Chapter 24

-Chase-

The next day arrived cold and windy after a few nice, warm days. Of course, the weather was miserable when we were supposed to start cleaning the yard. At least it wasn’t raining. Aaliyah and Zane came to help me because it was a massive task to get rid of the troll corpses, huge piles of bones and all the other debris that filled the yard and the gorge.

And apparently, they both were eager to hear what was going on between Dante and me.

“Okay, I didn’t want to ask about it earlier, but…” Zane trailed off as we were pushing a big boulder off the road. “You two kissed.“

“When?” I asked absentmindedly – I was trying to figure out what to do with the trolls.

“Right before the battle started. You didn’t tell me you two were back together!”

Aaliyah appeared next to us to hear my reply. I sighed at both of them.

“It just happened…” I muttered. “We were in the hotel room and he kissed me.”

“Just like that?” Aaliyah asked.

“So, you are together now, right?” Zane asked in excitement.

“I… think so?” I said. “We never talked about it though… But we share the bed and…”

“Are you having sex?”

“What? No!” I glared at Zane.

“You’re… not?” he asked in surprise.

“He’s injured, for crying out loud,” I huffed, grabbing a few branches from the ground and tossing them into the gorge.

“Like that has ever stopped you,” Zane chuckled, and fell silent when I glared at him. “Holy shit, you really haven’t had sex with him yet?”

“It’s been like four days,” I noted in annoyance.

“Since when have you waited for four days before jumping the guy?” Zane said. “Injured or not.”

Aliyah cleared her throat and gave Zane a nasty look that told him to shut up. I turned my back on both of them.

“Dante nearly died. Besides, he’s… special,” I said, speaking the last word quietly.

“You always say they’re special,” Zane said, and immediately yelped in pain. “What?” he asked, and when I turned around, I saw the two of them glaring at each other angrily, Zane rubbing his arm.

“Well, I’m glad you two are back together,” Aaliyah said, flashing a smile at me. “He seems like a wonderful guy.”

“He is,” I murmured, a smile appearing on my lips just for thinking about Dante. “He’s different than others.”

“That he sure is,” Zane said. “So. What are we going to do with all these corpses? They’ll soon start to smell when the days get warmer.”

“I think we should bury them. Burning isn’t good enough since we still need to get rid of their bones,” Aaliyah said, wrinkling her nose.

“Yup,” I nodded.

For the next few hours, we dragged the massive bodies at the bottom of the gorge, where I had created a massive hole in the ground. We filled it with the trolls before covering the hole with a lot of rocks and dirt. Aaliyah complained that she could still smell them, but there wasn’t much else we could do.

After that, we continued clearing up the road. Well, Zane and I continued with the workload, but Aaliyah was staring at the house. Soon, I got curious about what she was thinking.

“What is it?”

Aaliyah turned to look at me like she had forgotten that I was even there. “Oh… I was just… Never mind.”

“What?”

She sighed and stepped closer to me, looking hesitant. “Does he know about the people you’ve killed?”

I stared at her in disbelief. That was a question I didn’t see coming. “Why would that matter?”

“You killed his wife.”

“Ex-wife.”

“So, you haven’t?”

“Aaliyah…” Zane muttered with a warning tone, but the vampire didn’t care.

“You have to tell him someday,” Aaliyah said. “He will find out.”

“That bitch is listed missing,” I hissed at her. “Not dead. Besides, Dante doesn’t have to know it was me.”

“Chase–”

“No,” I shook my head. “I’m not telling him.”

“Not even about the others?” Aaliyah asked, and I turned my back on her in anger.

“Why would he need to tell him that?” Zane asked on my behalf. “Chase did what he had to. I will forever be grateful to him for killing that son of a bitch who murdered my sister, and–”

“And I’d probably be dead,” I said quietly, the memories of that one night when I chose the wrong guy to go out with emerging from the darkness I had shoved them in. “Why would Dante have to know about that?”

“Because you are collecting the souls,” Aliyah said. “You’ll become a demon, Chase. That is something he should definitely know if you wish to have a relationship with him.”

“I’m not collecting them,” I said in anger.

“Then what are you doing?”

I turned to glare at her, feeling so angry that I almost couldn’t find the words to speak. “He doesn’t have to know.”

“Just give up,” Zane told Aaliyah.

“I will, but I’ll say this: if you keep collecting them, you have to tell him. Every soul you take, every life you steal changes you, and when you turn, you are not the same person anymore. Far from it. Even after three souls, you have changed so much. It’s not fair to him. Especially to him – he’s been through so much already.”

“I’ll just stop killing people. Problem solved,” I snorted and her, and started to walk away.

“We all know that’s a lie,” she muttered, but I ignored her words.

She did have a point, no matter how much I hated it, but she failed to understand that I wasn’t collecting the souls on purpose. I just simply took them in case I someday needed them. I didn’t want them to go to waste – souls were pretty valuable, after all. But that didn’t mean I was going on a killing spree just to become a real warlock.

I didn’t even notice where my steps were taking me until I was standing inside the round living room, right next to the staircase that led up to Dante’s room. I hesitated for a moment, but since my frustration and anxiety and anger always soothed down when I was with Dante, I climbed up the stairs. He was sleeping when I stepped into his room. I closed the door and went to sit down on his bed, but this time, seeing his peaceful face didn’t help with my raging soul.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

Closing my eyes, I let out the deepest, angriest sigh I could muster. “What now?” I hissed to the seemingly empty room.

“You know,” Roe spoke, appearing out of thin air on a chair next to the window, “I am Roeruiz. The Roeruiz. Even my own kind fears and respects me. Hundreds of humans would give anything to be my mridien.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh, great Roeruiz, what can I help you with this time?” I asked with a monotone voice.

“Is it too late to ask for a new apprentice?” Roe asked.

I sighed and turned to look at Dante. He was in a deep sleep and I doubted he would wake up even if Roe and I talked.

“He’s not looking well,” Roe noted.

“No,” I muttered, touching Dante’s forehead. Still no fever, thankfully. “He is doing better, but he’s still going to die, so…”

“Hmmh…”

Roe stood up and walked to the bed, peering down at Dante with his black eyes. “I know you care about him, and I know his death will throw you off balance, which is why I’d like to ask, is having him part of your life really worth it?”

“Yes,” I hissed behind my gritted teeth. “He’s not going to die! I’m not letting him!”

I stood up to glare at Roe, but he just snorted at me before turning his attention back to Dante. “I see my little gift has been helpful,” he spoke, moving Dante’s covers to see his wound.

His words made me regret mine, and I felt like a jerk. I let out a deep breath, finally calming down a bit. “Yeah… Thank you. Without the potion, he would’ve died…”

“Now that’s the tone I’d like to hear more,” he said, stepping away from the bed. “But you are such an ungrateful brat sometimes. I’ve been too soft on you – you know we don’t usually lift a finger to help our mridien, no matter the circumstances. We simply do not care even if you died.”

“But you’re not like the rest of them,” I said. “You do care.”

He growled at me almost silently, squinting his eyes. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that if I were you.”

“Sure,” I chuckled.

“You are the most annoying little brat I have ever met,” he grunted at me, grabbing my wrist almost painfully. “But I’d rather not see you suffer,” he added with a much softer tone, putting something in my hand, closing my fingers around it.

My heart skipped a beat even though I had no idea what he just gave me. He wouldn’t let me see it. He put a finger under my chin and made me look up at him.

“There are mridien stronger than you, but what you lack in strength, you make up for in resourcefulness, determination, and loyalty. If there is someone who can find the cure for this disease, it’s you. I can’t deny that I enjoy having your sassy ass as my mridien, but I am still your master, the one whose power you are using. Do not take our bond lightly, and do not test my patience because I am the same as you: a hothead. I wish for your success and good fortune, but if you keep treating me in a way I haven’t deserved, you will lose my favor.”

“I’m sorry, Roe,” I mumbled. “I have no excuse for my behavior….”

“There is a lot of hate in you,” he said, peering at me carefully. “It must not be easy to live with the chaos, the battle of good and evil that has occupied your soul. I’m curious to see which one will win, or will the battle continue until the end of time.”

I didn’t say a word. He often spoke of the darkness in me, and it was something I didn’t want to think about. Besides, I was more curious about the thing in my hand. It was… It was round, but it wasn’t smooth. I could feel tiny bumps covering it.

“What is this?” I asked, and he finally let go of my hand, letting me see what I was holding.

It was… a necklace with a funky-looking purple rock. It was almost like a molecule or something.

“It is both a map and the key to a very old family crypt in Njizrski,” Roe said proudly. “I had to trade a few of my swords and a chest full of herbs to obtain it from the Grazul clan.”

“A crypt? I repeated, feeling excitement rising inside me, but then he popped that bubble.

“Oh, it’s just full of old corpses – nothing interesting to you.”

“Then why did you give it to me?” I asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

“There is a merchant in Njizrski,” Roe spoke. “He’d be very interested in it. I’d like you to take it to him.”

“So… you’re making me run errands for you? Now?” I asked.

“Yes,” he smiled, stepping behind me and landing his big hands on my shoulders. “He has something of mine, and if you play your cards right, there’s a certain book he might give you. You can have it if you bring me what belongs to me.”

“What book?” I asked, looking at him over my shoulder.

“I heard it contains ancient blood spells and stuff. Something about blood purification – might get handy,” he shrugged.

“Are you serious?” I breathed out, staring at the necklace with whole new interest. “Why didn’t you say that sooner?”

“That’s what you get for being nasty to me,” he chuckled. “But remember, I have no idea if it can help you and Dante, but it’s the only thing I’ve found so far so might as well start there.”

I turned around and hugged the demon, making him snort in surprise. “Thank you,” I whispered.

“You’re welcome,” he sighed.

-Killian-

“This is madness!“

I ignored the man’s angry whisper. Dr. Hauberk was great at what he did, even I had to admit that, but he didn’t understand the necessity of bringing Lena back to life.

“You have gone mad over your loss!” Dr. Hauberk continued hissing in my ear, and something about his words started to piss me off. I took a deep breath, trying to keep my composure – with the representatives of our investors present, I had to stay professional, even though Dr. Hauberk couldn’t do the same.

The small auditorium we were in was almost silent, and I could almost feel the excitement in the air. That, and fear.

“This is not what she would’ve wanted…”

“Doctor Hauberk,” I said, turning towards the man, unable to keep myself back any longer. “I am doing this because you failed. I gave you all the resources and you came up with nothing.”

“You didn’t give me enough time!”

“We do not have time, doctor,” I hissed back.

He stared at me with disbelief in his eyes. He was old and had seen a lot, so I was surprised that he was so against my idea. No, I didn’t like it either, but I was not letting her down. Lena was waiting for me to bring her back, and that I was going to do.

No matter how.

I turned my attention back to the bottom of the auditorium. Or whatever that satanic chamber of horrors was called now. Give the lunatic necromancers free hands to decorate their working space however they please, and they’ll build a fucking Stonehenge with a sacrificial altar in the middle of it. The walls were covered with symbols and black candles and curtains, but at least the seating area was left untouched.

There were three necromancers standing inside the weird circle of five stone pillars, wearing long cloaks with big hoods over their heads. The altar was in the middle of them, and the ever-so-beautiful Lena was resting on top of it. The necromancers were mumbling something incoherent, waving some kind of lanterns in the air above her. But these lanterns were not for light. They were emitting black smoke that had a red hint to it.

I turned my attention to the five pillars. Well, to the men tied to each of them. They were crying, probably even trying to beg for mercy, but they all had gags and hoods over their heads, so it all came out as quiet sobbing.

They should’ve known about the price they had to pay for disloyalty. But something good was coming out of their betrayal. The five of them had the honor to be the fuel to bring Lena back to me. To us.

“This is madness…” Dr. Hauberk muttered one more time.

“Would you like to join our previous employees?” I asked him sharply, nodding towards the chained men. He turned to take a short glimpse of me before he shook his head.

“I must go,” he said and left the auditorium in a hurry.

I gritted my teeth together, making a mental note to put him under special surveillance. Traitors, all of them.

The ritual was about to begin, and the four guests I had accompanying me edged closer in their seats. I, too, stepped to the edge of our little spectating area at the very back of the room. We had two guards with us, and I couldn’t help but notice their lack of interest in what was going on below us. Such brutal individuals… Two of the men tied to the pillars used to be their co-workers, people they ate and carpooled with. Now that was what I expected from my employees.

Suddenly, the head of the necromancers yelled a few words, swinging his lantern back and forth. The candles on the walls were lit up in red, restless fire and the traitors started squealing, thrashing around like they were in agony. I had a smile on my face as I watched the life starting to leave their bodies, and then…

I immediately knew something went wrong. All the candles went out like a sudden gust of wind had blown them out. The five sacrifices slouched back against the pillars and continued whining, but their voices had turned quiet. The necromancers stood there for a few seconds, holding their ridiculous lanterns up in the air and blinking in a stupefied manner.

Then their leader pushed his hood down, stomping his feet in anger. “Fuck!”

“What’s wrong?” I demanded to know.

“Her spirit isn’t here!” he replied.

“What?!” I growled, leaning against the railing in front of me. “What do you mean, it’s not here?!”

“It. Isn’t. Here!” he yelled back. “We can’t finish the ritual without it!”

I took a deep, deep breath, and turned to look at my guests. “Could you excuse us for a moment?”

The ladies and gentlemen stood up with disappointment shining in their eyes, and walked past me without saying a word. Not good. This was the exact opposite of good.

Once they were outside and the doors closed, I marched down the stairs and stopped next to the altar.

“What do you mean it’s not here?” I asked, trying to keep the anger out of my voice.

“Someone must’ve stolen it,” the leader sighed.

“I bet it was one of those warlocks,” another one of them scoffed, spitting on the ground.

“Warlocks?”

“Yeah – they’re always going around, stealing souls and making our job impossible,” the man said with a scowl. “We can’t revive people without the souls, but do they care? Fuck no!”

“I see…” I muttered; my anger suddenly gone. “A warlock, you say…”

“You’re… not angry?” their leader asked with a frown.

“How many warlocks are there?” I asked, ignoring his questioning look.

“Not many,” he shrugged. “I think there are a few dozen in each coven and a couple of randoms that refuse to work with others. There are usually one or two covens in each city.”

“Could we track down the person who murdered her with that information?” I asked, pointing at Lena.

“Possibly yes, if it really was a warlock who stole her soul.”

I smiled again. “Well then – I think it’s time to talk about your Christmas bonuses.”

Summer was just about to start, but for me, it already was Christmas.