“Don’t they know that isn’t helping?” I ask.
“They don’t think we’re listening. They think we’re making deals with the Day Walkers.”
“That’s ludicrous!”
“Of course it is,” Clive says, stepping away from the window. “But it’s Hursch who’s telling them, so they’re hanging on to his every word. He finally got his shot to be delegate and the city is falling apart. So he has to make a scapegoat out of someone. We’ve always been the easiest target, and even though we’re now his
“Fire him,” I say. It seems like the obvious solution.
“I did, but he considers himself a delegate of the people now. He says he’ll deal with Victor himself. He’s always been seen as a radical hero, and that mystique has only grown since Eris arrived.”
“Has Eris made any demands?” Victor asks.
“To surrender the city.”
Victor curses harshly. Vampires aren’t supposed to be controlled by emotions. Maybe he’s been hanging around me too long, because it’s obvious that he’s livid. A big chill runs up my spine.
Faith and Richard are doing little more than staring out over the city. I can’t tell what they’re thinking.
Clive looks at Victor. “When you took the throne from your father, you told me things would be different, that there could be cooperation. Prove that to me now. Help us.”
I turn toward Victor. I imagine running through his mind is every possible way to rid ourselves of Eris and her Day Walkers. But vampires lack imagination. His method will involve a direct assault. I think we need something a little more subtle.
“Do you have a way to contact Eris?” I ask Clive.
“Yes. She left a messenger in the city so she could be contacted when we’re ready to negotiate our surrender. Why? What do you have in mind?”
“I think a little confusion might disrupt the Day Walkers and give us an advantage,” I say, a plan forming.
“Confusion is often the best weapon if deployed properly,” Victor says. “Do you have an idea?”
“Yes. It’s time to cut off the head of the snake. It’s time to go after Eris directly. We need to know exactly how she’s getting the Day Walkers into the city and where they are.”
Time isn’t on our side. I don’t know what Sin’s plans are. He may be on the march already, his eyes set on Denver, the center of the entire country. If Denver falls, the country will be split in half, giving him greater power and leverage. So we have to act fast and secure the city behind the walls, then get the blood back into the countryside. From what I see, that all hinges on getting to Eris. How we deal with her I suppose will be her choice.
With everyone hovering around Clive’s desk, I make various notes and jot down strategy, explaining as I go, adjusting as the others toss in their thoughts and ideas. My plan involves surrendering to Eris, asking her to take me to Sin so we can negotiate terms. I feel like I’m in the second phase of the war that never quite ended, despite what VampHu said.
“I don’t like it,” Clive says. “I say when we get her into the city, we capture her then.”
“Too many Day Walkers are in the city,” I remind him. “If anyone learns she’s our prisoner, word will be sent to Sin. He’ll unleash his army of Infected. The citizens of Denver won’t stand a chance.”
“What do you think, Richard?” Victor finally asks.
“I have a feeling that the Day Walkers, while smart, depend on Eris to give them orders. Their campaign to spread fear would be disrupted,
“Then it’s settled,” I say.
“Dawn, this is risky. We don’t know what she’s capable of or if she’s planned on this all along,” Victor says.
“I know. But we have to take the chance. We can’t wait for her, or Sin, to make the first move.”
I run my plan by them one more time, and we tweak it here and there, preparing for the worst-case scenario. Unfortunately, that scenario would be the deaths of everyone in this room. But if we don’t strike now, then when?
Chapter 16
An hour later Clive sends word to Eris. When the sun has risen high enough to chase the vampires back into the shadows, we’re both standing at the window, basking in the heat when he says, “She’s coming.”
I see the luxurious white carriage that carries her wherever she goes. Behind it is another one, no doubt carrying additional guards. They both come to a stop in front of the building and I watch as three hulking Day Walkers climb out of the first carriage and hand her down. More guards clamber out of the other carriage and take positions, obviously alert and ready for any danger.
“Everyone always thought we were making deals with vampires when really we weren’t,” Clive says. “And now, we’re doing exactly what everyone always accused us of.”
“Is the press release ready?” I ask.
“It’s being typed up now.” He checks his watch. “I go on air in thirty minutes to alert the citizens that you’ve surrendered to Eris in exchange for the Day Walkers leaving. I don’t like this, Dawn.”
It’s not the first time he’s protested or I’ve replied, “I’ll be fine.”
The moments stretch for eternity. Then she enters the room.
She looks like the sun’s daughter walking through the doors, an expression of extreme arrogance on her face. With her are the three Day Walkers, good looking, obviously well fed, unlike so many others. They’re calm and composed, not lusting after my blood, merely waiting for orders, looking around the room to make sure an ambush isn’t in wait.
“Miss Montgomery,” Eris says in that fake-polite voice I’ve always detested, “I hear you will be negotiating the city’s surrender. Sin will be pleased.”
“You’ll take me to him?” I ask.
She tilts her head slightly. “To him and his army of Chosen. Shall we be on our way?”
“After you.”
“Don’t try anything. My guards are very fast and very deadly.”
“I’m sure they are.”
“Trained by Sin himself.”
Which means they don’t fight fairly.
I give Clive a determined look. “We’re doing what we have to do, Clive. Don’t feel guilty; it’ll get you nowhere.” I hope he can read my subtext, that if something goes wrong, he can’t blame himself. I knew what I was getting into when I came up with this daring idea.
Once outside, I’m given a hand up into the carriage. It’s as luxurious on the inside as I’d imagined. It’s clear that Eris would accept nothing less than plush, red velvet seats and a full burgundy leather interior.
She’s lifted in as well and sits across from me, then the two Day Walkers join us, the third one taking his seat on top with the driver. With a whipping sound and the neigh of the horses, we begin clopping down the streets. The mighty carriage glides through the day.
The day. I knew Eris would want the meeting only when the sun was out. Only during the day can she neutralize any threat from Victor. Walking-in-the-sun bitch.
The gates of the city open up and we head down the long road. I wonder in which direction she’ll ultimately take me. I assume west toward Sin, unless he is no longer there. Perhaps he’s just over that hill or that mountain, nearer than we thought, in which case I’ll be in a hell of a lot of trouble.
Looking out the window, I see the city walls slowly descend out of view as we make greater distance. They seem so fragile now, more fragile than ever. The Day Walkers are inside, walls or no. I can’t keep my mind from returning to Crimson Sands and its unwalled foundation. Their strength comes from the citizens, vampires and humans, not from stone masonry on the outskirts trying desperately to hold the night at bay.
