Page 67 of The Vampire Castle in the Sky

Without another word, he crossed the wildflower path and glided up the Castle’s stone steps in his unhurried, otherworldly grace.

Once he reached the landing, he faced Kaladin, pointing a finger at the Castle’s entrance. “Look at this door,” he thundered. “Look at its filigree. Look at the initial that’s carved into its eternal flesh. This is not a property you can claim. It is not a temple to lay your worship upon its marbles. The Castle is alive. It has a soul, and it belongs to my mother.”

The Castle seemed to rise at these words, ready to tear a hole in the veil of clouds and scrape the stars. I half-expected it to do so, and my breath hitched with thrill. But the Castle performed no such miracle. It merely hung there between land and sky, a mere ghost of itself.

“And you are right,” Hector continued somberly. “I am not nearly as capable or charismatic or strong as she was. But at least I would never disgrace the Castle with my greed like you’ve all done tonight.” His hard gaze locked with Kaladin’s once more. “If you’re still unwilling to pledge your loyalty to me, I will strip you of your title and appoint someone else Lord of the South, and I will do so gladly. But then again, how can I relieve you from a title you never really had? After all, my mother didnotappoint you Lord of the South, but Sybella.” He turned to her, sharp as a blade. “You failed her the second you relinquished this honor to him. However, if you do give me your oath along with Espen and Arawn at dusk, as tradition wants it, I willforgive your transgressions for the sake of your son. Because that is thehumanething to do. Because what you consider to be my greatest weakness is the very strength that holds our two worlds together. My heart is human, and so my heart forgives.” Hector stepped forward, coming toe-to-toe with Kaladin. “But make no mistake, it will not forget. And neither will the Castle. Aventine blood was spilled at its doorstep tonight, and if you think it will ever accept you as its master after this, then your greatest sin is not your greed but your folly, and for that alone we can all agree you are unfit to replace me.”

He gave them a moment to process, to protest, but none of them did. Their mouths were pulled thin, their eyes downcast, their bodies made small before the grandness that was him. If it was out of fear or respect, I didn’t know and didn’t think it mattered anymore.

When I was a little girl, I watched the vampires gather in the Castle and let myself believe they were one huge, messy family. But I’d been wrong to see their balance through a human lens, for that was all they were. A balance. One that was easy to disturb, easier to shatter. That was why they needed their divine oaths and secret codes of honor. Their instincts betrayed their civility. They could only trust their laws.

“Very well,” Hector permitted, sailing down the stone steps.

Espen cut in front of him. “About Camilla,” was all he said, his voice ragged.

To my surprise, Hector leaned in and whispered something in his ear. Something that made Espen’s dark brows draw closer and his eyes widen. Warily, he gave Hector a small, consenting nod and removed himself from his path.

Hector came and swept my hand in his. My limbs were heavy as lead, but I walked, solid and proud beside him, and when his hand in mine started to shake, I only held it tighter.

We were almost at the landing when a loud groan sounded behind us. “Well, at least you’re alive.”

It was Arawn.Thank the gods, it was Arawn.

He looked exhausted, panting at the ground with his hands on his knees. His golden locks were strewn with twigs and leaves, and his clothes were torn in places as if he’d gone through the forest with the speed of a hurricane.

Hector blinked at him, bewildered. “What happened to you?”

Arawn glared, tipping his jaw in my direction. “Shehappened to me.”

Hector looked at me, strained with guilt.Good, I thought bitterly.He should feel guilty. He should suffer just like he made me suffer tonight.

“Thea…” he whispered.

I didn’t stay to listen to his apology. I forced my aching body to climb the last of the steps and went inside.

The Castle stood cold and silent, not a stitch of light in sight.

Perhaps Hector was right. Perhaps the Castle could not be inherited. It would still exist in outbursts of magic, granting us our frivolous, mundane wishes, but its soul and spirit would always belong to Esperida. Perhaps we were doomed to spend our lives walking over the ruins of her memory.

27

Thea

Upstairs, in our bedroom, the early morning sun was a shy band of light peering through the slightly parted drapes. It was reassuring to know that night was still able to shift into dawn, that the birds still chirped their daily song, and that the snow-drizzled mountaintops were still thawing under spring’s brilliance. So many strange things had happened lately I’d been afraid the world beyond the high walls of the Castle had crumbled too.

At the sound of the lock clicking, I veered to find Hector leaning against the closed door. “Hello,” he rasped, his voice desert-dry.

“Hello,” I muttered.

He bowed his head, but there was no real apology in it. “You’re furious with me, aren’t you?”

Furious was not the right word. Incensed wasn’t satisfactory either. In fact, words were too plain to convey the magnitude of my wrath. “I thought you were going to die.”

Hector blew out a breath. “I thought I was going to die too.”

“Then why did you agree to it?” I demanded, my nails carving crescents in my palms. “Kaladin is just a power-hungry fool, and you gave in to his whim—”

“I needed to earn their respect,” Hector interjected sharply, holding out his blood-stained hands for me to see. “This violence was necessary, not just to prove me the strongest amongst them but to show me capable of exceeding the boundaries of my own power. I bled for them tonight, and I survived. And so at dusk they’ll bleed for me in return. I will have their oath—”

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