The King's Vampire (32 page)

“I don’t say this often, but Godfrey’s right. You had best leave now,” Darius said.

Elizabeth clutched her friend once more. “I’ll not forget you.”

“You’d better not,” Amelia said with a smile, “because we are surely destined to meet again, my little sister.”

Before she stepped down, Sir Michael Horbury clambered out from the back of the wagon. “I’m staying.”

Elizabeth jumped. “Michael, why would you stay when it’s so dangerous?”

“You might need my help.”

Darius put an arm around her waist. “She’s got me to protect her.”

Removing his arm from her waist, she said, “I’m quite capable of taking care of myself. I’m not the helpless creature you both imagine.”

Amelia clapped her hands together and laughed. “You tell them, darling. I’d pit you against Julian anytime.”

“Thank you. Good-bye, my friend.” She hugged Amelia.

Elizabeth and Darius watched the wagons move away. They waved until the wagons lumbered across the bridge. Darius noticed Elizabeth smile when she saw the ratty little dog, Charlie, and the king’s spaniel, Custard, now vampire dogs, poking their heads out from the wagon’s tarp and yapping until the wagons disappeared. She blew a kiss in their direction.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blasted them in the face. Lightning flashed and the thunder cracked even louder. Rain pelted down. Darius grabbed her by the arm and they raced to the carriage, while the windblown rain slapped them in the face. Annoyed, he discovered Sir Michael climbing into the carriage right behind them.

They rode back to the Boar’s Head Inn in an uncomfortable silence, with only the roar of the storm to keep them company.

Chapter 35

After returning to Darius’s apartments, Elizabeth felt a chill bone-deep even for a vampire. She moved close enough to the fireplace to make her wet clothes steam. Michael stood with an appearance of studied casualness at her right side. She wondered what had possessed him to come back with them. They remained awkwardly silent, even after Darius left them alone when he went to check on the king.

Finally, Michael spoke. “I did a lot of thinking in the Tower. There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Then tell me.”

“It’s about the fire that killed our daughter and your family.”

She turned on him. “You knew how the fire started and you never troubled to tell me?”

He backed away. “I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid I’d put you in more danger. I didn’t know what you might do if you knew what really happened.”

She struggled to hold back tears that seemed sealed within her heart. “Our daughter, my sister, and my parents, died a horrible death, and you kept from me how it happened?”

“Listen. The vampire who made me was angry because I refused to join with him in killing others. He knew I was married to you, and so he killed your family and our daughter as revenge. He actually thought you were inside the house at the time, too.”

Elizabeth stood and stared. Her knees buckled on her, and she would have collapsed if Michael hadn’t cupped her elbow to keep her from falling. “You let a vampire kill my entire family, and yet, you still made me one, too. What kind of monster are you?”

“Will you listen? I made you a vampire because I thought I could protect you that way. I knew you’d be defenseless against the vampire if you remained human. I didn’t know you’d run away. I thought you were honestly interested in becoming a vampire. It wasn’t until after I’d made you I realized how awful it was for you.”

Her mind rushed back to that time so long ago when her entire life had been shattered in one blow. That horrific time when she’d lost her entire family and her husband had betrayed her. Pain ravaged her as though it had only happened a moment before. “Why tell me now? You’ve only made everything worse.”

Michael looked devastated. “I didn’t mean to. I thought knowing what happened would comfort you. I hoped you’d find it in your heart to forgive me.”

At a loss for words, she felt grateful for the distraction when Darius returned. But her relief was short-lived when she saw him standing in the entryway with the cords on his neck bulging, and looking pale as a vampire.

“Whatever has happened?” she asked.

“The king’s not in his room. He’s gone.”

“Gone? Could he have gone back to the palace?”

“No, the room showed signs of a struggle.”

“Julian?” Michael asked.

“It must be him,” Darius said.

A bolt of lightning lit up the room, and thunder caused the windows to rattle. The stench of sulfur was suffocating. Elizabeth coughed. “What do we do now?” The look in Darius’s eyes made her heart pound so hard the sound of her own blood thundered in her ears.

He took her by the arm. “Stay here.”

“You’re not leaving me behind.”

When he looked like he was ready to argue, she stuck out her chin belligerently. “Fine,” he said, “let’s go then.”

“What if we’re too late?” she gasped out, struggling to keep up with Darius’s long strides.

“We won’t be too late. Right now, it’s me Julian wants. He’s using Charles as bait. He’ll deal with the king once he’s destroyed the only demon slayer who can challenge him.”

Elizabeth caught him by the wrist. “He’ll not destroy you while I have breath left in my body.”

“Thank you, my darling. I will move heaven and earth to protect you, too.” He turned to Michael. “You don’t have to come with us. It will be dangerous.”

Elizabeth prayed Michael would stay behind.

“Try and stop me.” He followed them outside.

Darius led them to the carriage, which sped away quickly. She didn’t trouble asking him where they were going, because she knew by the direction they were heading. The green sky was enough to send shivers rushing down her spine, but the relentless storm, with clouds shifting into shapes that looked like nothing less than demons, left her almost paralyzed with fear.

The carriage stopped in front of the ruins of St. Paul’s church. They would face the demon abyss once more. Wren had finally had the cavernous blackened walls and the remaining roof destroyed with a battering ram. Except for the west wall, the other walls were merely rubble but the ruins still appeared threatening. She knew what they held inside.

She felt grateful when Michael disappeared from her line of vision. She didn’t want to think about him, or what he’d told her. She needed to concentrate on helping Darius save the king. She followed him through the rubble. The smell of rotting flesh engulfed them. Darius slipped an arm around her waist.

They headed toward the trapdoor leading to the crypt. Darius held a torch high, while she struggled to ignore the darkening shadows cast against the stone walls when they climbed down the rope rungs of the ladder, dropping down to the hard-packed dirt floor. She spotted Charles shackled next to one of the stone tombs.

She saw something she’d never expected to see on a king’s face—a look of stark terror. It stopped her in her tracks. Even though she’d spoken several times to Charles as if he were just a man, and he’d even cried on her shoulder, still, deep down, she’d always considered him God’s holy anointed ruler of all of England, impervious to fear, and to see him this way shocked her.

Darius strode forward and lifted up the lid of the tomb that stood next to Charles. He pulled out a large, jewel-encrusted sword. When Elizabeth looked at him questioningly, he said, “Charlemagne gave me this sword when he first made me a demon slayer. I’ll have need of the sword this night.”

He swung the blade through the iron shackles as easily as though they’d been a spider’s web. Charles’s arms dropped to his sides, and he drew back his shoulders and tried to smooth his tousled hair.

“Ods-fish, but I’m mighty glad to see the two of you.” Charles gave a self-mocking smile, and still managed a look of cynical good humor, even though his lips trembled and his voice quavered.

Elizabeth ran to him. “Charles, I’m so sorry you’ve gotten involved in all this.”

“If it isn’t my favorite vampire,” he said, taking her hand and kissing it.

“Did Julian do this?” Darius asked.

“Yes. I must say he’s not the handsomest fellow I’ve ever come across. If I’m going to look like him, I don’t fancy becoming an immortal or psychic vampire, after all.”

“Let’s get out of here before he returns. This may be a trap.” Darius shoved Charles and Elizabeth in front of him, gesturing for them to climb the rope ladder. “Hurry up.”

Elizabeth, the first one to climb up, screamed when she saw a shadow moving alongside her. Looking up, she saw a demon hovering over her head. He gripped her wrist, trying to tug her off the ladder. Darius fired a purple flame of energy at the demon, and he gave an inhuman shriek that scratched across Elizabeth’s nerves. The demon imploded in mid-air as Darius threw another bolt at him. She scrabbled up the ladder faster.

“These demons are worse than the Dutch, eh?” Charles said in a voice that shook. Darius gave him an unceremonious shove to get him to close the gap between him and Elizabeth.

She pulled herself back onto the dirt-packed floor of St. Paul’s, and the men followed quickly behind her.

The rain had ceased, while the moon remained partially hidden by roiling clouds, and the sky maintained its peculiar shade of green.

Heart in throat, Elizabeth watched moss grow out of the ground, cracking the entire width of the church. In the center, the earth caved in, creating a hole six feet wide. A purple glow radiated from that center, and from its depths, six demons crawled out. An inhuman moan continued incessantly from the gaping chasm. The seventh demon to creep from the abyss was Julian.

His fury unleashed in an inhuman shriek when he saw them. “How dare you interfere with my plans for the king?” Julian moved so quickly toward them, Elizabeth hardly realized what was happening. He spread his wings, now surrounded by a luminescent cloud of deep purple, and drew his great reptilian head nearer to Charles, who recoiled.

“Oh my God, no, my God, no,” Charles said slowly.

Out of nowhere, a figure with white-blond hair and skin paler than death lunged between Charles and Julian.

“Michael,” Elizabeth screamed.

“Get out now, Your Majesty,” Michael said between gritted teeth.

“Ods fish, Sir, I’ve fought Oliver Cromwell’s men, and I believe I can fight these devils.”

“I don’t believe your Majesty understands the nature of the demons,” Michael said, lashing out with his sword toward the nearest creature.

“Fighting is fighting, demon or no.” Charles pulled out his own sword and attempted to lop off the head of a demon that was coming toward his left side. The demon took on the form of a dragon-like serpent and knocked the king’s sword from his hand

Stunned, Charles remained frozen to the spot. Julian shouted out, “Don’t destroy the king.” He cast a fog-like cell around him, and there Charles remained imprisoned.

Elizabeth started to race over to the king, but Darius held her back. “He’s probably safer there than in the middle of the battle.”

Just as Darius spoke, two hideous creatures reached out to grab Elizabeth, but Darius sent bolts of energy through their necks, causing them to implode into a dust that increased the rotting smell tenfold.

“These demons are more powerful than the others,” Elizabeth managed to gasp out. “I can’t thrall them at all.”

“Stay behind me then,” Darius said.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Michael engaged in battle with Julian. He slammed his sword against one of Julian’s wings and it crumpled, but the demon continued to lash out at Michael, finally gripping his throat with his talons.

“Michael needs our help.”

Darius rushed to the immortal vampire’s aid just when Julian picked up a half-burned wooden beam lying beside him, plunging it into Michael’s heart.

The shriek of agony that escaped Michael’s lips wrenched through Elizabeth. She dashed over to her former husband’s side, and tried to distract Julian by grabbing hold of his wings. Julian gripped her by the throat and lifted her in the air.

With a roar of fury, Darius swiped at Julian’s talons with the sword, forcing him to release Elizabeth. He then pushed her out of the way, causing her to stagger back as he plowed into Julian, shooting flames of energy at him.

She knelt down beside Michael. Fumbling, she ripped off a piece of her shirt and pressed it against his chest. “You can heal yourself.” But his blood pooling on the dirt told a different story.

“No. I can’t heal because it’s holy wood from St. Paul’s.”

He said something else, and she had to lean closer to hear him. “What?”

“I’m sorry I stole your soul and made you a vampire. You deserved much better. I wish I’d told you what happened to Christine before and not have waited so long to tell you.”

“Don’t speak of it now,” she said, “just rest.”

“The thing that makes me saddest is I shall never be with you again. But there’s one thing I wanted even more.”

“What’s that, Michael?”

“I wish with all my being you could forgive me.”

Fighting back tears, Elizabeth said, “It’s too late for me to regain my soul, so I’ll never make it to heaven. I do forgive you, and I do understand what made you do what you did.”

Weakly, he grasped her hands. “You’ve always had an old soul, too beautiful to be destroyed forever.” He took a gurgling breath. “My own soul is lost. Forgive me, Elizabeth. Love me just a little.” He drew his last breath.

For a brief moment, she prayed, “Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy.” She placed her head against his icy forehead.

Just then an explosion caused her to turn in time to see Darius, with both arms raised high, shooting red and orange flames of the purest energy at Julian. The demon flipped forward over Darius’s head, kicking his sword out of his hand and attacking him from behind, choking him with those horrid talon-like hands, although Darius managed to knock Julian away. Now there were eleven demons closing in and twenty more came streaming out of the chasm.

Elizabeth noticed one of the demons scrabbling out of the abyss looked more human than the others. Suddenly, she realized why. She shouted, “Darius, one of the demons is Obadiah the witch finder,” although she wasn’t certain he heard her.