Aris Reigns: The Kingdom of Vampires. Devin Morgan

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      Sarah groaned as she opened her eyes. The huge lump on her forehead was throbbing and she was shaky on her feet as she staggered toward the window. She had no idea how long she had lain on the floor, but the sky was still dark. She still had time before morning. Her hand was shaking as she reached to grasp the windowsill. The wind whistled through the bars and echoed throughout the chamber. Sarah’s imagination played cruel tricks; she swore the wind called her name. Leaning her aching forehead against the cold metal separating her from her freedom, she heard it more clearly.

      “Sarah. Sarah.”

      Suddenly, long powerful fingers wrapped around the bars and quietly lifted them from their foundation, bending them as if they were made of soft wood. Sarah knew she must be dreaming as Aris leaped through the opening, landing silently before her.

      “Aris.” It was a whisper. She reached for him as if she were suddenly unaware of where she was, sleepwalking, wanting only to be in his arms.

      “Come. We are in great danger. We must hurry.” Lifting her as if she were weightless, he wrapped her arms and legs around him. “Hold on tight. The only way out is down.” She breathed in his fragrance as he climbed out the window. Leaning her cheek against his powerful shoulder, all of her fears fell away as he made his way, spider-like, down the ancient stones of the tower.

      Loud voices and a wolf’s howl halted his progress while they were still hidden in the shadows of the fallen foundation stones. Sarah buried her face in his chest to stifle a gasp as three male vampires crossed the courtyard beneath them. One had a huge black wolf on a leash. The wolf strained at the lead, snarling and howling, struggling to get away. He kept turning his huge head toward the escaping couple clinging to the side of the castle, his snout working as he took in their scent.

      “What is wrong with him?” the tallest of the three questioned.

      “Nothing, he hasn’t eaten. Maybe he’ll get the remnants of the human when the Queen is finished with her.” The animal’s handler laughed as he finally gained control of the beast and they walked on.

      Aris waited in silence, preventing her attempted query with a tender kiss. “Wait,” he whispered so softly she had to strain to hear his words even though his lips touched her ear. She shivered as she felt his warm breath against her skin. “We are still in danger. They are still within ear-shot. When they have gone, we will continue to safety. Once I have you out of harm’s way, I will answer all your questions.”

      As soon as the three vampires disappeared from sight into the castle, he resumed their descent. He carried her close to him as he ran through the forest to safety and the waiting circle of her Immortal friends.

CHAPTER 2

      Aris’ hands gripped the steering wheel as the car sped toward the distant horizon; the early morning sky glowed with the first rays of the rising sun. Richard spoke quietly into his cell phone so as not to wake Sarah sleeping soundly in the backseat, her blond head resting peacefully against Gabriela’s shoulder.

      “What was that about?” Aris kept his voice low.

      “Simon. He will meet us in London in a few days. Demitri and Alexi will stay on to keep watch on the coven.” He checked to see if Sarah was still sleeping before he continued. “It seems Queen Mariska went raving mad when she heard of Sarah’s escape. She ordered the male and female who had served Sarah in the castle to be extinguished. Then she single handedly, stone by stone, destroyed the tower, leveling it to rubble. She railed at the King, yet when he remained unruffled, she further demanded he eliminate the guards who had taken Sarah back to her chamber. The King refused. According to Simon, she stormed from the audience chamber, the entire castle ringing with her shouted accusation that DeMarco still loved the human woman.”

      Aris glanced in the rear view mirror. He would feel much more at peace when they were all four on an airplane heading to London.

      “The amazing thing is,” Richard continued, “the situation has worked to our best advantage.”

      “Our advantage? How so?”

      “The Queen ignored the King’s command. With the help of one of the King’s most important generals, this new man, Esteban, one by one, they impaled and burned the guards. When the King heard of her actions he became livid at her treason. He commanded her and Esteban to death and they fled into exile before they could be captured. All of this within twenty-four hours of Sarah’s escape.”

      “I still do not understand how Mariska and this Esteban’s exile aids our cause? And who is Esteban?”

      “Quite simply told, actually. Esteban was the King’s hand-picked general. He is relatively new to their coven. It seems DeMarco changed him for the express purpose of being the commander of his troops. He was a famous bullfighter known for his cruelty in and out of the bullring. DeMarco knows his crude vampires must be taught the finesse of evading an impaler. Apparently, he felt none could be better at finesse than a bullfighter., Even though he joined them only recently, he is a most powerful and charismatic leader and when he left with the Queen, almost half the army rallied to follow. The Spanish coven’s forces are split; civil war begins between them.”

      “I see,” Aris spoke, a slow smile of comprehension lighting his eyes. “Their internal conflict will give us more time to train our soldiers, more time to prepare while they do battle with one another.”

      ”The Queen’s army with Esteban in command retreats from the castle even now as we drive toward Barcelona.”

      “Did Simon have any idea what their destination might be?”

      “Rumor in the coven is their ultimate objective is London. Now they travel through the Pyrenees Mountains to find a place suitable to train for war. Their way is difficult for in order for such a great number to stay out of the sight of humans they must travel the snow banked gorges of the mountains. Their progress is slow but they continue forward. The Queen is determined to murder Sarah and take over the Catacombs with or without the King beside her. Without him, her hope is Esteban. Her troops are diminished by half and there are factions within factions. They are all ill-trained and undisciplined. Esteban must gain military control of the coven immediately. The exiled vampires must be brought into harmony before they can be taught to fight together against King DeMarco and then a war of extinction against the Immortals. The Spanish royal conflict is our windfall; we have a greater window of time before we must depart London for Spain.”

      “Richard, we must keep constant watch over Sarah. She must never be alone. Mariska took her once. She can do it again.”

      “Aris, she was taken from the hotel with Gabriela in the next room. Sarah has human needs, how can one of us be constantly in her presence?”

      “I will not leave her alone. In London or Chicago СКАЧАТЬ