The Vampire's Crimson Kiss (Editing)

Chapter 11/Madam Quaila and the night market

"This place I think you will enjoy" said Sadismann as we stood in the magic broom cupboard again.

"Is it like a vampire dentists and all the people don't have fangs" I suggested.

Sadismann smiled. "Not quite".

I felt like I had seen the precise smile in a dream. It was like part of a recurring dream, it had a polished red, the smell of something sweet and a shout 'Sadismann kislat Ought'.

"Does the word Kislat" mean anything? I asked.

"It's vampire for silver arrow why" said Sadismann.

I paused "Just a word in my venom dream"

Sadismann smiled like he was talking to a child "you can scare the high priestess with that stuff but you'll find I'm not that superstitious"

"Then I won't ask you what 'Ought' means" I said.

"It means nothing. Thalan Ought is a member of the coven, a crow leader I think." Sadismann said as the doors open.

I marched purposefully from the parting doors. This time we emerged in what seemed to me like an indoor town market.

"Now your properly dressed you can visit this place at your pleasure. I am sure there is much a young woman of your tastes would find to divert her" Sadismann said confidently.

I was fascinated, the floor was full of small shops and stalls selling all sorts of strange items. The clothes I recognised immediately, the shoes shops were understood too ,everything else looked unfamilar. As they moved the crowds of slaves, familiars and coven vampires pause in slight shock.

"I don't come to this place much. They have everything to beguile the senses. Every instrument of torture every instrument of pleasure. The old world new about how to make items of great beauty." said Sadismann he picked up a cookie from a stall and gave it to me. It smelt strange.

He noticed me sniffing it reminded me a sweet exotic seed, it reminded me the smell of something sweet.

"That spice is from far away it's called cinnamon" he said.

I took a bite, it was delitious. Not ten hives of honey could prepare me for the taste.

He dived into shop. While not a frequent shopper Sadismann certainly seemed to be familiar with the owner a Madam Quaila. The owner was uncompromisingly beautiful. When alive she would've had a dark skin, her curly hair looked immaculate. However what caught my attention the most was a beautiful clothes covered by a tight match in corset. Her figure looked perfection itself. The shop's shelves was filled with bottles.

"My lord , princess how might we be of service?" Madam Quaila asked.

"See this girl, she is naked dress her like a queen" said Sadismann.

Madame Quaila sent her serving girls over the shop to return with items.

While this happened one of the girls leant over and whispered "Tell bloody Mary, Kelly sends her love".

"I know just the one " Sadismann paused look at the long line of boxes "one of those, absolute classic"

Madam Quaila finally came over with a lipstick. l looked at her, the coven girls wore lipstick, it was one of those defining traces of the bad girls as my younger sister called the familars. I looked at Sadismann. 

"Do I have to?" I said. 

Sadismann came over and whispered "we have an agreement" 

I let Madam Quaila apply it to my lips with a brush and then put the perfume behind my ears. She moved and let me see my self in a mirror.  I noticed I looked exactly like one of them now. Madame Quaila for the first time stood close to me, our hips touched and Madame Quaila wrapped her arm around my waiste."

 Look at you, we could be sisters" Madame Quaila said approvingly. I looked a little closer at my self.

"I understand you're in pain, you're angry and you hurt but that's the source of a dominatrix's power"

"I'm not a dominatrix," I whispered breathlessly. "I'm a princess".

Even that felt like a lie.

"In my experience there is little difference between the two." said Madame Quaila.

Madame Qualia made no noise about a price and Sadismann didn't move like he would be bothered about them.

'Thalan Ought' said Sadismann looking into the crowd around us.

Everything moved so quickly Sadismann pushed me to the ground. At the same time I heard the words "Sadismann kislat Ought!" shouted by Madame Qualia, an arrow flew over head and hit a coven vampire to our side. He was nailed to the side of the shop clearly in pain, steam rising from the arrow shaft.

There were screams and Sadismann shouting in the black tongue. He got up and pulled a couple of silleto knives out of his sleeves. Someone rushed forwards. I was now on my back on the ground. Sadismann moved his blades, sizing his opponent up. He  forward slowly like a bull fighter. The snarled showing the extended canine teeth.

"Death to the traitor" said vampire man with two black lines painted under each eye. "Your blasphemy must die" he continued as blade touched blade. I realised he meant I was the blasphemy. The vampires moved with terrific speed. The blades moved generating an almost continuous flurry of sparks. Sadismann fought the assassin with blinding movements. Finally they stop when the assassin was blocked by Sadismann.

"You are weak" said the assassin and his eyes broke from his opponent to me. He leapt up and then jumped to me, I could see he was coming to kill me but was caught like a doe to the hunt's man's surprise. Sadismann blocked the assassin's blade before it could reach me. His longer super knife was still inches way from me. Sadismann put his other blade through the man's neck.

Then the human familiar guards reached us and pushed the assassin back. They held him down. Sadismann went back to his familiar dignity. Pushing some of his blonde hair back behind his ear. He began speaking in the black tongue. He turned to the now dead vampire who was held up by the assassin's arrow.

"Thalan Ought Quem laborem perfide?" said Sadismann.

"Pro cuiusque huius turris interficiam. Et occide Malphas" shouted the assassin before Sadismann stuck an arrow in his shoulder then took a stake from one of the dog head guard's hands and crushed the assassin's bare chest with it.

Sadisamann rushed back to me.

"Are you alright?" he said I caught the sense of genuine concern in his eyes.

"I'm fine" I said while he helped me get up. "Who was that?"

"That was Crow leader Thalan Ought and this" he added pulling out the silver arrow and wave it at me "and this is a kislat. Without your warning this could have found it's mark. "

Time began to move at it's usual pace. The room filled with dog head familiars and emptied of people. Mary came down with the short sword she had on her back pulled out ready.

"You OK mistress?" she said grabbing me.

Sadismann exchange some words with him then gave more orders to the dog head guards. I was practically dragged back into the elevator and both guards followed one held a cross bow and the other an AK47. One knelt down ready and I was pulled to the side of the tiny room. I was tightly corseted and felt faint.

"Long deep breaths mistress" said Mary looking down.

The doors opened and the dog head guard checked the corridor. He waved his hand and Mary nodded. I was a again dragged with one guard behind me and another in front. Mary looking forwards and back until we got to my room. I was flung on the bed and held down. Mary pulled the metal bar firmly across the door and then searched the room. Once she found the coven girl cub and no one else, I was released.

"What happened ?" I asked catching my breath.

"Assassination attempt ordered by a rogue vampire called Malphas. From the way the Duke was freaked out it looks like Malphas wants you out of the picture too".

Mary came over and undid the cords to my corset. It was good to breathe deeply again.

"Glad to know I'm so welcome here" I said.

"Yeh the vampires really know how to show their love" said Mary.