Darkling

The rest of the room was empty, except for four podiums, one at each quarter of the circle, where pronged stands held gemstones as big as my fist. Camille's eyes went wide as she stared at the jewels. To the north was an emerald. To the east, a diamond. To the south—a ruby. And to the west, a sapphire.

I tapped her on the shoulder. "Your jewelry fetish is showing."

She flashed me a smile. "Amazing, aren't they? I didn't know some of those gem crystals could grow so big."

"They must be worth a fortune." I turned to Jareth. "How do you protect them from being stolen?"

Jareth stared at me, clearly amused. "Do you really think anybody could manage to not only infiltrate the City of Seers, but then get through our temple with all the wards and bindings? For one thing, we're outside of normal time. Within this space, we've entered a parallel realm and there's only one way in or out. The door through which you entered is only visible when we deem it so."

Morio and Camille wandered around the edges of the pentacle. Morio sniffed. "Magic is thick here."

"Yes, and this is where we will pinpoint Dredge's location, and sever his connection to Menolly." Jareth motioned to Morio. "Take the element of air, if you will." Morio looked surprised but obeyed, and Jareth turned to Camille. "If you will guard the west." She walked over to stand beside the sapphire.

"Where do you want me?" I asked, ready to get the show on the road.

"In the center, but don't move yet." He clapped his hands and the door opened again. Two robed figures glided in. I couldn't even begin to see their faces behind their hoods. One silently stood by the ruby, the other beside the emerald. "Once they activate the stones, you'll walk into the center and I'll follow, then they'll close the circle."

The globes of light dimmed. Jareth motioned to the figure standing by the emerald. "Just follow suit," he told Camille and Morio.

The cloaked woman—in this space, I could smell her delicate scent—reached up and grasped the emerald tightly in both hands. The stone began to glow, a glimmer in the center at first that radiated out. A beam shot from the crystal to land directly in the center of the diamond.

"By soil and branch, sanctify and protect this space," the woman's whisper echoed in the chamber.

Morio glanced at Jareth, who gestured the go-ahead. Morio grasped the diamond with both hands and inhaled sharply. Once again, the crystal began to glow with a shimmer so white it almost burnt my eyes. The beam shot out to kiss the ruby.

"By wind and gale, sanctify and protect this space," Morio said, his voice trembling ever so slightly.

Jareth nodded to the robed man standing near the ruby. There was something familiar about him but I couldn't pinpoint what. He reached up and once again, a light shot forth, this one crimson as blood.

"By flame and sun, sanctify and protect this space."

"A moment," Jareth said, holding his hand up to stop Camille. "Come, Menolly." He led me through the opening between the west and north gates to the center of the pentagram, then turned back to Camille. "Close the wards," he said.

Camille took hold of the sapphire and the beam shot forth, touching the emerald. "By water and ice, sanctify and protect this space." As she spoke, a rumbling from the floor sounded, from the very center point of the pentacle, and a platform rose from the tile, upon which sat a huge crystal ball.

"And now," Jareth said, looking at me. "It's time for us to find out where Dredge is. And to sever your ties."

I knelt by the dais and took hold of the crystal ball. This was it. And I sincerely hoped that Dredge wouldn't notice and go on a killing spree before we could make it home.

CHAPTER 15

The crystal ball began to glow as a ripple tickled my fingers.

"Look into the ball. Think of Dredge, remember that night." Jareth stood behind me, hands on my shoulders, letting me source his energy.

"Dredge, where the fuck are you?" I whispered. A swirl began to form within the crystal. Jareth steadied me, and I managed to keep my hands on the orb. We were still connected. If Dredge realized I was spying on him, he'd have the advantage. Which meant I had to slide into his mind, then out again before he knew I was there.

The mist in the crystal swirled, a phantasmagoria of red and bronze threads. I found myself sucked deep into the scintillating colors. They dipped and circled like snakes coiled in a mating dance.

The room darkened and I found myself spiraling through the ether, headed toward a brilliant crimson figure up ahead. As I drew near, the presence of my sire loomed large and deadly and then he was there, Dredge, in the center of the brilliant bloody light. Seen from this perspective, I understood why he commanded so much authority. Dredge was pure power trapped in an undying body by the greed and lust that had grown within him over the years. The chaos around him took aim like a hundred wanton arrows, firing at anyone or anything that drew near.

Nearby a deep laughter startled me and I twisted, trying to see who was there. A giant wolf rose above Dredge's shoulder, but this was no Were, no lycanthrope or native spirit. No, I knew who this was. Loki, lord of tricksters, lord of the giants, lord of mischief. And Loki held Dredge's soul firmly in his palm. So he'd traded a god of vice for the hand of chaos and madness.

I could see the cord of fire and frost that connected Dredge to the demigod. No wonder the vampire had grown so powerful over the years. Loki owned his soul, and Dredge was feeding the havoc monger. Which meant… oh great gods! Loki was Dredge's sire. No wonder Jareth hadn't been able to free Dredge. And Dredge had absorbed some of Loki's power.

Shaking my head, I focused on the task at hand. So far, the demigod hadn't noticed me and I wanted to keep it that way. I might be able to handle Dredge, but Loki? No mortal challenged the gods and lived. No vampire either, which was why Dredge was still bound to him.

I slipped around front to stare at him. Dredge didn't even blink. Jareth had promised me that he wouldn't be able to detect me unless he was deliberately focusing on the astral, and it appeared that his attention was wandering elsewhere. Even if I draped my arm around his shoulders, he wouldn't sense me, since he was my sire and we shared blood.

Now comes the hard part…

Jareth's thoughts merged with mine and I realized that he was hanging out in my head. Somehow he'd managed to tap into my mind. Normally that would piss the hell out of me but right now I was grateful that I wasn't alone.

What next? I focused the question toward Jareth, apparently doing too good of a job because I felt him jump.

Try to turn down the volume, would you?

I blinked. Oops. I'm sorry, I thought, but he shook it off.

Listen to me carefully. You need to walk into him. Look out from his eyes and see what he's seeing. Try to figure out where he is, from what he's looking at. You don't have much time, though. As soon as you find something to gauge a location, then get out and we'll sever your cord to him. I can see where it is now. Don't play hero—you can't stay inside of him long before he notices you're there. Got it?

Yep. I didn't want it, but I got it.

My stomach knotting, I made my way over to his side. Even here on the astral, I could smell him and that smell took me back. I spiraled back to his touch, to his laughter, to him filling me deep with his sex that froze me to the core of my heart. And then his wrist pressed against my lips, forcing me to drink and I understood what it meant to die alone, in pain, in anger…

Get moving. Don't get bogged down in memories. Jareth's thoughts were urgent. I licked my lips, still tasting Dredge's blood in my mouth.

Sorry. I'm going. I shook my head. The past was the past. It was time to move forward. And moving forward meant killing the motherfucker who'd dragged me down into this nightmare.

I jumped. Playing walk-in didn't thrill me, but if I had to infiltrate the devil, then infiltrate I would. As I entered his body, a surge of power ran through me. The thought of killing off his soul and taking over his form raced through my thoughts. Kyoka had done it, and with Dredge, I'd have power beyond my wildest dreams. But then I remembered the cord tying Dredge to Loki and quickly disposed of that idea. Trade a degenerate sire for a master who was ten times worse? No thanks.

I quickly sorted out my bearings and, after a moment, managed to get myself turned around so that I was staring out of Dredge's eyes.

The room in which he was standing was actually quite spacious and well furnished. I wanted to look around, to see if I could find Erin, but Dredge was focused on the view out the window, so I couldn't.

As I stared into the Seattle night I caught a glimpse of two important landmarks: one was a statue over on the docks that had recently been unveiled. Called The Deckhand, it was a tribute to all the dock workers who'd labored away on the ships that pulled into port. And the other landmark was the Sushirama, a restaurant Camille had been talking about that had recently opened down on the Pier. That meant Dredge was in one of the old warehouses on the other side of Alaskan Way, and if I didn't miss my guess, he was probably staying at the Halcyon, a hotel and nightclub combo owned by an Earthside Supe. I got the vague sense that, although the hotel catered to Supes, the owner didn't realize Dredge was a vampire from OW.

With one last look out the window to try and gauge the height from the street—probably third or fourth floor—I slipped out of his body.

I'm ready.

Jareth led me away. As soon as we'd retreated from Dredge's astral form, in a whoosh, we were back in the circle and I opened my eyes.

"I know where he is. Let's get this done so Camille and I can get home and take him out." I glanced over at her. I knew what she was thinking. "I didn't see Erin. I don't know where he's keeping her, but I do know where he is and it won't be hard to pinpoint the exact location." She nodded.

"To sever your connections with him, I need only one tool, along with your desire to be free." Jareth withdrew a crystal dagger from the folds of his robe.

I stared at the blade. Made of elaborately carved quartz, it was polished to a high sheen, with a sapphire cabochon embedded in the handle.

"Are you from the Tygerian Mountains? The Order of the Crystal Dagger?" If he was from the brotherhood of monks that guarded the Tygerian Well, no wonder he was so powerful.

Jareth inclined his head. "Several of the brotherhood have come to live in the City of Seers." His tone told me that we weren't going to get anything more out of him about that little fact. "I need you to remove your shirt." He paused, as if trying to figure out how to say something.

"Just tell me. Whatever it is, I can take it."

"Very well. The tip of my blade needs to enter your neck where the cord binds you to Dredge. The blade is sanctified. While it won't physically harm you because you're a vampire, it will negate cords that hold oath and bind."

"You carry a warlock blade?" Camille flinched. Warlocks—or oath breakers—were traitors… magicians of the worst kind. Over Earthside, they'd been bounty hunters who infiltrated villages during the dark ages, looking for midwives and witch-women, who they then turned over to the Inquisition. In Otherworld, warlocks were actual magicians who'd broken their pacts with the gods and had been cast out of their orders.

Jareth gave her a cold look. She shut up.

"I am no warlock. But I am authorized to break oaths forced upon others unwillingly, such as your sister, or oaths coerced through unfair means. And the ritual requires a warlock blade."

Camille hung her head. "I'm so sorry. I didn't realize the significance. Please accept my apologies." She looked so repentant that I almost laughed. My sister seldom apologized, and it was obvious she felt like a heel.

"It's all good," Jareth said. "Let it be. Menolly, as I said, I have to insert the tip of the blade into your neck. I give you my word that I won't do you any more harm than necessary, but it will be painful. The severing of a vampire from her sire is one of the most drastic bond-breakings that can take place. The only thing it's on par with is being cast out by the gods, or being exiled from a magical order. You've been carrying the link for twelve years. I guarantee you'll notice the difference. Are you prepared for the change?"

I stared into his eyes. "The truth is I don't know what to expect, but I'm ready. Just get it over with. If I'm going to destroy Dredge, I have to sever the link. And I can't stand being chained to him another minute." I removed my shirt.

Jareth stared at me as my scars came into view.

Camille flinched. She always did when she saw my body, but now she knew exactly how I'd received them. I could read the anguish in her eyes. I gave her a thumbs-up and she forced a smile to her lips.

"Kneel in front of me by the crystal ball, and move your hair away from your neck. Bow your head so I can get a clear view." He skirted to my left, muttering a few words over the dagger.

I shook my braids out of the way and knelt on the marble, hanging my head. Scared out of my wits, there was a little part of me that was afraid that when the cord was severed, I'd go up in flames or poof into a thousand ash flecks. Stupid, but fear doesn't run on logic.

As Jareth continued to incant, the energy built like a cyclone around us, catching us in the eye of the twister. Jareth's voice rose. "Menolly D'Artigo, do you renounce your sire?"

"I do." The energy shifted counterclockwise—widdershins.

"Do you choose to walk an isolated path, cut off from the lineage you bear with Dredge, and with his own sire?"

"I do." The winds began to swirl against the turn of the sun and with every rotation, they wiped away a layer of the bond forged over the days and weeks and years I'd spent linked to Dredge. One by one, the connections began to unravel, to unknot, to unwind.