He dug the back of his boots in to the horse’s rear, and they picked up speed. It seemed to fly more swiftly than any other horse possibly could, bursting onto the country road like a bullet.
Wind rushed through Charlotte’s hair, whipping her curls dry, tangling them. Getting those knots to come out was not something she was looking forward to doing later.
Aiden’s stomach muscles tensed beneath her fingers as he leaned forward, making the horse move impossibly faster beneath them. Hooves kicked up dirt as the sun and wind dried their clothes. They raced past the farmer’s fields and the hills with the wildflowers. The speed, paired with the heat of the waning summer was like a drug, and Charlotte burst out laughing.
“What is it?” Aiden called out to her.
“I just can’t believe you found me that way!”
When they reached the large iron gate which marked the entrance into the Bohemian Occult, the horse slowed to a trot. The sun had disappeared behind clumps of gray clouds gathering again, creating a gloomy veil around the false graveyard. Charlotte stayed with her arms wrapped tightly around Aiden, her skin prickling.
“You really shouldn’t sneak out anymore. Edwin told me the Regime is keeping a closer eye on the borders,” Charlotte warned.
Aiden chuckled. “You’re breaking a more important law by living here. Don’t you think?”
He was right. No human was ever supposed to know about the hidden cities. It was amazing for her to think about the fact, in all of her years of living here, she had not yet been caught — even though she crossed the borders so many nights. Something was very odd about that. Technically, Valek could be killed for smuggling and rebellion. But Charlotte and Aiden used to go to her clearing in the woods all the time together when they were younger, when things were less complicated. But rumors of Occult people being arrested for crossing the borders were surfacing all over now, and Aiden rarely left anymore.
The two were silent, with the exception of the horse’s hooves crunching in the leaves. There was an eerie, watchful feeling among the tombstones and even though they both knew the graves weren’t real, Charlotte tightened her grip around the Elf.
Aiden chuckled again. “What? Are you afraid?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Of what?” She sneered. “Monsters?”
They both laughed nervously. The silence circled them, as Aiden’s gears seemed to crank in his mind.
“Does Valek realize he is risking both of your necks every time he sends you to the outside for him?”
Charlotte was surprised by his bold change of subject. “Yes. But I’m risking my own neck more if I live with an increasingly thirsty Vampire. Anyway, it’s
“Solid point,” he said, and detached from the sore subject.
They reached the part of the path where the trees started to grow over each other, creating a long emerald tunnel to the suburbs of the Occult. Branches grew high above, painting dark shadows on their faces as a new, eerily melodic sound echoed through the tunnel. It was so distant and dreamlike, she questioned if she was actually hearing it at all.
“Hear that?” Aiden whispered.
“Sirens.”
A soft wind blew Charlotte’s hair about her face. She shivered as she thought of the horrible, haunting women who hid on the edges of the Vltava River. She had never actually seen one, but had heard the horrible stories from Valek, who forbade her from ever visiting the river’s edge. Beautiful women with lower parts like a fish fed upon virgin girls. There had often been stories in human newspapers about girls who had disappeared around the river, blamed on scary, lustful men. Of course, the Occult inhabitants knew differently.
The horse, which had been keeping an even pace all the while, suddenly sped up and lurched into to a brisk gallop. Aiden tugged at the reins, trying to slow the animal, though the horse ignored him.
“Slow, girl!” he commanded, tugging harder. But she went on, moving too fast for them to see what could have possibly spooked her.
Charlotte hugged him tighter. “What’s happening?”
“I have no idea! She’s never acted like this before!”
The forest flew past them in a blur of greens and browns. Charlotte shut her eyes against it, burying her face between the Elf’s shoulder blades. She could feel the world pulsing by, the wind like hornets angry in her ears. She peeked long enough to notice a dark blur dart through the trees. It moved faster than the horse, suddenly bursting into the clearing. A werewolf.
The horse reared, an anguished whinny ripping from behind the foamy reins in its mouth. Charlotte tumbled into the dirt. She strained to see the Lycan that had been stalking them from the time they began through the tunnel. It stared back at her with horrible, coal-colored eyes. Charlotte had been right for feeling she was being watched. Apparently, the beast had decided it was time for an early dinner.
“Aiden, do something…” Charlotte whimpered from the ground. Her heart was in her throat. She wasn’t even able to tell if she was in pain or not.
“Like what?” Horrified, Aiden stayed frozen, his grip unyielding around the reins.
Aiden wasn’t about to be helpful. She fought to look away from the wolf, even for a second. Out of the corner of her eye, she could make out on her watch it was only about 4:30 in the afternoon. Her whistle wouldn’t have helped, even if she had remembered to bring it. Why did she always forget the blasted thing?
They remained frozen, staring at the wolf as it threatened them with soft, taunting growls. Saliva oozed from its black gums and dripped from the tips of its fangs. It locked eyes with Charlotte as she slowly got to her feet. One ankle hurt a little, but she didn’t dare release her gaze this time. She slowly moved her hand toward her satchel to shuffle through the contents. She pulled out the loaf of bread and gingerly tossed it forward. But it went completely ignored by the Lycan. She felt her leg pulsing with something warm.
“Charlotte…” Aiden whispered.
“What?” she whispered back, still not pulling her focus away.
“Your leg.”
She realized what he meant when she smelled the familiar scent of iron and rust, and then finally the shooting pain.
The wolf crouched deep, ready to lunge. It let out one last deadly growl and leapt into the air.
Thinking fast, she swung her satchel at the animal's head, slamming into its jaw with a crunch. She opened her eyes to watch a red ribbon of blood seep from midnight fur. It lay there, whimpering and twitching, fighting with itself to get up again.
She didn't have time to think before one, large hand grabbed her shoulder, tearing her from where she stood. Aiden threw her back on the horse, in front of him this time. He whipped the reins and sent the horse hurtling again down the trail toward home, leaving the Lycan fighting for its life in the dirt.
Charlotte looked to see the crumpled shadow get up and disappear into the woods, noticing then, the bloodstain on the corner of the
Chapter Three
“I will not let you go into a Vampire’s house with your leg looking like that!” Aiden insisted, as Charlotte tried desperately to wriggle out of the grasp he had on her arm. He held her tight, pulling her in the opposite direction of her house.
“I want to go home now, Aiden! Valek is not going to hurt me. I’ll be fine by the time he wakes up, anyway!” she insisted, still struggling to pull away.
“You don’t know that!”
“Yes, I do! I think I know that better than you!” She hoped the other people in the town square would hear. She wanted to embarrass him.
The two had locked the spooked horse away in the town stable and were now glaring at each other in the middle of the busy street.
