Sadly, there was every chance that part was true though I would never admit it aloud. ‘Then why,’ I demanded icily, ‘did you have to knock him unconscious to get him here?’
The fanged bastard thought he had an answer for everything. ‘It seemed kinder to do it that way.’
‘Let him go.’
‘No.’
I unfolded my arms and raised my stake. ‘Let him go, Alan.’
The vampire shook his head. ‘No.’ His hand snaked into his pocket and pulled out a small knife. He held it to Eric’s throat. ‘Come any closer, Kit, and I will kill him.’
‘Do that,’ I hissed, ‘and I will killyou.’
He smiled sadly. ‘So be it.’ He pressed his knife into Eric’s flesh and a dribble of bright blood appeared.
Chapter
Twenty-One
‘Stop!’ I shouted.
Alan held the knife steady. He didn’t slice any deeper but neither did he move his hand away.
‘Stop? Why?’ he asked. ‘You have made your opinion clear, but you have to realise that the monster must be fed. The last time it ate was when Lord Chester sacrificed himself. I had hoped to offer it two meals to lengthen the time before it attacks us again – it prefers its food alive and kicking. Such double sacrifices gain us forty days rather than thirty.’ He shrugged. ‘It is what it is. Rather than two living people, it will feast upon one dead body. There is no choice. The monster cannot be stopped and it must eat.’
‘I won’t let you do this, Alan.’
‘You must,’ he replied dispassionately.
I gritted my teeth. I was fast and capable but I had no hope of reaching Eric before Alan plunged in his knife deep enough to kill him. I wasn’t sure I believed what he was telling me about this maze monster, but I did believe he was about to end Eric’s life. I had to think quickly. There was still a way out of this. There had to be.
‘Uhnnnnn.’
I jerked. So did Alan. We both turned and stared at Eric.
‘Do it,’ the thrall grunted, apparently conscious of what was happening. ‘Kill me.’
He wasn’t helping his cause.
Alan shot me a triumphant look. ‘See? He wants this.’
Eric raised his head, his eyes wild. ‘I do. If this is where my lord died, this is where I should die too. It’s for the greater good. It will help the vampires.’
Except his death herewouldn’thelp them; it wouldn’t solve their problem, it would only delay it. I switched my gaze to Alan. ‘And what happens in another month or so when the monster has to feed again? How many lambs will you sacrifice here?’
He remained impassive; he truly believed he was doing the right thing. ‘As many as it takes. There is no other option, Kit. Too many of us have already died.’
‘I am happy to die here,’ Eric whispered.
‘Shut up!’ I snapped as I continued to focus on Alan. ‘Do all of you know about this? Do all vampires believe it’s right to sacrifice any non-vamp who is unlucky enough to wander through the Understream?’
‘Given sufficient time and enough deaths amongst our people, they will believe as I do,’ he answered calmly. ‘They will see that Lord Chester was trying to help them, as am I. Eric is helping them too, in his own way.’
His expression grew more earnest and it made my insides crawl with revulsion. ‘Sooner or later, the monster will return to its slumber and all this will end. Until then, all we can do is feed it.’
‘You don’t know it will return to hibernation.’
He shrugged. ‘I have to believe it.’
