Wicked Sun: Vampires & Vices No. 3, page 2
He sighs heavily, as if I’m such a burden when he was the one who sought me out. “You’re going to have vampires on your tail for a while. I’m taking you to safety, and I’d rather not disclose the location until we get there.”
“Why, though?”
“Because I have more than just you to protect.”
“Pardon me if I have a hard time believing you. You haven’t been totally honest.”
He doesn’t respond, and neither do I because I don’t have a lot of options––and we both know that.
The man got me out of Paris, and I’m not sure I would’ve been able to do that on my own. I do know that we’re somewhere in the Italian countryside because we had to go through customs between the neighboring countries. I don’t have a passport, but the Italian border control officers waved us through without stopping us. My heart had been a riot in my chest, visions of getting stuck in France dancing through my mind, but they must have recognized Tate’s vehicle. The vampires are powerful, but whatever Tate is? He’s powerful too.
Rolling hills and sweeping vineyards pass by us in a stunning blur of greens, oranges, and every color of beige that Ayla could have easily named. Autumn has come to Italy, and it suits the country well, casting the landscape in a dusty gold and adding texture. The countryside is dotted with little old farmhouses and small towns. I can easily imagine what it must have been like to live in a place like this a few hundred years ago.
We stick to the back roads, never getting near any big cities, which takes us longer to get to wherever we’re going. I would normally love this road trip––it’s the kind of thing I used to dream about––but it’s hard to enjoy with all the questions floating around in my brain and Brisa’s venom heating my veins. I’m anxious, and I don’t know what’s going to happen to me. Is Brisa dead? Did I kill her? Where’s Adrian? What about the other vampires, did I kill some of them too?
What if . . . what if . . . what if . . .
I don’t have to wonder about our destination for too much longer because an hour later, just as the sun begins its descent and lights up the sky like a fireball behind the mountains, we turn off the two-lane highway and roll into a quaint village. Tate navigates the cobbled streets with familiarity, approaching the edge of town where a gorgeous limestone castle rests on a cliff’s edge. Yellowing ivy crawls up one side, and a vast lake twinkles gold and blue at the base of the cliff. The tallest mountains I’ve ever seen in person tower like ancient giants beyond the lake. These are the kind of mountains that have seen civilizations rise and fall.
“Waiting wasn’t so bad, was it?” Tate asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Feels like a power play if you ask me,” I reply honestly.
He frowns at that. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Eva, but again, I had to be certain we’d make it here in one piece. What if someone intercepted you? God forbid you’d tell them where I was heading.”
I fold my arms in on myself, hating that he’s right.
“Switzerland is on the other side of these mountains,” he points out.
“Well, I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about northern Italy, though, it is beautiful. Whenever I think of Italy, I think of Rome and Venice and places I’ve seen touristy photos of.” There’s a whole wide world out there that I haven’t gotten to explore, and I’m suddenly filled with the desire to see it all.
“We own this castle. It’s a historical landmark,” Tate continues, voice dripping with pride. “My family has more real estate in Italy than any other country in the world, though we do have holdings all over the globe. Rest assured, Evangeline, you’re safe with us.”
Safe with you as long as I do what you want . . .
“And who is this ‘us’ that you’re referring to?” When he doesn’t answer right away I add, “You know I have to ask. You’d be asking the same things if you were in my shoes.”
His fingers tighten on the steering wheel for a second and then relax. “All of your questions will be answered when you are ready for the answers.”
That’s his response? Is he serious right now? But he smiles at me like he’s the most trustworthy dude on the planet, and my spidey senses kick in. “You’re trying to do your voice manipulation trick,” I scoff. “It won’t work on me anymore.”
Even without my feather talisman, I have no trouble blocking the manipulation. Must be the venom. His jaw tightens. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. “I figured as much.”
“Listen, I’m not sure how much time we have together for you to answer these questions,” I point out. “What if the vamps get to me before you can tell me the things I need to know? You were the one who warned me that I’ll have vampires after me for the rest of my life.”
“Hmm . . . I did say that, didn’t I?”
Not only do I want to know what Tate is, but I wanna know what I am as well because I’m starting to suspect that we might have a few things in common. It’s scary to even consider it, and I can’t know for sure, but Brisa’s words keep ringing in my head about how I’m “both.” She acted as if I would’ve been a valuable piece on her chessboard, knocking courtesans and even princes out of my way.
Looking at my hands, I remember how they’d glowed. Why had they done that? What did it mean? They’re completely fine now, just small hands with long fingers and shiny black nail polish. From the outside, I look like a typical nineteen-year-old girl, but I know that can’t be true. I gaze up at the approaching castle and sigh. The fortress is intimidating, and Tate’s people can’t be trustworthy, but hopefully, I’ll find answers here.
CHAPTER 3
The castle has a tall outer wall with only one arched opening visible. We pass through it, and I note the guards with semi-automatic weapons who wave us on by. These types of weapons used to be illegal in most of the world, but ever since the vampires came out of hiding, gun laws stopped being enforced. I can’t say I blame people for wanting to pack heat, but the sight of guns makes me nervous. Hopefully, they’re here to keep me safe, but I kind of doubt they can stop a determined vampire. Fangers are much stronger than bullets, and even the silver ones only slow them down.
We wind up a thin cobblestone drive lined with olive trees that have lost most of their leaves this late in the season. The fallen leaves crunch under our tires like scraps of paper bags. We approach the castle, and I frown at a large gravel parking lot off to one side. Tourists climb onto buses and several of them stop to gawk at us as we round the corner. I end up gawking right back. This is so weird.
“So do I get an official tour?” I ask, only halfway sarcastically because, even though I’m surprised to see tourists, I actually am curious to explore the castle. I never got to explore Versailles, which is a shame.
“Tomorrow,” he replies, bullish, and a little smile greets my lips.
We continue to the backside of the castle and pull into an automatic garage. It’s a surreal reminder of my arrival to Versailles. A chill zips through my body––I’d rather forget that place ever happened, impossible as that is. Every time I close my eyes, I see the gilded palace and the garish parties and Queen Brisa and her raucous court of nightmares. And then it’s Adrian’s face that’s behind my eyelids, and it’s his calloused hands on my body, and those possessive kisses staining my lips . . . and then I remember.
“Are you locking me up in here like some kind of princess?” I think of those huge guns and wonder if they’re not to keep people out but to keep people in.
Tate doesn’t answer as the garage door closes behind us, which sets me on edge. We climb out of the car, and I shake out my sore limbs, then follow Tate to a thick metal door similar to the one back in the hunter’s gym. The vampires were all about security too, which I’ve learned to appreciate only when I’m on the receiving side of security.
“If vampires can’t enter a building without being invited in,” I question. “Why so much security?”
Tate looks at me sidelong. “Did you learn nothing under my tutelage?”
He’s right. It’s a silly question. Vampires always find ways to get what they want.
“This is private property, but it’s not a proper home. It hasn’t been for so many generations that even if we tried to make it one now, it wouldn’t stop the vampires.” He gives me a level-headed look. “You learned this during your studies. I distinctly remember the lesson. Besides that, vampires get into the homes they really want to get into. There’s always someone they can compel.”
I hold up my hands in surrender, and my mind floods with the faces of the friends I made while training to become a hunter. They must hate me by now. They came all the way to France to save my ass only to find me playing house with the enemy. They wanted me to go with them, they came to save me, and I’d refused to leave Versailles. If they find me now, no doubt they’ll kill me. Would I even blame them? It’s what I would’ve done once upon a time. I never thought I would have allowed Adrian to get to me as he did. I just hope my friends are okay––that Felix and Ayla are doing well and that Seth has found a better team member to boss around. I was never any good at being a team player.
My thoughts move to Kenton, and my heart breaks all over again. Why do the brightest souls have to be the ones here for the shortest time? It’s not fair. He deserved so much better. He had his whole life ahead of him––a family who loved him, a promising talent for lacrosse, and a few years away from finishing an engineering degree at a prestigious university. His laugh was infectious, he was so kind, wicked smart, and made everyone happier. My eyes fill with held-back tears. I’ll mourn him when I have a moment alone, but right now I don’t want to cry in front of anyone.
And I hate that I can’t be vulnerable, that I can’t cry, that I can’t be myself. Then again, I don’t even know who I am anymore.
“We like to keep things authentic for the tourists. It’s all part of our cover. Hiding in plain sight, you see? But rest assured, there are many parts of this castle that are renovated with modern conveniences and stay off-limits to the outside world,” Tate says as we approach a set of stairs. I wonder what he thinks of losing Kenton and if he even cares. He’s lost hunters before and will lose them again. The man purposely puts them in harm’s way. “You’ll be safe here, and that’s what matters.”
His words directly oppose my thoughts, and I snort. “Safe somewhere that is open to tourists? Because I’ve seen enough movies to know that people have ways around guards and locks, and here you are letting them get in the building.”
“Don’t believe everything you see in films.” He chuckles condescendingly, and I fight off the urge to slap him. “Only part of the castle is for tourists and only during the daylight hours.”
“Vampires have loyal humans working for them, humans who could have come here today. You know that.”
“Yes, but I also know how the vampires think. They’ll be looking for you somewhere much more remote. They won’t think to track you to a public landmark. And if they do, we have plenty of guards, security cameras, silver bars on all the windows, weapons . . .” His voice trails off when he sees the worried look on my face. “Come along, we need to keep moving.”
We climb stairs with no railings, and I pray I don’t fall. They’re incredibly narrow, and twist up steeply like the turret staircases in medieval films. I can almost see myself carrying an oil lamp while dressed in a sweeping gown, rushing off to solve a mystery or meet a lover. My sorry calves burn with the effort, but I don’t complain because the higher we climb, the less anxious I feel. It’s like being lifted from a trance or waking up from a too-long nap. My thoughts become clearer, and I feel more like myself. But part of me––a tiny part that surely belongs to Brisa’s venom––wants to go back and dig myself a grave in the nearest graveyard, to make the earth my bed and the soil my blanket. I’m ridiculously tired, and I could sleep one last time and wake up with a new life, one without human restraints.
“Right this way,” Tate cuts into my thoughts, and I snap out of it. He directs me to a tiny room, but I can hardly pay attention, I’m so bothered by the daydream. No, not just a daydream, it was a fantasy of being a vampire. Why would I think that? I hate vampires. I can’t let myself go there ever again, and yet it’s something that’s been happening in the back of my mind on and off all day.
“Everything you need is already here.”
I step inside and blink, trying to take it in and clear my mind. The room is sparse. There’s a fluffy full-sized bed with a white duvet blanket on the far wall with a stack of pillows, a square window opposite with a view of the lake and the alps beyond, and . . . that’s it.
“I don’t need much, but a toilet would be nice,” I say dryly.
He points to the corner where a wooden bucket sits next to a roll of toilet paper. I blink, confused and then horrified. “Sure, I can picture myself in another century here, but I wouldn’t go so far as this.”
“Forgive me, Eva. But this room is the safest we could outfit for you on such short notice. We need to make sure you’re locked up tight and above ground tonight.”
I turn on him and glare. “Excuse me?”
“It’s for your own good,” he says, and then he’s backing through the doorway, the lock clicking into place.
CHAPTER 4
My first instinct is to panic, but I force myself to stay calm. Terror grips my mind. How far am I willing to go to do the right thing?
Maybe Tate has it right––minutes ago I was fantasizing about finding a graveyard and finishing where Brisa left off. If locking me up in here means that I don’t do something crazy, then so be it. But couldn’t they have at least given me a television or a book?
I wander over to the window and brace myself against the glass, watching the last of the sunset fade away. As Tate said, there are thick silver bars crossing over the glass, but I try not to think too much about those––I’m not allergic to them, but they remind me of what I’ve come so close to becoming.
The sunset reflects off the water in a sea of melted honey. I’ve never met a sunset I didn’t like, but this one is proving otherwise because as the sun slides behind the horizon, my body starts to buzz again. I groan and clutch my arms to my chest, trying not to scratch what feels like angry ants burrowing into my skin.
A familiar pain shoots through my head––the beginning of a migraine.
I squint and hurry to the bed to sprawl out on top of the duvet. I don’t want to climb inside the fluff because it’s way too hot up here. It wasn’t so hot when I arrived a few minutes ago, but now it’s like I’ve been trapped in a sauna. Could Tate have turned on a heater? Sweat begins to bead along my forehead.
“This is just the venom,” I whisper, trying to reason this out, to talk myself down from letting the ball of panic in my chest explode and send shrapnel through my body. “Brisa’s venom is trying to get you to do what it wants, which is not what you want.”
Because it’s not what I want . . . right?
The reasonable part of me knows that these horrible pains won’t last forever, but that part seems to be growing smaller by the second. I open my eyes to blinding light. Since the sun has officially set behind the mountains, the light should be dimming, not brightening. It must be another ridiculous side effect of the venom and only strengthens my pounding headache. The agony grows until I throw my head into the closest pillow and scream. I scream for everything I’ve been through, for the lies I’ve believed, the people I’ve lost, and the many mistakes I’ve made.
And then I scream because I don’t want to be here.
This is not where I’m supposed to be. This isn’t right. Every bit of me can’t take being locked away in this tower for another second. I jump off the bed and hurl the pillow against the stone wall. It erupts in a plume of white feathers.
I have to get out of here.
My headache is only getting worse, and if I stay up here, it’s going to cook my brain. This isn’t a migraine. I was wrong. This is much worse. This is death. I force my eyes to stay open in the blinding light as I gaze around the room again, frantically searching for something I could use, but it’s too sparse. I kneel at the bed and lift at the frame, my muscles pumping with adrenaline and something else––something not human. I’ll throw the furniture through the door if I have to. Whatever it takes to break free of this misery, I’m game. I don’t care who I hurt or what I break as long as I can get out of here.
I can picture it now. I’m breaking down the door and careening down the spiral staircase until I can find a way out. Or I’m smashing through the window and diving into the lake below. It would take a long jump to reach it, and there could be rocks down there that would kill me on impact, but I’m willing to take that risk. Death would be better than this torture, and if I don’t die, then I’ll be free and can find a graveyard. This is an old village surrounded by similar ancient cities, so there’s got to be loads of graveyards nearby. As soon as I step foot in one, I’ll dig if I have to, or I’ll find a crypt. Are there crypts that go underground or catacombs in Italy like there are in France? I hope so, that would make it so much easier, but either way, I’m not staying here.
My hands shake, and sweat beads on every inch of my skin. “How is it getting hotter?” I scream as I heave at the heavy bed.
It won’t move. I kneel down to inspect it closer and growl. The frame is bolted to the floor and, even with my superhuman strength, it’s not going anywhere. I dive for the bucket instead and throw it at the glass, but it bounces off with a thud. The glass doesn’t even crack, but the bucket sure does. I jump up and storm toward the windows, grabbing hold of one of the bars and wincing. They’re made from silver, but they hadn’t hurt me earlier. I’m not a vampire yet, so why are they hurting me now? I shouldn’t be allergic. I try again, but it’s the same outcome. The metal is way too hot. It’s like trying to hold onto the edge of a sizzling frying pan. I can’t do it for more than a second or two.
