‘No, I am not.’
His smile was wobbly. ‘You’re undead.’
She reached up and patted his cheek. ‘That is my boy.’
I glanced down for She Without An Ear. My brave tabby was sniffing at a patch on the ground and it took me a second to realise it was the last spot where the Maine Coon had been. Of the handsome silver bastard himself, there was no sign.
I turned in a circle. If any of the monster’s bones had survived its death, there was no evidence of them now. They might have been buried underneath what remained of the maze walls or consigned to dust.
I didn’t need to look for them. The creature was gone. Its bed, shelves and their contents couldn’t be seen, and none of the maze walls appeared to be standing. All that remained was the single witchlight bottle that had been there before we arrived, though no light emanated from it. The magic that imbued it had sputtered out when the maze collapsed.
I picked it up and turned it over. As I gazed at the etched mark on its underside, my mouth tightened a fraction. ‘Come on,’ I said. ‘Let’s get out of here. It’s time to go home.’
Thane hoisted up Eric’s body. The thrall’s breathing wasragged but he was alive for now. Frankly, it was more than the idiot deserved.
She Without An Ear purred, licked her paws, gracefully stood up and took the lead, padding through the piles of crumbled stone and dust while the rest of us followed. The night maze was no more – and neither was the monster that had haunted it.
I didn’t seethe figure until we were close to the cavern’s exit. They were standing between the two sacrificial poles, their head bowed. My feet slowed to a halt and I gazed at them. I murmured to Thane and he stopped, too.
I marched forward with my shoulders pulled back and a demand on my lips. When Trilby raised their head and I saw their expression, the words died on my tongue as a tear tracked unchecked down their cheek. I swallowed hard then held up the witchlight that I’d carried out of the remains of the maze. ‘I believe this is yours.’
Trilby took it from me wordlessly. I waited, but when it became clear that they wouldn’t say anything unless I prompted them, I drew in a breath to speak. ‘You gave the monster that witchlight.’
I didn’t mean to sound accusatory but from Trilby’s flinch it was obvious that I did.
‘He. Notit.’ They met my eyes. ‘He.’ Trilby sniffed. ‘And I only left the witchlight there – I didn’t hand it over gift-wrapped with a kiss and a handshake. I thought it might be useful for you.’
I couldn’t deny that. ‘Trilby,’ I started more softly.
‘He was my friend.’
Oh.
‘I’ve known him for a long time.’
I shifted my weight. ‘How long?’
‘Long.’
Hundreds of years? Thousands? Whatever the answer, Trilby wouldn’t expand on it.
‘His name was Cian.’
I stared at them.
‘He was a good man,’ they continued. ‘Until he wasn’t.’
I found my voice. ‘He was the first, wasn’t he? He was the first vampire.’ Trilby didn’t deny it. I crossed my arms. ‘Did you create the maze to hold him, Trilby?’
On this occasion, their answer was swift. ‘No, Cian did. He knew what was coming. He could feel the darkness encroaching on the corners of his mind so he built the maze then keyed it to his own blood. He built it so that he couldn’t escape no matter how warped his mind became with bloodlust.’
The ever-shifting walls: no wonder the entire maze collapsed when the monster – Cian – had died. ‘It didn’t work. He learned how to beat his own creation.’
Trilby nodded. ‘He did.’ They linked their fingers together and bowed their head. ‘It was inevitable, although he did what he could to prevent anyone from getting hurt as a result of his madness.’
‘He failed,’ I growled.
‘Yes.’
