Chapter 132
Claudius. The monster who'd kidnapped Katelina, attacked her, tried to kill her.
And this was his house?
Jorick laid a reassuring hand on her arm. "Yes, but you don't need to worry, little one. He's dead. You saw it yourself." He came to a stop in the middle of the room and gave her a reassuring smile. "This was his 'Summer Home', or his retreat. Whenever he got bored he'd come here, sometimes only for days and sometimes for years at a time. He usually brought most of his coven and a host of friends."
Jorick shone the light around the cavernous entrance hall. Katelina did the same. The beams bounced off of polished marble floors and huge crystal chandeliers. Formidable white columns rose to the ridiculously high ceiling, their bases flanked in gold. A matching pair of curving staircases, garishly carpeted in red, sat at the far end of the room, connected by a balcony that ran the width of the hall.
"Holy shit," Katelina muttered. "This is like something on TV."
"Yes, a bit clich¨¦. Claudius enjoyed that. He had a flair for drama but he lacked originality. I'm sure you've noticed that in his other dens."
"The one Kateesha took over was different."
Jorick smirked. "Maybe to you, but it's classic subterranean dungeon den."
Katelina bit her lip to keep from commenting that he sounded like something from a twisted version of the Home and Garden Network: "Stylish Crypts of the Undead." She was sure that could be a catchy show.
"Shall we?" he asked again, and again she nodded. He led her between the staircases and through a set of French doors. Inside, a wall of mirrors and shot their light back at them. Large glimmering chandeliers hung from the high, carved ceiling to catch the refracted light and throw it around, illuminating a giant ballroom; complete with parquet floor and suits of armor at strategic intervals. A bank of French doors graced the farthest wall and led out onto what was probably a veranda. The wall opposite the mirrors was painted in complicated murals, depicting strange scenes that looked familiar, yet skewed.
Katelina caught her breath as she stared at the murals, but Jorick only chuckled. "I told you he wasn't very imaginative." He pointed to the wall. "There's Adam and Eve and Lilith, if you even believe in that story."
She followed his gesture to see a man and woman holding a blood red apple, while a beautiful vampiress stared at them from behind a twisted tree. Katelina' eyes locked with the painted eyes of the vampiress. The mural was almost disturbing in its clarity and the illusion of reality made her shiver. "Wasn't Lilith supposed to be Adam's first wife or something like that?"
"Yes, something like that." Jorick snorted in contempt. "You'll find she's very popular among some of the Old Ones. At one time it was believed she was the Great Mother of the vampire race. I find it all a bit ridiculous myself."
She tore her eyes away from the painting and looked at Jorick. The reflected light splashed across half of his face and left the other half in deep shadow; half dark, half light, much the way she sometimes thought of him. "You don't believe in God, do you?"
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his voice bitter. "I don't deny that God may exist but, if he does, he does not protect my kind."
She cocked her head to one side and studied him. "Why? If God created everything, then he created vampires. Why would you be any more eternally damned than the rest of us?"
A smile stretched across his full lips, though it held no mirth. "And why would God create a vampire?" Before she could answer he added, "Let's not stand here quoting old legends. Come, I want to check the cellars. With Claudius dead, there's a chance that rogues may be nesting here. I have no doubt that Kale will eventually take possession of this den."
"Why would he?"
Jorick seemed to choose his words. "When Kateesha killed Claudius it became her property, and when she died it should have gone to the vampire who claimed her heart. Since it was agreed that no one claimed the coven, that means no one claimed her possessions. As you know, Kale collected up most of the vampires that were left from her coven, and as he used to belong to Claudius, I imagine he will eventually claim all of Claudius' property. Though I doubt he plans to start trouble, I'd rather he gain no new followers."
"Is that why we're here?"
"One reason."
Her eyes narrowed. "And what's the other?"
He winked. "To explore, of course. How many mansions have you been in?"
They made their way to the wall of mirrors and stopped at a calculated spot. Jorick ran his hand along the wall, as if feeling for something. Suddenly, a look of satisfaction filled his eyes and the mirror sprang aside to reveal a dark, narrow stairway. "You'll notice the dramatics again."
He led the way down the stairs and Katelina followed, cringing. Despite Jorick's cheerful cellar, she had a general superstition of dark underground rooms, and the suggestion of "nesting rogues" didn't help.
The gloom in the cellar seemed thicker than the darkness upstairs and their flashlight beams seemed narrower. Jorick stopped at the foot of the stairs and sniffed before he plunged forward. The stone room was large and filled with ten plain smooth coffins. "For his personal army," Jorick explained. "In case of attack they'd be killed first."
She nodded and flashed her light around, uncovering a doorway that sat in the farthest wall. Jorick led her to it, still sniffing, and they found themselves in another room that held ten more coffins. Their corners were reinforced with silver and shining silver crosses decorated the lids.
"For the rest of the coven and the guests." Jorick pointed to doors that flanked either side of the room. "As are those. He could house quite a few, it appears."
He checked the side rooms while Katelina added up how many vampires had been living off and on just a stone's throw from her hometown. The numbers made her shiver.
With the rooms checked, Jorick led her through the last doorway. The third room was different from the others. Instead of simple stone, the walls were hung with heavy crosses. In the center was a large carved dais, resembling an altar. On it sat an intricate coffin made of a dark shiny wood and accented with gold. Surrounding it were five coffins that, though ornate, looked plain when compared to the one in the center. One of the five was on a smaller platform, directly in front of the elaborate affair, while the others sat on the floor, two on each side.
"That would be Claudius'." Jorick indicated the largest, though he needn't have bothered. He pointed to the smaller dais. "That would be Arowenia's, and I imagine those belonged to his three personal servants and Troy, who I'm certain you'll remember." Though the words were flip, both his bitter tone and tight jaw proved they weren't meant to be.
Katelina shuddered at the mention of Troy's name and evil memories flashed through her mind. She wasn't surprised that he spent his time lurking in a dark basement.
"It's more theatrical," Jorick commented to her thoughts. "Claudius couldn't be a 'proper' vampire with a bedroom, now could he?" He gave her a teasing wink, then turned serious. "However, it appears that someone else has decided to set up shop, as I suspected."
"Where?" She turned a panicked circle, expecting a vampire to leap from the shadows.
"They're gone at the moment." Despite his words, he tightened his grip on her hand. He drew in a deep breath through his nose. "There are three. Two males and a female. It's no one I recognize, which may or may not be good."
She started to ask how he knew, but the answer was obvious. Of course he could smell them. Why not?
