Chapter 28
Hands reached into the dark, secret room they'd been hiding in and grabbed Bethina, pulling her away from Katelina and the children. The woman-child hissed and struck out at her captor. She bit and scratched, but they took her anyway.
Katelina's hands scrambled to clutch at Alexander, but they pried him away and then they grabbed her. Her free arm attempted to bat them away while the other held the baby close to her. Despite her struggles, she was dragged from the tiny room and into the cellar, as though she weighed nothing.
When they released her, she jerked away ferociously. Five pale vampires were gathered around, an identically evil smile pasted on each of their faces. One was dressed all in black leather, another in red. They both had long matching coats of black and around their necks hung amulets made of three silver bands twisted together in an intricate knot.
The other three vampires wore a mixture of dark colors. Two of them were struggling to maintain their grasp on Bethina while the third bore a flickering torch that lit the basement and threw harsh shadows against the musty stone walls and floor.
The male dressed all in black stepped forward and examined Katelina. "Well, well, what is this? Another human slave left as a final defense? Some good you'll be!" He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her head back to expose her throat.
Completely disconnected from her conscious thought, Katelina's leg shot out and caught him in the stomach. He cried out in surprise rather than pain and in his momentary shock released her. She grabbed Alexander by the arm and ran as fast as she could past the rows of coffins, but the vampires didn't bother to chase her. She reached the stairs as a sixth vampire descended them. She was dressed in all black with dark bobbed hair and another long coat. Her eyes were crinkled with amusement but they held a cold cruelty that made Katelina's insides shrivel.
"I don't think so." She tried to pry the baby from Katelina's arms.
It wasn't Katelina's child. She wasn't even fond of the tiny demon, but she was running on pure instinct and the subliminally ingrained impulse to protect the young was very strong. She tightened her hold and twisted away from the she-devil.
"It won't do you any good, human." The vampiress tackled Katelina to the cold stone floor before her eyes had registered the movement. As she fell she released Alexander and prayed the boy ran as fast as he could.
The floor slammed into the back of her head and she blinked away the bright stars that blossomed in her eyes, a hulking coffin mere inches from her head.
The vampiress's teeth glittered in the torchlight as she straddled Katelina's prostrate body and snapped her jaws playfully.
"Let me go!" Katelina shouted. She hugged the baby tighter. "Get off of me!"
The woman stood up and jerked the baby from Katelina's grasp then held it out for examination. With a look of disgust she dumped it into the arms of one of the other coat clad vampires and turned her eyes to Alexander. He'd curled himself into a ball against the same coffin that Katelina had been close to landing on. "Take them to the council to be discussed," the vampiress ordered.
"No! Leave them alone!" Katelina cried, but the woman kicked her in the stomach. The blow took the air from her lungs and rendered her silent.
"This one is mine." The woman laughed - cold, cruel and hollow.
"No!" Alexander shouted as he struggled against the man in black leather. "She belongs to Jorick! He's marked her neck! You can't hurt her!"
The woman sneered in disbelief and crouched down next to Katelina. She grabbed a fistful of Katelina's long hair and pulled her head back. Her eyes raked the fresh mark above her collar bone. "Well, well," she said sarcastically. "The boy tells the truth. It seems Jorick's got himself a pet." Katelina's head was dropped painfully to the stone floor. "Take her upstairs and see what is to be done with her."
Katelina was jerked roughly to her feet and dragged up the stairs, followed by two vampires who tried to control Bethina between them.
The prisoners were pulled through the ransacked house. Katelina's eyes caught overturned furniture and bits of smashed glass glittering under the electric lights. She tried not to scream as her captor hauled her through the front door and out onto the lawn. The cold wind slapped into her. It beat her bare legs and feet mercilessly. The scent of early autumn frost hung in the air, overshadowed by the smell of a large bonfire that burned in the center of the front lawn. The firelight cast eerie shadows that stretched out to the pressing blackness; darkness that threatened to swallow them except for the snapping flames.
There were several people grouped around the fire, at least half held against their will. The air echoed with shouts, growls, and laughter mixed into a symphony of horror. Katelina's gaze swept hopelessly over the captives, recognizing some. Fabian, the dark man who so resembled Jesslynn was on the ground, his wrists bound behind his back, his mouth open and snarling. Near him was Jesslynn herself. Her hair had fallen completely and cascaded around her shoulders like liquid night, her face was pale and her eyes large as she saw Katelina and the children being led into the circle of firelight. A vampire held her. His claw-like hands dug into her naked arms.
Torina was sprawled on the ground, not far from Jesslynn. Her hands were also tied behind her back. Her dress was torn and her arms were bleeding. Her eyes were filled with fear and anger, but she watched everything with a keen alertness. Next to her lay the unconscious form of Baltheir, the bearded man Katelina had seen on the night of their arrival. A vampire in black prodded him uselessly with the toe of his boot.
Katelina and the children were led past Oren. He fought against a pair of vampires who held his arms behind his back. His fangs flashed dangerously in the firelight and he made guttural growling sounds. He'd never resembled a fierce lion more than he did at that moment.
"Come to join the fun, Senya?" one of Oren's guards called.
The vampiress with the bobbed hair smiled in acknowledgement. "I wouldn't miss my favorite part of all this," she called to him. "I've brought the last of them." She nodded a command to the guards who held the new arrivals. Wordlessly they threw Katelina and the others to the ground. Bethina's captors stooped and bound her hands before they moved away.
Katelina's face landed in damp, dead grass, and she pulled herself up. The first thing she saw made her heart sink. Directly across from her was Jorick, held like Oren was; both hands trapped behind his back by a pair of guards. His dark eyes were trained on Katelina and his lips were drawn back in a sneer of outrage as he struggled to free himself. He shouted loudly, though the individual words were lost to her, just more noise added to the general clamor.
She pulled into a sitting position and rubbed the vampire's fingerprint from her arms. She looked to her right where Bethina lay on her back. Alexander crawled across the wet grass to the mad vampiress and buried his head in her lap. Tears ran down his pale face. Bethina roared loudly and pulled at her bonds to try and comfort him.
The vampire in black stood to Katelina's left and held the baby out like a contaminated object. The child's shrill screams rent the air and drew Jesslyn's anguished attention.
"Is anyone else hiding inside?" Senya shouted over the noise.
But Jesslynn only cried, "Let them go!"
The vampire in black shook his head "That didn't answer the question. I guess we'll have to take precautions against any surprises." He nodded to another vampire who walked towards the manor and called loudly, "All right!"
Something exploded inside the house. It shook the ground and sent up a shower of bricks and cinders. Katelina cried out in surprise and ducked her head. She used her arms to shield her face from the raining debris; falling stars that glowed orange as they landed in the yard.
The echoes died away and she looked up to see fire licking through the giant hole in the front of the house. What was left of the walls were blackened and badly damaged by the explosion. Pieces of furniture and glass were scattered across the yard; bits of what had been Oren and Jesslynn's life.
A blood curdling scream rent the air, and Katelina quickly looked to see one of the vampires forcing Margaret, the maid, into the roaring fire. Her too big dress hung off her naked shoulders and the flames licked at her legs as the vampire prodded her forward.
Katelina cried out and tried to climb to her feet. But, another vampire in a long coat kicked her from behind. She went sprawling in the grass and Jorick shouted something, a message lost beneath Margaret's screams.
"You'll get yours in a minute!" the vampire said as Katelina pulled herself up onto her arms. "Do you rush to meet death, servant of abominations?"
Senya, who had been strolling from prisoner to prisoner, stopped before Katelina and looked down her nose at her. Her eyes flicked to the vampire who'd kicked her. "She is Jorick's toy, Bren, not one of the others."
"Jorick's?" Bren asked, a note of disbelief in his voice. "How interesting, I had no idea! I thought she was the nanny."
His laughter made Katelina's stomach churn, but she couldn't look away from the flames. Margaret fought as the fire licked her legs and touched the hem of the too long skirt. The vampire shoved her harder and she stumbled forward and landed in the midst of the bonfire on her knees. Her screams grew louder and harsher as she was enveloped by the blaze. Katelina could see her writhing from inside the knot of flame, trying to escape.
The other prisoners howled and screamed in terror. Katelina's hands flew to her ears to drown out the sound and her face dropped into the damp autumn grass. The stench of burning flesh rolled past her and was carried away by the wind.
Margaret's screams died and Katelina dared to look up again. Her eyes caught a pair of men standing off to the side, their faces and bodies cloaked in shadow so that they seemed part of the darkness. Senya stood in front of them, motioning with her hands and pointing back to the circle of prisoners. The men looked past her and then nodded slowly.
Senya's face lit with joy and she turned back and started towards the bonfire. The cloaked men melted away into the night as she gave Bren a single, satisfied nod. He smiled almost gleefully then stepped forward. He held the baby up with one hand and with the other he pointed to where Alexander lay, his head still buried against Bethina.
Bren called loudly, "Who will speak for these abominations? Who will mourn their destruction?"
Jesslynn writhed in her captor's hands. "No!"
A smile curved Bren's thin lips and he commented to Senya, "She must be their mother." Then he turned to Jesslynn, his face stony and pompous. "You know the laws! Whoever created these monsters shall be punished!"
