Could she outrun them? Were there anymore of them lurking behind the rocks? She couldn’t worry about that. Madison had to keep going as fast as she could and hope that her luck held. Her breathing was laboured, her legs screamed in pain as the muscles were pushed on and on, up and up. She realised the sun had dimmed, reclaimed by the snowy clouds.
‘I got you!’
Madison was grabbed from behind and lifted off the ground. She squealed with shock and kicked backwards into her attacker’s shins.
‘Calm down.’ It was a man’s voice and he had an accent. He had her arms pinned to her sides, so all Maddy could do was use her heels to batter his legs.
‘Get … off!’ she yelled.’ Let me go, you wanker!’
‘Kick me again and I will use this.’ The man let go with his right arm, keeping hold of her with his left and she felt cold metal press into the side of her head. Then he dropped her to the ground. ‘I’ll shoot you in the back if you run. I’m not going to go chasing you around the mountain.’
Maddy didn’t move. She didn’t look up. She didn’t even want to think. What a waste of time. All that effort for nothing. It was almost dark now anyway. Daylight was a distant dream of hope and escape.
‘Get up.’ The man kicked at her leg.
Maddy took a shaky breath, willing herself not to cry. She wouldn’t give the arrogant pig the satisfaction. She stood and turned, staring right into his eyes. It wasn’t the man with the knife. This one wasn’t as tall and he had a gun which he held loosely at his side. The man pushed her in front of him and prodded at her to start moving down the cliff. As she walked, she tried to project her hatred and defiance by moving as slowly as possible. But the man kept jabbing her in the back with his gun, making her stumble and almost fall several times. By the time they reached the bottom, it was dark.
*
‘Ben tells me you’re a traitor.’
Morris looked up from his English newspaper and stared at Leonora. His face portrayed no emotion.
‘Well?’ she continued. ‘Haven’t you anything to say? Aren’t you going to defend yourself?’
‘Ben must’ve had a good reason to tell you that.’ He folded his paper and set it on the table.
‘Well,’ replied Leonora. ‘To be honest the evidence isn’t overwhelming, but it does pose a worrying question mark over you.’
‘What do you think?’ Morris asked. ‘Do you think I’ve betrayed you?’
‘Me? I don’t know what to think. It’s a dilemma we could do without at this point in time. There’s quite enough going on without adding a spy into the mix, don’t you agree?’
Morris interlinked his hands and rested them on his lap.
‘I think the best thing is if we keep you out of harm’s way for the time being. Until we can determine the truth. Is that alright with you?’
‘Doesn’t look like I’ve too much of a say in the matter,’ he replied.
‘No,’ she said. ‘I’ll lock you in the back of the van with blankets. You should be quite comfortable until we can decide what to do with you.’
‘Just so’s I know, who am I supposed to be spying for?’
‘The Cappadocian vampires I suppose.’
‘Right.’
‘Come on then,’ Leonora said. ‘You’d better put some warm clothes on. It’ll be cold in the van and I’ll have to tie you up so you don’t escape.’
‘Have you told the others?’ Morris asked.
‘Not yet. I’d better get you locked up and then I’ll let them know.’
Morris stood and got a warm jumper from his case. Next he took his coat from its hanger in the wardrobe. He put on a hat, scarf and gloves, cleared his throat and followed Leonora outside into the cold Cappadocian night.
*
‘What do you mean she’s gone? Gone where?’ Alexandre took a step towards Sergell who bristled at his approach. The other vampires tensed. ‘You’d better not have harmed her …’
‘Or what?’ Sergell smiled. ‘We didn’t touch the girl, but she escaped this morning.’
Alexandre scrutinized the other vampire’s face. He didn’t think he was lying. Sergell appeared calm, not angry or worried by the turn of events.
‘How could she have escaped from here? She is a single human. You are a group of immortals.’ Suddenly, Alexandre almost felt like laughing. Madison was a constant surprise to him. He allowed himself a small smile. Good for her. He would find her easily, hide her somewhere safe and then he would deal with this ‘situation’.
‘I’m glad you find the situation amusing,’ Sergell said. ‘But she has only made it worse for herself. You see, I cannot now guarantee her safety when they find her.’
Alexandre dropped the smile. ‘When who find her? What have you done?’
‘We are in pursuit. Night has fallen. It is only a matter of time before my hunters bring her down.’
Alexandre moved quickly. He must find her before they did. But he was forgetting, these creatures were as fast as he, if not faster. Before he reached the exit, two of them had him pinned him against the rock wall.
‘You’ve only just arrived, Alexandre,’ Sergell said, walking up to him. ‘You can’t leave already. And his Imperial Highness will be with us tomorrow. Now that you’re here we cannot risk losing you too.’
‘You don’t need to do this,’ Alexandre said, struggling against the two vampires who held him. ‘We can work this out amicably. She is of no threat …’
‘We have moved past that point,’ Sergell interrupted. ‘And anyway, I think it’s all working out rather well. Your family will be along shortly to see what’s keeping you and then you can ‘meet your maker’ as it were.’ He laughed.
As Alexandre listened to Sergell’s self-satisfied speech, he tried to clear the red mist in his head. ‘We had an agreement, Sergell. You said you would release Madison if I came here. You are now honour bound to let her go. Call your men off the chase.’
‘We had no such agreement. An order was issued which you are duty bound to obey. His Imperial Highness gives the commands and we merely follow.’
‘And who is this Imperial Highness? Why should I listen to a word …’
Sergell slapped his face with the back of his hand, a fingernail cutting into Alexandre’s cheek. He was still pinned to the wall by two vampires and could not retaliate although he now began to struggle against his captors.
‘Do not use that tone with me, fledgling,’ Sergell snarled. ‘I am not in the mood for it.’
Alex suddenly realised the seriousness of his predicament. He was also terrified for Maddy’s safety. The others had been right to warn him against coming here alone. He had had some naïve notion of talking these vampires around or overpowering them somehow. What a joke. He had to get out of here. He would try to distract them somehow.
‘I apologise,’ Alexandre said, relaxing his struggle against the vampires. ‘I meant no disrespect. But I would like to know who is this Imperial Highness of whom you speak. Were you referring to the vampire who turned me?’
Sergell’s face relaxed a little. ‘Yes, our Emperor. And as I said earlier, he was your maker. It seems we share a father.’
Alexandre almost gagged. That creature was not his father. The very idea that it was related to him in some way made him feel physically ill. But he swallowed down his distaste and nodded to Sergell in acknowledgement.
Sergell gestured to his vampires to relax their hold on Alexandre. As soon as they did, Alex tried to break for the exit again. But he was not quick enough. Before he was able to step forward two paces, hands seized his upper arms and slammed him backwards. He jabbed his elbows out sideways to try and shake them off and swung forward with his feet, catching one of the other vampires in the stomach and sending him crashing through the recently made hole in the wall. Alexandre had wrestled one of his arms free and now used it to try and prise the other vampire off his arm. But he was instantly surrounded. He knew it was pointless to carry on, but he continued to try and b
reak free nonetheless.
‘Quite impressive,’ Sergell drawled. ‘You will be useful.’ He turned to one of his henchmen. ‘Take him.’ Then he took a step closer to Alexandre. ‘Go quietly with my men and I will personally ensure your family remains unharmed when they arrive.’
‘And Madison?’ Alexandre asked, clenching his jaw and trying to keep his rage under control.
‘Alas, as I said before, she is already as good as dead.’
Alexandre tipped his head back and brought it down with as much force as he could summon, head-butting Sergell in the face and shaking himself free once more. The other vampires fell on him, punching, kicking, snarling and tearing at his body until Sergell shouted, ‘Enough!’ They fell back and silence descended.
From where he lay on the ground, Alexandre looked up through swollen bloodied eyes. His fury kept the pain at bay, but he couldn’t move. Bones had been broken and his insides had been pounded to a pulp. Sergell’s face gradually came into focus, looming over him and as he came closer Alexandre could feel his metallic breath on his face.
‘Anyone else I would kill,’ Sergell said, his voice low and cold.
The vampire’s face receded and Alexandre was dragged along the stone floor. But even now, after only a few moments, he could feel his body healing itself. The bones knitting back together, the skin regenerating, his internal organs repairing. Wherever the vampires were taking him, he would escape. They could not keep him here. Whatever it took he would get out. Soon he would return to full strength and there would be no creature or room strong enough to hold him.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Cappadocia, 575 AD
*
Suddenly, a low rumbling sound filled the room and a wash of orange light flooded in. There was silence and stillness followed by whimpers and screams. Aelia felt the grasping, squirming bodies disappear from on top of her. She was able to breathe again. Everyone had scrambled towards the back of the cavern, terror in their eyes. Aelia had been curled into a ball to protect herself from the people who had been trying to grab at her bag. Now, she knelt and lifted her head to look up at the source of the light, staring in fear and fascination at the two demons that stood in the open doorway.
Apart from several inert bodies on the ground, Aelia was now the only human remaining in the centre of the cavern. Everyone else was cowering and huddled against the outer walls, as far away from the creatures as possible.
The demons in the doorway were blonde-haired female beauties with terrible dark red eyes and sharp teeth, silhouetted in a halo of torchlight. No emotion registered on their faces, reminding Aelia of the blank-faced expression a snake wears when it’s sizing up its dinner. The silence in the room was like a heavy living thing.
‘Here, kitty, kitty,’ one of them said in a low hypnotic voice. ‘Don’t keep us waiting.’
‘A little child might be nice,’ the other said. ‘Anyone care to volunteer their baby? Or shall I come and choose?’ The demon stepped inside and cast her eyes around the wall. She didn’t seem to have noticed Aelia crouched only a few feet in front of her. Sobs and cries now punctuated the silence.
Aelia knew she had to offer herself up to them, although the thought made her insides turn to water. She was infected with the blood plague anyway – as good as dead already. Her body shook as she struggled to her feet. A low gasp came from behind her; someone shocked at her audacity, her foolishness. She forced a smile onto her face.
‘I will go willingly with you,’ she said.
‘How charming,’ the demon in front of her spoke. ‘It wants to play.’
The two creatures broke into peals of laughter as Aelia stepped woodenly towards them, forcing one foot in front of the other. They linked arms with her and led her out of the chamber and along the passage. Aelia heard the stone roll back into place, sealing her human companions back into their dark chamber.
‘Is one enough?’ one of them asked the other.
‘This one is interesting. I am bored of the taste of fear.’
‘Very well. She can be our little secret.’ They giggled and walked out of the torchlit corridor into the darkness.
As they continued on, they occasionally passed back into the light which flickered from lamps set into recesses in the walls. Nobody passed them and Aelia felt herself almost being carried along, her feet barely touching the ground. She tried to distract herself from a rising terror by focusing on their beautiful clothes - garments fit for royalty - made from sumptuous fabrics in rich jewel colours of golds and blues and greens, the like of which she had never seen before. As they glided through the empty passages and caverns, their hems brushed the rock floor, swishing like the sound of the wind through the trees.
Before too long, they entered a small chamber, fully carpeted with plump brocaded cushions strewn about the floor. If not for the circumstances, Aelia would have loved this room. It was warm and comfortable with a feeling of opulence that she had never imagined could exist. But she realised this room would not be a place to love; it would be a place to fear and tremble.
One of the creatures stroked her cheek with a sharp fingernail. Aelia closed her eyes. She didn’t want to look at the teeth or the eyes. She tried to steady her breathing and think about the blood plague which now coursed through her body and would soon be infecting these two terrible demons. She smiled as she felt the first bite and then she felt a pulsing lightness inside before she fell into unconsciousness.
*
‘She’s awake.’
Aelia opened her eyes to darkness. Even if she couldn’t see where she was, she could certainly smell it. She was back in the sealed chamber with the other humans. Her head was on the old woman’s lap and now she felt liquid being splashed onto her lips. It dribbled down her chin and she opened her mouth a little to let it trickle onto her parched tongue.
‘They gave you food and water,’ a man said. ‘They said it was just for you. That if we touched it they’d snap our necks, but surely you can spare some for the children.’
‘Leave her be, Marcus,’ the woman said. ‘She’s only just woken.’
‘Well we’re all starving and dying of thirst here. There’s no time to leave her be. If she says we can have some, that’ll make it alright won’t it?’
The water had reached her throat, melting a few of the stabbing blades inside. She swallowed and blinked. Then she smelled the woman’s rank breath and coughed.
‘We weren’t sure if you’d pull through,’ the woman said. ‘You were shivering in your sleep and muttering about all sorts.’
‘What’s your name?’ Aelia croaked.
‘You can call me Nonna.’
‘Nonna, is what the man said true? Is there food and water here for me?’
‘Yes, it’s true,’ the man interrupted.
‘Give it to the children,’ Aelia said.
A grateful murmuring broke out, but Nonna’s voice rose up above the rest.
‘Wait! We must save some for the girl. If she gets none, they will want to know why.’
‘Is there any fruit?’ Aelia asked. ‘I would love a piece of fruit, that’s all.’ And then she closed her eyes and slept again.
The next time she awoke, she didn’t feel quite so bad. It was a relief to feel almost normal again. Widow Maleina had said the infection would work quickly, but Aelia didn’t feel ill at all. Just tired. She was surprised to see the others had saved her some food - bread, a little cold meat and a ripe peach. She fell upon it, feeling the others’ jealous hungry stares. Forcing herself to stop before devouring every single morsel, she passed a few pieces of bread and meat to the children, who snatched it wordlessly from her hands.
‘Why are you so special?’ one of the women asked bitterly. ‘Why do you get food?’
‘Did you offer yourself to those things?’ Nonna asked the woman.
The woman looked at her feet.
‘No,’ Nonna said. ‘You didn’t. Aelia is a brave girl. The demons have left us alone since she ca
me along. You should be thanking her and singing her praises instead of moaning.’
Peach juice dripped down Aelia’s chin and she wiped at it with her sleeve. As she did so, she felt a sharp pain in her wrist. Putting her fingers to it, she realised the skin was broken. The demons must have punctured her wrist as well as her neck. Aelia suddenly felt nauseous and had to fight hard to keep the contents of her stomach down. She shouldn’t have eaten so quickly.
Her skin felt sticky and filthy with blood and dirt. What she wouldn’t give to wash in a nice cool river, to float there and let the current bob her along, rinsing her body clean. But she couldn’t afford to think like that. She wasn’t going to swim in a river, she wasn’t going to get clean, not ever again. What she was going to do, was infect these blood-sucking monsters, save her family, and then she was going to die.
Chapter Thirty
Present Day
*
As darkness fell, spinning flakes of snow flew into Maddy’s face, melting on her skin and sticking to her eyelashes. The lights from the motorcycles shone directly into her eyes as the man with the gun prodded her towards one of them. He made her climb on and sit in front of him, his unwelcome arms around her as he reached for the handlebars. She cast a quick glance at the others, recognising the giant who she’d outwitted earlier on the cliff face. He scowled and she gave him the filthiest look she could manage.
The engines growled into life and they began to move back the way she had trekked. She still couldn’t believe it had taken a day to reach the cliffs. What a pointless waste of time. But there was nothing she could do. No way of escape. Anyway, she was exhausted. The snow fell thicker and heavier, the headlights shining into whirling whiteness. Maddy had to duck her head to stop the wind and snow stinging her eyes.