Vamps, page 14
“Are you saying I should be scared of her?” Lilith asked, her eyes narrowing into slits.
“No, of course not, Lili,” Melinda replied with a nervous laugh.
“I’m not surprised you’re taking up for that slut, Melly,” Lilith said, venom dripping from every word. “Everyone knows how cozy you are with the Maledetto twins. I guess you want to add the newbie to your collection of lonely girls.”
“What are you trying to get at, Lilith?” Melinda growled.
“Oh, come off it, Melly!” Lilith sneered. “Of all the girls at this table, you’re the only one who’s never had a boyfriend. I wonder why, hmmm? You’re too taken by the newbie to see the truth. There’s something wrong about her, seriously wrong. I knew it from the first moment I saw her! Looking at her sets my fangs on edge.”
“You’re just jealous,” Melinda shot back.
“Jealous?” Lilith barked a humorless laugh. “What’s there to be jealous of? She’s a weak-blooded loser who can’t even shapeshift!”
“She put down the Van Helsing who killed Tanith single-handed,” Melinda replied. “That’s more than any of us have ever done—including you. I wouldn’t call her a weak-blooded loser.”
The other girls seated at the table took a collective breath in anticipation of the explosion they knew was sure to follow. Instead Lilith pushed back her chair and, without saying another word, got up from the table and stalked out.
Carmen turned and glowered at Melinda. “Have you gone psycho, talking to her like that?” she snapped. “And for what? To get in the pants of some New Blood skank?”
“You really don’t get it, do you?” Melinda asked, shaking her head in disbelief at her friend’s utter cluelessness. “If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go and finish having lunch with one of my friends.” With that Melinda picked up her tray and moved over to join Bella Maledetto, who was sitting by herself, looking lost and confused without her sister.
Lilith sat on an outcropping fifty feet above the floor of the grotto, her arms wrapped about her legs, her chin resting on her knees as she stared blankly into the darkness that surrounded her. She had to get away from the others, and this was the one place she knew no one would ever think to look for her.
Up to this point in her life, her physical beauty, her father’s wealth, and her family’s status had provided her with plenty of friends. Indeed, until now she had never had to work at making friends, much less keeping them.
“Friends.” That was a laugh. Melinda, Carmen, and the others were like the tiny fish that swim alongside great whites, nibbling at the crumbs that fall from their jaws. Still, it was important to have the right kind of friends if she wanted to remain popular. It wouldn’t do to have her pilot fish swimming after another shark.
How would she know she was beautiful, popular, and desirable if she didn’t have a circle of fawning friends eager to pay attention to her and tell her how special she was? Without their adulation, admiration, fear, and respect, how could she be sure she even existed at all?
In less than a week, she had lost two friends, all because of Cally Monture. Tanith was dead because of the New Blood’s showboating, and now Melinda was openly siding with the whore, defying her in front of the others. She should have bitch-slapped the little traitor until her ears rang. But what good would it have done? The real threat was Cally, not Melinda.
The very thought of the New Blood made Lilith’s guts writhe like snakes on a bonfire. It aggravated her that the others didn’t sense the wrongness in Cally. Although Carmen and a couple of the others were quick to rag on the newbie, Lilith knew it was out of a desire to get on her good side, not because they recognized Cally for what she was: a threat. A threat to her, in particular.
There was the sound of voices from the grotto floor below, distracting Lilith from her thoughts. She looked down and saw three figures standing on the Ruthven side of the cavern. One was a male dressed in a Ruthven’s uniform while the other two were female, one in a Bathory Academy uniform, the other in a gym suit.
As Lilith watched, the male stepped forward, bowed, and kissed the hands of the girl in the gym suit. With a surge of alarm, Lilith recognized the boy as Jules and the girls as none other than Cally Monture and Bette Maledetto.
How dare she speak to him! Jules was hers! Hers and no one else’s!
Anger as hot as fresh-poured steel shot through her entire body, spreading like a flood of foul, black, bubbling tar. As she watched the New Blood slut curtsy before her beloved, it was all Lilith could do to keep from swooping down and clawing the filthy little whore’s eyes out of her head. Her whole body vibrated with suppressed fury, like a bowstring pulled to its limit, as Cally and Bette ran back across the grotto like a pair of mice sprinting through an open meadow. It would be so easy to shapeshift into her winged form and drive her talons deep into the New Blood’s back. As satisfying as the sound of Cally’s spine snapping would be, Lilith knew it would pale in comparison to the glory of her screams as she slowly tore the flesh from her body with nothing but tooth and claw.
Lilith looked at her hands and saw they were shaking so badly they seemed in danger of falling off her wrists. Doing her best to control her trembling fingers, she reached inside the pocket of her blazer and removed her tortoiseshell compact.
All she needed was some reassurance, that was all. Just a little something to help her regain control so she could go back to her classmates and smile and pretend that everything was just fine while she plotted out how to get Cally alone so she could kill her.
She popped open the lid, expecting to be rewarded as before by the sight of her lovely face shining back at her in all its glory. Instead what greeted her was a monster with blood-red eyes and slavering fangs.
Shocked by the sight of her hate-filled face, Lilith threw the offending mirror away. The compact tumbled end over end before finally smashing to pieces on the stones below.
The mirror was destroyed, but the fiend inside it was still very much alive.
CHAPTER 16
The rest of the night Cally was riding high on the adrenaline buzz that came from breaking the rules and getting away with it. As she sat through her remaining classes, she decided that being sent to Bathory Academy wasn’t so bad after all.
Granted, the majority of the school’s faculty and student body couldn’t be counted on to spit on her if she was on fire, but now she could see that not all of them were stuck-up snobs like Carmen and Lilith. Tonight she had made friends with Bette and Exo, and she knew Jules was ready for more. She had to admit that the instructors at Bathory were far better than their counterparts at Varney Hall. Her scrivening instructor, Madame Geraint, was genuinely encouraging and, despite her gruff exterior, Coach Knorrig seemed to be truly interested in helping her realize her potential.
Although she knew she was attending the school under false pretenses, if she was going to survive in the vampires’ world, she would need to learn everything she possibly could about Old Blood society, powers, and abilities, just as she’d learned about humanity from her grandmother and about New Bloods at Varney Hall.
She was still feeling optimistic as she left Madame Boucher’s history class. School was over for the night, and as she walked to her locker, Cally wondered if she would run into Peter again on her way home. She hoped so, because she really wanted to tell him about everything that had happened at school today.
With Peter she had found someone who understood where she was coming from and didn’t judge her for it. Not wanting to leave seeing him to chance, she used the number he’d given her and called him. They quickly arranged to meet in the cemetery after school. Cally’s good mood changed, however, as she reached her locker and saw a folded piece of parchment wedged into one of the ventilation slits.
The note, written in the formal chthonic script of the Old Bloods, read: Someone saw us. She’s going to tell the headmistress if we don’t give her money. Meet me in the grotto after school, Bette.
As Cally stepped out of the elevator into the corridor that led to the grotto, she realized that the gaslights had been extinguished. The darkness was deeper than any she had ever experienced before. It was like she had stepped out of the elevator car and into the deepest ocean trench.
She stood there for a few moments, allowing her eyes to adjust to the complete absence of light. The darkness began to resolve itself into various shades of gray, and she resumed walking down the hall toward the grotto. At the entrance, she heard a fluttering sound from the eastern end of the cave.
“Hello?” she whispered into the pitch blackness. “I got the note.”
In answer, she heard a flapping sound. Cally looked up, trying to locate the source of the noise, but all she saw were the hand-carved stalactites that hung from the roof like an inverted forest.
“Where are you?”
“Over here,” a voice whispered from the darkness.
As she moved in the direction of the voice, she felt something crunch under her shoes. She looked down and saw that she had stepped on fragments of silvered glass.
Crouching down to pick up a piece of the shattered mirror, she felt a swoosh of wings so close behind her head it raised the hairs on her neck. Cally jumped up and spun around on her heels, her heart racing in her chest, but there was no sign of whatever had just flown past.
“Who’s there?” she shouted into the blackness. “Answer me!”
Cruel laughter seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. Cally cursed herself for being fool enough to lower her guard. Even though the school was supposed to be a vendetta-free zone, she still should have known better than to walk right into an ambush.
There was a sudden loud explosion of flapping wings and a furry body with the face of a demon hurtled down from its hiding place, slamming into Cally with the force of a car and knocking her onto her back.
As Cally rolled onto her side, the air shimmered about the batlike creature, and suddenly Lilith was standing over her.
“He’s mine! All mine and no one else’s, you stupid bitch! Now and forever!” Lilith shrieked, grabbing Cally by the top of her head.
Using a fistful of Cally’s hair as a handle, Lilith roughly yanked her to her feet. Cally screamed in pain as she felt her scalp start to tear.
“No one takes what belongs to me and lives to enjoy it!”
“Let go of me, you crazy bitch!” Cally snarled, driving her fist into Lilith’s stomach hard enough to make her loosen her grip.
Lilith staggered backward; she stood bowed over, her arms wrapped protectively around her stomach. Her eyes shone in the darkness as she bit at the air like a rabid animal. “I’m going to kill you, New Blood! I’m going to scatter your guts from here to Broadway!”
“Have you lost your mind?” Cally shouted.
As if in answer, the other girl shrieked and charged headlong at Cally, her fangs bared. Cally nimbly sidestepped her, slamming her elbow into Lilith’s back as hard as she could as she zoomed past. Lilith dropped to her knees, staggered by the force of the blow. Cally moved in swiftly, delivering a fierce kick to the ribs.
“I didn’t start this, bitch,” Cally snarled. “But I’m sure as hell going to finish it!”
Before Cally could deliver another kick, Lilith’s body rippled and contorted, to be replaced by that of a snarling wolf. The transformed Lilith whirled about, snapping at Cally with razor-sharp teeth. Cally quickly jumped back, narrowly avoiding the creature’s powerful jaws.
The darkness of the grotto was split by a burst of purple-white light. Lilith yelped in alarm as she cringed at the sight of the strange violet glow shrouding Cally’s right hand.
“Get back!” Cally shouted as she held her hand aloft like a torch. Tongues of energy danced on the ends of her fingers like flames on a candelabrum. “I’ll fry you if I have to!”
Lilith snarled in defiance and ran on all fours toward the nearest wall. As she reached the rock face, she changed back into human form, scurrying up its craggy surface as quickly as a lizard. Halfway up the wall, she turned her head around on her shoulders 180 degrees to spit at her adversary below.
“Do you realize what Madame Nerezza will do to you when she finds out about this?” Cally shouted up at her.
“Like I’m worried about what that dried-up cow will do!” Lilith retorted. “I’m a blood relative of the founder of this school and my family is its biggest sponsor! I can do whatever I want at Bathory! And I want you dead, New Blood!”
Lilith’s features melted and shifted yet again, becoming those of a monster bat. She pushed herself off the wall, spreading her wings to their full span. Cally ducked as Lilith rushed toward her, but not before her attacker raked her back with a razor-sharp talon. Cally put a hand to her shoulder and it came back wet and red.
“First blood is mine yet again!” Lilith crowed in a high-pitched voice. “Face it, newbie: you’re no match against me!”
Cally ducked behind one of the stalagmites as Lilith swooped down low again, her grasping talons extended like landing gear. Cally raised her hand and an arc of lightning shot from her palm. With an angry ultrasonic shriek, Lilith flew back up into the air, disappearing to the upper reaches of the grotto. Cally scanned the cathedral-like ceiling, trying desperately to figure out where her attacker had gone, but Lilith was too well hidden among the shadows.
Cally was in real trouble, and both of them knew it. Although she and Lilith were equally matched when it came to hand-to-hand combat, she couldn’t compete against Lilith’s ability to shapeshift or fly. In fact, the only real weapon she had in her arsenal was her stormgathering, and since she’d missed her first shot, it was going to take time and concentration to gather another charge. Cally prayed that Lilith didn’t know that and would continue to keep her distance. Her only hope of surviving was getting out of the grotto and over to the elevator. She probably wouldn’t make it to the door without Lilith’s claws buried in her spine, but she had to take the chance.
Calling up all her courage, Cally dashed as fast as she could through the labyrinth of stalagmites and columns. All of a sudden, from the depths of the cave came an awful shriek, like that of a damned soul put to the flame. Cally looked over her shoulder and saw Lilith plummeting toward her with talons extended, eyes burning with baleful glee, like an ancient harpy snatching up a hapless victim.
Realizing she was as good as dead if Lilith pinned her to the floor from behind, Cally turned and jumped as high as she could, meeting her adversary in midair. Throwing out her arms in a grotesque parody of an embrace, she pinned Lilith’s wings and together they plummeted to the ground.
Unable to gather the lightning needed to defend herself, Cally desperately tried to force Lilith’s head back as they rolled around on the hard rock floor of the grotto. Sensing her adversary’s weakness, Lilith lunged forward and sank her teeth deep into Cally’s right shoulder. Cally screamed in agony as Lilith shook her like a terrier would a rat.
Without warning, Lilith abruptly surrendered her death grip on her enemy. Even through a pain-filled fog, Cally could clearly see shock and surprise in Lilith’s beady little bat eyes.
Cally didn’t know why Lilith had faltered in her attack, but she wasn’t going to question her good luck. Summoning her remaining energy, she used the slight opening to hurl a bolt of electricity from her hand, sending Lilith flying backward. Cally got to her feet and went to where her opponent lay on the floor, whimpering in pain as tendrils of smoke rose from her scorched pelt.
As she stood over her, Lilith raised her head and glared defiantly up at Cally. “Go ahead! What are you waiting for—?” she spat as fur melted away to be replaced by blond hair and perfect tanned skin. “Kill me and get it over with!”
Cally looked down at her clenched right hand, which still glowed with electric fire, then back at Lilith. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The crackling nimbus flickered and faded away to nothing.
“No, Lilith,” Cally said. “Believe it or not, I don’t want to kill you.”
“That’s bullshit!” Lilith growled. “Stop toying with me and just do it!”
“Will you knock it off with the ‘please kill me’ routine? I’m trying to be nice here, although I really don’t know why I should bother.”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know why I did this, you slut!” Lilith snarled. “I warned you what would happen if you didn’t stay away from what is mine! I saw you with Jules earlier! You’re trying to steal him from me, aren’t you? Just like you’re stealing my friends! That’s why you’ve followed me to the school, isn’t it? To rob me of what’s mine!”
“Whoa! Will you just calm down for a minute?” Cally said, holding up her hands for silence. “Look, Lilith—I realize what you saw must have looked bad, but there’s an innocent explanation behind it. I’m not interested in your boyfriend, and he’s not interested in me—”
“I never said he was!” Lilith snapped.
“Whatever the case, you have absolutely nothing to worry about in that department. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Jules himself. He’ll tell you the truth. You do trust him to do that, don’t you?”
“Of course! Jules is my promised. He would never lie to me.”
“I’m glad to hear it. As for the reason I’m here at Bathory—you’ve got it all wrong. Despite what you might think, I haven’t been stalking you. I’m not looking to usurp your life. I’m only going to school here because my father threatened to stop sending money to my family if I didn’t.”
“Your father?” Lilith’s eyes narrowed to slits.
“Don’t ask me why it’s so important to him.” Cally sighed. “I’ve never met the guy. I don’t even know his name. Look, I realize we’re probably never going to be friends, but there’s no need to kill each other over a stupid misunderstanding.”
Lilith stared silently at the ground for a moment and then looked back up at Cally. “Are you going to tell the headmistress about what happened here?”
