Nightwalker

Thirteen

Rock crunching under my boots, I headed out of the cemetery to the northwest and the heart of the city. Pain swept through every movement, as my body attempted to heal the array of wounds and poisons left behind from the naturi blade. After only a few blocks I was weaving through the crowds on the street. I expended just enough of my powers to make myself invisible to the people passing by, but Jabari would be able to sense my approach. I could feel Gabriel and Michael across the river on Elephantine Island. They would be at the home the Ancient kept there.

It was relatively early in the evening, and the local souq was still open and would remain so into the late evening hours. Colorful fabrics danced in the spice-rich breeze. A knot of eight boys ran by me with a burst of excited chatter. The leader of the pack carried a scuffed and worn soccer ball under his right arm. Just one quick game in the fading evening light. I briefly walked through the souq, noting the pyramids of fruits carefully stacked in brown baskets and arranged according to color. Colorful signs were written in Arabic, drawing the eyes of the evening shoppers. There were a few women in the souq, but they were either accompanied by a man or traveled in tight knots of three or four women to a group. It was a different world from the one I had inhabited in the States or even in Europe during the past centuries.

Some of the tension eased from my shoulders as I watched the early night life of these people go on. The air was filled with their animated chatter, and someone softly picked out a melancholy tune on a stringed instrument, a counterpoint to the harder murmur of noise created by cars. Here, at this point, the naturi had not touched humanity yet and my kind was just a silly myth no one actually believed anymore.

Slipping down to the Corniche el-Nil, I directed the felucca captain to take me across the river to Elephantine Island. The poor man never even saw me. I slipped into his mind before even stepping onto the small white boat with matching white sail. Sinking down in a seat at the bow, I closed my eyes, listening to the creak of the wooden boat and the splash of the water as we cut across the Nile. The wind dropped to kiss the water before rising again to sweep past me, carrying with it secrets from the Nubian kingdom from the south and other stories from deep in the heart of Africa. I listened to the wind and water, wishing I could understand them, wishing they had the answers to this dilemma.

Stepping off the dock, I instructed the captain to wash off the smear of blood I had left on the white paint of his boat before heading toward the southern tip of the island and the village of Koti, near the Ruins of Abu. The path was compacted dirt, and trees and broad-leafed plants crowded the lane. I stared into the darkness that filled in the open areas, wondering if the naturi had followed me across the Nile to the island.

I relaxed slightly as I walked past the seven-foot rock wall that surrounded the village of Koti. The naturi could still follow me into the village, but I was closer to Jabari. At least, I hoped the Ancient was in the village, but I still could not sense my old mentor.

At the end of a narrow alley flanked by two tall buildings that rose up like yellow tulips was a two-story square building painted bright blue. All the homes in the Nubian village were painted bright, cheerful colors—sunny yellows, cool blues, and sweet pinks dotted the landscape like stone flowers in an enormous garden for the gods. As I approached, the ornate door opened and Omari stood in the doorway. He couldn’t see me, but I suspected that Jabari had alerted him to my approach. I removed the invisibility when I was still a couple yards from the door, startling Omari, who then moved out of the doorway and motioned for me to enter.

The main chamber was bathed in the warm glow of candlelight, a hint of burning incense in the air. Jabari looked up when I entered, his gaze hardening when he took in my appearance. I sensed Michael and Gabriel also jumped to their feet from where they lounged on a pile of cushions on the floor to my right.

“Naturi!” I shouted, the word exploding from my chest.

“Here?” Jabari demanded. He leapt smoothly to his feet, his face furious, white robes swaying around him.

“No, they attacked me at Fatimid Cemetery. Seven of them. None appeared here?” I thought going after me had merely been a pit stop on the way to Jabari. The Ancient had to be their main target. He was the strongest of the remaining members of the triad.

“No one has come but your protectors and you.” The Ancient shook his head in amazement. “How?” The word was one of the few I knew in Ancient Egyptian, despite both our efforts, but his meaning was clear: How had I survived? Even a vampire as old and powerful as Jabari would have been hard pressed to come out with his head still attached.

“Just barely,” I said with a weak chuckle. Two on one had been a close match, but seven on one would have been impossible. “Danaus saved my life. I don’t know why and at the moment I don’t care. We need to get out of the city. There’s one called Rowe—he’s been in contact with Aurora. He tried to take me, possibly to make sure they would have a clear shot at you.”

“I’ve not heard of this Rowe,” Jabari said with a shake his head. He stared at the ground in thought for a moment, potentially digging through volumes of old memories.

“I hadn’t heard of him until Nerian mentioned him. He’s scarred and wears an eye patch. He pretends to know me, but I don’t remember him.”

“Not from Machu Picchu?”

“No. I would remember a one-eyed naturi that dresses like a pirate,” I said, a smirk briefly twisting on my lips before fading away.

“Maybe you are the reason he possesses only one eye,” he said, lifting his gaze back to my face.

“No, I would remember him.”

“And his goal was to capture you?”

I shoved a shaking hand through my hair and nodded, unable to say the words through the tremor of fear that sapped my strength.

“You’re right,” Jabari said. “The naturi felt they had to get you out of the way so they could destroy the members of the triad. They were successful in destroying Tabor. They will also go after Sadira. You must go to her, protect her.”

My brows bunched over my nose and I could not stop myself from shaking my head. I didn’t want to leave him unprotected, even if he still wanted my head on a pike. “What about you?”

“I will go to the Coven. They must know what is going on. I shall be safe.”

“But—” The words died on my lips as the room swayed. Whatever energy I’d scraped together to get me from Fatimid to Koti had run out and my vision was growing black. I put my hand out to try to steady myself on anything I could find and came in contact with a soft, warm shoulder. Blinking, I found myself looking into Michael’s concerned eyes.

Jabari’s deep, soothing voice floated into my ears and wrapped itself around my thoughts. “The naturi poison is still inside you. You have to feed to cleanse yourself.”

My stomach twisted and knotted, attempting to turn itself inside out in hunger and pain. The muscles in my legs quivered, demanding I sit down.

Michael took my hand and placed it against his neck, once again offering himself to me. A weak smile lifted my trembling lips, but my eyes were closed again. “This will hurt, my angel,” I warned. “I can’t spare the energy.”

“You need me.”

That was enough. In a surge of raw need, I pulled him down to me, sinking my fangs deep into the vein in his throat. A rough cry escaped his parted lips as the pain tightened the muscles in his body. His hands grabbed my arms, but he didn’t struggle. Forcing him down to his knees, I leaned over him and slipped my fingers into his blond hair, holding him captive.

Fear exploded in his chest and ran through his bewildered thoughts, speeding up his heart, pumping his wonderful blood into my body that much faster. His fear was almost as intoxicating as his blood, awakening something that lay curled up in a dark pit in my stomach. The creature unwound itself and swam up the river of blood. It roared inside my head, demanding more, demanding I take it all.

The hand entwined in Michael’s hair tightened and a small whimper escaped him, sending fresh pleasure skipping through me. I kept his neck pressed to my mouth even as his heart began to grow sluggish. I didn’t care. There was only the warmth flowing into my cold limbs and the ball of energy swelling in my chest. My fear and the pain were finally gone. I felt alive and powerful.

“Mira.” Jabari’s firm voice somehow broke through the haze of blood and power, but I tried to ignore it. “Release him, Mira.” Instead, my free hand gripped Michael’s shoulder, locking him to me.

“Release him, Mira, or you will kill him.”

I jerked my mouth away from Michael and loosened my death grip. My guardian sank back to sit on his heels, blinking in a desperate attempt to stay conscious. I had taken more than I had planned to and yet the creature inside still howled for more.

When I finally looked up, I found Jabari standing beside his wooden, high-back chair. His right hand rested on the back, gripping it so tight his knuckles were turning white. His brown eyes seemed an eerie yellow in the flickering candlelight. He had heard the creature’s cry inside of me, felt the same blood lust. The Ancient blinked once, releasing his grip on the chair.

Michael touched my hand timidly and flashed me a crooked smile, searching for the reassurance that everything was okay. Smiling back at him, I gently ran my fingers through his thick blond hair before pressing a kiss to his forehead. My right hand slid down to cover the bite mark on his neck. With a brief swell of power, I healed both this fresh wound and the one from the previous night.

Something inside of me trembled when I looked down at my angel. A quick search of his thoughts revealed he had no idea how close he came to dying. But Gabriel knew. When I released Michael, I felt a wave of relief wash from Gabriel as he put his gun back in its holster. A bullet from Gabriel wouldn’t have killed me, but would have succeeded in loosening my hold on my bodyguard and saved his life, at least until I reacted.

It had been a long time since I last succumbed to the blood lust. A well-fed vampire was a vampire in control. But the pain and poison had shattered that hard-won control and nearly cost me my angel.

“You must go to Sadira,” Jabari said in an even voice, as if we hadn’t just been interrupted by my desperate need to feed.

“I can’t.” Shaking my head, I took a step back, away from Jabari. “Send someone else; someone older and stronger than me. Have the nightwalker escort Sadira to rest with the Coven. They can protect her.” I walked over to a low bookshelf and picked up a small statue of a man seated on a throne. By the arrangement of the hands and the facial structure, I determined that it was a piece of Nubian art, though very similar to some of the pieces of work that came out of the Middle Kingdom.

I think I would have said anything at that moment—not only to avoid Sadira, but also the chance of meeting the naturi again. My good deed was done. The Coven now knew of the growing threat. Hell, I’d destroyed four naturi in as many nights, and I was willing to wager it had been centuries since the last nightwalker could make such a claim. Now, I just wanted to go home.

“Protect Sadira while I hunt this Rowe. You failed me once with Nerian. I am willing to give you a second chance. Will you fail me in this request as well, my Mira?”

A string of curses in three languages exploded from me as I slammed the stone statue on the bookshelf and stomped away from Jabari. It was a mix of gutter nonsense, but it didn’t matter. The Elder’s deep laughter rumbled over my curses. He’d won and he knew it. He was the only one who could convince me to face the naturi yet again.

“Where is she?” I said, unable to keep the distaste out of my voice as I turned back to face him. Jabari stared at me a moment, surprise filling his dark brown eyes. “I won’t do it,” I snapped. “I won’t reach out for her.”

“She is in London. I imagine she will come to you after you arrive,” Jabari said after letting me twist for a moment in the silence. I had not seen or talked to Sadira since Machu Picchu. I didn’t want to see her now, but I didn’t have much choice.

However, I couldn’t stop the instant curiosity that furrowed my brow at his answer. “England?” I asked before I could stop myself. The British Isles were a hotbed of magic, which nightwalkers tended to avoid. We had our own problems without heading to a place beloved by witches and warlocks. “Has she moved from Spain?”

“No, her main residence remains in Spain. I do not know why she has gone to the island.” His tone was neutral, but something in his eyes made me think Jabari was laughing at me.

Shaking my head, I turned around the room again and stared at my angels. Gabriel had helped Michael onto the pile of cushions. My wounded bodyguard was a sickly shade of white and his arm was wrapped in a white bandage. I knew this was part of their job; protecting me meant that they put their own lives in danger. However, the past few years had been quiet, each of my random trips without incident. The relentless peace had made us all soft in a different way.

“Omari,” Jabari called, breaking the silence that had stretched in the room. “Take Mira’s companions down to my felucca. I will bring Mira down in a moment, and then you will take them back to Aswan.”

I nodded when Gabriel glanced up at me for direction, and then watched as he and Omari helped Michael back to his feet. Michael would bounce back from this encounter soon enough, but I knew it was weak and stupid of me to take so much blood. Such behavior only endangered both our lives.

“Walk with me, Mira,” Jabari said, extending his hand toward me after Omari and the others disappeared out the front door.

I hesitated a second, stunned by the gesture. The pain of the fight from the previous night was still fresh in my mind. My body was still recovering from the fight with the naturi too, and I didn’t need any more fresh wounds. But it was Jabari who reached for me. With my lips pressed into a tight line, I took his hand.

There was no warning. The world around me slipped away and was consumed by complete blackness. I tightened my grip on his hand and felt him pull me to him until I was pressed against his strong chest. One second there was only blackness, and in the next the world rushed back, golden sand and towering walls bathed in a warm yellow light. We were at Philae, several miles south of Elephantine Island and just north of the High Dam. Not far away, a large chattering group of people gathered for the nightly light and sound show.

Jabari tightly gripped my hand, threading his long fingers through mine before turning his back on the crowd and leading me toward the Temple of Augustus. It was darker in this area, and it appeared that the nightly tour would stop at the Temple of Isis before winding south back to the Hall of Nectanebo and the boat landing.

I gazed around, admiring the way the lights and shadows washed over the high walls. The regal faces of gods and pharaohs watched as we passed by in silence. “They did a good job,” I ventured as we neared the temple hidden in darkness. “I really can’t tell the difference.”

Before the High Dam was completed, the government had been forced to move the Temple of Philae from its original island to Agilkia Island, to the north, or it would have been permanently submerged beneath the deep blue waters of the Nile. They had obviously been careful to reconstruct the temple and the surrounding flora almost exactly as on the original island.

“Hmmph,” Jabari snorted. “The island is too small. The temples are too close.”

“Better too close than underwater,” I softly said, but instantly regretted it. When had I become so careless with my comments? Valerio. I blamed Valerio. He had been a bad influence, and too many years at his side made me careless when it came to speaking to other nightwalkers. “I’m sorry, Jabari.”

“No,” he snapped, and then stopped. He sighed heavily, running his free hand over his head as he stared at the Temple of Augustus as it rose up before us. “I am the one who is sorry, my young one.” He pulled me into his arms, releasing my hand so he could wrap both arms around me. I flinched at the contact, but relaxed a moment later when he brushed a kiss across my temple.

“Last night I overreacted when I saw you standing in the quarry with the human. Egypt was always our home until you left, but then you returned…with a hunter of our kind and word of the naturi. I didn’t mean to…” His voice drifted off as I let his words soak into my brain, completely stunned. I don’t know which part took me more by surprise—that he referred to Egypt as “our home” or the quiver in his voice when he spoke of me leaving. There had been no question of me leaving Egypt centuries ago. I told the Ancient that I wanted to return to Europe, and he made no move to stop me. I had no idea that he was bothered by my choice to leave.

Taking a step back, out of his arms, I reached up and cupped his face with my hands. I brushed my thumb over his lips, loving the feel of his smooth skin beneath my fingertips again. “It was time for me to leave,” I whispered in a choked voice.

Jabari took my right hand and laid it on his chest. “I know you are right, but my heart did not wish for you to leave.” There were no heartbeats beneath the palm of my hand, but I understood the gesture.

Leaning forward, Jabari kissed me. At first it was just a light brush of his lips against mine, soft as a baby’s breath, as if he were testing my response. I instantly went up on the tips of my toes, pressing closer to him. He deepened the kiss as I wrapped my arms around his neck. The kiss quickly became hard and possessive, claiming me back from the hunter, my domain, and the wide expanse of years that had separated us. He tasted me, as if trying to relearn me.

I pressed close to him, welcoming him. As he deepened the kiss I also felt him slip into my mind like a finely sharpened blade. For the first time in so long, I could finally sense him. I could feel the presence of his soul, and some tension I hadn’t been aware of eased around my own soul. Jabari was everywhere, everything, for a brief span of time. The world slipped away and the years rewound. I was home and safe.

And then it was over. Jabari slowly pulled away, slipping out of my mind. Yet, my lips tingled and something in my chest burned. I felt as if he had branded me, marked me for all the nightwalkers to see. It screamed, “Mira belongs to Jabari.” Not a Companion, never that, but something…different.

The Ancient reached up and touched my cheeks, wiping away tears I hadn’t realized were falling.

“What is going on, Jabari?” I inquired, unable to completely purge the fear from my voice.

“The naturi have found a way to weaken the seal.” His voice was calm again, the emotion wiped away as if it never existed. Our world had been put right and we were back to the business side of our relationship.

“How?” I asked, struggling to hit the same unemotional calm that he possessed. “It can’t be because of Tabor’s death. That was more than fifty years ago. Why would they have waited so long to strike?”

“I do not know how they have done it. It is one of the reasons that I go to the Coven. Our Liege may know something.” For some reason, I wasn’t sure that Jabari believed it. There were other things troubling him, something dark and grim enough to make my beloved mentor shield himself even from his own.

“How do we stop them?”

“We will reform the triad and destroy Rowe.”

Oh, yeah. Just like making the bed or tying my shoes. “How?” I countered, frustration rising in my voice. Damn it, I was starting to sound like a bad fifties cowboy and Indian movie. How? How? How? “Tabor is gone.”

“Your task is to protect Sadira and reform the triad while I speak with the Coven and Our Liege. The three were chosen by bloodlines…find someone of Tabor’s bloodline and the triad will be reformed.”

“None of this makes any sense,” I complained, wandering a short distance away from Jabari, back toward the south. I could see the golden lights shining up at the tall walls that comprised the Temple of Isis. A soft breeze picked up, stirring the trees that ringed the island.

“It does not have to make sense to you.” His voice lashed at me like a whip, halting my complaints. “Leave now with your people. I will contact you soon in London.”

This was the other reason why I left Jabari, more than the need to finally take control of my own life. No matter how much I loved him, I would never be viewed as an equal in his eyes. Jabari loved me in his own way, but I would always be his subordinate, beneath him even if I earned his respect. I couldn’t live like that. It would have broken my heart.

With the long-lived, there were various hierarchies and layers of discrimination. For some, it was the Old World versus the New, or the discrimination of First Blood versus chum, or man versus woman, or ancient versus fledgling. But with Jabari the only creatures above him were Our Liege and his gods. And those not by much.

“As you wish,” I said, bowing my head stiffly. I had forgotten myself—he was an Ancient and an Elder. Regardless of what had occurred between us, I still owed him my respect, and in many ways my life. For now, it didn’t matter if I understood what was going on. All I needed to know was that I had to keep Sadira alive and find a replacement for Tabor. After that, I was done and headed home. The Coven and the triad would handle the naturi.

“What about Danaus?” I asked, looking up at the Elder again. “He knows about the naturi and he knows about Machu Picchu. He also knew where to find me. Sometimes I think he may be a spy for the naturi, and then other times…”

“Yes?” Jabari prompted when I drifted off in thought.

“I have seen him kill at least four naturi, and he has stood by while I killed several myself. He saved me from the naturi tonight when he had absolutely no reason to. I—I don’t know what to think about him.”

“Keep him close, Mira,” Jabari said, putting a strong hand on my shoulder. I suddenly felt very small next to his ancient height. “I do not think he is with the naturi, but we have other enemies. He may lead you to them.”

A half smile lifted one corner of my mouth as I looked up at my old friend and mentor. “You make him sound like a bori spy.”

A ghost of a smile slipped across Jabari’s face, but it could have just as easily been a trick of the light. “At least we know that is impossible. I do not know what secret he holds, but he needs to be watched for a time.”

“But will it be safe for him to be with me while I protect Sadira and search for the third member of the triad?”

“What better way to draw out our enemy?” Jabari asked, titling his head as he gazed down at me. “Besides, you will not fail me a second time by not protecting your maker.”

I resisted the urge to touch my neck, searching for the noose I swore I felt tighten there. I nodded, trying to smile up at Jabari but not quite succeeding.

He gathered me close again and I felt the world fall away. I closed my eyes against the darkness and only opened them again when I heard the splash of the Nile. Michael was being helped into the felucca by Omari. We were gone only a few minutes, but it felt like hours. I gave Jabari’s hand one final squeeze and then boarded the felucca behind Gabriel.

I didn’t know any more now than when I had first arrived in Egypt, but at least something was being done about the naturi. It was a start. Maybe not much of one, but at least there was the promise of progress.

I also had the possibility of a meeting with Themis. And while I might still be their enemy, we were both threatened by the naturi. The old “an enemy of my enemy is my friend” routine. This little shadow group might know more of what was going on with the naturi, and I needed any information I could get my hands on.