Matt looked at Jack with raised eyebrows. “I didn’t know anything about it Colonel.”
Nadia finally let go of her father and grasped Jack’s arm. “You must, Jack! Rufus would be so disappointed if you didn’t. You know how he is about these things.” She said.
“I do?” Jack said. “I mean, I do. I guess.”
“So, this is Jack?” Viktor said, stopping and turning to face the couple.
“Yes, daddy. This is Jack. This is what I wished to tell you about earlier.” She was absolutely bubbly.
Viktor did not appear happy, but before he could say anything else, Natashia stepped forward and placed her hand on his shoulder, “Don’t even think about it, my husband.” Viktor turned and glared at her and she shot him a stare that Jack couldn’t even begin to read. It was a cross between seduction and hate, between ‘I dare you’ and ‘I’m gonna screw your brains out’. It scared him and turned him on at the same time. He swore to himself, if Nadia ever looked at him like that, he’d probably wet himself before he said, ‘yes, dear’ to whatever she wanted.
“This way, please.” Viktor said through clenched teeth.
The group continued to follow him through the castle until they got to the meeting room. Jack recognized it as the room where Rufus had held the meeting with the Lamia Beastia council where he was introduced to them and he gave his impromptu speech. He thought he did a pretty decent job. It must have worked though, as they decided to allow Rufus the time to try to set up this meeting and viola! Here they were.
The team walked in and Viktor opened his arms to show them the table. “Please, take a seat wherever you wish. Monsieur Thorn will be here momentarily.”
Natashia left with Viktor but Nadia stayed with Jack. As each squad member sat, servers came in and brought refreshments. Water with ice, wine, soft drinks, pastries, breads, fruits and cheeses were all laid out for the men. “Nice spread.” Lamb stated.
“These are only refreshments. The meal will be shortly.” Nadia informed him.
“Sweet!” Jacobs said, taste testing the goodies.
Jack sat down and got a drink while they waited. Mitchell noted that the table was round, like King Arthur’s where nobody sat at the ‘head’ of the table. Nobody was ‘above’ the other, and everybody had a good view of the other. Matt glanced around the room, checking out the decorations. “Who would have thought an English castle would be sitting on an island in south Texas?” he muttered.
“Not many do.” A French accent answered. Matt turned to see a vampire walking in from a side door. “Please, forgive my tardiness. One must make an entrance though, oui?” Rufus said with a smile.
“Rufus!” Nadia exclaimed and jumped up to hug him.
“Nadia.” He hugged her and kissed each cheek. “It is good you have returned safely. I worried.”
“Jack kept me safe.” She whispered.
“I knew he would.” He whispered back with a wink.
Jack had stood and went forward to make introductions. “Colonel Matt Mitchell, may I introduce Monsieur Rufus Thorn. Rufus, this is my commanding officer, Colonel Matt Mitchell.” The two shook hands, Matt noting the coldness of Rufus’ touch.
“Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with me, Colonel.”
“My pleasure, Mr. Thorn. Jack said we needed to discuss this matter of the…um, what are they called? The bad guy vampires?”
“Lamia Humanus.” Rufus answered. “But I do like the ‘bad guy vampire’ descriptor. Very apt, non?”
“If what the Chief is telling me is accurate, then yes, sir. It is very accurate.” Matt stated. “Let me start off with an apology. If there truly is a large contingency of vampires out there that have sworn to defend human life with their very own, and have sustained themselves with the blood of livestock? And if our people have been mislead into hunting these vampires down erroneously and killing them, then…I owe you and your people one hell of an apology.” Matt was staring Rufus in the eye, trying to read the vampire. He was tough, like stone. He would be a world class poker player.
“Thank you, Colonel. Your words are comforting and, I can tell, very heartfelt.” Rufus replied. “It makes me feel…well, I was going to say ‘warm’ inside but…” Rufus tried to make a joke, but it was lost on the hunters. He sighed. “Sorry. Poor attempt at vampire humor.” He nodded and smiled at them as they suddenly realized what he saying. “Anyhow, thank you very much, Colonel for your kind words. I know that if we work together, we can make a very large difference in how things go in the future.”
Matt stepped back and considered Rufus’ words. “And how would you like to see the future go, Mr. Thorn?”
“Ah. Direct and to the point. I like this.” He smiled. “Very well, Colonel. If I may?” Rufus stood at the table and motioned for the others to take their seats. Jack had seen Rufus give the other Lamia Beastia familia great oration while on his feet and figured he was in for a pretty good speech. He sat back in his chair, a handful of grapes at the ready.
“Colonel, you and your hunters…nay, hunters worldwide are a force to be reckoned with. This is a fact that cannot be argued. The Lamia Beastia is proposing an agreement with you, the human hunters, that would be both mutually beneficial, but also…”
Rufus’ oration was interrupted as one of the servants came in and approached him, wide eyed and fearful. Rufus did not become angry, but merely confused. “I asked for us not to be disturbed Tonya. What could possibly be so important?”
The young lady whispered in his ear something that, even with their augmented hearing, the hunters couldn’t hear. If it were at all possible for a vampire’s face to drain of color, Rufus’ face drained of even more. He stiffened where he stood and dismissed the girl. He paused a moment while he considered his options, then turned to the colonel. “Colonel Mitchell, rather than stand on ceremony, may I be so pretentious as to beg your forgiveness in advance? Something has come up…something of grave importance that may well affect us both.”
Matt was taken aback. What could possibly have come up that could put off this meeting that Jack made sound so important? “If you say so.” Matt responded slowly, unsure of any other answer. “Would you like us to come back another day?”
“No.” Rufus answered a little too quickly. “In fact, if you wouldn’t mind…just wait here a little bit longer. I hope to take care of this matter rather quickly…or, as quickly as I can. If you could just give me as much time as your patience will allow.” He sighed. “I can’t explain at the moment, but it would be in both of our best interests if…” Rufus sighed again. “Somebody else has arrived unannounced at the island. An emissary of a common enemy. It would be in both of our best interests if they don’t know that you’re here.”
Matt understood now what Rufus was getting at. “Okay. I gotcha. You need to find out what they want before we go any further.”
“Partly, yes, but I also need to ensure that they don’t discover that your group is here either. This party arrived by watercraft and they couldn’t have seen your aircraft because the castle is between the docks and where you landed.” He explained. “So, if you could please excuse me, and…please, if you and your men could try to be as quiet as possible? I’ll get back with you as quickly as I can.”
“Of course. Take your time.” Matt said, not entirely understanding, but taking Thorn’s word on it based entirely upon Jack’s trust in the man…er, vampire.
Rufus hurriedly excused himself and stepped out of the room. Matt turned to Jack. “Any idea what the fuck that’s about?” he whispered.
“No clue, sir.” Jack turned to Nadia. “Do you?”
“No. But I live here, so I can find out.” She smiled.
“Oh, no. If this is a common enemy, I don’t want anything to happen that might tip a hand.” Jack said. “Rufus wants us to stay put, and we’re going to stay put.”
“He wants ‘you and your men’ to stay put, Jack.” She corrected him. “I live here. Besides, you can’t stop me.” She
stood up and started for the door before Jack could grab her.
“Let her go, Chief.” Matt whispered. “It’s not worth making a scene over. Besides, she’s right. This is her home. She belongs here, right?”
Jack gritted his teeth. He had to admit…they were both right.
*****
Rufus hurried down the hall toward his study. Viktor was waiting just outside the hall for him with his jacket. When he saw Rufus he went down the hall and met him and helped him into his evening jacket. “He only arrived a short time ago. He’s an emissary from Rome. An emissary of the Sicarii.” Viktor stated.
“The Sicarii?” Rufus asked. “Are you sure? I thought perhaps she had gotten the name wrong…the Sicarii is supposedly just a myth.” He whispered. Rufus felt his own hands trembling as he buttoned his jacket. “How do we know he’s not an imposter?”
“He held the seal upon a parchment. It looked quite accurate to me. He said that you would know.” Viktor’s eyes betrayed him. Rufus knew that Viktor recognized it from his own studies in the Vatican vaults.
“How do I look?” he asked, knowing that it wouldn’t matter.
“Elegant, sir.” Viktor stated, brushing non-existent lint from his shoulders.
“Very well. Let us do this.” He stepped toward his study and Viktor opened the door for him. As he entered, he felt somewhat violated to find the emissary rifling through his belongings on his shelves.
“Monsieur Rufus Thorn.” Viktor announced clearly. Rufus entered the study and stood at attention.
“Ah, Monsieur Thorn, it is nice to finally meet you in person. You are a very difficult person to track down.” The emissary stated, turning from Rufus’ personal items. Rufus eyed the vampire. He reminded him of Napoleon. Short, slightly balding, pudgy in the middle, not much to look at, a self-important air about him based entirely on his perceived station in life.
“What can I do for you, Monsieur…”
“Cable. Stanton Cable. Of the Bedford Cables. Perhaps you’ve heard of us?” he said in his self absorbed tone.
“Non. But that is entirely my own fault, Monsieur Cable. I prefer the isolation of my island and do not get away much. I’m not one for keeping up with who is who, I’m afraid.” Thorn smiled.
“Hmph. Well, you should get out more.” He said obstinately. “How are you supposed to know who you are dealing with, anyway?”
“Yes, that could be problematic.” Thorn tried to be diplomatic, but it was very difficult with someone who was more concerned with their previous standing in life than with their current position in death. “Again, Monsieur, what can I do for you?”
Stanton paused and studied Rufus. “In a bit of a hurry, Mr. Thorn? Have another engagement perhaps?”
“Actually, we do, Monsieur. So, if you please?” Rufus smiled as pleasantly as he could muster.
“What could possibly be so important as to interrupt an emissary of the Sicarii?” he asked, looking down his nose…rather, up his nose toward Rufus.
“The Sicarii?” Rufus repeated. “Well, Monsieur, you see Viktor here?” Rufus indicated the tall dark gentleman who entered with him. “He is my second and he has just returned after a very long extended overseas engagement. We are in the midst of throwing a welcome home feast for him and his family. And since the Sicarii is a myth handed down from vampiri to vampiri for centuries…”
“A myth?!” Cable exclaimed. “A myth? A myth you say?” He smirked as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a papyrus scroll with a wax seal. The seal held the mark of the Sicarii upon it. Crossed daggers with a sand scarab emblazoned across the front. “Does this look like a myth to you?” he asked as he tossed it upon Rufus’ desk.
“Non. It does not.” Rufus said as he reached to pick it up. The emissary pulled a dagger and attempted to stab at Rufus’ hand but before he could Rufus knocked the dagger away and pinned the emissary against the wall of his study. In the blink of an eye, Viktor had pulled a sword, as if from the very air itself and held it to the emissary’s throat. The little vampire hissed and kicked his feet in protest.
“You come into my home and disrespect me in front of my own people, and then you attempt to pull a blade on me?” Rufus asked his canines descended into attack position. “What kind of fool are you?”
“I am an emissary of the Sicarii. I am untouchable!” the little vampire hissed.
Rufus continued to hold him against the wall while he struggled and hissed and fought against him. He laughed in the little vampire’s face while Viktor chuckled, the tip of the sword never wavering. “You truly are a fool.” He hissed into his ear. “I am the only master of this castle. Even an emissary of the Sicarii does not come into another vampire’s castle and make threats in his master’s name.”
“He does when his master has willed him into his service!” he hissed.
“I have not been willed into his service until the seal is broken!” Rufus informed him of his error. At once the emissary realized his mistake and his eyes bulged. He could be tortured and killed and it would be completely legal by vampire law. His own ego had got the better of him.
Rufus set him down and Viktor put his sword away. Rufus was seething with anger. “You had better leave now before I decide to feed you to my dogs.” He said. He turned and picked up the scroll. He used his sharpened nail to cut along the edge of the wax seal in order to open the scroll without breaking the seal itself. A technicality, but it allowed him to read the order without being bound to it. With his back turned to the emissary, the emissary could only see that he held the scroll up and was reading it.
“You are bound now, Monsieur. Be glad that I don’t rip your head off and feed IT to your dogs.” He spat as he quickly headed out of the study and back out the way he came.
“Has he left?” Rufus asked quietly.
Viktor listened intently. “Yes. He is in the front courtyard and making his way to the boats.”
“That was too close.” Rufus sighed. “Entirely too close.”
18
“Are we wasting our time here?” Matt asked, obviously frustrated.
Jack sat next to him, trying not to fidget. The rest of the squad members had snacked and were bored. They had stared at the walls and although they wanted to keep the noise to a minimum, playing rock, paper, scissors could only take them so far before thoughts of throwing grapes and chunks or cheese at other became a temptation.
“I don’t think so. Skipper, Rufus isn’t the type of person to blow you off unless something seriously important came up.” Jack whispered. “He says somebody shows up here unannounced that is a common threat then my guess is that probably somebody from the bad guy vampire group may have gotten wind of our meeting somehow and they came to find out if we were really going to show up.”
“I don’t see how. We just decided this afternoon to even come here.” Matt said disgustedly. “That would infer that we had a rat in our midst and I don’t buy that for a second.”
Jack sat back in his chair with a sigh. “Me neither. But someone in Rufus’ group gave me that satellite phone and there’s a possibility that it had a tracker embedded in it. Maybe somebody here notified them we were coming after we called?”
Matt shook his head. “Not enough time for them to arrange anything, Phoenix. I just don’t see it.” But he had to admit, anything was possible. “But, I suppose we’ll find out when we gets back.” Matt glanced at his watch. “If he comes back.”
Nadia came through the side door and slipped over close to Jack. “I have word.” She said as she took her seat.
“That wasn’t cool.” Jack said, staring her down.
She ignored his glare and continued. “Do either of you know what a Sicarii is?” she asked.
“No, I’ve never heard of it.” Mitchell said, listening intently. The rest of the squad had taken note and was listening as well, but none seemed to recognize the name either.
“Doesn’t ring a bell with me either.” Jack said, still not happy with her
giving him the slip.
“The vampire who came here to see Rufus claims to have been an emissary of the Sicarii.” She said. “I don’t know exactly what that is, but it seems to have Rufus quite shaken and even my father is upset.”
“I’m not following you.” Mitchell said. “What is a Sicarii?”
“I don’t know, but my father is not easily shaken. He is a Lycan of the First Order. A warrior wolf. He does not get shaken.” She stated. “He strikes fear into the hearts of our enemies.”
Mitchell and Thompson exchanged glances. This was a good time to pick up this information…
Rufus entered the main doors with Viktor in tow. “Please, forgive my absence.” He said, his face solemn. He approached Colonel Mitchell and said simply, “A word, Colonel, if you don’t mind. Your men are free to begin the feast if they like, or they may wander the grounds and wait until we are done.”
Mitchell looked at Jack who simply shrugged. “What about Jack?”
“He may attend if you like. Is he your second?”
Mitchell pondered his question a moment. “Not technically, but considering our circumstances, he is more of an emissary to you, wouldn’t you say? He is the one that brought the two of us together. I thought that perhaps you might feel more comfortable having him with us during our meeting.”
“It would seem that the initial subject of our meeting is a rather moot point now, Colonel.” Rufus stated. “A much larger and much more dangerous threat has arisen that will require both our attention and our immediate action if we are to survive it.”
Mitchell rose with a suspicious glare. “What are you saying, Thorn?”
“I’m saying that the visitor I just had…delivered a message that not only involves me and my people, but will have nothing but a negative impact on you and your people.” He stared Mitchell in the eye. “And bring certain death to the rest of the world if we do not act as one.”
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