Love is Darkness (A Valerie Dearborn Novel) (41 page)

Lucas huffed, “The plague killed Margaret,
the
Fey had nothing to do with it.”

Rachel's voice held conviction, “She was convinced it was the Fey that brought the plague. She told me the story of her village, how they had been protected for decades and then, after the summer solstice, when they didn't offer a virgin, the Fey punished them, letting the plague cover the town like ivy.”

Lucas ran a weary hand through his hair. “Bring in the coffins.”

Guards moved to the doors and opened them, moving aside for the guards who brought the coffins in to the middle of the room. Three humans came in at the end, clanking silver chains piled high in their arms. They threw them into a pile that glinted like jewels in the torch light.

Valerie felt herself relaxing now that she thought she might live to get out of this. Her thighs and arms throbbed, blood rushing back into the clenched muscles.

He looked to Rachel, features hard. “Who was it? Who was stupid enough to give her more power?”

“She already told you.”

Lucas waited and Rachel looked like she was going to refuse to answer but Lucas raised his hand, pointing a blood covered finger towards her.

She dropped her eyes and gave a quick nod, rattling off some names before the crowd began talking and moving, pushing some vampires forward to take their punishment.

Lucas beckoned to the coffins and those from the crowd shuffled forwards. There were five of them, two women and three men, and they all climbed into the coffins and
laid
down without protest.

Two of them beseeched Lucas to be kind to their companion's or kin. Lucas said nothing, watching disinterestedly as the guards nailed the coffins shut and wrapped them in chains.

The heavy coffins were lifted and taken from the room but at the door someone started screaming and a coffin lurched sideways as the woman inside thrashed, trying to get out.

Lucas looked at several people in the audience, the kin and companions of those who’d been taken away.
“A century.
I will review their punishment then.”

The room burst into noise, a woman in the front who was wearing jeans and looked vaguely like a has-been pop star wailed and cried in anguish that the punishment was too harsh, while a few others clasped hands as though relieved that the sentence was not worse.

After a few noisy moments Lucas silenced the audience with a glare and turned back to Rachel and Marion. Rachel had sunk to the floor and was holding Marion against her, letting her cry,
Marion's
brown curls pressed tight under her chin. Lucas knelt down beside them, his larger form eclipsing theirs.

He held out his hand and Rachel took Marion's limp arm and passed it to Lucas. His head descended and he pierced Marion's wrist, drinking from her in huge draughts. Marion seemed to collapse in on herself, her flesh becoming paler as he drank the power from her.

A great deal of time seemed to pass before he dropped her hand and went back to his throne. He sat down and waited while Marion and Rachel huddled together on the floor.

Marion's hair was
dull,
her cheeks hollow, the veins in her hands and arms bulging like a famine victim.

“Rachel,” Lucas said, deceptively mild.

It took Rachel a few tries to speak.
“My Liege.”

“Drink from her.” Rachel's head snapped up, her gaze finding his. Her brows furrowed together as though confused. Why would Lucas make Rachel stronger if he was going to kill her?

“How much?”

“I will tell you when to cease.”

Rachel studied him for a moment before speaking to Marion quietly, “Will you let me, my love?” She petted her face gently.

Marion tilted her head in agreement, exposing her neck. Slowly, she bit down on Marion’s jugular, wrapping her arms around the frail body. Marion became more brittle, older, caving in on herself. Her flesh becoming coarser, more wrinkled, she was no longer human. Tears were streaming down Rachel’s face and it looked like Marion was dead. How could there be any life left in her? Her skin was already ashy.

“Now, crawl to me,” Lucas said in a tone to make the devil proud.

Valerie shivered at the command and bit her lip to try and distract herself. The room waited, looking between the two of them as Rachel slunk forward on hands and knees, all feline grace, her moves almost seductive. She tried not to feel too jealous. Hello, traitor.

Her moves were sinuous as she crawled up the steps. Rachel stared fixedly at Lucas, waiting for him to tell her when she was close enough, her head now level with his knee.
 

 
He was like a statue.

 
Valerie could see Rachel trembling, tears on her lashes as she waited for Lucas to give her some sign of what he expected. She slanted him a quick look under her lashes, but he was still, waiting for her to figure out what she should do next if she wanted to survive.

Hesitantly, she moved forward, her lips going to his shoe. Rachel opened her mouth, her tongue rasping against the soft suede. After a few moments he waved her away and she backed down the stairs, careful to avoid eye contact. Lucas signaled to the guard and another coffin was brought in and placed on the floor.

Rachel flinched but Lucas gestured to Marion, “Put her in it.”

Marion looked like a bundle of bones tucked into a dress, half the weight she’d been before. She looked like a bundle of sticks shifting away, too weak to crawl as Rachel approached her.

Rachel reached Marion, touching her lightly on the back, and Marion moaned piteously.
Batting at Rachel pathetically.
 
Ignoring her struggles
,
 
Rachel
leaned down, swung Marion into her arms and subdued her, kissing her face and neck as she walked her to the coffin.

Rachel lowered her down, like putting a child to bed, arranging her arms in the coffin, straightening the crimson skirts. Then she stood, stepping back slightly, tears running down her face. A human moved forward, carrying a hammer and nails.

“No. She will do it,” Lucas said.

The human nodded and dropped everything to the floor, backing away with wide eyes. Rachel flinched like she'd been struck and turned a murderous gaze on Lucas.

“Should I just kill her then?”

“No.”

Slowly Rachel took the lid to the coffin and placed it on top. She hammered in the nails steadily and when the lid was secure he told her to get the silver chains.

“Wrap the coffin. No gloves,” he said, beyond bored.

Rachel went to the chains, looked at them and hesitated. She touched a link, and smoke rose from her hand. Breathing deeply, trembling, she reached out again, grabbing the chain with two hands and rushing to the coffin, throwing it away from her as quickly as she could.

Valerie covered her mouth with her arm, trying to breathe in the smell of her wool coat instead of the stench of burning vampire that was growing stronger each time Rachel touched the chains.

As the minutes passed the vampires became more discomfited, the majority of them not wanting to watch Rachel's flesh sizzle down to the bone. But there was also a sizable minority that watched avidly, absorbing each flicker of Rachel's pain and despair like they were watching a play.

“It doesn’t hurt so much when the skin is gone. The bone doesn’t burn, don’t you find that interesting?” Lucas said to her.

Eyes as wide as saucers, she looked at him, seemingly unable to respond.

Lucas forced her to continue, watching with a dispassionate gaze as she stumbled, trembled and cried.

Finally, the coffin was wrapped.

He stood and Rachel fell to her knees, head bowed to the floor, careful not to let her ruined hands touch anything. “Swear allegiance to me and beg my humble forgiveness.”

The words tumbled from her lips, like she wanted to say them before he had a chance to take it back, or before she was sick. Val bet on being sick.
I want to be sick
.

“Marion is alive. Are you pleased?”

Rachel's voice was high and wobbly, “You are a gracious lord and master. I am pleased.”

“Do you want to know the conditions for her continued existence?”

Rachel waited, head lowered, unwilling or unable to nod encouragement. “It's you, Rachel. I keep her alive so that I have your loyalty. Fail me and she will never come out of that coffin. It could take her two hundred years to die in there. You don’t know the pain and hunger of being trapped in a coffin, young as you are, lenient as I have been. But you see, don’t you. That it is a torture?”

Tears splashed onto the floor in front of her. “Yes, my lord. It is a torture.”

“Come here so I can tell you how you will please me.”

Guards came and grabbed her, hauling her up the steps and dropping her in front of Lucas. Her short hair was tangled and streaked with…everything.
Blood, tears, worse.
He spoke to her softly but Rachel’s face froze in horror at his muffled words.

Straining with all her might, Valerie tried to hear what he said but couldn't. Not completely. The guards came back and picked her up again, dragging her from the hall as Valerie thought about what he might have said. She'd only heard one word clearly: “Roanoke”.

Chapter 17

Prague, Czech Republic

Rachel was carried away and all the vampires filed out of the room, meeting adjourned. The room was empty but for Val and Lucas.

His eyes were closed but he opened them when she approached, looking at her as though surprised she was still in the room. His eyes were sky blue and he seemed tired. That was her guess, anyway.

 
“You didn't protect me,” she said.

“Didn't I?”

“Marion expected you to save me and you didn't. If you had died in this fight, she would have killed me too.”

He gave her a condescending smile, “If I had perished you would not have lived. She would have tasted you and known what you were. She'd have used you, bled you over and over again,
whoring
you out for power and favors until you were dry and broken.”

“How flattering.
The only reason I’m in danger is because of you.”

“Now that is an unusual picture. Jack and your father are just as guilty as I for involving you in our world. Do you not blame them as well?”