Knight of Swords Released

KNIGHT OF SWORDS

Knight of Swords Amazon.com

Knight of Swords Amazon.co.uk

Hello,

Time for a Friday teatime treat?  Below is the next post of my New Adult Victorian Vampire Romance, Knight of Swords.  I am also really pleased to announce that the book is now available for sale as an E-book on again on Amazon under my pen name Madeline Croft.


If you enjoy the story please leave a review on Amazon.  Please note there are another three books in the series, Ace of Swords & The Hanged Man.  They are tied up with a publisher at the moment but as soon as they become available I will provide you with details.

As I said in an previous post I want to continue the story on and create some more Victorian as well as modern spin offs involving the characters and new ones.

I am also going to be writing some new erotica.  Please check out my sister blog Arabella Kingsley Erotic Novels for news about my forthcoming releases through Totally Bound Publishing.

Happy Reading!

Have a great weekend!

Sara

Please be warned there are some strong elements of horror in tonight's excerpt!


Knight of Swords

He was standing over Camille, his tongue flicking back and forth over her wound as he lapped at her blood.  I jumped up, feeling no pain or injury, just pure rage.  I was at his throat before he knew I was there.

Chapter Eight

Gabriel swung his elbow forcefully back into my stomach.  I flew backwards again and landed on top of the chair facing the dresser.  It splintered, breaking underneath me.  I fell heavily.  I rose back to my feet with speed as Gabriel pushed Camille through the door to safety.  He turned to face me as I lunged at him once more.  It was then that I noticed the hole he had knocked through the wall to get to Camille.

His eyes were now a healthy black, displaying his intense anger.  His white teeth gleamed in the fading grey light as his lips curled into a snarl.  I growled at him as I grabbed his arms to swing him against the wall.  I expected more resistance from my opponent, but he appeared to be struggling against my strength as I applied it more directly than in my previous attacks.  I held him pinned to the wall.

‘Why did you do that?  Why did you steal Camille?  Are you jealous she wanted me?’ I demanded.

‘I wasn’t taking her blood.  I was closing her wound.  You took too much.  You could have killed her.  If I hadn’t been in her mind to see what you were doing . . .’

‘There is more to it.  She wanted me and you didn’t like it.  You don’t want me taking her from you.  I can feel it.’

He made an attempt to move.  I found myself gripping his throat, holding his head still against the wall.   If he were human he would have been dead under the pressure I exerted.

‘Any woman you take blood from will want you, Nathan, especially you.  It is part of the exchange.  Taking human blood is arousing for both you and the female prey.  You must learn to master your desire and keep control for both of your sakes.’

‘If that is so, why did you send Camille to me when you are lovers?  What do you mean, especially me?’

Gabriel started to fight my hold again.  He refused to answer my question, distracting me with alternative conversation.

‘You are strong Nathan, the change is almost complete.’

I began to raise him from the floor as if to test his words.  My extra show of strength made him angry.

I ignored his protest and continued.  ‘You profess that you wish to take Juliet as your mate, but you have feelings for this woman, Camille.’

‘I do not have any feelings for her.  She is my donor and nothing else.  Juliet will be my mate and I will see you die.’

I narrowed my eyes darkly at him, an amused smile twitching at my lips as I listened to his bluster.

‘I thought we were immortal, Gabriel.’

‘Oh there are ways to end your life, Nathan.  When we fight for Juliet I will take your head.’

‘But I could take yours now.’

 ‘You won’t.’  There was confidence in his speech that only further infuriated me.  ‘You need me to help you find Juliet.  If she’s walked into a slave camp, one hybrid male is not going to be able to rescue her.’

‘Perhaps you are right.  But I will keep you here until you answer all of my questions.  What is it you kept from her?  Juliet told me you believe her to be special?’

‘We are wasting time, Nathan.  Put me down.  I will tell you everything.’

‘No, you will learn your place and answer me first,’ I bellowed at him, losing my fragile patience.  ‘What do you hide from her?’

He closed his eyes with dismay and angry frustration at having to reveal his secret.  He spoke slowly, carefully, ‘Nathan, Juliet was born into our royal clan.  She is the rightful Queen of Talus.  She has the power to unite all of our dissident clans and will bring hope and peace to those who war with each other.  The Queen of Talus will provide justice and reparation for those of us who have been betrayed by our own kind to the humans.’ 

He twisted his hands around my own trying to ply them from his throat.  He spoke hoarsely beneath my grip.  ‘Our people have been waiting centuries for her.  We believed the female ruling royal clan was lost to us, it is a miracle she has been born.’

I stared at him in disbelief.

‘There were two royal clans, Nathan.  Morrigan and Breanainn.  Only female Taleians from the Morrigan clan are permitted to rule our people.  Juliet is Morrigan.  Her family heritage denotes her as the rightful Queen of Talus.  You are of Breanainn.  The word means Sword.  It is the clan from which our elite, royal warriors are taken to guard the Queen of Talus.  They wage war on her behalf.  Both myself and my men are also from the Breanainn clan.  Our Queen is always provided with a mate from the warrior clan, a Knight of Swords to protect and counsel her.  He commands her army.’

Gabriel coughed and gurgled.  I slackened my grip a little.

‘You were chosen at birth to be that Knight.  That is why your strength is above my own and any other hybrid or Taleian vampire.  But it is an honour that is always open to challenge.  Search my mind, Nathan.  You will find that I do not lie to you.  Camille wanted you because she could feel the allure of your power.  Female humans and hybrids are potently attracted to you.  That is why you were so successful with them in your human life.’

I read his thoughts, feeling him invite me freely into his mind.  He spoke the truth as he showed me the dangers Juliet faced because of her role.  But I also saw the reason he wanted Juliet so much.  There was hardness in his heart.  It was not because he simply desired her love and would rejoice in being her mate.  It was a quest for power. 

He eyed me warily as I viewed him with distaste.  I dropped him to the floor.

‘You showed me too much, Gabriel.’

Gabriel rose to his feet.  ‘Juliet must be schooled.  Her powers are too strong even for a Queen.  The Queen may rule her people, but she in turn must be ruled and counselled wisely by her mate.  You are too young, Nathan, even if you are the appointed one to stand as her protector.  Your generation are beginning to allow women too much freedom.  As a female hybrid she will wield far more power than she should.  It is a pity these powers were not bestowed upon the calm, cool head of a man.’

‘You talk of nonsense.  You want to rule her power and force her to bend to your will.  With you she will not be a Queen, but a slave.  You do not love her as I was born to love her.  You are willing to sacrifice your relationship with Camille for power.  You disgust me.  The moment I find Juliet will be your last.’

Gabriel adjusted his attire, pushing his necktie neatly back into place.  I felt my anger swell.

‘We will see Nathan.  As I have told you, Camille means nothing to me.’

I seized my chance to renew our fight, pushing him back against the wall once more. With cruel venom, I hissed my words at him.  ‘Then you will not be perturbed if I empty her of blood and take my satisfaction until she lives no more.’

I watched fierce rage spark like fire in his eyes, unguarded.  My suspicions as to his strong feelings for Camille were confirmed.  I felt him struggle to contain his unruly emotion at my jibe.  His will was strong and cold.

‘You may do as you wish.’

‘You are a cold–hearted, cruel monster.’

I threw him against the door.  It gave way against him.  He rolled out onto the open landing amongst his men who stood crowded around him.  Each held a sword ready at their side, having heard our fight.  I walked out of the door holding my frame tall and regal, stepping over Gabriel with disdain.  I was ready to take on any man that challenged me.

I stepped into the middle of the circle they created around me.  There were twelve men, fourteen including Gabriel and myself.  I was unafraid despite the precariousness of my situation.  Exhilarated would have been a better word to aptly describe my feelings at that precise moment.  I addressed them all sternly, revelling in what I had learnt of my new role from Gabriel.

‘Gabriel is no longer your leader.  As the chosen Knight Of Swords, and rightful mate to the Queen, I now command your allegiance.  If any of you dispute this and wish to challenge me, step forward now.’

I watched the twelve men who surrounded me closely, turning to each man to judge his reaction.  I used my new gift to read their feelings.  It was easy to push my way inside their minds.  They could not offer me anything like the same resistance Juliet had done.  Each and every one of them desired Juliet as mate.  Some for her beauty alone, and others for her power.  However, most were unwilling to challenge me at this point in time, or indeed ever.  Many of my knights actually respected my position.  Only one was willing to challenge me now.  I swung around to face my opponent.

‘My new challenger has stepped into the ring.’  I smiled.  ‘Gabriel, you have had your chance.  Now you must wait until I have satisfied this gentleman.’

‘Enough of this, Nathan.  Juliet is in danger, challenges can wait,’ Gabriel urged.

‘No.  Danger is ever present around Juliet until I claim her as mine.  This fellow, for instance, has been consumed with lust for Juliet since he secretly watched her feed from you, Gabriel.  He has been waiting for the opportunity to force himself upon her.’

Gabriel stared at his man.  He was a handsome, curly-haired youth with violet eyes.  There was a cocky bearing to his posture.  Male hybrids were more handsome than the average human male.  It appeared to be a prerequisite of being a Taleian vampire.  I could not help but feel some humour at the notion.

‘Is this true, Patrick?’

‘I have a right to her as much as any man here.’

‘But you know the rules . . .’

‘I did not intend to hurt her,’ Patrick shouted.

I searched his mind again.  His efforts to stop my probing were pathetic.  His desires towards Juliet were vivid and repulsive.  He clearly intended to rape her.

‘You lie.  Now let us begin.’

Gabriel eyed Patrick with disgust and contempt.  He gestured to the man who had so generously given me his blood on my first feed, ‘Jason, give your sword to Nathan.’

Jason threw me his sword.  I caught it easily and moved to take my stand.  I was a good fencer, a champion at university, and successful for my London club in many a competition.  I relished the duel.  Patrick was vile.  He had made a career of assaulting and raping human women to satisfy his cruel sexual appetite.  He needed to be disposed of before he harmed Juliet.  The thought of him enacting his depraved fantasies upon her filled me with a rage that knew no bounds.  It drove me on.  I could not fail her with my death.  But, my weapon was heavy, an ancient sword.  Unused to its weight, my task would prove difficult. 

Patrick was a well trained and disciplined opponent, meeting each strike boldly.  The sound of our swords clashing was loud and grating, echoing around the landing.  He pushed me backwards towards the edge of the balcony.  The men stood back.  It was a matter of honour and knightly code that they did not interfere in our duel.  The blade of Patrick’s sword swung low.  I felt it catch across my stomach.  I remembered Gabriel’s earlier threat.  Wounds to my body were not my main concern.  It was my head that I must not lose.

We struggled against the balcony.  Patrick thrust himself upon my body, attempting to disarm me.  He forced both his sword and my own back against my chest.  His wish was clearly to throw me from the balcony.  I leaned back upon the gold balustrade under the force of his weight.  The pressure of the swords pushed against my chest.  I suddenly became anxious there was nowhere else to go.  He just might be successful in his feat.  If he were to throw me, I would land heavily on the floor without the protection of my sword.  It would be simple for him to jump down and remove my head before I could blink.

‘Say goodbye to your life and Juliet, Nathan.  She will be mine before the evening is out.’

‘Nathan, be careful,’ I heard Juliet’s voice echo in my mind, full of fear for my well being.  For a brief moment, the pain I experienced as a result of our mental distance ceased.  I was elated.  She was watching the fight from within my mind.  I did not have time to reply to her, but her presence gave a new impetus to my strength.

I pushed back hard, wrenching my sword from Patrick’s hold to point it at his throat.  Before he could raise his own sword at me I twisted his arm.  He fought furiously with his strength to hold on to his weapon but it clattered noisily onto the stone floor.  I gave it a sharp kick, sending it sliding away from him.  I had Patrick just where I wanted him.

The sudden alarm upon his face was pitiful.  I caught hold of his necktie and, keeping my sword to his throat, I spun him around, forcing him back and down onto the balustrade.  Holding him there, without further hesitation I raised my sword and swung it down across his throat.  The blade slipped through his skin.  Tendons and bone snapped.  Like a knife through butter, his head severed from his body.  Blood spurted like a waterfall from his neck.  I was lucky not to be covered in it.  His head fell down the three floors to bounce onto the ground below as his headless body sank to the floor.

There was a cry from the domestic staff who had gathered at the foot of the stairs.  Camille rushed forward to examine the head as I leaned over to view the scene.  She let out a loud sob, promptly fainting to the floor next to it.  I believe she collapsed with relief that it was not Gabriel’s head lying before her.

I turned back to the men, feeling their silence weigh heavy upon me.  I stood tall and narrowed my eyes at them.

‘You have seen how I deal with pretenders to my position and title.  I will be watching and waiting for your challenges.  Be warned, I will kill you without hesitation.  I will not show mercy to any man who attempts to take my Queen.  I am your Knight of Swords, your leader.  I expect your unconditional loyalty.’

I was relieved when no one else stepped forward.  As each man gave me a nod of respect, I was encouraged.  I did not wish to engage in another fight.  I had already wasted enough time and needed to pursue Juliet.  I instructed my knights to saddle their horses.  We were to leave immediately. After the men had left I stood alone with Gabriel.

‘Very admirable, Nathan.  But you and I are not finished.  Do not let your victory go to your head or be fooled by your strength.  There are other ways to kill a Knight of Swords, without the use of brute force,’ he informed me coldly, a streak of malice lining his words.

I smiled, raising my sword to point its bloody tip at his throat.  His own smile faded.  Jutting his chin defiantly, he faced me regally and without fear.  Still I taunted him, ‘I will be waiting Gabriel.’  I nicked his throat, drawing a little blood, and then allowed him to back away.  He took out his handkerchief to wipe at the wound.  Then he nodded at me with grudging respect.  ‘I will have a horse saddled and ready for you.’

I reached for Juliet in my mind as I watched him disappear down the stairs, but she was gone.  Her barriers against our communication were in place once more.  She was angry that I had fought over her.  Juliet blamed herself for Patrick’s death.  I did not feel any sympathy with her conclusion.  There was no need for her guilt.  It was the way of our people.  I consoled myself that in time she would come to accept there was no boundary I would not cross to protect her.  It was my right.  In a temper I snatched the long winter riding coat Gabriel had given me from my room.  I ran down to join the men, eager to catch up with Juliet and bring her safely home.

Chapter Nine

I held the reins of my horse as it dipped its head to the moonlit river to drink.  We had made good progress across the rolling fields of the county of Hertfordshire despite the thick covering of snow.  Travelling on into Buckinghamshire, we had crossed the Chiltern Hills, and entered Launden forest.  I had found the trail of Juliet’s scent easier to follow than I first thought it would be.  She was now travelling on foot.  Her pace had slowed significantly and the pounding in my head had eased as a result.  We were close, but I could not help wondering about her health.

I grew steadily more anxious for Juliet.  She had been missing for hours.  She was travelling unaccompanied in the countryside and woods at night, unprotected from vagrants and other men wishing to do harm to a lone woman.  If she slept . . .  I put the disquieting thought from my mind and made to mount my horse again.  One of the men gave me a shout.

It was Jason Dyer, the hybrid son born of a wealthy merchant in 1751.  He was one hundred and forty-two.  I would never get used to learning the staggering ages of these men.  I could not help but eye him with marked suspicion as I approached.  His thoughts betrayed him.  He clearly intended to challenge me for Juliet’s hand in the future, but for now he was content to respect my leadership.  He understood it was vital that we act together to locate Juliet’s whereabouts.  Her safety was paramount to him and there would be no challenge until she was retrieved.  I wondered how many more men would step forward to duel with me in the coming days.  It was vital that I kept my guard up and my wits about me if I wished to possess Juliet as my own.  I was determined.  No one would be allowed the pleasure of taking her from me.

 Jason held up a lantern in the darkness.  He pointed towards the corpse of a stag whose prostrate form lay upon the shallow river bank.  Its scarlet life blood stained the crisp, white snow.  I followed him as he walked towards it.

Jason knelt down next to the magnificent beast’s head and gestured to its throat.  It had been torn out.  ‘Juliet did this,’ he told me.  He shook his head.  ‘We can’t drink the blood of an animal.  It poisons us.  There are only two ways we may be killed; by the removal of our heads or taking blood from an animal.  Even a small amount makes us ill.  Consuming more brings death.’

I looked at him quickly, filled with alarm.

‘The corpse is still fresh, she can’t be far away from us.  It explains why she has slowed down.  We have to get to her, Nathan.  The blood from one animal will not satisfy her, she will crave more.  If she drinks from another, we will lose our Queen.’

My anxiety was acute.  I was not the only one to feel such angst.  It pervaded the thoughts of my men, stirring their hearts so much that I felt the pressure of our combined distress in my mind.  Each of my knights was desperate to find their new Queen.

The other men crowded around the fallen animal.  They debated what should be done next to find Juliet, but I already knew what to do.  I closed my eyes to undertake a concentrated effort to make contact with Juliet’s consciousness.  Perhaps she was weak enough for me to pass through her barriers.

At last, I found myself inside her mind, but she did not seem to have detected my presence.  I saw the world through her eyes, becoming fearful at what the vision revealed.

She stood alone at the edge of the forest in which we travelled.  She was studying a path which led over a small bridge across a river, into a village beyond.  She was waiting for something.  Her sight was disturbed, as though she was under the spell of an opium stupor.  Undoubtedly it was an effect of having consumed the animal blood.  Juliet sank to her knees in the snow, exhausted.  I felt her nausea tinged with fear, but her thoughts were unclear, jumbled with images.  One scene played over and over in her mind with the tempo of a fever.  It was a vision that Sebastian had forced her to endure.

Juliet had sensed Sebastian in her mind as she travelled in search of the women.  It was he who had directed her sensitivity to the cries of the imprisoned women within her dreamscape.  When she challenged him as to the reason, he had beckoned with a long bony finger for her to follow him into a vision.  Here, he promised, would be answers.  He would also reveal a way for her to ease the torment of her subjects and set the women free.  It was too much of a temptation for Juliet to resist.    

In the vision, Sebastian appeared to Juliet in his full form.  For the first time, I clearly saw the face of my tormentor.  Sebastian was a tall, thin man with little flesh on his bones.  I already knew those details, but I was not braced for the gruesome nature of his facial features.  Dressed from head to foot in the black garb of a clergyman, his face was long and pointed.  His complexion was a sickly yellow, revealing his bad health.  His cheekbones and eyes were hollow as though he had been starved.  He wore his hair long.  It was withered black and grey.  He suffered from hairless patches that bared his greasy scalp.  What was left of its lustre stuck flat to the sides of his face, crowding his features.  His gray eyes, pained and scarred, were full of lively lust as he gazed upon Juliet. 

I saw how she had recoiled when he reached for her hands with his dirty fingers.  His lips were swollen, sore, and blistered.  He continually ran his lithe tongue over their surface to infuse them with moisture.  I shuddered as he bent his stooping form to kiss Juliet’s hands, holding them tight when she struggled to free them.  Her nausea and fear grew in unified strength when his lips made contact with her skin.  He truly was a monstrous figure of a man who would have been better suited to the realm of dark fairytales.

I felt bile rise in my throat.  I could not bear any man’s touch upon my Queen, least of all Sebastian’s.  I was hot with rage, vainly attempting to content myself with the knowledge that he did not physically have her.  He had merely appeared to her in a vision.  But I could not rest.

Again, Juliet had tried to pull her hands free, fearful of the sudden hold he had upon her in their shared vision.  But, just as I had done in her dreamscape, he kept tight hold of one hand.  Juliet’s surroundings spun and blurred around her as he began to lead her from where she stood.  Suddenly, she found herself in a room within a small castle home.  In the middle of the room sat a long rectangular table with chairs.  I had the distinct impression that men would sit around it in conference, discussing business at hand.  Sebastian swept up a dimly lit gas lamp from a small trestle table at the side and led Juliet to a wooden door at the end of the room.  Reaching into his pocket, he took out a long metal key and unlocked the door.  It opened outwards to reveal an enclosed stone spiral staircase.  Far below, the distant heartbreaking sound of weeping women could be heard.

‘Come, my Queen, I have much to show you.  Then I will advise you what you must do,’ he told her.  Juliet did not react at the title he gave her.  I inferred she was now aware of her identity.  Perhaps she had learnt it from Sebastian, or listened in to my conversation with Gabriel.

His limp hampered their descent, slowing their pace down the winding stairs.  I could feel the tightness of fear inside Juliet as she listened to the weeping grow louder, but her will was firm, regal.  She was Queen of her people.  She must remain strong, even when they were in distress and calling for her help.  It was her royal obligation to answer their call.  She would do all in her power to save her subjects, including sacrificing herself.  It was admirable.  I applauded her fortitude but I would not tolerate her sacrifice.  I would not allow it.

At the bottom of the steps Sebastian unlocked another thick oak door.  They stepped through into the dungeons.  The atmosphere was warm and suffocating.  The cries had grown louder still.  They had entered a wide room that housed the untidy living quarters of a jailer.  He sat at a small table, drinking.  It was a strange unexpected sight to behold.  Sebastian led Juliet under an archway and down a narrow, worn brick corridor.  Candles and fire torches lit their way, flickering dark, foreboding shadows across their path.  Juliet did her best to peer into the barred windows of the dungeon cells as they passed, but she could not see the faces of the weeping women behind the locked wooden doors.  Sebastian tugged sharply on her arm pulling her to a door at the end of the corridor.

They passed through into a large room brightly lit by gas lamps.  The room bore wood panelling on the walls and a wooden floor.  It gave the impression of being inside a fashionable house.  Juliet felt a moment of comfort from the light surroundings, but it was short lived.  The atmosphere was spoiled by a sharply pungent, clinical smell.  In the centre of the room there was an operating table with a helpless naked female victim lying upon it.  Juliet’s fear for the woman was high.  I tensed, believing I was to witness yet another murder.

Juliet’s hand flew to her mouth in terror as she flinched from Sebastian.  He put a finger to his lips to hush her before pulling her against himself.  He held her from behind, restraining her arms by her sides.  ‘Watch, your majesty.’

Tears of anger and frustration spilt from Juliet’s eyes as she watched the woman begin to squirm with fear.  The woman appeared drowsy, subdued.  Her struggles were weak and her eyes rolled.  She had no chance of escape, for iron bonds were clasped around her arms and ankles.

There was a man preparing operating instruments at the side of the table.  His shirt sleeves were rolled up.  Despite his ordinary garb, the mask he wore over his face marked him as a surgeon.  Across the room, a frail middle aged man and his daughter sat on two dining chairs.  They were well dressed in expensive clothes, giving the impression of wealth.  By his white pallor the gentleman appeared on the verge of death.  In front of them, a small table was elegantly set with silver tableware and small candelabra, as though for dinner.  They sat calmly, each patiently sipping tea from a china cup and saucer, watching the proceedings without emotion.  The civilised scene of taking tea only made the horror of what was to come starker in its contrast.

The surgeon moved towards the woman on the table.  She whimpered and cried helplessly, watching the surgeon’s approach with terror.  Juliet began to furiously struggle in Sebastian’s grip, tearfully begging him to make the surgeon stop.  But Sebastian pulled her tight against him.  He cruelly laughed at her pleading, revelling at the hold he had on her luscious body.

  Without any hesitation, the surgeon raised his scalpel and cut deeply into the woman’s side.  She screamed in agony with a piercing pitch.  Had there been any windows, they would surely have shattered.  The surgeon callously ignored her screams as he made a second cut.  He folded back the section of flesh, and inserted his hand into the bloody mess that protruded from it to run in a pool on the table.  Juliet sobbed and cried, clutching at Sebastian’s hands in a frantic effort to break free, desperate to go to the woman’s aid.  I could feel her attempting to inflict injury upon the surgeon with the power of her mind, trying to stop the whole barbaric process.  Yet her power was mute.  Sebastian laughed again.

‘My beautiful Queen, you cannot help her.  Calm yourself.  None of your gifts will work in this room.  It is lined with iron.  This metal is detrimental to our kind.  It renders our gifts powerless, makes us weak and vulnerable.  Do not tax yourself with effort.  Now hush, my Queen, the best is yet to come.’

The surgeon rummaged in the woman’s innards.  Eventually he reached for his knife, inserting it into the wound to make another cut.  Amidst the agonised cries of the woman, he pulled a kidney free from her body and held it high over her stomach.  The surgeon viewed it critically as a male youth came to stand beside him, holding out a silver plate.  The surgeon placed the organ upon it.  The boy took it to the table where the young woman sat with her ailing father.  He set it down in front of her and she cordially thanked him with a smile.  I could not believe what I was witnessing.

Swiftly, the young woman took up a knife and fork and began to cut the kidney into small pieces.  Blood oozed from the glistening organ as she did so, covering the plate.  She held a piece up to her father’s lips.  He eagerly allowed her to place it in his mouth, chewing with relish before opening his mouth for another piece.  She continued to feed him like a babe.

Juliet was close to fainting.

‘What is this, Sebastian?’ she whispered, exhausted by her emotion.

‘This, my Queen,’ he gestured at the room with his hand, ‘. . . is where I save the lives of my flock and anyone who cares to offer the right price.  The organs and blood of Taleians and hybrids, especially the females, can bring about the remission of serious disease in humans.  Sometimes they can even be cured.  The humans of this village gave me a place to live and bestowed their love upon me as their religious leader when my own people cast me out.  But they were stricken with illness, a plague of leprosy.  I found ways to help them combat their disease to repay them for their kindness.  Now my fame is spreading.’

‘You are a vile, disgusting creature . . .’

‘Hush, do not try my patience, your majesty.  I need more hybrid and Taleian women, but they are in so short a supply now.  My brothers who wish to live amongst humans are competing with me in the business of healing.  They seek to take advantage of human weakness to obtain power in their society, but I have something they don’t.  I have you.  A hybrid Queen’s healing is unique.  She can cure any disease.  Your wealth of powerful gifts will bring me many financial rewards.  So, my beautiful Queen, I propose a trade that I wish you to consider.  Come with me, I have something else to show you.  Do not worry about the girl; she will be removed from here and allowed to heal so she may be used again.’ 

Juliet was trembling when she followed Sebastian back out of the door.  He turned left down a passageway.  At the end of it she saw another cell.  As they approached it, the sound of children happily playing could be heard.  It seemed horribly out of place in the underground maze.  Juliet’s body tightened with anxiety wondering what new terror she was about to face as Sebastian opened the door.

They entered a large cobbled room full of ragged female children, barely lit by candlelight.

   The girls ran to hide in the shadows, whispering and giggling excitedly.  There was no comfort in the room, not even beds of straw for them to sleep on, only the hard unforgiving floor.  Yet they did not seem distressed by it.  Sebastian called to them.

‘Come here my children and meet your Queen.’

Slowly, obediently, the children came out of the shadows to gather around him.  There must have been thirty of them.  Although the people in the operating room had been unaware of Sebastian and Juliet’s presence, the children were party to Sebastian’s vision.  He spoke to them kindly, as a father might do to his children.  To my disgust, their pitiful dirt-stained faces looked upon him with love and respect.

‘This is your Queen, children.  She has come to visit you.’  Once more they whispered and giggled.  One small child of five protectively clutched a battered china doll.  She eyed Juliet with wonder, but did not dare to move.  Juliet was speechless.

‘Juliet, these are the daughters of Taleian and hybrid women who have mated with human males.  They are yet to make the change, but when they do I will have new stock.  I have had to take organs from a few already because of the shortage of hybrid women.  Unfortunately, they were not yet able to survive.  Until they complete their metamorphosis, they are not able to heal.’  He smiled, sweeping his arm around one of the children to hug her to his side.

 ‘You disgust me beyond all reason,’ Juliet told him with contempt.  ‘I suspect their mothers were forced to bear these unfortunate children?’

‘Yes, many of them were, and continue to be.  I must breed more.  But, if you give yourself to me as my mate, and offer your body to cure those who come to me in need, I will set your little subjects free.  I will also spare any others that are born.  You must grant me rule of your power.  If you refuse, the children will be forced to bear the same fate as their mothers.  They will never see the light or know the joy of love.’  He paused allowing the terrible thought to sink deep into Juliet’s mind.  Then he grinned widely, ‘Oh, and as a bonus, I will also kill your beloved Knight of Swords.’ 

The relish of killing me was strong in his voice.

She glared at him.  ‘You will leave Nathan alone.  I will give you everything you want if you keep to your word.’

I fought to contain my anger as I viewed the final scenes of the vision.

Sebastian’s cold, grey eyes deepened in colour.  They betrayed his insatiable lust for Juliet, excited by her surrender.  He kissed her hand once more.

‘Thank you, my Queen.  I yearn for our mating.  We will rule the world.’  He started to laugh.

Juliet shuddered, pulling her hand away.  This time he let her go, licking his lips as he watched her with desire.  He could barely wait to have her beneath him.

‘You must leave to prepare yourself.  I will meet you at the entrance to my village.’

She nodded disconsolately and stepped back into the shadows to leave the vision.

I called loudly to her as she sat in the snow waiting for Sebastian to appear at the gates to the village.  ‘Juliet, you must not do this.  I will help you to free them.  I won’t give you up.  I command you, listen to me.  Stay where you are.  I am not far from you.’  My voice was frantic, desperate to stop her.

She sounded so weary and defeated in her response.  Her pain for the children’s welfare was overwhelming.  ‘I have no choice, Nathan.  I must go.  I am their Queen.  Only I alone can help them.  I must also keep you safe.  Sebastian wishes to kill you.’

It took all of my power to keep my temper.  ‘My darling, he will not harm me.  You are so weak.  You must not drink the blood of animals; it is poison to our kind.’

‘Yes, I understand that now.  How foolish I was, but I could not ignore the hunger.  Sebastian will help me.  Nathan, you must let me go.’

I raised my voice, filling it with as much command as my station as Knight of Swords permitted.  She would obey me.  It was her duty to relent.  ‘No.  You will wait until I come for you.  I won’t, I can’t, lose you to him or any other.’

But her stubborn independence ensured she did not heed my words.  ‘He is here, Nathan.  I must go.  I love you, always and forever.  Never forget that.  Promise you will look after the children.’

‘Juliet, do not go.  I command you.’  Again, she was to ignore me.

 ‘Look after my children, Nathan.  Keep them safe.’

She stood as the monster appeared at the edge of the village, accompanied by the brood of children.  As he let them go, she advanced towards him, willingly taking his hand.  The moment she touched him, my heart felt as though a knife had been run through it.

Every man and animal present in the forest heard my roar of enraged, inconsolable grief.