The Last of the Red-Hot Vampires

Was that the wisest thing to say? I asked, forcing myself to relax as the clouds overhead grew darker. The three mare consulted one another. It seems to me that just gave more fuel to the fire.

Theo's laugh was mirthless. Those three women are the pinnacle of power in the Court of Divine Blood. The only one who has more is the sovereign itself. There is little that escapes their attention. The fact that I am now a Dark One may not have been common knowledge, but I assure you they were aware of it the moment we stepped into the Court.

The mare ended their consultation.

'You may remain,' Disin said, giving Theo a regal nod. 'But you will not speak to the charges in Portia Harding's place. It is for her alone to do so.'

He bowed, murmuring his thanks.

'You are charged with the destruction of the virtue Hope,' the first mare said, her face somber. 'How plead you, Portia Harding?'

'Not guilty.' There were other words that wanted to burst out, such as a declaration that I do not kill people, not for any reason, and certainly not for anything so frivolous as the ability to control weather, but I pushed them down. I doubted if such an outburst would do good.

The silence that followed my statement hung heavily for about five seconds, then the whispers behind us began fast and furious.

The sky grew darker despite my attempts to keep my emotions in check.

Disin narrowed her eyes. 'Do you refute the fact that you intend to grant exculpation to the nephilim named Theondre North, the same man to whom you are bound as a Beloved?'

Strangers be damned. I took Theo's hand, sucking in a deep breath as I tried to calm my nerves. 'I do not deny that I have discussed the subject with Theo. I do deny the implication that I murdered Hope in order to bring such a thing about.'

'Do you deny that just one night past, you sought the company of a demon lord?'

'We didn't seek him—'

'Do you deny that you had an audience with the demon lord, the premiere prince of Abaddon, the lord Bael?'

Several people gasped behind me. Theo's fingers tightened around mine. He wanted badly to say something but was bound to silence by the mare's order, an order that evidently covered not giving me advice as to what I should say in answer to the ridiculous charges being bandied about. 'The circumstances of our visit to Bael are not of our doing. We were summoned there by Bael.'

More gasping and a couple of outright cries of horror. I kept my eyes fixed on the three women in front of me, drawing strength from the touch of Theo's hand.

Disin leaned forward, her eyes as cold and hard as steel. 'Do you deny that you have said to the nephilim Theondre North, on several occasions since taking on the mantle of virtue, that you would do anything to restore unto him that which he does not possess?'

'His soul,' I said, waving my free hand in an expressive manner. Overhead, thunder rumbled ominously. 'I was talking about his soul, which was ripped from him by Bael, all because he protected me from the demon who was part of the third trial. A trial, I might add, that is sanctioned by this Court!'

Theo's fingers tightened around mine. I glanced at him, nodding abruptly at the warning visible in his eyes.

'I beg your pardon if my comments seem rude,' I said, aware of the hostile looks I was getting from the people surrounding us. The mare's faces were for the most part impassive, but it was evident they had come to this hearing with their minds made up. 'But I dislike being asked to justify my actions when I have done nothing wrong. I did not ask to become a virtue—Hope made me one without my knowing anything about it. I did not murder her, nor do I know who did, or why. I did not seek audience with a demon lord; it was forced upon me. It's true I have sworn to restore Theo's soul to him, but that is a matter between him and me, and I fail to see how it has importance to anyone else here.'

'You dare speak thusly to the mare?' The officious little man who had introduced the mare leaped up from one of the benches, his face red with anger.

Theo's fingers tightened until his grip was almost painful.

'I mean no disrespect, but I will not tolerate a kangaroo court—'

'Silence!' Disin bellowed, her voice echoing off the trees. 'We will confer.'

'But I haven't been allowed a chance to defend myself properly,' I started to say, but was cut off when Disin barked at me.

'I said silence!'

Theo's thumb rubbed on the top of my hand, an iota of comfort in a sea of distress. The three women leaned together.

They're going to throw us in that Akasha place, I said to Theo. His fingers twitched in response. Around us, the hum of conversation was conducted in hushed whispers, but vehement nonetheless. I know you can't answer me, but they can't stop me from talking to you. I'm sorry if I made things worse, but you have to see that I couldn't just stand here while they twisted everything around.

He may have been bound to silence, but his emotions were mine to read, and I took some small comfort in the pride that tinged his concern.

'Portia Harding, your insolence does you no credit, nor will it be tolerated,' Disin said as the mare presented a solid front.

Thunder rumbled even louder, the sky so dark it looked like twilight even though it was the middle of the day. I took another deep breath, and calmed my wildly beating heart, hoping it was enough to keep a storm from lashing out against the people who were trying us.

'Against my better judgment'—Disin glanced for a moment at the white-haired mare—'I have been persuaded that the evidence against you is not sufficient to banish you to the Akasha. However, until the matter of the virtue's murder has been explained to our satisfaction, we cannot allow you the freedom to harm others.'

I bit my lip to keep from shouting that I hadn't harmed anyone, and had no intentions of doing so.

'It has been suggested that you undergo the fifth trial now in order to determine the purity of your being. If you pass, you will be allowed to leave the Court until such time as a tribunal determines the truth of the virtue's death.' Disin clapped her hands, and a small boy emerged from the crowd. The boy bowed to the three mare, then turned and bowed to me. He couldn't have been more than eight or nine, but the look in his dark eyes was one of ageless wisdom. Whatever he was, he certainly wasn't an innocent child. 'Proctor, begin the trial.'

The boy looked at me for a moment before gesturing Theo away. 'You cannot aid her in this test, champion. You must move out of her reach.'

Theo's voice was warm and reassuring in my head. I will not leave your side if you do not wish for me to do so.

It's OK. I tried to put a lot more confidence into my words than I felt. I doubt if they will do anything too heinous in front of all these witnesses.

Theo moved away reluctantly, stepping back to stand with the onlookers. I bit my lip nervously, rubbing my hands together as I wondered just what this trial was going to consist of. 'Er…forgive me for asking, but how on earth do you determine the purity of someone's being?'

'It's simple,' the boy said, smiling a gap-toothed smile that did little to lighten my heart. He spread his hands wide, then brought them together so quickly that his movement was unseen. 'You die.'

The blast from his hands hit me with the force of a runaway bulldozer. I fell backward, the sound of my own terrified shriek mingled with Theo's hoarse roar ringing in my ears as I left everything I knew behind.

Chapter 15

'So this is limbo,' I said, looking around. I wasn't much impressed.

'The word 'limbo' is a mortal term used by some religions to express the concept of the Akasha, something