The Dark Gifts Birthright Read online

  Liz leaned back on the couch and watched the wood crackle and burn in the fireplace. It was like being a part of a blockbuster movie that never ended. Laughing to herself, she wondered which famous star would play her character's roll in the movie. Then sobering, her thoughts turned to her family, home, and all she had left behind. “I can do this,” she assured herself.

  “Of course you can!” An unfamiliar voice answered.

  Liz bolted from the couch.

  “Oops, sorry!” said the beautiful, laughing girl.

  She looked about sixteen. With a petite cheerleader’s body, beautiful waist length golden hair, and porcelain skin, she looked more like a doll than a person. “I’m Angie,” she said. “Your tour director on this cruise.”

  Her eyes twinkled with merriment and Liz knew immediately that other than Michael, this girl would be her one joy in this place. She offered her hand to introduce herself, sending Angie into a fit of giggles.

  “I know who you are silly. Everyone knows who you are! How old are you? Twenty? Twenty-one? I’m so excited to finally have someone here that is at least close to my age. Well not my real age, but the age I was and will always be. Isn’t it great? Don’t you think it’s just wonderful to never grow old?” Angie rattled on so quickly Liz could hardly keep up with the changing conversation. They walked out the doorway and down the tunnel, Angie chattering the whole time.

  Not leaving out any nook or cranny, she gave Liz the grand tour. By the time they reached Michael’s rooms, Liz thought she knew where every room, closet, cell, and mouse hole in the fortress was located and how long it had been there. She’d also learned Angie was short for Angelica, and Athena was her mother. Angie had informed her that she was turned the day after her 17th birthday.

  “Oh yes, my mother is the Athena from Greek mythology. She's been around a very long time.”

  “That's just amazing.” Liz said.

  “She saved me. My real mother died giving birth to me. My father, a horrid mean man, died when I was thirteen. If she hadn't taken me in...well let's just say that some shriveled old goat would have been my husband.” Her nose wrinkled for a moment before the endearing smile returned to her face.

  “So you like this? Being a vampire I mean.”

  A tall cloaked figure approached as they turned into another corridor. “Wait.” Angie said, pulling Liz against the tunnel wall and quietly allowing the figure to pass. After it turned into the next tunnel, she exhaled, slipped her hand inside Liz's, and continued through passageway. “She really is the best mother anyone could have. Loving, kind. Oh, and very wise. She's been around so long that I'd guess she knows just about everything.”

  “That's really great. So you do like being a vampire then?”

  Her smile didn't falter, as she artfully dodged the question. “Now Gregorio is an interesting character. Did you know that at one time he was also revered as a god?”

  Liz tried not to laugh as she answered, “No, really?”

  “Oh yes. He's quite mysterious.” Angie looked around before dropping her voice to a whisper. “No one knows who his maker is or how old he is. No one. I've asked mother many times and she doesn't even know. And she knows everything!”

  “Wow.”

  Angie's face lit up. “I know! Crazy, right? And the best part is, he has the ear of the Eldest. And when you have that...”

  The girl talked so fast and so much that an hour later when they had reached the rooms, Liz was certain she knew the entire history of every vampire living in the fortress.

  As they entered her new home, Angie’s conversation turned to make-up, music, and typical teenager things. She was going to do Liz’s hair and toes, and they were going to have so much fun. It was all very amusing to Liz, although at times, she had sympathy pains for what she must have put her own sisters through when she was a teenager.

  Angie had spent the majority of her 300 years in the fortress. She explained how the land above had been purchased and turned into a wood mill. When this part of the new world became populated, they needed a justifiable reason for the traffic in and out of the area. No human had ever worked there. No humans were allowed on the property. Except, of course, those that were living there by choice, but they were never allowed to leave.

  “Wait. Back up just a minute. What do you mean except the ones that choose to live here?”

  “Those that want to become, they live here,” Angie replied.

  “I don’t understand.” Liz saw a look of fear pass quickly over Angie’s face as she questioned her.

  “Oh boy, am I in for it now. I’m sorry, I can’t tell you anymore. Mother will tell you when it’s time,” Angie said sweetly and promptly disappeared down the hall. No goodbye, no see you later, just gone.

  Refusing to let yet another moment of confusion delay her, Liz began to examine her new living quarters. The apartment offered one large sitting area with two connecting rooms. She stood in the main room, surrounded by stone walls and luxuriously carpeted floors. The décor was similar to Athena’s, with the over-sized, plush furniture covered in warm, inviting fabrics. Unlike Athena’s quarters, however, this place seemed empty, like a discarded set design or a staged magazine photo. No silks or satins, and no hint that Michael had ever lived in this place.

  Through the main room, a bathing room housed a marble bathtub large enough for several people and oddly reminiscent of ancient bathhouses. The mirrored walls and ceilings made the room seem spacious.

  Through the bath, another door led to an overly masculine bedroom. Where the main room had been covered in tapestries and ancient artifacts, this room was full of pelts and weapons. Hundreds of swords and knives were neatly arranged on the walls around the room. Even the proverbial suit of armor stood in the corner holding a mace and shield. She wondered how many times the various weapons had been used, and how many people they had killed. After a thorough investigation of her new home, she ended up back by the fire. She didn’t want all this time to think. She didn’t want to let her mind wander. She wanted Michael.

  Chuckle. “Not so easily distracted I see. Patience, I will be there soon.”

  She shot a mental bullet back at him, “How long is soon?” She stood motionless waiting to see if a reply would come. She still wasn’t certain how the whole telepathy thing worked.

  “Take a walk, look around. It will be some time yet.”

  She headed for the doorway, entered the hall, and then heard him again.

  “Stay away from the dungeon, Liz, it’s dangerous down there.”

  Liz wandered around the fortress for what seemed like hours. Here and there, she would see someone, but no one spoke. Everyone moved like worker bees determined to finish the tasks at hand. Some cleaned, polishing silver or dusting, while others appeared to be running errands. She saw only three cloaked figures the entire time. The 'worker' vampires steered clear of them, never speaking unless they were spoken too, and always stepping out of their way to avoid contact. Liz took the hint from the others and steered clear of them as well.

  The tunnels widened in the upper levels of the complex, and each was lined with artifacts from different centuries throughout time. It was a treasure trove of wealth and history, an archeologist’s dream come true.

  As she wandered through the vast maze of tunnels, she noticed a subtle downward slope to the edifice. Every few feet, wrought iron brackets fastened torches to the stone encased walls. The smokeless flames cast unusual shadows along the lengthy corridors.

  Finally, the floor leveled off. The torches were few and far apart on this level. The darkness between so dense it appeared almost a living entity. She was just about to turn around and head back when two cloaked figures appeared outside a door at the far end. Liz decided to wait and let them pass before heading back.

  “I told you he could not be trusted!” hissed the taller figure. “We cannot sit idly by and allow this hypocrisy to continue. As long as the girl lives we are
all in great danger.”

  Liz held her breath and sank back into the darkness against the wall. She had a feeling that she was the girl they were discussing. If they detected her now…

  The shorter figure hushed him angrily, nervously scanned the hallway, and hissed back, “As long as the girl is kept alive and safe he will perform his duties. It is no different now than it was before. Michael has always done our bidding and will continue to do so.”

  The taller of the two dropped his voice to a nearly inaudible whisper, “The Eldest believes only what he wants to believe. We will all be in danger if the girl is allowed to stay.”

  “What you are saying is treason, Monroe. Treason is a death sentence.” Moving his head from side to side, he searched the passageway again.

  Shoulders pressed against the wall, Liz was thankful the torchlight could not illuminate her hiding place.

  The one called Monroe spoke again, “You have to pick a side, Demitre; the time for post sitting is over. A war is coming and our people want to be free. The time for the tyranny of the Council is at an end. We have to be rid of Michael before that can come to fruition. There is no other way.”

  Liz tried to keep her thoughts as quiet as her body.

  Demitre looked around again before grabbing Monroe's cloak, and pulling him back inside the open door.

  As soon as they disappeared, Liz sped off through the tunnels she had just meandered through. When she felt far enough away, she stopped and checked to see if they’d followed. There was no one anywhere to be seen. She tried to pull herself together and went off in search of Michael’s rooms.

  It didn’t take Liz long to realize she was lost. This tunnel looked nothing like the others. No artifacts adorned the walls, and few torches lit the way. Just great, she thought to herself, lost in miles and miles of underground vampire tunnels, that’s exactly what I needed today. Large metal doors lined the passage. One of them had to be a way out. Taking a closer look, she noticed that every single door had a locking bar across it, and a small window that could be unlatched and opened.

  “Oh, no ya don’t, Elizabeth! You are not going to open the window to see what’s inside. If it’s bad enough to scare a vampire into locking it up, then it’s not anything you need to know about.” Her mental scolding did her little good; curiosity got the best of her. Cautiously moving to the closest door, she flipped up the clasp holding the window shut, and pulled it open. A thick metal grate covered the hole. She rose on her tiptoes and peered in. A thin streak of light cut a narrow path through the darkness beyond. At first, she thought the room empty, but her ears picked up the distinct sound of breathing--heavy breathing. As if some over worked gargantuan had decided to slow down for just a second, before continuing the destruction of a city. She knew she should shut it and go, but she just couldn’t help herself. “Hello?” She whispered. “Who’s there?”

  Clear as a bell, a child’s voice returned her salutation. “Mommy? Is that you?”

  Liz immediately grasped the locked door and pulled with all her strength. The iron creaked, but the door did not budge.

  “Mommy, please,” the young voice continued, “I won’t be bad anymore, I promise. Please let me out.” The youngster’s voice cracked as words transformed into a soft cry.

  Liz’s heart beat furiously as her fingers ran over the bar holding the door fast. Desperation filled her as she struggled to free the crying toddler. In her mind’s eye she saw a disheveled five year old with long matted hair and dirt smudged cheeks. No matter how hard she tugged, Liz could not get the door open.

  “I’m not your mommy little one,” she said to the small voice inside. “Please don’t cry, I’m trying to get you out. I’m coming; I just need to figure out this door.”

  Liz stepped back and looked the door over again. She knew there had to be some trick to it, something she was missing. Inside the room the crying stopped. The child spoke to her again, “Where is my Mommy? Where did they take my Mommy? Why did they put me in here?”

  “It’s all right. My name is Liz. I’m going to help you. What’s your name, can you tell me?”

  “Mommy, is that you? Mommy?” The child was obviously not quite right in the head. Liz wondered if she’d suffered some serious mental damage from being abducted by vampires and held in this cell. Was this that 'private supply' that Athena was talking about? This young child locked behind the door had been her lunch? Her stomach clenched with revulsion. Finally, she saw what she had been missing.

  A small key-like bar that had to be fitted into a hole just on top of the mechanism, hung from a metal chain just to the side of the door. Liz had it in, turned, and unlocked in a flash. She pulled the door open and rushed in to grab the child. She didn’t know where she would go, or what she would do, but she knew she couldn’t leave her in there.

  Except for the swath of light cutting through the center of the room, the cell was pitch-black inside. Blinking hurriedly to allow her eyes to adjust, she gazed into the darkness. The heavy breathing came from the far corner.

  “Where are you? Come to me quickly, I’ll get you out of here!”

  Something akin to a steam roller slammed into her and knocked her to the floor. She barely had time to register surprise before dagger like claws ripped into her side. Pain seared through her body as the crunch of bones and the sound of tearing flesh echoed in her ears. Blow after blow pummeled her face and head. Stunned, she didn’t even think to fight back. Growling with rage, the thing behind the door attacked her unceasingly and without mercy. As she lost consciousness, she remembered Michael’s warning, “Stay away from the dungeon, Liz, it’s dangerous down there.”

  ***

  Liz’s forced return to consciousness was a tossup between the burning pain, and Michael’s ranting and raging around the room. If she hadn’t remembered being attacked, she’d have been certain she’d been run over by an eighteen-wheeler. She knew before she opened her eyes there were others in the room. Although all the voices were angry, Michael’s was definitely the loudest.

  “You swore she would be safe,” he yelled. “You sent me on a mission that didn’t require my attention, and left her to be slaughtered by those abominations!”

  “Michael, be reasonable,” Athena’s calm voice spoke. “Angie had things to attend to, and we are not equipped to baby-sit your changeling.”

  “I told you all from the beginning this was a horrible idea.” Another familiar voice spoke. It was the hate-filled voice from the tunnel below. “You were warned that she would cause nothing but trouble and now look what’s happened! Thirty-five of them, Michael! Thirty-five unspoken are loose in this fortress. How many of us will die, because you couldn’t keep your new pet on a leash?” he hissed.

  “I will kill you, Monroe,” Michael hissed back. “Right where you stand, I will kill you if you ever liken her to a dog again!”

  “What if they make it out of the fortress, Gregorio? How do we keep the secret then?” Athena asked.

  “They will never make it out,” Gregorio’s strong voice sounded confident. “Michael, you need to go hunt. It is your place to do so, regardless of Liz’s condition. We reached her in time. She will heal. If any of our own are lost because of this incident, you and Liz will be in great danger. Even the Eldest will not come to your aid.”

  Liz opened her eyes and searched for Michael. He was beside her in an instant. “You have to go, this is all my fault.” Liz mustered the closest thing to a smile that she could.

  “I can’t leave you,” he said.

  “You have no choice,” she answered softly. Grimacing in pain, her voice turned bitter. “Kill every last one of them.”

  Gregorio laughed and the tension in the room seemed to ease. “It didn’t take her long to become a full-fledged vampire, did it?” He laid a hand on Michael’s shoulder saying, “I will not leave her until you return. Go do what you must.”

  Michael gave Liz one last searching look, bent down and k
issed her, and was out the door in a flash. Athena sighed and sat beside her pushing strands of hair out of her face. “That was a close call, my dear. You gave us quite a start. How did you end up in the dungeon? That was definitely not on your tour.”

  Liz glanced at Monroe standing in the open doorway. Finally having a face to put with the evil sounding voice, she was stunned by the familiarity of it. Something about this particular monster seemed strangely familiar. The word monster described him perfectly. Unlike his brother vampires, Monroe had no unearthly beauty. Ghostly white skin stretched tight across his tall skeletal frame. Long stringy hair as pale as his flesh hung limply around his face. His pale, icy blue eyes looked more alien than human. Although his face and voice rang familiar, his hands were even more so. His fingers were extremely long and thin, ending in razor-sharp, pointed nails that gave his hands the appearance of claws. His countenance was the embodiment of a long unthought-of nightmare from her childhood.

  It was unsettling to think that somewhere in her early youth she might have met up with this fiend. As she stared at Monroe, his loathsome gaze washed over her. He did not even attempt to conceal his hatred. Turning away, she focused on Athena. Without knowing who was involved in the conspiracy against the Council, she needed to be cautious with her answer.

  “I really don’t know how I got there,” Liz said, her voice soft and laden with guilt. “I was just wandering around looking at everything, and then I got lost. I saw the doors with bars and decided to look into one of the windows.”

  “And what, pray tell, made you think you had the right to stick your nose in such matters?” Monroe questioned. His eyes glinted with malice as disgust resonated in his voice.

  Gregorio turned and glowered at Monroe until he gave a curt bow and left. “Liz, you’re not off to a very good start here,” he said kindly. “I thought I was clear earlier when I explained what a problematic situation this is for Michael. We do not want you to feel like a prisoner here, this is your home now. However, you cannot meddle in matters which are not your concern.”

  Liz wished she could talk to Gregorio alone and tell him why she’d ended up there in the first place, but she didn’t know if Athena could be trusted.