Darkness Before Dawn (28 page)

But his wound is worse than he let on, and it quickly drains his strength. We struggle laboriously to climb a flight of stairs. When we reach the top, he groans as though the last step was almost too much. With me holding him up, he staggers to a large wooden door. I turn the knob and shove the door open with enough force to cause it to slam against the wall. His bedroom. The only thing I notice is how dark it is. I make out the large four-poster bed and help him stretch out on it.

“Don’t die on me,” I urge. “I think I’m finally glad you’re in my life.”

“It’s not as bad as it looks.”

I turn on the gas lamp next to the bed, giving me a better view of how the wound’s progressed. The blood seeps from the open gash. I rip off a section of the sheet and press it against his side. “You’re in agony. You need blood, Victor.”

And the only blood here is mine.

“I’ll be fine, Dawn. I just need to rest.”

I sit on the edge of the bed. “What can I do?”

“You’ve already done it. Just by staying with me. Tonight you’ve seen vampires for what we are: violent, bloodthirsty creatures of the night. I killed my own father, just as he killed his. Bloody hands run through our family. No matter what I do, they’ll never be clean.”

“You’re not like him.”

“You once assured me I was. What if you’re right?”

“I wasn’t. Not then. I am now. You’re not like him. I saw that tonight.” I shake my head. “No, I knew it long before tonight. What I feel for you … it’s almost frightening.”

“My father made a mistake in bringing you here tonight. He thought your presence would distract me, but it made me realize I would gladly sacrifice my immortality for you.” He touches my cheek and then skims his fingers along my throat. “You will be in my life such a short time, but it will be worth it.”

“Lounging around already, brother?” Faith asks.

I jump back as though I were caught doing something wrong.

Faith glides over to the bed, Richard at her side.

“He’s been hurt,” I say, stunned by how uncaring she acts.

Faith glances at the wound in Victor’s side. “Nothing a little blood won’t cure,” she says, and her eyes move toward me. Her fangs come out just a little as she laughs softly. Then she inhales deeply, and her eyes grow hungry. “A-negative. It goes so well with steak.”

“Faith,” Victor warns.

“You’re right. O-negative is better. It goes with anything.”

“Enough.” Victor’s tone is firm, and I realize he has stepped fully into Valentine’s shoes. He is the new lord and ruler. “Are our uncles settled?”

Richard leans against one of the bedposts. “Coffins nailed shut.”

My eyes widen in disbelief.

“He’s trying to be witty,” Faith explains, rolling her eyes.

“You like my wit,” Richard says.

“Not really.” She spins on her heel and heads for the door. “Come on, Dawn. Let’s see if we can find you something to wear.”

“Why?” I ask.

“Not very observant, are you?”

I follow her gaze to the blood on my sweater. I look back at Victor one more time to make sure he’s okay.

“Go with her,” he urges. “I need to talk with Richard. After you’ve changed, Faith will show you to a bedroom so you can get some sleep. I know it’s been a very trying night for everyone.”

“All right.”

Outside the room, Faith gives me the once-over. I know what she sees. I’m shorter than she is, not as voluptuous. “Probably a skirt with a stretchy waist would be best,” she says.

Not to mention stretchy hips. And a top whose limits wouldn’t be tested as much as they are when she wears it.

She leads me down the hallway to a bedroom that is seduction painted on four walls. Red in every shade imaginable fills the entire place. She crosses over to a double set of doors and flings them open dramatically to reveal a walk-in closet that’s larger than my bedroom.

“Oh my God.” I stare in amazement.

“I know, it’s pathetic. My big closet is in Europe,” she says as she wanders inside, touching silks, satins, cottons. “I admit, clothes are my sin, and I’ve had quite a few years to collect them.”

“How many, exactly?”

She grabs a hanger. “Hmm. Nearly two hundred.” She tosses a silky flowing skirt my way. “That should work.”

Before it hits the floor I snatch it and run my hands over it. The material is incredibly soft, satin against my fingers.

She collects a couple of tops and a few other things. “Come on.”

I follow her into a marble bathroom, where the red motif continues. Even the marble is red.

“Vampire blood is hell to get out. Just throw your clothes in the corner and I’ll burn them.”

She leaves me alone. I’m surprised to discover running water that’s actually warm. Maybe they have a few modern conveniences. I remove my clothes and toss them into the corner. I’m okay with her burning them. I could never wear them again without thinking of tonight. It’s a memory I’m anxious to have fade.

After I quickly wash up, I sort through the items she brought in. I find a pair of red silk panties. Not what I usually wear, but I suspect Faith doesn’t own anything else. I slip them on, not wanting to admit how sexy they make me feel. I kinda hate to cover them with the skirt. But I do. Then I pull a red top over my head. It’s sexy, too, draping off one shoulder, creating a flattering frame for my tattoo.

When I step out of the bathroom, Faith is lounging on the bed. She glances up from the book she’s reading. “I suppose it’ll do,” she says.

I’ll take that as a compliment from her.

I run my fingers self-consciously through my dark hair. I’d left it loose after brushing it.

“At the end of the hallway is a set of double doors,” she says. “They lead into Father’s old bedchamber. I wouldn’t recommend sleeping there, but otherwise, take any room you want.”

I lick my lips. “Uh, I’m sorry for your loss.”

She stares at me blankly for a minute. “Oh. Father, you mean.” She shrugs. “Old Family so seldom die.... I’m not quite sure … what I’m supposed to feel. We aren’t burdened with the emotions that humans are.”

“Not even love?”

Ignoring the question, she thumbs through the book. I see the cover. It’s a romance novel.

“What about Richard?” I suddenly ask.

Faith lets out a groan. “That’s a night I’ll regret for an eternity.”

“I think he cares about you. The night I met him he asked about you,” I hasten to explain.

“You’re so innocent.”

She says it like an insult. I bite back a retort. I don’t need to defend myself, to claim that I’m not innocent at all—not with my history. But I’m not really in the mood to deal with her. I’d rather be with Victor. “Thanks for everything.”

“Don’t mention it.”

When I step into the hallway, Richard is standing there. “How is she?” he asks.

“Cold, unemotional.”

His eyes are fastened on the door. “She’s probably confused.”

He takes a step toward her bedroom.

“I don’t think—”

He stops, looks back at me. I can’t explain why I don’t want to see him hurt. Perhaps because he’s Victor’s friend, and I’ve learned to trust Victor’s assessments. “I think she wants to be alone.”

He gives me a small smile that says he knows I’m trying to protect him and he appreciates it. “I’ll be fine.”

He disappears into her room, no longer my problem.

I walk down the hallway to Victor’s room. The door is open, an invitation. I peer inside. He’s in bed, beneath the covers. His suit is gone. He’s wearing a simple cotton T-shirt.

Slowly he opens his eyes. “Dawn.”

I move farther into the room. “How are you feeling?”

“Exhausted. Healing takes so much out of us.” His brow furrows. “Faith was supposed to take you to a bedroom.”

“I’m staying in here.”

“No.”

“Yes. We can argue if you want, but you’re weak and I’ll win.”

He flashes a quick smile. It’s probably the sweetest surrender I’ve ever seen.

I turn the gas lamp down until it’s just a hum, the glow disappearing from around Victor, leaving half his body in shadow. I crawl onto the bed and nestle up against his good side. He brings his arm around me.

“I can’t even believe I’m going to say this,” he says, “but you’re probably the best medicine for me.”

I know that so much more has to be done to ensure Victor’s ascension is complete, and I’m aware that he may have a very dangerous brother out there to deal with, but at this moment, as incredible as it seems, I’m actually happy. “This is where I want to be.”

He pulls me in even closer. “What about Michael?”

“I have to let him go. It’ll be hard—I’ve known him forever—but it’s not fair to him. Even if things with you and me … don’t work out.” Humans and vampires. When has it ever worked? “Michael deserves someone who can give him her whole heart. The Teen Initiative party is Saturday night. I’ll say good-bye to him then.”

“In four hundred years, I’ve never felt for anyone what I feel for you. No matter what happens, remember that.”

And I know that he understands as well as I do that things between us will never be simple. We may never have a happy ending.

Chapter 28

S
hortly before dawn Victor’s stirring wakes me up. He touches my cheek and I wish we could stay here all day.

“How are you feeling?” I ask.

“The wound is almost healed,” he says. “Most of my strength is back. While I hate to kick you out of my bed, I need a few moments alone to prepare for the funeral.”

Reluctantly, I leave the room, close the door, and wait in the hallway. When he joins me, he’s wearing a silk suit. In black.

I wonder if I should change into something more somber. As though reading my mind, he says, “You look great.”

As we walk through the manor, he holds my hand, but when we step outside into the predawn darkness, he releases it. I understand that he has to be strong in front of the others. They, particularly his uncles, can’t see that he needs anyone. Especially a human.

A short distance away from the house, on a raised platform, is a plain pine coffin, no lid in sight. As Victor and I near it, I see that Valentine rests inside. Faith is fiddling with his cravat, straightening it.

With a guilty yet sorrowful look, she meets my gaze. “Father always took such pride in his appearance.”

“Which is the reason he drank so much blood,” Ransom said.

“To retain the appearance of youth,” Seymour added.

Their voices are flat, unemotional. No sorrow, no grief. I have the impression that they feel nothing at all for their brother. At least Victor isn’t as cold and wooden as they are. I saw the regret in his eyes. He did what he had to do, but he didn’t enjoy it.

Faith moves away from the coffin to stand near Richard. He’s armed with a stake in each hand, and one more is threaded through his belt.

“What did you decide?” Victor asks his uncles. “Are you with me … or will you be joining my father?”

“My allegiance is to you, nephew,” Seymour says, and gracelessly drops to one knee.

Ransom glances around. I wonder if he’s thinking about trying to make a run for it. Then he, too, kneels. “As is mine.”

I wish I could trust them. But now that Victor is head of the most powerful vampire family, they have to resent it somewhat.

“I accept your fealty,” Victor says, but he watches his uncles closely, too, as though he wants to sneak into their minds and read their thoughts as well. “You’ll begin your journeys back home tonight.”

The brothers stand.

All gazes veer to the coffin, to Valentine, and I’m wondering if they expect him to rise from the dead. For a moment, silence surrounds us. Respectful. That’s when I notice the servants, Lessers, standing a short distance away, including the two who picked me up last night. Will they easily accept Victor’s ascension?

“It’s time,” Victor says quietly.

Everyone turns toward the house, and I realize the first fingers of the sun are stretching up beyond the horizon.

Victor places his hand on my shoulder. “I have one more thing to ask of you, Dawn, something only you can do.”

“Anything.” Though it’s hard to imagine what that could be.

“When the sun rises, my father will become ash. It’s important that you watch it happen. Let there be no question in anyone’s mind that the Bloody Valentine’s reign has ended.”

As much as I hated Lord Valentine, seeing him burn is … unsettling. But I’ve come this far. “I’ll stay here while you go in.”

“Thank you, Dawn. It’s no different from cremation. There won’t be any pain; there won’t be any screaming. He’s dead; this is just the final step. His soul is gone, and soon his body will follow.”

The coffin waits, holding the massive former lord. If his eyes were open, he’d be able to watch the sun rise.

“Join us in the study when it’s done.” Gently, he touches my cheek.

As he walks back to the manor, the sun begins chasing away the shadows. I want to yell at Victor to quicken his pace, but he continues on with an unhurried stride, as though anything faster would be undignified, or maybe he thinks he now commands the sun.

When he’s safely inside, I release the breath I’ve been holding and spin back around—to perform my duty as the final witness. I’m standing far enough back that I can’t actually see Valentine, only the pine box that is now his resting place. The sun is rising higher, higher, lighting the sky, warming the earth. I feel it touching my face, so comforting.

Suddenly there’s a
whoosh
and flames shoot up from inside the coffin. I hadn’t expected them to be so beautiful. Orange, blue, red, yellow. I can feel their heat. I can hear the crackling as the pine box catches fire. It burns swiftly, along with the wooden platform upon which it was resting.

Until nothing is left except ash.

A cool breeze gently lifts it and carries it away. I wonder if it’s the same breeze that carried the remains of my parents from me when their coach stopped burning.

As I turn to leave, the sun glints off something in the dirt. I walk over and kneel down. Resting beside his unburned fangs is the massive ring that once wrapped around Valentine’s finger. The family crest is imprinted deep into its gold. Cradling it in my palm, I can feel the history.