Vampirates 5: Empire of Night (4 page)

Peering out, he saw that the bandstand stood empty. He adjusted his line of vision and corrected himself. The bandstand was not in fact empty but carpeted with bodies. The musicians were slumped on it, lifeless. A river of red, illuminated by the moon, flowed urgently into the virgin snow.

The man--the impossibly tall stranger with the impressively deep pockets--walked back across the snow. Rocking between the thick thumb and forefinger of his left hand was the wine bottle. As he strode on, some of the contents of the magnum spilled over the brim and spattered on the ground.

Feeling waves of nausea, the old man frowned. He turned away from the window and sought comfort in the sight of the pile of gold coins. They gleamed in the candlelight, as bright as if they had been minted that very evening. He cupped the coins in his hands and cradled them carefully. This was more money than he had ever seen in his long life, certainly more money than he would ever see again.

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Outside, Sidorio offered the bottle to his wife. Lola reached out her glass, and Sidorio poured a tasting portion of the liquid inside. She had trained him well. Mouthing her thanks, she swirled the liquid around the glass and lifted it to her nose, the better to savor its distinctive aroma.

Glancing up, she caught her husband dismissing the other glass and, instead, lifting the bottle directly to his thick lips. He drank thirstily. She watched him, half appalled, half entranced.

Sidorio, growing conscious of his wife's glance, drew the bottle away from his mouth and smiled, innocently, at her. His lips were smeared with blood. Like a naughty child caught with a mouthful of chocolate, he extended his tongue to lick up the traces.

Lola laughed. "You're such a brute, my darling," she said, her words laced with affection. She reached out her glass once more. "A refill, please, if you've left anything for me! It's a mixed blend, but rather tasty."

"Plenty for us both," he said. "And plenty more where this came from."

Lola sipped her wine thoughtfully. "You know, Sid, you're the roughest of diamonds, but once I have finished with you, you will shine with all the light of Lucifer."

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Sidorio raised his glass. "A toast," he said. "To you and me. Together always. Husband and wife."

Lola raised her own glass. "To us, my darling. Together through eternity." She drank, then gazed at her husband, fresh fire in her eyes. "You asked me before what I wanted. Well, there is one more thing...."

Sidorio nodded. "Go on."

"I want to grow an empire with you. Hand in hand."

"I want that, too," Sidorio said. He paused. "And I want my children to be part of it."

Lola hesitated. "Grace and Connor?"

Sidorio nodded. "I can't pretend they don't exist. Even if Connor
did
try to destroy you."

Lola considered for a moment. "He did cast a certain cloud over our wedding by stabbing and then decapitating me. But"--she shrugged--"I'm sure we can forgive such waywardness in the young. Connor and Grace are
your
flesh and blood. And, by marriage,
my
stepchildren. It is only fitting that they should become part of our empire." She smiled at Sidorio. "You should invite them to visit us, when we return. I'd so enjoy getting to know them."

"Would you really?"

As Lola nodded, Sidorio thought his heart might break from happiness. In a short space of time, he had gone from feeling that he had lost everything to the sense now that he was being overloaded with gifts. Fortune's wheel was certainly spinning fast.

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"Nothing would make me happier," he said, "than you and I building an empire, with Connor and Grace at our side."

"Let's not waste a moment," Lola said, refilling her glass. "Let's cut short our honeymoon and return to the ships this very night."

Sidorio smiled. "Sometimes it's as if you can read my every thought."

Lola gave a little laugh. "There is no time to be wasted in the quest for world domination...." They clinked glasses. "Though there
is
a small supply of vintage still to be drained back at the hotel.... Perhaps we could finish that first?"

"Indeed," said Sidorio. "We should drink a toast to our family!"

Arms entwined, they turned and headed leisurely back toward the hotel, their footsteps muffled by the snow.

The entrance door closed quietly behind them. All that could be heard was the tinkle of gold coins clattering to the floor.

44

4 VOYAGERS OF THE NIGHT

Grace Tempest and her friend, Darcy Flotsam, joined the throng making their way along the corridors of the ship. Dressed in their finery, they were all journeying down to the banquet hall on the bottom deck, where the weekly Feast would take place.

Scanning the faces of the Vampirates around her, Grace saw clear signs of their hunger--a silvery-gray paleness to the visible flesh and a distant quality to their eyes, as if they were not entirely present in this realm. Such signs were always most pronounced just before the Feast, when the Vampirates were at their lowest physical ebb and in most urgent need of blood. In spite of the Vampirates' evident weakness and pressing hunger, it was a remarkably orderly crowd that made the weekly
passeggiata

45

through the ship, their footsteps beating time with the percussive music drifting up from below.

Since the captain's disappearance, Mosh Zu had taken command of
The Nocturne
, and it was a credit to the guru's quiet authority that there had been no further rebellions or incidents of random blood-taking on his watch.

Mosh Zu had made it very clear upon his arrival that he expected members of the crew to exercise self-discipline with regard to their blood hunger and to confine their blood-taking to the weekly sharing that followed the Feast. He gave them a simple choice--either they respected this
modus vivendi
or they departed the ship and took their chances in the world beyond. A few
had
chosen to leave and seek out Sidorio and his renegade disciples. But that had been during the first nights of Mosh Zu's command. Since then, order had been fully restored.

When the captain returned, Grace mused, it would be to a ship of Vampirates brought firmly back into line.

Darcy nudged Grace gently. "You look lost in thought," she said. "What's on your mind?"

"I was just thinking about the captain," Grace said. "I find it impossible not to, on nights like this."

Darcy nodded. "Me too. He's missed so many Feast Nights now." She hesitated before continuing. "I know it's a terrible thing to say, Grace, but I'm starting to doubt he'll ever return."

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"Darcy!" Grace exclaimed in shocked tones, causing some of those walking ahead of her to turn and glance back. Grace lowered her voice before continuing. "He
is
coming back, Darcy. I know it. He wouldn't just go away and leave us. You, of all people, know how weak he was, but Mosh Zu says he is making a steady recovery now. He'll be back soon, I'm sure of it."

"I'd like to believe that," Darcy said. "Truly, I would. It was horrible seeing someone so powerful brought down so low."

Grace nodded. She had experienced the same gut-wrenching emotions, standing over the captain during Mosh Zu's healing catharsis. But she had to hold on to hope. "He'll be back," she repeated firmly, to reassure herself as much as Darcy.

The two friends had reached the entrance to the banquet hall. Darcy took Grace's arm, and they stepped across the threshold together.

Inside the spacious cabin, the music was louder and there was a hubbub of conversation amongst the well-dressed diners. As usual, a long table stretched down the center of the room. It was laid with damask tablecloths, fine china, sparkling crystal, and shiny silver cutlery. But there were place settings only on the far side of the table. Standing behind this side of the table, ready to be served a delicious, nutrient-rich dinner, were the donors.

For every Vampirate who traveled aboard
The Nocturne
--with the exception of Mosh Zu--there was a

47

donor. These men and women, of a variety of ages and backgrounds, had each made a pact with the Vampirates to give a weekly portion of their blood in exchange for bed, board, and one further gift: immortality. For, in return for their blood, the donors remained as ageless as their Vampirate partners.

Looking along the line of faces, Grace remembered attending her first Feast and thinking that she herself was to be a donor. She had even taken her place on the donor side of the table. Initially it had looked as if she was to be Sidorio's donor, or the captain's. But though it was the captain who had led her out of the banquet hall that night, he had had no plans to take her blood. Like Mosh Zu, the captain was a highly evolved Vampirate--a
pranic
vampire--who had no need to feast on blood. Grace had been let off the hook that night; and, though she continued to attend every Feast and to sit on the donor side of the table, it had always only been as a guest.

As the Vampirates arrived in the room, each sought out his or her donor. The pairs bowed before one another, then sat down, ready for the Feast.

"I'll see you later," Darcy said to Grace, gently squeezing her arm. "Enjoy your dinner!"

Grace watched as her friend strode off to meet her donor, James--or "My Jim," as Darcy fondly referred to him. It was easy to misinterpret the relationship between Vampirate and donor as a romantic one but, in the main, this was not the case. The relationships were intimate,

48

certainly, and, for the most part, tender. Every Vampirate and his or her donor were aware of the great gift that the Sharing bestowed upon each party. But there was a marked gulf between gratitude and romance. Indeed, thought Grace, the only instances she knew of in which the Vampirate/donor relationship had become more complicated had ended in tragedy.

Grace's thoughts turned to Sidorio and his original donor, Sally--Grace's own mother--and then to Stukeley and his donor, Shanti. Both Sally and Shanti had since passed on. Sidorio and Stukeley were forging their own dark command. And the captain was missing. So much change but, inside Grace's head, the five of them lingered in the room like ghosts at the feast.

"Grace! About time!" Grace turned her head and saw Oskar, Lorcan's handsome donor, smiling and gesturing toward the seat next to his. Nodding, Grace made her way over to join him.

As Grace slipped into the space beside Oskar, he cast an approving glance over her. "You look
amazing
!" he said. "Great dress! It really brings out the color of your eyes."

"Thank you," she said, her spirits instantly lifting, as they invariably did in Oskar's sunny company.

Oskar was poised to launch into further conversation, but a hush had begun to descend upon the room. Mosh Zu had arrived and was making his way toward the table. At his side was his trusty lieutenant, Lorcan Furey.

Lorcan reached the table first. He bowed to Oskar, then

49

reached out and took Grace's hand, lifting it to his lips and kissing her fingers. His lips were as soft and cool as a mountain stream.

"Hello," she said, suddenly as nervous as if they were meeting for the first time.

"Hello, you," he said in his warm Irish brogue. "I swear, Grace, you look more beautiful every time I see you."

Grace beamed up at him. He was dressed in a tuxedo, a crisp white shirt with pearl studs, and, knotted around his neck, a blue silk cravat--an exact match for his twinkling azure eyes. "You look very handsome yourself," she said.

"Blah, blah, blah," Oskar said, with a grin. "
You're so beautiful, Grace! No, you're so handsome, Lorcan!
And what, pray, am I? Chopped liver?!"

Lorcan smiled winningly. "My, my, Oskar. How well you look tonight."

"
Thank you!
" Oskar said, with some emphasis, as if he had waited years for this sole compliment.

Lorcan shook his head from side to side, in mock dismay, as he sat down. "Of all the donors aboard this ship, how come I ended up with the most high-maintenance one?"

"Just lucky, I guess," said Oskar, always intent upon having the last word.

Grace and Lorcan laughed at Oskar's sharp tongue and shameless vanity, then adopted a more serious demeanor as Mosh Zu arrived at the table and stood in the place opposite Grace. Although theirs was not a comparable Vampirate/donor relationship, they still bowed to one

50

another--a mark of respect from both sides. Mosh Zu gestured to Grace that she should sit down. He remained standing.

The doors to the banquet hall were closed. The musicians in the corner of the room stilled their instruments. The men and women standing along both sides of the table fell silent, their faces bowed over the candles that flickered along its center. Mosh Zu began to speak. His fellow Vampirates joined in with his stirring words:

"I am a proud voyager of the night.

No lesser, nor greater, than a being of the light.

I will not hide in the shadows,

For why should I hide?

Nor shall I stalk the dark places,

With the intention of striking fear into passing strangers.

I will be moderate in my taking of blood,

For blood is a gift above all worldly treasure.

I give thanks for this gift.

I embrace my immortality.

I relish this journey through all eternity.

No lesser, nor greater, than a being of the light.

I am a proud voyager of the night."

As he finished speaking, Mosh Zu paused for a moment, glancing left and right to survey his crew. Then he sat down. The music resumed, and the doors to the banquet

51

hall were thrown open again as the servers brought in vast platters loaded with food.