The Dying Light (Bloodwitch #1)

With a strangled scream, Charlie’s eyes shot open. His heart was racing. It took him some time to process that he was not drowning under a sea of blood and bodies, but was safe, lying with his head in Vasco’s lap.

‘It’s all right, Charlie, it’s all right,’ Vasco said, his voice soft and calm as he stroked Charlie’s hair. ‘You’re not there anymore. I’m here with you. You’re safe with me.’

Hesitantly, Charlie raised himself into a sitting position. He became aware of the sound of a chain dragging across the flagstone floor as he moved. There was a heavy weight bearing down on his shoulders. He touched his fingers to the iron collar around his throat, his eyes finding its twin around Vasco’s neck. He let his gaze follow the length of chain to an iron hook set into the stone wall, which restricted their movements to a few feet. He drew his fingernails along the skin of his forearm, his mind oddly blank.

Vasco was watching him. ‘You had a nightmare? You were crying out in your sleep.’

‘I was?’ Charlie felt his heart sink, hazy details returning to him. ‘What did I say?’

‘Nothing, really,’ Vasco said, after a long pause. ‘You blacked out in the Vaults. I was worried you –’ Lapsing into silence, he held out his hand, offering Charlie a piece of bread. ‘The guards brought this earlier. I thought you might be hungry when you woke up.’

‘You can have it.’

‘When was the last time you ate something?’ Vasco asked, frowning, the bread still in his outstretched hand. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat. You need to get your strength back.’

‘I’m fine,’ Charlie said, with a shrug and a shake of his head. ‘I don’t think I can face the idea of eating right now.’ He glanced around the gloomy cell. ‘Where are we, anyway?’

‘The Castle dungeons. We’ve already been here a few hours, I think. It must be close to sunrise by now.’

‘Vasco,’ Charlie began, running his finger along a crack in one of the flagstones between them. ‘I wanted to say – before, in the Vaults – thank you, for not leaving me behind.’

Vasco gave him a small smile. ‘You’re my friend. I’ll never leave you behind.’

‘Your friend.’ Charlie felt one of his eyebrows quirk. ‘And is … is that all I am?’

‘Charlie, I –’ Vasco glanced away as Charlie looked up at him. ‘I never want to do anything to hurt you.’

‘Come over here for a second.’

‘What is it?’ Charlie watched Vasco’s eyes dart across his face. ‘Is something wrong?’

‘I just want to check something.’

Charlie kept his tone casual. A smile lifted one corner of his mouth as, with some hesitation, Vasco leant in, bringing his face close to Charlie’s, his brown eyes round and questioning.

‘Yeah, you know, I was right.’ Tilting his face, Charlie brushed his lips against Vasco’s. ‘Up close, you don’t look like such a damn hothead.’ Drawing away, he opened his eyes, an affectionate smile blooming across his face at the sight of Vasco’s startled expression. ‘Honestly, I’m starting to think you’re actually pretty adorable. You hid it well there, for a while.’

‘You have freckles,’ Vasco said, his voice soft, the tip of his tongue skirting his teeth. He looked somewhat dazed. ‘I never noticed them before.’ His gaze travelled between Charlie’s eyes before dropping to his lips. ‘And … and your nose is kind of crooked. You … you’re really –’ Vasco broke off, reddening, and Charlie’s smile grew even wider.

Shuffling closer, Charlie batted his eyelashes. ‘I heard you like big brown eyes and a pretty face.’

‘One of your sewer rat friends tell you that, did they?’ Vasco snorted, shifting closer to Charlie in turn, and brushed his thumb against Charlie’s cheek. ‘Did you know I have a soft spot for smart-mouthed idiots with ridiculous hairstyles, too?’ He raised a hand and caressed Charlie’s hair, a tender smile coming to his face as he did so. ‘I always wanted to do that, since the first time I ever …’

‘Always? You mean you –’ Charlie released a breath of unexpected pleasure. It had never felt like this before. ‘Now you’ve done it,’ he warned, a broad grin spreading across his face as he wrapped his arms around Vasco’s neck, pulling him closer. ‘C-Can I –?’

‘Yes.’ Vasco was nodding his head, the tip of his nose touching Charlie’s. ‘I want –’

For a single moment, everything was perfect. Then a memory flashed behind Charlie’s closed eyes. Suddenly, the hands on his back and in his hair were no longer Vasco’s, the tongue in his mouth was that of a stranger, and the heat he felt building inside of him was no longer intoxicating, but suffocating.

He tore himself out of Vasco’s grip, his breathing ragged. He turned his face away, shaking himself hard. He had ruined everything. Shame burnt beneath his skin as he was struck with the understanding that it would never stop being this way for him. He dug his fingernails into his arms and relished the pain. Forcing the tears from his eyes, he realised he should have known better than to think that the world would allow him this kind of happiness. And now –

‘I’m sorry,’ was all he could say.

‘No, I …’ Vasco was staring at him, pale-faced and anxious. ‘I shouldn’t have –’

‘It’s not your fault,’ Charlie hastened to explain. ‘It’s just that … I – I can’t –’ He braced a fist against his forehead, furious at himself. The rising panic spiralling inside him was choking off his words. He could not stop it. ‘There’s a lot you still don’t know about me, and I can’t –’

‘Can you try to explain it to me?’ Vasco asked, his voice even, as he fixed Charlie with his serious, steady gaze. ‘I promise, I’ll listen to you. Please try. For … for me?’

‘I can’t.’

‘It doesn’t have to be everything, but if I knew, maybe I could help you.’

Charlie gritted his teeth. ‘If you knew the truth about me, you wouldn’t want –’

‘There’s nothing you could say that would make me change my mind about you.’

Looking up into Vasco’s sombre face, Charlie shook his head. ‘I don’t believe you.’

‘Give me a chance to earn your trust, Charlie,’ Vasco said, resting his hand gently on top of Charlie’s. ‘You know I’d never turn my back on you, don’t you?’

‘I was –’

Charlie stared at Vasco’s hand for a few seconds, letting the silence that fell between them ease some of the tension in his shoulders. Gradually, his breathing began to deepen.

‘When I was –’

Frowning, he attempted to find the right words.

‘I used to be –’

His throat was too tight to speak.

‘I’m sorry,’ he said, the words shuddering out of him. ‘I can’t.’

‘I know it’s hard,’ Vasco said, still in the same gentle tone that Charlie was not sure he had ever heard anyone use for him before. ‘Thank you for trying, all right? I’m proud of you.’

Charlie felt something threatening to snap inside him. Glancing up at Vasco, his defences raised, Charlie was ready to lash out. But the sight of Vasco’s sad-eyed expression made him pause.

‘You’re actually serious, aren’t you?’ he murmured, his anger deflating at once. ’Why are you like this? You’re always so … kind to me.’

‘I care about you,’ Vasco said, smiling at the flagstones. ‘I’ll never forget watching you jump out of that helicopter. When I saw you leap into the air, it was like, just for a moment, you could fly.’ As he looked up, Charlie met his fierce gaze. ‘You looked invincible.’

‘You don’t have to do this.’

‘Let me say it once,’ Vasco said, holding up a hand with a quick shake of his head, ‘or I’ll regret it.’ He took a deep breath. ‘All the time we were apart, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. You’re the bravest person I’ve ever known, and I’ve never met anyone else who makes me feel the way you do.’ It was only now that his eyes left Charlie’s face. ‘That’s all I wanted to say.’

‘I …’ Charlie’s hand had found the nape of his own neck, a tentative smile creeping across his face, despite himself. ‘You’re a real dark horse, aren’t you? Who knew you were such a smooth talker?’

‘It’s how I feel,’ Vasco said, shrugging. ‘I wanted to tell you, before …’ He looked away, rubbing the back of his palm against his eyes. ‘Before it was too late.’

‘You’re better off staying away from me and finding someone who’s less damaged.’

‘I don’t want them.’

‘You deserve better than me.’ Charlie could hear the edge of urgency in his words as he tried to make Vasco understand. ‘I’m not … I wouldn’t even know how to begin –’

‘We could work it out together, couldn’t we? One step at a time. We could try.’

Charlie sighed. ‘I can’t promise you anything. I need you to understand that.’

‘I want to be there to support you,’ Vasco said. ‘Whatever it takes, no matter what happens. That’s all I want.’

Charlie felt a weak smile tug at the corners of his mouth. ‘Even if there’s no hope?’

‘If one day I could help you see that you’re not alone,’ Vasco said, closing the space between them and laying his hand on Charlie’s knee, ‘that would be enough for me. I’m here for you, Charlie. I always will be.’

Charlie closed his eyes. He had to tell him the truth. ‘Vasco, I’m –’

At the sound of a key scraping against metal, both of their heads turned towards the door to the dungeon. Their eyes were fixed on the person who stood on the threshold. A look of triumph on his face, Arron Dragomir led the way into the cell towards Charlie and Vasco, the two soldiers who had arrested them following in his wake.

‘Well, now, you two are looking pretty cosy down here, aren’t you?’ Dragomir surveyed Charlie with his arms folded, a nasty smirk playing across his face. ‘Back in the game, already, switch hitter? Consider me impressed. I didn’t think you’d even be able to walk yet.’

‘Leave him alone.’

Trembling on the flagstones, his mind empty, Charlie felt himself returning to reality at the sound of Vasco defending him. He curled his palms into fists, forcing himself to breathe.

Dragomir snorted. ‘Are you serious, Kovalev?’ His cold gaze travelled between the two of them, seemingly nonplussed. ‘Take it from me, he’s nothing special. Just another one of Faulkner’s worn-out rent boys.’ A cruel grin slipped across his face as his eyes pierced Charlie. ‘Honestly, I’m surprised. I never thought you’d lower yourself to taking my sloppy seconds.’

Vasco’s eyes flashed. ‘I’m going to kill you for that.’ He had gone very still and quiet.

‘Whatever you say, Vasya,’ Dragomir said with a wave of his hand. Looking entirely untroubled, he strode towards Charlie and dragged him up off his knees by the chain. ’As for you,’ he growled, his face so close to Charlie’s that Charlie could feel the heat of his breath, ‘you behave yourself, and your new boyfriend might just get out of this alive. Make any trouble for me, and I’ll put him down right in front of your eyes. You got that?’

‘Don’t listen to him, Charlie,’ Vasco said, his voice a low snarl. ‘Don’t stop fighting!’

Dragomir gave Charlie a rough shake. ‘You understand me, you little bitch?’

Doing his best to stop shaking, Charlie forced himself to nod, his chest tight.

‘I can’t hear you,’ Dragomir said, his voice soft.

‘Yes.’

’Yes what?’

’Yes, sir, I understand you!’ Charlie yelped, as Dragomir wrenched his hair back.

‘Good.’ Dragomir let Charlie fall to his knees on the stone. ‘Take them to the throne room.’

Their hands were tied behind their backs, then the two soldiers pulled Charlie and Vasco to their feet. With a tug on their chains, they were forced up a flight of stone steps, out of the dungeons and into the Elysian Castle.

As they were marched along dank passageways lit with flaming torches, and brought into the upper levels of the castle, Charlie glanced through a set of mullioned windows. He wanted to catch sight of the outside world one last time.

By now, it was approaching daybreak. In the far distance, across the mountains, the horizon was blood red. Bursts of pink and gold spilled over the cloudless expanse above the hills. Charlie’s eyes lingered on the sight as the sky gradually lightened to periwinkle blue, the last stars still twinkling overhead. He knew that this would likely be the last sunrise he ever saw.

The huge doors to the throne room swung open, revealing an enormous chamber with a cavernous ceiling. It was empty but for a carved wooden throne that stood on top of a dais. Marble pillars supporting high arches lined the room, while stony-faced soldiers stood to attention, evenly spaced in the gaps between them.

Sprawled on the throne, his elbow propped up on one curved armrest, one long leg crossed lazily over the other, was Nikolai Ignatiev. He glanced up as Charlie and Vasco were led into the throne room, a cruel smile spreading across his face.

‘Finally,’ he said, striding forwards after gracefully rising to his feet. ‘We can begin.’

‘Why are you doing this to him?’ Charlie demanded, as Vasco was chained to one of the marble pillars by the soldier who had been guarding him. ‘I don’t know what you want from me. Just let him go – this has nothing to do with him!’

Without taking his eyes from Charlie’s face, Nikolai Ignatiev lifted his chain from the other soldier’s grip and twined it around his palm, drawing Charlie closer. ‘Allow me to make myself clear,’ he said, gripping a fistful of Charlie’s hair in his other hand. ‘Your days in hiding are officially over. One way or another, I am getting what I want out of you.’ He shoved Charlie to his knees on the flagstones. ‘Today, my long years of waiting will at last come to an end.’

Teeth gritted, Charlie stared up at him. ‘What the hell are you talking about?’

‘I am not unreasonable,’ Nikolai Ignatiev said, his voice mild, his head cocked slightly to one side. ‘I will allow you to choose how you meet your fate. Will you yield your power to me with honour, or would you prefer for things between us to get more … complicated?’

‘I’d rather die than give in to you!’

Nikolai Ignatiev blinked his long-lashed bright eyes, and flashed Charlie a bland smile. ‘Be careful what you wish for, child,’ he said, lowering himself to one knee, and pinching Charlie’s chin between his long fingers. ‘Do you suppose you have come to know a little about suffering thus far? I will gladly make you beg for something as sweet as what you had before.’

‘Please. Don’t hurt him.’

Both Charlie and Nikolai Ignatiev turned their heads towards Vasco, whose pained voice had cut the silence between them.

‘Shut your mouth, traitor.’ Charlie flinched as Dragomir punched Vasco in the face.

‘No, let us hear what he has to say,’ Nikolai Ignatiev said, getting to his feet with an amused chuckle. ‘Go ahead, Vaska. Show us all where your loyalty truly lies.’

Catching sight of the hungry look on Nikolai Ignatiev’s face, Charlie tried to plead with his eyes for Vasco to stay silent. Begging for mercy would only make it worse.

‘Please …’ Vasco hung limp in his chains, his dark eyes on Charlie. ‘Don’t do this.’

At this, Charlie made a strangled noise of frustration in his throat. He was still desperately trying to signal Vasco with his eyes, to make him understand that he needed to stop talking. Charlie knew his best hope for getting Vasco out of this situation alive was to draw their tormenters’ attention and keep it on himself for as long as he could. But if Vasco kept –

‘I am afraid you are going to have to be a little more specific than that …’

A sly smile spread across Nikolai Ignatiev’s face as he gripped Charlie’s injured shoulder and forced him down onto his back. The Great Protector was strong, but it was the unnervingly tender look in his eyes as he pushed Charlie onto the flagstones that kept Charlie frozen under his grip.

He did not resist as a cloth was forced between his teeth and tied behind his head. As Nikolai Ignatiev pushed his t-shirt up, Charlie turned his face away from Vasco and went still. He had to survive this. He knew how. He had done it before.

‘Well, Vaska, what is it that you do not wish me to do?’ A knife had appeared in the Great Protector’s hand. ’This? This?’ It came away red and dripping. ’Well? Speak up, you worthless wretch!’

’I’m begging you to let him go! Please stop hurting him!’

Charlie caught the despair in Vasco’s voice as he lay on the cold stones, his limbs trembling. A low moan escaped him as he caught sight of the dark gashes on his chest, oozing blood.

‘He’s a civilian,’ Vasco was saying, barely-contained panic in his every word. ’He’s done nothing wrong! You surely can’t think he poses any threat to you? Please – I’ll – if you ever cared for me – please show him mercy!’

Nikolai Ignatiev snorted. ’Pathetic. You dare ask me to show this creature mercy?’

Dimly, Charlie became aware of the Great Protector drawing away from him. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as the older man approached Vasco, the bloody knife at his side. Something unthinkable flashed in front of his eyes, and Charlie fought to free his mouth.

‘For how long has this weakness been festering inside you, Vaska? How did you ever think you could hope to win my respect when you are so pitifully inadequate?’

Charlie summoned all his courage. ’He’s worth a thousand of you!’ he spat furiously.

‘I don’t care what you think of me anymore,’ Vasco said quickly, and Nikolai Ignatiev turned to face him again, ignoring Charlie. ‘Your words can’t do anything to hurt me.’

‘Are you so sure of that?’ The Great Protector’s voice was cold. ‘Did you think I was unaware of how desperately you longed for me to acknowledge you as my son? I always suspected you were a good-for-nothing dog under my table. But I confess, I still thought I would be able to put you to some use in the end.’

Charlie felt his blood boil. ‘You shut your mouth!’ he yelled. ‘Vasco, don’t listen to him!’

‘But it matters not.’ Nikolai Ignatiev had returned to Charlie’s side. Charlie braced himself, feeling his own blood wet his face as the Great Protector drew the blade of his knife along the skin of his cheek. ‘I have found my true son, and now I have his power in my grasp.’

As though from far away, Charlie heard Vasco. ‘Leave him alone! Don’t touch him!’

‘Lieutenant Dragomir.’ A frown crossing his face, Nikolai Ignatiev raised his voice. ‘Please do something about that terrible racket. I am beginning to get a headache, and this work will require my full concentration.’

‘Lights out, Vasya …’

Hearing the crack of something solid against bone, Charlie craned his neck to the side, straining to see. Vasco had gone limp and still, his eyes closed, a trickle of blood sliding down his forehead. Dragomir was standing beside him looking satisfied with himself, his eyes cold.

’Vasco! Can you hear me? Vasco! Va-’

Nikolai Ignatiev’s fingers gripped his jaw, forcing Charlie’s head back towards him, so that they were face to face. The Great Protector’s bright eyes gleamed. ‘Don’t you think you have enough to worry about right now, without concerning yourself with the troubles of that failure?’

‘I’m going to make you pay for hurting him,’ Charlie whispered. ‘I swear, I’ll –’

Nikolai Ignatiev cut him off with a longsuffering sigh. ‘I am growing tired of this. In my experience, pain and fear are usually enough to provoke your kind into bringing their corruption to the surface.’ The knife sliced skin, and Charlie screamed. ‘However, it may be different in your case. Perhaps after everything you have survived, you have become numb to that particular method … I suppose we can only try.’ The brief moment of relief was followed by excruciating pain as Charlie thrashed and sobbed. ‘We will find out, one way or another.’

His world shrank to the eye of a needle, his only thought that of surviving the pain.

‘I know you’re there. It’s hiding somewhere inside you, buried underneath your skin.’

Between his screaming, begging, weeping, and cursing, Charlie lost track of himself.

‘Don’t you get tired of all these ridiculous histrionics? Must I carve it out of you?’

Nikolai Ignatiev brought the blade of his knife to Charlie’s throat, and Charlie went still. Stars whirled in front of his eyes. His head was spinning.

‘You are trying my patience.’ A voice like ice. ‘Could it be that I have been going about this all the wrong way? Perhaps I should turn my attention to the girl, and have you watch? Or would her younger sister be the better choice?’

‘Don’t even think about it, you sick fuck,’ Charlie snarled, gasping for breath.

’I think – yes!’ A broad grin spread across Nikolai Ignatiev’s face, his features coming alive with excitement. ’Is that fire I see in your eyes?’ His hands gripping Charlie’s shoulders, he leant in closer. ‘Let it out. Do it. Trust me, you will feel so much better afterwards.’

‘I swear …’ Charlie’s eyes were rolling in his head. ‘I’ll kill every last one of you …’

‘Everything you have been holding back …’ Charlie shuddered at the brush of skin as Nikolai Ignatiev stroked a finger along his jaw. ‘You have my permission to release it all.’

‘I won’t!’ Something was burning just beneath his skin. ‘I won’t give in to you …’

‘Why hide from what you are?’ Nikolai Ignatiev cupped his cheek, and Charlie stared, horrified, into his dazzlingly green eyes. ‘You are a coward.’ He drew closer, his breath a gentle whisper in Charlie’s ear. ‘Why do you still refuse to accept it? Do you not see? If you had only been brave enough to face the truth of your own nature before now, you would have had the power to save them.’

‘You …’

Charlie did not know what happened after that. Where there should have been memories, he found only a blank, quiet space in his mind. All he knew was that when he came back to himself, he was on his feet, the ropes that had bound his wrists smouldering around him on the flagstones.

The glass in the high windows had shattered. Sputtering flames licked the marble pillars. Dragomir was sprawled on the floor, his face ashen. Some of the soldiers had been knocked out, while others had fled. Those that remained were on their knees, staring at him with wide eyes and slack jaws.

Standing before him, Nikolai Ignatiev’s pitiless laughter rang in Charlie’s ears.

‘So,’ he said, a triumphant light blazing in his face, ‘I see it is rage that has awoken you at last, Bloodwitch.’