Dinner With a Vampire (The Dark Heroine #1)(117)
Author: Abigail Gibbs

He pulled away, his smile fading as he cupped my cheek.

‘Girly, I—’

‘Sorry, was I interrupting something?’

I sat upright as quickly as Kaspar rolled off me, flushing beetroot red as the doors closed behind Henry, who stood frozen and watching us, blushing too.

‘No, not at all,’ Kaspar said in his usual smooth tone, trying to discretely pull my T-shirt back down over my exposed hip.

Henry nodded, but looked sceptical. ‘You should probably get some rest,’ he said, looking at me. ‘Tomorrow will not be easy.’

I nodded and began to clamber to my feet, reality feeling as though it was tumbling down to crush my shoulders once more. Kaspar stood up too, taking my hand and pulling me close enough to peck me on the cheek.

‘Try not to worry,’ he murmured, before giving me a little push up the stairs. As I neared the top he joined Henry at the bottom and both started talking in undertones, heading towards the main downstairs corridor.

Rest? How the hell am I going to rest? I thought. But to my surprise, as soon as my head hit the pillow my eyes became heavy and I fell asleep within minutes, head full of images of Kaspar and twisted dreams of everything that could go wrong the next day.

SIXTY

Violet

The following morning was grey but dry. A strong breeze had whipped up and as I perched on the bottom of the staircase, jumping at the smallest of noises, the cold wind kept rushing through the open doors, stirring my hair and making the hairs on my arms stand up.

My hair was washed and I had attempted to put make-up on, but my hands had been shaking so much that applying eyeliner was just too much of a chore, so I had given up. I wore a fresh buttoned black shirt and a pair of boot-cut jeans, both laid out for me first thing. I haven’t worn boot-cut for years, I thought. If ever. I had been wearing shoes too, but Eaglen had told me to take them off because he didn’t want anyone getting the idea I was going anywhere. Anyone. We all knew who that referred to. But all in all, I looked more presentable that I had done in weeks. I was pretty sure that was due to the fact they didn’t want ‘anyone’ getting the idea I had been mistreated.

But I could look like the best turned-out princess – the irony – and it wouldn’t improve how I felt. Sick. Waiting, just waiting, was more nerve-racking than Ad Infinitum had ever been. In fact, it was worse than getting my exam results and I had thrown up that day.

I glanced at the face of Kaspar’s watch: 12.40 p.m. The Sage, just thirty in total, would have taken out the rogues and slayers on the south side by now. I had heard Henry, heading out that morning, murmuring to Eaglen who was going towards the north side that he didn’t hold out much hope of ‘just immobilizing’ them. Blood will be shed.

‘Are you all right?’ Kaspar asked, sitting beside me on the same step as the night before. He wore a black shirt as always, but today it was tucked in and buttoned up. He had even combed his hair. Mute for several hours now, I just nodded. ‘Not long now,’ he said, stretching his legs out. I was stiff too, but I couldn’t bring myself to move.

The rest of the Varns had retreated into the King’s study to wait, leaving Kaspar, the two butlers, ten or so of the guards of Varnley and I in the entrance hall. Every so often, they would stiffen and mutter urgently in Romanian to one another, before relaxing again. Once or twice, they directly addressed Kaspar, who would tense, a flash of red crossing his eyes. After a while, I figured that it must be when a slayer managed to evade the Sage and slip across the border. But they obviously were not getting far. In the back of my mind, I knew the death toll was rising.

12.50 p.m. The Sage would be working around towards the north side now, to meet Eaglen near the village of Low Marshes, which was where my father was waiting. What if he isn’t where he is meant to be? Could he have got wind of what we were planning? That was unlikely because the plan had only been finalized the day before, yet it still worried me. But there were worse eventualities: the vampires involved might not respect the King and Crown’s Protection; they could kill him. That was far more likely. I would just have to trust Eaglen. He wouldn’t kill him. He wasn’t that type.

Who will he have with him? Bodyguards? Advisors? Ministers? Endless questions bounced around my mind.

12.55 p.m. A particularly strong wind swept through the doors, sending the black cloaks of the guards billowing across the entrance. The green-and-grey landscape outside was draped in black cloth until the gust passed. The cloaks sank back around the forms of those who wore them, encasing their pale, translucent skin once more. I bit my bottom lip. How much will he know about the Heroines? I assumed he would know quite a lot, because that must be why he had chosen now; now, when the dark beings were preoccupied. Or so he must think.

12.58 p.m. The second hand of Kaspar’s watch inched around, seeming to be slow enough for my heart to thump twice every time it moved. 12.59 p.m. All of a sudden, the guards straightened and their forever-red eyes turned not to Kaspar, but to me. My breath caught and I scrambled up, feeling my stomach knot.

‘They have got him,’ a voice called and I turned to see the King entering, along with his entire family as well as Fabian, Declan and the others; several members of the council accompanied them, including, I realized, with another sick twist of my stomach, Valerian Crimson. I will never be rid of him.

I felt a hand enclose my own. ‘Just focus on what you have to do,’ Kaspar murmured, untucking a chunk of hair from behind my ear and letting it fall around my face. It curled itself into a coil – the reason I had pushed it out of my face in the first place. I nodded and said nothing. I should have straightened it, I thought. I always wore it straight at home.

I forced deep breaths into my lungs. The clock struck once; the minutes continued to pass like hours. Nobody made a sound. The air could be cut with a blunt knife, tenser than the guards who lined the outside steps or the fingers of the butlers who clutched the handles of the doors, ready to close them and seal my father inside.

The gravel crunched. There were no shouts; no signs of a struggle, just the regular sound of footsteps. I fought the urge to dart forward and look out at the driveway. Instead, I looked at the Varns. Their faces were blank and they seemed composed. The King, catching my eye, moved forward and came and stood beside me, sandwiching me between Kaspar and himself. Whether he thought I was going to try something or whether it was some act of solidarity, I didn’t know.

The crunching stopped and was replaced by the echoing clatter of several people climbing the steps. I let go of Kaspar’s hand. As soon as I did, Eaglen passed through the entrance, followed by Henry and Joanna. And a few paces behind was my father, each arm clasped by a vampire, but they needn’t have bothered. He walked calmly in like he was strolling into his own home and let his eyes roll over the inhabitants of the entrance hall, the corners of his mouth downturned in disgust.