‘There’s no time to explain,’ Zoe said. ‘She’s in danger. Follow me.’
Alexandre didn’t need to hear anything else. They left the city behind them and swept along the snowy ground towards the cliffs.
Chapter Thirty Three
Cappadocia, 575 AD
*
When they reached the blue and silver room, Mislav gestured Aelia over to one of the floor cushions. She sat with her feet tucked under her and watched as he made himself comfortable on a carved wooden chair in the corner. He observed her with a frank gaze and she lowered her eyes. What did he want? Why was he not drinking from her?
‘You are an interesting human,’ he said.
She didn’t reply.
‘Why don’t you tremble and scream?’
Still she said nothing.
‘Answer me. Why aren’t you afraid?’
‘I … I don’t know. I … suppose it wouldn’t do any good if I was.’
He laughed. ‘You are becoming the subject of conversation. You are desirable.’
Aelia blushed.
‘Not in the way you think,’ he said. ‘You have a quality …’ He broke off. ‘Will you be mine? Will you agree to be only mine? No other will be allowed to take your blood. I alone will look after you; ensure you have everything you need …’
Aelia’s mind began to race. What should she say? If she became his alone, the infection wouldn’t spread to the other demons. But if she agreed to be his, perhaps she could save her family. Perhaps he would grant them mercy. Even as she thought of it, she knew they would never really be free. Soon she would be dead from the blood plague and then her family would be at risk again. Her only real option was to continue on her original course.
‘What would happen if I said no to you?’
His face darkened for a moment. ‘I would be insulted. You would return to the stinking pit with the rest and be fought over by my companions. There would be no rest for you. My brothers and sisters would drain you dry.’ He smiled.
Her heart pounded at his words. This was what she had come here for – to infect as many as possible. But now that she was clean and rested, the thought of going back to that room with the others, of waiting for the demons to come for her again and again, made her weak with terror. What should she do? She knew what she should do, but it would take every last bit of her courage to say the words.
‘I can … I cannot be yours.’ There; she had said it.
Mislav’s smile melted onto the floor. ‘I lied,’ he said. ‘You don’t have a choice in these things, little human. But I was interested to hear what your answer would be. Part of me is angry … but part of me likes your courage. You will not return to your humans and I’m sorry you chose to return there rather than stay here. You have disappointed me.’
Aelia was ashamed to feel relief that she would not have to face the claustrophobic darkness of the pit. But what did this mean for her? Would Mislav now keep her apart from the other demons? How would she then manage to spread the plague among them?
‘This will be your chamber,’ he said. ‘And now … you are mine.’ He came close, pushing her hair from her neck and bending towards her throat.
Aelia tried to think of other things as she felt the burn followed by the swoon. Her heart beat loudly and she felt her blood pumping and draining. This part was almost pleasurable, but she knew it would eventually be followed by pain and weakness. Soon, oblivion claimed her and all was nothing.
When she came to, Mislav was gone and the girls from the lake were in the chamber with her. One mopped her brow with a cool wet rag and the other stood by the entrance.
‘How long was I asleep?’ Aelia croaked.
Neither girl replied.
‘Oh, I forgot. You’re the mute twins,’ Aelia said, her weariness interrupted by a spark of irritation. She closed her eyes again.
Mislav treated Aelia as his pet, sometimes gentle, sometimes impatient. He often spoke to her in soothing tones, trying to initiate conversation, but she was too exhausted to pay him any attention, beset by continuous fevers and terrible nausea. Disturbing images invaded her dreams – a demon horse, her family dead and broken, a waterfall of blood. She was barely able to distinguish whether she was awake or asleep. Then something happened to jolt her out of her stupor. As she lay, wrapped in nightmares, she felt a presence in the chamber and when she opened her eyes, two demons stood before her. What did they want? She hardly cared.
‘Where is Mislav?’ one of them barked.
‘I don’t know,’ she whispered.
‘You,’ he said to one of the girls. ‘Where is your master?’
‘I don’t know,’ she stammered.
‘Then we wait.’ They stood unmoving.
Aelia thought they must be important. Their dress was formal, almost military, with dark cloaks pinned at their right shoulders. But she drifted back into sleep before she had time to wonder further.
Raised voices woke her.
‘Get out of here,’ Mislav said to the demons.
‘You are not authorised to have her.’
‘Whose dogs are you? Get out,’ Mislav said and turned his back on them.
‘You are not authorised, Sir,’ the demon continued. ‘It has been decreed that ...’
Mislav swore and overturned a table. ‘Get out!’
The demons left, their cloaks swishing out behind them.
Mislav crouched next to Aelia and stroked her hair. ‘They will not take you from me. They have no right. I claimed you first.’
Every caress of his hand sent shards of pain through Aelia’s skull.
Moments later the demons returned, but this time there were five of them.
‘Sir,’ one of them spoke. ‘I take my orders directly from His Imperial Highness. The human is not yours alone.’
Mislav stood, seemingly in control, but Aelia saw him flick at the tips of his fingers with his long nails.
‘His Imperial Highness? Why should he be interested in a weak and dying human?’
‘We do not question why and neither should you.’
‘Insolence,’ Mislav hissed.
‘I apologise, Sir. But we have our orders. We must return her to the pit with the others. She is not your alone. You are not authorised.’
‘Not authorised,’ Mislav muttered. ‘Very well. I will return her.’
Aelia suddenly felt a burning pain in her scalp. The room disappeared as she was dragged by her hair, like a sack of rubble, through the blackness of the rock corridors. Within seconds, she was lying in the darkness, her body battered and aching, her scalp on fire. She panted with the shock of it.
‘Aelia?’ Nonna’s voice.
She couldn’t speak.
‘Aelia? Someone pass me the water,’ Nonna said.
‘There’s none left,’ came the reply.
‘Then God help us all.’
And so Aelia found herself back in the reeking cave with her human companions. She didn’t know how she kept going. She was weak, delirious, feverish and sick. Whether it was the infection or the loss of blood, she wasn’t sure.
All the while, the creatures came for her again and again – males, females and even young ones who looked like children. She didn’t know how long this had been going on. It felt like an eternity. There was no day and no night; only darkness or the dancing flames of torchlight. She was either burning up with fever or freezing cold with the shivers, her teeth chattering uncontrollably in her head. She realised she didn’t have much time left. She could only hope she had done her job in spreading the infection throughout the demon population. She understood she would never see her family or friends again, but perhaps they were still alive and would eventually escape this hell.
Snatches of the demons’ conversations wove through her subconscious. They loved her pliancy, her willingness to go with them. She now understood that human fear infused the blood with bitterness and that her subservience made her irresistible to them. But she was also a source of conflict between the
m and she caught fragments of terrible violent arguments. Aelia felt herself to be near the end. She couldn’t eat, she could barely walk and her skin was mottled with a rash of sores. The demons didn’t seem to care. They still wanted her.
As well as the others, Mislav still came for Aelia. He didn’t mention his vicious treatment of her after the guard demons had ordered her back to the pit. But she had the feeling he was sorry for it. He gave her water and soothing poultices for her pustule-ridden skin. He tried to tempt her with delicacies, but her appetite was gone. She was dying. It wouldn’t be long now, even though Mislav told her he wouldn’t let her die, that he would save her. All she was aware of was her body doing its duty and infecting these monsters. Her mind had shut down and she didn’t have the strength to feel anything other than an overwhelming wish to die.
Aelia lay on a tapestried chaise, the intricate pattern making her so dizzy she had to close her eyes. She couldn’t remember them coming for her, or what they said or did. She was barely holding onto life now, her breaths coming in short shallow gasps. The voices of the demons seemed a long way away.
‘I am going to do it.’ She recognised the voice.
‘You must not.’ An unknown male voice replied.
‘I will. You cannot prevent it.’
‘You. Must. Not.’
‘Such a shame she is so weak.’ A female voice this time. ‘This one would have satisfied me for years. Is there really nothing to be done?’
‘She has some pitiful human disease. She’ll be dead before the night is through,’ the male said. ‘I cannot let you do it.’
‘Juraj, I’ll rip your teeth out if you try to stop me.’ Now Aelia recognised the voice. It was Mislav. Her eyelids creaked open and from her horizontal position, she saw the two males facing each other.
Juraj laughed. ‘She’s really got under your skin, brother. Forget her. There are so many others.’
‘It is not your business.’
‘Oh, but is my business. It is all of our business and I cannot let you go ahead with your foolish plan.’
Mislav snarled and smashed into the dark-haired demon. They flew across the chamber and ricocheted off the ceiling. Juraj stood and dusted himself down.
‘You’re a fool, brother, to expend so much energy on a pathetic human.’
‘I’m warning you, Juraj. Do not cross me on this matter.’
‘It’s too late, Mislav. It is already out of my hands.’ He left the chamber with the female demon.
Mislav snarled in anger and hurled a small silver table across the room. It clanged against the wall and echoed into the silence.
Aelia didn’t know why the demons had been fighting, but she realised it was something to do with her. Something she had done or not done. She couldn’t think clearly and she hurt so much. It hurt to move, to breathe. Please, God, she prayed. Take me to you now. I have done all I can. I do not think I can bear another second of this existence.
Chapter Thirty Four
Present Day
*
Following Eren’s directions, Maddy rode out of the village and soon came to a wider road. A truck rumbled along in front of her and she overtook it. A couple of cars came along. It felt strange to see normal traffic after her lone trek through the wilderness. A few more cars drove by, crawling through the treacherous weather. The snow had returned, more whirling flakes which flew into her eyes. Maddy blinked and squinted through the white haze, expecting at any moment to be dragged from the bike and taken back to the caverns … or worse. But after twenty minutes or so, she saw the blurred lights of a petrol station up ahead.
Hoping she had enough money, Maddy pulled into the station and stopped next to one of the pumps. She shrugged off the rucksack and dug around inside it until she found the notes. A man approached the bike and spoke to her in Turkish. He looked as though he worked here.
‘Do you speak English?’ Maddy said.
‘Engleesh? No.’
‘Here.’ She held out the notes in her gloved hand. ‘Petrol?’
The man held out his hand with his palm facing upwards. He placed his other hand on the top and raised it up slowly and then lowered it. He was asking her if she wanted a lot of fuel or a little. Maddy nodded her head in comprehension and mimed back that she would like a full tank. The man nodded and began to fill up the tank. When he’d finished, he motioned to her to go into the building to pay. She nodded her thanks and went inside.
The brightness made her wince. She felt exposed under the lights, sure that she was in more danger here than out on the bike. Quickly, she scooped up some brightly coloured bags of snacks. She had no idea what they contained, but she might as well stock up now. She also bought a pair of cheap sunglasses, picking out a pair with the lightest lenses she could find. They would protect her eyes from the wind and snow as she rode. The woman at the cash register picked out the notes she needed but still left Maddy with a sizable wedge. Zoe had been generous with the cash.
Once back on the road, Maddy felt a little less worried. At least she wouldn’t run out of fuel in the middle of nowhere. In her rear view mirror Maddy saw a couple of motorbikes. Her heart sped up. She told herself not to panic. They were motorbikes that was all. It didn’t mean they were chasing her. She sped up just the same and overtook a van. Checking in her mirror, she saw the bikes also overtake the van. Dizziness swept over her and she swerved slightly before righting herself again. Calm down, she told herself. The van was slow that was all. Anyone would probably have overtaken it. She put on another spurt of speed. The bikers matched it.
She’d have to try and lose them. A lorry loomed up ahead, lumbering through the snowstorm like a great dark beast. She’d have to pass it, but she couldn’t see if anything was coming in the opposite direction. She whipped her head around – the bikers were gaining on her. Accelerating, she pulled out into the middle of the road to overtake the lorry. Up ahead, lights flashed at her and she swerved in front of the lorry to avoid the oncoming vehicle.
Were the bikers still behind her? Were they going to collide with the oncoming car? She didn’t look to find out. Instead, she slowed and eased the bike across to the right, to the other side of the lorry so it hid her from the bikers’ view. As she did so, the lorry driver pressed down on his horn, mightily upset as he had every right to be. After all, she had nearly killed them both.
Now that she was shielded by the truck, she killed her headlight and pulled sharply off the road, heading out cross-country down a steep slope. Madison felt completely in control of the bike now; it was almost as though it had become an extension of her body, bending to her will. And strangely, mixed in with the terror, a little bit of exhilaration broke through, surprising her. She didn’t dare let go of the handlebars, but in her head, she stuck a middle finger up at the bikers.
A thick shivering stand of fir trees lay to her left and she veered towards it. It could be a good place to hide. If they knew she was down here, she wouldn’t be able to outride them. Once she reached the trees, she stopped, turned off the engine and wheeled the bike into the densest part. Heart thumping, hands shaking, head swimming, Madison waited, any minute expecting to hear the whine of bikes. But all she heard was the distant swoosh of a car passing on the road.
Had she really lost them? For now, it seemed she had. But they could double back at any time. Thankfully, the snow was still falling, covering her tyre tracks. If the bikers didn’t spot the tracks in the next minute or two, they’d have a hard time following her. The darkness shielded her from the bikers, but it also gave rise to a more deadly pursuer, one she’d so far managed to evade. Surely dawn couldn’t be far away. Tonight seemed to have lasted forever. She remembered she had Eren’s phone and checked the time on it – six fifty am. It was later than she thought. Sunrise was close. Still no messages for her though and there was no signal either for her to try calling Alex again.
Either she could hide out here and hope for the best, or she could try to get back to the hotel. Once it
got light, those motorcyclists would find her more easily. And if she just sat here, the vampires would surely come. Maddy made up her mind. The road up there led pretty much straight to Ayvali. It was too exposed to travel on but she could ride parallel to it, down here out of sight.
Taking a breath, she started up the engine. It sounded ridiculously loud, its roar flooding the silent plain. Maddy took off. The night suddenly didn’t seem so long or dark. Morning was almost here. Maybe she could let herself think she might see Alex very soon. The thought was too good to imagine. She glanced behind her for bikes or dark swooping shapes, but could see none. The snow was easing again. Her tracks would stay visible now.
The engine noise lulled her into a kind of stupor. Maddy was exhausted and the cold had once again penetrated the marrow of her bones. She felt like she would never be warm again. She hoped the hotel had a good deep bath.
The going was becoming more treacherous with mounds of snow-covered rock, trenches, slopes, dips and copses to negotiate. Out of the corner of her eye, Maddy saw a dark speck in the distance up ahead. It was moving through the snow towards her. Then she looked again and realised there were several of them. And they weren’t motorcyclists.
Maddy braked, her breath shallow and fast. Vampires. They were vampires and they were coming for her. They might not even want to take her back to the underground city. Perhaps they had something worse planned for her. No. Stop thinking that way. Try to think what to do next. There was no way she would be able to outrun them, even on the bike. The only thing that could harm them was daylight and that was almost here, but not quite. They must have calculated that they would have enough time to capture her and take her back with them, or kill her or whatever it was they wanted to do before dawn broke.
All she had to do was delay them, so they were forced to leave before the sun rose. They would have to flee or they would die. But what could she do? What could save her? Fire? She had matches, but everything out here was covered in snow. Anyway, would fire even stop them? She glanced around, frantic. She only had a few seconds to act.