“Oh my God.” I darted toward him.
Pansy’s hand closed around my arm. “Aliza, that’s a vampire!”
“It’s okay, I know him.” I shrugged her off, hurrying to Jacques’ side.
I’d never seen him in daylight before, never been able to guess at the colour of his eyes. What should have been the whites were dark, threaded with black veins, and his irises were lightest grey and white, but for the red corona around his pupils. The star-bright gleam was even more striking against the raw red of his skin.
I took an awed step closer. “You actually saved me.”
Through cracked lips, he said, “Bien sûr, mademoiselle.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell him I didn’t have the faintest idea what he was saying. “Will you be okay? Will this” — I waved a vague hand at his face — “heal?”
He huffed a small laugh. “Do not fear for handsome Jacques, all will be well. Now hurry back to your camp, there are worse things than barghests in these woods.”
Barghests? Was that what the oversized dog was? Before Jacques could disappear at the speed of light I caught his blood-drenched sleeve, holding him in place. His eyes dropped to my hand, but I didn’t give him time to protest or escape before folding him into a hug. Somewhere behind me, Pansy gave a great shuddering gasp. Though I was careful to avoid Jacques’ burns, his nose went straight to my neck, and his protruding ribs expanded in a deep breath beneath my arms.
I stepped back hurriedly, only to find his focus had sharpened. He stared at the spot he’d sniffed with all the intensity of a cat about to pounce.
With a nervous chuckle I said, “Thank you, Jacques.”
The vampire blinked rapidly, as though coming out of a trance, then he gave a brief bow before leaping into the branches overhead, leaving me staring at the body of the monstrous wolf.
“Aliza?” Pansy asked doubtfully.
“Come on.” I turned away from the beast, veering back the way we’d come. “You heard him. It’s not safe out here alone.”
Pansy’s silence was almost as unnerving as the knowledge that at least two more barghests prowled the woods. The witch trudged beside me, but I couldn’t decide if her lack of speech was down to shock, fear or judgement. Somehow, I suspected the latter. What had she said about vampires? That she’d hoped the curse would starve them?
“I know what you’re thinking,” I said at length, keeping my voice low. In truth, I had no idea what was going on inside her head, beyond that it couldn’t be good. “You don’t need to worry. Jacques’ alright. He’s been protecting me since the first night I arrived in Neath. He hasn’t tried to, you know… eat me.”
Pansy shot me a sharp look.
“He’s actually helped keep me alive.”
“He’s a vampire, Aliza. Do you understand what that means?”
I bristled. I might not know much about this world, but I wasn’t as naive as everyone seemed to think. “Of course I do, but the fact is, he just saved our lives. The curse is broken, he doesn’t need me anymore, and he still saved me. He’s alright.”
“Never trust the undead! I don’t know why he saved you, but I’d bet my life he’s helping you for his own reasons.”
My voice was cold as I retorted, “Not unlike the coven, then. Let’s not forget that I didn’t actually want to come on this God-forsaken mission.”
“That’s different,” Pansy gasped, her eyes widening in shock, but it wasn’t. As far as I could see, none of my so-called friends would have bothered to keep me alive if I hadn’t been their only hope.
“Look, it doesn’t matter. I just want to get home, and if that means befriending Maelgwyn himself, I’d do it.”
“You don’t mean that.”
I heaved a sigh. “No, but I do trust Jacques to an extent, and nothing you can say or think will change that.”
“Just… be careful, Aliza. He’s dangerous.”
“Who’s dangerous?” Anwir strolled out from between the trees, sword in hand. His blade was an ordinary silver like those of the witches, not the beautiful metal of Idris’ weapons. No hint of blood marred the blade, and I breathed a sigh of relief. After everything the witches and I had risked, losing the princes on the way home would be far from ideal.
“Nobody,” I said hurriedly. “Are you okay?”
“I’m unhurt. I was separated from the others. The two of you?”
“Fine. We’re heading back now.”
Anwir dropped his eyes frowning. “You have blood on your arm. You’re sure you’re unhurt?”
I glanced down, and sure enough, a smear of red marred my skin. Probably barghest blood, transferred from Jacques to me when I’d hugged him. “One of the barghests is dead. We… found it, back there. That’s all it is.”
Anwir peered through the trees at my back, his eyes narrowing. “What killed it?”
“We don’t know,” I lied, praying Pansy would support my dishonesty. If Jacques’ earlier reaction to Idris had been any indicator, fae disliked vampires almost as much as witches did. “But one down, two to go. Come on, let’s find the others.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Anwir fell into step on my far side, and I led him away from the barghest and any evidence of Jacques.
The walk back to camp took an eternity. Pansy resumed her earlier silence, and Anwir wasn’t his usual charming self. I was glad of his presence though, and the way his eyes swept our surroundings, alert to any dangers lurking in the growing gloom. He stayed close to me, and his tall, solid presence was reassuring, especially as I wasn’t entirely convinced Jacques still haunted my steps. I caught no glimpse of the vampire amongst the shadowed boughs, nor those strange eyes disguised by the stars winking slowly into life above us.
Finally, voices drifted to my ears, and I quickened my pace, but as we grew nearer, and the voices clearer, the unmistakable notes of panic rang through the dusk. The witches shouting was interrupted by a ferocious snarl.
I shared a worried glance with Pansy, only for our brief eye contact to be broken by a scream.
