Tail of the Devil (16 page)

Chapter Eleven

Mathias leaned back on his bed and put his hand behind his head. He didn’t know if the supposed memory was really a memory, or something that Vlad planted in his head. It really wouldn’t be all that weird, would it? Vlad was one of the most powerful vampires in the world. He was capable of anything, and after this vision thing, Mathias knew that he was just as crazy as the rest of the vampires.

Sure, he could understand that the elder vampire had lived through a lot and that his experiences made him the way he was. But, the fact that somehow he thought he was the old Mathias was just not good. He was just a kid, not an ancient warrior. Hell, he didn’t even know how to fight. His father had once taught him how to make a fist, and that was about it.

If he didn’t figure out how to get them to see he wasn’t this Mathias guy, he didn’t know what he was going to do. His life was in danger, he had that feeling, but he just didn’t know who was going to strike.

He got up from the bed, walked over to the window, and stared out over the grounds. He wished he knew a way to convince them all that he wasn’t who they said he was, but he had no way of doing that. They seemed hell bent on believing what they wanted to believe. So far, nothing was going to change their view. And what it would take, Mathias had no idea.

* * * * *

Ever since the vision, each night Mathias would have a dream. Mathias thought the vision had something to do with the dreams, but there was one thing he couldn’t explain- the smell of roses. There were no smells in the memory of the battlefield. But every time he dreamed of that cold dark place, he smelled the roses. Sometimes, he didn’t see anything but he had this feeling of dampness and laying on something hard.

Did that mean that the dreams were real? He didn’t want to believe that. If he admitted to Vlad that he had these dreams, the old vampire would proudly proclaim him to be the real reincarnation of the old Mathias. And who knew where that would lead him. If they were this crazy to think that a kid could be this old ancient warrior vampire, what else were they crazy enough to believe?

But as the days went on the dreams got worse. He started hearing screaming in the distance accompanied by maniacal laughter. He hadn’t seen anyone else— yet. So far, he had only seen the damp, dark place that looked very much like the dungeon of a castle. Mathias wished he was psychic so he would know what the dreams had to do with anything else. But, even if he did know, he had no way of protecting himself. His only option was to somehow convince Vlad that he wasn’t his old friend. That was going to take a lot of work.

Finally, one afternoon, Mathias noticed that Vlad was grinning like hyena. It was too ridiculous of a look and so, Mathias set down his book. “What are you so happy about?”

“Mathias, it is not so much that I am happy for myself. I am happy for you.” Tepes planted himself into a seat across from Mathias.

“Umm... ok.”

“We have some important things to discuss. What would you like for dinner?”

“Uh. Food?”

Tepes laughed. “I think that can be provided.” He leapt from his chair and motioned for Mathias to follow by holding out his hand, palm up, and closing his fingers onto themselves.

Mathias paused. He hadn’t been expecting to go someplace. “Where are we going?”

“To eat with the school,” Tepes said. “I’ve kept you separate for far too long.”

Mathias followed Tepes through the halls of the castle and was surprised to find that they were going to the same hall in which he’d been forced to entertain the various vampire families. The room was arranged differently. Instead of numerous tables covered in tablecloths and ornate silverware, the hall was arranged so that there were several large tables that spanned the length of the room and at the far end was a great throne. The throne was made of obsidian and the back flanked out in the form of a great bat. The only ornamentation was a pair of large rubies that served as the bat’s eyes.

Tepes led Mathias through the maze of tables and motioned for him to sit at the table located directly in front of the throne. Mathias looked about the room and spied Lestan, Nosferatu, and the Queen seated at a table in a far corner along with other adult vampires whom he assumed were teachers at the school.

Tepes took his place at the throne and smiled down at the room from his location. Before he could even blink, a plate with a variety of foods magically appeared in front of Mathias on the table.

“Before we eat, I wanted to apologize to you for staying away for so very long,” Tepes said. “As I am sure you’re aware, I’ve been preoccupied by other, more important, issues.” The room erupted into a good natured laughter. “Because this is Mathias’ first meal with all of you, I trust that you will treat him with the respect he so rightly deserves.”

A slight groan was heard from one of the other tables and Mathias recognized Viraj with a guilty grin on his face.

“Yes, Viraj. I know you are hungry. I am almost finished.” The corners of Tepes eyes crinkled into a smile. “If you wish to speak or sit with Mathias, you will have to ask him for permission. I refuse to put in a good word for any of you. To me, you are all heathens.”

The room laughed again. As soon as Tepes began eating, the rest of the room became loud. It sounded like an old familial party. Not that different from the family gatherings Mathias had experienced over the years.

His dad had always said that Drvars were loud because they thought that you couldn’t hear them unless they talked over each other. This room was just like one of those old family gatherings. Mathias couldn’t hear a damn thing.

Suddenly, Mathias felt a prodding at his shoulder. “Can I sit here?” Viraj asked.

Mathias shrugged. “I don’t care.”

Viraj plopped himself down across from Mathias at the table. Mathias stared at his food.

“Are you going to eat?” Viraj took a sip of blood from his glass.

“Yeah... I guess it’s just weird.

“What’s weird?”

“Eating around so many people.”

Viraj nodded. “You get used to it.”

Mathias began to eat. At least he wasn’t sitting alone at the table. “So what’s it like?”

“What’s what like?”

“Going to school here.” Mathias grabbed a roll from the basket on the table.

“It’s okay, I guess. Some of the classes kind of suck.”

“It’s probably like that everywhere. But I think being tutored is all right. Math sucks though.”

Viraj nodded. “I think Latin is worse.”

“Vlad said something about Latin being important. I dunno. I don’t mind it too much, but sometimes it feels like I’m trying to graduate from high school in the space of four months.”

“Maybe they want you to be schooled quickly because they need you?” Viraj dropped marinara sauce on his shirt. He looked down, and then continued eating.

“Aren’t you gonna fix that?” Mathias asked.

“Nah, they’ll get clean anyway. I’m always dropping something or spilling something, and when my clothes are clean, the stains are gone. I don’t worry about it.”

“I’m glad I don’t have to clean your laundry.” Mathias laughed. He looked around the room, and his eyes spied Konstantin picking on another kid at his table. “So what’s the deal with Konstantin?”

Viraj took a deep breath. “You don’t really want to talk about him, do you? He’s not...”

“You mean he’s an asshole?”

Viraj sprayed the table with blood. “That’s one way to put it. He’s from the most prejudiced family in the vampire world.”

“Yeah. I’ve met him.”

“What did you think?”

“That he better not fuck with me. I’m not afraid of him.”

The air changed around them and Mathias turned to see Konstantin and Vasily standing nearby.

“Can’t go one day without getting in my way, huh, Drvar?” Konstantin asked.

“Since I haven’t seen you but like, two times, I don’t think I’ve been around you long enough to get in your way. Plus, last time I saw you, you were about to piss yourself.”

Konstantin grabbed Mathias by the arm. “You know nothing about me, nothing about my father. You are nothing. My father reminded me that just because you have his name, it doesn’t mean that you are he. So, you are a lesser, it’s time you learned to respect me.”

Mathias snatched his arm away and struck the younger vampire in the temple. Konstantin collapsed to the floor.

“Don’t kill me, Drvar. I was just trying to make conversation.”

Konstantin’s voice was shaky. He obviously wasn’t used to having someone stand up to him, let alone kick his ass. Mathias gripped the table so hard that it splintered.

“I think the two of you need to calm down.” Tepes said. He appeared between them.

Vasily helped Konstantin up off the floor and the two walked away.

Tepes nodded, patted Mathias on the shoulder, and went back to his throne.

“They don’t know who they’re fucking with.” Mathias mumbled.

After a few moments, Mathias calmed down. Viraj kept staring at him.

“What?”

Viraj swallowed hard. “You know that, well, most of us know you weren’t living with a family when you came here.”

Mathias nodded and took a sip of blood.

“Well, why were you homeless?” Viraj asked.

Mathias smiled after a bit. “To put it in the words of the immortal John Hughes, ‘My home life was unsatisfying’.”

“Who’s that?” Viraj asked.

Mathias sighed. It was sometimes hard to remember that not everyone liked movies as much as he did. “He was a director of a lot of movies in the 1980’s. I love his work.”

Viraj looked uncomfortable. “Was it your parents, or what?”

“My aunt actually. Let’s just say she was something else.”

“Like what?”

Mathias sighed, exasperated. Viraj was a nice kid, but kind of irritating. “My life wasn’t any different from anyone else on the street. Most runaways have been abused. I was. My parents died in a car wreck, and I was sent to live with my aunt. Instead of an evil stepmother, I had an evil aunt.” Mathias wiped his mouth with his napkin. “I don’t really want to talk about it anymore.”

Viraj nodded. “Okay.”

The rest of the meal was uneventful. Tepes led him away once he was finished with his dinner. Mathias figured that he didn’t want to risk anymore trouble. Still, it was nice to talk to someone his own age for a change.

* * * * *

That night, it was hard for Mathias to fall asleep. He kept tossing and turning and thinking about what would have happened if he hadn’t held his temper in check. Eventually, he would have to get over his “street mindset”, but now wasn’t the time for it. He needed to be aware of everything he could. Finally, he drifted off, but he probably would have been better off if he’d stayed awake....

Dampness surrounded his body like a soggy tissue. It was cold, and try as he might, he couldn’t get his teeth to stop chattering. He could hear the drops of rain fall from the crack in the ceiling and plop into the waiting puddle on the stone floor.

He took a deep breath. Pain washed over his body and made him shudder; she’d broken his ribs again. Slowly, he opened his eyes. Fear gripped him as he saw light streaming from various torches placed about the dungeon. She was there.