A Shade of Vampire 37: An Empire of Stones(32)

“You know about them!” I exclaimed.

“I do. Though I am one of the few. Remember that above all Queen Trina is a pleasure seeker—frivolous and spoilt in part, deadly and vicious in another. Never, ever underestimate her.”

“I won’t,” I replied, his words sending shivers down my spine, making me dread my return even more.

“Follow the main road, don’t deviate from its path. Ride fast. Whatever you do, do not stop, not until you reach the kingdom. Find Ashbik immediately, and do your best not to be separated from him while you remain there. Don’t speak to anyone of the runes you saw in the barn—not a soul, do you understand?”

“I do,” I replied.

“Then go,” he commanded, turning his bull-horse in the opposite direction.

“Varga, wait!”

The horse halted, and he turned back to face me.

“I want to thank you—for everything. I won’t forget it.”

He nodded.

“Just go fast and stay alive. That will be thanks enough.”

I tugged at the reins and the horse sped up into a trot. Soon the commander was out of sight, and so was the Memenion castle. I followed the path as Varga had instructed, feeling strangely empty and very, very afraid.





Hazel





We had placed Yelena on one of the sofas in the human quarters, moving her limp body as carefully as we could. I sent the children away with Jenney to spend some time in the servant quarters. They were all terrified, pale and exhausted, barely able to communicate except in rasping sobs and wild accusations of monsters in the castle, monsters they thought would come and get them all.

When they had gone, I sat silently with Tejus, both of us watching Yelena’s lightly fluttering chest, relieved that she was at least still breathing.

“When do you think she will wake?” I asked him, knowing that he wouldn’t have much more of a clue than I did, but wanting to say something to break the silence and bring about some semblance of normality.

“I don’t know. It looks like she’s just in a deep sleep. I heard that the guards have already woken. The ministers are questioning them now.”

I nodded, gently stroking Yelena’s red hair back from her forehead.

“She’s still so cold,” I replied. We had covered her in blankets as best we could, but it didn’t seem to be making much of a difference.

Tejus stood up, beginning to pace across the room. In a way, his movement comforted me. It was such a familiar thing; everything falling to pieces around us, and Tejus pacing up and down a room, trying to find solutions.

“How did the trials go?” I asked.

“Fine. I am still in the running.”

“What happened?” I coaxed, wanting something to take my mind off Yelena and the likelihood of my brother putting her in this condition.

“Another experience with hallucination elixirs. Not pleasant, but not unmanageable.”

I thought of the first time that Tejus had experienced them in the trials, and I shuddered. I hated that he had been through something similar again, and on his own.

“What did it show you this time?” I asked softly.

“Nothing. Just fantasy and riddles—nothing of any importance.”

“You’re lying,” I replied.

“Yes. But I’m not going to tell you what I saw. Just know that I was successful, and that the trials will continue as swiftly as possible.”

I nodded. There was nothing I could say that would persuade Tejus to tell me the truth when he didn’t want to. I had plenty of experience with that. Perhaps it was better that I didn’t know anyway; I felt like I almost didn’t have any more capacity to worry about the people I loved.

I was about to fetch another blanket to put over Yelena when she groaned.

“Yelena? Can you hear me?”

She shook her head, her brow creasing in a frown. I took her hand, holding it tightly so that she might know she wasn’t alone.

Her eyelids twitched as I touched her, and slowly her eyes started to open.

“She’s awake,” I murmured to Tejus. He was standing on the other side of the sofa, wisely keeping his distance so not to startle her. “Yelena, it’s me, Hazel. How are you feeling?”

“Hazel?” she mumbled. “My head hurts.”

I exhaled in relief. She was awake, and clearly her mind hadn’t been damaged beyond repair.

“Do you know where you are?” I asked gently.

She looked around, then tried to sit up.

“Easy,” I placated her. “Take it easy.”

She nodded, shuffling up to a sitting position.

“I’m in Hellswan Castle.” She sighed groggily. “I don’t remember what happened,” she said, beseeching me to fill in the blanks.