Life's Blood (The Cordelia Chronicles) (26 page)

When the story was done, we stood staring in silence at the coffin, when all of a sudden the lid popped off, and Addie and I screamed. I jumped backward into Chaseyn’s arms, pulling him close. Though he was laughing uproariously--as were Eli and James--he wrapped his arms around me, smoothing my hair to calm my nerves.

As soon as I was steady on my feet, I backed away, slapping Chaseyn hard on his chest. I was mad at him for letting this happen--he had to have known. At the same time, I was glad for the experience, but I wouldn’t let on just yet. I’d let him stew a moment longer.

Until then, the “vampire” in the coffin had stood with his back to us. He had been talking animatedly to James in Romanian, and they appeared to be sharing a good laugh at our expense. When he turned to face us, I heard Chaseyn inhale a hiss.

“Emil,” he spat. “What are you doing here?”

“Chaseyn, nephew,” the man said in a thick accent. “Good to see you.”

“Is it?”

“Maybe not so much,” Emil admitted. “I’m surprised James didn’t mention earlier you were here.”

“Come on, Emil, can’t we let bygones be bygones?” James asked, but by his tone it was clear he knew better.

“You knew Emil was here, and you didn’t warn us? Why would you do this, James?” Chaseyn asked, puzzled. “I thought you really wanted to help me, but now I know better. How could you frame me like this?”

“Calm down,” James urged. “It’s fine.”

“Fine. You lock me in a room with Alexei’s brother, and you say everything is fine,” Chaseyn shouted. “We have to get out of here. Now.”

“Wait,” James urged. “I didn’t know he was here. I swear.”

“Right. And I’m supposed to believe this isn’t a set up,” Chaseyn laughed, but not in the way that said he was trying to be funny. “I should have known you were up to no good when you showed up unexpectedly.”

Chaseyn grabbed my arm and moved toward the stairwell faster than humanly possible. He paused briefly to look back, making sure Addie and Eli were in tow. When he was sure  they were, he started moving again at the speed of light. I stumbled a few times in my effort to keep up.

“You need to slow down,” I called after Chaseyn. I’d scraped my knee on the stone stairs, and not only did I tear my tights, there was a stinging sensation burning my skin. “I can’t keep up.”

I knew he would carry me if he could, but the stairwell was too narrow, so all I could do was hope he would let go of my hand so I didn’t have to try to keep pace with him. Addie and Eli were at least ten steps behind, and I had no idea who was trailing behind them--if anyone at all.

Finally, I could see a square of bright light in the distance, and I knew we were nearing the top of the staircase. I’d expected Chaseyn to stop when we made our way out of the darkness, but he kept moving at the same unrelenting pace until we were back on the dance floor in the restaurant. The party was still in full swing, and everyone cheered when we rejoined the revelry.

Chaseyn was on a mission, and there was no way to stop him. I had no idea what he was doing or who he was looking for, and I had no idea why we were running, but I had a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. That’s when Chaseyn zeroed in on his target. He walked up to the massive man in the center of the room and slapped his hand down hard on his shoulder.

“What the hell?” Balthazar asked as he spun around to look Chaseyn in the eye. “What’s your problem?”

The door to the dining room blew wide open then, and Emil walked through.

“What is
he
doing here?” Balthazar nodded at Emil.

“Why don’t you tell me, Balthazar?” Chaseyn asked.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Balthazar replied.

“Don’t play coy with me,” Chaseyn said.

“No, really, I’m as surprised as you are,” Balthazar said, and I believed him. Chaseyn must have too because he stopped arguing then.

“Now, now, boys,” Emil said in a soothing voice. “What seems to be the problem?”

“You,” Chaseyn and Balthazar answered in unison.

Before anyone could get in another word, Emil was standing face-to-face with Balthazar, and it looked like they were ready to throw down. James and Mina stood behind Emil and Balthazar respectively, waiting with baited breath for one of the men to make a move. But neither did.

“What do you want, Emil?” Mina asked, her voice sounded small, and I could tell she was scared.

“I would love to have my brother back,” he replied. “Which one of you killed him, anyway?”

I’d started to piece together the facts. Emil was Alexei’s brother, though they bore little resemblance. Where Alexei was tall, dark and handsome like Chaseyn, Emil was short and balding. Unlike his brother, who’d been turned in the prime of his life, Emil was in his golden years when he became a vampire. His skinned was creased with deep wrinkles, and his eyes were rheumy with age. They were brothers in name only--that, and they both shared Vald’s blood.

Vlad’s blood. Chaseyn’s ancestor…was this the vampire Mina and Balthazar had been looking for these past few months? Had we finally found the key to making Chaseyn well--to making him human?

***

I gasped audibly, and everyone turned to stare. Realization set in--if my suspicions were right, we were so close to the cure, yet I couldn’t see how we could ever convince this man to give us his blood willingly.

Mina gave me a knowing look, but I could tell she had her doubts as well. We needed to subdue Emil somehow so we could siphon some blood from one of his veins. But how?

By now, the music had stopped and the other partygoers were standing slack jawed staring at the small army of vampires facing off in the middle of the room. James was the first to break away, and he started ushering people out of the restaurant, thanking them for their patronage and encouraging them to return another time. He was a former staff member, after all.

When the room was empty, Emil turned his attention away from Balthazar and instead focused his gaze on me. Chaseyn took a protective step in front of me, but Emil was faster, and he’d wedged his way between us before Chaseyn could do anything about it.

“Is this the girl? The one Alexei wanted so badly? Maybe I should fulfill his dream and take her for my bride instead,” Emil hissed, running the tip of his overgrown fingernail along my jaw. My body shivered reflexively. He wasn’t pleased with us for taking his brother’s life, and he was looking for someone to blame. I couldn’t imagine this was going to end well.

Chaseyn lashed out, attempting to grab Emil’s arm, but the old man’s reflexes were faster than I could ever have imagined. He blocked Chaseyn’s reach and pushed hard against his chest, sending Chaseyn soaring through the air. He landed hard atop a table on the other side of the room, busting through the wood to the ground below. I tried running to his aid, but Emil caught my arm and pulled me back. Mina went instead, and I was thankful at least someone was there for Chaseyn.

Through the corner of my eye, I could see Addie cowering near the door, tears flowing from her eyes as she watched the horror unfolding before her. She was biting her nails feverishly while Eli did his best to shield her view of what was happening just a few feet away.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Emil chuckled, his incisors transforming into fangs as he spoke the words. “Not so fast. We have unfinished business.”

“Lia, no, you can’t let him do that to you,” Addie screamed, and Emil turned his attention to her.

“Who’s this?” he asked, dragging me at his side as we made our way to where she was standing. “Maybe I should take someone you care about from you, and we can consider ourselves even.”

“Don’t. Please,” I pleaded, but he had taken Addie’s arm in his grasp and was tracing a line down the vein in her wrist with his tongue.

In a flash, Balthazar appeared before us, and he thrust a chair at Emil’s head. As the boards smashed into dozens of pieces of splintered wood, Emil let go of his grip on both Addie and me. By then, Chaseyn had managed to regain his composure, and he was once again at my side.

Balthazar and Emil tangled together, smashing tables and chairs as they punched and kicked at each other. For a moment, Balthazar seemed to have the upper hand, but whatever edge he had quickly waned. And that’s when I realized this fight was sorely uneven. Emil was hundreds--if not thousands--of years old, and while I knew Balthazar was no spring chicken, I doubted he had half as many candles on his last birthday cake. That’s when I saw James jump into the mix on what appeared to be Balthazar’s side. I only hoped their combined efforts would hold off Emil’s formidable strength.

“Get out of here, Chaseyn,” Balthazar said through gritted teeth. “Take Lia and your friends, and go.”

“Mina?” I asked.

“Never mind me,” she called from across the room. “We’ll be fine. Now, go.”

And so we ran. We ran faster than I ever thought possible.

We drove through the night and into the early hours of the morning. Addie had sobbed most of the way, while Eli cradled her in his arms. Chaseyn held my hand as he drove like mad, but we never spoke so much as a word. I knew we were both too busy contemplating the outcome of the battle we’d left behind.

As the sun rose, we reached the town of Sibiu. We checked in to our hotel in the center of town, exhausted from the roller coaster of emotions we’d experienced less than a few hours earlier. From the highs of our wedding and reception to the terrifying scene we’d left behind at the Castel Dracula Hotel, we had happened upon more excitement in the past twenty-four hours than most people experienced in their entire lives.

“Do you think they’re okay?” I asked quietly as we crawled under the warmth of the overstuffed duvet covering our king-sized marble bed.

“I honestly don’t know,” Chaseyn replied, snuggling up close to spoon me from behind.

I knew we were both thinking the same thing--one of them should have called by now to tell us how they had fared. But Chaseyn’s phone was silent, and there was no message with the concierge.

“Maybe they’re worried their calls will be traced,” I suggested.

But Chaseyn remained silent. He was worried, and so was I. I decided the best thing to do was let our bodies rest. We’d been awake nearly twenty-four hours, and we both needed our rest. After all, I had no idea how long the healing effect of my blood running through Chaseyn’s veins would last, and I didn’t want him to overexert himself before we had all of the ingredients for the cure. With any luck, Mina, Balthazar, and James had come out on top with the blood we needed from Emil to mix with the elixir.

***

When we woke, Chaseyn was much much worse for the wear. It was mid-afternoon, and the sound of my stomach rumbling with hunger was so loud it woke me from a sound sleep. When I turned over, I fully expected the bed empty, so I was truly surprised to find Chaseyn sleeping like a log. In fact, he was snoring. Loudly.

Quietly, slowly, I crept out from beneath the covers and padded to the ensuite bathroom. The oversized room was covered floor to ceiling in white marble. The tiles were cold on my bare skin, and I hopped from one foot to the other to keep my toes from freezing.

There was an enormous Jacuzzi tub in one corner, and I began filling it with water while I brushed my teeth. A moment later, there was a knock on the door.

“Care for some company?” Chaseyn called.

I opened the door to find a man I barely recognized staring back at me. In the few hours we’d been asleep, Chaseyn had aged another twenty years--he looked more like a man enjoying the golden years of his retirement than a recently wed teenager.

“Oh, Chaseyn,” I sighed as he entered the room. I had been startled by his ever-changing appearance, but I didn’t want him to know, so I did my best to sound like I was upset over something else entirely. “I’m so sorry for waking you. You were out cold, so I thought if I closed the door, you wouldn’t hear the water running.”

“Don’t worry, love,” he replied, kissing me on the cheek--even vampires couldn’t escape the curse of morning breath. “I’m always happy to rise with you. The more time we have together, the better.”

Chaseyn was headed toward the sink when I stopped him. I didn’t want him looking in the mirror, seeing his reflection. It was too much to bear, and he had enough to deal with at the moment. He must have noticed the concerned look on my face.

“What?” he asked, and his voice sounded deeper, raspier.

“Get in the tub, and I’ll help you wash,” I said, ignoring his question. I‘d have to do better at masking my emotions. “The water’s nice and warm. It’ll help ease your muscles.”

“I ache all over,” he said. “If this is what pain is, I don’t know how you people cope with it.”

I shoved his toothbrush in his hand and opened the door to the medicine cabinet while he brushed and rinsed so it would cover the majority of the mirror. Then, I fidgeted with the items inside so he couldn’t close it.

As much as I hated to admit it, I wished James was here to tell me how I could help Chaseyn. Deep down inside, I knew what I had to do--Chaseyn needed to drink more of my blood--but I was hoping to hold off a while longer. He could only drink from my vein one more time before running the risk of turning me into a vampire too, and there was no way that was going to happen. Not in this lifetime, anyway.