The Vampire's Crimson Kiss (Editing)

Chapter 35/Scribe

The days followed with no sign of escape from collar or manacle. I had about seven days for them to be sure any silver in my blood was gone then I and Cub/isha would be on the menu. I don't know what they were feeding us but whatever it was made my stomach tip. Malphas's camp moved regularly, and the vampires rode while the familiar's walked. I had thrown up the last couple of mornings and felt tired over it.  The only concession was I had access to all of Malphas' chests of papers. One of my jobs was to burn messages when complete, I can't say I burnt every single one. Some letters might have found their way to other more secret places, especially the ones written in the hand of the others. The sort that might identify the spies. I found an old letter from Lady Valencia. Sadismann had warned me about sharing too much with her when she befriended me. He hadn't needed to, I had guessed already and that was before Mary had told me.

I was unsure of escape. The news was confirmed, Sadismann was going to marry Duchess Bitch. I felt abandoned and unsure of where to run to. I heard rumors Malphas had a map and if could I read that I could find my way to the badlands with it. I really had no idea where we were. The Map was kept locked away in a tube, Malphas would annotate his dealings with other vampire clans and his supporters on it. He wanted the vampire clans help but being vampires were completely untrustworthy. Their help would be most willing given if they felt the civil war would aide them in a land grab. Malphas wanted all of the coven lands even the new territory that Sadismann had gained. It was the fifth day of my capture. I was in his tent in the morning reading the new batch of letters to him. My campaign to keep him friendly was working. The Vampire they called Uncle Jimie had delivered it smiling and joking after his last trip.  

I finished reading the last letter from the Raven's crown coven.

"So to summarise," I said switching back to English from the flower ridden black tongue of the letter, "We lend you five thousand men at arms and forty vampires to lead them. You give us half the coven's lands, but you must attack before the marriage."

"No. five thousand is not enough for the task and they know it. Plus they ask me to move to prove myself first. You can almost feel their forked tongues scythe behind their teeth" said Malphas.

This was a clan's way of saying vampire's no. He sipped more pre-fall wine we had found. In two more glasses, he would be too drunk to rule. If I was lucky he would fall a sleep. While sleeping I would pen his reply ready for his seal while he awoke. The seal was on his ring, being a traditionalist he would mark all orders he felt needing proof he had sent it with a wax seal and an impression of the ring. I had seen Sadismann wear one similarly but he never used it. I could see Malphas watched his eyes drooping. He didn't like the boredom of communication but he needed the supplies they occasionally gave him. He wrote to a number of Sadismann's enemies and the occasional supposed friend ( I kept the accounts too so I knew). If he kept on sleeping I would go back to my project of ordering and indexing the chest of documents. His filing was a mess and Cub/Ishia said to me that the strongest chain which kept me there was his terrible filing system.

Malphas drank frequently I think to keep the ghosts of his failure at bay. I wondered if he really understood his situation. Everyone was happy to supply him, keep him going he would distract Sadismann and so keep him off them. Was Malphas aware they didn't trust him? It seemed plain to me that their actions said they preferred Sadismann as the coven lord, but for reasons I didn't know.

The company as Malphas insisted in calling his mobile mini-coven had taken over an Inn in an old town. The ancient inn had been built in the medieval period and Malphas said he remembered it. The low beams and wood floors were dark and smooth with age. Malphas had taken the best rooms for himself complete with four poster bed and fire. Malphas came over to the seat near the window and picked me up. He threw me onto a bear rug he had spread out on the floor. It was large and soft, the rug almost warm almost alive. He came over and lay on the rug with me. I felt a slight knot in my stomach. Our bodies touched, as a familiar I knew I was not supposed to resist his advances. My body was his body.

"Lord we have much to complete," I said.

The vampires were lords of terror, my fear was that I was to be drained. That would create many problems. I would be weak. I had seen those who had been bled upon become strangely hypnotized by it. You would think having your life blood sucked out of you would make you terrified of someone, but instead people behaved lamb-brained. They looked doe-eyed to their captors and took pride in the ladder of bite marks growing down their arms. I on the other hand, needed my wits and I needed to get out.

"And as my property, I need to complete you" he insisted.

He pulled my skirt up to reveal my naked legs and buttocks. He stroked my bare leg and I held still while he held his body next to mine. I trembled.  His huge animal presence was overwhelming. I could feel the lush velvet touch of the animal fur on my naked legs.

"Such beauteous legs I'm sure you find yourself the honeypot at every blood festival." he said in the black tongue. "such art should not be wasted on walking."

My body felt both terrified and electric to his touch. Corsets were worn loose in the camp but even now my heart was running like a bell within a tower. My senses were heightened, I could feel his breath on my ass. The room was cool his touch warm. I was unsure what todo, they liked you to struggle, but It was unclear if not struggling would put him off. He ran his face, his lips down my naked neck. I was scared, I think the thing which worried me the most was that  I was going have his complete attention and that I might enjoy it. I felt scared I might want him. He was so the reverse of Sadismann, so much the animal.

"Tell me of my brother's mortal bitch" Malphas began in the black tongue. "the one I will turn into my uthuchech [ slave - doll? , washing bowl]" he had done this before.

"Her skin is of alabaster" I said sticking to a story I had built up before "her eye's green. Her manner highborn. more wine my duke"

His advances accelerated "I love it when you speak in the black tongue it electrifies me. Is she young? Does she habass him well?" I could feel his body next to mine. Writhing over me. He grabbed my wrists and held me down, my back to the softness. Then alarm horns sounded out side. There was shouting. Malphas got up. He had stripped off his shirt to show his firmed young muscular body. He went to the window opened it and shouted.

"You vivand! What happens here?" he shouted to the people below.

"It is the lady Electra sire" a voice below shouted up "she comes under a flag of truce."

I was immediately afraid. Here no one but Cub/Isha knew me. If Electra saw me I would be in trouble.

"Let my sister in unharmed. Send my guards to me. Lively now." he said.

"Get dressed," he said to me "I will have need for a scribe."

That was the worse news. Fortunately Electra didn't come in immediately, she sent someone ahead to make sure her brother was telling the truth. I got ready and put the heaviest make up on I could. It wasn't much of a disguise but I would use what I had.