he?”
Te’oma stood up and pulled the girl to her feet. Just on the edge of adulthood, Esprл was barely a head shorter than the changeling. Her piercing blue eyes scanned the darkness for any break in the black.
“There,” Te’oma said, pointing behind the girl.
Esprл turned and saw three rods of silvery light in a valley below, dancing together in the darkness. Shadowy shapes moved through and around them.
“There,” Te’oma said again. “Do you see the figure closest to us? That’s Tan Du, the leader of the vampires.”
“Is he terribly dangerous?”
“He likes to think he is.”
“Will he kill us?”
Te’oma frowned. “Let’s hope not.” She put an arm around Esprл’s shoulders and drew her close. It felt good to comfort the girl, even if she knew she was leading her like a lamb to the slaughter. The two watched the scene in the valley below.
“What’s going on?” Esprл asked.
“Tan Du is trying to make a deal for your life.”
“What about you?”
Te’oma said nothing. The girl actually cared for her, and for a moment words left her.
“What about you, Aunt Arnaya?” Esprл looked up at the changeling.
Te’oma let a wistful smile spread across her lips. “Your stepfather doesn’t know me, dear,” she said.
Esprл looked back out at the scene below and leaned into the changeling. “Don’t worry Aunt Arnaya,” she said. “Kandler won’t let you down.”
“Ah,” Te’oma said. “Here comes your cue. Tan Du needs to prove you’re still alive. He’s raised his hand to signal us. When he brings it down, call out to your stepfather.”
Esprл squinted at the figures near the flickering silver lights. When she saw the figure’s arm fall, she looked to Te’oma, who nodded at her. “Kandler!” the girl said at the top of her lungs. “I’m all right!”
The shout echoed off the walls of the valley, and the words bounced back and forth until they died.
Te’oma pulled the girl closer. “Well done,” she said to Esprл. “Now keep quiet again.”
The girl pressed her lips tight, but it wasn’t long before she opened them again. “Shouldn’t we try to escape?” she asked.
“Where would we go?” Te’oma asked. Inwardly, she smiled at the girl’s spirit. She was a fighter, this one. “In this horrible place, we’re safer with the vampires than we would be without them. They, at least, have some reason for wanting us alive.”
“What’s that?” Esprл asked.
Te’oma did not answer. As the two watched, a fight erupted in the valley. They could not make out most of the details, but they heard the screams of pain and anguish as they rang throughout the valley.
“We could go now, Aunt Arnaya,” Esprл said. “We could ride straight down there and help.”
Te’oma shook her head. “It’s too dangerous,” she said. “We could get killed. We’ll wait here until we know who’s won.”
Esprл started to protest, but Te’oma cut her off. “I didn’t come all the way here just to lose you again.”
Te’oma held the girl close as they watched the fight below. It was over in a matter of minutes.
“What happened?” Esprл asked. “I can’t tell.”
“Patience,” Te’oma said. “We’ll find out in good time.”
As the words left her mouth, Kandler’s voice rang out. “Come back! Come back and fight! Give my daughter back!”
Esprл sprang out of Te’oma’s arms and started down the hill toward the voice. Before she got three steps, Te’oma tackled her to the ground. The changeling fell on top of the girl and wrapped her hand over her mouth to stop a scream.
“Quiet!” Te’oma whispered in the girl’s ear. “Be quiet, or you’re dead.”
The changeling cursed her luck, the mighty Vol, and most of all Tan Du. The vampire was the purported leader of this mission, but his arrogance had consistently cost them lives. Now, she knew, it had robbed her of the girl’s trust.
Once Esprл got her breath back, Te’oma removed her hand.
“You’re not my aunt, are you?” Esprл whispered.
“What makes you say that?”
“She would want me to live.”
Te’oma growled in frustration as she resumed her natural form. She grabbed Esprл and turned the girl around to face her. “You’re a clever girl,” she said, “but that doesn’t change a thing. I’m still the only friend you have here.”
Esprл stared at Te’oma, taking her all in. “How do you figure that?”
Te’oma stood up and dragged Esprл to her feet. “I want you alive, which is more than I can say for Tan Du. If he had his way, we’d just tote your body along with us.”
“I may still have that chance,” Tan Du said as he materialized from the darkness, his face still glowing with light.
Esprл screamed in shock and fear.
The vampire strode forward blind and smacked the girl across the face. She fell to the ground, bleeding from her cheek. He licked his fangs as he stood over her, his eyes shut tight against the light still flowing from his face.
“Get her up and on your horse, changeling,” Tan Du said. “If she utters another word, I’ll tear out her throat-and yours, too.” He turned to mist again and hovered near the horse to wait.
Te’oma scooped Esprл from the ground, placed her on the front of her saddle, then slipped in behind the girl and spurred the gelding forward. “Don’t worry,” she whispered into the girl’s ear as they took off at a gallop. “I’ll keep you safe.” She surprised herself with how much she meant it.
Chapter 24
The scream pierced the night like a banshee’s cry, freezing Kandler’s heart. For a moment, he wasn’t sure the noise hadn’t come from one of those fearsome spirits, then he recognized the voice.
“Esprл!” he said. “Burch, we have to try!”
The shifter nodded. “I’m on it,” he said. As he spoke, his voice turned from its regular low rasp to a bestial growl.
Burch flexed his wiry frame about as he howled at the moonless sky. His wide, yellow eyes seemed to glow in the silvery light of the knights’ swords. Levritt drew back as the shifter snarled at them and bared his pointed teeth. Burch’s head snapped around from left to right, and he trotted off in the direction in which the vampire had vanished.
“This way,” he said.
Kandler stopped long enough to gather their waterskins and food, but he left their other gear behind. The justicar grabbed the reins of Burch’s lupallo, mounted his own horse, and opened his mouth to shout at the knights to hurry. But he kept quiet when he heard Deothen saying a solemn prayer over Brendis and placing his hands on the young man’s neck. As the elder knight pulled his hands away, Kandler saw that the fang marks there had disappeared, although the spilled blood stayed behind.
“My thanks, sir,” said Brendis, and offered a small bow.
“My honor, young knight,” replied Deothen. “Now hurry and mount up. Every moment is precious.”
Sallah and Levritt helped their fellow knight into his saddle, where he swayed a moment before pushing his mount forward. Kandler led the way out of the camp after Burch. The other knights followed.
Burch sprinted along for half a minute and then ground to a halt. When the others trotted up with their flaming swords, he turned to Deothen.