“Maybe more luck tomorrow?” He asked.
The video blinked off as the sound of someone closing the door leading up to the arena broke the silence of the disappointment the video had left behind.
Eavan and I both looked at each other realizing we had nowhere to go.
Chapter 30
“We have every right to be here, don’t act guilty.” I said to Eavan.
She nodded and put her phone away.
“Ah, the arena, it has been years since I have been up here.” A woman’s voice laced with a strong Germanic accent drifted to me.
“It seems like we aren’t the only ones up here.” I heard the sorcerer say. The woman’s words were full of a ripe sensuality that gave her speech a magnetic quality, whereas the others dripped with badly concealed scorn.
Eavan and I turned to face the newcomers. I was unsure of how to proceed but Eavan stood up and motioned for me to follow her lead.
“The view is beautiful from up here.” She said as the two came closer.
I stood next to Eavan and my mouth threatened to fall to the floor seeing who the hooded sorcerer was with.
The woman stood almost seven feet tall. She had a strong athletic frame that glowed with a healthy tan. Her movements were confident and aware of its effects on men. She had golden hair that fell in soft waves, ending just below her shoulders. She wore a pair of white leather pants that accentuated her long legs. White high heels gave her even more height while a light blue sweater cut low in the front kept the slight chill at bay.
She turned her clear blue eyes to me and a smile lit up her face showing flawless white teeth.
“What a treat. It appears we have run into both of the candidates for the Rite. I am Veronica, this is Hilliard.” She said, nodding slightly.
Hilliard, the sorcerer, still wore his hooded robe. His face was hard to discern as it was covered in shadow. I saw him nod by the barest of movements in greeting.
“Very nice to meet ye, my name is Eavan and this is Eric. We were actually just leaving so it appears ye will get the space all to yerselves.” Eavan said with more calm and grace than I expected.
“Ah, well. I don’t want to keep you. Of course. I look forward to seeing you both again at Vicktor’s party.” Veronica said.
“Aye.” Eavan said.
When I didn’t say anything she elbowed me in the ribs.
“Oh, yes, we’ll see you at the party.” I offered awkwardly.
We gathered our things and left them alone in the arena, walking back towards Abaddon and my room.
“She was pretty.” Eavan said looking at me sideways.
I wasn’t sure, but I thought I saw the smallest hint of jealousy.
“Huh? Oh, well if you like the whole tall, supermodel blonde hair bombshell sort of thing.” I said.
“Really? Yer not into supermodel bombshells?” She asked.
“Nah, they are too fragile. I like my women with more fire. I’d rather have someone I don’t have to worry about breaking but who still makes me nervous every time she looks at me.” We had come to my door and she stopped before entering, turning to me.
“Oh really?” She said tilting her head and placing a hand on her hip.
“Absolutely.” I hid nothing from her. I honestly liked Eavan. Yes, she was beautiful, but the energy and vitality she possessed was more appealing to me than a nice pair of boobs.
She studied me for a minute before smiling, then she reached up and kissed me again. The smell of her skin after being outside in the fresh air was enough to stop any thoughts I may have had.
She broke the embrace then entered my room. Abaddon sat at the table with Oengus. Both of them seemed to be waiting for us.
“There you are, now we can see what the cameras recorded.” Abaddon said.
“I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. Eavan and I already watched it and they didn’t record anything.” I said.
Abaddon still wanted to see for himself so we loaded the footage onto his laptop and he and Oengus watched the rabbit as he searched for something to eat.
I thought he would be mad, but he kept his calm posture.
“If Vicktor is smuggling something or someone either they haven’t brought them in yet or they have found another way.” Abaddon surmised.
“My father was Pack leader for years; did you guys discover any hidden passages or secret rooms?” I asked.
“Not that I know of. There is only one area that would even remotely be considered a place that might have secret passages.” He said looking up at me.
His eyes clouded over as he realized he had just given himself the answer. At the same time, I remembered what I discovered while I was setting up the cameras that could hold the answer.
“The foundation.” I said.
Abaddon nodded in agreement.
“What are ye two talking about?” Oengus asked.
“The Den is sitting on a river. It has extensive below ground foundation engineering to keep it anchored in case of a flood.” Abaddon offered.
“Aye, I spent some time as a young member working to help fortify some of it after a heavy rain season.” Oengus told us.
“Thomas and I would routinely inspect the lower levels to make sure they were in good repair, we never found any hidden tunnels or anything.” Abaddon said.
“That was what, eighteen years ago? It’s possible nothing existed then. It may now.” I speculated.
“Eric and I can check it out.” Eavan offered.
“No, you two need to stay here. I don’t want you to be seen down there. There is no plausible reason for it. Oengus and I will check it out.” Abaddon said.
“We can help.” Eavan argued.
“Ye need to keep yer noses clean. Leave it up to us Eve.” Oengus told her.
“Alright, but I don’t like it.” She said.
“Good, now we have a lot to do before the rest of our clansmen arrive.” Oengus stood up, nodding as he left our room.
Eavan stood up and went with him. She stopped just before leaving and turned to me.
“Don’t do anything foolish.” She said. “At least not without me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” I answered.
The door shut as they left.
I spent the rest of that day in my room, Abaddon and Oengus went to search the lower levels and he came back later without finding anything. The next few days passed without incident. I checked the footage every evening and found nothing on them except the normal traffic you’d expect.
My thoughts kept wandering back to my father. I couldn’t stop myself from worrying that he might be in danger or hurt. I was sure the vampire Lord knew something and I wanted to leave in search of her. I wanted to find her and force her to tell me what she knew but understood that would be foolish. Vicktor knew something as well and it was with him that I had to start looking.
The Den slowly became more crowded as people started arriving in anticipation of the full moon and the Rite.
I saw Eavan briefly as she and her father went about the task of getting all her contentious family situated and organizing the festival. Eavan came to my room four days before the Rite to personally invite Abaddon and myself to her clan’s celebration. Oengus and Abaddon had kept searching for any evidence of a hidden passage but kept coming up with nothing.
She came into my room after knocking, handing me an envelope with the invitation in it.
“As emissary of the O’Sullivan clan I formally invite ye to our festival of the Rite.” She said with the air of practiced ceremony.
“I would be honored.” I said, taking the envelope.
I noticed she looked distracted; she had a cloud of distress that followed her, subduing her normal liveliness.
“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me nothing, because I know better.” I asked her as she started to leave.
I reached out and took her hand as she turned back to me. She squeezed back and we stood there like that.
“I’m beginn
ing to think we may never find out what Vicktor is doing. Abaddon and my dad have been looking every night and haven’t found anything.” She said.
“You don’t strike me as the type to sit around and wait for answers. Got any ideas?” I asked.
“Yeah, we go down there ourselves. See what we can find.” She looked at me with undisguised hope.
I started to tell her that it was a bad idea, that if Abaddon and Oengus couldn’t find anything we sure as hell wouldn’t, then it hit me. They were looking for any sign of people being smuggled instead of the real threat. I remembered the story Abaddon told me about how my dad found the trail of the vampire’s victim even though there was no visible trail. Maybe the reason they couldn’t find anything was because they were looking for the wrong thing. I might actually be able to succeed where they had failed.
“Okay, I’m in.”
Eavan smiled fiercely and crushed me in a hug, her soft breasts pressed into my chest and I hugged her back, enjoying how her body fit mine like two puzzle pieces snapping into place.
She pulled back and I saw the same heat rise in her.
“I have to finish handing out invitations.” She told me as if to explain why she couldn’t see if the heat could be kindled into a raging inferno.
“Of course, meet me at the bridge under the Den at midnight.” I said as she regretfully drew away.
“I’ll be there.”
The door clicked shut and I went about gathering a few things for tonight’s adventure.
Chapter 31
I met her under the Den at midnight. Abaddon was fully engaged in his pursuits to notice my absence.
She wore a black outfit that consisted mostly of form fitting spandex, explaining that it would rip easily if she had to shift forms. Her hair was held back by a ponytail and she presented quite as striking figure as she stood there watching me admire how well her outfit snugged her curves.
I carried my backpack filled with a few items I thought might come in handy. I had a disposable camera, some garlic paste and a couple of flares. Like Eavan, I was worried about having to shift forms and knew anything I carried in my clothes would be hard to keep track of once they were torn to shreds.
Her countenance turned serious and I shelved all my wandering thoughts. We found the door that led into the lower levels and were surprised to find it unlocked.
We went in and found a sparse hallway bereft of any of the conveniences of the upper Den. It was a maintenance area and all around us were concrete walls and metal walkways. The structural support for the Den’s foundation burrowed into the earth and we looked for the passageways that led us deeper. After a few staircases and two dead ends I stopped. Eavan began to ask me what I was doing when I raised my hand, keeping her silent. I undressed and placed my clothes in a neat pile, then I willed my body to shift and the pain of changing forms rushed through me as my senses increased. Eavan took the backpack and I steadied my breathing, drawing on the Beast to help me find the state of focused/unfocused that would allow me to sense any vampiric trails.
There was a moment of vertigo as I slipped into the Zen-like state. I turned in a circle and found a small almost invisible residue in the psychic ether that felt diseased and corrupted. I went over to a non-descript wall and searched around it, using all my senses I tried to find something that would show me what I was looking for.
I almost gave up as the wall presented nothing other than a plain smooth surface. I ran my hand over the spot that I felt had the strongest concentration of death and pushed gently. To my utter surprised the entire wall slid back about six inches. No wonder they couldn’t find a door, the wall was the door.
I brought myself out of my trance and felt a slight disorientation as my consciousness settled back into place. Eavan gave me an approving nod and we slipped into the dark crevice that almost seemed to invite us in with concealed disdain. As I went in I took the garlic paste and smeared a little on the door, making sure it could be found even if it wasn’t me who was looking for it.
Eavan and I made our way down a narrow tunnel that barely allowed us to walk side by side. It was carved from the soft earth and had obviously been made recently.
We walked for what seemed like thirty minutes when we started to hear sounds ahead of us. The strong scent of other Ascended assaulted us, making me think there was a small army under here waiting.
The tunnel turned and one side of it opened up to a large chamber that was about thirty feet tall and a hundred feet in diameter. It housed control panels on one wall and a door cut through the concrete that had the words DAM AUTHORITY printed on it.
Eavan and I crouched down and leaned over looking into the area.
Below us were large cages, filled with people. Almost fifty men, women and teenagers were cramped into the small enclosures. Some stood holding the bars while others sat with their heads down in muted defeat.
“Let me out of here! The full moon’s coming! I won’t be responsible for what happens!” One disheveled man screamed as he tried to pry the bars loose.
“Shut up! Or I’ll beat you again!” Jameson’s cousin answered as he sat at a chair in front of a table, playing solitaire.
“I’m not kidding, I’m dangerous!” He pleaded.
Jameson’s cousin got up and went over to the bars, he leaned in to where he was inches from him and said, “Or what? You’ll turn into a beast?” His eyes flashed deep yellow and his face twisted as it started to shift forms.
The man in the cage fell back and tripped over someone. The other prisoner started cursing and pushed the guy off of him.
“Oh my god! You’re like me?” He shrieked.
“I’m not like you; you’re a dog, a Descended mongrel only worthy of my blade. But, she’ll know what to do with you. Your Beast may keep you alive for months, but eventually you will be drained and then, only then will you have peace. If the rest of you who can control the Beast know what’s good for you, you’ll keep this one from bothering me again.” He told the prisoners.
Some of them shuddered; perhaps they knew what he was talking about.
“You’re mad!” The prisoner said.
“Not mad enough to get in the way of her and her hunger.” Jameson’s cousin said as he walked back to the desk.
“Now just keep quite, only a few days left and she will come to take you from me, so stop being a pain in my ass.” He finished, going back to his cards.
I pulled back with Eavan; she looked at me with dawning horror as she realized what was happening. I nodded to her to retreat and we started back down the tunnel, going until we couldn’t hear any noises. We went even further just to make sure we wouldn’t be overheard.
“My god, they have a bunch of Descended down there!” She said in disbelief.
“Did you hear what he said about the others who have control? He has both Ascended and Descended in there.” I added.
“Why don’t they break out?” Eavan asked.
“I don’t know, maybe Vicktor has found a way to weaken them. It doesn’t really matter; we have to tell Abaddon and Oengus.” I said, hurrying over to my clothes, I shifted back and got dressed.
“Right.” She agreed.
We left through the hidden opening. I pushed the wall back into place and we made our way up and out of the foundational levels. Entering the night brought the realization of what the implications of what we saw were. My heart filled with anguish knowing the vampire lord and Vicktor were working together to provide her and her undead children with the life sustenance the Beast provided.
Eavan and I said nothing as we got back to my room, the weight of the situation hung heavy on our shoulders.
Abaddon was surprised as we both came in with the clear distress of what we had seen plastered across our faces.
“What is it?” He asked, standing up.
“We know what Victor’s up to.” I said.
We told him about what we had done and witnessed. I thought he was going to kick my ass when he learn
ed we had disobeyed him, but I think the revelation and our success stayed his hand.
He didn’t say anything for a little while after I told him. He was deep in thought.
“I guess Max had it right after all.” He said finally. “I knew Vicktor was a bastard, but I never thought he was capable of turning over his own people to feed the vampire’s hunger.”
“But why? There has to be some reason for it.” Eavan asked.
“All the strange disappearances of those that openly oppose Vicktor were done with no evidence of the perpetrator. Now we know why, they were vampire’s doing his dirty work.” I said.
“All Vicktor had to do was pay them in blood, literally.” Abaddon added.
“But a vampire’s hunger is insatiable; doesn’t he know that eventually, after they have run out of all their captives, they will come after him?” Eavan started pacing, her mind spinning with the implications of what was happening.
“Maybe he has less say in it than we think; remember his trace was on the manacles as well, he had been locked up. Maybe the vampire got to him somehow and now he’s doing her bidding, not the other way around.” Abaddon speculated.
“None of that really matters does it? The fact is that Vicktor and his foot soldiers have been colluding with the vampires to round up those with the power of the Beast to use as a gourmet buffet. He’s without a doubt working against the best interest of the Pack. We now have an angle that I can go after him with.” I said.
“What about all the people we saw? We can’t just leave them to be devoured.” Eavan argued.
“Of course we won’t allow that. You said the guard mentioned the vampires were coming the same night as the Rite. That gives us a timeline with which to operate. We will just have to modify our plan to include helping them.” Abaddon said.
“I need you to set up the laptop. I want to record a message to send to Max. Eavan you need to go let Oengus know what is happening.” He added.
“Aye, but he will be pissed to know I too disobeyed his orders.” She quipped.
“Tell him to worry about punishing you after the Rite.” Abaddon offered.
Gauntlet Rite of Ascension Page 25