Chapter 15: Derek
“What is going on here?” I demanded the moment I saw Corrine at The Catacombs.
After finally escaping the confrontation at the dome, I immediately sought out the witch who was crucial to the ongoing survival of The Shade. I found that of all the human leaders established by Sofia to represent the human population of The Shade, only Gavin and Ian showed up. They explained to me that Corrine was still at The Catacombs; thus, I was forced to visit the network of caves located in a vast mountain range at the northernmost part of the island known as the Black Heights.
Corrine was seated at the living room of the quarters that I had prepared for Sofia when she had moved to live with the other humans at The Catacombs. The witch barely even batted an eyelash at the sight of me. “You’re here,” she said flatly.
“This island is going to fall apart unless we all do the work necessary for its survival,” I spat out, immediately cutting to the chase after losing most of my patience back at the dome. “Why are you supporting this lockout?”
“I’m not supporting it.” She shook her head. “I’m just here to make sure these people don’t end up killing each other. Do you have any idea how chaotic it’s been in your kingdom since you disappeared?”
My jaw tightened. “I’ve been told.”
“Where is Sofia?” It seemed the witch wasn’t one to beat around the bush either.
“I left her with the hunters.”
“You’re up against more than you can handle here, Derek. Apparently, you just declared civil war within The Shade. The Naturals are at one another’s throats… Never before has The Catacombs experienced such a high crime rate. And if I’m not mistaken, there are also rumors of a threat of an attack from covens outside The Shade. It’s anarchy and war all at the same time.”
I had no idea how to respond other than with sarcasm. “Well, thank you for giving me such a wonderful recap.”
“I’m serious, Derek.”
“Don’t you think I know all of that, Corrine?!” I was thankful for the privacy given us by the humans and vampires who accompanied me to The Catacombs, because if there was anybody at The Shade I felt safe losing my temper with, it was Corrine. I knew that she could easily placate me with a single spell.
“You never should’ve left Sofia. You are weakest when you are apart from her.”
“I didn’t have a choice,” I explained. “Keeping her with me would’ve destroyed her. Even now, whenever I think of her—just the image of her in my mind—it makes me crave her blood so much. All I can think about is how good it felt to drink her blood.”
Corrine’s eyes grew wide with shock. “You’ve had a taste of Sofia’s blood? How? Why?”
The recollection made me swallow hard. “She fed me her blood to save me. Borys had been torturing me. We needed to escape The Oasis. I tried to object, but Sofia insisted. She cut her wrist and let the blood drip into my mouth… I healed quicker than I ever had before.”
Corrine sat up straight and moved forward so that she was practically sitting on the edge of the couch. “That’s it? Never again did you…”
I shook my head. “I craved her so much after… She willingly let me drink from her neck when we were in hunter territory.”
“Derek, how could you…”
“Don’t.” I shook my head. “I do enough of beating myself up over that. I don’t need you to add to my guilt.”
She remained pensive for a couple of seconds before finally asking. “What did it make you feel to have her blood running inside of you?”
It was exhilarating just to think of Sofia’s blood coursing through me. I smiled at the thought, almost feeling guilty over the reality that there was nothing like it. “Honestly? It made me feel powerful beyond measure.”
Corrine stared at me, the expression on her face impossible to decipher. She opened her mouth to say something, but then Rosa entered the room. Her eyes widened with surprise at the sight of me.
“Derek! I had no idea you were back…”
Rosa’s face reddened, almost as if she’d been caught guilty doing something she ought not to do.
I squinted my eyes at her and frowned. “You don’t seem very happy to see me, Rosa. Is something wrong?”
With everything going on, I was actually pleased to see Rosa. Always antsy and careful with what she said around me, she reminded me of the days back at my penthouse when she, Ashley and Sofia had still lived with me. I felt a sense of responsibility toward her and I found myself eager to know how she’d been doing since I had left. Knowing how much she mattered to Sofia, I couldn’t help but give her a moment’s attention in spite of the deluge of problems flooding my way.
Rosa stood still for a couple of seconds as she tried to figure out if I was upset with her. She then shook her head and looked to Corrine for help. Corrine rolled her eyes. “You’re scaring her, Derek.”
I chuckled and the young girl sighed with relief. “How have you been, Rosa?”
She blushed and nodded. “I’m fine.”
“Rosa’s been taking care of Sofia’s quarters,” Corrine explained. “We didn’t know what to expect, but it’s been over-crowded here at The Catacombs lately, so I recommended that they move here.”
My brow quirked up. “Who are they exactly?”
“Well, Rosa’s been here all along, but now, so is Gavin and his family—Lily and the children. Ian and Anna have moved in too.”
Gavin and Ian were both Naturals—born and raised at The Shade. When Sofia moved to The Catacombs, it was Gavin who took her under his wing and introduced her to life within the caves. Lily was his mother and he had two younger siblings, Rob and Madeline. At some point, Gavin introduced Sofia to Ian, who was at the time, one of the rebel leaders at The Shade. Together, the three of them spearheaded a protest against a culling of all humans deemed to be useless.
“Who’s Anna?” I asked, not really familiar with the name.
Corrine and Rosa exchanged uncomfortable glances. Rosa tentatively took a seat on a wooden chair near her as if to grab support for what Corrine was about to reveal.
“Anna was a Migrate. She was Felix’s slave. For a time, it seemed that he was actually in love with her. He had everyone convinced, but then, eventually he tired of her and just kind of abandoned her here at The Catacombs. We don’t really know exactly what happened between them, but she went insane…”
“So you have a crazy woman living in Sofia’s quarters?” I frowned.
Corrine glared at my nonchalance. I found the story heart-breaking, but it was standard fare at The Shade. Anna was lucky that Felix kept her alive. I wasn’t glad that she went crazy, but what was I to do when for hundreds of years, death was something common to The Shade?
Rosa was, of course, oblivious of this reality and was quick to explain. “Well, you see… Gavin and Ian already suspected that some of the men here at The Catacombs were…” she paused and swallowed hard “…taking advantage of Anna. I’m not sure about the details, but Ian and Kyle got into a fight with some of the older Naturals over her. Since then, both of them have had this weird rivalry over who gets to protect her. That’s why Ian insisted that he move here with Anna, something Kyle’s not very happy about.”
Kyle was one of two guards that I really trusted. He and Sam weren’t part of the Elite—mostly composed of families who fought with me in order to establish The Shade. They moved to the island much later, seeking The Shade’s refuge against the relentless pursuing of the hunters. They’d proven to be loyal and worthy of my trust. They were also good friends with Sofia.
Sofia. Suddenly, looking around me, it felt like I was surrounded by her. These people I was with were her friends. The Catacombs was her world. I was sitting inside her home. I was suddenly so aware of her absence, causing a heavy weight to settle on my chest.
I swallowed hard just in time to catch a glimpse of Corrine staring directly at me, as if knowing exactly what I was going through.
“You’re not going to survive without her. You can try, but apart from her, you’re out of depth, Novak.”
“What do you want me to do, Corrine?”
“Get Sofia back here. There’s no other way.”