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A Shade of Vampire 37: An Empire of Stones(4)



“Can we open it?” I asked.

“I don’t think so.” Tejus heaved against it, but the wall didn’t even shudder at the force. It appeared to be held tight.

“I think I heard it move,” I continued, “when Benedict disappeared. There was a slam—the sound of stone moving…there must be a way to get it open.”

“I heard it too,” Tejus replied, “but I imagine it’s under control of the entity. I’ll send the ministers in to see if they can be of more help… but I’m afraid we’re blocked off.”

“There must be a way,” I insisted, squeezing past his body to get closer to the stones. I fumbled around the edges of the wall, seeing if there were any small cracks or an indication of how it might have opened that Tejus had missed. I found nothing.

“We can’t be blocked off,” I said. “Benedict got through here—it will open somehow.”

“Benedict is under the control of the entity, Hazel. Clearly it wants him to travel freely through the passageway, but we are definitely blocked off.”

I thumped the wall in frustration. The stones continued to glimmer and sparkle. I irrationally felt like they were teasing me, like stupid little pixies laughing at our efforts to get past.

“We need to head back.” Tejus’ breath was cool on the back of my neck, and I was suddenly aware of our physical closeness. Under any other circumstances it would have felt claustrophobic, but with Tejus in such close proximity I felt my stomach churn and flutter.

Really inappropriate, Hazel, I scolded myself.

Suddenly I was more inclined to move back out of the passageway.

“You go first,” I muttered, too shy to squeeze past him again. Tejus started to walk back the way we’d come, and I dutifully followed, looking back at the stones every now and then, still a little entranced by their beauty.

“The stone from the Hellswan sword,” I said. “I think it was one of those—the size was about right. It just didn’t glow as brightly.”

“I agree. It confirms the theory that my father removed one of them to assist Jenus in the trials,” Tejus replied, and then muttered an expletive under his breath that I doubted was for my hearing.

The way back felt shorter, and it seemed that we were stepping out into the hallway in nearly half the time. Most of the humans had gone back to their quarters, but Yelena stood opposite the passage with her back against the wall, avoiding making eye contact with the ministers.

“What happened?” she asked, wide-eyed.

“He’s gone. We can’t follow—there’s a wall blocking the way that Benedict must have been able to pass through,” I replied. Turning back to Tejus, I prepared myself for another argument.

“We need to go out and look for him outside the castle,” I insisted.

Tejus crossed his arms and glared down at me.

“Absolutely not. It’s the middle of the night. We’re better off looking for him in the morning.”

“But that’s my point!” I said. “It’s the middle of the night—he’s going to be somewhere on his own, in the dark…he’s going to be so afraid.”

Tejus sighed. “He’s done this before—he’s been doing this for a while now.” He glanced over at Yelena, who nodded miserably. “He’ll be fine for one evening. We’ll go out at daybreak tomorrow, I promise.”

In his eyes I read a warning. There would be no persuading him this time. I looked around at the ministers, staring at us as I pleaded with their king.

“The morning, then,” I relented.

I received a nod from Tejus, and an intense look that I couldn’t quite understand—gratitude, perhaps?

“Lithan, Qentos,” Tejus barked at his ministers, “inspect the wall—see if there’s any way we can open it. I am escorting Hazel to my quarters, and will rejoin you shortly.”

The ministers started shuffling toward the passageway, and I took Yelena’s hand.

“We should take her back first,” I murmured to Tejus. She looked exhausted and red-eyed, the events of tonight having been way too much for her to handle—more than any of us could handle…except perhaps Tejus, who looked as determined and inscrutable as he always did.

We walked past the emperor’s room, and then on the opposite wall, the writing that Benedict had created with his own blood.

“To follow me is death. But I shall come. I shall come back to claim you.”

It had been a message directed at Yelena, but I supposed it had meaning for us all. Tejus had said that we didn’t understand the plans of the entity, but to me, this made it clear. My fear for Benedict was overwhelming, weighing on me till I thought it would crush the breath from my body, but it was accompanied with a fear for us all. I didn’t like the ministers, and I didn’t respect them, but they—and the guards, the rest of the sentries in Nevertide and all the human children under the castle’s protection—were in grave danger.