Darkling (38 page)

“Blake! What?!”

“A few minutes ago all the alarms went off. It’s madness here!”

“Wait, that’s happening right now?!”

“Yes! They’ve just escaped!” Blake was almost screaming, but it was still hard to hear him.

“Tell me everything you know!” I said, locked in place from the shock.

“The alarm is so loud. When I heard it, I went out—but some guard pushed me back, telling me not to leave my room. But still, I went to the hall and hid behind the sofa near the stairs on our floor. That’s how I know what’s happening. I’ve never seen vamps so panicked! They said that we are under attack and that all the Vocati are free!”

“What kind of attack?” I asked, fearing the truth.

“By the other Vocati!”

“Shit! Lock yourself in your room, Blake. Don’t fuck around!”

“I just did. Crap, this alarm will kill me before the Vocati get me!”

“How many are dead?”

“Several. I don’t know precisely. Oh, man, if we get through this, we’re definitely without jobs!”

“Don’t go out there anymore, you hear me? Stay put!” I shouted, running for the door. Shit! Shit! Shit! This was the worst-case scenario ever.

I burst into Doris’s room still holding my phone up.

“The compound is under attack!” I yelled.

“What?”

“Tromsø! The compound! Under Vocati attack! All the Vocati have been freed from the cells, Blake just called me!”

Her face changed color in a second, and with the speed of a bullet she ran through the door. Breathing heavily, I realized I was alone in her room with only the smell of her shampoo in the air.

I returned to my room and nervously paced. The Vocati rescue mission. This was bad, beyond bad. How had it happened? How come Baldur’s army plan had failed this intensely? Or was it possible that this was part of the same plan? It was hard to imagine Tertius playing along with Baldur’s game. It had to be all because of Sango’s awakening. That was what had put things into motion.

The vision! Oh my God! Vocati were regrouping to find the Sixth Elder! They were going for the child!

I started to shiver badly. All sorts of images and thoughts orbited my mind. I dropped down on the bed.

Doris said that the Vocati had unknown access to Sango’s visions, so they probably knew about the latest one, too. How could they know it?! Who was selling the vamps out? Or was it some other way that they were granted access? The image of the previous night’s dream emerged. Red pipes interlaced like a labyrinth, or a family tree. A very complicated family tree.

Oh my god!

That could be it!

The blood of Sango’s offspring was used to raise the four Original Vocati. What if his ability for visions was in their blood too? After all, it was
his
blood in their veins. If the Elders could pass their knowledge to another Elder by bite, why wouldn’t Sango’s blood do the same with his ability? Why wouldn’t it just be passed on to the next generation? Could that be how the Vocati knew about the visions? Why they know about the latest one?

They had come for Tertius. For some reason the other Originals needed him for the task. I remembered Belun saying that those Vocati who attacked us had come from the north of the country. Why hadn’t they rescued Tertius then? Why now? If they had any telepathy among themselves, it could also have worked then. I wondered how much those missions were connected—the rescue of Tertius and the Oslo attack. And him being a prisoner in the first place!

What if Sango hadn’t said everything he’d seen? Then the Vocati would be in the better position of finding the new Elder, they would know the whole vision. They wouldn’t need to wait to hear it!

When Doris came to my room, I was still sitting on the bed and shaking.

“How’re things?” I asked in a low voice.

“Not good. David’s flying to Tromsø as we speak. There were four victims.”

“Who were they?”

“Guards of the cells. Jacob was the one who hit the alarm. They’re still fighting to save him.”

“Jacob? From my team?”

“Yes, and there was something in his hand when they found him. An origami flower.”

Stop.

My mind went completely blank for few seconds, but the rush of fear shook me out of it. Origami. The origami I had given to Tertius after torching that Vocati.

“The Vocati are gone now. The Warriors are searching through the woods, securing the place.”

“They’re gone?” I asked, pulling myself away from the image of a white paper flower that had to be red by now. Doris nodded, sitting next to me.

“But only four were killed?” I said.  She gave a WTF look.

“There were seven Vocati in the cells, plus probably more than that in the rescue team. They could’ve slaughtered the whole compound if they had wanted to.”

“And what are you saying, exactly, Nika?”

“Nothing. It’s just odd.” But not that odd if they were in a hurry. “The Sixth Elder. They’re going for him.”

My words made us both shiver again. I told her about the blood-vision theory, which didn’t go over well—she dropped her face into her hands and cried. I put my hand on her back. There was nothing I could say to make her feel better. Hell, I was surprised that I wasn’t racked with tears. Sango was right. Bad things were coming.

Had he meant this? Or something much worse.

“Are we leaving tomorrow?” I asked, when she had finally calmed down.

“My father told me to come. Maybe you should stay here. I don’t know. You could stay with me too.”

“What does Kyrill say about the whole thing?” I asked.

“I don’t think he’ll say anything. It’s Baldur’s business; he’s now more concerned with Sango’s recovery.”

“What does this escape mean, Doris?”

“Besides Baldur’s rage? Probably better security, and more Warriors.”

“How did Vocati get passed the sensors in the ground and the Priest’s juju?”

“I have no idea,” she said. “Baldur spent a fortune on those fancy gadgets, so everyone thought the compound was unbreakable. No Vocati has ever come even
near
that place. And with them knowing the vision! What if this wasn’t Sango’s first vision in the last seven centuries?”

Doris had hit the right nerve.

“You think he could’ve had visions while asleep, like dreams?” I asked.

“The Vocati could have much more knowledge about the Sixth Elder. Who he or she is, and where. We’re walking around in the dark, while they could have all the necessary pieces of the puzzle!” she added, and what an awful thought that was.

“Maybe they’ve been searching for the Sixth this whole time,” I said, feeling the fear creeping up my spine. “When I asked Tertius what he had been looking for when he let himself be caught, he said it was something that the vampires hopefully hadn’t known about. And he was very cryptic. Maybe it was the new Elder.” Doris just stared at me.

“And that origami they found,” I continued. “I gave it to Tertius. I think it means it’s payback time.”

I could feel a stinging inside my head, stretching all over my scalp. The sharp pain flashed through me, taking my breath away. It was short-lived, however. But Tertius leaving me the flower message, that was probably not going to pass that fast. Was he coming for me after they found the Elder?

The thought of him killing me was so strange, but the longer I contemplated it, the more and more possible it seemed. Would he chase me down? Murder me? Chills went up my spine. What had I done?

I felt each vein in my head, neck, and arms, but the blood that passed through was colder now.

“Nika, you need your pills,” Doris said, and I heard an edge in her voice. She looked worried.

Right, pills. The ones Tertius had told me not to take. Screw him! Who knows why he said that, and the reason probably wasn’t for my benefit. He played me. I trusted him, and he played me. Now he’s off to kill an innocent child. Fucker!

I picked up the prescription bottle with shaky hands, spilling out two pills. No way was I gonna calm down without a little boost. My life was in danger. A child was going to be murdered. And I couldn’t do a damn thing about it!

Since I was staring at the floor, and clearly not willing to talk, Doris touched my hand lightly and left the room. Things had turned from bad to worse. For me, personally.  What should I do? But my mind was empty, as if someone had erased everything that used to be me.

I reached for my phone, wanting to call Blake. He might know something more about this whole thing. But it rang endlessly without him answering. I tried again. Nothing. I called Tibor’s number but it also rang until it stopped by itself. I tried Blake again. What was happening? No answer! Were they okay?! What if something had happened during the last few hours? What if the Vocati had returned to finish them off?

Suddenly, I became aware of my eyelids drooping.

I blinked, and then again, heavier this time. The pills were kicking in.

I laid down, my muscles relaxing. Later. I would solve these problems later. Then my phone buzzed.

“Yeah?” I said in a sleepy voice.

“Nika, it’s Balthazar. Don’t go to Tromsø on any account! Do you hear me?”

“I don’t understand.” His words became hazier.

“Forget about Tromsø! Stay in the palace and wait for my call!”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Nika?!”

But that was the last thing I heard before the phone slipped from my hand and I fell asleep.

It was night, and the view was familiar. Down the hill I could see a soft blanket of fog covering those nameless and dateless gravestones. A husky voice broke the silence.

“Good evening,” the gravedigger said. I turned around, startled by his presence.

I didn’t say anything, and he shook his head, smiling. He wore dirty trousers and a blue working shirt with rolled up sleeves. He was unshaven, and his light-colored eyes were piercing. He looked as if he was expecting me to say something funny.

“Okay, back to work then,” he said, clapping his hand on the shovel handle.

The sound of the blade hitting the earth became louder than it should. I frowned, taking a step back.

“It’ll be done soon,” the gravedigger said, eyeing me again.

“Why should I care?” I willed the words out.

He stood next to the sixth pit and, looking at me, shrugged and continued his work. I eyed him suspiciously before I took more steps back. He continued digging the grave next to other five empty ones, as if he had forgotten that I was there. When he started to whistle, I felt the ground beneath me move. I stepped back, but it only got worse. It was actually shaking now, along with the view of the hill and the gravedigger, as if it was all a TV show with bad reception!

I felt like I was falling and falling, until I heard someone whisper my name.

“Nika.” It was a familiar voice next to my ear.

Feeling his breath on my cheek almost made my blood explode. Belun’s deep green eyes were so close, some of his hair was even touching my face. He looked the same as he did in those photos. I smiled and my hands flew toward him. He didn’t flinch, but returned the smile. Oh, why couldn’t all dreams be like this, and not with some weird gravediggers?

My nose gently touched his, and he smiled again. He was so close. And so mine. My lips hungrily searched his, and upon their touch, I felt a storm rage inside me. His lips parted, greeting mine, soft and wet as if he had passed his tongue over them a second ago. I propped myself up in the bed and pulled him tightly against me.

“Nika, we must go. Now,” he said, sounding strangely serious. It confused me.

“Are you awake?” he asked, suspiciously.

“Awake?” I looked around. I was in my room in David’s palace, my bag was there, Belun was on my bed, and the window was open. I stared at the window. Was it possible? I looked at him.

“I don’t know.”

“Okay. Come on, we gotta go.” His hands pulled me off the bed, leading me to the window. He grabbed my jacket, and when I reached for my cell, he told me to leave it.

The sky was about to crack into dawn. It was the most peaceful part of a day, and there was no one except us. Belun grabbed me from behind, wrapped some rope around me, and jumped out of the window. A scream was stuck in my throat, but landing was softer than I had anticipated.

“Be quick and silent,” he said, and taking my hand, he started to run.

At full speed, we silently ran for two blocks until we came to an old blue car with three people already inside. Belun yanked open the rear car door, and slid into the middle seat, pulling me in next to him. I was stuck between him and the door, and I realized this was definitely not a dream.

“Good to see you again.” Theo turned around in the shotgun seat up front, and smiled back at me. I didn’t react. I needed time to process all of this.

Belun moved, making more space. He put his arm on the back of the seat, behind me, and gazed at me.

“Don’t worry, we’re doing everything we can,” he said in a low voice.

I didn’t know what that meant, but I noticed something weird on one of his hands. The veins were all black.

“What for?” I asked.

“For your safety.”

Then I realized what was missing. “Doris! Where is she?”

“She’s being taken care of.”

Taken care of? His black and white hand drew my attention; it looked as if it had been tattooed. Was that in the photos? I couldn’t remember.

I touched one black line, feeling his wince under my finger. It
was
a vein, but why was it black? I followed the line and could see even more of them a little under his jacket sleeve. It was really weird, but he quickly put the hand into his pocket before I could see more.  The guy next to him bent to look at me, smiling. He wasn’t familiar, and Belun was still staring at me.

“Where is Doris?”

“Aidan is returning her to Tromsø.”

But then Balthazar’s words came to my mind.

“No, no. Balthazar said to avoid Tromsø at any cost!” The thought of Doris in the middle of the battle freaked me out. Was there a battle, or were they all already dead? Blake and Tibor hadn’t answered me when I’d called them.

“Change of plan,” Belun said calmly, but something inside me rebelled. I didn’t know why, but my jaw clenched and my hands started to shake heavily.