Content with her chosen accomplices, Jezebel overcomes her doubts. “The plan. I am telling you this in the greatest confidence. You do not repeat this to another. Do I make myself clear?”
Replying in unison, Eve and Elisabeth say, “Yes, Dark Empress.”
“Absolutely, nothing can go wrong.”
“We understand, Dark Empress.”
“Tonight, when the clock strikes ten, I will release my raven. She will fly across the globe spreading the mist upon the streets. Embedded within the mist is the final element of my DNA, ready to be implanted to complete my possession over the young. It is imperative that her flight time is lightning speed or my poison will weaken. We have this logged and it is going to take her two hours to tour the globe and have this in place ready for our attack. Using this calculation, as soon as the clock strikes midnight, I will step forward and release my sacred chant across the globe. At this point, the mist will enter every home, building, boat, plane – everywhere possible that a sneaky human could be. Once it locates my victims, every child in every country will awaken and unite under my ruling. And every adult will be restrained so they are powerless. Once the children have transitioned, they will follow my every command, eliminating their parents and any adult they encounter with their bare hands.” Looking to Eve and Elisabeth, whose heads are still bowed, Jezebel asks. “Is this stimulating enough for your inner evil?”
“Yes, Dark Empress,” the pair reply.
“Impressive.” She grins. “Well, as the children are wreaking havoc across land, sea and air, I will rise above to take up my most important stance. Beneath my beautiful black hole. My vortex. Using a combination of this and the mist, as the two unite, it will create the most valuable part of the takeover.” Seeing Elisabeth’s head lower, Jezebel bangs her fist on the table and barks, “Are you listening?”
Jumping, Eve and Elisabeth reply, “Yes, Dark Empress.”
Jezebel smirks, the black substance hanging from her mouth. “I was checking you were following. Nothing can go wrong. Not even the slightest thing. The vortex I will be building is the most important element. It is my sole responsibility to ensure it has enough power to sustain itself. Collecting all the sacrificed souls, the vortex will then pass them through a portal in exchange for the birth of my empire. As soon as the portal has been established within, I will return to oversee the slaying of mankind.” Leaning forward, Jezebel places her hands on the desk and arches her back. “You must be aware that if I return any sooner, all will be lost. It is imperative that I complete this part of the process uninterrupted, do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Dark Empress.”
“Good.” Sitting back, she continues, “Once the last soul has been received, the vortex will close the portal, and humanity as it is known will cease to exist, and I will finally have my rightful place, ruler of the whole universe.”
Envisioning her triumph, Jezebel stands, the empowerment of the moment tingling through her. Lighting up like flames, her eyes beam bright red. Stepping away from her desk, she drags her feet towards Eve and Elisabeth. Standing behind them, she strokes their silky hair.
“So, are you still wondering why I have summoned you here?”
“Yes, Dark Empress,” Eve replies.
Elisabeth stays quiet this time.
“For decade upon decade, I have watched these despicable people living within my universe as though they are welcome. I was created because of their cruelty to vulnerable children. They don’t care about children. They don’t deserve the loyalty children offer to them. I deserve it, and I am going to take it from them. A long time ago I made a deal. A deal that required patience. To produce a universe of my own ruling, the elimination and sacrifice of every adult on this planet is needed. When I fulfil this, every child will serve under my command. Youth will remain with them always, they will never age. Procreation will no longer be conducted using their vile methods.” Jezebel spits on the floor. “Disgusting little insects they are. No, no more of that obscene behaviour. Procreation will now be initiated via my precious carnitine molendini, which will penetrate straight through the stratosphere at the same moment the last soul has been surrendered and the vortex is closed.”
Jezebel opens the top drawer of her desk and retrieves an item. She grips it tight.
She returns to the window and stares at the sky. “It is vital that you protect me at all costs during the takeover. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Dark Empress.”
Aware that one person alone potentially has the means and knowledge of how to destroy her and her destiny, Jezebel is going to stop at nothing to ensure she is given maximum shelter.
“You should know, and this is for you both to know and no one else, that during my takeover there will be one point where I cannot be disturbed. No one is to interrupt or approach me as I am summoning the vortex. If this happens and my attention is lost, it will collapse and this could have a detrimental effect. We have one shot at this.” Looking at her closed hand, Jezebel continues, “Should anyone attempt to be foolish and try to assassinate me, you are under strict orders to destroy them without any hesitation, even if this is a child. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Dark Empress,” Elisabeth says.
This time Eve stays quiet.
Jezebel turns to them. “Eve?”
“Sorry, yes, Dark Empress.”
“Terrific,” she replies. “Now come here to me.”
Eve and Elisabeth obey.
Pointing her finger in the direction of the sky, Jezebel says, “Look. You see those black formations in the clouds?”
The pair look up and say, “Yes, Dark Empress.”
“The transition is already happening. Across the globe, those tiny vortexes are forming. Once I rise, they will unite.”
Opening her hand, Jezebel reveals the invaluable item she’s been holding. It’s her heart-shaped locket. Her hunter. Placing it around her neck, Jezebel says, “This stays with me. It is to be guarded with your life. If for any reason this locket gets detached from my body, you must retrieve it and protect it with every ounce of your existence. I don’t care if you have to die to protect it. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Dark Empress.”
“Excellent.” She grins.
Believing she has got her point across without making herself sound too vulnerable, Jezebel stands between Eve and Elisabeth and strokes their hair, embracing the vision of her plan coming together as the darkness takes over the clouds. Jezebel is ready for the residents of the world to know of her arrival.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“We Meet at Last.”
Marching through the airport with his backpack strapped to his body, Matthew is sweltering. He’s a man on a mission. Anyone who gets in his way will be bulldozed without a second thought. Time is of the essence, and he is desperate to get to his daughter. Crowds of people are blocking him, standing by the baggage claim conveyor belts, waiting for their cases. Battling his way through, Matthew’s thankful that he, Phil and Hermon have all got a backpack each and nothing more.
“Come on, you two, catch up!” Matthew shouts, waving his arm.
“Sorry for not being as physically fit as you,” Phil replies, puffing and panting.
“I think I’m going to have a heart attack,” Hermon says.
At last, Matthew can see the light at the end of the crowd. He stumbles out of the mass of hot sweaty bodies and rushes to the final security check.
“Enjoy your trip, sir,” says the sharply dressed security officer, passing Matthew back his passport.
He rushes onto the elevator and holds the door as he watches Phil and Hermon catch up. As the doors close, Matthew rests his head against the cold metal. He cannot stop obsessing about the call. He didn’t sleep a wink during the whole flight and spent it perusing Hermon’s translation of the scroll. But he did figure
out one thing. The emblem: the heart and the crucifix merging must be exactly how the Dark Empress is defeated. And another he realised, a vitally important piece of the puzzle. The creator of the first chosen child, which in this case is Matthew, is the only individual the Dark Empress is powerless over. She cannot possess nor execute him. And, not only this, but Reverend Andrew was right: Matthew is the only one who has the power to destroy her. He is the only person who can stab her heart with the crucifix.
And if he should fail? The Dark Empress would gain full reign over his soul with immediate effect. Not only this, but she would also be able to execute him in any way she desires. Matthew cringes at the thought. The stakes have been raised, and he’s more determined than ever to take her out!
As they step out of the elevator, Matthew’s phone begins to vibrate. He retrieves it as quickly as he can and answers the call. “Oh, hey Alannah. We’re just coming out the exit now.”
“Perfect, we’re parked out front. We can’t stop long. Brennan said the security here are a pain in the ass for moving you along.”
“Yeah, sure, sorry it took a while getting through security and battling through baggage claim. Okay, so I’m just walking out the doors now.” Looking around, Matthew sees cars and people everywhere. “Alannah, can you see me? I’m the scruffy-looking guy in all black, with a backpack glued to him, currently waving his arm like a madman.”
“Yeah, I see you,” Alannah replies, before wolf whistling.
He looks in the direction of the sound and sees a woman waving.
“Found you. I’m on my way,” Matthew says to Alannah, before hanging up the phone and turning to Phil and Hermon. “She’s over here, lads.”
Matthew smiles at the relief he feels to finally meet the woman who has been in his daughter’s presence along with his granddaughter. As soon as she reaches him, Matthew wraps his arms around her tightly and twirls her around.
“I can’t believe we finally get to meet,” Alannah says.
“I know. I know. This is Phil.”
“Hi, Phil,” Alannah says as she puts out her hand.
“Too formal. Come here, you,” Phil replies as he wraps his arms around her. “Thank you for this.”
“You don’t need to thank me.”
“And this is Hermon.”
“Hey, Hermon. Nice to meet you,” Alannah responds as she again puts out her hand.
“Don’t want to be the only arsehole here,” Hermon says with a smile on his face, before giving Alannah an awkward hug.
As she chuckles, Alannah points to the car and says, “Oh, gents, this is my husband, Brennan.”
“Hey guys. Nice to finally meet you,” Brennan shouts out the window. “Look, I don’t want to be a dick or anything, but we really need to move from here. So why don’t you guys jump in and we’ll hit the roads. We’ve got quite a drive ahead of us still.”
“Sure, sure, sorry,” Matthew says as he opens the door to the back seats. “Get in, lads.”
Matthew takes his seat and looks out the window. Seeing the American flag on the back of a car, the reality starts to sink in. They’ve made it. Officially on American soil, and finally back on track to getting his daughter home. Matthew beams with pride.
“Okay, everyone strapped in?” Brennan asks.
“Yeah, mate,” Phil replies.
“Right, let’s get this show on the road, then,” Brennan says as they pull out into the flow of traffic away from the airport.
“Alannah, you’ll never guess what?” Matthew blurts out.
“What?”
“Just before we took off, I got a call from Eve.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“Nope. It was her. I’d recognise that voice anywhere.”
“Well, what did she say?”
“Well, she said ‘Hello’ and ‘Father’, and then something about it being true, and then the phone went down.”
“Yeah, but tell her what you said before the phone went down,” Phil chimes in.
“What?”
“You told her we’re on our way to get her, and then the phone went down.”
“Aye, you said you’d have done the same thing,” Matthew says.
“Yeah, I would have. Of course, I would, but I mean, what if she has told you know who?”
“It doesn’t matter if she has.” Matthew replies sternly. “While you were sleeping, I figured it out: it turns out she cannot kill me. And I am the only one who can kill her.”
“What the f—”
“Yeah, but if she is somehow successful in her takeover, then she has the power to kill me in any way she wants. That’s right, isn’t it Hermon?”
“Unfortunately it is, my friend.”
“Well mate, I mean, if she wins, it’s game over for all of us, cause I’m pretty sure she’ll murder us in a heartbeat anyway,” Phil says.
“I know, but my point is, she cannot kill me until that moment. So it’s simple, I just have to make sure I get to her before she completes her transition and stab her heart with this.” Matthew retrieves the crucifix from the inside pocket on his jacket.
Phil squirms in his seat. “Urgh, so you do have to stab her heart?”
“Yeah, and you know what? Now I know she can’t kill me, I’m okay about it. I mean, I always wondered why she never came back and just killed me off. And now I know.” Now he’s saying his findings out loud, Matthew feels untouchable. “So, yeah, I’m ready for her. Put that bitch in front of me now and I’ll ram this right into her chest.” Matthew mimes stabbing the crucifix into her chest.
“So, we just have to get to her before she finishes the job,” Phil says. “And God only knows when that’s going to be.”
“Well, not to alarm you or anything, gents, but have you taken a look at the sky recently?” Alannah says.
Matthew looks out of the window. Staring above the passing vehicles, he notices something out of the ordinary in the sky. He winds the window down, raises his phone and takes three pictures from different angles. Closing the window as it’s letting in an almighty chill, Matthew looks at the first image.
“Wait, what is that?” Matthew says, baffled.
“I know, right,” Alannah responds. “I mean, I’m not a rocket scientist or anything, but I know supernatural activity when I see it. And that ain’t holy.”
“Good Lord, it’s happening,” Hermon says.
Nervous as Hermon’s predictions have never been wrong before, Matthew says, “Well it looks like we’re going straight to the orphanage, then. Element of surprise.”
“No, it won’t happen in the daytime. She only strikes at night.” Pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, Hermon continues, “The scroll stated that—”
“Wait a minute,” Matthew interrupts. “I get that, but don’t we want to attack her before she strikes?”
“No. Not at all. She can easily capture you and keep you hostage until she’s completed her takeover and then we’re all going to be dead. We have to keep you well out of her way and get her while she is vulnerable.”
“A vulnerable demon. Never heard of that one.” Phil laughs.
“What do you mean, Hermon?” Alannah asks. “How will we know when she’s going to be vulnerable?”
“I’m not sure, to be honest with you.”
“Well, how do we find out?” Matthew says.
“I was hoping to conduct some more studying, but with the collapse of the tomb, the hospital visit, the shock of finding them and now ending up in America, I just haven’t been able to get online to search for material.”
“Might this help?” Alannah says as she reaches into her handbag and passes back the book Smashing of the Clay Pots.
“Dear God, where did you get this from?” Hermon says as he holds the precious ancient book. A look of astonishment spreads across his f
ace.
“The New York Public Library. A girl named Julianna helped me find it.”
“Huh, that’s quite comical.” Hermon chuckles.
“What is?” Phil asks.
“Well, the archangel sent by Jesus to help the disciples along their way was indeed called Julianna.”
“You’re kidding me?” Phil says.
“No, not at all, actually. I’m quite amused by this myself.”
Looking extremely concerned, Alannah says, “So she was a ghost, then, is that what you’re saying?”
“No, I’m not saying that. I’m just merely pointing out the connection. It’s quite an encouraging sign.”
“So if we’re not going straight to the orphanage, then where are we going?” Matthew asks.
“Okay, so you know I told you Brennan has friends in the village where the orphanage is?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, we’re going to head over to their home and check in to see if they’ve been noticing anything supernatural or out of the ordinary taking place over the past few months. Obviously, you guys can’t come with us, so we’re going to drop you off at a B&B that we managed to book for you. I mean it might be a squeeze, but it’s all we could get at such short notice. We just thought this way you could rest and freshen up while we gather all the information we can from Lisa and William. And, well, now it will give Hermon a chance to review the book.”
“How close is it to the orphanage?” Matthew queries.
Biting her lips, Alannah says, “Hmm, I’m not sure, to be honest.”
“It’s around a twenty-minute drive. Give or take due to the holiday traffic,” Brennan confirms.
“Mate, I think you better listen to Hermon on this one and not go near it,” Phil says, looking worried. “If you’re our only hope of defeating this bitch, then we better wait it out and go whenever the time is right.”
Aware that his friend is right, Matthew submits, even though it is killing him inside. After such a long time, to be within reaching distance of his daughter and his granddaughter and not be able to run to their aid, Matthew feels a whole new level of frustration.
The Broken IV: Vengeance Page 21