Breaking Free
Myra stared at Tristan’s tense face, turned upwards towards the dark alcove Vlad and Sissi had disappeared into. Did he feel guilt? He had been the one to bring the Prince here, perhaps thinking Sissi would have welcomed him as her sire. Had he never anticipated Sissi’s change of heart? Did he not know what his master was capable of?
Vlad reappeared, and his face was pale. “She should be safe there. Until next nightfall, she will appear no different from a dead human. No vampire would think to stake or decapitate her.”
Myra glared at him. “Let me make one thing clear. If I’m ever on the brink of death, I don’t wish to be turned. Just let me die.”
“Fine.” He looked at Tristan. “Hate me as much as you wish when the battle is over. But now, we must work together. Take Myra to safety. I am not losing any more humans.”
Not losing any more humans? “Really?” Myra snapped. “Perhaps you should try not killing us.”
Tristan’s usual scowl deepened, and he stared at Vlad, his eyes turning cold as ice. “I take Myra to safety? And what will you do?”
“I will destroy the Wizard.”
Tristan snorted and threw his hands up in the air. “And may I ask how?”
“I have a plan.”
Tristan rolled his eyes. “Please, be more precise.”
The Prince shrugged. “It is simple. I fight my way to the top, place the explosives, and detonate them.”
Tristan’s grey eyes grew wide as saucers, and his mouth dropped open, making him look like a fish gasping for water. “That is your plan? It is even more nonsensical than the ceiling-crawling escape.”
“We have no time to argue,” Vlad said sharply and peeked out from behind the rock to fire two arrows. “The Wizard needs to be destroyed, and I am doing it. I need you to take Myra to safety.”
“Look, I don’t want to be a burden,” Myra said. “If you believe you have a better chance of reaching the Wizard together, you should both go. I’ll survive somehow.”
“You will not survive five steps without us,” the Prince said. “Tristan will protect you.”
“I never agreed to this,” Tristan snapped.
Vlad glared at him. “Someone needs to take Myra to safety.”
“True,” Tristan said. “I will agree to your plan under one condition—I go and blow up the Wizard, and you take Myra to safety.”
“This is ridiculous,” Vlad said.
“Oh, is it? Is it really?” A vampire had made his way around the rock, and Tristan turned around and decapitated him in one angry stroke. “And why would that be? Are you saying I am not good enough to do this? Fast enough? Smart enough? Cunning enough? I can do it as well as you. But no, it always has to be you to take on the most dangerous tasks, while I am shielded and protected. I am sick of you treating me like a child. I am centuries older than you were when we first met.”
Another vampire appeared, and Myra fired a bullet into his chest before Vlad pushed a wooden arrow into his heart. “Oh, come on,” she cried. “First, you whine that you get crappy wounds, then you complain you’re always babied. Can you make up your mind for once?”
Vlad snorted. “His mind is made up. He wants the most dangerous missions, but he wants to breeze through them like a magical hero, unhurt and looking cool.” He glanced at Tristan. “And I know you would be capable of all that. I never doubted your skills. The simple truth is, I have lost too much in my life. I cannot lose you.”
“Ah, so it all boils down to your famous self-centeredness,” Tristan barked. “You don’t want me to get hurt because it would make you suffer, and yet you constantly place yourself in danger, not caring what this does to me or to Armida. You never ask for any help or protection from us, and yet you never let us leave your care. You turned Sissi against her will not because it is what is best for her, but because it makes you feel better. Surely you realize how patronizing this is?”
Myra glared at him. “And surely you both realize this is the worst time and place to figure out your issues?”
“We gain nothing by switching our places in the plan,” the Prince said. “Assuming we are equally good warriors—and I am sorry to say it, but I am better—it would make no difference which one of us goes. There is no rational reason why you should be the one to do it.”
“You want a reason?” Tristan said softly. “Let me give you one. You said you could not lose me. If you send me away now, you will lose me, no matter the outcome.”
Vlad fell silent, his head bowed. Myra stared at him, trying to will him to look at her. This is what we discussed when I came to negotiate Tristan’s release, she thought furiously. This is what I tried to warn you about. You’re keeping him in a golden cage. If you don’t set him free, he will either break his head against the bars, or escape and never return. You are losing him.
The Prince looked up, and for the briefest moment, her gaze met his. She gave him a small nod, and a heartbeat later, he gave her a nod in return.
She knew it would make no sense for her to openly take Tristan’s side. It would only make Vlad come off even worse. There was only one thing she could do, and she hoped the Prince would play along.
“Tristan, I mean no offense,” she said, “but the Prince is right. Our top priority is to destroy the Wizard, and we need to send the one with the greatest chance of success. You’re a good fighter, but he is better.”
“I wouldn’t necessarily say so,” Vlad said, and she breathed a sigh of relief—he had understood and accepted her plan. “Tristan is very good. I have trained him myself, and he has given me every reason to be proud of my teaching skills.” He looked at Tristan. “Forgive me. You are right to say that my overprotectiveness is absurd, given your age, skills, and experience. The truth is, I hate the thought of any harm coming to you, but that is my problem, not yours. Go with my blessing. I know you can do this.”
For the next few moments, Tristan stared at his Prince, stunned. It appeared the younger vampire had never truly believed Vlad would agree to his demands. Myra wondered if Tristan had really wanted this or had simply wished to put up a rebellious scene, knowing that nothing would come of it anyway. But then, he smiled so brightly that for the very first time, Myra saw his perma-frown disappear.
“Thank you,” Tristan said with such emotion that Myra felt a smile tug at her lips. He deserved to be happy, after everything.
Vlad’s gaze softened. “Do not give me any reason to regret my decision. Your arm wound won’t interfere with your fighting, will it? Does it pain you? I mean, apart from the emotional pain of having your shirt destroyed,” he added with a wink.
Tristan grinned ruefully. “I think I will be able to mend the tear, so there is no pain whatsoever.”
“This is good to hear,” said the Prince. “And yet, I would feel better if I knew you were at your full strength.”
I must have been spending too much time around vampires, Myra thought, if I can hear such words and know exactly what they mean.
Tristan chewed at his lip for a moment but then threw up his hands in the air with a resigned sigh. “Fine. No amount of pride and stubbornness can make me refuse your blood.”
Myra was not even surprised as she watched Tristan bite the Prince and drink with desperate greed. When he pulled back, his eyes were shining. “I am still angry at you.”
Vlad smiled. “Of course. I understand.” His smile disappeared, and his gaze darkened as he added barely audibly, “Stay alive.”
“Yes, Tristan, stay alive,” Myra said. “You need to be here to enjoy the new world you will create.”
“I certainly will,” Tristan promised, and with a last glance at them, he grabbed a protruding rock and pulled himself up, towards the Central Peak.