Page 20 of Blood Illusions

My heart beat faster as Damon and I approached the entrance. The oppressive feeling of the mine was diminished under the daylight, but I couldn’t shake the sense of foreboding.

I looked around for Justice and his steed, Equinox, but there was no sign of them. This was feeling more and more like a trap.

The hair on the back of my neck stood up as we edged closer. The interior of the mine contained jagged rocks, the remnants of support beams, and the faint glimmers of minerals in the walls. I hadn’t noticed that the last time we were here. The stench from the night before was less overpowering in the daylight, but the metallic, acrid scent still lingered.

It was the smell of blood, and I wondered how many victims were in this cave and had died a horrible, agonizing death. Were they alive when Damon and I were here last night, or were they already dead?

As I peered into the darkness beyond the sunlit entrance, a shiver ran down my spine. Though less shadowy, the mine still harbored secrets and threats, its depths obscured and menacing. The sunlight seemed to only penetrate so far. Beyond that point, the mine’s mysteries remained untouched and unseen.

“It took you long enough to get here,” a male voice called from the shadows.

Two glowing red eyes stared at us.

Damon unsheathed his sword, and I whipped out my dagger.

Justice appeared from the darkness. “You can lower your weapons. I’m the only one here.”

“Everyone else out for a bloody breakfast?” Damon grumbled. He still held his sword.

“I can see in the dark,” Justice stated. “I suggest you turn on your flashlights and follow me.” He lifted his chin and squared his shoulders as if in a gesture of defiance.

I couldn’t figure out whether he was brave or stupid for turning his back on Damon.

As he led us deeper into the cave, Damon and I moved our flashlights along the walls. There was nothing unusual, only rock and rotting wood. This place was on its last legs. The deeper we went, the heavier the air grew. I gagged as I inhaled the smell of decay and rotting flesh. I’d never gotten used to the smell.

My flashlight passed over a dead body, and I nearly dropped it.

Damon swore under his breath.

The creatures had seemingly thrown the victims carelessly into the mines like refuse in a landfill. The bodies were so dried-out and brittle that their clothes hung like rags from them, clinging to their twisted forms like wizened mummies.

My breath caught in my throat when I noticed some of them were children. It was bad enough when supernaturals killed adults, but they became a whole new type of monster when they murdered innocent kids.

“I told you it was grisly,” Justice intoned softly.

Damon’s jaw clenched as he scanned the tragic scene with a mix of fury and heartache. “This is more than grisly. It’s a massacre. These monsters are the worst kind of evil.”

He stepped forward, his boots crunching softly on the cavern floor, his gaze lingering on the small, frail bodies among the carnage. A shadow of pain passed over his handsome features, but he quickly masked it with a hardened expression.

He turned to me. “We’ve seen a lot of ugly things, but hurting kids? That’s a line you don’t cross. We’re gonna put an end to this. Whatever it takes.” His low voice was determined and steady.

I nodded in agreement, not sure I could talk without my voice cracking.

Damon pressed the flat blade of his sword against his forehead. “These things, these vampires signed their own death warrants.” He glared at Justice. “We’re going to hunt them down. Every last one of your bloodsucking friends.”

His words carried the weight of a promise, a vow not only to avenge the fallen but to protect the innocent and ensure such horrors were never repeated.

“They’re not my friends,” Justice insisted. “I’ve never seen vampires leave bodies like this. I don’t even know where they came from.”

I finally found my voice and stared at Damon. “Then let’s do this.” My voice didn’t waver, and like my brother’s, it promised violence.

“The chamber I want to show you is ahead of us,” Justice instructed.

Damon and I followed him. I tried to block out what we’d seen, but who was I kidding? Those horrible images would be burned in my mind forever.

As we got closer to the chamber, more and more bodies appeared, as if it was ground zero for death. A thick, putrid smell seeped through the darkness like an oppressive fog, and I gagged on its acridness. Tears streamed down my face as I struggled to keep my stomach from spilling its contents.

Justice stepped over the threshold, followed by Damon and me. My flashlight beam flickered across the chamber wall, illuminating jagged streaks of rusty red that glowed in the darkness. I tiptoed forward, my heart pounding.

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