Thicker Than Blood (Marchwood Vampire Series #2) (21 page)

‘
Did you say to go east?’
Maddy asked, panicking for a moment.

‘
East. You’ll be
fine.’

‘
Thank you,’ Maddy said.
But Zoe was gone, just her white hand pulling the boulder back
across the entrance with a scrape and clang.

Maddy stared into the deep red glow of the
eastern sky. It was barren and cold out here. She hoped the sun
would be up soon to give a little warmth. She’d better get
moving.

Chapter Twenty Five

Cappadocia, 575 AD

*

As they walked towards the cave entrance,
Aelia realised she was clutching her bag so tightly her hands hurt.
She relaxed her grip a little and tried to breathe normally. The
man, Mislav, smelt of vanilla and moonlight – a warm fresh scent
that made her a little woozy. She shook herself lightly. She was
just tired from the journey, that was all.

Five natural columns of pale stone rose up
before them – three at the cave entrance and two on its roof, like
sentries on duty. They were way over head height, cone-shaped, with
pointed tips. Aelia had seen the cave several times in her life. As
children, she and her friends had dared each other to enter, but
none had been brave enough. They had always ended up squealing and
running away. The cave was said to be the home of a wicked god who
had been banished to live underground for all eternity. The pillars
were supposedly the god’s chimneys. Now they were someone else’s
chimneys – but human or demon? That was the question.

‘
Do you have family below?
Friends?’ Mislav asked.

‘
Yes.’

‘
Where are you
from?’

‘
Here. Selmea.’ She wished
he would stop asking questions. She didn’t want to tell him about
her expulsion from the village and she couldn’t think straight. She
just wanted to concentrate on the task ahead.

‘
Is it … safe down
there?’

‘
Safe?’ he replied. ‘Safe
from the invaders you mean? Of course. No one would ever guess a
single person was below the ground, let alone a whole
city.’

That’s not what Aelia meant, but she
couldn’t very well ask him if there were demons underground. ‘Is it
really the size of a city?’

‘
Yes. It’s enormous.
Larger than you can imagine. But you’ll see for yourself in just a
short while.’

They reached the pillars and Aelia reached
out a hand to touch one of them, its chalky surface rough against
her palm. Mislav gestured for her to go in.

‘
Wait,’ she said, a
feeling of panic sweeping through her body. Aelia turned and looked
out at the night sky, at the stars and the moon and the dark shapes
of the trees and rocks. She breathed in deeply through her nose, a
final breath of freedom that might have to last her forever.
‘Alright,’ she said. ‘I’m ready.’

Mislav gave a nod and she entered the cave.
It was wide and low and cool. No one stood guard. He took a torch
from a bracket on the wall and walked to the back of the cave.
Aelia followed him as he slipped through a small crevice, again it
was unguarded. The silence was eerie. If a city’s worth of people
lived here, she certainly couldn’t hear them. The torchlight
flickered across the narrow passageway walls and her breaths echoed
like a thousand whispers. She patted the place below her ribcage
where she had tied the box in place against her skin, relieved to
feel its shape beneath her fingers.

After a few moments, the passageway ended
and Aelia stepped out into a huge cavern. The flaming torch was the
only light, so it was hard to see the scale of the place. Aelia
shivered. It was chilly in here after the warmth of the summer
night outside.

‘
We’re nearly there,’ he
said.

‘
I hope my family is
safe,’ she replied.

Mislav smiled. ‘Come.’

She followed him across the cavern. As they
approached the far side, Aelia saw three sets of stone steps
leading up into the wall. But there were no doorways – just a blank
rock face. Mislav ascended the set of steps on the left and, as he
did so, there was a rumbling sound and the wall seemed to slide
open before him. Was it some kind of magic? She hesitated behind
him. He walked through and waited for her to follow.

Aelia stepped through the entrance. They
were in another narrow passageway. A man stood to her left,
middle-aged and thickset. She caught his eye and he immediately
looked down at his feet. He looked scared, terrified. Aelia looked
up at Mislav, but his back was towards her. He was continuing on
down the passageway. As she looked back at the middle-aged man, she
saw he was turning some kind of rod attached to a huge rock-wheel
which rolled back over the entranceway. She hurried after Mislav
who did not appear to be waiting for her.

It was strange to think she was
finally here after all those months of thinking about it. Mislav
didn’t seem scared or worried about demons. Perhaps the widow had
been wrong after all. Aelia hoped so with all her heart and soul.
It would be wonderful to be reunited with her family and not to
have to worry about plagues and demons. She would be a model
daughter and marry whoever her parents chose for her. She would be
helpful and kind and would suffer the cruel comments of the other
villagers with good grace. She would avoid Lysus and forget any
thoughts of revenge. It would be a clean slate, a new start. She
only wished Widow Maleina had not been so set on her idea that
would now end with her death. The poor widow - to suffer alone
after she had helped so many in their hour of need. What had she
said about the blood plague? That its symptoms were
brutal
. Aelia prayed for a merciful end for her.

‘
Do you have need of
food?’ Mislav’s voice floated back down the passageway.

Aelia hadn’t eaten since she’d stopped at
the stream with her horse. She hadn’t even thought about food, but
now he mentioned it, she realised she was starving and more than a
little light-headed.

‘
I am a bit hungry. If you
could spare some bread …’

‘
I think we can do better
than that,’ he replied.

He had stopped up ahead, waiting for her to
catch up. As she approached, he continued walking, a fast smooth
pace that she struggled to keep up with. The passageway forked left
and then right. They came to a crossroads and he went straight on.
Aelia looked down the passageways to her left and right, but all
she saw was unending darkness. She shuddered. How would she ever
find her way out of here if she needed to? As they continued, she
tried to concentrate on the route, but it all jumbled in her mind.
It was hopeless and she gave up. Everything was so quiet. Where was
everyone? They descended a staircase, narrow and winding. The steps
were narrow and uneven and Aelia had to put her hands against the
walls to steady herself.

When they reached the bottom, the faint
sound of music reached her ears. Her heart quickened in
anticipation – people! They walked along more dark corridors until
Aelia felt dizzy with walking. She worried she might faint. The
music was getting louder and she heard laughter and chatter. Happy
sounds. She couldn’t wait to fall into her parents’ arms. She
thought she might cry.

Suddenly, the passage opened out into a huge
hall. Mislav stopped and put his arm around her shoulders. She
gaped in astonishment. The hall was strung about with lanterns and
draped with rich tapestries. Enormous carpets woven with golden
threads adorned the floor. The tables were covered with platters
piled high with fruits and sweetbreads, meat, fish and vegetables.
The aromas were mouth-watering. In one corner, musicians played and
in another, dancers swayed to the hypnotic tune. And the people …
there were so many people, all dressed in sumptuous clothing and
happier than she’d ever seen anyone in her life. They were all
smiling and laughing. Even though it was late, children also sat
and ate, or else played with abandon, chasing each other around the
tables and nobody minded or chided them for their
boisterousness.

‘
So how do you like our
underground city?’ Mislav’s voice sounded low and clear in her
ears, despite the raucous chatter.

‘
It’s beautiful. So …
unexpected. May I eat something?’ she asked.

He laughed and directed her to a table.
‘Sit, eat.’

She needed no further prompting and
positioned herself at the end of a long trestle table. In front of
her sat a gleaming dish piled high with spiced meat and figs. She
took a piece of the succulent flesh and closed her eyes as she
chewed. Roasted goat. Delicious. Mislav poured her a cup of
sparkling wine. She took it from his outstretched hand and gulped
at the liquid which fizzed on her tongue.

‘
I need to find my
family,’ she said with her mouth full.

‘
Food first, family
later,’ he replied.

She didn’t protest. Mislav took an empty
platter and walked the length of the trestle, heaping it with
delicacies before setting it down in front of Aelia. She smiled up
at him and nodded her thanks. He sat next to her and watched as she
ate, the amused expression back on his face.

No one else paid any attention to her. They
were too busy enjoying themselves, celebrating. It must be the
relief of finally completing the city. After years of hard work,
they were finally able to relax. Aelia took another sip of wine.
She felt tired but relieved and strangely euphoric. The food and
drink had satisfied her body. Now she had to find her family. She
stood and as she did so she realised the room had quietened down
considerably. The music still played, but the chatter and the
laughter had stopped. Mislav got to his feet and she looked up at
him. He smiled at her, but this time his smile was different. It
was sharp and terrifying.

Aelia dropped her cup and stumbled backwards
against her chair. Mislav gripped her shoulder to stop her falling,
bent towards her and pierced the soft flesh of her throat with his
teeth. In the instant before she swooned, Aelia realised the widow
had been right all along. And Aelia hadn’t acted quickly enough. It
was too late. Too late.

Chapter Twenty Six

Present Day

*

The call went straight through to
Alexandre’s voicemail.

‘
Alex, it’s Ben. Can you
call me back? I’ve got something I need to talk to you about. I
hope things are going well. Okay, so call me when you get a chance.
Thanks.’

Ben ended the call. Angry rain streamed down
his windows and he closed the curtains against the unfriendly
night. He had eventually returned home and avoided talking to
Esther by running straight upstairs to his room and shutting the
door. He wished she’d leave the house, but she was staying here
while the others were away. He could hear her clattering around
downstairs and he felt simultaneously annoyed with her, scared of
her and sorry for her.

Ben hoped Alex would hurry up and return his
call. Maybe he should try Freddie. He called the number, but again
it went to voicemail. He didn’t bother to leave a message. Ben
stood and looked out of the window into the darkness outside. He
didn’t know what to do. His mind buzzed with unwelcome thoughts and
he needed to share them with someone. Maybe Jacques would pick up …
he called the number. No luck. Perhaps they were in the middle of a
rescue … saving Maddy.

Isobel’s phone just rang and rang. There
probably wasn’t any point even trying Leonora, but he had nothing
to lose.

‘
Hello?’

‘
Leonora, is that
you?’

‘
Hello, Ben. How are
you?’

‘
Alright. Is Freddie
around?’

‘
No, he and the others
have gone hunting.’

‘
Is there any news? Is
Alex out too?’

‘
Yes, Alex is out and I’m
afraid there’s no news yet. We’re going to wait until tomorrow
night to go to the underground city and then I’m sure it will all
be sorted out.’

‘
I hope so. Freddie said
you’d had a run-in with some of the vampires.’

‘
Did he. Well there was no
need for him to worry you like that. It wasn’t a run-in as such, it
was more … a conversation.’

‘
Well, take
care.’

‘
We will, Ben. You
too.’

Ben had been about to hang up, but at the
last second he changed his mind and decided to tell Leonora what
he’d discovered. She wasn’t his first choice of confidante, but
they all needed to know about the possible threat to their
safety.

‘
Leonora …’

‘
Yes?’

‘
I think there might be a
problem.’ He paused.

She waited for him to continue.

‘
I think there might be a
problem with Morris.’ Then Ben proceeded to tell Leonora what he
knew.

‘
And you are sure of
this?’ she asked.

‘
No. I’m not sure of
anything,’ Ben replied, the phone hot against his ear.

‘
But Morris? It hardly
seems likely …’

‘
I’m only telling you what
I know. It might all be just a big load of coincidences. I hope it
is. I thought I could trust Morris. He’s always been …’

‘
This is most unsettling,’
Leonora said.

‘
Well, I thought I’d
better tell you. Just in case. I mean … he’s there with you. Maybe
you need to … I dunno … keep an eye on him. See if he does anything
suspicious or weird.’

‘
Yes. Yes, you’re right of
course. Thank you for letting me know. And well done. That was very
resourceful.’