A Vial of Life (A Shade of Vampire #21)(22)

The sun burst through the clouds overhead. Its rays fell upon me, and I instinctively braced myself to feel the pain, but of course, I felt nothing. The shafts of sunlight shone right through my form, beaming down and making the waves beneath me glisten.

Now that it could no longer harm me, I yearned to feel the sun’s warmth on my skin. I could hardly remember what it felt like as a human. And the sea spray that showered over me, I yearned to feel its coolness and smell the salt. Of course, I couldn’t. It seemed that the only senses that worked were my hearing and vision—although even my sight was different than it was before. I could see things clearly, yet the world surrounding me appeared washed out, its vibrant colors dulled and faded, like a watercolor painting left out in the sun.

Surging ahead, I still wasn’t sure where I should go. I just knew that I couldn’t stay in Cruor forever.

Now that I was no longer a threat to my family, perhaps I could find a gate and make my way back to The Shade. But how would I find a gate? When Aisha had first led me into the supernatural dimension, we’d come through a portal in a strange, black desert. Aisha hadn’t told me which land that was, so I had no idea how to return there.

Aisha. What had happened to that jinni? Was she in that box still, perhaps back on Julie’s ship? I wondered where Julie was now. I was oblivious to how much time had passed since Julie had abandoned me in Cruor. But if the ship was being pulled by sea creatures who were even half as fast as the dolphins and sharks I’d had experience with since being here, I was sure that they would be far away by now.

I recalled the hours before I’d found myself in Cruor. We had boarded Julie’s ship, which had been floating near The Tavern. I didn’t know how long it’d taken to travel from The Tavern to Cruor because I’d been unconscious for much of the time. But something told me that if I made it to The Tavern, I would have a better chance of making it back to The Shade. There were many wanderers who passed by, and if I just listened in to conversations long enough, perhaps I would catch mention of a gate. Perhaps I might even be able to follow them to it, if the right person came along.

But how on earth did I find The Tavern? I hadn’t even the first clue as to which direction to head in. Right now I was just running straight ahead, with no idea where I might end up.

The past weeks merged together in a blur of urgency to solve my mystery. It took a while for it to sink in that I didn’t have that problem anymore. I had time now. I was no longer a ticking time bomb. There was no hunger in my stomach, and I wasn’t affected by the time of day. I doubted that I would even tire of traveling. As much as I wanted to return to my home to check that everyone I loved was all right, time wasn’t the issue it had once been.

And so I kept running, away from the land of the Elders, deeper and deeper into the ocean. By the time the sun set, I still hadn’t come across land. I wondered if I’d taken completely the wrong direction, but the increasing frequency of ships that I spotted sailing toward me gave me hope that there were shores nearby.

As night fell, I spotted the outline of an island far to the east. It was some distance away yet, but at least I’d found it. As I moved toward it, I caught sight of something that arrested me. A ship, perhaps three miles in front of me, also moving toward the island. Even from this distance, something about it struck me as familiar. From its size, shape, and the color of its sails, the closer I got to the vessel, the more certain I became that it was Julie’s ship. Whether it belonged to her father, I wasn’t sure anymore. For all I knew, she didn’t even have a father.

It surprised me that Julie would be headed back toward this area. And from the looks of it, she was intending to arrive at the harbor. The ship was on a direct course toward the shipyard, showing no signs of slowing down. Skimming along the waves beside it, I caught up with the ship. Jumping upward, I soared through the air and landed noiselessly on the deck.

When I cast my eyes around, it was clear that something wasn’t right. The floorboards were stained with blood. There was splintered wood scattered about, the canvas fabric of the lower sails was torn, and a table had been upturned and ripped apart. The trap door leading down to the lower decks had been ripped from its hinges.

What happened here?

There was nobody navigating the ship, yet the vessel continued speeding ahead. I swept my eyes once more over the deck. Thick reins hung down over the bow of the boat and had been fastened to a mast. Whatever sea creatures served as the engine of this ship were leading it forward of their own volition.

I approached the open trapdoor. Descending the narrow staircase, I found myself at the end of a long, dim corridor that connected all the numerous cabins on this lower deck.

“Julie?” I found myself calling, my voice echoing in my ears.

No reply.

I moved further down the corridor, looking into the first room on my left. Like the deck above, this cabin also looked distressed. Bloodstains tainted the floor and walls, and the door was wrecked. It looked like someone had punched a fist through the wood.

The corridor wound to the right. As I turned the corner, my eyes were drawn to the ceiling.

Three naked figures—men?—were hanging from it. I moved closer, gaping up at their starkly pale skin, hairless heads, and emaciated limbs. I couldn’t make out their faces, only the backs of their heads, but as I walked directly underneath them, I caught a glimpse of their hands and feet, stretched out and gripping the walls on either side of them. Gnarled claws extended from their fingers, and their white cuticles were stained with red.