Chapter 8: Chapter Six Part 2

Hazel paid for a pig to assist her body in weaving the rest of her lost blood. Life could only be traded with Life, after all, and blood with blood. At least here at the temple, the livestock used for healing was quickly butchered, processed, and the meat given away to the needy. This was necessary, as Life taken this way meant rot set in quicker. Hazel heard it argued that the taste was ruined too, but she could never tell the difference.

And : woes of all woes : Hazel had lost the scarlet hat. Her head felt naked without it, like a piece of her identity was missing. She also held Edelweiss in her arms. Her blood was replaced, but the bruise on her neck still ached, fierce enough she decided against shoulder rides for now.

Hazel thought they would have to wait until nightfall to leave the temple. It was a blazing sunny day outside. But after she sorted herself out, Aurelius led her deeper into the temple. They went down steps smoothed by thousands of feet, railings pounded into the natural rock walls. The air temperature dropped noticeably with every step, the moisture squeezed out of the air until it made the cave walls and stairs slick. At the bottom, they stepped into an underground chapel.

Simple torches lined the walls, coating the white rock with layers upon layers of soot. Rows of hard pews were set before a podium, and a statue carved seemingly from a massive stalagmite. It was of the loving Earthly Mother reaching down to embrace the crowd. The imperious Heavenly Father sprouted from her torso, standing proud and pointing to the Heavens, his stern gaze reminding the crowd of the ideals they must achieve.

Hazel met that withering gaze of the Father, then looked away. What oh what had she gotten herself into?

Aurelius didn’t let her stare long. His eyes darted about the space before he confidently strode towards a small antechamber — a mausoleum. They walked past about half a dozen nondescript sarcophagus, and then stopped in front of a wall not carved from the caves, but instead built from white bricks.

Hazel watched, fascinated, as Aurelius pried a brick from the wall, reached in, and pulled something inside. There was a loud ka-clunk! and part of the wall swung open an inch. He replaced the brick, dug his nails into the crack, and with some effort heaved a secret door all the way open.

Hazel squealed and recoiled. A whole colony of rats quickly scattered into the dark, hiding among piles of broken debris and stinking rags.

Aurelius laughed. He stepped towards one of the piles of debris and held out a hand. Hazel saw a few of the rats peeking their heads out. They weren’t all brown or black like she expected. Some had patterns like dogs, splotched white mixing with black and brown.

Aurelius snatched one, and lifted it in one hand. It squirmed a little, tail whipping wildly. But it calmed as he stroked its head with his thumb.

“Trust me, they’re quite tame,” he said. “They won’t bite.”

Edelweiss grumbled and rubbed his snout as Hazel calmed her heart. She saw the rats had been foraging among a deliberately placed pile of wilting vegetables and hacked apart chunks of meat and bone. The slowly decaying trash plus the stench of rat urine made for a fierce stink.

Hazel tried to get used to it, like she’d gotten used to the rest of the invasive smells here in White Cliff. She stepped forward to look at the rat in Aurelius’ hand. She was no stranger to rats and mice, they always got in the coven temple where she grew up. But this was the first time she’d seen one so… calm? Not running for its life or snatched up by a baby dragon,

“They're… pets?” Hazel asked uncertainly.

“Food,” Aurelius said, still softly stroking the rat’s head. “We keep our larders well-stocked.”

“Oh, are you, uh… hungry?” Hazel asked hesitantly, looking up at Aurelius.

Aurelius hummed in the back of his throat, still stroking and petting the rat as it squirmed. He let it run hand over hand; as the rat clambered over his open palm, he led it into stepping onto the palm of his second hand. Over and over, the rat sniffed Aurelius’ fingers curiously, whiskers twitching and black eyes bulging.

“No,” he at last answered. “Not very.”

Aurelius lowered the rat to the floor, where it hopped off and rejoined its fellows. Some intrepid rats had already returned to the pile of meat and vegetables, some sitting and eating, others snatching scraps and squirreling them away among their nests. Hazel wondered how they avoided flies… There seemed to be gnats around the vegetables, but only a few flies around the fresh meat. Despite the trash and the stink, did they clean this place often?

“So this is, what, a hidden vampire pantry?” Hazel asked. “Who takes care of the rats?”

“Why, the person who you bought that fine pig from of course!” Aurelius cried, grinning. “Why did you think I brought you to this particular temple? They’re all well and truly in Asphodel’s pocket, and know well the value of their service.”

“Oh right,” Hazel said, looking back out the secret passage door. “Are we going to free the Sister?”

“Eventually,” Aurelius said hastily. “I need time to prepare; formulate a proper plan to take Asphodel’s systems down. Won’t do to rush thing.

“In any case,” he hastily moved on. “This place is also our secret highway,” he said. He stood and waved deeper into the darkness. The natural cave continued, light fading quickly into pitch blackness. “The stone of the cliffs is a veritable honeycomb of caves. We thralls aren’t the only ones who take advantage of it, but they do serve our particular weakness well.”

Aurelius was about to just head into that inky darkness, but he paused, backtracked, and plucked a torch from the mausoleum wall.

“Pardon my rudeness,” he said with a small bow. “Forgot that the lady can't see in pitch black.”

“And you can?” Hazel asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Mmmmore or less…?” Aurelius said with a shrug of his shoulders

“What a non-committal answer,” Edelweiss said from Hazel’s arms. “Can you or can’t you?”

Aurelius rolled his eyes. “I can navigate in pitch dark, though not by sight. This will be fun, using my eyes to traverse these caves.”

With that, he shut the door behind them with a snap. The shadows grew dense, the only light in the cave from the single flickering torch. Aurelius walked confidently into the dark, and Hazel trailed behind.

The cave started relatively wide. But it became quickly apparent that these were not places built by humans. The walls squeezed in, ceiling and floor shifting wildly up and down. The tunnel would bend and twist wildly, making Hazel contort and scurry sideways in awkward positions. They came across stalactites knocked aside as if punching holes in teeth, creating new passageways. Switchbacks were hidden in sections of walls she thought were solid.

The stone was rough and cutting, yet still slick with a thin layer of water. Hazel found herself instinctively stealing threads from stone, coating her skin to prevent her newly replaced blood from leaking out of innumerable cuts. And, while damp and cool, the cave’s air felt stiff and stale. No wind, no sound of critters, just deafening black beyond the bounds of the torch.

They never had to crawl or climb great distances. But Aurelius would occasionally flash her a wicked smile, point to an absurdly small hole in the wall, and say something like ‘that’s the way to the topside markets’ and she had no idea if he was joking or not.

The air was stale. The lack of sound outside of breathing and footsteps was oppressive. Hazel didn’t consider herself claustrophobic. But some primal part of her brain reminded her, if she got trapped or stuck down here, nobody would ever be able to find her. She was wholly reliant on the back of the vampire who strode ahead of her, holding aloft a torch and moving with the same amount of grace as dancing.

The silence was what got to her in the end. Just walking right behind in the dark, lost and not knowing where they were. Her mind wandered. Back to the rats, and a question she knew she had to ask, but didn’t dare to.

“Aurelius…?” she said.

“Hm? Oh don't worry darling, we’re almost there.”

She cleared her throat and asked, “When you get hungry again, are you going to kill more people?”

Hazel couldn't see his face, but she heard him exhale slowly out his nose.

Keeping his back to her, Aurelius said, “And you think you can stop me? Offer your neck once more? How long ‘til your coffers empty, replacing your blood with the livestock’s?”

“But you have the rats—“ Hazel started

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“No more rats!” he roared.

Hazel flinched, and gripped the fabric of her stained dress. His voice rang off the walls of the cave, echo deafening. Aurelius stopped walking, shoulders heaving as he took deep breaths. Hazel didn’t even need to blink to know the Fire in his fabric was boiling.

He looked up. Voice low in his throat, he said, “I’ve tasted it. The sweet, delicious ambrosia I’ve been denied for so long. And it. Was. Glorious.”

He spun on her, eyes wild. Edelweiss reared up in Hazel’s arms, wings flaring. But Aurelius didn't move a step closer as he continued, voice low and hissing.

“I’ve fed that greedy bastard Asphodel countless men and women. Watched him feast as my stomach clawed with hunger. And for once, for one glorious moment, I was—“ He gritted his teeth and glanced away, gripping the front of his shirt. Hazel could still remember the sight of his blossoming joy. “And you. Little martyr girl—“ He waved a finger in her face. “—Tell me to go back to starving myself? Voluntarily?”

Hazel squared her shoulders and said in a small voice, “I’ll not work with a murderer,”

Aurelius laughed wildly. “Were you not listening?” He leaned forward and splayed a hand across his chest. “I am a murderer!”

With a jerk, Hazel shook her head. “You were Asphodel’s thrall. You had no choice.”

Aurelius scoffed. “You don’t know me!”

“You’re right,” Hazel said quietly. “I don’t know you. I don’t know whether you’ll keep your word or break my trust in a day. So I'm telling you now. If you kill one more person, then we’re done. I won’t help you. Your Fabric grows more red the more blood you’ve drunk. So I’ll know.”

Aurelius stared her dead in the eye, and Hazel stared dead back. She stared even as she shivered, terrified. Surrounded by rock, she could at least make sure she got away if this man attacked her. She knew, if she had to, she could grip the fabric of his flesh and…

Hazel shivered. She was unaccustomed to enacting violence. And from the look in the vampire’s eyes, she knew. He had far more experience than her.

It was Aurelius who broke eye contact first. He groaned loudly and marched off, shouting, “I cannot be hearing this!”

Hazel let out a sigh and followed after, still wobbling shakily on her feet.

“You certainly like provoking that one,” Edelweiss commented. “Do not worry. If he tries anything, I’ll tear out his throat for you.”

Hazel winced. With just a hint of sarcasm, Hazel mumbled, “Thanks, Edelweiss….”

They proceeded in silence down the passageway, then without looking at her, Aurelius heaved a sigh.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “For snapping. I feel… less in control than normal. I’ve been forcing a smile for so long, I had forgotten….” he trailed off, as if he couldn’t find the words.

Hazel couldn't help it. She blinked. Pressed between the green walls of the cave on either side, she saw his mind. A smoldering red anger, but there were ripples of blue for sorrow and regret. Satisfied, Hazel blinked the image away.

“It’s okay,” Hazel said softly. “I’m used to it.”

Aurelius laughed weakly. “What a thing to be used to! Was your love lost so brutal?”

Hazel tried to smile but it came out as a grimace. “No. Well. We all have our moments. But in my line of work, with my clients, heightened emotions tend to bubble to the surface. I try not to take it personally.”

Aurelius chuckled and looked back at her. “But you do take it personally, don’t you?”

Hazel’s smile quirked out of the grimace. “A little.”

He laughed again, turning back to roughly pat her on the head. Hazel was reminded of how naked she felt without her hat.

But it was nice.

She wished she could have nice Aurelius all the time.

~~~~

“And here we are!” Aurelius said.

Finally, the narrow and twisting passages opened up into a proper cavern again. Hazel exhaled, and let the green threads of her protective spellweave go. Edelweiss snored softly, and Hazel's arms ached from trying to steady the tired dragon.

Of course it came with the smell of rats, another colony. But this one was a little more cared for. There was a torn apart cotton mattress, roped rags tangled into a kind of jungle gym, boards and planks zigzagging between boxes to create a proper ratty playground. Instead of being tossed in pell mell piles, there was an attempt to keep somewhat fresh food in a trough (the rats still scattered the food willy nilly) and water was set in a few bowls. Waste was actually swept aside with bundles of straw, neatly piled against the wall.

Aurelius strode forward, and the rats still scattered before him, hiding in the mattress and scampering up the ramps. But some of them followed in his footsteps, a couple even attempting to climb his tight pants. Aurelius gently pried them off, and continued on to a brick wall on heavy metal hinges, rope mechanism connected to a thick latch. He yanked on the rope, and with a click, the stonework one more snapped open.

“That was quite a ways from the temple,” Hazel said. “Does the Sister take care of all the rats?”

“Oh. No. This mischief is my responsibility,” Aurelius said. “As is the house above.”

“Oh!” Hazel looked around at the neat little nest. With a twinge, she asked. “Are these rats… special to you?”

Aurelius chuckled darkly as he shooed the curious rats away from the open door with the side of his foot.

He said, “Just because a shepherd cares for his flock does not mean he saves them from slaughter.”

He pushed the door open the rest of the way, and waved Hazel through. He gently tossed back the last of the curious rats before closing the wall flush, the smell slowly fading with them. He looked around and doused the torch in a barrel half full of water. They were in a broad wine and root cellar, air cool and damp like the caves, but much less stale. Thin and high windows were clouded over with white paint, letting just barely a hint of light in. The space between supports were crammed with wine racks, all kinds of lightly-damaged furniture stacked and stuffed against the walls. It was an eclectic mix… and something about it sent some gears whirring in Hazel’s brain.

“Wait,” she said. “No… this isn't…”

Aurelius smirked. Hazel saw there was a broad wooden staircase on the opposite side of the cellar. She ran up the creaking and buckling steps, and forced open a hatch. It opened to a dark and muggy pantry, unfamiliar to her.

But as she scampered up the rest of the steps, she burst into a kitchen full of afternoon light. It was a nice white interior accented by chocolate wood cabinets. There was a heavy black metal stove as well as a brick oven. An island with chairs sat in the middle of the floor. All unfamiliar. But that chocolate trim, and the Soppmoss set high into the wall all but confirmed it for her.

Edelweiss shifted and squirmed from the movement, from the light. Hazel held him steady, as she looked out the window. It overlooked a garden full of lavender, geraniums, and dozens of other flowers she had walked through not even twenty four hours ago.

“This is!” Hazel cried. She stepped away from the window, peering. through an open doorframe into a familiar foyer. Her stomach dropped as she spotted her very own trunk. “This is Zinnia’s place!”

“Oh?” Aurelius called, half in and half out of the hatch. “You mean my hunting ground? The home I rent to potential victims, gaining both a source of income and easy victims to bring back to master?”

To punctuate his point, he patted along a bottom shelf in the pantry and yanked a thin rope. The heavy curtains in the kitchen were pulled closed, covering the once bright and cheerful place in dim shadows.

“You were going to take Zinnia?” Hazel shot.

“And you, darling,” Aurelius emphasized. “Really, you dodged a bullet freeing me from my leash. When my master laid eyes on you two, he all but begged me to bring you to him. As early as this afternoon, the pair of you would be slaking my master’s thirst.”

Hazel felt her throat tense. Aurelius had shown her that the old man was not an old man. That Asphodel was a vampire lord, cruel and calculating. She had seen, through his eyes, blood on his lips. Aurelius had sat beside Hazel and begged her to stop him.

But there was something about learning that old man who had eyed Zinnia greedily for her body… Not taking in a view, but sizing her up like a prime cut he wished to devour. Devour them both?

A distant and vague evil felt suddenly like it was pressing against her back, grinding against her skin. She had shaken hands with someone who had intended to kill her… She looked at her hand, the vague memory of his cool and smooth skin, the bark of his whispering curse on her hands.

Hazel took a shuddering breath, and felt her throat tense like it was about to disgorge bile. Why did it take so long to click?

“How many?” She whispered. When Aurelius didn’t respond, she walked back to the pantry, where Aurelius still sat half in and half out of the hatch. She glared down at him, cleared her throat, and said louder, “How many have you taken from this house, to cast it in such a parlor of death?”

Edelweiss lifted his head sleepily and nosed under her chin, trying to calm her as he mumbled in the tumbling, growling language of dragons.

But Aurelius met her gaze and flatly said, “From here? A dozen or so. I move between rentals frequently. Keeps things plausibly deniable.”

“And nobody has figured it out?” Hazel demanded. “They have to notice people vanishing!”

“They? Who’s they?!” Aurelius laughed darkly. “The Watch? In his pocket. The courts? He made the courts. The rich bastards in the Explorer’s Club? Ha! Asphodel made certain to restrict that gaggle of bored second sons heavily in the city.

He leaned forward, splaying his fingers on the boards of the pantry. “Are you starting to see what we’re up against, or do you want me to spell it out for you? Sombre Asphodel is the richest, most powerful, most deeply entrenched man in this city.”

Hazel gagged, bile stinging the back of her throat. This was a warm and welcoming place. Where Zinnia slept, where she slept. She could have been kidnapped, killed silently and out of sight by the man grinning smugly up at her.

And nobody would know or care.

Hazel placed a hand on her mouth and stumbled back against the doorframe. Edelweiss yapped as his tail was pinched between her shoulder and the boards.

She hastily mumbled, “Sorry,” and then, “I'm going to go lie down…”

Hazel thought she heard Aurelius swear and call her name. But she was already dashing out of the foyer and up the stairs.