We would take her back to where she belonged, and she would be safe. It was more than I could say for the rest of us.
Chapter Fourteen
The entrance Asher had found let out just south of the old keep. It was another old cellar, like the one behind the guild hall. As we climbed out into the moonlight, I wondered if there was another entrance near where we had found Jeramy’s body.
With Steifan still carrying the unconscious girl, we searched for a private area in the keep. We would need to watch her until she woke. Unfortunately, dawn was still well off. I was hungry and cold, more cold than the weather permitted. It was like pushing Egar out of my mind had taken the very warmth from my veins.
Asher found a small alcove, protected on three sides by ruined walls still tall enough to conceal us.
I helped Steifan remove his cloak, then spread it on the ground for him to set the girl upon it. We tugged the edges of the cloak around her, leaving her to rest.
Asher watched us silently.
I glanced at him as I stood. “I appreciate you escorting us out of the canals, but there is no reason for you to stay here any longer.”
He didn’t move. He just stood there like a tall, brooding statue. “We need to speak about the ancient you killed, and the Nattmara.”
Steifan looked back and forth between the two of us. “I think I’ll go see if I can find a bit of wood for a fire.” He retreated from the alcove, though he probably wanted sleep even worse than I did.
I bundled my cloak around me, suppressing a shiver. My sword had remained silent at my back after it helped me with the Nattmara. “What else is there to talk about?”
Asher stepped close, looming over me. “You are my servant, and you killed an ancient.”
I hiked one shoulder in a small half shrug. “Three other ancients were killed the night Karpov died, why is this one any different?”
Ire flickered through his silver eyes, making me suddenly nervous. “Those who had joined Karpov had turned against us. The vampire you killed tonight tried to leave you in peace. He respected our laws.”
Anger prickled my skin. “He was trying to buy that girl.” I gestured to the small, cloak-wrapped bundle behind me. “And he had bought others. If I left him alive, more would have been kidnapped. I can only hope his death will set an example for the other vampires in the city.”
Asher lifted his chin. “My kind must feed, Lyssandra, it is what we are. Many are not strong enough to bespell victims and not take too much blood.”
I stepped closer, my indignance making me bold. “If vampires kill, I hunt them. That is what I am.”
“I am well aware, but your self-righteous attitude has furthered Karpov’s plan. One ancient was already killed several nights ago. And now another has perished. Soon there will be too few of us to control the young ones.”
My back hunched. He was right, I had helped Karpov from beyond the grave. But it could have been no other way. The kidnappings had to stop.
Asher watched me. “Your expression hints that you have seen reason, though experience tells me that cannot be the case.”
I rubbed my eyes, slowly shaking my head. “I do see the reason behind your words, but you cannot ask me to forsake my oaths. I am sworn to protect innocents.”
“If you’re going to help me discover who killed the other ancient, you will need to be amongst more of my kind. I cannot bring you near them if you plan to personally present justice for their crimes.”
I tried to call back my anger, but it was no use. I was just too tired. “The dead deserve justice.”
“Perhaps, but it does not always have to be dealt by your hand.”
I looked up at him. “How about this. If I am to meet a vampire, forewarn them to commit no crimes in front of me. If I do not personally see them attacking or killing someone, I will have no need to hunt them.”
A smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “My, what a generous compromise.”
I glared, tugging my cloak more tightly around me. “My advice to you would be to accept what you can get.”
Steifan peeked back into the alcove to find Asher grinning. He seemed to take it as a sign that it was safe to return, and stepped the rest of the way into the space, a few small jagged pieces of wood bundled under one arm.
He tossed the wood into the dirt. “I was able to beg a flint and steel from a merchant caravan. They didn’t seem to want to ask any questions once they noticed the blood on my clothes.”
I used the distraction to step away from Asher. “We need to discuss the Nattmara. We must seek out his lair and weaken him before he can find—” I hesitated, not wanting to speak Ryllae’s name out loud. “What he seeks,” I finished.
Asher followed me to stand in front of the fire Steifan was attempting to build. “It nearly killed you tonight, now you want to find its lair?”
Steifan and Asher both looked at me as I explained, “The Nattmara’s lair is its place of power, a site for ritual magic. When I slew Egar’s sister, I was able to weaken her by destroying a ritual urn.”
“But Egar is as much Sidhe as he is Nattmara,” Steifan countered. “His magic may not be the same.”
He was right, but I didn’t know what else to do. I couldn’t just wait around for Egar to find us again. “He
