Chapter 30

CHAPTER THIRTY

A fourth challenger entered the ring of argument but this one was familiar. Hugh stepped out of the shadows of one of the trees and his bright eyes illuminated the dark bark. He crossed his arm over his chest and bowed low to us. "My sincerest apologies for this cold welcome."

Tegan shook his head. "It's our fault for coming unannounced and on such short notice."

"But it is not your fault for bearing the brunt of the animosity toward your host," he countered as he gave his fellow undead a sharp look. "Don't you have clam duties this night, Rufo?"

Rufo didn't look pleased at all with the soft reprimand and the chore reminder. "And what if I do? I was just walking this way to make sure none of Lusio's supporters were watching us."

Hugh stared at him without blinking. Rufo quailed under the sharp, intense look and took a step back.

The rough vampire nodded. "Alright, I'm going. No need to get your pants bunched up." He eagerly slipped away into the night.

Hugh softened his expression and turned to us. "My sincerest apologies for his uncouth behavior. You were looking for Conrad?"

"We wanted to ask him about the trouble this afternoon," Tegan told him.

Hugh lifted an eyebrow. "Why is that? Was there some trouble with a vampire?"

"That's what we'd like to ask him about," Tegan persisted as he looked around. "Is he in the area?"

"He's currently at one of the dozen longhouses along the beach," Hugh revealed as he swept his arm toward the hilly landscape behind him. "But if you would wait in the catacombs, I could fetch him."

"How long would it take to find him?" Tegan wondered.

Hugh turned his head around and smiled at us. "You're concerned you'll miss the final trial tonight?"

"We'd just like to see this trouble to the end," Tegan told him.

"You needn't worry," Hugh assured us as he nodded at the horizon. "There is still plenty of time before midnight and I will find Conrad in a short time. Before that, allow me to offer you what hospitality I can while you wait. There is a tomb not far off that will shield you from the cold winds."

One of those same cold winds blew over us from the ocean. I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. "That sounds pretty nice."

He smiled and swept his arm toward the distance. "Then allow me to guide you."

We followed the vampire over hill and dale for a mile before I noticed a change in the ground. Random holes popped up here and there and were occupied by stone stairs. The steps led down to doors and a few ended at collapsed doorways. Some of the stairs were in front of hills and others stood guard over completely flat areas.

"How many catacombs are there?" I spoke up. My voice sounded so small in the eerie silence.

"Many dozens," Hugh informed us as he cast his gaze on one of the holes we passed. "Vampires lived here even before the capital was a great metropolis. The ocean provided a natural barrier to attack and the place was once covered in woods that protected us from anything larger than small parties of attackers." He lifted his eyes upward and the stars twinkled on his soft smile. "The trees cast their shadows for miles upon miles. You could smell the scent of them for twice that distance off. Their branches were so thick a young vampire could walk from one end of the beach to the other without getting burned."

"You sound as though you remember those woods," Tegan commented.

Hugh smiled. "I remember many of them."

"And then the fields came?" I guessed.

His good humor faltered and he looked ahead. "Yes. The old growth made this place very fertile so the mortals came with their plows to tame the land."

"Including Lusio," Tegan mused.

The vampire stiffened a little but didn't break his stride. "Including Mr. Lusio."

"He hasn't always scavenged for treasures?" I wondered.

Tegan shook his head. "Lusio started out by trading wheat and then got into the diving business. He used that money and the fame from the trials to set himself up as the property owner of most of this area."

We reached one of the holes in the ground and I noticed a large dome stood thirty feet off ahead of us.

"This is my family's crypt," Hugh revealed as he strolled down the steps and opened the cell door. The hinges creaked in protest.

I gingerly walked down the stairs. Cobwebs covered both walls and leaves littered the entranceway. The doorway led into a narrow hall of stone which light didn't touch. The end was a mystery to me and I noticed Tegan held back a little as his bright eyes scanned the area.

"My apologies for the poor conditions," Hugh told us as he gestured down the hall. "I haven't been back long enough to clean the area, but there are some comfortable seats inside that will keep you out of the wind."

"Do you intend to stay long?" Tegan wondered as we were guided down the dark passage. Niches in the walls held the crumbling remains of a few bones.

"Not long. My work here is almost finished."

Hugh guided us to the end where the way opened to a small rotunda with a domed ceiling. The walls had been built from huge stone blocks grayed by centuries of time and dirt. I did notice there were some fresh markings smeared across the wall dust that showed a reddish hue.

Hugh turned to us with a smile and gestured to a long bench that encircled the room where people could sit with the dead. "Please make yourselves comfortable."

Something about this whole thing stank and Tegan felt the same way. He set a stiff hand on my shoulder and smiled at our host. "If you don't mind, I think we'll wait in the open for Conrad."

"But I do mind."

There was a chill in Hugh's voice that set off alarm bells. Tegan grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the exit. Hugh was faster. Much faster. He slipped past us with preternatural speed and turned at the opening to the passage. The vampire had a wide, almost maniacal grin on his face as he snapped his fingers.

A faint red mist burst out of the walls and created a barrier that encompassed the entire rotunda from the center of the floor to the tip of the domed ceiling. Tegan released me and slammed his shoulder against the new wall but a charge of energy threw him back. He crashed into the center of the floor and slid for a few feet before coming to a stop.

I rushed to his side as he sat up with a pained and furious expression on his face. "What's the meaning of this, Hugh?" he shouted at our ‘host.'

Hugh chuckled. "I am merely trying to save you from getting in my way again. If you were to do that a third time, well, I couldn't guarantee your lives."

I whipped my head up and glared at him. "You? You're the one behind all this?"

He folded his arms across his chest and shrugged. "I take complete credit."

"Even for this?" Tegan countered as he nodded at the barrier.

Hugh swept his admiring eyes over the mist. "No. Unfortunately, my gift doesn't lie in such complicated magics. This is Miss Clara's work."

"Willing or unwilling?" Tegan questioned him as he eased himself onto his feet with me helping him.

"A little bit of both," Hugh mused with a crooked smile on his lips. "She's rather tired of being a contract slave to that monster and she wanted to save you from your own unwilling mission. Crafting this magic worked out well for her in both ways."

"So where does your gift lie?" Tegan wondered as he stared daggers at our foe.

Hugh chuckled. "Haven't you guessed? I can control people with my mind."

"You bastard!" I lunged forward and only Tegan stopped me from crashing into the barrier. Still, I gave Hugh a promise of retribution. "You're the one who got into my head!"

He inclined his head. "My sincerest apologies, Miss Kate, but I had no choice. You were interfering far too much in my plans."

Tegan hugged me against his chest as he glared at our captor. "Do those plans include killing Lusio?"

"Of course," Hugh confirmed.

"For the other vampires?" he guessed.

Hugh's smile faltered and he grasped his folded arms together. "For them and to make amends."

"Amends for what? Being an asshole?" I snapped.

He shook his head as a deadly seriousness settled on his face. "No, for being the cause of my people's suffering. You see, I was the winner of the first trial. The one that gave so much attention to Lusio and allowed him to become as wealthy and powerful as he is now."

I froze as I recalled the first carved door in Lusio's mansion. It had shown a figure holding their hands up while others did the same in front of him. They had all been calling out the name Hugo. Hugh.

"It's noble to make amends for mistakes but not to take a man's life, even a man like Lusio," Tegan countered.

Hugh scoffed. "Taking his life is the only way to make amends, and what better time to take it than during his precious trials?"

"Why don't you control us now so we could kill him?" Tegan asked our captor.

Hugh's smile faltered and his sharp eyes settled on me. "I'd rather not risk challenging light energy, though I do wonder how Miss Kate was able to conjure such magic when you are evidently a user of fire. Shouldn't Keys and their Clasps have the same element?"

"Are we those?" Tegan countered.

The vampire closed his eyes and shook his head. "There's no use denying it. Morrigan wouldn't concern herself with you two unless you'd wronged the Senate somehow, and I can't think of a better way than rejecting their offer to join the Keys." He cocked his head to one side and a crooked smile slipped onto his lips. "Perhaps I'll speak with them before I leave the area. They would be very interested to hear that you're here. After all, with Lusio dead then no property belongs to him, only his estate."

Hugh chuckled as he turned and strode down the passage. His voice echoed down the hall back at us.

"Enjoy your stay! You'll be here quite a while!"