Chapter 5

Once Eva found a little something to eat, she then went to locate the well she had been pointed to. She was glad to see that it was in working order with at least a bucket that hauled the water up and that the liquid seemed clean with no added taste, and there seemed to be plenty of it. Since they appeared to be underground, the well had to be even further down, which would mean that any pathogens from the surface should have been filtered out long before they reached whatever reservoir this water was held in. At least she hoped so.

Once she filled the canteen, she went back up and grabbed her coat from where she had left it. She then went and explained to the rest of them the time difference, and why she was exhausted. She found it a little funny that Sypha scolded her for not mentioning it sooner before she shooed her off to a nearby aisle and told her to get some sleep. She then threatened both of the men to keep their silence so Eva could rest.

Eva was more than a little grateful to the Speaker. Despite how distracted the other woman had been for most of the time she had been there, so far, she had been the nicest of the bunch. Not that Adrian hadn't been polite with her, but he was intense, to say the least. Plus, not all of their interactions had been pleasant. Though, part of that had been her own fault. Still, she was glad Sypha was there as a sort of buffer. With those thoughts occupying her mind as she settled in, it was not long after she curled up in her bulky coat before sleep claimed her.


Eva wasn't sure if it was morning or not when she woke again. Since this place had no real way for her to tell. They were underground, and the lanterns were always lit. However, she couldn't hear anything, so she assumed the others were sleeping, so she tried to stay as quiet as possible as she headed to the chamber pot that had also been pointed out to her. She wrinkled her nose at it but wasn't going to not use it. It was better than nothing.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she made her way back to where she left her coat and found Adrian standing over it. His voice was low and held a note of concern when he spoke. "You did not sleep long. Are you rested well enough?"

Eva put a hand over her heart and gave him a mock frown. "Well, I'm definitely not getting back to sleep now."

When his only response was to look troubled, she took pity on him and grinned. "Sorry, I'm just teasing. I wasn't going to be able to get back to sleep anyway. I'm lucky if I get a straight five hours on any given night. It'll be fine, especially in these circumstances. I don't think it would be possible for me to sleep any more soundly than that in such strange conditions."

Adrian didn't look entirely convinced, but he gave her a nod. "The others are sleeping still, but I doubt they will be for long either. If you are interested in looking for information about the mirror, there is an index at the base of the stairs. It is the book on the pedestal."

Eva was glad to hear that, but she had something else in mind. She leaned down and grabbed her bag from where it had been lying next to her and gave him a halfhearted smile. "Actually, I was hoping to have a little time alone this morning. Since everyone else is asleep, now will be as good a time as any."

He looked into her eyes for a few moments to determine what she meant, but the longer he held her gaze, all he could see was the shadow of the horror from the day before. Finally, he nodded and stepped back. "I will be able to hear you from anywhere in this place if you call out."

She raised a brow at that fact but bit back the smart remark she had on the tip of her tongue. Instead, she nodded back. "Hopefully, I won't need to." He then watched as she walked down the stairs.


It was not long after Eva left that Trevor and Sypha woke as well. Not that they had slept any longer than she had, but they had been used to short nights recently. They all knew the dire need for them to find something as soon as possible.

After nearly half an hour, Sypha finally noticed that Alucard was not acting like his normally stoic self. She also noted the absence of their guest and wondered if the two instances had something to do with one another. She could not help her curiosity, and despite the rebuff she had received the day before, she still had to ask. "Alucard, you look almost worried. Is something wrong?"

Alucard grimaced before he could catch himself and was only thankful that Trevor was not around. He looked over at Sypha and decided that perhaps she might actually understand. "I am."

Sypha's brows furrowed at his admission. Alucard was usually more composed than that. Even when he spoke of what had happened to his mother, he had held himself together. Not that he was discomposed now, but the fact that he had admitted to worry was unexpected. She didn't get to ask why before he continued. "Yesterday, just before Eva and I came back to work with you, I told her why my father has declared war on humanity. Her reaction was rather unexpected."

He paused for long enough that Sypha had to prompt him to continue. "How so?"

He shook off the memories of Eva's tears and continued. "Apparently, her mother was a doctor. She shared that the woman had volunteered in a faraway country where there was a war to help those affected. While she was there, she had been caught in the middle and was brutally murdered."

Sypha covered a gasp. Neither of them noticed Trevor had walked up during the retelling, but both their gazes jerked around when they heard his voice. "Oh, just what we need. Another melancholy soul that misses their mother."

Alucard looked like he was debating whether he should change his mind about eating the last of the Belmonts for just a second before Sypha huffed and grabbed Trevor to pull him to the side. She whispered something harsh and fast to him before she turned back to Alucard. "It has been some time since she has been gone, perhaps it would be best to check on her."

Alucard sent a last hard look at Trevor before he nodded. "You might be correct. She can't have gone far. I will be back shortly."

He walked a short distance away before he paused to see if he could hear where she might have gone. It was less than a minute later that he heard movement from the lowest level. When he made his way to the bottom of the stairs, he looked around for a moment to try and see if he could pinpoint where she had gone. It only took him a moment to realize she was in the farthest corner and entirely out of sight. That didn't surprise him. If she had wanted to be alone, that was the one spot that could not be seen unless you walked right in front of it. Still, it had been some time and given her reaction the day before, it might be best if she rejoined the others.

His footsteps were silent as he walked over to where she was. He froze in shock as soon as he rounded the last corner. His eyes widened, and he seemed to take in every detail, all at once. Though, he could not manage to force his gaze away from the sight in front of him. His gaze traveled from her feet, where she had removed her tall boots. Then up her creamy, lean legs. If he had thought there had been little left to his imagination with her breeches, he had been mistaken. There was a minuscule scrap of cloth that covered her womanhood and the ample curve of her hips.

She had unbound her long dark hair, and it hung down in a wavy curtain that covered one half of her front as she had her head turned down. His eyes followed her hand as it dipped a scrap of cloth into the bucket perched on the edge of the well next to her before it came back and gently caressed under the full curve of her breast.

Alucard suddenly felt his fangs ache in a way he was unfamiliar with. He had never experienced anything quite like it before. He hadn't even realized that he had made a strangled noise until Eva's head shot up. Their wide-eyed gazes locked for an unknown amount of time. Finally, sense returned to them both. When that happened, Alucard barely had the time to raise his hands and take a step back before Eva had lifted the bucket next to her and thrown it at him.

It did not reach him, but the water did. He was drenched from head to foot as her screeching voice followed it. "I said alone, asshole!" By that point, he didn't even bother trying to explain. There was no point. He simply turned on his heel and headed back the way he came.

Alucard had not planned to go back to where Sypha and Trevor were waiting. He was already having a hard enough time controlling a wave of conflicting emotions. Some of which were urging him to go back down the stairs and make sure that frustrating woman understood just how incredibly, well, frustrating she was. For more than one reason.

However, they both met him on the stairs. They stared at him for several seconds before Trevor used one hand to motion up and down. "Uh, why are you all wet?"

Alucard's jaw clenched, and his eyes flashed, but he didn't answer. In the end, he didn't need to. It was only a few seconds after Trevor's question that Eva came running up the stairs. Her hair was still down, and she had only donned her pants and shirt. It was clear to see that she was livid as she looked at Adrian. "If you ever think about doing something like that again, I swear to god it will be more than a bucket I throw at you!"

There was absolute silence after her outburst for several seconds. Alucard refused to look at her, or either of the others for that matter. Trevor was the first to break it. He looked back and forth between the two, taking in Eva's state of dress before his eyes widened and he looked at Alucard. "Wait! Did you catch her with her clothes off?"

Both Eva and Alucard glared at him. He just grinned at their looks. "You did! You sly dog. So tell me, how-"

Eva took a threatening step toward him and nearly growled out her next words. "Finish that question, and I swear I will cut your nuts off."

Trevor looked truly frightened for a split second. It very nearly sounded like she meant it. Before he could say anything, a frowning Sypha got between them all and pinned Eva with an almost glare. "I think we should all calm down."

Trevor picked that moment to mumble something under his breath. "Yeah, there's no need to threaten a man's family jewels like that."

Eva's eyes flashed again, but Sypha spoke up once again before any other retort could be made. "Eva, I understand why you might be upset if that is what happened, but please know that Alucard did not go to find you with those thoughts in mind. He was not trying to disturb your privacy, but we were all worried about your state of mind after your confession about your mother yesterday."

Eva 's face lost all color as she turned to Adrian. "You told them?"

He finally turned to her with a frown. "I felt it would help them understand a few things, and then you would not have to go through the retelling again. It obviously disturbed you."

Eva's fist clenched next to her side before it raised. She opened it and clenched it again several times, as though she wasn't sure if she wanted to strike him or make a point. Finally, she lowered her hand in a sharp negating gesture. "Fine. I apologize for yelling at you."

Alucard blinked once before he lowered his head. "I apologize for walking in on you. It was not my intention to try and catch you in such a compromising position, nor did I mean to stare, I was merely shocked."

Eva had been ready to accept his apology and drop the subject. However, her eyes narrowed at his last words, and she couldn't just let it go. "You say that, but your fangs grew."

Trevor looked at Eva like she had lost her mind. "What?"

Sypha spoke up at that point before she thought better of what it would mean. Her knowledge of the lore outweighing her good sense. "Actually, according to the legends we have on vampires, there is a direct correlation between lustful desire and-"

"Enough, We do not need to hear this, Sypha." The Speaker blinked over at the scowling face of her rather upset vampire companion and the blushing, glaring face of the other woman and realized that, no, they really didn't need to hear that at the moment.

"Perhaps you are correct. Actually, I think it might be a good idea if Eva works with me this morning."

Alucard wasn't sure which one of the women he was currently more upset with. He knew it was in Sypha's nature to spout out the knowledge she had, but at that moment, he wished it was about anything other than his people. As for Eva, he had always believed that intelligence and keen observations were skills to warrant merit. And under different circumstances, he would still agree. However, she continued to use those skills to his detriment, it seemed. He was not upset at all when Eva turned to the Speaker with a nod of agreement.

"Let me go get the rest of my things, and I'll meet you back where you were yesterday." Sypha gave her a nod before they all walked off in different directions.


Even though Eva had agreed to join Sypha, she pretty much stayed out of the Speaker's way while she worked on the spell to lock the castle in place. Instead, she wandered the closest aisles and took the opportunity to look at the weird and wonderful things that this place held. It was a trove of everything that any fantasy enthusiast could imagine. Well, at least if their imagination ran to the macabre. The various 'trophies' were a bit much, as far as she was concerned.

It was as she wandered from one aisle into another that she saw Adrian enter at the other end. She hadn't realized she had drifted so far from where Sypha was working. They both froze for a moment, but as he turned to go back the other way, Eva called out to stop him. "Wait, Adrian. Can I speak to you for a moment? Please?"

There was a moment's hesitation before he turned back to face her. His face was kept in a carefully controlled mask when he spoke. "What did you need to speak with me about?"

Eva felt her cheeks heat slightly and cursed her inability to stop it from happening, but she still forced her eyes to stay on his as she spoke. "Actually, I wanted to apologize again. In a way that came across as more sincere and without all the anger behind it. I've had time to cool down now, and even though I don't know you well, from what I have seen, that wasn't something you would have done on purpose. I overreacted and was horrible to you. I hope that we can move past it."

Alucard blinked down at this conundrum of a woman several times before he could find the words to respond. "I accept your apology, but only if you will accept mine as well. Though it was not my intent to make you uncomfortable, my shock caused us both embarrassment. I apologize as well."

Eva held out her hand with a slight tilt of her lips. "Sounds good to me."

Alucard chuckled as he shook her hand. He was going to have to quit thinking of her like any other woman. She defied any known boundaries. Though, now that they were at least back on speaking terms, he did have questions. "If you don't mind my asking, what were you doing?"

Eva felt her face flush again at his pointed question, but she ignored it as she tried to explain. "I thought it was pretty self-explanatory. I was cleaning up. I don't know about you, but where I'm from, daily showers are a thing. Since that isn't possible here, I was making do with the next best thing on hand."

He gave her a curious look. "Showers? As in the rain?"

Eva tried not to, but a laugh bubbled up. Luckily, Adrian didn't seem bothered by it, especially since she started speaking right away as well. "I suppose it functions similarly. However, it is created artificially with indoor plumbing, and we can control the temperature of the water. It is supposed to be a utilitarian function for cleaning, but it has morphed over the years. It can be pleasant as well."

Adrain had gotten a faraway look in his eyes, and Eva wondered what he was thinking about before he turned back to her with curiosity. "And you do this every day? Shower?"

She chuckled again but nodded. "Yes. I'm not a big fan of feeling grimy or being smelly. After the last day especially. I wasn't able to get as clean as I would have liked, but I hope I was able to get to worst of it off at least."

"You don't smell unpleasant at all."

Eva's eyes widened slightly as she looked up at Adrian. For a split second, it looked like he had been just as shocked that he had said that aloud as she felt. Thankfully, neither one of them had the chance to explore it. Sypha came around the corner with an excited look. "There you are! I think I may have found something that will help."

Both of the others had mixed feelings about the interruption. However, when they turned to see what the Speaker was talking about, they also both realized it might have been a good thing.

A/N: First off, thank you to my guest reviewer! I usually would reply directly, but since I can't, have my thanks here :) I'm glad you like Eva too. As for my note, I had really hoped to have had this out yesterday, but I forgot I'm on call all this week and the world seems to have gone mad. Anyway, even though life happens, I have still somehow prevailed and managed to get this out to you. I hope you enjoy! The next chapter will be the one with the demon attack, so it should be interesting, to say the least. I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to it! Thanks for reading!