Prologue
~ Adelie ~
Blood is life.
Without blood, we are nothing.
Without life, there is no blood.
Blood is life.
Every child knew the truth of that from the moment of birth. Whether suckling at their mother’s breast or taking their first taste from the vein, it was ingrained in all of them.
Blood is life.
Hiking through the massive mountains, Adelie tossed a look back at the hikers following her and cringed. Stumbling, tripping, falling, demanding water, rest and sleep, they held her back. She could have been at Ras Ouanoukrim two days ago.
Blood is life.
It was becoming a mantra. Even for someone who didn’t mind the hikers, it was about the only thing sustaining Adelie’s sanity. It was also critical she get the hikers to the cave before the madness set in.
Adelie hated the thought of the crushing hunger her best friend was suffering at the moment.
They were close, and it was only early morning. They could reach the cave later today, and this horrid excursion would be done. Two extra damn days, which cut them too close to the deadline. Still, she’d taken her time with the group. It was vitally important every one of the twenty-eight hikers gets to the cave.
It was why she had spent the last six months selecting and training them. Composed of scientists, teachers, businessmen, weapons experts, engineers, wealthy adventurers, bored housewives, and some of their children, each one was handpicked. From all corners of the world, she’d paid for them to fly to Tangiers and then to Marrakech. She paid for passports, hotels, planes, horses, equipment...whatever was needed to get these exact people there.
And the one weak link, the damn fool who called himself an adventurer, had fallen and broken his leg. He was the one who had begged to go and had given her stupid sums of money for entry to the group. Useless. His foot had twisted and snapped in a small crevasse.
Blood is life.
When it was apparent, forty-eight hours later, he was going to die from either exposure or a clot, and Adelie was painfully aware of her deadline. She’d ordered everyone on, except for one guide.
Waiting patiently for the entire group to fall asleep—she had infinite patience—Adelie returned. Running at breakneck speed, she wasted no time. Finding the camp well into the night, the guide and hiker were likewise asleep.
Blood is life.
She struck. The guide was first, his strangled scream drowned in the crushing pressure of her mouth as she drained every drop out of his miserable body.
The hiker watched her, sucking the life from the guide—her red eyes, her powerful fangs. She got a thrill out of his fear. It fed her primal urges on another level.
She struck again. Her fangs embedded deep into the man’s neck. She drew hard on him, taking mouthful after mouthful of his blood. After swallowing just a few times, Adelie pulled back. She knew the red was still shining brightly in her eyes, and she focused on this liar’s face.
“Well, Mr. Fischer. You played a good game. I truly thought you are a world-class mountaineer. And here, after just a little bit of your blood, the truth comes out.
“A liar, a cheat, a coward, and a top-notch fraud. I knew our guide was dishonest. I have no regret on dispatching him. Though, the blood of a liar is always bitter. But you, Mr. Fischer. I had hoped you would imbue my lady with a sense of adventure, accomplishment, share your knowledge of our world’s many wonders.”
She gathered some of the blood that pulsed from the wound at his neck and licked it off. “I am relieved that your loss will amount to nothing.”
He made an incoherent sound, but Adelie wrapped her lips around his vein and drained him. Useless. Waste of time and money. At least her friend would be spared the stupidity. Adelie heaved his body off the side of the mountain, finished with him.
Blood is life.
When the hikers woke in the morning, they were just hours from the cave. It had been too long since she’d had a good meal—real food—and managed a good night’s sleep. The other hikers, though, were still tired and sore. The pace she set was shuffling at best, and she had to drive them through noon to make sure they would arrive that day.
The Overlords had told her to the hour when they would wake Gwen.
And the hikers were late.
It was well after the sun had started to sink toward the horizon when the cave came into view. Relief flooded her, and she marched the group as hard as she could toward the entrance.
Barely holding herself back from breaking into her supernatural speed, she arrived at the cave at least five minutes ahead of the rest of the group. She managed to shove the boulder aside covering the entrance.
Adelie pulled out a battery-operated lantern and illuminated the interior.
Terror struck through her frame, her shoulders tensing.
The crypt door was open.
“Shit.”
Rushing in and swinging the light around to look in every corner, she found a small figure behind a hewn rock arch and scurried over. “Gwynnore. It’s me. Your best friend.”
Curled in a ball, filthy, half dressed, and smelling like the dead, Gwynnore was rocking slowly.
Adelie put a hand on her shoulder.
The diminutive woman’s head snapped up and a feral growl issued from her, fangs elongating and her hand snapping out to wrap around Adelie’s neck.
Adelie was suddenly very glad she had drained the guide and Fischer.
She would not have been able to hold her friend back otherwise.
“Gwen, stop, stop.”
“Thirsty,” she hissed, dropping her jaw to try to take Adelie’s neck.
“It’s coming, Gwen. It’s on the way.”
“Adelie?”
“Yes. It’s me. The Overlords sent me.”
“Why did they wake me from my Rest? Wherefore art they? Bring them forth, Adelie. Bring them to me. I shall have answers.” Her voice trailed off, and her body started to uncoil. She turned her head to the entrance. “Thirsty.”
“Yes. They’re coming. They’ll be here in a minute. They are all for you. All of them, all of their memories, all of their blood.”
“Lambs…”
“...to your slaughter.” Adelie stood. “Stay behind the door. Until I come back.”
She had to get the hikers in fast. Gwynnore was in no shape to control herself. Walking out of the crypt, to the entrance of the cave, she saw the first of the group heading up into the mouth of the cave.
The kids, of course.
Heaving a sigh, she knew there was nothing to be done. It was her misfortune that she had gotten to know these humans and had a soft spot for the little ones. Adelie faked a smile, gesturing to the entrance, cheering, “Come on, we’re here. We can set up camp inside. Someone cranked the crypt open, so it’s a bonus for all of us!”
“Cranked or broke?” The woman who asked was an archeologist.
“It’s in one piece.” Pointing to the sky behind them, then she motioned the group to hurry. “Let’s go. We’ve been running ahead of that storm all this time. Inside the crypt. That will keep us contained and safe until it passes, and then we can explore the area.”
Adelie gave everyone a hand up into the cave and pointed to the open door. One by one, they trudged into the open crypt, and she heard them drop their packs to settle in. She walked over with the last of the hikers and patted the woman’s hand.
Adelie stated, “Good job. Thank you for helping.”
The woman nodded and disappeared inside.
Adelie walked around the crypt door and offered Gwynnore a hand. “They are all for you.”
Gwynnore unfolded from her couch, taking her friend’s hand. “All?”
“All. Drink. Slake your thirst.”
Without hesitation, her friend walked into the crypt.
Giving a mighty shove using her superior strength, Adelie sealed the door.
The screaming started immediately. Her little pets were in there with a vampire whose thirst would barely be tempered by twenty-eight bodies. It only took a moment for the screaming to grow even louder.
Adelie went to stand in the mouth of the cave and let the storm pelt her.
This was necessary.
Blood is life.