Blood Knight

Capitolo XV

As I fell through the darkness, it seemed like my scream was muffled by it's daunting thickness. The air swirled around on my skin. Cold and icy. My hands stuck out in front of me, wanting to brace the fall I was expecting. Instead my palms hit a solid, rough surface. 

"Stella? Are you alright?"

Monticello's voice seemed distant, but I could make it out. "Yes, I'm fine! Where are you?"

My voice was nearly drowned out by how loud my heartbeat raged in my ears. Between the beats, I could hear the scuffling of feet against stone. For a split second, there was a sound of a match, and then a bright light cut through the darkness. I blinked my eyes rapidly against the blazing light and was immediately hoisted to my feet. 

"Take them to the north cell blocks. The council has requested their presence," Marco lowered the flickering torch in his hands, casting harsh, long shadows against the cobbled walls. 

The other vampire gripped Monticello by the arm, bringing him to his feet and pushing him forwards. He cast his eyes on my face. His skin was clammy and sallow, as if he had all the energy sucked out of his body. My head snapped forward as I was pushed into another room. The air was less cold here, but still chilling. Between the scuffles of our feet against stone, I could make out the sounds of some sort of rattling.

"Where are you taking us?" I asked, ignoring how my chin quivered. 

"The holding cells," Marco replied.

My throat started to hurt from the cries I was holding back. "We're in the Blood Court's territory, aren't we?" 

Marco narrowed his eyes. "Yes. No more questions, marmocchio."

Judging by the tone in his voice, I was guessing that the word that Marco called me was probably an insult. The room we were in narrowed once more and a sudden gust of musty, damp air swept over our party. I could hear Monticello panting as a stairwell flickered into view. As we ascended the stairs, I started to take in deep, although shaky breaths. As much as I wanted to succumb to my fear, I knew I had to stay calm. Now that Monticello's strength was reduced to a human's, we had to make another plan to escape from here. The woman who we had met, Sirene, must have been a witch, because no other being could possibly have the power to change Monticello to a human state. There weren't many witches that roamed the earth, a result from the witch trials in the 1600's. That meant that Sirene was probably one of the few remaining, powerful ones. The thought wasn't at all calming.

As the stairwell spiraled upwards into the darkness, I clenched and unclenched my hands repeatedly. If the Blood Court had alliances with despicable beings like witches, I didn't want to think of what other kinds of power they possessed. The Blood Court was notorious for their tight security and strong arsenal. Although I didn't know that much about them, I knew that escaping from here would be no easy task. Finally, the long stairwell flattened into a longer step, accompanied by a large wooden door.

"Stand back," Marco barked.

I stepped aside as he clutched the door handle in his hands, heaving until it opened. The cold air vanished, as did the darkness. Marco gripped my arm, shouldering me forwards. My eyes adjusted again against the sudden change in light. A long corridor stretched on either side of us, lit by large, classic sconces. We ventured on again and I began to take in our surroundings. If Monticello and I were able to escape, I would need to remember a way out. 

So far, I hadn't seen any other living souls in our path. It also seemed like the cells they were taking us to were a fair distance from the entrance we came through. Once we rounded what had to have been the fourth corner, Marco stuck out his hand, stopping us.