A Call of Vampires (A Shade of Vampire #51)(74)

Caia and Blaze nodded. Hansa took a few steps back and let out a long, tortured sigh.

“Either way, we need to dig deeper before we light-orb ourselves out of here,” she said. “We’ll do that ball and more interviews tomorrow, while Patrik and the Iman girl recover.”

“What about the Valley of Screams?” I asked, my gaze slowly drawn to it.

“Let’s see what the Iman girl says first,” Jax said. “Then we’ll make a decision—whether we go in again or go back to Calliope and gather some troops. I think we need more answers from the families here, and the girl, before anything else.”

“Okay, time to go,” Hansa said, motioning for the stairs.

“You guys go.” Scarlett sighed, then walked toward the infirmary. “I’ll stick around and keep an eye on Patrik and the Iman girl for a while.”

Hansa nodded, then led our team up the stairs. She glanced over her shoulder, and saw me standing by the balustrade, quiet and still.

“Harper?” she asked.

“I’ll be up in a minute, just need to get my thoughts in order,” I replied.

Soon enough, I was left on my own outside. Scarlett was inside; I could see her through one of the windows. She was pulling a stool close to Patrik’s bed while the nurses went into another room, as their job for the night was done. All we had to do now was wait for both patients to recover. Patrik would be okay, but I wasn’t so sure about the Iman girl.

The courtyard in front of the infirmary overlooked the lower levels of the city, and was covered in the same brown cobblestone and bordered with colorful flowerboxes. I stood beneath one of the streetlamps, its flickering candle casting a warm light over me. I moved away from it, then gazed at the Valley of Screams in the dark distance.

It was tall, wide, and black, its crevices filled with deadly secrets. Screams still echoed from within, and it ate away at me because I knew those were innocent creatures getting hurt and most likely killed by those massive shadows.

My breath hitched as I noticed red dots twinkling in the blackness. I used my True Sight, and my muscles instantly jumped. Dozens of red, glowing eyes peeked from the gorges. Dozens of them seemingly looking right at me. Ice dripped through my veins, and chills ran down my throat as I realized they were watching and waiting—either for us to come out again or for some unsuspecting fool to be out around the alleys of Azure Heights in the middle of the night, close and easy enough for them to pounce.

Footsteps to my left startled me. Caspian came out through another door of the infirmary, leaving a nurse behind. She waved him goodbye with a smile, and he walked across the courtyard and stopped on the edge, several feet away from me. He looked out, without saying anything, then threw me one last glance—this one dark and emotionless. He walked over to the stairs and vanished beyond the level above.

I shuddered, then turned to look into the Valley of Screams again, but the red eyes were gone and nothing but darkness awaited. There was something weird, something terrible down there, and I knew I had to get to the bottom of it.





Draven





Several hours after we watched our Neraka recon team fly out in a brilliant light orb, we gathered back on Mount Zur to bring another team together for Tenebris. We’d agreed on the names, and all we had to do was bring them into what Derek liked to call the “Situation Room”, to bring the fighters up to speed.

There was a large table in the middle, with a backlit surface on which a detailed map of Tenebris had been set. We discussed tactics, risks, and advantages in various scenarios involving the rebel incubi, and Derek, Cameron, Xavier, Field, and I agreed on a well-structured plan to strike the extremist cells hard and fast.

The meeting went smoothly, with Serena offering input on infiltration methods, as she’d done extensive reading on the local cultures and tribal customs in the areas most affected by the rebel incubi.

After we informed the Tenebris team of what they had to do, we waited for them to leave the room so we could follow up on the day’s events.

“Still no word from them?” Tejus asked, leaning back in his chair.

“Not yet.” I shook my head. “Maybe I should try reaching out first, just to make sure they’re okay.”

“By all means, please do.” Derek nodded.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, allowing my soul to open up. Strangely enough, I’d felt the whole team when they were on the platform and even after they’d vanished into space, but I couldn’t feel them anymore. It was quiet inside me, other than Serena’s heartbeat. I would always feel her, given our connection.

“Telluris Hansa!” I called out.

No one answered. Not even a whisper. I waited for a minute or so, then tried again.

“Telluris Hansa!”

A couple of seconds went by. Then a voice shot through my head.

“I’m here! We’re here!” Hansa’s voice echoed.

I couldn’t feel her presence the way I was supposed to feel her through Telluris, but I could hear her, loud and clear.

“Hansa, are you okay? Is everyone okay there?” I asked, raising my voice.

Faces lit up around the table, Shadians and Eritopians thrilled to know our team was responding.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re good,” she said. “We’ve just landed. We were welcomed by the Exiled Maras. Everything seems okay here, so far.”