“Oh, Octavia,” he saidquietly.
“Klyn,” I began but he interruptedme.
“Dear, your mother did not make it. I am so sorry,Octavia.”
I began to cry and tried to get up, but a firm hand pressed down on my shoulder to keep me in bed. Klyn gently held my hand between his, and pressed his lips against my shakinghand.
“Drink this,” the witch, Tiara, instructed and held a charger towardsme.
Klyn helped me sit up and he held his hand against the back of my head. The drink tasted horrible, but I had no option but to trust it. In my haze and between sleeping, I hung onto their conversations as best as Icould.
“What did they look like,Klyn?”
“They all had dark hair, lithe, thin bodies, all males. I had never seen creatures move that fast andundetected.”
“Carpe Noctem,” Tiara whispered. “They are vampires that move with the cover of fog. I had heard stories of them among others here in theforest.”
“But here? In Drishane?” Klyn coughed and groaned in pain. I tried to move but had no energy. “What could they possibly want inDrishane?”
“They are nothing more than thugs stealing currency to build up their town of Stonewald. They use forest chips for currency to barter andtrade.”
“Most places here in Dreyle use forestchips—”
“Except for Drishane. The Royal Darick is used and it holds the most value in neighboring countries, which is where the vampires of Carpe Noctem obtain theirgoods.”
“If all they wanted was currency, why not just take it andleave?”
“Klyn, they are monsters. They leave destruction in itspath.”
“They wiped out an entire town!” Klyn coughed again. “Did they want to take overDrishane?”
“Potentially. Most important was the currency. Which, is all in a chamber at the Darickcastle.”
“So they have raided it and wiped out a town,” Klyn’s voice dripped withanger.
“No. They did not raid the castle,” Tiara saidconfidently.
“How are you sosure?”
“She isalive.”
“Octavia?” Klyn whispered though I could hear himperfectly.
“For centuries, Dreyle has been run by vampires, while witches and warlocks roam about. But, the Kingdom of Darick is not without its own special power,” Tiara spoke as I fought to stay alert and listen. “The Halo of Darick has been around as long as the family. It is a spell that protects the castle from vampires. No vampire can cross the threshold of Darick Castle without being invited by a member of the royalfamily.”
“Does the Carpe Noctem know that?” Klynasked.
“Doubtful and they will probably make multiple attempts to overtake the castle. But, while Octavia is alive, the Halo of Darick cannot be broken. They have no wayin.”
Good, I thought tomyself.
“As long as Octavia survives the next few days while the aethereal blood from the Carpe Noctem passes through her system, she will beimmortal.”
“Tiara,” Klyn coughed hard again, “She isnineteen—”
“Spawn of the Carpe Noctem, though extremely rare, will age until they reach full maturity. There is a good chance Octavia will continue to age until her late twenties or earlythirties.”
“Will she be able to get into thecastle?”
