Traitors' Gate (3 page)

Chapter Five

Nicholas got rid of Appleby’s body.
I didn’t ask where and how. He then helped me back to my house. All the while
he chatted about his life, yet somehow managed to give very little away. I
asked him how old he actually was, and he turned strangely coy.

“Old enough to know not to answer
that,” he said.

Nicholas left me at the front door,
his vampire speed making his departure a blur. So now I knew a few truths about
the vampire myth: they are immortal save for a chop to the neck, they can
easily move around in daylight, they are very fast, they drink blood and they
are the most noble of all the men I’ve ever met.

Mistress Leighton opens the door
and all but sucks me into her arms.

“Oh, my darling,” she gushes, “We
were so worried about you. The maids said that you didn’t go to bed last night.
Where the devil were you?”

“The devil indeed,” I whisper, then
realize that that probably came out very suspicious.

I am quickly taken to my room,
bathed and tended to. I don’t mention what had happened with Appleby, or that I
ran to Ravenglass. The less I say, he less lies I have to lay to cloak the
truth. Also, I’d rather not be accused of seducing a lord, then having my
vampire lover kill him! How quickly everyone turned on poor Christian, and for
a simple mistake. I was sure that, with
facts
like these I would be locked up in the Tower of London within the hour.

My father had gone to a neighbor’s
estate, obviously unconcerned over my absence, so I spend the day in the
kitchen with Mistress. Leighton. We make bread and cakes and I also decide to
experiment a little with a spiced black pudding recipe—after all, the chief
ingredient is blood.

While we bake, Mistress Leighton
fills me in on the whole Ravenglass traitor story. Apparently everyone thought
that Christian was dead, and with no living heirs the estate was going to be
divided between my father and the neighbor he was currently breaking bread with.
How convenient!

“I’d love to see Ravenglass again
though,” I say to her.

“Oh dear, it was burnt. Not much
left to see.”

“But still, Christian was a good
friend to me growing up, regardless of what he did and what he is now.”

“Well, he’s a dead traitor now.”
Mistress Leighton looks confused.

“Yes, of course, that’s what I
meant.”

“Well, I tell you what, why don’t
we ride out there this afternoon together? With your help all the baking has
been done early.”

“I’d much prefer to go alone, if that’s
acceptable” I smile sweetly at her and I see her resolve crumble.

“Course it is, poppet. I’ll ask for
a horse to be saddled.”

Within the hour, I am riding back
toward Ravenglass, dressed in a beautiful gown of red velvet and clutching a
basket of goodies. Oh dear, I’ve heard a frightening folk song that starts
something like this…

He must have seen me approaching,
as Nicholas meets me at the front gate.

“You came back!” he exclaims as he
takes the reins from my hands and walks my horse into the courtyard.

“Of course, I wanted to give you
something. A present for helping me last night.”

“There’s no need. Your presence is
more than enough, milady.”

Helping me off the horse, I feel
his tight yet tender grip on my hips. I blush when he sees me trying to hide my
face.

“You look beautiful,” he breathes.

“Even when I’m blushing?”

“Especially when you’re blushing.”

With an elaborate yank, I pull the
blood sausage from the basket and point it at Nicholas as if it were a sword.

He raises a delicate eyebrow then sniffs
it. His eyes light up.

“Blood sausage,” I say, “I thought
that it might have been a while since you had any solid food.”

He stares at me for a moment and I
fear that I’ll make him cry. I see a sorrowful smile slip onto his lips so I
put a hand to his mouth.

“Take it,” I urge, thrusting the
sausage into his hands.

He takes a bite and chews. He has
an expression that I think I must make every time I eat a cake. It’s a cross
between sin and love.

I watch him devour the whole thing
then lick his fingers.

“Should I make more?” I ask, my
mind already whirring with new spices and different types of blood to make a
variety for him.

“You have no idea how wonderful you
are,” he says.

I laugh and let him lead me into
the house. I don’t tell him that I have five more sausages in my basket. It
will be my leaving gift.

Once inside he sweeps me back into
his arms and swiftly places me in front of the fire. This time he sits beside
me and we talk. He asks me about my father, about France and about Lord
Appleby. I tell him everything and he takes it all in as if he is a locked
chest of my secrets. As sunset throws an eerie orange light through Ravenglass,
I tell him that I have to go.

“Tell me you’ll come back,”
Nicholas says, kissing my hand.

I look at his lips. They’re plump
and soft and make a perfect Cupid’s bow. I see a slight sparkle of teeth behind
them, danger clearly kept behind beauty. I take the hand he isn’t still holding
and caress his cheek. It’s cold, but soft, and I can’t stop thinking what it
would be like to kiss him. To hold my lips to his and see what happens next…but
ladies are not supposed to do that sort of thing.

I turn to the window and see that
the sun has almost set and we are still clutched together. I need to leave. I
turn and pick up my basket and push it into his arms.

“Of course I’ll be back. I have to
pick up my basket,” I whisper and quickly dust a kiss over his cheek.

I ride back to the house in a sort
of daze. I feel like I’m the protagonist in a legendary romantic saga sung by a
handsome bard; every harmonious note he sings bringing me closer to my destiny,
a destiny filled with great things, great love.

“Where have you been? You’re
father’s been looking for you!” Mistress Black yells at me the moment I get
through the doors. Bothered by my absence, but not enough to go out and find me
himself, story of my life.

“I was riding,” I say coldly.

“Well, you had best change and get
into his study,” she seethes at me, pushing me to the staircase. I look down at
my red velvet dress, which is splattered by mud and smells vaguely of blood and
Nicholas.

“If it’s urgent I’d best go now,” I
say offhand, and I push past her. She recoils somewhat at my touch and goes to
yell at me more, but stops herself before her rant really starts. I’m too old
for a governess. Something has changed since I arrived here, and I think she
senses that too.

My father is behind his desk again.
I briefly wonder if he still has legs. He pins me under a suspicious stare and
gets straight to the point: “Lord Appleby is missing.”

“Oh?” I say.

“He hasn’t been seen since he went
after you last night.”

“Well, I’m sure he’s around here
somewhere. He has a fiancée to think about now.” I smile as sweetly as I can,
yet imagine the dry husk of Appleby floating down the canal toward the nearest
town. Being pecked by cheeky birds and sucked on by curious fish.

“Where did you go?” He will not
desist
..
He wants answers that I can’t give him
without endangering Nicholas’s secret.

“I thought I saw a rabbit,” I say,
holding his gaze.

I notice then that father has more
wrinkles than I remember. His complexion is a little more yellowish now and
there are bald patches starting to spread over his head and beard. His arms are
not as muscular as I remember and, if he ever removes himself from behind the
desk, I’m sure I’ll see he is shorter than I recall, too. He’s not as nearly as
imposing as he used to be.

I curtsy and leave the room.

“I’m not finished speaking with
you!” he shouts after me.

“I’m tired, Father. Let me know
when you find Lord Appleby,” I absently say back as I leave.

The father I remember would have
charged after me, and demand I apologize for my abrupt exit. But he doesn’t.
Instead I hear a slow rumble of curses wafting from the study as I walk away.

Chapter Six

“Strange what happened to Lord
Appleby, don’t you think, mistress?”
 
Martha, my maid, is bathing me. It feels a little odd. At the French
Court we bathed ourselves. I’m very much out of the habit of a stranger soaping
me up like a hog for a spit roast.

“Yes, strange indeed. I can finish
this, Martha. Can you light the fire in my room, please? I’m so cold tonight.”

“’Of course, my mistress.”

I soak for only a few moments more
then get up and dry myself off. I pull on a lace white night gown before Martha
can try to dress me too. I sit in front of the dressing table and brush out my
hair. It’s thick and long, so it snags at every stroke, making me wince.

“I can do that,” Martha says,
taking the brush from my hands.

It’s rather nice having my hair
brushed, so I let her. I close my eyes and remember my mother. She died when I
was ten years old, some sort of fever. I’d like to say that my father changed
after her death, became more distant without the love of his life by his side,
but in truth he remained the same power-mad brute he always was, just with the
added burden of a daughter to care for. I had nurses and nannies and then
finally was shipped off to France. I still miss my mother. She would read with
me and paint with me and indulge my baking.
 
She would always smell like sugar and roses.

“Are you well, my mistress?” Martha
asks.

I open my eyes and realize I’m
crying. “Of course,” I whisper.

Martha is about my age, but she
looks at me with an odd wisdom. “They’ll find Lord Appleby, don’t you worry
yourself,” she says. Not that wise, then!

Martha leaves and I move to the bed
to pull back the sheets. A draft attacks my legs and I notice that the thick
curtains are wriggling. I walk across the room to pull them tighter, glad that
I have a fire tonight. But when I turn back to my bed it’s covered in white
rose petals that still flutter and shiver. The smell is amazing.

“Do you like them?”

Startled, I turn round to see
Nicholas. He steps out from behind the curtain, a white fur in his hands.

“They’re beautiful, thank you,” I
say.

He pulls the fur around me. It’s
massive and I can’t think what animal it’s come from.

“I realize that being in a lady’s
room is inappropriate, but it’s a cold night and I wanted to make sure that you
are warm, and safe.”

I’m going to hell. The thoughts
that are prancing through my mind are like gleeful devils leaving a flaming sin
in their wake.

He grins at me. “Oh, no, I forgot
your basket.”

“I guess I’ll have to ride to
Ravenglass tomorrow to retrieve it,” I say, looking coy.

“I count the minutes, milady.” He
bows and is gone.

Warm and safe, I have the most
wonderful dreams.

I wake to the morning sun fighting
its way through my curtains. The fire had died in the night, but my new white
fur was more than I needed. As I roll onto my back, I smell the rose petals and
smile.

I dress before Martha can do the job
for me. I choose a pretty emerald day dress that matches my eyes. I leave my
hair loose and wild.

I charge toward the stables to
mount my horse and run straight into my father.
 
He does still have legs.

“Where do you think you are going
this early,
daughter
”

“I want to get a ride in before the
start of the day.” Not a complete lie.

“Lord Appleby is still missing. And
there’s talk of a…”

“Of a what?”
Please don’t say vampire.

“Something unsavory is walking
these hills, Lucinda. The village has had others go missing. I don’t want you
out there on your own.”

“But…”

“I said no!” he yells as he
clutches my horse by its mane and pulls it away from me making the poor animal
neigh loudly and cower away from us.

“Why, what lord have you sold me to
now?” The moment the words leave my mouth, I regret them.

Father turns an indescribable shade
of maroon. “And what would you know about the absence of your first fiancé?” he
seethes.

I haven’t a lie convincing enough
to distract him with. I choose silence. Another thing to regret.

“Answer me!” The maroon color has
now alters to bright red, and a small evil part of me hopes his heart fails him
here and now, dying on the floor of the stables amongst the hay and shit while
I half-heartedly run for help.

“If he hasn’t turned up yet, I’m
guessing he won’t turn up at all.” Oh, this conversation is going south at a
considerable gallop.

“Get back in the house!”

I take the opportunity to escape
past him, but he jerks his hand out and grips my arm, pulling me too close to him.
“If I find you had anything to do with Lord Appleby’s disappearance, you’ll be
close behind him.” He whispers his threat as he stares violently into my eyes.
Any last drop of love I had for my father evaporates into hatred.

I pull my arm free from his grip
and march to the house. It’s not till I get back into the safety of my room
that my limbs start to shake and I have to sit down.

The day lingers on, all the while
I’m wondering if Nicholas thinks I’ve abandoned him and if that imagined
rejection will lead him to strap up another sword. My plan is to wait until
nightfall and slip away from the house while my father is working in his study.
I just pray that I’m not too late and that Nicholas’s immortal black mood
hasn’t swung a blade.

When the bright full moon is
straddling the sky, I dress in breeches and a shirt, and climb the ivy down and
out of my window. I wrap myself in my white fur and run toward the stables. My
horse isn’t saddled, but I don’t care. I swing up onto her bare back and drive
her out into the night toward Ravenglass.

Even from a distance, I can see a
light glowing in the main hall, a golden invitation.

I hitch my horse and run into the
house, barreling into the Hall, afraid of what I might find.

When I burst through the doors, I
find Nicholas sitting cross-legged before the fire, casually reading a book.

“Are you well?” I ask.

He smiles at me, “Of course. You’re
terribly late though.”

I step forward to throw myself into
his arms, but he meets me halfway. Shamefully I begin to cry. He stokes my hair
and whispers, “My, whatever happened? If I’d have thought you were in trouble
I’d have come over to Delacourt’s house.”

“Father knows I did something to
Appleby.”

“Pish, he knows nothing, less than
that in fact, as you didn’t do anything to Appleby. I did it all.”

“I didn’t help him.”

“He didn’t deserve your help. And
even if you had wanted to, I could have easily overpowered you.” Nicholas grabs
me round the waist and hoists me into the air, then lets me gently fall onto
the couch, pinning me under him. “See, you are completely at my mercy.”

I chuckle and pull my arms about
his neck. I want him to kiss me, to play the next note of this bard’s love
story. Instead he looks serious and lets me up.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“I’ve lived a long time, Lucinda. I
thought I’d never find you, so it has never bothered me before now.”

“What hasn’t bothered you? That I’m
human and you’re a vampire? Does that really make a difference?”

“Not that you’re human. I’m old
enough to turn you, if that is what you want of course.” He looks hopeful.

I hadn’t even really thought about
it, but being a vampire would probably be amazing. Yes I would have a limited
diet, but I’d get to live forever, see everything. I could travel to every
country in the world and learn to cook like a native. I could officially tell
my father to stuff his rules up his own crevice and get away from here, far
away before he makes another deal for my hand with another slimy Lord Appleby.

“Yes,” I say, “I’d love to be a
vampire, as long as I’m with you.”

“That is wonderful to hear,” he
whispers and moves forward to hold my hands, “but the Elders have a rule about
female vampires. I’d have to appeal to them first.”

“The Elders?”

“They rule all vampires. We abide
by their laws to ensure our safety.”

Would I be swapping one overbearing
father for a group of eternal overbearing fathers?

“But, I have served them well. I’m
sure they will agree,” Nicholas continues.

“Will I be strong?” I ask.

“Very strong.” He pulls me closer,
looping my arms around his neck.

“Will I be fast?” I whisper.

“Incredibly fast.” His lips are
almost touching mine.

“Will I be deadly?” I breathe.

“Beyond deadly.” His mouth covers
mine and my mind stops working properly.