“Esme, don’t!” I heard Kalon shout as I took on “his” Darkling.
I was dealing with a kid, I quickly realized. He was fast and light on his feet, but raw and inexperienced in his movements. Chances were he’d never had to deal with someone like me before, even in my state of physical recovery.
“Hold on, I got him,” I replied, without looking at Kalon.
The Darkling’s eyes were wide and fearful, and I knew he wanted to get as far away from me as possible. He darted to the left, but I blocked him. He tried the right, and I blocked him again. Behind us, bloody mayhem unraveled. More Darklings came down, though none survived. The more minutes passed, the better I understood that it might all come down to me and my new young friend here. I had to do whatever I could to keep him alive.
He extended his claws and tried to cut me down, but I slid to the side and swerved around, my own claws out. I cut into his side, blood spraying out from the tattered leather of his tunic. He cried out from the pain. I dropped and swung my leg out, tripping him. He landed on his back with a painful thud.
In an instant, I was on top of him, one hand gripping him by the throat while the other pressed into his chest. “You move a single inch, and I will tear your heart out,” I hissed. I made my point by digging my fingers into his flesh, claws piercing through the leather.
“I yield,” the young Aeternae managed. Only when I was close enough did I observe the cold blue of his eyes. It was eerily familiar, and it didn’t take more than a couple of seconds for my synapses to respond and make the appropriate connections.
The first Darkling finally went down, and Kalon stood over him, hands dripping with blood. Panting, he looked at me. “Don’t hurt him,” he mumbled.
“So you know him,” I said, voicing my conclusion.
Soon enough, the Darkling I had caught was the only living one. His colleagues were more or less splattered across the hardwood floor. The neighboring villages would finally see a full moon without having their children stolen and sold into blood slavery. I was feeling infinitely better and stronger with just that thought in mind.
“I think so, yes,” Kalon replied. He grabbed a cloth from the bar counter and cleaned his hands, then walked over to us.
“He yielded,” I said, smirking at the Darkling.
Kalon stared at him for a while. He didn’t say anything, even as Trev and his Rimian friends gathered round. He just watched the Darkling, who avoided his gaze. These two didn’t just know each other. They were related.
Dying of curiosity, I pulled the golden mask off, revealing a boyish face. He couldn’t be older than sixteen, but he certainly carried the Visentis traits. His ice-blue eyes. The threads of salt in his pepper hair. The sharp cheeks and perfectly straight, aquiline nose.
“Esme, meet one of my younger brothers, Ansel Visentis,” Kalon said after a long and stunned pause. He sounded incredibly calm.
Trev’s jaw was inches from the floor, but the shock was quickly replaced by anger. “Ansel? What the hell, kid? What in the world is the matter with you?!”
“I take it you didn’t know Ansel was a Darkling?” I asked Kalon, since his brother remained sullen, ashamed and quiet.
Kalon shook his head. “I recognized his voice earlier.”
“This is certainly turning out to be a most eventful evening.” I sighed, nodding at Trev. “We found him. We found your brother, too. Next thing I know, we’ll learn that your mother is a Darkling Scholar and that the entire faction is just the underside of this empire, not an anarchist movement.”
Kalon scoffed. “Now you’re exaggerating.”
“Seriously? I’m literally on top of your Darkling brother, and I’m the one going overboard?” I replied, crossing my arms.
“I… Esme, can you please get off my brother?” Kalon asked. His tone was flat, but emotion still rippled through it. He was as blindsided as the rest of us regarding Ansel, but he did his best to keep his composure, to think clearly and fully understand the situation we’d stumbled into.
Exhaling, I got up. Pain shot through my thigh, the adrenaline now gone. I nearly fell over, but Trev was quick to catch me, while Kalon grabbed his brother by the collar and pulled him up.
“Thanks,” I whispered.
“Don’t mention it. You shouldn’t even be out here,” Trev replied.
I scowled at him. “We were looking for you.”
“Kalon, we do need to talk,” Trev said, temporarily ignoring my huffing and puffing.
“Oh, I’ll get to you in a moment,” Kalon muttered, furiously eyeing his brother. Ansel seemed paralyzed, terrified beyond anything I’d ever seen. He dared not move a single muscle, as if mentally preparing himself for the ass-kicking of the century. From what I could tell, Kalon was definitely the most fearsome in the Visentis dynasty, if this was Ansel’s reaction right now.
“What is your brother doing with the Darklings, Kalon?” I asked.
Judging by the looks on Trev and the Rimians’ faces, they were all just as baffled.
“I’m wondering the same thing.” He sighed. “Talk to me, Ansel. What the hell did you do?”
Ansel didn’t say a word, and that just made Kalon all the angrier, to the point where he started shaking his brother. Trev stepped in, putting a hand on Kalon’s shoulder. “I doubt he’ll talk. He needs a few minutes. Look at the boy—he’s terrified.”
“I don’t think he thought he’d be running into you, of all people, tonight,” one of the Rimians chimed in, and I was inclined to agree with him.
“We can’t stay here,” Trev warned us. “More Darklings will come soon. If you were looking to help the villagers, I doubt you’ve managed to do much with this stunt.”
“What are you doing here, then, if not the same thing?” I replied, frowning as I stood on my own two feet again, moving my weight onto my healthy leg.
“I was hunting Darklings,” Trev said, looking at Ansel, who, in turn, carefully listened to each of us. The shadow of a smile fluttered across the boy’s face. My blood ran cold.
“He knows there are more Darklings coming,” I breathed. “His team was only the first wave.”
“There have been rumors about Trev headed up here,” one of the Rimians said. “We planted said rumors, knowing we’d draw more Darklings to this tavern.”
Surprisingly enough, Jacinda and Jayan had not told us about this. I wondered if they’d heard anything and deliberately kept this from us. It didn’t really matter now. We’d found Trev, and that was what truly mattered.
“Trev is right, though. We can’t stay here,” Kalon said.
“Go through the back door and follow the grassy path into the woods,” the barkeep replied. “It’ll take you to the river. You should have more privacy there.”
Trev patted a satchel hanging from his belt. “I’ve got enough black mineral paste for the four of us.”
“You, me, Kalon, and Ansel,” I mumbled, glancing at the Rimians who’d helped take the Darklings down. “What about them?”
A second Rimian gave me a sly grin. “We’re the cleanup crew now. A mop here, a sprinkling of black mineral dust there, some Wailing Widow in our bloodstream… We’re ready to handle that second wave of Darklings, worry not.”
Confusion must’ve registered in my expression, as Trev felt compelled to explain a few things. “Wailing Widow is a poisonous herb. Thing is, it’s only poisonous to the Aeternae. For the Rimians and the Naloreans, the worst-case scenario is serious indigestion. For the Aeternae, it’s—”
“Paralysis inducing.” Kalon completed his sentence, looking as if he was seeing his friend in a whole new light. “And the black mineral dust is to throw them off our scent.”
Trev nodded. “My friends here will get rid of the bodies. I’ve set up a pretty decent crew. They’ll hold the Darklings off for as long as they can. Hopefully, whatever Scholar controls this region won’t send a friggin’ horde our way.”
We said goodbye to the Rimians and thanked the barkeep
for his assistance. Leaving them behind, Trev led the way through the tavern’s back door, and I followed closely. Behind us, Kalon dragged Ansel, without bothering to restrain him. It was obvious that the boy wasn’t going to run anywhere—his brother would find him, no matter where he ran.
By the time we reached the river, Ansel’s side wound had already healed. He kneeled by the stream to wash some of the dirt and blood off, while Kalon watched him like a hawk. I pulled him a couple of yards to the side, leaving Trev to watch over Ansel.
“What the hell is going on here, Kalon?” I asked. “What is your brother doing with the Darklings?”
“I thought I made it clear that I had no idea,” Kalon replied, anger burning blue in his eyes. There were flickers of grief, too, like sapphire embers that I simply couldn’t ignore. They resonated with sharp pangs in my chest, as I almost felt his pain. “I don’t know how Ansel got into the Darkling faction. I can assure you, the Visentis dynasty is loyal to the Aeternae, but we are not fanatics.”
“I believe you,” Trev said. “Give the boy some time. He’ll talk, eventually.”
“You underestimate my loyalty,” Ansel spat.
Kalon backhanded him so fast, I actually heard myself gasp. “Your only loyalty is to your family and your empire,” he growled. “I’ll beat it into you, if needed.” Ansel’s lips trembled, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but Kalon moved his focus to Trev, instead. “We’ve been searching for you.”
“I told you I’d be in touch.”
“I thought you were in hiding, not hunting Darklings in remote Rimian villages,” Kalon replied, his initial anger finally subsiding.
“Can’t I do both?” Trev said, smiling like a most mischievous little boy.
“We were worried,” I murmured. “Well, Kalon was significantly worried. He didn’t think you’d be safe out here with the Darklings searching for you.”
“My friend Kalon forgets that I have friends in the empire, hidden, waiting for a sign to stir trouble against the Darklings.” Trev chuckled. “I’ve got a few more things to do, but I will see you both soon enough.”
He turned to leave, prompting me to scoff. “What, you’re leaving already?”
“Well, we only get a bit of time by the river, here,” Trev said. “Which reminds me. Sprinkle some of this on yourselves. It’ll keep the Darklings off your tracks.”
He handed me one of his black mineral satchels. I stared at him in disbelief. “Trev. We came to find you.”
“I have a safe place you can go to, until we capture the Darkling leaders,” Kalon interjected. “You know my family has several properties on the—”
“Don’t,” Trev replied. “I told you. My work isn’t done yet, and I’ll be damned if I let the Darklings push me into a corner.”
“Have you heard anything about Zoltan?” I asked, hoping that he at least had some useful intel to share, since he clearly didn’t seem willing to stick around—let alone hide in Kalon’s lake house. “Since he escaped the palace, I mean.”
Trev shook his head. “Nothing, I’m afraid. The Darklings keep a pretty tight information network. It takes a lot of groundwork to find places like Tromb, where they get their blood slaves from. If it weren’t for our own spies, we would’ve taken a lot longer to catch the bastards tonight.”
My mind wandered back to that night in the palace dungeon, but I wasn’t sure what the questions were that I needed to ask. “Trev, when Zoltan cut me with the Reaper scythe, you were there, right?”
“I was, yes.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You don’t seem surprised by my use of the term ‘Reaper scythe.’”
“I figured that’s what you called it,” Trev said.
Why did I want to believe him so badly? And why couldn’t I? It made no sense to accuse him of lying, not after everything he’d done for us, but there were gaps in my memory that desperately needed filling.
“Have you seen weapons like that before?” I asked him. Kalon watched us both intently, but he remained silent. Ansel seemed worried. I had a feeling this kid might give us more to go on. Trev seemed just as in the dark as I was, shaking his head.
“No. Listen, I have to go. I’m meeting other Rimians up north, where another raid is expected,” he said. “I will see you back at the palace in precisely seven days, after sundown. Okay? Don’t look for me anymore. There might be Darklings following you, as well, since they’ve been unable to track me. Keep working your leads, and I’ll keep working mine. In seven days, we’ll compare notes.”
Kalon let a deep breath out, his shoulders slumping. “Be careful. Luna wouldn’t want you getting yourself killed over any of this.”
Trev smiled. “I know she wouldn’t. You two watch your backs, too, even with this little scoundrel brother of yours,” he said. “If he’s in with the Darklings, you can’t trust him.”
The three of us looked at Ansel. “Don’t worry, I’ll remind him of his true allegiance soon enough. He’ll be a Visentis again in no time,” Kalon declared, and Ansel shuddered, still kneeling by the stream.
“Treason is punishable by death,” I reminded Kalon of their own laws.
“Given Ansel’s last name, he might have a shot at clemency, if he shows remorse,” Trev said. “Anyway, let’s see what happens. Be safe.” He made his way upstream, keeping close to the rocky riverbed. I didn’t exactly agree with such selective punishment, but this wasn’t my world.
The woods were dark and thick, crowns stretching over our heads and keeping the moonlight and the stars at bay. I listened to the water gushing downhill, the nocturnal birds singing nearby, the occasional predatory growl of four-legged forest dwellers.
Kalon stayed quiet, as well, likely still reeling from his Ansel issue. When our eyes did meet, I could see his anguish. It was eating away at him, and he didn’t seem to know what to do with himself anymore.
I decided to take the lead, sprinkling black mineral dust over myself and giving him the satchel to do the same. He used some on his brother, too.
“Where do we go now?” I asked.
“My lake house is the closest, actually, about fifty miles southeast of here,” Kalon said. “We can rest there for the night and head back to the palace first thing in the morning. Trev doesn’t need us, and I need to get Ansel home. Our mother will want to have words with him.”
He shot Ansel a most murderous glare.
“I’m sorry this is happening,” I murmured. “You don’t deserve any of it.”
“It’s nothing compared to what others have suffered at the hands of Darklings. It’s fine, Esme. Thank you for the kind thoughts.”
As strange as it sounded, I could feel Kalon pulling away from me. It was as if this whole Ansel problem had quickly turned into a wedge, cramming itself between us. The attraction was still there, of course, but it all felt hampered by Ansel’s presence.
I hoped it would only be a temporary setback, because my heart was already pounding. I was fearful that this might become an opportunity lost—the kind that only comes once in a lifetime. At least it gave me an even bigger axe to grind with the Darklings.
They had turned into quite the thorn in my side, and I was eager to yank them all out.
Tristan
By nightfall, our convoy had already reached the Green Road, headed toward Astoria. The Crimson guards stayed with us at all times, but the gold and silver soldiers were sent out to check each settlement along the way.
We’d covered fifty villages and small towns thus far. In some instances, the troops had come back with blood on their glistening armor. They’d come across Darklings, and it had gotten violent, fast. Unfortunately, they had yet to bring any of them back to us in one piece. It no longer struck me as odd, having seen what lengths the Darklings were willing to go to, in order to protect their faction.
Some villages were untouched and completely oblivious to the threat. From there, the soldiers had returned with flasks filled with fresh blood from the Rimian locals.
We had our supply carts, as well, but the gesture was well received, nonetheless.
Corbin led the way, sullen as usual, likely still trying to process everything that had happened, everything that my sister and I had uncovered since Nethissis had been murdered. Zoltan Shatal had been a trusted servant of the empire. His betrayal had to sting.
Valaine stayed by my side as we rode our Vision horses up the Green Road. I could see where it had gotten its name from. It looked like a wide emerald path, flanked by lush forests, its edges evergreen with shrubs and sprawling bushes. The air was clean and crisp, cricket-like insects chirping from the darkness of the woods.
I’d just spoken to Esme about her whole adventure near Tromb, and I had to admit, even I was stunned by the developments. Valaine was equally flabbergasted.
“I still can’t believe it,” she murmured after a long and heavy silence. “Ansel, out of all people…”
“Should we tell your father, too?” I asked, briefly glancing ahead. An entire battalion separated us from him, and I didn’t mind it one bit. Corbin had a tendency to hover and scowl at me whenever I spoke to Valaine. This Aeternae man was the epitome of an overprotective father, for sure.
Valaine shook her head. “No. Not yet,” she said. “He will have no mercy for Ansel. He isn’t the kind who cares about a traitor’s last name. Besides, Kalon’s brother is young. He couldn’t have been with the Darklings for too long. Maybe there’s still hope for him.”
“He’s not talking yet.”
“Yet,” Valaine replied, giving me a half-smile. “I’m sure Kalon frightened him nearly to death. I can only imagine the anger and heartache he must be feeling right now. Rest assured, Kalon will get the truth out of him, eventually. Ansel just needs to understand that the Darklings are not his friends. That he’s better off with his family.”
“I’m surprised to see you so hopeful. He’s basically a Darkling himself, and the entire faction is determined to kill you,” I said.
A Shade of Vampire 80: A Veil of Dark Page 9