Nevermore, the Complete Series (67 page)

I rapped my fist against the stained brown door that I hoped would lead me to discovering the Vanatori’s hideout. As soon as the door opened, I was overwhelmed by a sudden burst of smoke. I coughed and quickly covered my mouth and nose so as to not inhale any more. The girl I recalled meeting at Bran’s Castle peered out at me through piercing green eyes.

“I was wondering when we might see you again,” she said and pulled the door open further.

A plain wooden table sat in the center of the small, cluttered building. Along the back wall was a row of short filing cabinets beside a bookcase full of old, musty novels. Six people sat around the table talking in hushed voices and I could distinctly see the source of the smoke. The man I recognized to be Mikael sat at the right end of the table with an ornate pipe dangling from his mouth, puffing on the end of it.

“Welcome to our…headquarters, so to speak,” Mikael said and resumed puffing on his pipe. “You are Alexis, right?”

I nodded. “Yes…I was afraid I was at the wrong place at first, but I guess not.”

“We’re not difficult to find, if you know where to look,” said a pudgy, round-faced man with thin spectacles, untidy blonde curls and a rosary draped around his neck.

“I hope it’s okay that I invited my husband to join us.”

“As long as he is trustworthy…” one of the men sneered. I gasped at the long, thin scar that ran across his left cheek and grazed across his eyebrow. His hair was black and spiky with light blue tips at the ends. He wore a thin, tight black shirt that clung onto his evident muscles and I felt mildly intimidated.

“Don’t mind Nicolai,” the pudgy guy said, “he’s not good with people.”

“I can handle people, Remus. In this world though, one cannot help but be cautious.”

Remus grasped onto his rosary and eyed the rest of the group. “Care to introduce yourselves to the lady?”

Mikael raised his hand into the air, “You more than likely recall my name as being Mikael. I am the finder and leader of this little group, though we are a part of a much bigger whole.”

“Luca Redwood,” a man with short auburn hair and an ongoing frown spoke.

“Octavian,” said a tall, stubble-chinned man with slicked back platinum hair. He pointed across the room to the woman who had welcomed me inside. “That is my beloved Camellia, the only reason I am among these lunatics.”

“What?” I said, arching my brows. “You don’t believe in vampires?”

He scoffed and scratched at the blond stubble. “Of course I don’t.”

“…but you are a hunter, right? I mean…you all are? Haven’t you seen one during a hunt?”

“He tends to stay behind, keeping watch over the “headquarters”,” Remus explained.

“Then you have no say in whether they exist or not.”

“I like her already,” said another man with deep brown eyes and golden blonde hair that reminded me of Hannah’s. “I’m Sebastian.”

“And Camellia,” I said, observing the curvy woman with long, straight cherry red hair and ebony bangs. I was instantly envious of her hair. “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you.”

“Take a seat,” Luca said dully and pulled out a vacant chair.

“Thanks.”

As soon as I sat, a knock sounded at the door. My excitement was hardly containable when I considered it was more than likely Salem.

“Is Alexis here?” I heard his unmistakable silky accented voice.

“She is, and you are?”

“Her husband…Salem.”

“Come right in,” Camellia stepped out of the way and let him inside, instantly shutting the door and sliding the large bolt-lock back into place.

“What brings you here, exactly?” Mikael asked, scrutinizing me from across the table.

My eyes immediately went to Salem. “Now, don’t freak out Salem…but I saw Malik today.”

Remus sat up straight and ogled at me. “You were in his presence and made no attempt to slay him?”

“That would’ve been suicide. I’m a hunter, not an idiot.”

The man who had just introduced himself as Sebastian laughed heartily. “See Remus, I told you I liked her!”

I quickly explained to them, and Salem, how Varias turned out to be a restaurant where vampires gathered and fed. I also made sure to note that I was fairly positive that I had nothing to fear from Cassius. Sebastian was captivated by my story, while Octavian appeared uninterested and sat with Camellia perched on his lap. Salem grasped my hand tightly and looked wary.

“The man at the door that you mentioned,” Mikael began, “the one who took your keys…he is a Shielder. In some vampire establishments, they allow particular humans in and a Shielder basically puts them under a protective shield that disables vampires from detecting the fact that they are mortal. That magnetic pull you felt…that was him placing a shield on you.”

“…why would they do that?”

“Some humans are capable of things that are valuable to a vampire.”

“Wouldn’t it be easier just to turn us?”

“No,” it was Salem who replied. “If they turned a human, they would have to wait out the process of them changing, and risk them losing memory of whatever it is they are capable of.”

“Why would they want me?” my question was directed at Mikael.

“I wish I knew. But, I can already see that you will very valuable, if you do choose to join us, that is.”

“Alex…I don’t know if this is such a good idea…” Salem whispered and I hushed him with a soft jab of my elbow.

“It’s important to me, Salem. I know you’re afraid, but I need to do this. I need to rid the world of his evil,” I whispered as quietly as I could, but I knew they could all still hear me in such a cramped place.

“Let me first begin by explaining to you who and what we are, before you make your decision,” Mikael insisted. “Transylvania has been overrun by vampires for hundreds of years, in most recent times it has gotten to the point of it being impossible to enter a building without encountering at least one. The town might as well be renamed City of the Damned. There are vampire bars and restaurants—such as the one you have mentioned—where they serve blood instead of alcohol, all of which is collected from the mortals throughout this country. Most tourists are blind to the fact that they are being surrounded by monsters…and a lot of them never make it back home.”

I felt sick to my stomach as I listened to him speak. This place was awful…and to think my foster father was here, unknowingly baring his throat to the fangs of the undead.

“How much of the population do you think are vampires?”

Sebastian squirmed in his chair. “More than 75 percent of the population here in Transylvania. At least. We have all done our fair share of hunting—save for Octavian—but we’ll never be enough to down them all. Our only hope for salvation is to be rid of Malik; he is the one responsible for the lot of them.”

“But they will all still exist,” I pointed out with a frown. “You don’t think that killing him will stop the rest of them, do you? Take it from me…
that’s a myth.”

“No, but it’s a start. Without a leader the rest will be easier to take care of.”

I shrugged. “There needs to be more that we can do.”

“Killing Malik is our top priority, it always has been,” Remus commented. “Take it or leave it.”

“I’m all for the death of Malik, believe me…he killed my mother.”

“What brings you all here, aside from Malik?” Salem asked, carefully watching each of them.

“We all have our stories of tragedy on behalf of Malik or one of his kind,” Mikael replied. “I have been suffering from insomnia for the past five years, brought on by nightmares about my late-wife, Delilah, who was killed by a vampire.”

Immediately, I felt a connection with him. These people were in so many ways similar to me.

“Luca there had to slay his own mother and sister after they were turned, and relies on anti-depressants to even function.” Luca grunted as Mikael spoke his name.

“Oh, and what of you?”
I gestured towards Sebastian who had been quiet ever since stating his growing fondness of me.

“I don’t remember,” he replied simply.

“Sebastian lost much of his memory after a vampire attack.”

“How do you know it was a vampire?”

“That’s the only part of it I do remember,” Sebastian mumbled.

“Remus there is a little different. Sometimes I think he was born to this. He sought us out. He won’t tell us where he picked up the notion…but he believes vampires to have been sent here from Hell by the devil himself to enslave humanity.”

I stifled a laugh, but for all I knew, Remus was correct.

“I’ve not lost anyone close to me, but I’ve seen enough to know the evil they are capable of.” I watched him grip his rosary tighter.

“I lost my brother to a vampire,” Nicolai explained. “He was only seventeen at the time…”

“And my dear Camellia claims she was captured at a young age by one of Malik’s henchmen but was lucky enough to escape somehow,” Octavian spoke up with obvious sarcasm in his voice. How he could not believe all of this to be true I did not know. “And like I told you…I am just here to humor her fantasy.”

“And what brought you all together?”

“We have been together for a long time. Most of us have been acquainted practically our whole lives—whether it be through family, friendship or business. We are not the firsts, either…and as I said before we are not alone. There are many other groups of our Order spread throughout all of Europe and Asia...possibly further.”

I resituated myself in my seat and placed my hands on the table, one over the other. “One more question…”

“Yes?” Mikael asked.

“What does ‘Vanatori’ mean?”

His lips spread into a smile. “It is Romanian for ‘Hunters’. We are the Vanatori.”

Salem and I sat at the dull white table, listening to the Vanatori discuss my position in Malik’s restaurant for quite some time. It was their belief—particularly Remus’s—that it was fate that brought me here. I was the key to their success. They knew who I was, what I was capable of, and I even let them in on a secret from the past year—I had been a vampire. They each scolded me on burying the source of water that could potentially cure the undead, but I knew that it was the right thing to do. There were very few vampires with any portion of their soul intact anymore, they wouldn’t be worth saving.

After what felt like hours of talking, Mikael asked Salem and I if we would step outside for a moment. I wasn’t sure why, other than maybe they were discussing Salem and I even further. Octavian joined us outside. I wasn’t sure if he was supposed to be there as our protection, or to make sure we wouldn’t leave.

It was evening now, and very cold out. We had only been standing in the moonlight for a minute when the door creaked open again and Camellia waved us back in. I tried holding back a cough as I once again stepped into the smoky haze.

“We have come to a decision,” Mikael said and looked toward me with his gray-blue eyes. “If you are to agree to it, we believe that you should remain employed by Malik and gather as much information from him and his comrades as possible. The more inside information we know, the easier it will be to put an end to him.” I could already tell by the stern expression on Salem’s face that he was not keen on this idea. “Befriend whomever you can, gather as much as you can from eavesdropping and snooping if possible. You will report back to us whenever it is safe to do so.”

“Alexis…think about what they are asking…”

“I know, Salem,” I sighed. “But I’m afraid I have to agree with the Vanatori. This might be the only way to stop Malik…and isn’t that what you want?”

“Yes, but I also want you to be safe.”

“We shall provide her with as much safety as we can,” Luca stated. “You must trust us; we won’t let any harm befall your wife.”

“Unfortunately, I find it difficult to believe you. She will be alone in a room filled with hundreds of vampires, who could at any minute rip her throat out and no one would know!”

“Remember, Salem, the Shielder,” Camellia pointed out gently. “He will protect her, even if it is outside his own desires. He is required to.”

“Please, Alex,” Sebastian said. “This is the best shot we have ever had to finish this once and for all.”

“It’s settled, Salem, I’m going back to Varias, and I am going to gather as much information as I can and we are going to save Transylvania from the undead.”

He looked at me gravely but didn’t speak a word. I said my farewells to the Order, who all aside from Octavian seemed overjoyed by my agreement, and exchanged phone numbers with each of them so that we could keep in touch.

The apartment was not the relaxing place I had hoped to come home to after my first day of work. It was very difficult even getting Salem to calm down long enough to prepare dinner for the two of us. The atmosphere was full of stress as he paced across the small length of the studio apartment, wearing marks into the beige carpet. Regardless what I said, he wouldn’t settle down. I had disappointed him with my choice, but it was in my blood. Deep down, I knew this was what I was meant to do.

I was fearful for what awaited me in the morning, but at the same time I felt more than a little excited. The vampires couldn’t harm me thanks to Cassius and the Shielder. As far as the others knew, I was one of them. There was still some risk however. During our conversation at the Vanatori headquarters Sebastian had told me that if I were to be wounded on the job, to the point of bleeding, my shield would falter and the vampires would detect that I was deceiving them.

“You are making a huge mistake, Alex,” Salem repeated for the third time as he made another round along the carpet.

“Please, just sit down,” I begged. “I’ll be safe, I promise.”

“You cannot promise me your safety! Do you not realize the position you are putting yourself in? You will be in constant danger, regardless what those people said. They cannot guarantee your well-being!”

I shrunk down on the bed at the shrill sound of his voice. Salem wasn’t one to often yell, but when he did, it had a tendency to be somewhat startling. I believe that was a trait he acquired from his father, who had beat his mother on at least one occasion that I witnessed by chance through a vision. It was easy for me to understand Salem’s discomfort with me agreeing to this, after losing his entire family due to vampires—but this was different. If only he could understand it from my perspective…

“If you’re going to be up all night walking around, at least try to be quiet…I need as much sleep as I can get for work tomorrow.”

Salem cringed and stared at me. “Don’t do this, Alex…please.”

“You’re not going to change my mind, Salem…I’m sorry. It’s final.”

I turned on my side and curled up, surprised by the sudden embrace from behind. Salem’s warm hands wound their way around my waist and he planted a gentle kiss upon my nape.

“I love you, little raven…just please...think it over.”

“I love you, too,” I whispered and let myself relax in his arms.

Returning to the restaurant wasn’t easy. I spent at least twenty minutes sitting in the parking lot, staring absently at the clock on the dashboard and contemplating turning around. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something directly outside of my window. Slowly, cautiously I turned to view whatever it was, half expecting to see a hungry vampire waiting to feast on my life…after all, I wasn’t shielded right now, what was to stop any of them from approaching and killing me in the parking lot?

“Alexis?” I could barely hear the muffled voice of Cassius Arith as he gently knocked on the glass. “You left unexpectedly yesterday, and haven’t been responding to my phone calls. I’ve been worried.”

I reached into my jacket pocket and glanced at my phone; I had turned it to vibrate while at Vanatori’s and completely forgot to turn the volume back up. My eyes scanned him quickly, once more noting how human he appeared. He had to be shielded, too. Did he know what they were?

Rolling down the window, I was hit by a welcomed gust of warm air. “I wasn’t feeling very well, I’m sorry.”

“It’s nothing to apologize for, so long as you are okay—that’s all that matters,” his pleasant voice and smile was captivating and warm, making me feel instantly safe.

“Thanks,” I said meekly and got out of the car once he moved out of the way. “If you don’t mind, there are a few things I’d like to discuss with you sometime…outside of work.”

“It would be my pleasure,” he replied and put his arm around my shoulder, guiding me to the restaurant entrance.

The same dark-skinned man stood at the entrance and gave me a gentle smile as he looked me over. “Welcome back, Mrs. Young.” He held out his hand and the now familiar shielding process took place again. Cassius seemed completely unaware of the magnetic like tension between the valet and
myself.

I then followed the ever-smiling Cassius through the large doors. There weren’t quite as many vampires sitting inside this time, at least not yet. My spot on the platform was vacant and the room was awkwardly silent, as though begging for my music to bring life to it. After escorting me to the bench, Cassius left my side and went up the spiral staircase.

My hands idly splayed across the piano keys and I played along to the music displayed in the book before me. My curiosity was getting the best of me as my eyes implored the stairway. What could possibly be hiding up there? Was this where they drained the poor victims of their lives, or perhaps they did that in the kitchen? I felt a rumble of anger flood through me as I envisioned a helpless child being drained of their blood as vampires hovered over them excitedly.

The guests somehow didn’t appear to notice my absence when I removed myself from the bench and slowly inched my way over to the stairs. I climbed upward, eying the vampires below me every few steps, and stopped when I heard hushed voices from above.

“He tells us that she is the one,” an unrecognized voice spoke. “How is this possible?”

Malik’s rich laughter filled the room. “Of course she is the one! Have you not seen her? The similarities are uncanny. She is her mother’s daughter, without a single doubt. He said that she would come, and she did.”

I gulped. They were undoubtedly talking about me.

“Do you think that she knows who you are?”

“That would be impossible.”

“What do you plan to do with her…
”

Malik ignored the other voice and I heard footsteps creaking across the floorboards. “Dearest Alexis, why don’t you finish climbing up those stairs and make yourself comfortable up here?”

My mouth fell agape and I felt weak at the knees.

“Come along, we won’t bite.” I heard the other vampire laugh.

“If you desire to remain present, Ion, I would suggest that you keep your mouth shut!” Malik suddenly shouted. “Please, do come up, Alexis.”

Betraying me, my feet led me up the rest of the stairs and toward the voice that beckoned me.

The room was fairly empty, aside from a beautiful burgundy chaise with a matching armchair to the side. Malik lay across the chaise and I had to admit that he was a beautiful man, despite the evil lurking underneath. I assumed the person in the armchair was Ion. He sat with his legs curled underneath him and wore a fading black fedora over his long, wavy brown hair.

“Welcome, Alexis,” Malik said sweetly yet I could detect the poison at the end of his words. “Please, take a seat.”

He slid off of the chaise and gestured for me to sit down. I cautiously sat down and nearly leapt back up when he reseated himself beside me. I could almost feel the chill of his flesh through the mere inches that separated us. Velvet appeared to be his choice of style, as he yet again was wearing an overcoat made with soft velvet—this time in a soft gray tone. Despite what I knew about him, he had a falsely friendly demeanor—that was probably how he tricked the poor humans into trusting him.

“You’re a despicable man,” I uttered without thought.

Malik looked hurt but not surprised. “What is it that you think you know of me, Alexis, which would make me despicable?”

“I know what you did to my mother.”

He appeared completely stunned for a moment, quickly exchanging looks with Ion, before resuming looking at me. “Destiny made it all the way to you, did she?”

I nodded slowly, recalling the moment when I first met my birth mother. “You corrupted an innocent woman.”

“They all start out innocent, darling…it wasn’t I that changed her, her circumstances changed her—her unrelenting desire to find you changed her. She drove herself mad because of memories of you forcing their way to the surface.”

“And you fed her lies, saying that I didn’t exist. You could have released her before she became a monster!”

Malik shut his eyes tightly and exhaled slowly. “It is not easy releasing someone you love.”

“You don’t know the meaning of love,” I spat.

Before I had a second to react, Malik’s hands were grasping onto mine and I could feel myself being tugged into a memory. I was immediately immersed in the scene where he was whipping my mother for disobeying—yet there was something distinctly different this time. I could feel the remorse he felt each time he readied the whip for another lash. I could feel the pain and sickness inside him each time the leather tips bit deeply into my mother’s flesh. Suddenly I was enveloped in a new memory. He sat at a mahogany roll-top desk, fondling a silver ring in his hand and muttering to himself.

“She will never accept you…” his voice rang through my head. “She thinks you are a monster—and a monster you are, not intended to be with something so gentle and precious.” He tossed the ring onto the wooden floorboards and it bounced underneath the desk.

Their wedding day flashed before my eyes. My mother looked absolutely stunning in her long white ball gown, and even she seemed genuinely happy. I could feel his admiration and care for her as she walked down the aisle and met him at the end. The tenderness of their kiss, the way he smiled when they joined hands and exited the room…

I found myself staring blankly into his eyes and even now I could see the pain concealed behind them. “You really did love her…” I mouthed quietly and tried to wrap my mind around it. Even the most evil of creatures can feel love and compassion toward another.

“Yes, I did…and still do,” he said fondly and ran a cold hand along my cheek. “You remind me so much of her.”

I swallowed and fought back the urge to run. I had to gain this man’s trust somehow—I couldn’t escape now, no matter how badly I wanted to. “But I’m not her.”

“I need to know something, Alexis,” his expression turned grim. “Where is your mother now?”

My eyes darted toward the floor and I hesitated to answer. “She’s dead.”

Anger of a magnitude I had never witnessed radiated from him as he stood up and roared into the air. Even Ion who had been smirking the entire meeting so far looked terrified, nearly ripping holes into the chair arms he clutched.