Deamhan (30 page)

“You have his minion.” Selene nodded. “If it makes you feel better, Anastasia, what do you suggest that I do?” Veronica and Nathan turned to Anastasia, waiting for her reply.

Anastasia turned her body slightly away from Selene. “No talk. No Decretum.”

Nathan didn’t seem the slightest bit affected by Anastasia’s hostility. He remained quiet, choosing to watch and listen instead of speaking.

“I won’t argue with you on that,” Selene said. “But even you know that we have to follow The Dictum before going,—as the humans say, commando.”

“You are the oldest Deamhan in the city for now, Selene.” Anastasia raised her voice. “Lucius is gone. You are his replacement, regardless of what Kei and his followers believe. Do what Ancients are supposed to do; maintain order.”  

Anastasia started to walk back into the house. “Or are you scared?” Anastasia stopped and looked back at her. Their silence and staring competition allowed Nathan and Veronica to glance back at both of them, curious about what they were doing.

Unexpectedly, Selene moved in a blur and in a second she stood face to face with Anastasia. Anastasia didn’t budge but her sharp Ramanga teeth dropped quickly from her gums. Her brown eyes gradually changed as if they were filled with dark liquid, completely engulfing the white of her eyes. Selene’s eyes also changed and while they stared at each other, Remy moved in quickly and he gently separated them.

“Ladies, this confrontation will get us nowhere,” he said with his eyes also dark and voided of white. “Even though I love seeing a good hair pulling fight, may I suggest that we get to the bottom of what’s happening in the city, find Lucius, and kill Kei.”

Anastasia’s teeth retracted and her eyes returned back to normal.

Selene stepped back and when her eyes turned back to its normal color of green, she spoke. “I want to see this minion that you have.”

Anastasia turned back and disappeared into the house without responding. Nathan held out his hand as a welcoming gesture for Selene to enter Blind Bluff Manor. Selene motioned for Jessica to follow her, and without a moment of hesitation, she was trailing behind her and into Nathan’s home.

Selene walked through the back door, and once inside the hallway leading to the basement, she paused at the crooked pictures on the wall. She rubbed the picture frame of one of them, a landscape painting with a scene of a riverbed and rocks. Another picture of a woman wearing a white bodice with an elegant dress with a scoop neckline also caught her eye.

They walked down the very same steps Veronica traveled to reach the basement. Selene raised her hand, and Jessica stopped before reaching the top step. She stood to the side and watched Veronica descend down the stairs.

Murphy was still chained to the wall, unaware of Selene’s grand appearance. His head was drooped forward, and a small pool of blood collected near his feet. His previous wounds had already healed.

Selene approached him but not once did she concern herself with the various torture devices hanging from the wall. She placed her hand underneath his chin and she lifted his head. His left eye was swollen, but his right eye fluttered and opened slowly.

“You sired him?” She looked over her shoulder, staring at Anastasia who stood next to the chains hanging from the basement wall. Veronica watched as Selene examined him from head to toe.

“Wake up, minion,” she whispered. “We need to talk.” She removed her hand from underneath his chin, watching his head go limp and his body lean forward. “Centuries passed and you still choose torture.” She referred to the state of Murphy’s body. The expression on her face turned to concern. “But siring him, that is a twist, even for you, Anastasia.” Selene scanned the room, her eyes glancing over the chains next to Anastasia.

Veronica found herself unable to keep her eyes off Selene. This woman, this Deamhan, made a promise to protect me. Veronica wanted to know why. What was so dangerous, what was so important to her mother that she trusted Lucius to protect her daughter? The questions had to wait. Now wasn’t the time. She needed to find out what thoughts hid in Murphy’s brain.

“Kei is having a Congregation, soon.” Selene looked back at Murphy. “It’s the perfect time to confront him.” She placed both of her hands on the right and left side of Murphy’s head. “He’s weak enough to probe.”

Veronica wanted to know why this wasn’t done in the first place. The older the Deamhan, the more powerful they were. Selene didn’t need to fear Kei. Her thoughts about Selene were loud enough for Selene to glance back at her and smile.

“A Dictum needs willing Deamhan to enforce it. If the younger Deamhan see that us older Deamhan standing against Kei, they will choose survival. Alone, I’m weaker than he is. But with older Deamhan standing at my side, I will be a force to be reckoned with,” Selene answered, reading Veronica’s thoughts. She turned back to Murphy and she closed her eyes. Murphy’s head shot back abruptly. He started to squirm, trying to get away from Selene.

“I tried reading his thoughts, Selene and it didn’t work,” Anastasia said.

“Of course it wouldn’t,” Selene replied back. “Even at five hundred years old, Anastasia, you’re too young to break through placed barriers.”

Selene made contact. The room hushed. Even Anastasia looked interested. She removed herself from the cold walls of the basement, paying close attention. Murphy’s body stopped squirming, and he was caught under Selene’s spell. Veronica heard soft footsteps coming down the steps. Hallie stood quietly on the bottom step and watched.

A small trickle of blood poured out from Murphy’s left ear, and suddenly his body began to shake violently. Selene released her grip and took a couple of steps back, slowly shaking her head.

“Impossible,” Selene whispered. Her expression changed from astonishment to absolute rage mixed with fear.

“I told you,” Anastasia confirmed.

“No, I was able to get through. It’s dark magic. They used dark magic to place Lucius in Limbo.”

“Dark magic?” Veronica had heard about dark magic from her father, but like many other things he said to her, she didn’t believe it. It was demonic, evil, and practically unstable magic used for harming, torturing, and killing. The Brotherhood never explored the effects of black magic used by Deamhan and researchers.

Limbo was another part of the Deamhan that remained a mystery. Veronica remembered reading about it a few times when she was younger. It was a magical state, a place where Deamhan couldn’t escape. No one knew how it came to be and how those placed in Limbo could escape it. If Kei did use dark magic and Limbo to get rid of Lucius, then the possibility of her mother also being placed in Limbo seemed all too real. It was a saddened thought but Veronica felt relieved to know that her mother could still be alive.

Murphy began to laugh. “He told me about you, Selene.” Blood dripped from the corners of his mouth.

Selene made eye contact with Murphy. “And what did he say?”

“The first human to be sired by Lucius. A killer of Deamhan and human. You taught him everything he needed to know about being a Lugat.”

“So then, you know what I’m going to do to you.” Selene’s eyes searched the room until they locked onto a piece of wood sitting upright near the back room. In Deamhan speed she rushed over to it, grabbed it, and returned to Murphy. She placed her left hand around his neck and lifted his head and placed the wood over his heart.

“No, don’t. Please.” His body tensed up, and his laughing ceased.

Before Veronica knew what Selene was doing to Murphy, it was too late. Slowly she embedded the piece of wood into his skin.  Murphy’s skin turned from a pale hue to a rusted color and it began to sink over his cheekbones and his neck. He gasped once and fell silent while his eyes shriveled into nothing.

Eventually the skin around his face began to flake and fall over. The discoloration traveled over his chest, to his arms and to his legs and eventually to his head. Selene released him and watched as his arms turned into a mixture of thick dust and blood as it dropped to the ground. His legs followed in the evaporation process until there was nothing left but a puddle of dust and blood.

Selene licked her lips in sudden blessedness. Her black eyes returned to its normal state to stare at the dust floating through the air.

Suddenly and abruptly without a word, Selene quickly ascended up the steps, followed by Jessica.

Anastasia crossed her arms in front of her chest and glowered at Selene.

Veronica hurried up the steps, hearing Nathan closely behind her. Selene stood in the foyer and motioned for Jessica to open the front door.

“What did you see?” Veronica’s question strangely surprised Selene.

“She saw Limbo,” Remy answered. “It’s enough to make even the most oldest of Deamhan shake in their boots.”

Selene shot Remy a quick glance then she spoke. “The state of Limbo is unknown, even for Deamhan.” She looked at Nathan. “Thank you for your hospitality.”

Nathan placed his hands on Veronica’s shoulders, halting her from moving forward.

“You are most welcome, Selene.” He smiled at Selene. Jessica held the door open, and the cold winter air circled through the foyer, carrying snowflakes.

“Is it possible that my mother is there with Lucius?” Veronica asked.

“I don’t know.” Selene stepped out into the cold air, and Jessica closed the door behind them. Nathan lowered his hands from Veronica’s shoulder.

“She must have seen something to scare her to leave so quickly like that,” Veronica replied.

They heard Anastasia’s faint footsteps walking up the basement steps. She stood in the entranceway and upon hearing Veronica’s questions, she quickly answered. “I know where Lucius is. I saw what Selene saw.”

They remained quiet as they listened to Anastasia describe seeing Kei dressed in a long silk robe, sitting on a large black throne in front of a huge panned window with several minions, including Murphy, surrounding him. Dressed in a black leather jacket with matching pants and boots, he sported dark rimmed sunglasses and he wore his brown hair slicked to the back. While the minions worshipped his every being, he remained relaxed and Anastasia sensed his strong cocky demeanor.

The images changed to Murphy, naked in a king size bed with satin sheets. He lay on his stomach, moaning in pleasure and in pain, and Kei was lying on top of him, entering him from behind. All around them were the corpses of human males, some dead and some dying, strewn about like unwanted waste. The image overlapped another picture of an old and abandoned farmhouse in the middle of a cornfield. It tilted to the side, the wood bleached from years of prolonged sunlight. A huge cliff near the edge of the field had a small stream that ran through it. Old and twisted corn stalks filled the surrounding fields. Darkness oozed from a cave near the fields. When Selene had tried piercing through the cave, the images suddenly stopped, leaving the feeling and the odor of Lucius on the tip of Anastasia’s tongue.

While Selene fed from Murphy, he could no longer hide the images implanted. Selene was right about the feeling of dark magic and Lucius being in Limbo.

However, none of the images described Limbo and both Anastasia and Selene couldn’t  sense anything about Veronica’s mother.

“I don’t know why Selene was so hesitant to continue,” Anastasia said. “She probably fears the dark magic.” Before Veronica could ask why, Nathan interrupted.

“There isn’t enough information about Limbo to understand what it truly is,” he exclaimed. “Deamhan and researcher alike have heard of it but there isn’t anyone alive who has experienced it.” His question left more answers.

“The cave is located south from here,” Anastasia replied. “About fifty miles in Steele County.”

With this new information, Veronica was ready to travel to the cave Anastasia described. Black magic or no magic, it didn’t matter.

“It isn’t going to be easy.” A voice from above caught their attention. Remy leaned on the railing, looking down at them gathered below. How long he’d been up there, listening to their conversation, no one knew except for Anastasia.

“There’s a reason why Selene left as fast as she did.”

“And why is that?” Veronica asked.

A wide grin appeared on Remy’s face. “That’s Amenirdis territory.”

Veronica looked to Nathan whose eyes widened. She saw Anastasia’s body stiffen and her lips slowly crunched together. Feeling kept out of the loop, she spoke up. “Who is Amenirdis?”

“Oh just the only oldest living Deamhan in the world.” Remy approached the stairs and descended slowly, gliding his hands along the railing. “And a strong practitioner of dark magic.”

He held his head high, like a king admired by his subjects, and when he reached the bottom stair, he stopped and lowered himself unexpectedly to sit.

“But she’s dead,” Anastasia responded.

“Don’t lie to the poor girl, Ana.” Remy smiled. “She’s not dead.”

“In The Brotherhood we were taught that she was killed centuries ago.” Nathan leaned against the walls and folded his arms across his chest. “She was the only Deamhan who could trap humans and Deamhan in Limbo but not without a price.” He looked to Remy. “How do you know she’s still alive?”

“Because Deamhan like her don’t die easily.” Remy examined his fingernails in a cool and calm manner. “She’s more than just one of us. She’s old, older than all of us, Lucius, Selene, and Kei. Older than all the Ancients that live now.” He looked at Veronica. “No one alive has seen her. She doesn’t show herself. Instead she has three immortal human girls endowed with magic do her dirty work for her.”

Yet another powerful Deamhan entered her search, and Veronica wiped her face with her hand, taking in a deep breath.

“She’s the whore of dark magic.” Remy looked up at Nathan in a cold and calculated smile. “She’s the Queen of Limbo. If you want anyone to suffer that fate, she’s the one to go to.” He stood up. “I also saw what Anastasia saw. I could smell Amenirdis’ scent. It was so strong, it lingered over Murphy’s thoughts.”

“You’ve met her before?” Nathan’s face filled with disbelief.

“I’ve met her immortal humans.” Remy paused in thought. “My ego is still recovering.”