‘She’s contained,’ he said through gritted teeth. ‘Move away, Gloria.’
The hissing vampire slapped me, stinging my cheek with the force of her blow, then laughed in triumph as if she’d won. I’d experienced far worse than a slap in my time so if she thought that gave her a win, she could have it. At least she backed away; her stale-blood breath had been most unpleasant.
The spell was an impressive one. I could feel magic binding my muscles, trapping me in place and ensuring that I was no longer a threat, no matter what physical or preternatural skills I might possess. But even from where I was laying, I could see what it had cost William to cast it. His skin was paler than usual and his jaw was set with tension. Beads of sweat were appearing on his forehead. I gave him five minutes before he collapsed from the effort.
‘Pick her up,’ he said in a strained whisper. ‘Take her to my office.’
‘We should take her to the cells!’ somebody else yelled.
‘Better yet, slit her throat,’ another person muttered.
Despite the lack of control I had over my body, I felt incredibly calm. I had no sense of euphoria at Alan’s death and thatwas good; it was important to me that I hadn’t killed him out of revenge or spite, or because deep down I was nothing more than a killer. I’d staked him because he was dangerous, not just to me but to anyone who crossed his path.
As two vampires reached down and picked me up as if I were little more than a bag of flour, I shuddered inwardly at the thought of how many innocent people had been sacrificed to the maze monster.The greater good.What an utter crock of cat urine-drenched rubbish.
I was half-dragged, half-carried towards William’s office, but instead of going into the room where he worked I was hauled into another one where the décor was less like an office suite and more like an interrogation room. The walls were bare, the floor was cold and nothing but a few chairs graced the space. At least there weren’t any obvious bloodstains.
The vampires shoved me onto the nearest chair and somebody produced a rope. ‘Here.’ The first vampire bound me tightly with it.
Another vamp appeared in the doorway holding a set of iron chains that were unpleasantly reminiscent of the ones in front of the maze. ‘Will these help?’
‘Definitely.’
The chains were wrapped around my lower legs. I wondered what I was supposed to do when I needed to pee, but thankfully my bladder told me that would be a problem for another time.
‘What if she turns into a cat again?’
There were several huffs of concern. The third vampire produced a small bottle. ‘Here,’ he said. ‘I’ve got some ward salt. We can circle her then it won’t matter if she’s human, cat or fucking cockroach.’
The others nodded enthusiastically and he scattered the powder around me. Now I was bound in every sense of the word – and not a moment too soon. William staggered into theroom visibly trembling and a second later the spell snapped out of existence. William and I sagged with perfect synchronicity.
I gently tested the rope and the chains, but those vampires knew what they were doing. It would take a miracle to free myself without help. Fighting was pointless so I relaxed, lifted my head and waited, curious to learn what they were planning to do with me.
‘Leave us,’ William ordered.
‘Are you sure?’ one of the vamps asked.
William drew in a breath and composed himself. ‘Leave,’ he repeated. This time his voice was stronger. The spell he’d used on me may have been short lived but so were its after-effects. Bravo.
‘We’ll be right outside,’ the vampire said. One by one they trooped out, sending warning looks in my direction. From the muffled thud after they closed the door, at least one of them had barred the way out. They weren’t taking any chances.
‘Feels like overkill, don’t you think?’ I asked conversationally. ‘I’ve been tied up with rope, bound with chains, placed within a magical ward, and those mates of yours out there are still nervous.’
William gave me a long-suffering look. ‘No, Ms McCafferty. It does not feel like overkill in the slightest.’
I grinned. He might be a bureaucratic worker but he was certainly smart. ‘Look me in the eye and tell me that killing Alan Vennington was the wrong thing to do,’ I said softly.
William looked me in the eye but he didn’t say a word. His silence spoke volumes.
Once an appropriate moment had passed, he spoke. ‘Three of your generations have passed since an above grounder ventured into the Understream and killed one of our own. When I first met you, I did not think that you would be the one to break thatrecord.’
‘I certainly wasn’t planning on killing anyone when I came down here. I don’t seek out murder.’ Not any more. ‘But I wasn’t planning on being chained to a pole and left as a monster’s breakfast either.’
William sighed. ‘That should not have happened.’
‘On that we most definitely agree,’ I told him. ‘Somebody ought to look for that thrall, you know. He left the maze cavern with Alan but I didn’t see him in the marketplace. You need to make sure he’s alright. His name is Eric – he was Chester Longchamps’ thrall.’
Although William nodded, his lack of interest in Eric’s wellbeing was palpable.
