Children of Sun (Oracle's Legacy)

by R. B. Holbrook

  Moon killed her? Then the accusations were correct. "I thought it was Moon's duty to serve the Oracle." Granger frowned.

  Ellis chuckled. "Do you know Moon at all? Do you know the Oracle? And for that matter, do you know why Moon never corrected the accusation about killing Dietti?" Ellis sighed.

  Granger couldn't believe what he was hearing. But the truth was plain and simple. "Why speak so freely, when others won't?"

  "Because unlike others, I have immunity."

  "Ollie can't save you from Moon."

  "Granger, Ollie is Moon."

  "Yes, but …"

  "She is Moon," Ellis said again, as if he couldn't believe he was saying it himself. He rubbed his hands over his face.

  "How so? She cannot control Demon's Wrath? No one can." Granger tried to understand what part of Moon she affected.

  "No, but she does control Moon."

  "Explain this to me, because I'm having a hard time--"

  "Tell me what you know." Ellis interrupted.

  Granger told him about the information Arjun had provided and what the Temple had told him. He explained the name change and how Moon was never considered a House.

  Ellis thought for a moment. "Since you know so much already, what I have to say will be quick and uncomplicated. If this Order was charged with employing the next Oracle, what makes you think they wouldn't also have the power to eliminate that very Oracle if need be? If the Oracle had done something that jeopardized the Structure, then who other than those that serve and appoint the Oracle have the authority to eradicate the Oracle?

  "When the Structure was put into place, there were safeguards put in place as well. Those who do not meet the requirements for enlightenment do not advance. Those who go against their enlightenment can cause themselves harm. The House is allowed to appoint Heads of House and demote them. So why not have safeguards for the Oracle?"

  "Moon."

  "Yes. But what if eyes were opened to see what that would imply? Moon can appoint, serve, and utterly terminate the Oracle. The strongest, most powerful individual in the Structure."

  "That gives Moon a certain level of power over the entire Structure. Power that far exceeds the Oracle's." Granger took in a long breath, processing it all.

  "The truth? When Dietti died, being the first and only Oracle to be eliminated outside of natural death, the Grand House recognized what that meant. And they sought that power for themselves."

  "So they eliminated the House and had Moon hunted down." It was all making sense. And the arrogance of it made Granger angry. They had accused Moon of a first offense, which was punishable by death.

  "What they forgot was that Moon always did work best in the shadows. A few of them sacrificed themselves to conceal the rest."

  "And they have been working in the shadows since." Granger nodded.

  "Never skipping a step," Ellis did not like that, because that meant his sister was also involved.

  "That means that if Moon has never failed its duties …"

  Ellis smiled as Granger began to understand.

  For thousands of years since the witch-hunt had started, every Oracle had been chosen by Moon without the Structure's knowledge. And they still served the Oracle, still did the Oracle's bidding.

  "How does Ollie play a part in Moon?"

  "If Moon were a House, there would be three Heads of House sitting as council. One who headed appointing, advising, and training. One who was in charge of carrying out the Oracle's orders and protection. And one who headed the shadows."

  "Shadows?" Granger had a bad feeling.

  "Spies, shadow agents, assassins."

  "Demon's Wrath."

  Ellis nodded slowly. Granger channeled the man's thought as he pondered Demon's Wrath. If their mother had ever stepped out of line or done anything against the Structure, Demon's Wrath was the one appointed to kill her. And Ollie had never been allowed to meet the assassin face to face because of that. Ellis was glad they'd never had to meet the assassin.

  "And Ollie, let me guess. She's in charge of protection and carrying out orders, because she is closest to the Oracle."

  "Yes." Ellis confirmed. "She's more an absent leader, leaving George to carry out most of her obligations."

  "Then how can she head them? And she's so young."

  "Yet she's more powerful than most."

  Granger looked at Ellis, shocked. Ollie didn't think he knew.

  "Don't look so bewildered. Just because Ollie didn't tell me, because she worries, does not mean I would not learn."

  "But how?"

  "Bones told me." Ellis answered.

  "You had your brother spy on her?"

  "No, he saw her seal one day by accident and asked me about it. He keeps it to himself, though, so I'm not worried."

  "Because you threatened him." Granger frowned. What wouldn't Ellis do to protect Ollie?

  "I can see how being around you can get tiring," Ellis sneered, not liking the fact that he was being read.

  "Do the current Heads of Houses know the history of Moon and why Moon was hunted?"

  "I don't know. But they have not lifted the orders to terminate Moon, so I believe they may."

  "Why doesn't Moon defend itself?" Granger didn't understand that either. If it was their job to assassinate the Oracle when necessary, then why not defend their actions?

  "Good question, but all Ollie will say is that it's not their job."

  Granger thought about it for a while. There was more. It wasn't that simple to fade into the background and continue to be persecuted when it was so obvious that they had done nothing wrong. There had to be more.

  As he thought about the information he had been given, something caught his attention. One of his spies was feeding him vital information.

  "Crenshaw has a lock on Ollie. She knows where Mary Alexander is, and she is going after her. He'll meet her there."

  "We've got to get there first." Ellis gripped the armrest hard.

  "I will try to stall him as much as I can," Granger said. He began feeding instructions to his Blade puppets.

  They had to make it to Ollie before Sebastian did, or Ollie would become no more than a memory. Sebastian would capture her and lock her away in an unknown location or kill her.

  ()()()

  21

  Grand Rapids, Michigan

  Ollie looked up at the midday sky outside the airport. With her duffle bag draped over her shoulder, she walked up to an empty taxi and got in. After she gave the driver an address, she laid back her head and let the pain seep into every pore of her body. The medication was definitely working, but if she didn't stop popping pills soon, it would be a big problem. She would worry about that after dealing with a Mrs. Mary "Dead Woman" Alexander.

  Mary Alexander would have heavy security and would expect trouble. But Ollie couldn't worry about that. Bones's health was in jeopardy.

  Watching the scenery go by in a blur, barely paying it attention, one of her cell phones rang. She glanced down at her jacket pocket. It was possible that Geo knew she had the phones she had taken from Troy's house and was trying to contact her. But there were other possibilities as well.

  Flipping open the cell phone, she put it to her ear but said nothing.

  "Disobeying your master? You're such a bad dog." The other possibility.

  "Do you have something important to say?" she sighed.

  "You're Moon's number one internal risk. Always have been. That is why I don't like you and have never accepted your position. At this moment, you are putting us at risk, and I don't approve."

  "Soooo sorry," she said, and the driver looked back at her in the rearview mirror in wonder. Sticking her tongue out at him to make him look away, Ollie pushed her sunglasses farther up on her nose so that he couldn't see her eyes. She wanted to save her energy as much as possible.

  "That's the attitude that's going to get you killed by me." He laughed.

  "Come to me, then. I'll be waiting," she purred into the ph
one.

  "Why would I do that, when I could get your brother to do it? Watching him suffer would be so much more fun." Ollie opened her window and threw her phone out of it without hanging up. She let the wind blow on her face as she thought of a million and one ways to kill that asshole, Demon's Wrath, if she ever met him face to face.

  ()()()

  "A virus? What the hell do you mean the data was destroyed by a virus?" Mary shouted into the phone. "I paid you all to keep that data preserved. I want that information, do you hear me? Or I swear I will kill all of you or make you sure wish you were dead."

  "Ms. Alexander, please. We're doing all we can. But the mainframe was booby-trapped," the quivering voice said.

  "Just fix it!" she shouted before throwing her cell phone across the room. It cracked against the wall.

  She stalked around her room, trying to calm down. She could not believe the ineptitude that surrounded her. Damn idiots, all of them. How hard was it to retrieve computer information? It was just a computer.

  Shit.

  She growled in rage as she looked at her own computer on her desk. She ground her teeth to keep from chucking her own laptop out of the window.

  This was Marissa's fault. She just knew it. Everything was fine until that bitch had decided to find Mary an assistant so that she could "pursue other opportunities." Since Mary was too busy to find one herself, she didn't care what the woman did … until her new fucking assistant lost her damn computer data!

  Taking a deep breath to calm down and think, she walked to her desk and looked down at her laptop, which played footage of Fire Eye's family. Though she had still accomplished more than the others had in her House, she still did not have the prize. The Oracle. But that would change as soon as that woman called back with the information. As long as she didn't lose her biggest bargaining chip, then everything would work out. Even though the agent's personal computer files would have come in real handy.

  So close.

  Mary stopped the video and played it again, watching the old woman. She wasn't sure, but she could have sworn that she saw … She had. The old woman had looked directly into the camera and winked. What the hell?

  Frowning at the screen, she saw the young girl crawl into the old woman's lap. Then she remembered that among the captives were two geniuses who could hack any database she so chose, with the right persuasion. The data was not lost.

  With renewed hope, she pressed the intercom button on her phone. "Claudia, get my plane ready." She moved toward the bathroom to start packing. Mary paused by her bathroom. Her new assistant hadn't replied. She walked back to the desk and pressed the intercom button again. "Claudia," she demanded.

  "Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how would you like your tomb?" Mary jumped as the voice spoke right into her ear. She moved across the room as a denim-clad woman sat down at her desk with dark shades covering her eyes. "With RIP or Beloved for me, because Fire Eye's going to kill me soon." The woman grinned, putting her feet up on the desk.

  "Cute," Mary scoffed as she made her way to the door, but before she got there, she ran smack dab into a pair of sunglasses. Mary jumped back. How did she …?

  "I think so." The woman grinned wickedly. "Where are they?" The woman pulled out a gun and pointed it right under Mary's chin. Then she held up a piece of peppermint with the other hand and slid it between her lips.

  "Who?" Mary tried to stay calm as the cold, merciless steel pressed against her jaw. The smell of peppermint began to fill her nostrils.

  "No. Dumb doesn't suit you."

  Mary yelped as she felt hands grabbing at her from behind. Darkness clutched at her, holding her in place.

  "I was outside with your lovely assistant when she was telling you about my mainframe. You didn't sound satisfied with the poor girl, Mary. So I decided to do her a favor and put her out of her misery." Mary gasped as she tried to struggle. She tried to move, but the grip penetrated her skin, pinning her, tearing at her. She tried not to scream.

  "Where are they?" the woman asked so calmly that Mary wanted to cry. Couldn't the woman see she was in pain?

  "Illinois." Mary's answer sounded more like a plea as the darkness engulfed the room.

  "Very good." There was pure pleasure in the woman's voice. "Continue,"

  Mary spilled the exact location as she felt the hands wrap around her throat. The woman stood back and watched. "No!" Mary screamed. The woman became the darkness, smiling. Ink like death filled Mary's mouth and skin. Poisoning her, choking her. Suffocating the life from her.

  Just when Mary felt her airways close up, there was a crash of glass breaking.

  The darkness disappeared, and Fire Eye, who was sitting at her desk, opened fire. Black operatives swarmed into the room. But as soon as they entered, several of them fell dead. What little hope Mary felt was fleeing.

  Some were dying without even a bullet wound. Mary ran for the office door as operatives dropped to their knees, dying in pain; some of them screamed in such agony that Mary shuddered. It was worse than a horror movie. Two operatives turned on each other as she reached the door.

  Then a familiar face met her.

  "Sebastian!" Mary shouted, relieved.

  Everything stopped.

  Fire Eye cursed.

  Mary turned to see the woman jump for the window, but Sebastian tackled her to the ground in one fluid motion, knocking off the woman's glasses. What Mary saw froze her. Eyes of evil stared back at her.

  "Fire Eye of Moon, you are now in the custody of Blade. Say good-bye to your freedom," he said before knocking her unconscious.

  Mary backed up, tripping over a dead body. Falling, she was caught by another Blade operative.

  "Ma'am, are you okay?" the man asked. His dark eyes looked concerned.

  "What the hell is that?" Mary said hysterically. She could not even believe what she saw. She had never seen anything like it. Those eyes …

  "That was Fire Eye. She is Moon. And from the look of things you are lucky to be alive." The man lifted her to her feet. Chills ran all over her body as she looked at her floor littered with death. She did all of this?

  Shaking, Mary made her way out into the hall, where there was nothing but the dead bodies of her assistant, receptionist, guards, and agents. Death and blood was everywhere. The look of suffering was etched in many of their faces.

  What had she done? What had she gotten into?

  She had barely gotten out alive.

  Mary stepped over dead on her way out of the building. Several cars pulled up. River agents and operatives.

  "We came as soon as we could." They clambered out of the car to her aid. "Mr. Brashire sent us to make sure you were okay." Those words brought Mary back down to earth. The other Heads of River wanted to make sure that their one shot at the Oracle position was safe. "He has arranged for you to have safe transport and guards."

  Mary smiled wearily. "Thank you. Take me to the airport." She still had the captives to deal with.

  ()()()

  Ollie awoke, feeling her body ripping from the inside out, especially her head. She picked up some voices but was too groggy to make out what was being said. She slowly opened her eyes, but her face was covered in something. And whatever they had covered her head with no light was getting through. Hmmm.

  She didn't move and kept her breathing even so they wouldn't know she was awake. Picking up on every little detail she could, she felt a swaying motion. They had her in a vehicle and were moving. And from the strong whirling sounds, it sounded like a helicopter. She could only hope.

  She immediately gathered up her energy. Reaching out her mind, she grabbed onto two minds. Pain crept up her back like knives raking up her skin, but she continued anyway.

  She manipulated their minds, and one of them untied her arms. She took off the hood on her head as one of the Blades began to shout in protest. She had the other mind kill him as she focused her eyes and saw that she was in the back of a helicopter.

  She grabbed onto the mi
nd of the pilot and made sure he flew to the new destination. Sebastian came from the cockpit with fury in his blues eyes, looking at her as her two new flunkies aimed rifles at him.

  "I underestimated you," he said, holding up his hands in surrender.

  "Yeah, well, it isn't the first time, now, is it?" She grinned.

  "I knew I had seen you once before." He shook his head, looking down at the dead Blade. "Who are you? You're no normal Moon."

  "Fire Eye is all you need to know."

  "I suspected something was off when we captured you. It was too easy, and you had an opening to kill me."

  "I needed transportation."

  "Damn, then I was far too predictable." He looked furious, but at himself. Blade was a very arrogant House. That was why it had been so easy to learn Sebastian. "Even if you kill me, there are other Blades ready to take up the fight against you and your little clan."

  "Unfortunately." She grabbed a gun that had been strapped to the thigh of one of the gunmen she was controlling.

  He nodded his head in resolution. Just like a good warrior, dying with honor. "It doesn't matter. I've already ordered my enforcers to go after your family. For hiding a known Moon, they will be punished."

  Ollie shivered violently as pain shot to her head. She fell to her knees, trying to stay conscious. "No!"

  With the sound of shuffling, she immediately had her flunkies shoot him. But it was too late. A blast of air came into the cabin. She focused her eyes, knowing he had jumped out. Damn. So much for honor. The bastard had got away, and she had a loose end. She hated loose ends.

  ()()()

  Granger and Ellis had just arrived in Michigan, hoping to have beat Ollie, but somehow she had gotten there faster. Granger couldn't believe it. And now this.

  Horror shot through Ellis as Granger told him the news. Granger had to shut the man out of his mind, as the pain clouded his thinking. Ellis went to the back of the plane and closed the door. His pain came like the cry of a wounded animal. Granger hated being the one to tell him. Ollie was now in Blade custody. Not only was she dying, their family was separated, and Ellis felt powerless.