فصل 21

CHAPER TWENTY-ONE

When I came to, I found myself face to face with a skull. Not any old skull, either — this still had flesh on it, and one of the eyeballs was floating in its socket.

I screamed and tried pulling away, but I couldn’t. Looking up (up ? Why wasn’t I looking down?) at my body, I realized I was bound tightly with ropes. After a few seconds of puzzled panic, I noticed another rope around my ankles, and it dawned on me that I was hanging upside down.

“I bet the world looks different from there, hmmm?” Murlough said. Twisting around — I couldn’t move my limbs, but I could swing around — I saw him sitting a little ways from the skull, chewing on a fingernail. He stuck out a foot and began rocking the skull. “Say hello to Evra,” he chuckled.

” No!” I screamed, swinging forward, baring my teeth, trying to bite deep into his leg. Unfortunately, the rope wouldn’t stretch that far. “You promised you wouldn’t kill him before Christmas!” I cried.

“You mean it isn’t Christmas?” Murlough asked innocently. “Whoops! Sorry. Bit of a boo-boo, hmmm?” “I’ll kill you,” I swore. “I’m going to —”

A groan stopped me short. Turning, I noticed I wasn’t alone. Somebody else was strung upside down, a couple of feet away.

“Who’s that?” I asked, certain it was Mr. Crepsley. “Who’s there?” “D-D-D-Darren?” a tiny voice said.

” Evra?” I gasped with disbelief.

Murlough laughed and flicked on a bright light. It took my eyes a few seconds to adjust to the light. When they did, I was able to make out the familiar shape and features of the snake-boy. He looked hungry, exhausted, and scared — but he was alive.

Evra was alive!

“Fooled you, didn’t I?” Murlough giggled, shuffling closer.

“What are you doing here, Darren?” Evra moaned. His face was badly cut and bruised, and I could see a pinkish patch on his right arm and shoulder where scales had been brutally hacked off. “How did he —”

“That’s enough out of you, reptile!” Murlough growled. He kicked out at Evra, sending him snapping back on his rope.

“Stop that!” I roared.

“Make me.” Murlough laughed. “Be quiet,” he warned Evra. “If you speak again without permission, they’ll be your last words. Understand?” Evra nodded feebly. All the fight had been hammered out of him. He was a pitiful sight. But at least he was alive. That was the main thing. I began to take in my surroundings. We were in a large cavern. It was too dark to tell if it was natural or man-made. Evra and me were hanging from a steel bar. Skeletons littered the floor. I could hear water dripping somewhere, and I spotted a rough bed in one corner.

“Why have you brought me here?” I asked.

“Snakey was lonely,” Murlough answered. “I thought you’d be good company for him, hmmm?” “How did you find me?”

“Wasn’t hard,” Murlough said. “Wasn’t hard. Heard you and the vampire coming from miles away. Followed you. Murlough knows these pipes like the back of his teeth, yes he does. Young Murlough’s smart. Been down here long enough. Wasn’t just twiddling my thumbs.” “Why didn’t you attack?” I asked. “I thought you wanted to kill Mr. Crepsley.” “I will ,” Murlough said. “Biding my time. Waiting for the right moment. Then you stormed off and made things easy. Young Murlough couldn’t pass up a gift. I’ll get the vampire later. You’ll do for now. You and Snakey.” “Mr. Crepsley was alone,” I baited him. “He had no flashlight. He was in the dark. But you decided to come after me . You’re a coward. You were too scared to attack someone your own size. You’re no better than —” Murlough’s fist connected with my jaw, and I saw stars.

“Say that again,” he hissed, “and I’ll slice off an ear.” I stared at the vampaneze with hatred, but held my tongue.

“Murlough’s afraid of nothing!” he told me. “Especially not a weak old vampire like Crepsley. What kind of a vampire is it that consorts with children, hmmm? He isn’t worth bothering with. I’ll knock him off later. You have more guts. You’re more hot-blooded.” Murlough bent and tweaked my cheeks. “I like hot blood,” he said softly.

“You can’t drink from me,” I said. “I’m a half-vampire. I’m off-limits.” “Maybe I’m finished with limits. I’m a free agent. I answer to no one. The laws of the vampaneze don’t trouble me down here. I’ll do what I like.” “It’s poison,” I gasped. “Vampire blood is poison to vampaneze.” “Is it?”

“Yes. So’s snake blood. You can’t drink from either of us.”

Murlough made a face. “You’re right about the snake blood,” he grumbled. “I took a little from him — just testing, you understand, just testing — and threw up for hours after.” “I told you!” I said triumphantly. “We’re no good to you. Our blood’s worthless. It can’t be drunk.” “You’re right,” Murlough murmured, “but it can be shed . I can kill and eat the two of you, even if I can’t drink from you.” He began pushing us, so that we were swinging around wildly. I felt sick. Then Murlough went to get something. When he came back, he was carrying two huge knives. Evra began whimpering quietly when he saw the blades.

“Ah! Snakey remembers what these are for.” Murlough laughed evilly. He sliced the knives together, producing a sharp, grating sound that made me shiver. “We had some fun with these, didn’t we, reptile?” “I’m sorry, Darren.” Evra sobbed. “He made me tell him where you were. I couldn’t help it. He cut my scales off and… and…” “It’s all right,” I said calmly. “It’s not your fault. I would have talked, too. Besides, that wasn’t how he caught me. We left the hotel before he found it.” “You must have left your brains behind, too,” Murlough said. “Did you really think you could waltz down here into my lair, rescue the snake-boy, and run along like a happy little lamb? Did it never occur to you that I am master of this domain, and would do all in my power to stop you?” “It occurred to me,” I said softly.

“But you came anyway?”

“Evra’s my friend,” I said simply. “I’d do anything to help him.” Murlough shook his head and snorted. “That’s the human in you. If you were a full vampire, you would have known better. I’m surprised Crepsley came so far with you before bailing out.” “He didn’t bail out!” I shouted.

“Yes he did, yes he did.” Murlough laughed. “I followed him to the top. That’s why I didn’t come after you sooner, hmmm? He ran as if the sun itself was at his back.” “You’re lying,” I said. “He wouldn’t run. He wouldn’t leave me.” “No?” The vampaneze grinned. “You don’t know him as well as you think, boy. He’s gone. He’s out of the game. He’s probably halfway back to wherever it was he came from by now, fleeing with his tail between his legs.” Murlough leaped forward without warning and swung the two knives at my face, one from either side. I screamed and shut my eyes, expecting him to draw blood. But he stopped just a quarter of an inch short of my flesh, tapped my ears with them, then drew back.

“Just testing,” he said. “Wanted to see how much moral fiber you have. Not much, hmmm? Not much. Snakey didn’t scream until the fourth or fifth lunge. You’re going to be less fun than I thought. Maybe I won’t bother torturing you. Perhaps I’ll kill you outright. Would you like that, half-vampire? It would be for the best: no pain, no suffering, no nightmares. Snakey has nightmares. Tell him about your nightmares, reptile. Tell him how you jerk awake, screaming and sobbing like a baby.” Evra pulled his lips in tight and said nothing.

“Oh ho!” Murlough smirked. “Getting brave again in front of your friend, are you? Rediscovering your courage, hmmm? Well, don’t worry — it won’t take long to knock it back out of you.” He scraped the knives together again and circled around behind us, where we couldn’t see him. “Which one should I start with?” he mused, jumping around behind us. “I think… I’ll choose…” He went very quiet. I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck standing upright.

”You!” he suddenly roared, and threw himself on… me.