Warrior of Light: follow the sun

Chapter Ten. BLOODY NIGHT.

To Vedentor they arrived before sunset; having stopped Anna near a border, John demanded to return the portrait to him, but she refused, wanting to return this thing back to her father. Seizing the reins of red horse, he didn't think to let them go as long as the cloth will not be in his hands.

''Why you need it?'' she asked.

But John was silent, looking into her blue eyes. Anna thought for a moment and pulled out the rag from her pocket; she handed it to the vampire, he was very surprised and without hesitation took it.

''No even thanks?'' said Anna.

''What?'' frowning, he asked.

''You should say 'thank you',''

''I don't thanks people...like you,'' with hesitation he said, pointing on her.

Anna rolled her eyes and headed towards the gate, but after a couple of steps she turned to look at the vampire.

''Thank you for changed your mind to kill us,'' she said in spite of his last words. She hit the horse and rushed home.

He stood in same spot, watching her until she disappeared behind the gates. In his head there were her last words; at that moment he felt a little guilty. A few minutes later, John realized that he forgot to tell her about next meeting, but he wanted to see her again. Examining the soldiers guarding the wall, he understood that he cannot pass in the town unnoticed, so he turned the horse in other direction and rushed off somewhere.

He raced through the dark forest, from time to time stopping and listening to sounds; he was tracking down a squad. In this he was helped by black wolf; smelling the smell of people in a few kilometers, he picked up a trail and, showing the road, ran right toward them. John followed him; he needed to find the squad before the sun falls.

Soon the beast stopped; he bared jaws and lay down on the ground, not taking his eyes from horizon. The vampire didn't see anything because of the thick trees, but close he distinctly heard the sound of galloping horses.

''Good boy,'' said John, praising Argus.

The vampire walked forward towards the sound; he clearly saw the squad that raced towards the city.

Hiding behind thick trunks of the trees, he followed them, moving parallel to the cavalry - this allowed him to choose a victim. Because of the noise and the darkness the warriors didn't hear and didn't see the vampire - it was a big advantage for him. He moved almost on their sight like one of them; he began to circumvent the squad on all sides.

As always, four front and four rear riders were holding torches. John thought about how he could carry out his plan unnoticed, but the light from the torches messed the plan up, not allowing him to remain invisible for the warriors.

He noticed a young rider in the middle of the squad, who all the time jumped out of the line, trying to cope with unruly white horse - John chose him. Stepping by gallop parallel to him, he waited for the right moment - this victim was easy, he thought; the light from the torches did not reach to the middle of the long line, so it seemed very simple to steal this man in the dark.

The sun had almost sunk below the horizon, so John had to act quickly. He prepared a rope and a loop to fling it on the man's head; he run up closer and was ready to do the deed, but he was distracted by another rider at the beginning of the squad. He learned this man on a grey horse.

''Dolan,'' whispered John, forgetting about the young man.

Watching the commander, he wanted to kill him at that moment with all his heart. The hatred and anger began to break the vampire from inside. Pulling a dagger from the belt, he was determined to take the life of the old friend. But this man was enveloped by bright light, John knew that he could get to him and kill him, but there were a hundred warriors with which he will not be able to cope. Therefore, having overcome the anger, he stepped back in the middle of the line, sparing the commander, as he believed, for a while.