Chapter 387
Valentine's day.
Jorick stared blankly and Katelina felt a dash of disappointment. She hadn't expected him to do anything, not with helicopters and killer vampires, but she had expected him to apologize for not being able to. That he didn't even know what it was-
Loren rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to get your girlfriend presents for Valentine's. You know, to show her that you love her."
Jorick cocked an eyebrow. "One assumes she already knows."
"Yeah, but it's a thing, you know? You buy chicks jewelry and give them mushy cards and all that crap."
Some sort of understanding flickered across Jorick's face. "Velnya gave me a card with a poem once."
At the mention of Jorick's first wife, Katelina looked to her feet. Wrong or right, Velnya was a name that still made her stomach clench.
Loren was oblivious. "Take that and multiply it by about a hundred and you've got modern Valentines. But, I guess you guys will have to do something later since we'll be in a helicopter all night."
Jorick didn't say anything, and Katelina muttered, "Yeah," and then hurried past in search of her bag. It was slumped against the wall in the communal sleeping room with the others. Torina stood next to the pile, holding her giant duffle bag hopefully.
"Oh, it's only you. I was hoping for Micah."
"So he can carry it for you?" Katelina asked sarcastically. "It wouldn't hurt you to do it yourself."
The redhead looked bored. "Of course it wouldn't, but it makes the men feel needed, doesn't it?"
Needed wasn't the word Katelina would use, so she started for the door. Torina called after her, "You knew what you were getting into with Jorick. Moping won't make it any better."
Her first instinct was to spin around and snap that she wasn't "moping", but that was followed by a horrific question: How did Torina know what she was thinking?
She hurried through the door and nearly ran into Jorick and Loren. The teen gave her a thumbs up and hurried around her.
"Is Torina a mind reader?" Katelina demanded.
Jorick looked at her with surprise. "What? Oh, Torina. I imagine so, to some degree. Oren made her almost immediately, so she didn't inherit an amazing amount of the gift, but over the years something should have developed. Why?"
Wasn't that great? Another mind reader. Only this was a knockout bombshell who could gleefully pluck out Katelina's feelings of inadequacy at will. Awesome. "You might have mentioned it."
"I thought you knew. She is Oren's fledgling. Not that his mind reading is the best. Still-"
He trailed off and she rolled her eyes. "Right. I should have checked the back of her collector card for details. Sorry." The sarcasm was wasted and she groaned. "Never mind."
Jorick dismissed her comments. "If you're ready we might as well get on board."
She followed him back out of the basement and across the snowy lawn. Heavy clouds covered the sky and ruined any chance of seeing the eerie northern lights, but that was all right. She wasn't sure she could take them again.
Though the helicopter appeared to be in good shape, it still looked old. Katelina reluctantly climbed into an interior that looked more like a cargo carrier than a passenger ship. The walls were dull gray metal and each set with three small windows. Two rows of chairs faced one another, their backs against the walls, and a small open area was stacked with trunks that were lashed into place.
"You're sure this thing will make it?" she asked as she took a seat and eyed the frayed seatbelt.
Jorick's answer was pure logic. "I doubt Fethillen would fly on it if she thought it was deficient."
"Who said she knows anything about helicopters?"
As if summoned, the tall blonde vampiress climbed onboard and stopped near them. "We'll be ready to go shortly. I see your coven is ready?" She nodded toward the hatch where Micah climbed in, carrying his and Torina's bags.
"Yes."
"Good. We cannot make the whole flight tonight. We will stop to refuel and then will fly a bit longer and finally stop in Russia for the day. I have made arrangements for us to stay with a coven there. Tomorrow we will reach Uzbekistan and see what we can discover. "
The thought of two days in the helicopter of death left Katelina horrified, but Jorick only nodded.
Fethillen went on, "We do not advertise our existence, and so we do not contact the Sodalitas in each country for their help. The flight plan is no problem should we fly over controlled airspace, the helicopters are registered to a corporation. But customs is often difficult when we are forced to encounter it. Russia is not so hard to manage with the right amount of money but Uzbekistan is more problematic. We will have to land unscheduled in Uzbekistan and hope there is enough fuel to allow us to leave again, as there will be no way to get more there. If we are harassed by officials from any group we will do what must be done."
With that, Fethillen left to take one of the pilots' seats, and Verchiel appeared and sat next to Katelina. "Isn't this exciting?"
"Not really." The whole thing sounded terrible, and to make matters worse, she saw Sushel climb on board.
"Just what we need."
"At least the Children of Shadows won't be there," Verchiel said cheerfully. "In two days they should be in a neighboring country, attacking another citadel."
Though it felt wrong, she heard herself say, "We can hope."
***
The Russian coven that Fethillen had made arrangements with lived outside the town on a snowy, winding road. A pair of humans wrapped in fraying coats and threadbare scarves met their visitors and ushered them inside. When they removed their winter gear Katelina noted with horror that though one was a woman they were both identically bald. Around their necks were thick metal collars, and rusty cuffs chaffed their skinny wrists and ankles. The humans were dotted with bandages and scabs, proof of what the vampires used them for. Their hollow cheeks and pale skin spoke of ill health and their slumped shoulders and shuffling gait whispered their hopelessness.
Like scared animals, they didn't meet the visitors' eyes directly, and they barely looked at their masters. Three bearded vampires and a pair of pale females took over the welcome and indicated their facilities for housing humans. Katelina was grateful to lock herself in the bathroom and took her time "freshening up". Though it was hardly a room from House Beautiful, it was a million times better than the shabby outhouse.
When she emerged, dressed in clean clothes, Jorick led her through the house. What was essentially a living room held several chairs and a heavy desk piled with radio equipment like Fethillen's. A bearded vampire hunched over it, wearing a pair of 1980s style headphones and adjusting radio knobs.
They walked past him and into the kitchen. The female slave stirred a pot of something that smelled vaguely disagreeable. Oren and Etsuko were already seated at a table, and Jorick and Katelina took the other two chairs. A pair of bowls and spoons were laid out, while another set waited on the countertop.
Katelina fiddled uncomfortably with the spoon, conscious of the bald woman and her unhappy circumstances. "Where are the others?"
"Feeding," Oren answered. "I imagine we'll have to wait until you've finished before we can go." He scowled hard at Katelina, as if it was her fault that she and Etsuko needed to eat.
Katelina didn't feel like talking. She could hear the odd little click-clicks of the vampire using Morse code, and she wondered who he was sending a message to. How many vampires could there be who used that?
The cook gave the pot a final stir and then lifted it from the stove and carefully filled the two bowls on the counter. Then she turned to the visitors and ladled a thin, purplish soup into Katelina's bowl, complete with mysterious white lumps Katelina thought might be potatoes.
The woman shuffled around the table and started to do the same for Etsuko when the heavy pot slipped from her hands and splashed vibrantly colored soup over herself, Etsuko, Oren, and the table. She gave a mortified cry and rushed to get a rag. A constant flow of Russian poured from her lips as she tried to clean the mess and Etsuko assured her again and again that it was all right.
Katelina noticed the radio silence a moment before the bearded vampire strode into the room. With his broad shoulders, dark hair, and angry eyes he looked like a depiction of a furious war god and she drew closer to Jorick.
It only took the vampire a moment to size up the situation. Then he gave a loud, angry exclamation, and grabbed the bald woman by the arm. She pleaded with him, even as he dragged her out of the house. The door slammed, like some final pronouncement, and Katelina jumped.
"What's he doing?"
Before Jorick could answer there was a loud crack, like a whip, followed by a shriek. Katelina clutched Jorick's arm as both sounds were repeated several times. At last silence fell, broken by the sound of heavy boots stomping their way back into the house.
The bearded vampire ducked into the kitchen and offered them a toothy smile that didn't reach his eyes. He picked up the pot from the floor and discarded it with a sneer, then took a moment to wipe something red from his hands. Katelina wasn't sure if it was soup or blood.
"I must apologize for the carelessness, yes?" He picked up a bowl of soup from the counter and held it out to Oren. "Your human may have her portion, she won't need it tonight." He broke into a hearty laugh.
Oren muttered a thank you and handed the bowl to Etsuko. The bearded vampire nodded, as if to approve the situation. "My name is Yaroslav. I am the leader. When you have finished with your meals would you like me to put up your humans? We have very good place in the shed. Plenty of hay. Very warm. I lock them in myself each morning so they cannot escape and I will give my good word that no one will take liberties with your servants. It is- impolite for one man to steal another man's bread without asking."
The comparison left Katelina with clenched fists, but Jorick only said, "Thank you. We prefer to keep them with us."
Yaroslav gave Katelina and Etsuko a good once over. "I see they have no collars? Very progressive thinking. You are sure they are, how do you say, well trained? It is not that we are untrusting by nature, but-" he spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness. "You understand it makes for nervous bedfellows."
And well it should, Katelina thought angrily. If anyone deserved to be staked to death in their sleep it was this group.
Jorick remained calm. "I can assure you neither are prone to violence."
Some of the friendliness slipped from Yaroslav's face. "While I appreciate such promises, my friends may not. If you will excuse me?"
"Of course," Jorick replied.
Yaroslav muttered something under his breath and stalked back toward his radio.
"What an asshole," she hissed angrily.
Jorick shrugged. "They're more traditional about their humans. Eat up. Oren and I still need to feed before dawn."
