Vampire Affliction by Eva Pohler Page B

exploded in the cavern, echoing and ringing in Gertie’s ears. She had to struggle not to vomit.
    The axman raised his ax in the air as a way of cheering on the crowd.
    She turned to Jeno and said, “I love you, and I’m so sorry.”
    It is I who am sorry , Jeno said telepathically.
    She gave him a sad smile. Then she turned to Hector and said, “And I love you, too, Hector. Oh, Hector...” Her sobs overtook her, and she couldn’t speak.
    Hector looked at her with sad and frightened eyes. “Pray to my father to save us.”
    Instead, she prayed to the god she believed was her own—Dionysus.
    Save your daughter and her friends. If Hector dies, so will this uprising. If you spare us, we can help you back. We can steal something from the Olympians to get their attention. Show us that you really care about your children and the children of the night.
    Her teeth were shattering, but she was beginning to feel numb and surprisingly calm. It was like the time the dentist had used laughing gas on her. Everything had seemed so surreal. That’s how this felt, like she was floating outside of her body and it was all a dream.
    Then, when the axman stepped forward, something clicked in her mind, and she turned to Vladimir and shouted, “You would kill your own son? Why are you fighting this war, if not for him?”
    “I’m not going to kill him,” Vladimir sneered. “His punishment is to watch.”
    “I’d rather you kill me,” Jeno said. “I’ve never been more ashamed to be a vampire.”
    “Let’s get this over with,” Vladimir muttered.
    The axman positioned himself right in front of Gertie. He lifted the heavy ax up in the air. Gertie closed her eyes and said goodbye to the world. Several more seconds went by and nothing happened. When she opened her eyes again, she saw a wall of thick, golden vines surrounding her, Jeno, and Hector. They grew between them and everyone else, reminding her of the dream she had had the night of the dance with the Maenads and satyrs.
    “What’s happening?” She looked back and forth at her two friends, but they were as shocked as she was. “What’s going on?”
    “It appears that our lord, Dionysus, does not want you killed,” Vladimir said angrily on the other side of the vines.
    “I wonder why?” the axman muttered.
    Gertie finally allowed the tears that had been pricking her eyes to fall down her face as relief swept over her. She had really thought it was going to be the end.
    The golden vines twisted and turned and began to recede back down into the rocky ground, but something white was left behind in their place. It was flat, like a platter, but had something written on it. Vladimir commanded the nearest vampire to pick it up and bring it to him.
    “It’s Persephone’s platter,” Vladimir said. “At least, it has her name, along with ‘Queen of the Underworld,’ inscribed on it. I wonder why Dionysus has left this for me.”
    Suddenly a bunch of red, ripe grapes appeared on the platter.
    “The grapes from the vine of our lord,” Vladimir said.
    Gertie doubted it would prove to be enough leverage for negotiating for the vampires’ freedom. How much would they care about one goddess’s platter, even if it was magical?
    Then inspiration struck her like a bolt of lightning. It was a gift.
    “Dionysus wants us to deliver it to Persephone as a gift,” Gertie said. “Because he wants us to steal something while we’re there.”
    “Steal something?” Vladimir repeated.
    “What’s the most powerful thing in the Underworld?” she asked.
    “Lord Hades,” Vladimir said.
    “The most powerful object,” she clarified.
    Vladimir stepped closer to her and studied her. “Our lord wants you to steal the helm of invisibility?”
    “He wants us to steal it,” she said.
    “Us?” Vladimir asked.
    “Me and Hector. I need a wing man.”
    “Why not Jeno?” Vladimir suggested. “Someone I can trust?”
    “We need someone Hades can trust,” she said. “Someone who