| |
I used to dream about coming to Prague with Adrien. I never thought I would be here under these circumstances. The city looked beautiful as we drove through just after midnight. The old streetlights, lighting the cobbled roads. Stunning townhouses with shuttered windows, like you’d find in the Mediterranean. But there was a darkness lurking in the shadows as we arrived on the outskirts of the city, before a mountain range. It was so quiet. No tourists out enjoying their holiday. No local bars open. No local street vendors trying to make a living. And every now and then a figure would step out and watch the car go by, almost like they were on guard duty. I know that those figures were vampires, and this area of the city belongs to Selene. It dashes all my hopes of a possible escape. I’m not strong enough to go head-to-head with any vampire yet.
“Here we are.” Selene waves her hand across the windscreen.
I haven’t spoken to her once. I’ve been tempted repeatedly to say to her, fuck-off you nasty evil bitch, but I’ve stayed quiet, thinking of ways I will kill her in the end. I don’t know what waits for me, or what she wants from me. If she wanted me dead, she would have done it already. She keeps trying to suck-up to me; talk to me like I’m her new best friend. It’s pathetic to hear a pure blood nearly grovelling for my attention.
A great building comes into my sight behind a pair of wrote iron gates, manned by several vampires. It’s a dark castle like building with balconies, sculptured stone, and gothic arches over the windows and entrance. It’s cliché, but with the mountains in the background, it really does look like the home to vampires.
Selene peers at the side of my face as we travel over a gravel path. She’s waiting for me to tell her how amazing her home looks. But she’ll get nothing. Not a single word. All I think of are Daniel and Adrien. I don’t know what’s happening to them. So it’s important I cooperate, but as a mute.
We stop next to a dried-up moss coated water fountain, and the doors are opened for Selene and me. I linger for a moment, a flash of hunger ripping up through my body. I haven’t fed yet. I’m newly awakened, and with all that is going on, I forget what I am. Like a busy human forgets to eat. This feeling however is agonising; not the normal hunger pang. My insides feel like they are being twisted inside out. But I refuse to give-in and beg Selene. I’ll fight because that is what Adrien would do.
“Elizabeth,” Selene calls for my attention. “You will have the finest blood soon. First, I need you to change for dinner.”
I slowly turn my head and gawp at her. We don’t need dinner. It’s nearly 1 a.m., and I most certainly don’t want to spend the night with her.
“Hector here, will show you to your room.”
Selene is escorted inside. Well she’s more followed by vampires, dropping items of her clothing for them to pick up, like they are her slaves.
I reluctantly step out into the night to find Hector waiting for me. He’s wearing a tailored black suit and tie. He’s around seven foot tall, and built like a tank.
“Ms Knight. Follow me please.” He walks beneath the Gothic arch, through to the main entrance.
I clasp my hands together, peering up at the building as I enter. I refuse to walk fast to keep up. The asshole can wait for me.
My boots move across the tiled floor. There are tiles everywhere, black and green, and a huge open fire to my left side, surrounded with what looks like carved ivory. Every noise echoes, my boots, the fabric of my jeans, and the cough Hector has just expelled to get my attention. I peer up at a wide stone staircase, to see he’s standing half way on the red carpet, waiting. My eyes repay his impatience with hate, but I find myself slowly following.
I make it to the top and now find myself in a long corridor. There are several over the top open fires, and glossy tiles on every wall. The building has been revamped by the worst interior designer. It looks like Selene wanted a modern look, but instead she’s got a dark and dingy bathroom look. It’s so bizarre.
“Ms Knight.” Hector opens the door to a room. “Your quarters.”
“Not my quarters.” The first time I’ve spoken, and it’s to Hector. Now I feel like saying a whole lot more.
I walk into the vast room. This is just like the entrance hall, tiles everywhere, but mixed with stone. There’s a stone fireplace, and even the elaborate bed base and head is made from sculptured stone. I look down on the emerald green silk bed sheets, to see a long red gown has been laid out for me. It’s a satin gown with thin straps, and the colour is awful. It’s the brightest shade of red, similar to the colour of a London bus.
“I’m not going to wear that,” I make clear, watching Hector roll his eyes at me.
“Selene will be with you shortly. I suggest you put the dress on. Or she will have you dressed.” Hector leaves me alone.
This is it. A chance to figure out an escape route. My plan is to find out that my son and Adrien are safe, hopefully completely off the radar, and when I can, get out of here.
I bluster through the room, failing to flit properly. First I check the windows. All three of them have balconies, but all three are locked. I use my new strength, but these damn windows are vampire proof.
“Shit!” I shake and rattle the iron handle.
Again I make a mess of trying to flit through the room. Flitting feels like human panic. A panic comes over you suddenly, and you find yourself whizzing around. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to control it.
I come out of a clumsy flitting motion, and suddenly slam against the tiles on the corridor outside.
“Grrr!” I punch at the wall.
“Elizabeth.” Great, Selene is here. I turn to her, hands against the wall, fangs piercing my gums, absolutely enraged. “Let me teach you. To control yourself, you need to control your heart. Your heart is still too human, fast and erratic. You need to embrace the dark calm to sooth your pulse.”
I can’t do it, be anywhere near this bitch and keep my cool. Now I’m near screaming, hurtling toward her. But I should have known I’d be useless. I totally missed her, slid, and landed on my back. She stands there, cackling at me, and I notice that she’s changed into a tight fitted ankle length black gown.
“Oh you really have brought some life back into this place.”
“Selene.” I jump up panting, hearing the whistle through my new animal like teeth.
“Well it’s finally nice to hear your voice,” she says. “We have a lot to discuss.”
“Selene.” I feel my body and my will to fight, fading away fast. “What is it you want from me?”
“Put on the dress, and come down for dinner.” She turns and glides to the top of the staircase. “You are ravenous.”
***
SELENE HAS TAKEN AWAY all my choices. She took away my choice of becoming a vampire when I choose. She took away the choice of Adrien and I being together, without always having to look over our shoulder. And she took me away from my son. So now I’m standing outside these large ancient double oak doors, wearing the awful dress she wanted me to wear, with nothing on my feet, because I haven’t got a choice.
Hector opens the doors from the inside. First I see a large rectangular black table, surrounded by matching high-back chairs. Selene sits right at the very end, raising a glass of blood, and I’ll confess, I need what she has more than ever. But I cannot play into her hands. I cannot take any offerings from her, because I don’t trust her. I don’t know what’s in that blood. It was Meredith’s blood that caused all this in the first place.
My feet move across the cold black floor tiles, closer to the table. Selene stands up and approaches me. I have to take my eyes off her before I try to attack her again. I look at the onyx chandeliers hanging from the ceiling beams, remembering when Adrien took me to The Mill for the first time in the light of day. Then it all comes flooding back, every moment I spent with him that took my breath away. How so ridiculously hard I fell in love with him, not knowing what he was. It feels like another life now. I miss him. I miss that we have had no peace since we married in Killiecrankie. Shit, I miss my family so much.
I lower my eyes to hers, showing no fear, just hatred.
“You could have combed your hair.” Selene fingers my knotty locks, hanging over my shoulder. “You’re not doing the dress justice. Here.” She holds out a glass of blood, but I sweep it out of her hand.
The glass doesn’t shatter, but rolls to the bare feet of a human. I frown at the poor soul. He’s dressed in a dirty shirt and torn pants. He’s so skinny and pale.
Selene pivots her head to face what I assume to be one of her slaves. He sways back and forth on the spot, looking like he may pass-out any second.
“Pour another!” she demands.
I would go over there and put the poor man out of his misery, while quenching this shitty intense thirst. But something is stopping me. I know it would give Selene great pleasure to watch me kill a man. But there’s also a part of me that thinks perhaps soon, this emaciated man might be free. He could have a family out there for all I know.
“Selene, you want me to stay without kicking up a fuss, then let him go.” The man peers up at me, his gaunt face grateful that a vampire can be lenient.
Selene stares at me. I can sense how unappreciative she thinks I am. She hums at me, then looks to her slave.
“You can leave us.” She excuses him, and I know it goes against everything she does. Selene doesn’t know what mercy is.
Her slave quickly scuttles by us with his head down, clumsily struggling to carry his body weight. Thankfully, he makes it out of the doors.
“Adrien would be proud. But you really must drink. You’re going to need your strength, and I need you healthy.” Her hand suddenly reaches down and she rubs my stomach.
I jump back away from her. “What do you mean, you want me healthy?” I yell.
She turns around in a flowing movement, and makes her way back to her throne like chair.
“Take a seat, Elizabeth.”
I don’t like her tone. It’s deep and demanding. Whatever she wants from me, I know it isn’t good. She’s been trying to pacify me for a reason.
I slowly walk to the table and take a seat, four chairs away from her. I watch as she pours blood from a jug into her crystal wine glass.
“What is it that makes a vampire, weaker and less significant than a man?” She takes a drink as I frown at her. “We vampire can create, but the one most powerful thing, is to give life. We take away life. We live in the shadows of man.”
“So this is about my son?” I snarl, ready to do anything to protect Daniel.
“I was once just like your son. Young, free, innocent, fertile.”
“You were... you were half-vampire, half-human?” I’m stunned. I don’t even think Adrien knows this.
“Yes. My father...” she hisses. “Murdered my mother. My mother was Meredith. She was a goddess. Strong, powerful, free to create a new world. I could have had my own child, but Demetrius took that away. He wanted me all to himself. He commanded my love and loyalty. But I never forgot what he did. He demoted who I was supposed to be.”
It’s like she’s looking for pity from me. But what happened to her, is no different than what she has done to me.
“You just need to tell me what I’m doing here, Selene. I don’t care about your daddy issues.”
Her eyes darken on me. “I’ve given you a life with a new Son, so in return you shall give me life. In your tiny belly lies the most precious thing to me. Vincent,” she calls out.
I turn to the doors to see Vincent strolling toward me. He has a self-assured nasty smile on his face. He comes to stand behind my chair and wraps his fingers around the backrest. I close my eyes and nod. This feels like Laurie all over again.
“Vincent here was at the top of his game in the fertility sector. He will make sure you come to no harm,” she says. “I would like you to give them to me willingly, Elizabeth, before you become infertile.”
“Are you fucking kidding!” This is the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard.
“No. Once we have what we need, you will be free to return to your family. So what say you?” She’s actually smiling at me, like I’m going to agree to this.
“I... I say no!”
“You say no,” she squeals. “What is inside you, isn’t yours to keep. They are mine. And you refuse me. This was simple enough. You will be obedient.”
“No Selene. You have done enough damage. So you... you can go to hell!”
“Well then, Vincent, Hector,” she calls, and Hector walks through the doors. “Elizabeth has chosen not to play nice. Take her downstairs.”
Vincent pushes down and grips my shoulders with his long skinny fingers. I gasp in and out, forcing him back as I eject up from the chair and across the room. Hector holds out his hands in and attempt to stop me, but I manage to flit out into the entrance hall. Vincent appears in a haze of black mist and grabs me. I wrestle against him, sinking my fangs into his arm. But it’s no good, both he and Hector have hold of me. I’m not strong enough to fend off two male vampires. I’m blood starved and too weak. Kicking and growling, I’m dragged through a door next to the staircase.