Chapter 13

Chapter

Thirteen

Blade

" H oly shit," Flame looks up as the three of us enter the palace archives. "This place is fucking huge."

Seeing the awe on my brother's face, my spirits lift for a moment, as light catches his blond hair and highlights the strong planes of his rugged face. His ocean blue eyes sparkle as he turns, while taking in the central section of this massive library. Housed in a natural cave in this mountain, the shelves in this area were carved into the rock and rise at least four stories to an ornately painted, vaulted ceiling. A circular ramp spirals up and around the vast space in front of the shelves of books, giving easy access to every single tome.

While Flame is clearly impressed, Crusher's staring at the floor. Then again, the floor's beautiful too. A huge mosaic of colorful stones and gems, inlaid in patterns into the rock.

"You should see this place with the lights on," I tell them.

"Turn them on!" Flame grins in boyish delight, clearly admiring the library's design more than its contents. This archive houses some of the most important documentation of not only the vampiric world, but regarding all topics imaginable.

From this main room, tunnels fan out like wheel spokes. Those tunnels lead to many more rooms housing collections of literature and poetry, as well as quieter study rooms and spaces to research online.

"Here are the books I've been looking at." I point toward a long cherry wood table, piled with three dozen books, some still open where I left them when I was pulled away by the news about Phil.

My heart stops for a moment, remembering I'll never see my gruff, protective brother again, but his loss makes me even more determined to discover what kind of demon took him down.

Until we know what it is, we can't be certain the demon is dead, and most importantly, whether Ana is safe.

Even if Ana refuses to see us again—a thought too difficult to face right now—I couldn't live knowing that thing is still coming after her.

"How can we help?" Crusher asks. His jaw twitches, and the veins on his forehead pulse. He's at least a mile beyond tense.

As angry as Ana is with us all, Crusher took the brunt of her ire, and it's hard to see how they'll get back to the affection they'd begun to show for each other.

He picks up one of the largest books and reads the title, engraved and inlayed with gold on its side.

"That one contains information about other realms," I tell Crusher.

"Realms?" His head cocks to the side. "You keep using that word as if we should get what you mean."

"Dimensions?" I sit in the worn leather chair in front of the book I was reading when I was interrupted. "Humans have yet to fully understand their entire world. In fact, not many vampires or other supernatural creatures even appreciate the scope of the existence we inhabit, never mind those that run parallel to ours."

"There are worlds running parallel to ours?" Flame leans onto the chair beside me. "Cool."

"Is that proven or theory?" Crusher frowns.

"Oh, very proven. The magic keepers uncovered these secrets—at least some of them—thousands of years ago."

"So, we need to talk to a magic keeper." Crusher drops the book, and it lands with an echoing thump. "Why waste time with books, if we can just ask questions?"

"Crusher." Flame leans over a railing two stories above us. "Don't you know those words are like a stake to Blade's heart." Grinning, he winks at me.

I didn't even notice that he'd gone up there and, as he makes his way around the bookshelves, lights come on to illuminate each section he enters.

"No offense," I tell Crusher. "It's a good question. Unfortunately, The Council of Magic Keepers are not exactly generous in sharing information. Especially not with vampires."

"That sucks." Crusher pulls another book toward him. "But I have ways to make people talk."

I shake my head. "Threats and violence won't work with magic keepers." I push the book about portals and other realms toward Crusher. I'm hoping we'll find a way to kill this demon in our own realm, negating the need for portals, but I need to give Crusher a job to keep him quiet, while I research.

"Take a look through this for me," I ask him. "It's in Latin. You remember how to read Latin, don't you?"

He shrugs. "A bit."

The Master gave us some basic education, but I was the only one of the four of us who showed much interest in learning anything that didn't involve our main subjects of study: getting stronger, mastering combat skills, and learning the best ways to kill.

"That book has basic information about other realms," I tell Crusher as he traces the embossed lettering on its cover. "If nothing else, it'll help you understand where the demon came from."

Frowning, Crusher nods. The legs of his chair scrape over the mosaic floor, then he sits and opens the book.

I return my focus to the section I was reading when we found out about Phil, and a chill traces through me. I've been trying to push what I read out of my mind, but now that I continue, it's worse than I thought. Every detail fits.

There is a particular type of demon—the loose English translation is Pain Monger—and it's the closest match to what we've seen yet.

This demon gains power through pain, particularly the pain of women. I continue reading and it keeps getting worse. According to this book, if this demon chooses a mate, causing her pain will give the demon power to control the minds of all beings on earth—especially after he implants his chosen mate with the seed of evil.

And when the demon's mate bears children, not only will that cause her tortuous pain, her offspring will also be demons. And they will spread the seed of evil, until all the minds in this realm, human or beast, are commanded by the Pain Monger's will.

At this point in the book, there's an illustration so horrific I close my eyes. I know it's just an imagined future, but the images of torture and flames and cruelty are revolting to fathom. My blood turns to ice, and sweat rises on my skin.

"What's wrong, buddy?" Flame's hand lands on my shoulder.

Snapping shut the book, I shake my head.

"Too many horror stories? You know you won't sleep." Squeezing my shoulder, he grins, but this is no joke.

"Any of those books have pictures?" Flame glances toward the stacks on the table. "Any with weapons? Let's see if I can find out more about that dagger."

I draw a deep breath to calm myself. I love how much Flame wants to help. And how proud he is that he was the one who found the illustration of the dagger Rasputin used to mark Phil.

Thinking of Phil brings on a new wave of grief, almost like I'd forgotten he was gone for a second. I stare at the book's cover, worn brown leather embossed with gold, and as soon as Flame finds a book to look at, I open it back to the same page. Now I've discovered what kind of demon we're facing, I hope this book contains insights on how we can kill it. But given it still exists in this realm, after the magic keepers expelled most demons…

"Blade?" a voice comes from the side of the room, and I turn toward it. It's the archive assistant who helped me find all these volumes. She gestures from one of the doorways leading out of the main research hub.

"What is it?" I ask her, irritated that I can't continue reading, even though facing the horrors contained in this book is the last thing I want to do.

"You have a video call," the archivist says. "Someone named Zuben. He says it's urgent." She nods down the hall behind her, indicating I should follow.

"Zuben?" Crusher asks.

"He's the guy I talked to at DEFTA. The one who's done research on magic and demons. Although Zuben's primarily an expert on vampire myths." I trace my finger over the horrific illustration in front of me.

Crusher pushes back his chair. "Let's go, then."

Nodding, I rise and head toward the archivist, feeling like I'm wading through mud.

"You sure you're okay?" Flame slaps my back as he comes up beside me.

I shake my head, hoping to clear the fog of fear. Today has been the worst day of my life.

Phil is dead. Ana rejected us, and I've discovered that if the thing stalking her isn't dead, it could literally end life on earth as we know it. It if gets hold of Ana, this demon will turn our world into one fueled by torture, pain and cruelty.

The archivist leads us to a room with a screen on the far wall, and various pieces of furniture arranged in between. On the screen, Zuben turns toward us. He's dressed in a dark suit that looks expensive, and his amber silk tie catches the light over a crisp white shirt. All of it projects money and complements his light brown complexion and golden eyes. This vampire is a picture of sophistication and wealth.

"Blade," he says looking serious, "have you uncovered any additional information about the demon?"

I stride toward the screen. "I assume you have, since you've interrupted my work."

"Dude, chill." Flame slaps me on the back and then plops down into a leather sofa facing the screen, leaning back and crossing one leg over the other. Crusher sits on the far arm of the same sofa.

I draw a deep breath, trying to wash away my terror and grief, so I can concentrate on the matters at hand. But my efforts to calm myself aren't working. I reach into my pocket, my fingers seeking the relief of a sharp razor.

"I apologize." I nod toward Zuben, as I slide a sharp edge into my fingertip. "I have…" I'm not ready to talk about my most recent discovery yet. Not until I'm more certain. "My research is progressing," I tell him. "I had to pause when we heard the news about Phil." I swallow to clear my voice. "I only just started up again."

Zuben glances to the side, then back toward us.

Flame reaches up, grabs my arm, and pulls me down to the sofa beside him. Seeing the blood blooming on my jeans, he shakes his head. I pull my hand from my pocket, resting it on my thigh and hoping to block the blood stain from Crusher's view.

"Why did you contact us?" I ask Zuben. "Did you discover something new?"

Again, he glances to the side as if consulting someone, and distrust rises inside me. When we met in Philadelphia, Zuben came off stiff and formal, but also straightforward and truthful. Not shifty, like he's being right now.

"What's going on?" I frown. "What are you hiding?"

He draws a deep breath. "Diederik, our former head of security?—"

"We know who the fuck Diederik is," Crusher interrupts.

Zuben nods. "I wanted to warn you that the demon developed the ability to control the minds of vampires, as well as humans."

Crusher rises and crosses his arms over his chest. "We fucking know that. I was a direct witness to that!"

"Of course, of course." Zuben glances to the side again. "As were many here at DEFTA. That's why they called me in. The leadership team is trying to get to the bottom of what happened. To discover how the demon, using Diederik's likeness, could take control of so many loyal staff members." Zuben's long fingers flex on the desk in front of him, as if he's trying to drive their tips through the wood.

Crusher takes a step toward the screen. "Was that Diederik or Rasputin, whom Phil and I battled on the roof?"

"Rasputin," I answer. We already talked about this.

"I agree with Blade," Zuben adds. "It wasn't Diederik. We've since discovered his body, hidden in an air vent in an unused area of our building. He's been there a while."

"Killing Diederik, gave Rasputin the power to use his form," I tell Zuben. "He did this with at least two other vampires we know of."

I raise my chin, my confidence returning. "Given that, it was the demon who commanded that army of vampires, not Rasputin. Or Diederik." Now that I'm back in my comfort zone, explaining my research, I feel calmer. "A demon-possessed human can borrow the form of a dead human or vampire, but demons can't possess the minds of vampires."

Zuben leans forward. "You sound very certain of this."

"As certain as I can be." I lean onto my knees. "I've read a thousand accounts of demonic possessions, and not even one involved a vampire. Humans are the creatures susceptible to demonic possession."

"But what if this particular demon can possess a vampire?" Zuben asks.

A chill lifts every hair on my body. "Not possible."

Zuben clears his throat. "What if I told you it is possible."

I stand. "What did you discover? What is your source? Can you send it to me?"

Zuben looks to his left, again.

"Who's there with you?" Flame rises to his feet beside me and points toward the screen. "Who are you hiding?"

I'm glad I'm not the only one who's noticed Zuben's shady behavior on this call.

My already icy blood freezes solid. What if this isn't Zuben at all? I should have thought of that sooner.

Have we been tricked? Did Rasputin kill Zuben too? How can we know whom to trust?

"Are you Rasputin?" I ask.

"Rasputin is dead," Zuben says stiffly. "And his body, once killed, turned to ash. He is most certainly gone."

Relief floods me.

"How do you know?" Crusher asks gruffly. "We already saw him die once, but I saw him alive after that."

"He is dead," Zuben says.

Crusher lunges toward the screen. "Prove it."

Zuben turns again, tipping his head to the side this time, as if appealing to someone outside the camera's range.

"Fuck." A deep voice comes from off screen. A voice that sounds like…

Phil steps into the frame.