Dawn of Darkness (Daeva, #1) (30 page)

"So what
exactly did your subconscious show you?" Nate asked.

"Ash."
There was a collective look of worry from the group.

"And?"
Nate said.

"I'm sure
he'd rather not talk about it," Daniel said. "After all, you still
haven't told us what you saw down there."

"True.
I'm sorry."

"It's
okay," I grumbled, wiping my eyes. I sat up, noticing that we were
no longer in the small tunnel where I passed out. We must have been
in the main tunnel now, which was much larger. And in the distance
there was a small point of light that grew slowly.

"We're
here," Violet said. "The city of Aldar."

The
vehicle sped out of the tunnel, the night sky above me dotted with
stars. All around me there were stone giants, buildings taller than
any I had seen before, reaching up into the inky sky. We drove
through the streets on a wide road, and every now and then a
similar vehicle would whoosh past in the opposite
direction.

"I'll
take you to Marcus' residence," said Jimmy. "But it's almost
morning. You may have to wait until the evening to see
him."

"It's
urgent," Violet replied coldly.

I must
have fallen asleep for part of the journey. I remember being
surrounded by empty, half-destroyed buildings, and then we were in
a street of houses and shops, the paths filled with people –
vampires I assumed, given the time of day. A few heads turned to
gaze at us as we sped past them, but most paid no attention. We
crossed a bridge, over a wide river, and I spotted alien structures
in the distance. A large, white dome sat on the horizon. A giant
wheel was lit up against the night sky. Everything was so different
to Rachat. It was so busy, and alive, even at this time of night. I
would never have thought such a large city existed anywhere after
the plague.

Before I
knew it, we were pulling up outside a large house, separated from
the rest of the city by a long driveway and surrounding fence. The
taxi stopped outside the towering metal gates, and Jimmy leaned
over to press a small button on the wall. It buzzed and a voice
could be heard coming out of the speaker. "Who is it?"

"Violet's
group is back," Jimmy replied. The speaker buzzed again, and the
gates swung open. We were dropped off outside the carved, wooden
doors, where a middle-aged woman greeted us. She wore a shimmering
red blouse, and a black skirt that ended below her knees. Her black
hair was tied tight to her head, revealing a set of matching red
earrings.

"Welcome back, everyone," she
said. Her eyes scanned the group and stopped on me. "I don't
believe we have met. My name is Leigh." She extended a hand to me.
Was she
the
Leigh that Jimmy mentioned? The one who cast the compulsion
spell? I hesitated a moment before taking her hand. She didn't seem
much like a powerful witch to me.

"Mikhail," I replied.

"Your
accent is not from around here, is it?" Leigh eyed
Violet.

"We'll
discuss it later," Violet said. "We have information concerning the
barriers of Rachat, which I think Marcus will find most
interesting."

"I'm
sorry, but Marcus won't be seeing anyone else today."

"Do you
have any idea how important this information could be?" Violet
snapped. Sebastian placed a hand on her shoulder.

"The sun
will rise soon, and Marcus must sleep. You know this. Even if I
were to disturb him, he would not be of much help. The best you can
do is come back this evening after dark, and I will make sure
Marcus is free to see you."

Violet
gritted her teeth.

"Come on,
Dear," Sebastian said, taking hold of her hand. "This war has been
fought for decades. Another day will not make a
difference."

"Thank
you for your understanding. Now, if you'll excuse me I have some
things to take care of. I will let Marcus know to expect you when
he wakes, and I will need to have a talk with your new
friend."

"We'll be
back before dark," Violet said, glaring at Leigh, who gave a quick
bow and retreated back inside the house.

"Why does
she need to talk to me?" I asked.

"Security
reasons," Daniel said. "She wants to make sure you're not a danger
to the city, and hopefully grant you immunity to the spell on the
tunnel."

"Well,
looks like we got some time to relax." Nate smiled. "Time for that
bath."

"Sebastian and I will be at our place if you need us," Violet
said. "Make sure you get some rest before this evening."

"Sure,"
Daniel said. "What about Mik?"

"He can
stay with me," Nate said. "I don't mind."

"Okay,
then we'll see you tonight." Sebastian waved, putting his other arm
over Violet's shoulder as they walked back down the
driveway.

*****

Nate and
Daniel led me to their apartment block, which was about twenty
minutes from Marcus' residence. They lived in adjacent rooms on the
second floor.

"I'm
gonna hit the pub after I've cleaned up. You guys wanna join me?"
Daniel asked. We declined and went inside, with Nate picking up the
pile of mail that had accumulated in his absence. His room was
similar to the dormitories in Rachat. He had a double bed, with a
table and chair near the window, and a wardrobe in one corner. A
door to one side lead to his own toilet and shower.

Nate set
his backpack down against the wall and kicked his boots off. He sat
on the edge of his bed and flung himself back, stretching his arms
out wide and letting out a long sigh.

"Man, it
feels good to be back," he said. "No more sleeping on rocks for a
while."

I sat
quietly on the chair and untied my laces, setting my boots against
the wall. My feet ached and throbbed. I winced as I removed my
socks, noting how raw the soles of my feet looked. If I were a
regular human, I'm sure they would have been covered in
blisters.

"Does it
hurt?" Nate asked. I nodded. "I've got some stuff that'll help with
that." He rummaged through a small plastic box in the bottom of his
wardrobe and pulled out a jar of ointment. "Sit down here," he
said, patting the end of his bed.

I hobbled
over to the bed, my feet brushing against the rough carpet, and sat
down where I was instructed. Nate pulled the chair up in front of
me. He sat down and lifted my foot onto his lap. He poured some of
the ointment onto his hands and began rubbing it in. At first it
was cold and stung a little, but soon I was in heaven, his fingers
kneading the sore skin. Nate placed my foot back down on the floor,
and lifted the other onto his knee. He began working his magic
again, and I closed my eyes, letting out a soft moan. My whole body
relaxed and I leaned back, resting on my elbows. I hadn't even
noticed when Nate stopped and stood up, until I felt his breath on
my face. My eyes flew open as his lips pressed against mine. I
froze, trying to process what was happening. Nate backed away,
almost tripping over the chair.

"I'm
sorry," he said hurriedly. "I don't know what came over me." Nate
went to the wardrobe, and pulled out a towel and change of clothes.
"I'm gonna use the bath down the hall. You can use the shower, and
grab whatever clothes you want from the wardrobe. I'm sorry." He
left in a hurry, shutting the door behind him.

I flung
myself back on the bed, clutching the sides of my head, and let out
a frustrated groan. What the fuck was Nate thinking? I thought back
to all the times he had gotten close to me, comforting me after I
saw Ash again, snuggling closer to me as we slept, holding my hand
in the tunnel, and stroking his hand through my hair. He couldn't
have feelings for me, could he?

"Fuck." I
jumped up off the bed and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the
door shut on the way. I switched on the shower, and turned the heat
up. The hot water made my skin glow an angry red, which suited my
mood just perfectly.

After a
while of standing under the shower, I began to feel better. I had
been dying for a hot shower ever since I woke up outside of
Boursac. I was starting to feel a little dizzy from the heat, so I
turned off the water. When I was dry, I went out into the main
room. Thankfully, Nate wasn't back yet. I picked out some dark
jeans, a t-shirt and hoody from the wardrobe and dressed. I pulled
on my boots, and with my hair still damp, I left the room and
knocked on Daniel's door.

"Come
in," he shouted. I opened the door. His room was identical to
Nate's. Daniel was pulling on a red sports jacket over a black tank
top. "Hey," he said. "What's up?"

"I
changed my mind about going out for drinks."

"Awesome." Daniel grinned. "Now I won't look like a
Billy-No-Mates drinking on my own. What about Nate?"

"He said
he was too tired," I said, avoiding his gaze.

"Well,
let's get going," he said, stuffing a few items into his pockets
and grabbing his keys from the table.

*****

We walked
down dingy alleys and busy roads, until we arrived at a white
building with dark wooden beams, and a sign hanging above the door
that read, 'The New Moon'. Inside, the floors were the same dark
wood, matching the rafters in the roof. It was mostly deserted,
with only a few patrons still left. After all, it hadn't been long
since the sun had risen. All of the pubs in Rachat would have been
shut long before now, but they didn't have to deal with nocturnal
patrons.

Daniel
pulled up a stool at the bar and motioned for me to sit next to
him. The woman behind the bar smiled at Daniel, and waltzed over to
him. Her curly blonde hair bounced as she walked. Her eyes were
dark green, and she wore a little too much make-up.

"Hey,
Danny. Good to see you back in one piece." She smiled, chewing on a
piece of gum. "You having the usual?"

"Sure."
Daniel turned to me and asked, "What are you having?"

"I,
ummm... I dunno. I'm not much of a drinker."

"Two of
the usual, please."

"Sure
thing, Danny," the barmaid said, fetching two small tumblers and
placing three ice cubes in each. "So who's your friend?"

"This is
Mik. We picked him up during our last assignment. He was exiled
from Rachat."

"Oh, you
poor thing," she said, filling the glasses. "Here, don't tell the
boss but I'll make 'em doubles."

Daniel
smiled. "This is Polly," he said. "Greatest bar person in
Aldar."

"Oh, stop
it you," Polly replied, giggling and swatting Daniel with the hand
towel that was draped over her shoulder. She handed us each our
glass and took a small plastic card from Daniel, which she swiped
into a machine. Daniel pressed some buttons on the machine, before
Polly took it back from him and placed it below the
counter.

"What's
that?" I asked.

"This is
how we pay for stuff," Polly said, still chewing. She leaned on the
bar, resting on her elbows as she handed Daniel his card back.
"Everything's done electronically here. You get paid, your account
gets updated with your credits, then when you wanna buy something
all it takes is a quick swipe, enter your password and it's
done.

No spare
change lying around. No lost coins. It seemed like a good system to
me. I lifted the drink to my lips. It smelled spicy, though not
anywhere near as bad as the rum Hans had given me. It tasted spicy
too, and fruity, but it was strong. My lips twitched as I swallowed
and shook my head. My throat burned. Polly laughed, and Daniel gave
me a quick clap on the shoulder.

"Oi,
Pol," a voice echoed across the room. "How long are you gonna keep
me waiting?"

"Sorry,
Danny. I was just finishing my shift. We'll have to catch up some
other time," Polly said, grabbing her jacket from a hook behind the
bar. "It was nice meeting you, Mik. If you ever need anything,
don't be afraid to head on down here and ask me, you
hear?"

I thanked
her and she waved goodbye, headings towards a large man who stood
in the doorway.

"Keep
your pants on, Jack," she shouted to him. "A couple of minutes
longer ain't gonna hurt you."

Daniel
laughed and shook her head. "Polly's great, isn't she?"

"Yeah," I
said. She was a little loud for my tastes, and the constant chewing
was irritating, but she seemed friendly enough, even knowing I used
to be the enemy until recently. The people of Rachat would never
have accepted an outsider.

"You
hungry?" Daniel asked. "Because I'm starving."

I
couldn't even remember when I last ate. My stomach churned to life,
rumbling and groaning.

"I'll
take that as a yes then. They do a mean chilli burger here. How's
that sound?"

"Sounds
great," I replied, my mouth already salivating.

Daniel
caught the attention of the barman, who had only arrived a few
minutes before, and ordered our food, along with another round of
drinks.