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And then Lenore came along.
And I lost my heart to her right away.
And I knew I would never ever be the same, that my life didn’t truly begin until I saw her, until I had her in my life. Until I had her love.
I’ve never been one to fear death. When it’s almost impossible to die, you let that fear go. In some ways, I’ve always welcomed it, knowing that no creature, not even a vampire, should be subjected to endless life.
But now that I have Lenore, I don’t want to give an ounce of it up.
I need her by my side.
I need her as my queen.
I want to spend the ages with her, traveling through time, just the two of us, living forever, living together, until there’s some grand explosion in the universe, ending it all for everyone.
And now, unless there’s a miracle, that’s not going to happen.
I found love and life for the first time, only to lose them both so quickly. The tighter I held on, the more they slipped away, so soft and fragile in my hardened hands.
“You done beating yourself up yet?” Jeremias asks.
I look up to see we’ve stopped outside a rustic cabin in the woods, a roof of mossy grass on top. “You can hear my thoughts too?” I grumble.
“No,” he says. “But you definitely lean into the brooding persona very well.”
Valtu has the nerve to actually laugh, which then brings a look from Jeremias. “And you,” Jeremias says to him with a sniff, “Bram Stoker would be ashamed.”
Then, with a wave of his hands, the door to the cabin opens—magic—and we’re led inside.
I don’t know why I expected some quaint and simple Finnish cottage, but that’s not at all what we’ve stepped into. Inside, it’s long and cavernous and made of stone. There are no windows. It’s a whole other place than what can possibly exist on the outside, and for all I know, might be another world entirely.
The only thing in the room are two sets of chains on the stone walls. Big black iron chains with five collars attached. One for the neck. Two for the wrists. Two for the ankles. All the chains are inscribed with wards, making them unbreakable.
So this is our fate.
The Lapp Witches lead us both over to the chains and they place the large one around my neck, keeping my back pressed up against the wall. If my feet ever give out, and they will, it will keep me up, make me hang by my head.
Immediately I feel the wards sink into my skin, rendering the chains strong enough to keep us in place. Vampires have super-human, preternatural strength, but we do have our limits and the magic ensures it’s beyond our reach.
“Tell me, Absolon,” Jeremias says smoothly, coming over to me. “What happens to a vampire when they don’t feed?”
“They become grouchy,” Valtu says from his set of chains beside me.
Jeremias ignores him, keeps staring at me with black fathomless eyes, the only thing on his face that doesn’t change. “Well?”
“You starve,” I manage to say.
“But do you die? No. You don’t die, do you? You won’t die until I stab you in the heart. But if you don’t feed, you will live forever and ever in a state of pain and anguish so great you will be begging me to kill you and release you from this torture. In fact, in your case Absolon, your pain will double, knowing that you’ll be stuck here for eternity while Lenore is out there, either dying at my hands or becoming everything you hate.”
Then he smiles and turns around, heading to the door, the Lapp Witches following him out single file.
“I’ll be seeing you one day,” Jeremias says, pausing in the doorway. “Let’s say, three hundred years from now? Then we’ll see where you’re at. Perhaps I’ll feel charitable by then.”
The door closes behind him, sealing us into our doom.
“Fuck,” Valtu says, followed by a heavy sigh. “What the hell did we do to piss off that guy? Being stuck with you for eternity? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of something so diabolical.”
But I’m not really listening to Valtu. I’m trying to figure out what to do. I have my way with magic, I can control my own wards. Is there any way to work with these?
“Giving me the silent treatment already?” Valtu comments
I glare at him. “I’m trying to think, idiot.”
“About how you’re going to get us out of here?”
“Yes,” I reply testily. “Now just shut up.”
“I see. You think your magic will help. Don’t you think Jeremias would have thought of that, since he seems to know how you operate.”
He has a point there, but I refuse to think about it, refuse to give up hope this early in the game. I have to get to Lenore. That’s more important than even escaping this permanent hell.
