Dawn of Darkness (Daeva, #1) (17 page)

"Why?" I
whispered, willing my eyes to stay open. I kept telling myself to
fight it, feeling the energy sapped from my body.

"You've
been poking your nose into things that should stay hidden," he
replied. "We can't have you finding out our secrets now, can
we?"

With my
last ounce of strength, I dug my nails into the palms of my hands,
hoping the pain would help me fight the effects of the drug. So
this was why the General was assigned to the mission, to remove me.
And for what? All this, for the sake of a secret.

"I didn't
want to do this," he said, shaking his head, "but the secrets of
the Daeva must never be uncovered. It is for the good of
humanity."

He stood
over me, shooting another dart into my chest. At least, that's
where I think he shot me. Everything was numb, and my eyelids
closed of their own accord. As the last drip of consciousness left
me, I smiled. Ash wouldn't leave me. He'd find me, even if it took
all day and night.

I opened
my eyes slowly, shielding them from the piercing rays that shone
down on me. I looked around, squinting, and noted I was in an old
stone building. My mouth was dry, and my body ached. My arms were
sore and cramped. I tried to stretch them, only to find they were
restrained behind my back. Panic hit me, forcing me to awaken
fully.

Where am
I? How long was I out? Why am I tied up? Had everyone left me? Who
found me? Where was Ash? So many questions. I struggled against the
restraints, trying to pull my hands free, but it was no use. All I
managed to accomplish was chafing my wrists against the
rope.

I gave up
struggling, lacking the energy to continue. I took a few deep
breaths to calm myself and took in my surroundings. From what I
could see out of the window, I was no longer in the woods. The room
I was in was empty. I let out a long sigh, slumping against the
pillar I was tied to. My neck was especially sore, feeling as
though I had bruised it, and maybe I had when I fell to the
ground.

Time
passed by. I don't know how long I waited, but no-one came. I tried
more than once to free myself of the ropes, only to give up when it
felt like they were sawing through my wrists. I was starting to
think I hadn't been found at all, and I was brought here to die
alone. As I entertained this thought, I heard the sound of laughter
in the distance. My first instinct was to call out, but my throat
was so dry that only a hoarse whisper escaped my lips. The voices
came closer, and I could hear footsteps now.

I
shuffled uncomfortably, straining against the ropes. The logical
part of my brain kicked in, reminding me that these people were
more than likely the ones who tied me up. I had to get myself free.
Straining my neck, I managed to look over my shoulder and realised
the pillar was square. Perhaps, I could fray the rope on the
corners. I pulled the rope tight against the stone and began
working it up and down over the edge.

I don't
know how far I got, but I stopped when a silhouette paused in the
doorway. I couldn't make out any of his features for the blinding
light that shone from behind him, but it was a definitely a
man.

"Hey,
look who's awake," he said. "You thirsty?" The man held out a
bottle of water. I glared at him, wondering if he was genuinely
offering me a drink, or if it were merely a way to torment me.
Without waiting for me to answer, he pressed the opening of the
bottle to my lips and tilted it. At first I kept my mouth shut,
letting the water dribble down my chin. The cold water against my
cracked lips reminded me of how parched I was, so I opened up,
drinking as much as the man would allow me.

I gasped
for air as he withdrew the bottle, screwed the lid back on, and put
it down beside me. My captor sat down against one of the other
pillars, no longer with the light behind him. His face was slim and
tanned, covered in a small amount of dark stubble, which he
scratched at. He looked familiar, though I couldn't have seen him
before. His shoulder-length hair looked grey at first, though he
was much too young for grey hair, wasn't he? He couldn't have been
much older than thirty.

"What're
you staring at?" he asked, and began to crawl across the floor on
his hands and feet with a surreal grace that no human should have
been able to achieve, putting his face close to mine. As he passed
the door, the sun spilled over his face, revealing that his hair
was in fact a mix of silver-white with dark undertones. But the
strangest thing was his eyes. His eyes were a green-yellow hue, and
it finally dawned on me why he seemed so familiar. This was the man
I had bumped into the night of our graduation, the man who was
carrying the reports.

"Y-you're..." I started. He smiled at me, flashing what I can
only describe as a pearly set of half-fangs. They were human teeth,
but each was a little longer and more pointed than they should have
been.

"So,
you've remembered. The name's Daniel. I'd shake your hand, but it
seems they're a bit tied up at the moment." He laughed, and then
sniffed the air around me.

Werewolf.
It was the only explanation. My body tensed as his nose brushed
past my cheek. The significance wasn't lost on me. I had seen
plenty of dogs do this, but the action seemed wrong when it was a
human doing it.

"What are
you going to do to me?" I asked.

"That's
up to Violet to decide," he said, sitting himself back down. "Until
then, I'm your new best friend."

He sat
with his arms folded over his bent knees, forehead resting on his
arms. There was so much I wanted to ask him, but I thought it
better to stay quiet, and concentrate on escaping whatever fate
they had in store for me. For now, it seemed my life was in no
immediate danger, so I waited.

Daniel
dozed off after a short while, an occasional snore filling the
room. As quietly as I could, I continued fraying the rope that
bound me. I felt the rope start to give when two more shadows
blocked the doorway.

"Daniel,"
the first said. That one word was enough to wake the werewolf. "You
call this keeping watch?"

"Yeah,
what's your problem?" Daniel snarled.

"He's
almost through the rope," said the second, kneeling down to inspect
it. He was smaller than the first, with deep auburn
hair.

Good to
know, I thought. I had to take the chance before they could
reinforce the ropes. I reached down inside myself, calling on my
magic and drawing it out into the room. It emanated from me like a
cold breeze, filling the space between us. Their eyes grew wide as
it touched them. Daniel was the first to go, curling up into a ball
and trembling.

I worked
quickly, trying to finish off the rest of the rope, which was
harder now I needed to focus on my magic as well. I pulled harder,
gritting my teeth as it dug into my already sore wrists. A hand
gripped my shoulder. I turned my head to see it belonged to the
redhead.

"Bad
move," I said, knowing from Ash that physical contact makes a
psychic ability much more powerful. My magic lashed out at him, and
the redhead released his hold on me, back-pedalling into the corner
on his hands and feet. The third man collapsed to his knees in the
doorway. He appeared to have the strongest will of the
three.

"Violet!"
he called out.

Seconds
later, a tall woman appeared at the door, wearing a long, hooded
cloak. She walked over to me, grabbing hold of my chin and forcing
me to meet her gaze. Even touching me, she didn't
flinch.

"Call off
your song, Siren," she said. More questions added to my hoard. Why
was she immune to my ability? What did she mean by 'my song'? Why
did she call me 'Siren'? Questions could be answered later, but
first I had to survive. I focused on her, redirecting every ounce
of my magic to her.

She took
hold of my right hand, twisting it at a painful angle. "We are not
your enemy," she said. "But I will not hesitate to start breaking
bones if you do not cease this."

My arm
was twisted further, until I felt it was about to snap. A broken
arm would do me no good for escaping, so I closed my eyes and took
a deep breath, halting the flow of magic from within me. The
residual energy in the air began to dissipate. I would have to come
up with a new plan of escape now. Daniel leaped to his hands and
feet, his back arched. He growled and snarled at me, inching
closer.

"Control
yourself, Daniel," said Violet. The werewolf froze, bowing his
head. If he had had a tail in human form, I'm sure it would have
been curled between his legs.

Violet
released her grip on my arm. She pulled a small knife from a sheath
at her waistband. I flinched as it passed me, wondering what she
intended to do. The ropes went slack. I shook them off, and the
first thing I did was to examine my wrists, which were bruised and
angry. Violet stood, offering me a hand.

"Are you
sure this is wise?" the redhead asked.

"He will
not run," Violet said. She fixed her gaze on me. "No doubt you have
questions. I will try and answer them for you."

I pushed
myself to my feet, refusing her hand. My legs were wobbly beneath
me, but they soon steadied. Violet motioned for me to leave the
room and I obliged. I could see a line of trees near the edge of
the ruins. I guessed we must have been on the other side of the
woods General Marsten had led me through.

Violet
walked up to me and held out the bottle of water. I accepted it and
she began to walk around the back of the building. I started to
follow, and when we were out of sight of the others, I turned down
an alleyway and ran. I stumbled over small rocks and cracks in the
pavement, pushing my legs as hard as they would go. The trees were
only metres away, urging me forward with their promise of cover,
when Violet stepped out from behind a building. I stopped and
turned. A pair of arms wrapped around me. I kicked and thrashed
against her, finding myself caught in an iron grip.

"Do I
need to go find some more rope?" she asked.

I shook
my head and stopped struggling. Violet set me down on the ground
and pushed me forward, one hand gripping the back of my armoured
vest. We walked until we reached a small yard, a campfire sat in
the middle with several long sticks resting over it, each with what
appeared to be chunks of meat skewered on them. The smell hit me,
and my stomach began to rumble.

"Are you
hungry?" Violet asked, laughing as my stomach answered for me. She
led me over to a small rock at the edge of the fire and sat me
down, before pulling back her hood to reveal long, black hair,
framing her pale skin and deep green eyes. She picked up one of the
sticks and twirled it around before handing it to me. I poked the
chunk of meat, finding it wasn't too hot to eat and lifted it to my
mouth, taking a small bite. It tasted a lot like beef, but with a
slight tang to it. Violet was inspecting the rest of the meat, but
I felt her eyes on me, watching in case I should make another break
for it.

"Ask
anything you like," Violet prompted me, sitting down opposite me.
"I will answer as best I can."

"What is
this?" I asked, taking a larger bite. "It's good." I washed the
meat down with some water.

"Deer. Daniel and Nate were out
hunting for it when they found you," she replied, stifling a laugh.
"Honestly, of all the questions you could ask first, and you
ask
that
."

I
shrugged. I wasn't sure what to think, a voice at the back of my
mind whispering to me, and telling me I couldn't trust these
people. There was no guarantee my questions would be answered
truthfully. Then another part of my brain began to kick in,
reminding me that so far they had given me food and water, and I
needed answers. Maybe they didn't want to hurt me, I thought. Or
maybe they're making sure you're in good health for their master,
another thought replied.

"What
happened after I was knocked out?" I asked. As long as the offer
for answers stood, I may as well take it. It would be some hours
before the sun set, so there was still time to make another attempt
at escaping. My fingers brushed past the holster on the side of my
leg. It didn't surprise me to find my gun and knife gone. If I was
going to escape, then it had to be before nightfall and the
vampires came out to play.

"They
spotted you and the older man..." She paused.

"General
Marsten."

"Forgive
me," Violet said. "I haven't even asked your name yet."

"Mikhail," I said, and then wondered if I should have given a
false name. No point, I thought. What was a name outside of the
city anyway?

"Mikhail," she repeated. "I am Violet, as you're probably
already aware. Anyway, they spotted you walking through the woods
while they were out hunting and decided to follow. I don't know
what your General was planning to do with you, but something
startled him and he left in a hurry. Nate insisted on bringing you
back here."

I jumped
when something warm and furry brushed past me. A large wolf,
probably twice the size of a normal wolf – I couldn't be sure,
having never seen one outside of a book before – nudged at my leg.
I was so wrapped up in wanting to find my answers that I hadn't
heard the wolf approach, which was saying something, considering
its size. It looked at my food with those green-yellow eyes I
recognised as Daniel's. He licked his lips, a few drops of saliva
hitting the ground. In wolf form, his fur was the same colour as
his hair, silvery-grey and black.