The Oracle looked up and smiled at Daen, he was blinded to her hidden secrets. She had been able to hide many things from Daen over the years and this was one of them.
'I recently acquired this great volume,' she lied, 'One of my many contacts found it in an Estate clearance, some duke or other. There were a lot of Egyptian artefacts recovered, this amongst them. I got it before anyone else got to see.' This story wasn’t too far off the truth, but she made it sound as if this had happened recently, when it was well over a hundred years before.
'Have we got everything necessary to perform the ritual?' Daen asked.
'Well, no my liege. And why would you require such artefacts? Would you wish to make me a day walker?' The Oracle was curious as to why he was so desperate to recreate the ritual.
'No my love, I just wanted to know only I could posses the power to perform this ceremony. And know that no one else could have such power!'
His greedy eyes consumed the rite before him, drinking in the knowledge. It was written in Ancient Greek, Latin and Egyptian not unlike the Rosetta Stone, fortunately for Daen he can read, write and speak all three of those languages. What the people in the museums would do for the knowledge he possessed.
'So can we acquire all the necessary items for such a ritual?' He asked her.
'I’m sure I can glean the information and tools necessary, I can’t get them here, I will need to search for so much, but there are some key items here already.' She smiled, 'Shall I leave right away?'
'Yes my precious Oracle, you should.'
*
They had told Jayne that Teresa had gone back to work for a while and she would be back to see her. Jayne carried on as normal as if nothing was the matter. Cleo, Blue, Pierre and Colin were trying to find out where the hell Star had gone with the Prince. Amelia had told Blue that Eliza and her college sweetheart Brett had been captured by Isis in Egypt, but were doing better off there finding out about prophecies and what not.
'So when we find out where Star is what are we going to do?' Questioned Blue.
'I’ll go and get her.' Said Cleo flatly.
'That simply?' Said Blue with a half sarcastic smile on her face.
'And you’ll come with me.' Cleo directed toward Blue.
'We’ll all go together.' Pierre suggested and went on to stipulate,
'Colin can stay here and look after Jayne.'
'We’re all talking like something has happened to Star.' Said Blue.
'But something must have happened to Star!' Exclaimed Cleo, 'Have you ever known her not to contact us for over three days!?!'
The room went quiet, they were all looking at each other, they all knew the truth, they all knew something bad must have happened to Star. Either they would have heard from Star or the Newspapers would have broke with an exclusive surprise wedding from the East.
'So who is the Prince and where the hell did he come from?' Cleo asked.
'He was at the Halloween Party.' Blue frowned, 'He smelt funny, he smelt like… like… Daen…' She paused, her face went white, her mouth opened, she turned on her heels, then stormed off up the stairs towards Star’s room screaming.
'AMELIA!!!' As she went.
Cleo looked across at Pierre and Colin,
'Does someone know something I don’t?' She asked.
'Don’t you know Blue talks to the dead?' Pierre smiled, 'Just like Eliza.'
'I thought that was all made up, seriously, they talk to Amelia. Eliza’s dead sister?' Cleo had a hard time believing all this, her steely exterior wouldn't be dented to such fantasy.
'You're an Assassin, I'm a night-walking vampire, Blue is a day walker, you have friends who are world renown anthropologists and a worldwide celebrity and you have difficulty believing in ghosts?'
Cleo smiled. It was true, they all led such incredibly far fetched lives, her life by no means the most regular. Why was she surprised, she had seen so much in her life, she had been off world on missions that were so secret the girls could never know. Why couldn't there be ghosts, there were vampires. Cleo stood there wondering what else could be out there, she worried about her boys, she bit her bottom lip, her only tell.
'Yeah, I guess.' She sighed, 'So, let's see why Blue ran off and what she's found out from the dead.'
*
'AMELIA! You little shit! Get your arse here NOW!'
I can't believe I didn't see it before, I won't believe it!
'AMELIA!'
Amelia shimmered into Blue's eyesight, she wanted to strangle the life out of her tiny little ghost like figure.
'What?' Amelia whispered innocently.
'What? What! What the hell do you know?!' Blue screamed at her.
'What do I know about what?' Amelia replies almost looking like she's going to cry.
'About Star missing! About Daen and the Prince being friends! About where Star is! What do you know?'
'Wow, that was a rant. Star, I'll have to look into that. I'm not sure where she is, I don't keep tabs on everyone you know. And Daen and the Prince, I'll have to look into that too. Give me a minute. Okay?' Amelia wasn't really a little girl, she was the same age as her sister, she just died when she was eight, so she was stuck looking like that forever. She was actually jealous of Eliza's ageing, she longed to age and look like a woman, that's why she'd become such a little bitch every so often.
'Okay.' Blue agreed.
Whilst Amelia was spirited away searching for answers, Blue decided to look for some of her own and started to go through some of Stars more secret of items and fondest of possessions. She kept a diary, so Blue had a quick scan, she found out that Star quite fancied Daen and that she was quite jealous of Blue that he hadn't gone for Star. Blue smiled. Then there were pages and pages about this Prince guy, on and on it went. It got pretty boring. So she closed it and sat on her bed in thought.
'Where the hell are you Star?'
Amelia shimmered back into view. Blue looked up.
'Well, that was a few questions answered in one go.' Amelia breathed out a fake sigh.
'What did you find out?' Blue was desperate for the answers and found it almost torturous getting information from Amelia.
'I know what you're thinking you know.' Said Amelia, 'And it isn't torturous!'
'Okay smart arse, spill the beans.'
'Star is in the Himalayas. With Daen, who isn't friends with the Prince... He is the Prince.'
'Oh my fucking Jesus Christ' Blue went white and her eyes rolled up into her head.
At that point Blue fainted. The shock of finding out that she had been nailing the same guy as her best friend for the best part of a month had made her feel a little sick inside. Hence the collapse.
*
Jayne was stooped over Blue, wafting her with a fan to wake up.
'Hey Blue, are you alright?'
Jayne gently shook Blue so she came too.
Everyone else got to Star's room at the same time, moments after her collapse.
'What the hell happened to Blue?' Cleo asked.
'Ouch, I guess I fell over. Fainted. I've never done that before.' Blue stroked her hair out of her face and got herself up with the help from her friends.
'Yeah.' Blue blinked twice, 'Ouch, that hurt.' She dusted her self off once she had stood back up again.
'Amelia came to me, after I screamed for her.'
'We heard that,' Cleo smiled, 'You were wailing like a banshee.'
'What else did she say?' Pierre asked, 'Amelia?'
'She said that Star is in the Himalayas, with Daen, who isn't friends with the Prince. Daen is the Prince.'
Blue turned pale again. So Jayne started wafting her with the fan, Blue let her, she felt like she might throw up anyway.
'Thus the faint spell. Weird, it still makes me want to puke.'
'Fuck. That is a lot of information to process all at once, isn't it?' Cleo said, 'No wonder you fainted.' She walked over to the window and looked out into the dark sky.
'She can't be
there of her own accord, she hates the cold. I don't know what we'll be up against. Blue it's got to be you, me and Pierre for this rescue mission.'
'That's fine with me.' Said Blue.
'What on earth is happening?' Jayne inquired.
Colin walked to Jayne, put his arm round her and ushered her to the kitchen,
'Come on you, I'll make you a nice cup of tea and tell you all about it.'
They walked away out of the room.
'Consider me in.' Pierre looked at both Cleo and Blue, 'But you do realise we'll need a light proof transport.'
Cleo grinned,
'You got it. Let's go.'
*
'Eliza my dearest.' Isis spoke up in the grand temple, 'What have you found?'
She glided towards Eliza with grace and elegance.
'Did you acquire my book yet? The grand ritual?'
'I'm afraid not my Goddess, but I have deciphered some more of the prophecy.'
Her emerald green eyes lit up.
'Oh Eliza do tell me what you have.' The excitement in her voice made Eliza feel elated.
Brett watched on, he was still in awe that they were in the presence of a being older than modern history. The stories she could tell would be incredible. Brett wished he could persuade Isis to talk to him all day. He was more taken with Isis than he had ever been about anyone or anything in his entire life.
Isis looked over at Brett, his heart glided, his pulse quickened.
'You do know that you're feeling this because I am Vampyre, Brett, I was the first and most powerful creature ever created by the high priests all those moons ago. The pull you feel is just physics, chemistry and biology. It isn't real to yourself, just the meat on your bones. Your spirit is the real part of yourself. You are more than the pieces that make you.'
Brett pulled himself together and apologised for his humanity. Isis laughed a hearty laugh.
'Oh Eliza, you really do have a man of men here.' A sad hint glimmered in her eyes,
'You're lucky.' She moved across the expanse between them, 'He won't leave you in your time of need.' Isis looked away, and walked off to her private quarters, 'I need to be alone for a while.'
Eliza followed her into her sanctuary,
'But Isis, you wanted to know what I've found out in the prophecies?'
Isis turned, her eyes kind, she beckoned Eliza to her,
'Come here child, hold me.'
They embraced, a motherly hug, Isis was a clear foot taller than Eliza. Eliza rested her head on Isis's chest. Then Isis spoke,
'Eliza you are truly wonderful, you excel in what you do. I fear that the ritual manual was stolen years ago and I fear that what happened when Daen left will happen once more. There was a terrible plague of night-walkers, they devoured everyone they found. It took years to rid this land of them. The living dead, they were evil like you've never seen.'
'And you survived?'
'I survived, I have more power than the vermin that are night-walkers. Daen is like me, not as powerful, but like me all the same. I fear what he has in mind for Blue and all your friends. I'm glad Pierre found her. I just hope and pray with all my soul that the outcome of this whole prophecy is for the good of the world and that evil doesn't win this war.'
'I hope it all works out too. It has to.'
'Now go to your Brett, make each other smile. I have much to think about.'
'Thank you Isis, thank you for opening my eyes to much more in the world.' And with that Eliza walked away to spend time with Brett.
*
Cleo, Blue and Pierre had left the mansion. Colin and Jayne were there on their own. Jayne was busying herself with cooking in the kitchen.
'Something smells good!' Colin announced as he walked into the kitchen.
Jayne smiled dreamily into the pot she was stirring.
'I cooked you dinner,' She said, 'It's a mild curry, I hope you like it.'
'I haven't had a good curry in ages, it sure looks and smells good. When I worked for Queen and country they'd spoil us every so often and give us curries in our ration packs. This smells divine compared to that though!'
Jayne tasted the concoction and then added another ingredient, Colin hadn't seen her quick addition. It was a powerful sedative, enough to knock someone unconscious.
She plated up the delicious curry and served it to him at the breakfast bar in the kitchen.
'There you go honey. Enjoy!' She said.
'Aren't you going to have some?' Colin asked her inquisitively.
'No I'm not hungry at the moment, I might have some later, it does taste good, I kept tasting it as I went along.' She gave him a wink and smiled at him as she walked away from the kitchen to the lounge, it would be some time before the sedative would begin to work. Colin finished his meal and then made himself comfortable in the lounge across from Jayne,
'Jayne that was truly marvellous, wonderful even! You can make me that again if you don't mind.'
'Oh I'll not be making that again,' Jayne said flatly, her eyes filling with emotionless tears, 'Now Teresa is gone I won't be doing anything ever again.'
Colin's eyes went wide,
'What do you mean gone?'
'I remember everything Colin, I remember Teresa torturing me, I remember Cleo chopping her head off right in front of me. Everything was supposed to be okay Colin. But it won't ever be okay again. Teresa completed me and then ripped everything apart. Then Cleo took everything away. I might have been able to forgive Teresa, but Cleo took that chance away. That one chance at happiness.' The tears were streaming down her face, 'And Colin, there isn't a thing you can do about it, because very soon you will fall asleep for a very long while and I will go away too.'
'What do you mean?' Colin's eye lids were shutting on him, his whole body relaxing away from control 'What did you give me?'
'Flunitrazepam.' Jayne stated, 'You know, Rohypnol. Now have a good sleep Colin, goodbye sweet friend.'
Colin collapsed unconscious on the sofa.
Jayne left Colin in the lounge and walked up to her room. She passed through the great hall and up the stairs into the corridor. All she could think about was the great battle between Cleo and Teresa. Melancholy consumed her, she picked up the vial of sleeping tablets, and the glass of red wine she had poured earlier. She walked into her own en suite bathroom and ran a warm soapy bath. She slipped out of her clothes, closed the door slightly and gingerly climbed into the tub one limb at a time. She'd put on a classical album on the stereo system in her room, it was left on repeat. She slid into the water and submersed herself in the warmth, listening to the tranquil music coming from her room. Jayne took her glass of wine and made a toast to Teresa, she consumed eight tablets and swallowed a mouthful of the thick red liquid. She continued to do this until both the wine and the tablets were all gone. She felt herself relaxing more deeply than she ever had before. There was also a razor on the side of the bath, she'd prepared it earlier in the day and took it in her empty hands. She moved the sharp blade down her body and cut into her thigh. More specifically she cut into her femoral artery, the blood oozed into the water from her deep cut.
'Sweet dreams. I'll see you on the other side.' She said aloud as she looked up to the beautiful ceiling in the beautiful bathroom in Star's beautiful house, tears streaming down her face, as she slipped into unconsciousness. She slid down into the warm soapy bath, her blood pumping into the water, the music soothing her into oblivion.
Chapter Fifteen.
Star owned a whole fleet of Jets, so her friends were privileged enough to get to use them when ever they wanted. That was of course providing they had the right documents and they of course had access to all the systems, so they could hit a few keys on the computer at home and Voilà they had a jet for a week. Star's accountants probably hated her and her friends, but that was the upshot of being the figurehead of the business, and the boss.
Blue, Pierre and Cleo had taken advantage of this and scheduled a jet for a week, Cleo could fly an
d she sorted all the air politics, papers, etc. They flew to Kathmandu, the largest city in Nepal. Cleo had a few contacts there that she could persuade to help them out because they had to find out where Daen had taken Star. The Himalayas are a vast region especially to hide a secret lair in the mountains. Blue hadn't a clue where they would be, Cleo had her idea's but they were far away from a palace cut out of the mountain.
Cleo's contacts had recommended that they hike up to the Buddhist temple at Monjes in the Tibetan region. Her contacts suggested hiring a helicopter to get so far, Cleo knew how far it was and how high and didn't want to be too tired from hiking when she may have to fight to her death for her friends.
*
Star woke up, she looked around. She was no longer in a basket covered in furs, she was in a luxurious bed in a beautifully decorated bedroom in what she could only imagine to belong to a beautiful palace. The walls looked like they were made from crystal, almost translucent like ice, there were drapes of ivory silk from the ceiling to the floor all around the room, it was magnificent. She lay back down in the luxurious sheets.
'This is more like it.' She thought to herself smiling. She looked like the cat who had the cream.
Daen walked through the door into the room in where she had been asleep.
'I trust you slept well my princess.' He said, flashing her an evil smile.
She sat up and stared at him, remembering all the vile things he had done to her in the past twenty four hours.
'You bastard!' She screeched as she threw a pillow at him forcefully, 'What is the meaning of all this?' She leapt out of bed and ran towards Daen ready to strike his face. He caught her hand and threw her back on the bed.
'Are we just going to have a repeat performance of the plane ride here? Do you really want to be tied up and put back in a basket?' He loomed over her, his gigantic stature dwarfing her lithe skinny frame.
Vampyre Blue (Alternative Women) Page 12