Heart of Ashes

Death Watch

Dmitri leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, he didn't look one bit pleased. He was watching Caine with a strange expression of disgust and concern. Evelyn had no idea where either emotion came from, she'd seen Caine survive a dagger to the heart, surely he'd be fine.

She glanced at him, her eyes had adjusted to the darkness so she could see him more clearly. His eyes were closed but he wasn't sleeping, they moved under his veiny lids. It was unnerving, to say the least, and with each moment that passed he got paler and more still. His muscles, which had been twitching ever so slightly, went rigid and stiff. He was like a corpse but he wasn't dead. Evelyn saw his lips moving but no audible sound came out of them. She saw his finger twitching, beckoning her closer.

She leaned down so his lips were directly beneath her ear and he began to talk. His voice was a ghastly, rasping hiss, so dry it made her throat feel uncomfortable.

"You've tasted of it," he said, "you've tasted of the power that comes with the magic of a true immortal."

She nodded and, by the frown on Dmitri's face, he hadn't heard but he wanted to. She ignored him, "It was wonderful."

"It was, wasn't it?" he said, "I can see it in your blood. It's so unique, treasure it."

She nodded again, "I will."

"You're so beautiful," his voice got softer, "everything I imagined. My only regret is I will probably not see you reach your full potential."

She shook her head, aggravating the ache between her eyes, "No, you will see it. You won't die. You're a true immortal, remember?"

She felt his lips twist into a smile against her ear, "That is beside the point, granddaughter, I may be alive when you do truly discover your full power but I will not see it. I will be locked away, another lost secret of this world."

Evelyn felt tears welling up in her eyes, "What do you mean?"

His smile didn't leave his lips, "Everyday, I feel my mind make another dent in the cage I've locked it in. I feel like any day now, it will find a way to escape and leave me forever, a cold, maddened husk of regret and hatred."

"No," she whispered as she felt the tears roll down her cheeks, "no, you'll be fine. You've lived this long, you..."

"I've fought this long," he cut her off, "my body is at war with my soul and my mind is at war with my heart. This is not life."

"But..."

"Hungry," he whispered into her ear, "tell Dmitri, I'm hungry."

He pressed his lips to her cheek and she was filled with the warmth of his love for her but, at the same time, the cold, sinking feeling of his fast approaching demise made her heart heavy with grief.

"Dmitri," she said and the Draculesti leader immediately snapped to attention, "he says he is hungry."

                               ***

Dmitri squeezed his eyes shut, he didn't want to feed Caine. He didn't want to have to ask so much of the people - the humans - that had served the Draculesti coven for so long, even though he knew they wouldn't object too much.

He was tired of the death watch he'd been keeping over Caine for years, expecting him, at any given moment, to just drop dead or go mad. He wanted to end it for everyone, for Caine, for himself, for Evelyn. He wanted to cut Caine up, burn the pieces and scatter the ashes to the four winds. Especially now, as he watched him lying still in the darkness and saw the pain in Evelyn's teary, brown eyes, but he knew he couldn't. Caine's death had to come by the ending of his curse. He knew that if he intervened, it was likely bad things would happen.

He pushed himself away from the wall and stalked towards the door. He was in a foul mood. He'd just gotten to like Caine, which only intensified his desire to kill him. He felt that as Caine neared the metaphorical 'edge' of sanity, they'd grown closer and all had been forgiven. To see him - Caine, the father of murder, the first vampire, Death incarnate - weak and damaged, was crushing. Although he'd never admit it, he'd always looked up to Caine, always made achieving Caine's elegance and strength a goal.

He unintentionally slammed the door behind himself and walked down the many winding passages to the great hall. A few members of the Draculesti tried to stop him to ask about what was going on but he just moved past them, not hearing anything. He was focused on his objective. No doubt, the last order he'd be taking from Caine. He was determined not to screw up, not to get something wrong. He made his way through a sidedoor into the castle kitchens - a place he'd seen Caine experimenting in often - then through a backdoor into an empty courtyard. He strode across it, to the bank of the river that ran past the castle. He looked across it, at the small gypsy settlement.

They were out, gathered around a fire. Nothing had changed for as long as they'd been there. They were steeped in tradition and their old ways. Someone must have seen him standing across the river because they sent a young boy in a a little row boat. Dmitri stepped into the row boat and sat down. The boy began to row him back but he took the oars from the child and did it himself. The little boy's big, dark eyes were filled with awe and wonder. A sight that usually made Dmitri happy, only angered him as he realised why he was there and what he was going to ask. How it might be anyone, even someone related to the boy.

He reached the other side and got out. After tying the boat down he walked into the gypsy camp and was greeted by a few dozen faces with expectant eyes. He clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth.

"The master is back," he said.

Some gasped, some just stared, but the overall reaction was the same. Shock.