The Shadow Courtesan by Willow Woods

Author:Willow Woods [Woods, Willow]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Vampires, vampire, courtesan, fantasy, dark fantasy, adult, new adult, horror, fiction, runes, medieval, auction house, slave, slaves, slavery, humans
Publisher: Aiséirí Publishing
Published: 2019-10-31T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-one

Before Returning to Master Vrykólakas’s quarters, Reina visited the library. Only one other vampire was in there, sitting at a table with a large pile of books beside them. Reina returned their smile in greeting and wandered through the bookcases. Since her return it had struck her how empty Tenebrae was becoming. Master Vrykólakas was losing his grip; they didn’t even have enough slaves to kill for pleasure. So why were vampires still there?

Reina browsed the history shelves, her fingers running across thick volumes covering revolutions and the downfall of monarchies. She had no idea when Damien would return, if he ever did. If Master Vrykólakas was going to force her to remain then…

Don’t be an idiot, Reina told herself, moving away from the shelves. She would love to destroy Tenebrae and kill Master Vrykólakas. But as everyone rightly pointed out, she was weak. What chance did she have in killing a man who had created a haven for vampires and had the power to command eternal darkness?

On her return to Master Vrykólakas’s quarters with several books, she was relieved to find his rooms empty. She set the books down on a table and glanced around. The door to his study was open and she walked in, fascinated by the books on his walls. Many were written in Latin, but he seemed to own books in every language imaginable. There were scrolls stacked on several shelves and he even owned several stone tablets and papyrus scrolls. Reina noted several gaps in the shelves and thought back to the well-stocked bookcases in her own rooms.

‘Curious little thing, aren’t you?’ Master Vrykólakas’s voice sent Reina jumping and she quickly slipped a scroll back into its rightful place.

‘The door was open.’ She shrugged, trying to regain her composure.

‘As was the door to my sleeping quarters and yet I do not find you in there.’

‘That room does not hold my curiosity,’ Reina pointed out. ‘There is nothing for me to learn there.’ She looked away, embarrassed at the suggestive look on Master Vrykólakas’s face, realising that she had walked straight into that. ‘What are these?’ she asked, pointing to two pieces of papyrus. Both were written in intricate symbols, but it was clear they were different languages.

‘Ah, this one is Ancient Egyptian written in hieroglyphics.’ He pulled the first papyrus out and Reina looked at it with interest. Setting it back down, he pulled out the second piece and carefully handed it to Reina for her to study. ‘This is Ancient Greek, written by my hand own three thousand years ago when I was still human.’ Reina almost dropped the papyrus in surprise and she quickly set it back on the shelf. ‘This shocks you? You knew I was old even for a vampire.’

‘Yes, but three thousand years?’ Reina stared at him in open-mouthed shock; he looked as if he were in his forties. How could he be so old? Master Vrykólakas seemed amused by her shock and as he led her from the study Reina considered asking him what he had written about.

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