The Devil's Liege

by Danielle DeVor

  He followed Azazel through the hall separating the cells and stepped on the circular platform. Tallus noticed something a little odd. Instead of Azazel heading back up the stairs, as was traditional, he stood on the platform with him. This was not protocol. He started to step off the platform but Azazel grabbed a hold of his arm.

  Tallus jerked and tried to get away, but Azazel only held tighter. So tight, in fact, that his arm hurt.

  “You have a lot to answer for,” he said.

  Tallus felt like a great weight had just settled in his stomach.

  * * * * *

  Mathias kept looking at his claws. He didn’t bother with them much anymore. It just seemed like too much trouble. They were very long and pointed now. Not unlike Nossy’s. True, he could cut them anytime he wanted, but he’d gotten used to them. They were a weapon. He vaguely remembered before when he used to sharpen and hone them for battle. He’d even make sure the dew claws on his wings were sharp.

  He leaned back in the chair and popped his neck. The stress was building up in his shoulders. He needed something for a release, but this was more important. He’d worry about his own comfort once he accomplished something.

  Mathias watched as the platform rose to reveal the one Vlad called Azazel and the speaker—actually traitor, but whatever. Azazel made him uneasy, he wasn’t sure why. Yet. But he’d do anything if it made a difference. Nossy needed to be found before it was too late. He wasn’t about to let his old friend die just because of greed. Especially not the greediness of a fucking weasel.

  Finally, the platform settled into position. The traitor glared at him with eyes so dark they seemed black. The intimidation wasn’t going to work. This idiot didn’t hold a candle to the former queen. Now, Lilith had been scary as shit.

  “So, you’re the one they called the speaker?” Mathias asked.

  Tallus snarled. “I am still the speaker of the Order, boy.”

  Stuart snickered.

  “No. You aren’t,” Mathias said. And, if he had anything to do with it, the man would never have anything to do with the Order again. Pompous ass. “As soon as your … involvement became clear in the disappearance of Nosferatu, your position in the Order was retracted.”

  Tallus sputtered. “You can’t do that.”

  Mathias flashed a smile of his own. He could do any fucking thing he liked. “I am king, am I not?”

  Tallus’ face paled.

  “So, Former Speaker Tallus, where is my brother?” Stuart asked. Mathias watched as Stuart leaned forward. If he wasn’t going to kill him, Stuart was going to do it.

  Tallus gnashed his teeth. “Do you really think I’m going to tell you?”

  “Oh, you’ll tell,” Mathias said. “The question is how quickly.” He could just see the things he could do to the man. It wasn’t going to be pretty, but it was sure as hell going to be fun.

  Azazel grinned. “Do you want me to bring out the instruments, my liege?”

  “Yes, that would be a good idea,” Mathias said. It was almost like the man had read his mind, but Mathias had felt no probing. Azazel was starting to get under his skin and not in a good way. “It’s time to let this fucking idiot see what I’m capable of.”

  Vlad snorted. “You sound so much more deadly when you don’t cuss.”

  Mathias laughed.

  * * * * *

  Azazel left Tallus in Vlad’s hands. It wasn’t like he needed to worry. Somehow, he knew even without someone holding him, Mathias would not let the man leave the room. He knew another predator when he smelled one. It was something to behold. He remembered old stories, and if they were true, then the vampire world had found themselves a hell of a warrior. If not, well then the kid played a good game. And that was really what was important. It was all about appearances.

  Who was he to question any of it? He was just the master of the dungeons after all. He paused. Even he had to smile at that. His other job was much more important, but they didn’t have to know about that. Still, he was very good at what he did.

  He hopped down the steps, almost jovially, and pulled out a large metal cart from behind his desk. The dungeon fell silent. Fear was starting to propagate.

  He didn’t have time to ponder what instruments to bring, so he just loaded it up with his favorite tools. He hoped that King Mathias would be pleased.

  Then, he blinked the entire cart and himself back into the throne room. Better to expend a little less energy now. Besides who cared about protocol at this point? He wasn’t even sure what the need for the rule was except to make him seem not as powerful as those in charge. He didn’t mind. Let them believe he was just a peon. The ruse was a useful way to hide. Besides, he had real work to do.

  * * * * *

  It was kind of disconcerting to see a huge vampire suddenly appear in the room with a cart of torture instruments. In fact, Mathias felt his stomach flip-flop. He needed to keep his emotions in check better. He wasn’t exactly a small kid anymore. Granted, this Azazel guy was older than he was, but shit, he knew how to fight too.

  He looked down at his gut to tell it to shut up. He didn’t speak audibly of course, but he glared at it— hard.

  “Thias,” he heard her whisper.

  He shook himself. Either it was post-traumatic stress, or he was remembering his own torture. Either way, he was cracking up. Yeah, Tallus held nothing on her. Freaky bitch. Technically, he knew he should tell someone about it all: hearing her voice, dreaming about her, but he didn’t want to admit he was going crazy either.

  Azazel pulled out a length of chain and attached it to rings in the floor that had previously been hidden by ornate octagonal tiles. “It is ready,” he said.

  Mathias steeled himself. He could not show that it bothered him. Whatever Lilith had done to him didn’t matter now. He needed information, and if Tallus was too stubborn to provide it, he was forced to make the man talk. Mathias already had plans.

  Would it make him sick to his stomach? Maybe. But, if the man wasn’t going to talk, there wasn’t really any other choice. He closed his eyes and brought forth memories of the cell. The memories he wished he could forget. There were so many things that Lilith had taught him about pain. Little things like how easy it was to cause agony by snipping your nipples with a pair of scissors or how to make you beg not to pull each and every toenail out by the root. These things he could use, would have to use. He opened his eyes. This was going to get interesting.

  He turned his attention back to Tallus. “So, what’s it gonna be, the easy way? Or the hard way?”

  Tallus grinned, darted over to the cart, then snatched a machete-looking thing from it and whipped around so fast, Mathias lost sight of him. Suddenly, Tallus’ head was bouncing along the floor. His body collapsed in a heap. Blood spurted from the now exposed and severed neck.

  “Fuck me,” Mathias said. How was that possible? He’d never seen anything like it. Of course, Tallus could just have been desperate and went for it. He probably couldn’t have repeated it.

  “It was the most humane way to die,” Azazel said.

  “I don’t buy it.” It was fucking bullshit is what it was. Nossy had been kidnapped for this? “He went through all of this to take over the throne, and then he kills himself?” Mathias asked. It didn’t make any damn sense. Granted, he was probably going to die anyway for his involvement, but why let Nossy die? Selfish bastard.

  Vlad cleared his throat. “It is simpler than you realize. Tallus was a coward. Instead of admitting his crimes, he chose to die.”

  “How are we going to find Nossy now?” Stuart asked.

  Of course, he asked the really important question. “I don’t know,” Mathias replied.

  Chapter Five

  Mathias made his way to the Order library. With Tallus gone, he felt like he’d been kicked in the chest. How was it possible? He asked himself again. By his own stupidity, he allowed the biggest clue to Nossy they had to get away, albeit in a very bloody way. He let the others continue the interro
gations, but there was no proof that anyone there knew much more than Tallus, and he’d been behind it all. Him sitting there wasn’t going to solve anything. Not now.

  The ones that helped him were probably never in that room. They were probably long gone. It was so not cool.

  Finally, he found the library. Even though Vlad had said it would probably take him a few times to find it, his directional memory was better than he thought. Or, he was tapping into something else entirely. Either way, he wasn’t upset about it. At least one thing worked right today.

  He forced power into his hands and repeated the pattern Vlad had shown him. It seemed like years ago now. Too much had happened. Slowly, the door ground open. Mathias stepped inside.

  Like before, the turret was lined with shelves and shelves of books. They stretched up to the ceiling which was hundreds of feet away. Every so often, the books were displaced by a stained glass window. The windows had various scenes of old epic battles. The sheer number of volumes was mind-blowing. The books were all different. Some were old leather-bound tomes. Others were cloth bound. And, there were some modern bound books entered into the mix as well. The variety made the room smell like paper, glue, and some sort of mustiness that he couldn’t identify. He didn’t really know where to start. It wasn’t like there was a computer in the room so he could look up call numbers. Hell, there wasn’t even one of those old-style card catalog things he’d seen in movies.

  And then, he had a strange idea. If it didn’t work, he wasn’t out anything. If it did, however, he would have something to work with. Mathias stilled himself and took a deep breath.

  “I need information on finding people, lost objects, and spells to accomplish this,” he said aloud. It wasn’t his dumbest idea. He just hoped it did something.

  Then, he waited. At first, nothing happened. Then, the books began ruffling themselves on the shelves. Finally, they stopped and there, at his feet, was a small pile of books.

  This was definitely not like any library he’d been inside before. Granted, he was relieved it worked, but it was still fucking weird. But still, it was about time something he tried actually worked. His idea wasn’t so stupid after all.

  “Thank you,” he said. No sense in not thanking whatever it was that ran the library. It was too sentient to be just a spell. Then, he picked up the stack and left. As soon as he stepped out of the library, the door shut behind him … without any assistance at all from Mathias.

  * * * * *

  “Does Mathias seem okay to you?” Vlad asked Stuart. He’d taken Mathias’ seat at the table. Even Stuart had to admit that the boy had just seemed deflated once Tallus had taken his own life.

  Stuart raised his head. Vlad had been watching him look over the list of prisoners. As far as he could see, there weren’t any left and they were still in the same shape as when they started. “No, he’s not all right. But, that’s kind of to be expected.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to be with him at all times?” Vlad asked.

  “Technically, yes. But, the prisoners needed questioned and Azazel is busy dealing with Tallus’ body.” What did Vlad expect him to do, magically wave his arm and create a golem crew of servants?

  Vlad grunted. “I just want the boy to be safe is all.”

  “And that’s something that probably isn’t going to happen. You made him king, remember?” If he wanted the kid safe, he should have set him up in an apartment in a city somewhere where he could live his life in peace.

  Vlad adjusted his chair and turned his body completely toward Stuart. “Yes, and?”

  “We can’t just take him off the throne and replace him with Nosferatu again. The years of rule between turns of rule are killing us. Mathias will have to remain where he is until someone else can take over again.” Stuart wouldn’t dare go against the old rules anymore than they already had. The rules about who could be the monarch had been set when Lilith hadn’t been insane. They were there so no one vampire could become the dictator of the kingdom forever. Too many civilizations had died that way.

  “I hadn’t thought about that,” Vlad said. He drummed his fingers on the table. “How many do we have left? Is there more to the list?”

  “Prisoners to question you mean?” Stuart asked.

  “Yes.”

  “None.” Stuart almost wished that there were more because they hadn’t found out one single thing that was helpful, but even he couldn’t work miracles.

  Vlad stared at him for a moment. “And the advisor?”

  “In the cell, waiting,” Stuart said. He didn’t put out much hope. Chances were, the idiot knew about as much as Karsavin did, but the difference was, Karsavin hadn’t even been involved.

  * * * * *

  Mathias had hauled all the books back to the rooms and spread them across the table in Vlad’s sitting area. It was the biggest table he had easy access to, and Mathias wanted privacy. He needed to be able to think. Especially if he expected to be able to read these books as quickly as possible.

  He picked up the first book. Not knowing where to look, he decided to do what he’d done in the library. The worst thing that could happen was that nothing would happen and he’d have to look through the books manually.

  “Show me information on finding lost people or objects,” he said toward the book.

  He set the book down on the table. Suddenly, book opened by itself and the pages of the book flipped themselves until they finally settled with the book open.

  He picked up the book. It was in some language he didn’t immediately recognize. It was not good. One: evidently he never knew the language in the first place. And two, there was no way he was going to get the information he needed if they all were like this. It was almost as if something was doing its level best to keep things from moving forward.

  “Shit.”

  “You could just change it to English,” Vlad said.

  Mathias jumped. Why couldn’t he just announce his presence like a normal person? “Dammit. I hate it when you do that.”

  Vlad laughed. “You aren’t blocking again, but no matter. Interrogations are done. Only one prisoner remains.”

  “And who is that?” Mathias asked.

  “Elias, Nosferatu and Lilith’s royal advisor.”

  Mathias gnashed his teeth together. “And why’d you put him in the cells?”

  Vlad smiled. “Because we knew you’d want a crack at him. He’s the one that offered Nossy the pomegranate seeds that allowed him to get kidnapped.”

  Mathias pushed all of his doubts out of his mind and forced himself to not explode—not then. He set the book down on the table. “Let’s go.”

  * * * * *

  For Mathias, going back to the throne room was kind of weird. He wasn’t exactly sure what he should be doing. He hadn’t exactly proven himself to be a great interrogator. Yeah, he wanted to find Nossy, but his last try at interrogation hadn’t gone so well. Having your subjects kill themselves didn’t exactly instill confidence. Maybe he had better let Stuart and Vlad take the reins on this one. This advisor may be their last chance at answers no matter the bravado he’d used earlier. He didn’t even know if the vampire world had seers.

  He followed Vlad into the throne room. It felt more normal to be coming in from the regular entrance. Maybe he could request that he didn’t have to use the other room. This time, chained to the floor was a guy Mathias couldn’t remember having seen before. But then, he hadn’t exactly been paying attention to anything other than Lilith when she’d been around either. He had been concentrating on how to learn to deal with this new world.

  This guy was dressed in old short breeches with hose and a white shirt up top. Guess no one had ever told him it was the 21st Century. He had longer brown hair that hung down into his eyes. Mathias couldn’t tell what color they were. Every so often, the man would pull against the chains.

  Vlad guided him back to the chair behind the table. The cart of torture instruments was off to the side, well out of the prisoner’s r
each this time. Mathias couldn’t help but wonder why that hadn’t been done before. Maybe the excitement had made all of them lose a bit of their senses.

  “So, that’s Lilith’s old advisor?” Mathias asked.

  “Elias, yes,” Stuart said.

  Stuart seemed tired. He had dark circles under his eyes.

  “And he had something to do with Nossy’s kidnapping?” Mathias asked.

  “So we understand,” Vlad said. He’d pulled up a chair and now sat on the other side of Mathias. He smelled like myrrh, dark and rich. If he’d been a girl, he would have been pulled in by that smell. But, since he wasn’t, it was just distracting.

  “What can we do?” Mathias asked.

  Stuart paused. “We do what we want. He is a prisoner.”

  Mathias rolled his eyes. “That is not what I meant.” He took a deep breath. “Is there some other way to get him to talk besides torture?”

  He did not want a repeat of last time, no matter how far away they rolled the cart.

  “Like a truth serum?” Vlad asked.

  Mathias shrugged. He didn’t really know what he meant. He just wanted to do the best by Nossy he could. And, if they let this one croak, their chances of finding him would get even more slim. “Yes. No. Maybe. I just don’t want this to be all fucked up. Nossy needs our help. Who knows when it was the last time he ate?”

  “We know, Mathias,” Stuart said. “Do you have any ideas?”

  Why did they think he’d asked them? But, whatever. He pushed away his annoyance. If they wanted him to take over, fine. If he fucked it up, it would be their funeral. “I have to make him tell me what he knows.”

  Vlad and Stuart said nothing. Mathias got up. It was time to focus. He sort of flipped a switch in his head. He tapped into that other side, the tortured one. He knew he didn’t have too much time. Something was telling him that Nosferatu needed out—Now. Waiting around wasn’t going to help anything. And, if it took Mathias having to drudge up painful memories, then so be it.

  He walked over to the figure lying prostrate on the floor and looked down. Might as well get started. “So, you helped Tallus?”