Page 185 of Plug and Drain

“It is,” Arken said, wedging his fingers into a narrow groove near the top and pulling the panel inward. The limited space forced his and Susie’s body close together.

She gasped when she saw the forest beyond. The pine trees looked spooky in the darkness, but the mansion’s roof was visible in the distance, its pointed roof gleaming in the greying skies. It would soon be dawn.

“You hid a portal…right next to Henrikk’s?”

“Nathaniel thought it was a ludicrous idea. ‘Moronic’, I believe he called it.”

“It’s brilliant,” Susie said, staring wide-eyed through the portal. “Absolutely brilliant. So, what happens now? Are we going to go through? Is it safe?”

He took her hand in response, and walking backwards through the portal, he gently pulled her through until the fresh, comforting smell of pine greeted them. It was dark and peaceful, but the sound of birds signalled that the forest was slowly awakening as dawn approached.

“Where are we?”

“In another plane,” Arken said as they walked towards the mansion. The forest floor had a thick bedding of pine needles, and he kept hold of Susie’s hand as they walked. “Another dimension, you could say. There are witches being kept in the house.”

“Witches? As in…more than one?”

It was not exactly the reaction he’d been expecting. As far as the public knew, witches were extinct. A single witch should have been as shocking as multiple.

“Yes, more than one. While Henrikk was wiping out the covens, a group of witches and wizards were here—they called it the Spring Plane—celebrating someone’s birthday or whatnot. I’m not sure how much you know about witches…?”

“Very little,” Susie said as Arken helped her step over a log.

“Well, they certainly know how to throw a party. Their ‘celebrations’ generally span several weeks, and this lot were completely sloshed when Nathaniel found them.”

Susie winced. “They were here, drinking, while their people were being slain? That must have been so horrible for them to find out like that.”

It was his turn to wince. “Nathaniel may have delayed in telling them the… err…exact circumstances of their confinement. His priority was to contain them to keep them safe, which involved shutting down the portals and taking measures to prevent the witches from travelling back. So, by the time they found out…yes, I imagine it was quite horrible.”

A brick wall topped with wrought iron loomed in the distance. Arken pointed at it. “The wall encircles the manor. It’s enchanted to prevent the witches from escaping.”

Susie ground to a halt. “You talk about them as if they’re prisoners.”

“I suppose they are prisoners, in a sense. They certainly seem to think so.”

Susie looked disapproving, but she bit her lip and followed him.

Arken stopped outside the wrought iron gates, which were locked with a large, enchanted padlock.

“Aren’t we going inside?” Susie asked.

“Oh no,” Arken laughed. “No, no, no. I’ve already been here once today. That was quite enough for me. But I’ll bring you another time if you wish.”

“Arken…I’m really confused.”

He sighed and turned to face her. “That’s because I’m afraid I’m not explaining it very well. He reached up and loosened his neck scarf. “Everyone knows that vampires prefer to feed from wolf shifters rather than humans. Wolf blood not only tastes incredible, but it has properties that revitalise us.”

Susie’s eyes widened as he began unbuttoning his shirt. “What are you doing?”

“There is a lesser-known dynamic between witches and vampires, where the reverse is true: witches drink the blood of vampires to reverse the ageing process caused by their magic.”

His shirt opened, and he shrugged out of it.

There was a split second during which Susie’s pupils dilated as she stared at his torso, and then she gasped in horror and covered her mouth with her hands.

There were bite marks all along his neck and collarbone, trailing all the way down past his shoulders to his wrist. The pattern of indentations revealed that they were human teeth—circular and imprecise. His forearms were covered in cuts.

It was the first time she’d seen him without his shirt, and with good reason. For all their reluctance, the witches had made a real mess of feeding from him.