Helpless (Blue Fire Saga) (6 page)

Leesa snuggled her face against his chest, soaking in his warmth and enjoying the play of his muscles beneath his shirt. She was never happier than when he carried her like this. Except maybe when he kissed her, she thought, but those moments were all too rare and all too brief. This was the next best thing, though. And one day, whether it was through her mastering her magic or Rave mastering
Rammugul
, they would be able to kiss without worry, without danger. She just hoped Rave was ready for all the catching up she planned to do.  

7. BLACK MAGIC

S
everal hundred miles to the north of Balin’s cabin, Jarubu led his three companions southward through the Green Mountains of Vermont. Melissa loped almost at his side, staying a respectful half pace back. Behind them, Conley and Alexi ran side by side. They moved rapidly through the night, but not at full speed, for they had many miles ahead of them.

Only the very edge of the recent blizzard had reached this far north and west, leaving less than a foot of snow behind. The steep, snow-covered slopes barely hindered the vampires, nor did the forest. When the woods grew too thick or the snow drifted too deep, the vampires simply took to the upper reaches of the trees, leaping and swinging from branch to branch almost as quickly as they raced along the ground. Though racing through the trees would make following them more difficult, Jarubu did not fool himself into thinking it would thwart their pursuers. Only distance would do that.

He had no destination in mind. He merely wanted to get far enough south that Maier and his followers would see no reason to chase them. The vampire chieftain would love to catch and punish the rebels, Jarubu knew, but Maier’s first priority would be to insure the safety of his coven. Forcing the rebels hundreds of miles away into another country would certainly accomplish that goal. Jarubu was pretty sure Maier would be satisfied with that. Even so, he meant to flee at least another couple hundred miles to make sure. One never knew with Maier—his anger was prone to linger, especially where Jarubu was concerned.

Up ahead, the lights of a small town glimmered faintly in the blackness. Lights meant humans, and humans meant blood, but Jarubu veered slightly to the left, choosing a course that would skirt the village. As much as he would like to feast, hunting would only delay them, especially within the confines of a town. The four of them had dined recently enough—it would not be too much of a hardship to pass this chance by, even with
Destiratu
fanning their thirst. There would be plenty of time and opportunity to slake their thirst when they were safe.

They continued southward, coming within a few hundred yards of the town’s outskirts, but the sleeping inhabitants remained ignorant of the four deadly creatures passing so near. Jarubu wondered if any of the humans would be troubled by nightmares simply from the proximity of the vampires’ presence. He thought it likely. Awake, most humans were blithely ignorant of anything supernatural. Asleep, their primitive instincts and senses became more heightened, more in tune with the non-human energies that shared their world.

A faint prickling on Jarubu’s skin told him dawn was fast approaching, though there was still not the slightest hint of light to the east. No matter though. The sun’s rays were weak this time of year, and all four of them wore hooded sweatshirts for protection if the day became too bright. Still, like all his kind, Jarubu rued the ending of the night. He hoped the coming day would be cloudy.

Distracted by the approach of day, he almost missed the strange scent that teased his nostrils. The smell had a taste of human about it, but was unlike any Jarubu had ever encountered. The only similar scent in his experience—human but not human—was volkaane. This was definitely not volkaane, though. He would recognize volkaane instantly. Too bad it was not, he thought. For a chance to taste the hot blue blood of one of the vampire hunters he would stop, pursuit be damned. But this was something other than volkaane.

Still, caution was needed. He raised his hand, signaling his companions to halt.

“Do you smell it?” he asked.

Conley inhaled deeply through his nose. “Yes,” he said. “Human, but different.”

“And not too far, either,” Alexi added. He looked off to the right at a forty-five degree angle. “That way, I think.”

“What is it?” Melissa asked. “This scent is new to me. Is there danger?”

“The scent is new to me as well,” Jarubu said. “But whatever it is, I smell only one. I do not think one of anything will be a danger to four vampires.”

“I say we let it alone and continue on our way,” Alexi said. “One of anything might not be dangerous, but it would also not be enough to feed the four of us. We’ve been making good time—why go out of our way now?”

Jarubu hesitated. He knew Alexi was right, but the smell tempted him. What if this new thing was something as delicious as volkaane? That was not something he wanted to pass up, even if there was only enough to make an appetizer for the four of them.

“I think we can spare a few minutes to check it out,” he said at last.

“Are you sure?” Melissa asked, throwing a glance over her shoulder. Though their pursuers were far behind them and might even have given up the chase by now, the thought of stopping here made her nervous.

“Knowledge is power,” Jarubu said. “I want to know what this thing is. Fan out.”

The four vampires formed a line, each about fifteen feet from the others. In unison, they crept silently forward toward the source of the unfamiliar scent.

They hadn’t gone far when the woods gave way to a small clearing. Jarubu wasn’t sure what he had expected, but it certainly was not this.

The clearing was an old graveyard, unkempt and overgrown with stringy brown weeds tall enough to poke up through the surface of the snow. The place probably belonged to the town they had just skirted, though it looked quite forgotten. The weathered gray stone markers appeared to be quite old—none of them could have been here less than a hundred years. The town obviously had a newer cemetery somewhere else, perhaps closer to town, and no people were now alive to mourn or tend these ancient graves.

Still, it was not the sight of the graveyard that surprised Jarubu. No, what drew the vampires to a halt was the man sitting casually on one of the old headstones, looking at the vampires as if he’d been waiting for them. Equally puzzling was the small section of ground in front of him—an area directly beneath the gravestone about the size of a grave—that was bare of snow and appeared to have been freshly disturbed.

That the man could have been expecting them was crazy, Jarubu told himself. Few creatures moved as silently as a vampire, and they had approached from upwind, so the man—or whatever he was—could not have smelled them coming, either. There was no way he could have detected their presence. Yet he did not seem to be the least bit surprised—or concerned—when they emerged from the forest.

He rose easily to his feet, his eyes fixed on Jarubu, as if he instinctively sensed that Jarubu was the leader. The man was short and slender, with a trim black beard that tapered to a sharp point. He was dressed completely in black—black leather boots up above his ankles, loose black pants and a black jacket that did not seem nearly thick enough to ward off the bite of the freezing night air. He did not appear at all uncomfortable in the cold.

Whoever he was, Jarubu decided, he was something more than human. The question was what. Jarubu decided to give him a little test. He let his fangs drop from his jaw.

The man only smiled. “There’s no need for such display, vampire. I know what you are.”

Jarubu’s curiosity grew. Behind it, a tiny bit of anxiety arose as well. Why was the man unconcerned by the appearance of four vampires out here in the middle of nowhere? Did he perhaps have allies hidden somewhere nearby and was merely acting as bait? Jarubu sniffed the air and scanned the surrounding darkness with his keen eyes and ears. He detected no sign of any other presence.

“Who are you?” he asked.

“I’m the man you are going to obey,” the stranger said simply.

Jarubu’s temper was never buried very deep, and it began to bubble up at the man’s haughty demeanor. A low growl rumbled from his throat. He wondered what the man’s blood would taste like. His three companions extruded their fangs as well, ready to follow Jarubu’s lead.

The stranger raised his arm and pointed a bony finger at Alexi. A bolt of black energy shot from his hand, striking Alexi in the chest. A brief hissing sound filled the clearing, and a moment later, Alexi was gone.

Jarubu stared uncomprehendingly at the spot where Alexi had stood. There wasn’t even a pile of ash to mark his passing. Jarubu had no idea what had just occurred.

“I trust we are done with your foolish challenges,” the man said. “Or do you perhaps require a second display?”

Jarubu forced his anger down and shook his head. He was wise enough to know when he was overmatched, painful as it was for him to admit it.

“Who are you?” he asked again. “What are you?”

“My name is Josef. I am of the black waziri.”

Jarubu felt his muscles tighten. Long ago, when he was still back in Africa, he had heard tales of the clan of wizards. He had never heard of black waziri, though. And all the tales placed the waziri in Europe, not here in America. Still, the wizard’s lethal demonstration had been more than enough.

“We mean you no trouble, Josef,” Jarubu said. “We are just passing by. Let us leave in peace.”

Josef stared at him for a long moment. Jarubu could hear his two companions shifting their weight beside him, apparently feeling even more anxious than he was.

Finally, the wizard spoke. “Would you like to taste my blood, vampire?”

Jarubu did not understand. What was Josef’s game here? And why did he not even ask Jarubu’s name? Could he be that insignificant to the wizard?

Josef moved a step closer. “I asked you a question, vampire.” His voice was quiet, but sharp with impatience.

Jarubu was unsure how to respond. Of course he wanted to taste the wizard’s blood. He’d like nothing more than to drain Josef of every drop of his blood and leave him sprawled cold and lifeless on the ground. But Jarubu was pretty certain he lacked the power to do so.

“I’m curious what it tastes like, yes,” he said, hedging his bets. “The scent is unlike anything I have ever experienced.”

Josef pushed the sleeve of his right arm up to his elbow and held his bare forearm out toward Jarubu. “Come taste it, then.”

Jarubu was more confused than ever. Was the wizard testing him? What was the right move here? More importantly, what was the
wrong
move? He had no way to know, but he sensed the wrong move could be fatal.

He studied Josef’s face for some clue, but the wizard’s face was a blank mask. Suddenly, Josef’s eyes seemed to darken, and he raised his hand toward Conley. Before Jarubu could say or do anything, another bolt of black energy shot from the wizard’s fingers. Once again, the same loud hissing sound filled the air, and Conley vanished.

“Don’t make me wait any longer,” Josef said.

Jarubu felt Melissa’s hand on his back, nudging him forward.

“Go,” she said softly. He knew she was afraid she would be the next to taste the black lightning.

Josef’s bare arm was turned up, exposing his forearm and wrist. Jarubu stepped slowly forward, until he was close enough to grab the wizard’s hand. His skin felt only slightly warm to Jarubu’s touch, which meant that to anyone but a vampire, it would feel cool. Jarubu let his fangs extend and slowly bent his head toward Josef’s waiting wrist. When his mouth was but an inch from the wizard’s skin, Josef spoke.

“Just one thing, vampire. When I tell you stop, you had best obey.”

Jarubu fought to keep himself from shaking as he pushed his lips forward. Fear was not something he was accustomed to, but right now, he was very afraid. He bit down into Josef’s wrist and began to drink. The blood pumping into Jarubu’s mouth tasted rank and musty, with the consistency of thick syrup. It was all he could do to keep from pulling his fangs from the wizard’s arm and spitting the blood upon the ground.

He forced himself to keep swallowing the foul tasting liquid. After a half dozen gulps, he felt Josef’s hand upon his head.

“Enough,” the wizard said.

Jarubu gratefully lifted his mouth from Josef’s wrist. Wiping his lips with his forearm, he took one step back and then eyed the wizard carefully, wondering what was to come next.