Chronicles of Darkness: Shadows and Dust (23 page)

Forever yours,

Chalice

         Nodding in approval,
Azrael lowered his immortal body in his armchair. The famous devilish smile
formed on his face, as he stroked his dark beard, lost in thought. "The
Leosol family. What an advantageous inclination of fate. I cannot wait to be
face to face with the mighty hunters."

         He paused briefly, only
to burst into loud laughter. "What am I talking about?
Mighty hunters
?
No, a weak widow and her breed of snotty brats. It should be easy to get them
out of my way. But who knows? Maybe they've got more spine than I think?"

         Azrael rose and strode to
the closed shutters. He peered through one of the slits, gazing into the
darkness that lay ahead. "An excellent night for a little game. The hearts
of Valérie and Véronique on a silver platter for me and as bait for the
hunters. Helena, Kyrian and Skylar. The Sunlions. Do you have enough courage to
confront me?" He felt excitement rise at the thought of the impending
encounter. "But not tonight. My followers are just as excited as I am to
meet you."

         Azrael closed his eyes,
while one of his hands wandered to his throat and clenched around the snake
pendant. Suddenly, all candles went out in the room. His voice whispered ominously
in the darkness, "Leosols are you powerful enough to match yourselves
against the mind of an ancient vampire, who has the combined strength, power
and force of a whole clan inside himself? There is only one question left to
ask." His eyes flew open, glowing in a deep, dark red. "Who will be
hunter's prey tonight?"

         A feeling of cheerful
arousal traveled through his body and his hidden eyeteeth appeared. "May
the game begin."

*****

         With quick steps, Helena
walked downstairs, where Michel Dutroit was pacing restlessly. A small smile
flitted across the face of the huntress, while she pulled her coat over the
sword to hide it from the police chief.

         Speechless, he
scrutinized her, for a woman rather unusual, appearance. When he finally
realized just how openly he was staring at her, he hurried to explain, "I
am sorry, Madame. I didn't hear you arrive and I have never seen..." He
searched for the right words, wasn't able to find them and so he just shrugged
his shoulders.

         Helena nodded knowingly.
"I am aware, Monsieur, that my appearance this evening needs some getting
used to. But unusual occurrences need unusual measures."

         Michel took one of her
slender hands and guided it to his lips to place a gentle kiss against delicate
knuckles. "Madame, allow me to tell you, even if it is unusual for a
woman, your clothes are very becoming. Is it a uniform from a foreign
country?"

         The huntress blushed
slightly and smiled shyly, before her brown eyes lifted to meet his.
"Well... yes, Monsieur. You could term it a uniform."

         The police chief slightly
cocked his head, letting his gaze travel from Helena's boots up to her eyes.
"It seems to be quite comfortable, and not as tight around the neck as our
police uniforms are," he stated and pulled at the tight collar of his
jacket.

         The head of the Leosol
family sighed impatiently, but couldn't suppress a smile. "Monsieur, did
you come to me at this late hour to have a conversation about the newest
fashion?"

         He laughed and confessed,
"Oh, I'm sure, Madame Leosol, that an extraordinary woman, like you are
without a doubt, could give me some hints concerning fashion. But no, that is
not the reason I came."

         "I thought as
much," the huntress replied friendly. "So tell me, what brings you
here?"

         Michel cleared his
throat. "Well... actually, I was on the way to my new assignment and I
thought, perhaps you would like to accompany me. Like you said the last time,
we do need all the help we can get."

         Helena crossed her arms
in front of her chest and looked briefly at the floor before she answered,
"I am sorry, but I already have other plans. I want to investigate some
things concerning the
Heart Taker
, as the press is calling him." In
her mind, she patted herself on the shoulder.
'That was true enough, without
revealing too much.'

         Michel was a bit
disappointed about the answer, but he tried to cover it. An idea came to him.
"Maybe we can combine both," he mumbled into his beard.

         Helena's excellent
hearing had caught every word. The huntress wrinkled her forehead.
"Monsieur, I am not sure what you are getting at."

         The police chief hurried
to explain himself. "It is like this; at the moment, a very respected son
of our town, Count Claude D'Ardenne is staying here, together with his nieces
Valérie and Véronique. Unfortunately he has heard about the horrible deeds of
our murderer and that is the reason my men and I were assigned to keep an eye
on the D'Ardenne twins."

         "In other words, you
have been degraded to being a bodyguard?"

         Michel nodded, "Yes,
something like that. Their uncle wants them to live their lives undisturbed and
in peace. They are not supposed to know anything about the surveillance.
Besides, he is trying to find a husband for each and how would that look, if
there are police men present at every rendezvous. We are not allowed to be in
the direct present of the girls. It is more like guarding them from afar. So,
if you find something while investigating that could be valuable for us, Madame
Leosol, then..."

         "I will be sure to
let you know right away," she finished his sentence and nodded. "But
of course, Monsieur Dutroit."

         The police chief smiled
with relief. "You are too kind, Madame."

         "And you are very
charming, Monsieur. Such men are seldom found." Her beautiful face flushed
right after she had blurted this.

         Michel's chest puffed up
and a feeling of happiness coursed through his body. "Why, thank you,
Madame," he said and beamed at her.

         Embarrassed, Helena
rubbed her neck and desperately tried to find something to change the subject.

         Skylar appeared on the
stairs, looking at her with pleading eyes. "Mama? Can I come with you?
Please?"

         Helena inhaled sharply,
secretly thankful for the interruption.

         Michel took that
opportunity to go outside. He nodded friendly at Skylar before he turned to her
mother, "Madame, if you need to go into town... if you want, you could
come with me. My carriage is still waiting outside."

         The huntress was
grateful. "I appreciate the offer, Monsieur. I will be with you shortly."
Then she went up the stairs and put her hands on her daughter's small
shoulders. One last time, Helena glanced downstairs to make sure that the
police chief had really left the house, and that no other servant was present,
before she addressed her daughter. "Just what is wrong with you children,
hmm? Are you ever going to listen to what I say? I thought I had made myself
quite clear."

         Skylar wrapped her arms
around her mother's waist, lowered her chin to Helena's breastbone and looked
into her eyes.

         Faced with this, Helena
was reminded of a little puppy dog that was begging for attention. She fought
to suppress a laugh.

         "Oh Mama. Learning
French is not running away, but the evil vampires will. I want to help
you," the girl confessed in a small voice.

         The huntress hugged her
daughter tightly, sighed and ran a loving hand through Skylar's long hair.
"My precious..." Quickly, she placed her finger on Skylar's lips to
cut off any reply. "Let me finish. Look, during a hunt I cannot afford to
be distracted by anything, because as you know, every little mistake can end in
a disaster. If I were to take you with me, I would always be worried about your
safety. I couldn't think about anything else or concentrate on the hunt. So,
you help me best when I know that you are here, at the castle, with your
brother, where nothing can happen to you. Do you understand that?" she
asked lovingly.

         Skylar nodded and
tightened her embrace. "I love you, Mama."

         "I love you too, my
precious. You and your brother are the most important things in my life and I
don't ever want to lose you," Helena said and brushed a kiss on her
daughters soft cheek. "And now, please be a good girl and don't do
anything stupid while I'm away, alright? As soon as I'm back, I will tell you
everything, yes?"

         Skylar nodded, let go of
her mother and returned to the library, while Helena stepped out into the
night.

         A short while later, the
head of the Leosol family and the police chief sat in the carriage on their way
to Paris. They passed the big town gates in the east of the metropolis.

         Michel told the huntress
about his assignment. "Unfortunately, we don't have specific information
for tonight. There are just too many people in town. It seems as if the whole
world is staying in Paris this autumn."

         "Don't worry,
Monsieur. I will keep an eye on your town." Helena gazed out the open
window, back to the bridge they had just passed, the breeze ruffling her hair.

         In rapt fascination,
Michel Dutroit studied the huntress' delicate features, as he noticed one of
her hands closing around the door handle. Instantly, he snapped out of it and
became the controlled police man again. Deftly, he reached for her arm,
"What are you doing, Madame?"

         Helena just smiled at
him. "Even though I greatly enjoyed your company, I have to leave you now,
Monsieur." Carefully, she pried his hand off her arm.

         Michel struggled. "I
do not like the idea of leaving you here all alone. Too many strange people
prowl the
Quartier Latin
at this hour."

         "Michel, you know
that it is impossible to detain me. Don't be concerned about me. The helpless
girls are who you should worry about."

"Then let me at least stop
the carriage. It is dangero..." He wasn't able to finish his sentence,
because Helena had already opened the small door and jumped out, while the
carriage drove on at full speed.

         Shocked, Michel gazed
back, but the huntress had already disappeared between the
dark houses. "What an extraordinary
woman."

*****

         Kyrian stepped out of the
shadows, long after the carriage with the police chief and his mother had left
the castle's grounds. Grumbling, he slid his hands into his pants' pockets and
disgruntled, he kicked some loose pebbles around with his feet. "Just why
does nobody take me serious? I can take care of myself. Why does nobody notice
that? Why can't Mama see it? I'm sure, if only she would just give me a chance,
I would be very helpful to her during a hunt."

         The young man sighed and
lowered his frame to the stairs in front of the entrance door. Kyrian pulled
his legs up, placed his elbows on his knees and rested his chin on his palms.
"Even Christine thinks of me as a child, how embarrassing. I have to prove
myself and show what I can do. But how? How can I do that? How can I prove to
them that I'm a grown man?" He kept this position, while the wheels in his
head started turning. "Jean, he is a real man," Kyrian said
absent-minded, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. "Should I ask him for
advice?" He dismissed that thought right away. "No, he would probably
just laugh at me. But there has to be something. Something only I can do, to
prove to Christine, and especially to Mama, that I'm a reliable man."

         Time went by, while he
sat brooding on the stone steps. Suddenly, his grumpy face lit up, he leaped
from the stairs and smashed his right fist into his left palm. "That's
it!" Kyrian exclaimed. "The vampire! I will think up a plan and then
catch him all on my own. I can't wait to see the look on Mama's face after I
caught him. Then she will finally realize that I can take on responsibility,
and that I can be her reliable partner during other hunts in the near
future."

*****

         Helena looked after the
carriage and shook her head. "Monsieur, take good care of yourself. You
don't know what this is all about and I am not allowed to tell you. This
betrayal leaves a bitter taste in my mouth."

         She walked to the bridge
they had just passed and looked down to the street, which lay below. With a few
jumps, she landed safely on her feet, not needing to go the long way and use
the stairs to get down. Cold wetness hit her in the face, as she stepped under
the wide arc of the bridge. She listened carefully for any sound and her right
hand slowly wandered to her sword. Her fingers rested against the sword's
handle, while she scanned her surroundings. "I can feel your presence.
Come out and fight, or do you want this to be turned into a hunt?"