Distract my hunger (14 page)

The words in the notebook where so ominous that they just left me there in complete awe. Was
I
this future that the woman felt was coming? I felt weak and for the first time completely unsure of my fate.

Corbin had not moved an inch since I started reading. His head still bowed as if he was praying and his hands firm on the handle of the sword. He looked like an ancient warrior, a holy angelic knight that would fight for what was good no matter what.

“This will be hard” he said and gripped the handle so tightly that his knuckles where drained colourless.

I held my breath for a second; unsure of what he would say. Did I make a mistake and he was now going to try and kill me? Would I be able to put on a fight? I waited in near growing terror until he continued.

“It will be harder now. Sometimes fending off other clans was bothersome, but now that we have something that the council wants dead . . . it will be near to impossible.” He swallowed and went on, “Still, I swear to protect you all with my life, for whatever it’s worth. I won’t let this wicked council get things their way.” He almost whispered and finally lifted his head and faced me.

I could see new fire in his lively eyes. He seemed to be filled with purpose and spark. His loyalty to me, to his family and to anything he believed in was more important to him than his life I realized. As soon as I understood this I felt my cheeks blush with guilt.

How could I even think, for the smallest second that this noble vampire could be debating upon killing me? I felt so ashamed of ever thinking about that that I could not continue looking at him. He was willing to protect me with his life. I looked down at the floor and extended my free hand to Jonathan that was still standing beside me.

I felt better with my hand in his. We all let the silence fall upon us. I did not want to keep on reading though many pages where left yet and I did not want to say a word. Perhaps we all felt the same for we stayed like that for some time until a huge creaking noise startled us out of our stupor.

A very loud noise of cracking wood burst in our ears. It was almost as if the world was falling down. The bang was so loud that I felt the rumble tremble under my feet. I was startled and looked up.

I exchanged confused glances with Jonathan. He seemed to be as perplexed as I was. We were just waking up from the strangest dream and the present was bursting on us. I turned my head and searched for Corbin, but he was not sitting on his bed anymore.

It took me a couple of seconds to follow his hasty movements. While Jonathan and I where still dazzled, he had jumped and was standing behind us. He was facing the doorway with his copper claymore ready to attack.

“Now Jonathan! Get a weapon, they are here!” He shouted and a louder crack was finally heard.

CHAPTER 11

Despair

“K
eep her safe at all costs Jonathan!” Corbin shouted.

Jonathan jumped as fast as a panther and took hold of a copper dagger and a crossbow. With astonishing dexterity, he stuffed the dagger in his belt and held the crossbow to a firing position with one hand, while he placed me securely behind him with the other.

I pressed my chest against his back and felt his heart drumming rapidly. He was panting as if he had run a marathon, yet he was completely still. Waiting. Corbin and Jonathan looked like wolves waiting for their prey to come their way, waiting to pounce on it with lethal force.

I could see from where I stood Corbin’s focused profile. He was completely concentrated on the closed door and a deep frown seemed to be set on his face. His arms slightly raised to deal the lethal blow; his muscles tense with expectation. He looked truly deadly as he waited for the unwanted visitors to come.

Deep fear took hold of me gradually, like ice freezing slowly yet steady like a lake. It was almost as if it held a tight grip on my throat and stopped me from getting enough air. I knew they were here for me, and it was simply to kill me.

After the loud bang and creaking wood-breaking noises I could hear nothing. It was the calm before the storm, the eye of the hurricane. The worst would come in no time. I tried to hear, I tried very hard almost straining my vampire senses but I heard nothing. I closed my eyes and tried to feel who was intruding with my mind’s eye, but I felt a wall. Whoever was at the other side knew how to veil their thoughts; so much that I had no clue as to how many were there even.

I opened my eyes and realized I was panting like Jonathan. I knew not what to do! We were trapped. The only was out was to endure and to fight. I curled my fingers on Jonathan’s shirt and held my breath.

“Get a weapon now.” Corbin said to me through his teeth. He kept his voice low, yet it was an order. And it was quite clear he expected me to follow it right away.

Still holding on to Jonathan’s shirt like a kid behind her mama, I looked around me. There were weapons everywhere yet I knew nothing about them. I had no idea about fighting! What would I do? I tried to think, tried to look for something simple, but my fear was such that I could see nothing really. As if answering my thoughts once again Corbin ordered me:

“Stretch backwards your free hand and hold tightly the first weapon you touch. Don’t look back, hold it tight. They are coming now!”

Just as he finished saying the word “now” the door flung wide open in a single rapid movement.

As the door started opening I felt my fingertips touching something metallic that felt like a handle. I let my firm grip hold it and waited for something to happen.

A petite figure appeared in the doorway. She looked like a young girl, maybe fourteen fifteen at the most. She was dressed like a porcelain doll with a calf-length black satin bulky dress. Her black hair was tied up in a high pony tail with a huge black ribbon and her mouth was painted blood red against her milk-white skin. She dragged a long sword at her side like a child drags her teddy bear and with a bored look tilted her head and smiled.

That smile was almost sweet and naïve like a kid’s, yet I somehow knew it was meant to be a death sentence. She let her eyes glide through the room until her gaze met mine and her smile grew larger. I could see the clean curve of her white fangs behind her carmine lips. She had found what she was looking for.

In the blink of an eye she pushed forward in a supernatural race moving forward with uncanny speed. She lifted her sword to attack and managed to sprint past Corbin. She was coming right at me.

My new reflexes commanded me to pull on the hand I had on my weapon and almost skilfully I brought forward a copper scimitar. She was so close now. Jonathan was getting ready to fend her off, I could feel his muscles tensing as she came nearer and nearer. He was calculating where to throw the arrow but I didn’t give him time.

Mi mind was blank with fear and my muscles ached with expectation. I felt the hunger bubbling again inside me, and this time I did not distract it, I let it come.

She was one step too close for her own good, yet she didn’t notice. She was lost in her rage and her yearning to make me the sheath of her sword. I pushed myself past Jonathan in a single movement and with a sole delicate movement I made my scimitar trace a curve on the air.

Her eyes grew wide with shock. She had not expected the mouse become a dragon and fight back. I could see her lime-green eyes glisten for the last time, still puzzled over their unexpected fate.

It was a single second that she remained thus, motionless, still holding her sword as if to attack. Then, her sword too heavy for her now dead arms fell loudly on the floor leaving the copper blade ringing after the thud. Her arms dropped limp at her sides making her look now just like a rag doll. Her gaze, still puzzled remained stuck on mine until a dull crunching sound was heard. Her head slowly slid from her shoulders and fell down with a dry thump. The lifeless body followed it just a fraction of a second later.

Her lifeless body attracted my gaze like a magnet. Dark crimson stained her pale skin while she slowly seemed to become even smaller than before. She was my first kill, and to be truly honest, it was pure instinct I didn’t find it difficult at all.

I loud metal churning sound made me tear my gaze from my now dead prey. I had been so immersed in my kill that I had never noticed the other intruders in the room. A body already lay beside Corbin. It was male, yet unrecognizable any further than that. And another lean female figure was hitting her sword blade against Corbin’s.

The fight looked impossibly equal. None of them seemed to penetrate the other’s defences. They seemed to be equal matches, and any of them could win at the slightest mistake of the other.

She was very strong, stronger than anyone would imagine for such a skinny figure and her agility was that of someone highly trained in fencing. With each one of his blows she bent her body very elastically eluding each and every one of them. Her attacks were fierce and ruthless like a cobra’s. Mercy was not on any of their minds for this was clearly a fight till death.

At times I believed she had Corbin cornered and that it would be his end, only to see him later fending her off and seem to win. I was worried yet mesmerized at their grace. I wanted to help him but could not move. They were so even until Corbin tripped over his kill and nearly fell backwards. He lost his balance and while regaining it let his guard down and just enough unguarded space to leave a weak spot.

I could picture him die down right in front of my eyes. She was agile like a panther and ready to set her final blow. Ready to make this the opportunity to bring him down, she prepared her sword for the final blow. The feline female was about to kill Corbin when an arrow pierced her chest. Jonathan had been waiting for the right moment to pierce her with his arrow and found it upon Corbin’s mistake.

She was as surprised as I was. The unexpected arrow had cut her momentum and pierced her right to the core. With an astonished gasp she let her weapon fall and slid to the floor.

“Thanks neph,” puffed Corbin breathless, “I owe you big time!”

Jonathan replied with a simple head movement and wide flashing smile. It was the adorable smile that made me fall for him. My heart skipped a beat in my chest while I looked at him; I was absorbed in his smile until hurried footsteps called my attention.

Lucrecia and James appeared on the doorway. A heavy shadow was cast on her eyes. She let her eyes glide over each of the vampires we had brought down, and then let them fall on me. Her eyes looked sad, so sad that I could almost read “guilt” written on them.

“We should have been here too.” She said to me mentally.

A private, small smile was drawn on my lips. She answered me another tight smile. We knew we were still in peril, but it was a moving moment. I felt I truly belonged somewhere; I belonged with this group of vampires more than I had belonged anywhere else in my whole life. And having her simply say that to my mind was her way of acknowledging they felt I belonged with them too.

James’ right hand gripped the doorframe tightly. So tightly that it began to crack. His face was rippled with anger; they had intruded in his house and attacked his family. It was a massive blow for him. He had always been a vampire that advocated for peace and respect, yet political rubble had tainted his peaceful haven.

I could almost feel the air building up around him. He oozed fury, and was completely determined not to leave things like this. James had been such a believer of peaceful ways that he had never taken direct action into anything. He believed in talking things through and arriving to mutual understandings but physical attacks had never been supported by him. Corbin had always been the man of arms and he had been the eternal diplomat.

He closed his eyes as tightly as he held the doorframe for a second and upon opening them looked at me directly. He seemed to be checking to see that nothing had happened to me.

I was still standing slightly in front of Jonathan, with the scimitar tightly held. Its blade was dripping with the doll-like vampire’s blood and for the first time I set my attention on the constant, thick dripping sound.

James’ gaze fell from my eyes to my weapon. He stayed looking at it for some time and seemed to be thinking about what to do next. Suddenly he seemed to focus on something else. His eyes grew wide and a half grin appeared on his face.

At first I thought he was looking at the victim of my blade. I pictured him trying to imagine what happened, but his almost smile didn’t quite convince me of my original hypothesis; so I decided to follow his gaze. It wasn’t easy to see what he was looking at first, but then I realized. The small leather notebook was just a few feet away from where I stood. He was now completely absorbed with it.

The little book seemed to be ignorant of what had just happened. Not a drop of blood had touched it, and it lay perfectly safe and sound on its back-cover.

I looked back at James and saw his pensive gaze was still glued to the black diary. Something was building up in his wise mind. Lucrecia seemed to have taken notice of it too. She was standing there beside him, with a dumbfounded look. She surely had not expected to find
that
there.

For several minutes nobody said anything. Corbin had moved to the nearest wall and was regaining his breath. His sleek blond hair hung against his cheeks, it was slightly soiled with battle blood. Jonathan was not in attack position anymore yet kept his crossbow ready at his side. He looked relieved. All his loved ones where safe and sound.

Quite unexpectedly, Lucrecia unglued her stare from the notebook and looked at me. I felt her trying to read my thoughts, and for the first time I felt uncomfortable with it. I pictured a wall growing around my mind, it was tall and full of vines. I did not want anyone prying in my thoughts; I did not want anybody knowing how I felt when I killed the vampire-doll.

To my surprise, she seemed quite pleased with my reaction. A triumphant smile burst in her face making her eyes glisten with something between pride and joy. She then let her eyes drop to my neckline, where Jonathan’s present lay.

Her smile grew even wider as she saw my black iris glistening against my skin. Slowly, as if scared to ruin the moment she put her hand on James’ arm.

He had still been looking at the notebook until her touch seemed to break the spell. For a split second he looked dazed, just as if he had been so lost in his thoughts that he had no idea of where he was, then, he looked at her. Their eyes met and a secret message seemed to be shared.

His eyes grew soft again and he turned to look at me. He looked at me full of pride as if he understood something I did not quite get yet but would know soon enough. His eyes then stopped at my necklace. They all had the same reaction as Corbin did when he just saw us come into his chamber. What did it mean that I was using Jonathan’s present? Was it because of it or because it reminded them of something?

“Things are changing, you know?” James asked me and before he let me answer he continued speaking. “And they will never be the same. Are you up for it?”

Everyone turned and looked at me. Four sets of eyes waited for me to answer, as if my answer was everything they’d ever waited for. They seemed to expect me to be their leader in a quest almost. What could I do? I was a mere almost eighteen year-old teen, what could I do?

I knew I was supposed to be the bearer of all vampires’ fate yet I didn’t know if I completely believed it. I wanted to turn and run, escape from their staring eyes, from my destiny. I wanted for a second to just be me, with no obligations, nobody’s expectations and my whole life ahead of me. I missed not being a vampire and my friends, yet I knew I’d never see them again. I’d never see my absent “parents” either, and though I didn’t really like them a small pang on longing took hold of my brittle vampire heart. Perhaps I did care somewhat after all.

That’s when I thought of the beautiful woman I never met, and of her tender hands caressing the notebook and writing about
The
Council
: those power-thirsty vampires that had a price on my head. I imagined then the sensible vampire she mentioned, Duncan, and I wanted to know his face. Would they still exist? Did they ever stand up to the other council members?