Chapter 7
The seconds stretched out endlessly as Sarah waited for the creatures to appear on the stairs in front of them. She could hear each footfall of their descent and knew it wouldn’t be long. The surrealism she had felt earlier overcame her again, time seemed to slow around her as her brain told her the situation she was in just couldn’t be real. Her heart pounded until she was sure she would pass out from the stress. The noises came closer and she jumped nervously as the first shape came into view.
To her addled brain, the first creature that appeared before her looked a lot like the vampire that had wanted to attack her at the mansion; Delia. Following the vampire were two men that Sarah had seen before as well. She hadn’t met either of the men, they both hadn’t been present when Tom had explained all the monsters in the foyer to her earlier, and she wondered if they too were vampires. There was something about them that just didn’t look quite right for vampires though, not that she was proficient with all the supernatural creatures that were out there.
As they approached closer to where Sarah stood on the stairs, statue-still and pressed up against the wall ready to run back the way she had come, she realised that her mind wasn’t playing tricks on her. For some reason, Delia and her friends were there in the strange building with them. She noticed the look that passed between Tom and the creatures, a look of appreciation and acceptance. No words were spoken and no one seemed intent on voicing their confusion or relief.
Before Sarah had a chance to voice hers, she registered a noise behind them that hadn’t been there moments ago. Turning back to look, she couldn’t see anything from her vantage point but the noise was continuing and she had an absurd thought that it sounded like footsteps echoing upwards towards them. She knew the giant monsters couldn’t fit into such a small stairwell. The realisation hit her like a bucket of ice water as she remembered the banshees - they would fit.
She caught herself hoping it would be more of Tom’s unusual friends but a glance at the non-human faces in front of her told her that hope was useless. Holding her breath she waited fearfully, knowing that the banshees would take them straight to those evil beings and that even these creatures and Tom would be useless against the beasts she had encountered earlier. She felt Tom roughly push her towards the vampire woman standing on the stairs in front of them.
‘Get her out of here,’ he spoke quietly but urgently before turning his attention to the two young men. ‘I’ll try to hold them off. You can leave if you want but I could do with your help, I don’t have magic.’
Sarah couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She was even more dumbfounded as she watched both of the young men leap gracefully past her to land near Tom on the stairs. The look of pleasure they gave each other before simultaneously turning and grinning at Tom convinced her that they were determined to help him with whatever he wanted to do and that they were also pleased with the idea. The sharp teeth their smiles revealed made her shudder.
Delia’s claw-like nails nearly tore at the skin on Sarah’s arm as she roughly grabbed her, holding her close. She didn’t doubt that the vampire would drag her up the stairs if she thought it necessary and decided not to give the woman any reason to justify brutality, although she wasn’t sure the vampire would need a reason. Pushing back on panic she tried not to think about how she had just jumped from the frying pan and into the fire.
Suddenly Tom’s voice cut through the air to them, still not loud but with authority, ‘And don’t hurt her.’ His expression matched his tone and Sarah felt herself shrink back from the look in his eyes as he pinned the vampire with his stare. Delia didn’t respond as she turned back the way she had come but the grip on Sarah’s arm lessened as they quickly moved up the stairwell.
She had no choice but to follow the vampire. Delia’s grip was like a vice and the strength in the undead woman was something she couldn’t counter, not that she wanted to resist her. If the vampire left without her then she would be lost in the building alone, as she was sure Tom and the others wouldn’t have wasted any time waiting around, and who knew what creatures she would run into trying to catch up to them. She didn’t trust the vampire but remembering the creatures she was running from she knew instinctively that they were much worse. Tom had wanted her to leave with Delia and in this situation with these sorts of creatures, she knew she had to rely on his knowledge and experience, however much she disliked the idea. All she could do was hope that Tom’s message had convinced the young woman to look elsewhere for a snack.
They moved upwards quickly, sometimes having to race silently along the corridors before returning to the safety of the stairwells. The corridors and stairs started to blur with familiarity as Sarah was pulled in the direction she hoped was the exit. She had no way of knowing where they were headed, the map in her mind was as blurry as the walls around her but she knew they were always headed up and that was a relief. After they had travelled much further than she had walked with the evil creature to the meeting hall, they finally found themselves in the crisp clean air of the outside world.
It was so disorientating after the dizzying run through the building it took Sarah a few moments to comprehend what she was seeing. The vampire had paused in her headlong rush after they had passed through the last doorway and Sarah took a brief look at the landscape around her. It was dark, night-time, but moonlight glistened off the expanse in front of her and she was able to make out the contours and shapes of mountains around them. Looking up at the sky she corrected herself; the light wasn’t coming from a single moon but rather from both the moons. They were full and beautiful in an odd, creepy way.
She had known they were being held underground inside the cave-like building but as she looked around it took a moment for her to realise why the ground she was standing on fell away in a harshly cut edge down one side. It clicked into her mind as the contours came into focus that the “building” wasn’t only underground but it was inside a mountain, one side of it made up of a sheer cliff face. She was close enough to the edge to know that it was a long way down to whatever was at the bottom of the cliff.
Her mind swam with confusion, how was she supposed to get down from the top of a mountain? There were no paths that she could see and her one ab-sailing experience wouldn’t help her with the cliff that spanned down in front of her. She considered suggesting to Delia to leave her there and instead go back and see if Tom and the other men were alright, but before she could even form the words the vampire had hold of her arm again. Sarah felt her heart pound as she realised what the woman intended, the edge of the mountain was coming closer and the vampire seemed to have no plans of stopping her wild dash towards it.
Sarah opened her mouth to scream or shout knowing that as a human the fall would kill her, the mountain was too high to survive a tumble down the side. No sound came out of her open mouth, instead, the cool night air filled her lungs in a way that made them feel like they would burst as she fell over the edge. She fell fast into the night, no longer aware if the vampire was still holding onto her arm. Closing her eyes tightly against the stinging wind caused by her descent she didn’t want to see what was below her anyway, what it would be that killed her. Unable to process anymore in her fear, she felt darkness and cold surround her, embracing her while she waited for the pain.
Slowly she came to her senses and realised instantly that she had feinted with the fall, but she also knew that somehow she had survived it. Feeling disorientated with her head pounding and her stomach heaving with the after-effects of the free-fall, still, she was aware of only one thing; the solid ground beneath her. She lay there uncaring how she looked to anyone looking down on her and rolling over pressed her hands and face to the cool earth beneath her, taking her time to slow her breathing and settle her uneasy stomach. The time also helped quieten her overwrought mind. She embraced the stillness of just lying there for a moment before remembering that there was an angry, and probably hungry, vampire nearby.
Opening her eyes, she tried to see anything that would give her some perspective but all she could see was darkness. Hearing a growl nearby and recognising it as a sign of impatience from the vampire she cautiously climbed to her feet. The darkness that surrounded her wasn’t as complete as she had first thought. In the light of the single full moon, she could make out the petulant figure of the woman beside her.
‘Where are we?’ Sarah asked, not sure it mattered but not fully trusting the vampire to take her back to the mansion.
‘We’re nearly back at Thaddeus’s place,’ Delia explained disgruntledly. ‘You passed out and I had to carry you.’ There was a look of disgust on her face as she said this and despite herself, Sarah felt embarrassed to have inconvenienced her. She bit her tongue before she could say sorry though and the moment stretched out awkwardly between them before Delia continued. ‘I didn’t think it would be a good idea to take you in there like that.’
She indicated her head and, in the distance, Sarah could make out a dim light, she hoped it meant the safety of Thaddeus’s mansion; whoever Thaddeus was.
Before she had the chance to ask, the cruel claw-like hand grabbed her again and Sarah was dragged along at speed. She felt she would stumble at any moment, every step was like being yanked off her feet and the awkwardness of the run was exhausting and terrifying. She kept her eyes on the dim light, hoping it was the outside light she had noticed above the door of the mansion. It was a beacon calling her to safety, the relative safety that a building full of monsters could provide anyway. Still, she managed to put one foot in front of the other as she stumbled her way towards it.
Just as she was sure she would die, probably due to the vampire running out of patience and eating her, they abruptly stopped. Looking up she felt overwhelming relief when she recognised the strong, dependable building in front of her. She had spent the past few days trying desperately to get away from the building and had never expected to be grateful to return to it. Yet to her, the dim light spilling out from an upstairs window, probably hers, was welcoming, and the desolate façade of the outside looked secure and comforting in the limited light. Sarah didn’t wait for the vampire and rushed for the door, glad to walk over the threshold and enter the foyer. Only once inside did she realise her mistake.
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As she entered, she saw that the downstairs room of the mansion was packed, which it always seemed to be, and every eye turned towards her as she brazenly walked in. Quickly she stopped just inside the open doorway, sure she could read every mind of the monsters gathered. It wasn’t hard to interpret the gleams in the dead eyes or the hungry smiles on their fang-filled mouths. All attention turned from their previous commitments and focused squarely on her.
Hearing the front door close behind her and turning towards the sound she was glad to see Delia standing there. She hoped the vampire still remembered Tom’s order and wasn’t going to turn on her now that they were back at the mansion and she was back with her kind. Pretending courage she didn’t possess, Sarah moved through the room, feeling every eye following her movements.
She couldn’t hear footsteps behind her in the silence and she prayed the vampire still moved with her as she crossed the room and reached the stairs. As she hit the base of the stairs any false attempt at confidence fled as she sprinted upwards, not stopping until she was safely back in her room. Delia followed her lightly into the room, as Sarah hadn’t had a chance to lock her out, before closing the door firmly behind them.
The vampire looked sprightly, not a puff or a groan to show that the journey or the sprint up the stairs had tired her out in any way. Her long hair still gleamed as if it had been recently combed rather than flying through the air at whatever speed they had travelled. Her clear, pale skin showed no sheen or flush of exertion or life. As Sarah assessed the vampire she realised that the young woman had another look on her face that sent her blood cold; she was hungry.
Sarah tried to ignore the look. She knew that if the vampire wanted to attack her there would be nothing she could do to stop the undead creature. Swallowing her unease she moved carefully into the bathroom, wishing she could lock herself in there until Tom returned but knowing the flimsy door wouldn’t keep her safe.
Leaning against the closed door, Sarah took a few deep breaths to calm her nerves. It didn’t help much. She stared longingly at the bathtub before quickly deciding against that level of vulnerability with a vampire nearby and instead set to work rubbing the worst of the dirt off herself with soap and a damp towel. After straightening herself back to a semi-normal appearance she considered going back into her bedroom. Instead, she hesitated, brushing her hair again and cleaning her teeth.
Knowing she had to face the vampire eventually, as she couldn’t stay in the bathroom all night, she plucked up her courage and opened the door. Taking another long, deep breath Sarah walked into the room confidently, as if she wasn’t moments away from death. The spruce up in the bathroom had helped and she did feel more like herself. A nice big nap on the soft bed would have improved her even more but there was a limit to what she would do with a vampire around.
‘How did you find us?’ Sarah asked, hoping to keep her voice conversational as she moved carefully over to the deep armchair in the room. Sinking in she eyed Delia. The vampire hadn’t moved from her spot near the door and she hoped that whatever had made her listen to Tom continued to work.
‘A spell.’ Delia wasn’t in the mood for talking but Sarah thought her answer could do with a bit of fleshing out and gave her a look that said so. Finally, the vampire sighed and continued in a tone as if she was talking to a small child. ‘We used a spell that can find lost items.’
‘That would be handy.’ Sarah was thinking of all the times she had lost her car keys. ‘Good thing it works for lost people too.’
‘It doesn’t.’ The vampire looked at her as if she were stupid. ‘We thought of an item we knew Tom would have with him.’
Sarah looked at the woman in confusion before it clicked; Tom’s deck of cards. In the few days they had been together she hadn’t once seen him without it. She would never have thought those cards would save her life.
‘Well, thank you for finding us.’
Delia’s expression before she tossed her head and looked at the wall made Sarah wonder why she had bothered to rescue them at all. For one selfish moment, she was grateful that Tom had been taken with her as she knew the rescue mission wouldn’t have been organised for her alone. Thinking of Tom she felt fear slice through her, surely, he should have turned up by now although she wasn’t sure how quickly he and the two young men would be able to travel. If Tom didn’t have his magic, could they teleport back to safety or were they travelling on foot? Could they travel as quickly as the vampire? As time ticked on, she became more concerned.
Something had been behind them on the stairs when she had escaped with Delia. Sarah didn’t know what the creature had been but she hoped that Tom had defeated it, or avoided it and that he hadn’t been captured again. She imagined him back in the cage, locked securely, and wondered what would happen to her in this building if he didn’t return. He was the only thing that seemed to be stopping every monster in this place from having a piece of her, literally. She didn’t know why they wouldn’t hurt her just because he told them not to but at this stage, she didn’t care, she knew she needed his protection and as she again eyed the hungry vampire in the room, she prayed that he would return soon.
Sarah’s concern wasn’t just for her own life, she feared for Tom as well. The past few days had been a crazy storm of emotions and occurrences but as they walked through it together, she had noticed a change in her feelings towards him. He wasn’t what she had expected of a magician that made his living from lying and tricks. He had been honest with her and she had to admit that his tricks had saved her life.
She tried to think what it would be like to live half in this world and half in hers and she realised that lying and tricks were probably all he had. It couldn’t be easy keeping his abilities a secret, as well as everything else she had learnt about monsters and other realms. She wasn’t sure how she was going to explain her absence when she got home - if she got home. No one would believe the truth, she would probably just be labelled insane.
Would it be easier for him to stay in this realm? She wondered. At least here he didn’t have to hide behind a performance. Thinking of all the creatures in the realm made her feel sick at the idea of living there with them, but it would be different for him. It wasn’t like he was human. The image of Tom in the cage appeared in her mind again and she remembered the look of vulnerability she had seen on his face. She knew he was more human than he let on.
It looked like he didn’t fit into either world. She remembered his comment that he travelled a lot and thought it made sense, in his situation she would probably do the same. She couldn’t help wondering where he had grown up, where his family was, and how he had survived as long as he had in either realm. As she remembered his career in her world, she couldn’t help thinking that he was doing more than simply surviving, he was doing quite well out of his abilities.
A small smile escaped across her face as she thought of Tom on stage as a magician. She had only seen a little of his show but remembered that she thought his profession had suited him. He had been confident and charismatic and had captured a few ladies' hearts in the audience, or captured their attention anyway. His performance hadn’t interested her then but now she thought she might have judged him, and his tricks, a bit too harshly. As yet she hadn’t seen him use his magic to hurt or humiliate anyone, she had only seen him use it to save someone; her.
She let her mind and emotions play with the thought. Keeping the image of Tom as the performer in her mind to counter the one that kept pressing in on her; Tom locked up again. She elaborated on the daydream, filling in the details of the fictitious story of them having met in another world, her world. She imagined she was in the audience … Tom singled her out for one of his magic tricks … he was charming and charismatic …
She was startled to hear a growl from the other side of the room.
Coming quickly back to reality she looked at the vampire. Delia hadn’t moved but she seemed tenser, coiled more tightly than before. She could sense the other woman’s discomfort and see the darkness intensify in her eyes. It was as if the hunger was becoming stronger.
A flush crept over Sarah as she wondered if her wayward thoughts had induced that hunger in Delia as if her scent had become covered in tasty pheromones. She quietened her mind, erasing the daydream as much as possible, as she watched the vampire carefully. It seemed to help and the undead woman reclined against the door looking a bit more at ease. Sarah wasn’t impressed that her thoughts seemed to be so easy for the vampire to read and wondered if everyone could read her so easily, for that manner could Tom.
As if her last thought had conjured him up, Tom appeared in the centre of the room. A thin-coloured haze had sprung up, announcing their arrival, before it disappeared like mist. Suddenly he was solidly standing there in a spot that had been empty a moment before. Just like a magic trick.
The two men appeared with him but Sarah only gave them a quick curious glance before focusing on Tom, breathing in relief as she noticed that he looked unhurt. She rose from her chair intent to check him closer and confirm her original assessment when she was aware of a flurry of movement and the sound of a door closing. Before she could blink, they found themselves alone in the room. The vampire was gone in a second, probably glad to be rid of her now that Tom was back to take care of her, the men leaving with her.
Sarah didn’t care and moved toward Tom quickly. Her hands moved over him at first in an investigation before something else took over in her. She felt his mouth on her hair, his hands on her back and her hips and reaching up she gave her mouth to his kiss.
Sarah awoke in the bed aware of the naked length of Tom stretched out beside her. She expected to feel a flush of shame for going to bed with a man that she had only known for a short time but instead felt a playfulness that was rare for her. Running her fingertip over his sleeping face she started at his hairline and made her way slowly downwards before playfully drawing her nail across his lips.
Tom opened his eyes slowly and she looked into the depths, seeing the invitation written in them. Moving towards him she leaned her body over him and reached for the deck of cards he had left on the bedside table. She could see him out of the corner of her eye watching her carefully as she moved away from him slightly and began to shuffle the deck. Propping herself up against the pillows she was careful not to let the covers slip down too low as she fanned out the cards in her hands towards him.
‘Pick a card and return it to the deck,’ she ordered in a deep showy voice.
She watched Tom raise an eyebrow at her before he slowly obliged.
‘You know, I wanted to be a magician when I was a child,’ Sarah spoke conversationally as she shuffled the cards again and carefully cut the deck.
‘What happened?’ Tom asked as she showed him a card, the queen of hearts, and he nodded confirmation that it was the card he had selected earlier.
‘I only knew the one card trick,’ Sarah laughed as she shuffled the deck again.
Tom shifted on the bed and reaching out took the deck from her. He handled the cards expertly and gently as he returned them to their spot beside the bed before turning back to Sarah and caressing her in the same manner.
The next morning Sarah woke abruptly, the nightmare clinging to her consciousness as she struggled to move. Her breath came in short bursts as she came fully awake, her unresponsive limbs and heavy chest transforming from dream to reality. She had a fleeting moment of awareness that she was alone in the bed, in fact alone in the room, and tried to cry out for Tom. The words were cut off as the pressure in her chest expanded to her windpipe making speech and even deep breathing impossible. As her panic reached its peak, suddenly she felt herself yanked away from her bed, the movement sickening and jerky and unlike anything she had felt before.