Authors: Heather C. Hudak
“Oh, we will,” Eli said through a smirk.
Once behind closed doors, I had no interest in knowing what was going on across the hall. Knowing we would have little time in Vienna, and I didn’t have any Austria-specific guidebooks, I pulled a few generic Europe-on-a-budget books from my bag and sat down at the small table in the corner of the room. Chip pulled up a chair and sat next to me. Together, we sat in near silence, except to highlight the odd item for our tourist hit list. After about an hour, we set the alarm and crawled into bed.
I lay there a long time thinking about Chaseyn--how wonderful it had been to be in his arms. It had been less than 24 hours since he had slipped through my window, and I missed him with the intensity of a thousand fires burning in the core of my heart. I tried desperately to linger on thoughts of him--to hold on to every detail of his beautiful face so that it would permeate my dreams--but instead, I was overcome by night terrors. It had been a while since I had slept so restlessly, so violently. And, no matter how much I tried to pull myself from the blackness of the visions taking place behind my closed lids, there was nothing I could do. It was as if I was paralyzed in a sleepless state--like Snow White after eating the poisoned apple--doomed to live out this terror for all eternity.
Finally, the bleating drone of the alarm clock jolted me awake. Sweat drenched every inch of my body, and I was trembling with fear.
“What happened to you? You look like crap,” Chip said from just inches away. The beds were always so close together in Europe. She had the blankets pulled tight to the base of her neck, and her eyes were heavily lidded.
“I had one of my ‘dreams’,” I said, making air quotes around the word. “It’s got something to do with Chaseyn. I don’t have them when he’s around, but when he’s not…”
“But he hasn’t been around in weeks, and you haven’t had them every night. What’s up with that?”
“I’m not sure,” I said honestly. “I think there’s more to it, but I’m not sure what. Maybe it’s some kind of prophetic omen.”
Chip just shrugged and jumped out of bed.
“Well, no need to dwell on it now. Let’s go,” she said, whipping off my blankets. “You shower, and I’ll make sure those two are awake.”
I did as I was told and met up with the others in the lobby 30 minutes later. Addie and Eli looked well rested, and I was glad to see that Chip was standing between them, forcing them to let go of one another for a few minutes. Ever since the door had been blow off their secret, they had been a little to lovey dovey for my tastes. I made a mental note to make sure that Chaseyn and I kept in mind the feelings of those around us the next time we had a hankering to make out in a public place.
“Where to?” Addie asked Chip, taking the other girl by the arm and leading her out the door. I followed suit, wrapping my arm in Eli’s and walking outdoors. It was a sunny day--one of few we had encountered while overseas.
“I thought we would head to the Ringstrasse and take in some of the sites around there,” Chip responded.
“Excellent choice,” Addie replied, sounding more upbeat than I could remember her being in the past year or two. “There’s tons to see around there.”
And, there was. Surrounding the old town, the Ringstrasse had so many buildings, gardens, taverns, and shops to keep us entertained that time seemed to fly by. We watched street performers, bought handmade crafts at outdoor markets, and ate traditional fare from outdoor vendors. It was as close to perfect as a day of sightseeing could be. My heart ached a bit when it was time to return to our hotel to grab our bags and make our way to the train station.
“This has been one of my favorite stops so far,” I said, nuzzling my face against Addie’s shoulder. “I love that we’re here together, even if the trip isn’t what we thought it would be.”
“Me, too,” she agreed, ruffling my hair. “But, if you liked Vienna, I think you’re going to love Prague. I know how much you love that Gothic stuff…there’s so much of it there. You’re going to have such a great time.”
We made it to the train station in the nick of time. In fact, the train started moving before we had even taken our seats. We were panting and out of breath from running through the station. For the better part of the four-hour journey, we slept. The events of the day had taken their toll, and we needed our rest.
We arrived in Prague just after 10 p.m., and much like the night before, we decided to head to bed early. And then, we thought better of it. There were only a few nights left of our trip, and we wanted to live it up.
This time, Chip took us to one of her favorite hotels, where we stayed in a two-bedroom suite. We dropped off our bags, and went in search of someplace we could have some fun for a few hours.
Chapter 34 - Morning
“Pssst.”
I flapped my hands lazily in the air, hoping to swat the annoying gnat buzzing around my head.
“Pssst.”
The sound grew louder, more irritating, and I pulled the blankets over my head in an effort to drown out the noise. It was no use, the sound grew ever louder until it was accompanied by an impatient rapping on my quilt-covered shoulder. I pulled back the blanket ever-so-slightly, trying to keep out the morning light that I knew would be flooding the room. My eyes squinted against the dim light, and I struggled through sleep-filled eyes to make out the shape standing before me.
“Go back to bed, Chip,” I mumbled when I was finally able to focus on the face. “It’s not bright enough to be time to get up yet.”
We had been out late the night before, and I was in no mood to deal with her peppy personality first thing in the morning.
“It’s plenty bright, and besides, there’s something I want to show you,” she said, pulling down my blankets.
The room was frigid with the cold chill of the air conditioning, and I fought against her for control of the covers. When I finally realized it was no use--she was freakishly strong for such a slight girl--I placed my feet flat on the floor and reluctantly pushed myself up from the bed.
“You haven’t tried to wake up Addie yet, have you? If I have to be up this early, at least I want the pleasure of watching her bite your head off for not letting her get her ‘beauty sleep.’ Should be quite the show.”
“No,” Chip whispered, gently shaking her head. “This is something only you will appreciate, and I don’t want to taint it.”
Over the past few days, it had become more and more clear that I had been right about Chip losing patience with Addie. At first, they had got along very well. They both liked to wear pink and talk about girly things. Admittedly, I had felt a little left out and, if I was being completely honest, a tinge jealous. But, since Addie and Eli had revealed their hidden romance, Chip had become increasingly annoyed by their constant displays of affection. Not to mention, she was now feeling slighted on two counts--by Addie for choosing Eli over her and, I suspected, by Eli for choosing Addie. Chip had thought she was a shoe in for his admirations since, during our adventure in Paris, he had come to terms with the fact that his love for me was now--and always would be--unrequited.
I staggered clumsily from the bed to the bathroom, where I gave my face a quick scrub, brushed my teeth, and pulled my hair up in a loose ponytail. When I came out a few minutes later, Chip stood waiting with a pair of shorts and a t-shirt in her hands. I quickly pulled them on and grabbed my purse.
“This better be good,” I grumbled as I followed Chip to the door. “Wait! Did you leave a note? Eli will freak if he can’t find me when he wakes up.”
“Like he’ll be able to pry himself away from
her
long enough to notice,” Chip replied sarcastically.
“Trust me. He would definitely notice that. He’ll never admit it, but he’s terrified of Chaseyn, and he would rather lie in a pit of pythons than have to tell Chaseyn he lost sight of me for even a minute.”
“Don’t worry. I put a note on his nightstand.”
Satisfied that we had fulfilled our obligation, and feeling a bit more upbeat now that I had been awake a few minutes, I made my way out the door and down the hall behind Chip.
“So, where to?”
“You’ll see.”
Chip skipped slightly ahead of me down the cobblestone path. It was the crack of dawn, and it appeared the locals were still asleep. The streets were empty, save a very few vendors who were carting their handcrafted wares in large wooden carts, hoping to be the first to arrive at the tourist attractions so that they could have the prime selling space for when the tourists finally made their way downtown.
Prague--in all its gothic splendor--was beautiful. Magical. Serene and surreal. A light mist covered the morning sky, which was still ever-so-slightly dark with the setting moon and rising sun making a simultaneous appearance. I had never experienced anything quite like it, and I was sure I never would again.
“It’s amazing, right? We’re not even there yet, but I knew you would like it,” Chip said gleefully. “Prague is one of my favorite places, and it’s at its best first thing in the morning.”
I simply nodded my acknowledgement. There was something so intimate about the experience. It was easy to understand the appeal, and I knew instantly that I could never replicate the sense of belonging I felt now, even in a city that was so completely different from my hometown. I stood in silence, absorbing the atmosphere, taking a mental picture of every detail so that it would be forever etched in my mind.
“Go ahead,” Chip said, waving me away. “I’m just going to see if I can find someplace to buy a pack of gum--I forgot to brush.”
“But, I thought you told me to be sure I was always with someone else,” I said.
“I’ll be two minutes,” Chip assured as she dashed off in the opposite direction. “Meet me on the bridge--it’s just around the corner.”
I shrugged and started walking slowly in the direction she had indicated. After a few minutes, my phone rang, the sound seeming to echo in the silence. The ring tone was unfamiliar so I glanced at the call display, but the number was unknown.
“Hello,” I said, my voice heavy with skepticism, not knowing whose voice I would hear on the other end of the figurative line.
“It’s so good to hear your voice,” Chaseyn cooed.
My heart skipped a beat when I heard his voice.
“Chaseyn,” I shouted into the receive, ecstatic to hear his voice. “I miss you so much. Where are you?”
“I’m on a plane.”
“Um, I don’t think you’re supposed to be using your phone.”
“Don’t worry. I’m using one of those phones on the back of the seats. You know the ones? Mina’s going to kill me when she sees my credit card bill,” he laughed.
With the fortune I suspected they had amassed over the years, I doubted Mina would even notice a few extra dollars on his invoice. She wasn’t one to fret over the fine details. Still, it seemed odd to me that Chaseyn wouldn’t just wait until he landed to call. What was so important that he needed to talk to me right this minute?
“What’s up,” I asked cheerfully.
“Nothing,” he said, a hint of hesitation in his tone. “I just…”
“You just what?” I asked, knowing there was more to his story.
“My spidey senses are tingling,” he said shyly, obviously trying to avoid arousing the suspicion of those around him on the plane.
Every muscle in my body tensed at the sound of those five words. Like most vampires, Chaseyn was gifted with an incredible sixth sense. His powers of intuition were unparalleled, so when he had “a feeling” about something--anything--it was not to be ignored.
“I’m sure everything is fine,” his British accent was thick, something that only happened when he was feeling particularly stressed. “I had flown as far as London, when I got this weird feeling, so I turned around. Just in case, I’m on my way to Prague. I have a stopover in Frankfurt, but I’ll be with you again in a few hours.”
“Do you have any idea what’s wrong?”
“No,” he said, and I could hear the intense worry and seriousness in his tone. “Promise me you won’t go out alone, okay?”
I was silent. Technically, I was alone now, but not for long. Chip would return any second.
“Cordelia, you’re not alone now, are you?”
“Of course not,” I proclaimed proudly--it was mostly true. “I’m with Chip.”
“Who? Did you just say Chip?”
Why did he sound so surprised? Balthazar had told him what had been going on. Chaseyn had sent that telegram…hadn’t he? I realized then that I hadn’t talked to Chaseyn about meeting Balthazar on our first night in London. And, I had been too wrapped up in our reunion to discuss how things had been going since Chip had joined us on our trip to ensure my safety. I was certain he must feel much better about the situation knowing she was “guarding” me.
“Sure. Balty told you he had sent her along as a safety measure given the revolution,” I stated, feeling my shoulders relax with every word. By the time I had finished the sentence, I had convinced myself that it was silly to worry when there were precautions in place.
“You saw Balthazar? And, you’re with Chip? Cordelia, you need to listen to me. Are you there?”
“Yes,” I said shakily, all my earlier fears returning with a vengeance at the troubled tone in Chaseyn’s voice. “Chaseyn, what’s wrong?”
“Where is she now, Cordelia? This is very important.”
“I don’t know,” I said, my voice trembling. “She was with me a minute ago, but she said I should go to the bridge, and she’d meet me there.”
“Don’t go to the bridge, Cordelia,” he said adamantly, but it was too late. I was standing dead center on the Charles Bridge, looking out at the palace and the Old Town.