite a debt of gratitude if you can give us some answers.”

  “We’ll do our best,” she promised. “The search tomorrow will tell us everything we need to know. Go back now. The ones sitting by the fire look like they need you.”

  Chapter Five

  The group of six satyrs converged on the water’s edge like a collection of frightened children. Gavin thought it strange to see them in such a state. He had only seen them humbled once before and that was after the altercation with Samuel and his revenant army. That was years in the past, however, and today they were not only humbled, they were passive and aloof. Even Aries didn’t seem like he wanted to be there. He couldn’t say he blamed them. Depending on what the search party would find tonight they would perhaps go into an even deeper state of mourning than they already appeared to be in.

  After a night of fitful sleep he had awakened to find Rachel gone. Even though he knew she was most likely in the house somewhere it still alarmed him to open his eyes and not have her by his side. He worried for her safety, even in the comfort of their own home, but he had to sleep sometime, although god knows he pushed it off for as long as he could.

  Dressing quickly he bolted downstairs and found her on the phone with a pen and paper in her hand, jotting down notes at the kitchen table. Rachel, he had discovered along with everyone else, was a born leader. Perhaps not everyone liked her, but they did have a certain degree of respect for her, and she was busy calling on other members of the clan to form a search party.

  After the phone call he had walked in on she looked up at him and smiled. “I have ten volunteers,” she said. “Do you think that will be enough?”

  “Does that include us?”

  “No. I have ten plus you, me, Duncan and Alex.”

  “That should be enough. What about Leiv?”

  Rachel lowered her eyes, obviously not wanting to talk about Leiv in depth and simply said, “He’s not coming.”

  Gavin sat at the table and rubbed Rachel’s shoulder for a moment. “That should be fine.” Just then Gavin realized how deathly quiet the house was. “Where is everybody?”

  “Ryan is in school. Duncan and Holly took the girls into town to do some grocery shopping and Alexander and Leiv are out for a walk.”

  “That explains why I slept in.”

  “You looked like you needed it.”

  “Really, Rachel, I’ve gone much longer periods without sleep. I can fight it off for ten days or more if I have to.”

  “I don’t want you to have to fight it off. And besides, I need you rested for tonight as well.”

  “I just hope we’re wrong about what’s happened.”

  This morning those words had been just a statement,
now standing here at midnight with the other vampires who had come to help he realized just how true he wanted that to be. Not just for the sake of his own son’s survival, but for the sake of the clan. If indeed naiads were luring satyrs to their watery deaths they would have to do something about that, and it would be up to Rachel to decide what. The logical answer would be to kill them, but he knew what a burden that decision would be and he shuddered for a moment thinking of the outcome.

  “Everybody ready?” Rachel said as the small group gathered around her. Nods were exchanged. “Good. Ok I want you five to walk across to the other side and start from there, then make your way back toward here,” she said, singling out those to her left. “The rest of you go into the water right here and circle around. When or if you find something you come back here and let Gavin and I know. Then we’ll join you if need be.

  As the two groups departed, one walking and one plunging themselves into the cold water after having smashed a hole in the ice, Gavin turned to Rachel. “We’re not going in?”

  “Not yet. I want to see what they come up with.”

  He glanced over at Aries who was pacing in front of his small tribe, the rest of them seated on the ground and looking defeated already. “They haven’t said a word since they got here. Even Aries.”

  “Really?” That was a surprise.

  “Yeah. Although I don’t know how much I’d be in the mood for talking if I might be about to witness the remains of so many of my dead relatives being brought up from a frozen pond.”

  Rachel walked toward them and addressed the group as a whole. “I wish I knew what to say,” she said.

  The oldest one looked at them both with sad, unyielding eyes. “There’s nothing to be said. Only a question to be answered, and not with words.”

  Rachel nodded in agreement.

  “You’re in charge here, little one,” Aries said. “If indeed our brothers are down there, what order do you plan to give?”

  “I don’t know yet. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I want to make sure whatever decision I make will be the right one. If indeed they are awake under there I’ll have to make arrangements to speak with them somehow.”