The first rays of the morning sun peaked over the horizon. It did little to aid the soldiers in their search. It had been hours since Anthony had heard Marcus scream and as much as he wanted to believe his friend was alive, the silence crept into his mind and ripped at his heart. Their cordoned search of the area had been based mostly on sound. If Marcus could not be heard, they would not know what direction he was in. Anthony refused to give up, though.
He heard the leaves rustle to his left and turned to meet Akihiru’s annoyed gaze. It pained the vampire to make the noise, but he did so for the soldier’s benefit. Anthony smiled at the man. He was sure he had not been the only one to take a swing at the vampire during the night. All the men were on edge, especially since Marcus had gone silent.
“I am glad to see you are amused, human.”
“My apologies, Akihiru. Any luck?”
“There have been no other screams, not even for my ears to hear. In all likelihood, the man is dead, and Maximus knows the truth.”
Anthony sighed, “I do not believe Marcus would tell that man anything. I’m not a fool, Akihiru, I know what torture can make a man do and I heard the pain in those screams, but Marcus loves Elizabeth and would die to protect her.”
“Regardless, Maximus could be halfway to the outpost by now. I do not wish to be insensitive to your plight, but Elizabeth is my main concern.”
“I understand. I would not be out here or have you away from her if it were not necessary. I appreciate that you care for my wife’s safety, Akihiru. I want more than anything to send you back so that I know she is safe, but I do not believe we will find Marcus without you.”
“We should…” Akihiru stiffened and cocked his head to the side, and Anthony held his breath in anticipation. “One of the men has found something. The fool is yelling. He will alert Maximus to our arrival if he is still in the area.”
“Go, I will follow.”
Akihiru ran toward the northeast flank, and Anthony trailed behind him. Akihiru easily outdistanced him, and soon the much faster vampire was gone. Anthony held the line and ran as fast as he could go without giving away his position. The only way one of his soldiers would alert them in such a way was if he was sure the vampire was no longer around. The fear nearly choked him. Is Marcus dead? The thought spurred him on faster. I can’t believe it, I won’t! After everything we’ve been through, he can’t be.
Movement beside him made him jump and slide to a halt, hand on his sword. “It is me.” He relaxed and let his breaths come in gasps from the exertion of the run, as he recognized Akihiru’s voice, and the man continued, “It is not your friend that was found. One of the soldiers is dead and has been that way long enough for his blood to soak into the ground—maybe ten minutes. Maximus has left the area.”
“And Marcus?”
“He was not with Maximus from what I could tell from the tracks. I will gather the others, and we can start searching near the body.”
“Would he have been so careless as to kill a man near his hiding place?”
“If he were in a hurry or believed you would never find it, yes. He is arrogant and does not know that I am helping you.”
“Hurry, Akihiru. I’ll see if I can backtrack him to his hideout, while we wait for the others.” The vampire nodded and ran toward the search line the others were likely still walking. Anthony took up his run again, no longer concerned with stealth. If Maximus left the area, he was going after Elizabeth. They needed to find Marcus now.
It seemed like hours had passed when he reached the soldier standing over the mutilated body of his comrade. The man cleared his throat and quickly wiped his face, as Anthony broke through the brush to jog the final steps to the scene. “Sir, Davies is dead. I thought a wild beast had attacked him, at first, but he was stabbed by a sword.” He pointed to the wound in the man’s stomach.
Anthony nodded, “When the others arrive, I need you to retrieve the horses and prepare Davies for transport. Bag his head and body separately. We will have to burn him when we return home.” He put a hand on the man’s shoulder, then stood to leave.
“What about you, sir?”
“I’m going to try to follow the vampire’s tracks back to his den. Marcus is close, Taylor, I can feel it.”
“On your own, sir?”
“Akihiru will follow.”
“You put too much trust in that vamp, sir. It’s going to get you killed.”
He gave the man a tight smile, “Maybe, but he would risk his life to protect Elizabeth. That is all the reassurance I need. Have everything prepared for our return. That monster is headed for the outpost.”
“How do you know, sir?”
“Because he wants to destroy the cure.”
“The Corporal…”
“Yes.” He turned and followed the boot prints into the trees. The trail was difficult to follow, and Anthony was convinced that the only reason he could follow it was because the vampire was rushing to get to the outpost.
The tree line ended abruptly at another cliff and Anthony cursed under his breath. He couldn’t assume he went up, and silently prayed that he hadn’t. He was not a skilled climber. In truth, he didn’t particularly enjoy heights. The idea of taking on the massive wall of rock without rope made his palms sweat. Without Akihiru around, he would have no choice, if he couldn’t find more tracks.
It took several minutes, but he finally caught sight of Maximus’s boot print in the dirt. He breathed a sigh of relief, following the trail to a tree. A few broken twigs and several sprigs of fallen green leaves later, and he was standing at the mouth of a narrow ravine. He drew his sword and slid into the narrow passageway. He followed the winding opening until it spit him out into a tiny basin. It was several hundred paces across and almost completely round. Trees edged this side of the bowl-shaped wall of rock, a large creek ran through the center and the walls were riddled with dark holes that looked like caves or possibly more ravines. It would take him days to search each one.
Movement behind him made him spin in defense. Akihiru stood, watching him with a grin. “Your tracking skills are impressive Captain. I never would have believed you could find this place on your own. Maximus has greatly underestimated your skills.”
Anthony smirked, “It was more out of a need to not have to climb that cliff. I’m not as skilled at it as you are, nor am I comfortable with doing it without rope.”
Wind whipped through the basin, and the stench of burned flesh and foreign spices assaulted them. Anthony’s smirk vanished, and a barely audible croak escaped his lips. Akihiru’s eyes scanned the cliffs carefully, then he sprang into motion. Anthony didn’t hesitate, falling into step behind him. As they got closer to the rock face, the smell of the acrid smoke grew stronger. Akihiru pointed to a narrow crevasse and gave Anthony a nod as he slipped into the darkness.
Anthony took a deep breath and slid into the fissure. Marcus would not have been happy about this. He hated small spaces since the attack on his family. Being shut up in a box while you heard your parents being ripped apart tended to leave a mark, and his had manifested in a fear of such spaces. It had taken him years to garner enough control over it that he could enter the cellar, but still, he would leave the small, dark, dank room shaking.
It took a bit to maneuver the confined space in the dark, but after he made the turn, the light from the chamber beyond aided his progress. Anthony nearly jumped out of his skin when Akihiru landed lightly beside him, and the man couldn’t hide his smile. Anthony gave him a small shove, then flinched as he realized what he had done. Akihiru’s smile never wavered and he stepped from the crevasse quietly.
Comentarios