A Shade of Vampire 80 A Veil of Dark - Bella Forrest Page 0,80

were barely scratching the surface of all the awful things that Zoltan and the Darklings had done. “We know he was here, and that’s crucial, because it means we’ve been on the right track this whole time.”

What scared me the most was the Darklings’ ability to use ghouls like this. We had to reconsider our approach to the entire faction. We could all get killed before we even got a chance to take them down. That said, I wasn’t ready to give up yet. There had to be a way.

A Crimson guard came over, his eyes wide with excitement. “Milords, milady… We’ve found a faint trail up the coast, on the north side of the city.”

“That’s quite sloppy,” Corbin grumbled. “I would’ve expected more from a rat like Shatal. He might be a traitor, but he’s an intelligent traitor. He’s been able to cover his tracks remarkably well.”

“Not that well,” Valaine reminded him with a sly grin. “We made it here, didn’t we?”

“Besides, they left in a rush,” I added. “Something happened with the ghouls here. They attacked the Darklings and distracted them from our caravan. I think they would’ve left sooner and cleaner, had they had an opportunity to actually look west of this place.”

The plot obviously thickened, but there was an alarming number of pieces missing from this puzzle. Corbin stared at me for a while, before shifting his focus to Valaine. “You and Tristan go ahead. Take the Crimson guards with you,” he said. “The rest of us will catch up. Just follow the trail.”

“Might I suggest something?” I asked, and Corbin gave me a slight nod. “The captured Darklings. Maybe you can get more information out of them. We know about the Darkling spots along the Green Road, but we have close to nothing on any routes leading north of Astoria.”

“Tristan is right, Father,” Valaine chimed in. “If they left a faint trail up here, it won’t go on for much longer. With all the rush and panic, they’ll take additional measures, eventually. I don’t want us to take the Crimson guards into a dead end or, worse, on the wrong track.”

Corbin glanced over his shoulder, back to the western entrance into Astoria, where we’d left the prisoners’ carriage. “You make a good point,” he admitted. “I’ll try to get something out of them while the guards check the rest of the city. Perhaps amnesty will sound more appealing to those traitors than certain death.”

Valaine and I watched him head back to the carriage, while a Crimson guard went up north across the city to gather the other soldiers in his brigade. We had enough people with us to mount quite an operation against the Darklings, even without the gold and silver guards. We didn’t lack numbers. We did, however, lack certain resources. My people had dealt with ghouls before, though. I was confident we could tackle the issue if it arose. The death magic… I wasn’t so sure, not without some help from Death and Reapers. Taeral would have to try harder with Death. There was no other choice.

“What’s on your mind?” Valaine asked as we returned to our horses.

I wet my lips. “Your father and I just agreed on something. It feels nice to have his validation.”

My joke hit the right spot. She laughed lightly and climbed onto her Vision steed. “My father might be a difficult Aeternae, but he’s not unreasonable.”

“I just have this feeling that he probably holds all your suitors to a very high standard.” I chuckled, settling in my robust mare’s leather saddle.

Valaine shot me a most charming smile, though her voice wavered a little. Enough to tell me I’d touched a soft point. “Do you consider yourself a suitor, Tristan?”

I found myself staring, nearly lost in the black depths of her eyes. The words had left my mouth without me even realizing it. “I… I suppose.” And now I’d lost them all, it seemed. “Would that upset you?”

She clicked her teeth, making her Vision move. “I can’t think of a better way to start what certainly looks like a most auspicious day!”

I followed her, urging my horse to keep up.

“A most auspicious day?” I replied. We trotted across the center and northeastern part of Astoria before reaching the troops on the north side.

“We’ve found the most compelling evidence to date that we’re successfully following the Darklings. We even have a trail to follow. My father has yet to murder you in your sleep. And you’re considering yourself a suitor