Morvicti Blood (A Morvicti Novel Book 1)

by Lee Swift

“I’m a realist. Tucked away in their houses in front of their televisions, people enjoy their delusions. Their families are safe. The heartache and pain remains outside their walls. No one can harm them.”

  “But once it’s out about the Morvicti the humans will have to do something.”

  “You would think so, but the Twin Towers came down in New York in 2001. There were some changes, but in a short time life went back to normal. Even though that event will never completely fade from memory, people always move on from tragedy.”

  “This is bigger than a terrorist attack, Austin. This is about the lies that humanity has been living with for centuries. The Morvicti have shaped everything from their secret dungeons. The world will rise up. Humanity will do our work for us, hunting for the secret sanctuaries and cutting off the heads of every immortal they find.”

  “You’re wrong, Jack. Dr. Wilson’s research will be a tiny blip that might make them pause for the briefest of moments to wonder if the reality they thought was real never existed at all. But that moment will pass quickly. The next celebrity going into rehab, or downturn in the world’s stock exchanges, or blockbuster movie to hit the screen will capture their attention. People will never accept that the entire world is controlled by a group of monsters. It’s too terrifying to believe.”

  The Ripper shook his head. “Once the newspapers print Dr. Wilson’s findings, it will never go away. What I did in Whitechapel created a ripple that continues even today. I became one of the first media sensations in 1888. Do you know how many books and movies have been written about me? My plan cannot fail.”

  I’m getting nowhere with this tactic. Time to switch it up. “I still think we have to use every resource we can get our hands on, Jack. There’s only you and me.”

  “Don’t forget your beautiful sister.”

  Anger flowed through him at The Ripper’s comment, but he tried to keep his rage from showing on his face. “That’s just three. Three against billions of humans. And who knows how many Morvicti?”

  “I know, Austin.” Jack smiled. “A little over seven thousand above ground at the moment with another fifty thousand below. That does not include the poor souls in The Sanctuary of the Forgotten, but we have nothing to fear from them. The little drops of blood they are given ensure they will remain below for eternity. I like the odds, don’t you?”

  “Not really. Michael would give us an advantage.” Hoping to reinforce the lie of allegiance he was presenting to Jack, Austin lowered the gun to his side. “He could help us recruit and train more humans to join our cause. I’ve fought side by side with him. He’s a Navy SEAL, like me. And he’s a human. When we tire of him, he’ll just die.”

  “You give me much to consider.” Jack lowered his gun.

  Am I getting through to him? “Just let me talk to Michael. Tell me where he is. Then the three of us can talk about the Utopia you will create.”

  “The man means something to you.” The twisted grin returned, followed by a nod. “I’ll let you have your pet, but I need to make a call first before we leave. Give me a moment.” Jack started walking away, bringing his cell out.

  A phone call? Who in the hell would he need to talk to at this moment?

  In his gut Austin knew something bad was about to happen. He tightened his grip on the weapon. Did Jack have accomplices hiding in the shadows ready to jump out? He quickly glanced to the left, right and even behind him, but saw only darkness. When he turned back around, Jack was out of sight. The only thing visible was a single headstone being eerily illuminated by the killer’s forsaken flashlight.

  Where did the son of a bitch go?

  A motorcycle engine roared to life.

  Damn it. He ran in the direction where the sound came from, but tripped over something that sent him to the ground.

  CHAPTER 70

  1:07 AM

  Angelique took deep breaths, trying to steady herself.

  Octavian sat behind the wheel of the limo, driving down the empty road at an excessive speed.

  God, I hope he’s right about the cemetery. She prayed they would find Michael and Austin there. “How much longer?” she asked.

  “Ten minutes at the most. Don’t worry, Angelique. Belisarius will be arriving any second.”

  He’s my biological father, whom I don’t know. But I have to trust him. She glanced down at the Glock and then at Octavian.

  I still have my gun.

  At first it had been strange to even touch it, but now the Glock felt natural to hold, as if she had been doing it her whole life. But it didn’t put her at ease. Michael was still missing, in the clutches of The Ripper, and Austin had left her without so much as a goodbye.

  “Angelique, I’m so sorry. My intention was to always stay away from you and Austin so you could have a normal life.”

  She tried to wrap her mind around what he was saying. It made sense in a way, given what she’d learned about the Morvicti. She’d been without family for so long it had become her new “normal.” Until this morning, she had believed Austin dead. As her parents had been dead for over twenty years, their deaths didn’t sting as much, though the emptiness from losing them had never gone away.

  “Hang on, Angelique. We are almost there.”

  “Incoming call from Commissioner Poole,” the limo’s computer announced.

  “Yes, Belisarius. Are you there yet?”

  “Just pulling in, but we have a problem.”

  Angelique squeezed the gun. “What problem?”

  “The police are also on their way. A call came in saying The Ripper had sliced up two more victims, both adult males.”

  She gasped. “Oh God, not Michael and Austin.”

  CHAPTER 71

  1:11 AM

  Getting back on his feet, Austin saw fresh blood staining his suit. He glanced back and identified what he’d just tripped over.

  Two corpses lying side by side.

  Is one of them Michael? It was too dark to be sure.

  He raced to retrieve The Ripper’s discarded flashlight. When he returned to the bodies, he bent down for a closer inspection and breathed a sigh of relief.

  Neither of these dead men were his friend.

  They had red hair, which indicated that they were likely related—brothers, cousins, or father and son. Austin saw that their palms were flesh colored, not pale violet.

  They were innocent humans, not Morvicti monsters.

  The Ripper’s handiwork was evident. The two had been sliced to pieces.

  There was no chance of catching the bastard now.

  Off in the distance he could hear police sirens.

  The son of a bitch set me up.

  He had two options to choose from. Stay and face the music or run and hope to find another way to catch The Ripper before he killed Michael.

  The APW had his description, not Jack’s. Now he was at the scene of a double homicide with the victims’ DNA on his clothes and a weapon in his hand. He spotted something metallic next to one of the men. He didn’t dare pick up the bloody knife, which Jack had left. But even if his prints weren’t on the handle, this would be an open and shut case.

  So he ran.

  He heard a car coming fast through the iron gates. No headlights. He curled his finger around the M4’s trigger.

  If the driver turned out to be a friend of Jack’s, he would rain bullets his direction. If a policeman, he would find another exit out of the cemetery even if he had to slink away under the cover of darkness. No way would he fire on an innocent person just doing their job.

  The new arrival parked his car next to his.

  He recognized the red Jaguar from the parking garage and the chase that had followed through the streets of London.

  As the driver’s door opened, Austin knelt down behind a tombstone, aiming the weapon.

  Commissioner Poole stepped out with a pistol in his hand.

  Gita said his real name is Belisarius.

  The sirens were getting closer.

  I
must trust she was telling the truth about the man.

  “Belisarius, I’m over here. Austin McCord. Jack is gone. There are two dead men behind me.”

  “Thank the Ancestors you are okay. Hurry. Get in my car. We need to get you out of here now.”

  “What about my car?”

  “Leave it, Austin. It’s the CIA’s. Let them deal with the fallout. The police are close. They got a tip a few minutes ago.”

  Jack’s phone call. Damn.

  Once inside the car, Belisarius hit the gas. “There’s got to be another way out.”

  “Jack went that direction.” Austin pointed ahead, noticing the police radio, which wasn’t surprising since Belisarius was the Commissioner of the City of London Police.

  “Officers on scene,” the radio blared. “Cemetery gates have been forced open.”

  Another voice said, “Use extreme caution. Caller indicated the suspect is armed with an automatic weapon.”

  Keeping the car’s headlights off, Belisarius drove them past graves and through a small gate, wide open like the main one had been.

  They sped out of the cemetery and onto the street.

  “We need to call your sister and father and let them know you’re safe.” Belisarius hit a button and the screen in the center of the dashboard lit up with two letters. “O.D.”

  Octavian Drake.

  Belisarius took several turns, left and right and left again at high speeds.

  Impressive driving.

  Once they were a couple miles away, he switched on the headlights and slowed his velocity to match the few cars that were out on the roads.

  “Do you have my son?” a voice that seemed oddly familiar asked from the car’s speakers.

  “Yes, Your Majesty. Don’t go into the cemetery. The police have already arrived and we have escaped.”

  “Austin, are you okay?” Angelique sounded anxious.

  “I’m fine, Sis.”

  “Thank God. And Michael?”

  “He wasn’t at the cemetery, Sis. Just The Ripper. Where are you?”

  “We are a block from the cemetery’s entrance, but I’m turning down a side street now.” That voice? It’s so familiar.

  “Austin, did Jack give any clue as to where he might be holding Michael hostage?” Angelique asked anxiously.

  Turning over every word in his mind the killer had spoken in the cemetery, Austin focused his thoughts. His mind fixed on something specific Jack said:

  “Once a sanctuary is breached the Morvicti clean it out and never return. To be the most powerful force in the world they have so many weaknesses we can exploit.”

  “That’s it. Angelique, I know where The Ripper is keeping Michael. Belisarius, head to Murphy Street.”

  “That’s where you woke up this morning,” Angelique said.

  “Yes.” He informed them what Jack had told him earlier.

  Belisarius frowned. “If you’re right, Austin, the bastard was right under our noses the entire time.”

  “How far are you from the old sanctuary?” Octavian asked.

  “I can be there in fifteen minutes.” Belisarius hit a button; lights flashed and sirens screamed.

  “Twenty for me and Angelique. Wait for our arrival. Keep us on the phone.”

  “Your will is my duty, Your Majesty. Always.”

  My biological father is his king. But he’s not mine.

  Several blocks from Murphy Street, Belisarius turned off the lights and sirens. “Don’t want to give Jack any warning we’re coming.”

  Even though the call continued, none of them said another word until Belisarius parked on Murphy Street in front of the building.

  “That’s Jack’s motorcycle.” Keeping hold of the M4, Austin opened the door, jumped out of the car, and raced to the building.

  “Wait, Austin,” Belisarius yelled.

  Not a chance of that, Commissioner.

  He ran into the server room that had been full of wires this morning but now was stripped clean.

  The door to the stairs was open.

  The space below, where he’d found Walt Turner’s body and head, was empty, but he could hear Jack’s voice coming from the inner room. Where I woke up into this nightmare.

  Quietly he went down the stairs, weapon at the ready.

  “Too bad for you, human, that Austin thinks more of you than me,” The Ripper said.

  “Does he?” Michael asked.

  Thank God, he is still alive.

  “After I slice you up, Austin won’t think much of you. Neither will that wife of yours. She will come around or I’ll cut her pretty neck, too.”

  “I’ll kill you, you son of a bitch,” Michael shouted.

  Austin got to the door and saw Michael and Jack.

  With his head dangling, Michael was tied to a chair, his eyes black and his face swollen from being brutalized.

  Jack stood behind him, holding a knife to his throat and a gun to his head. “Hello, Austin. I’ve been expecting you. Put down your gun.”

  “You first.” I don’t have a clear shot. He switched the M4 to semi-automatic, knowing the full-auto setting would likely end up hitting Michael.

  “Funny man. Either you do as I say or your friend loses his head.”

  “Austin?” Michael choked out. “Is that really you?”

  Jack leaned down and spoke in his ear. “I doubt you can see him, but yes, Austin is here and your miserable life is now in his hands.” The Ripper glared at Austin. “Put. Down. Your. Gun. I won’t say it again.”

  “He won’t. He’s a SEAL.” Michael swung his head, slamming it into Jack’s. The thud it made echoed off the walls.

  Stunned and enraged, Jack swung around, his eyes bulging with hate and insanity, shooting in every direction. At the same instant, Austin crouched low, avoiding being shot, and sent a single bullet into the bastard’s body.

  The Ripper fell, his gun sliding across the floor. Blood poured out of his chest. “Damn you to hell.”

  He rushed forward, stepping on Jack’s wrist. The bastard groaned and released the blade.

  Holding a gun, Belisarius rushed in. “Austin, you okay?”

  “I’m okay, thanks to Michael using his head.”

  Michael laughed. “Who’s your friend?”

  “You’re not going to believe this, but you know him as Commissioner Poole. He’s on our side.”

  “No kidding?” Michael sighed. “I suppose a lot has happened since I got snagged. Damn, what a fool I was.”

  “No, Professor. It’s just a very capable enemy we’ve been battling.”

  “We’ve got to hurry.” Belisarius untied Michael. “It’s very likely that someone outside heard the gunfire.”

  “I can barely see with these two black eyes,” Michael said. “What happened to The Ripper?”

  “I shot him, and the son of a bitch won’t be hurting anyone, ever again.” He leaned over and looked at the psychopath.

  Jack’s mouth twisted into a crooked smile. “You have no idea, do you?”

  “Idea about what, asshole?”

  “Your father is a coward, constrained by Morvicti law,” he choked out. “He cannot execute me. It is not allowed. Listen to me.”

  Austin saw the blood on Jack’s lips and heard his ragged breathing. “Better talk fast if you have something you want to say to me. You aren’t long for this world.”

  “They will stake me, Austin. Just like they did before. And some day someone will want to use me like David Bathry did to do their dirty work and slice off some heads. And just like you, I will rise again. And when I do, I will come for you and your bitch sister.”

  He’s one of them. He’s a Morvicti.

  “I’m not a monster like you, Jack. Before I cut off your head, here’s some immortal anesthesia.” He switched the M4 to full-auto and fired three-round bursts until every last bullet was inside the bastard.

  Jack’s eyes were glassy; his body was unmoving.

  You won’t be talking your crap to me a
ny longer, asshole.

  Michael stood with the help of Belisarius. “How’s Angelique? Where is she?”

  “Safe, but worried about you.” He couldn’t stop staring at Jack. I need to remove his head.

  “And on her way here, too,” Belisarius said. “Damn it, Austin. You should have waited with me. You could’ve been shot.”

  “But I wasn’t shot.”

  “Thank God you and Angelique are okay.” Michael let go of Belisarius. “I can stand on my own, Commissioner.”

  Belisarius nodded and stepped back.

  Michael was a little unsteady, but his determination kept him on his feet. “Austin, I was sure I was a goner.”

  “Not today, Professor.” Austin checked The Ripper’s pockets for more weapons, but only found three cell phones. Remarkably, only one had been hit by a bullet. The other two were still operational, one with a call in progress. To the phone on the charger in Doc’s lab, no doubt. He clicked it off.

  Turning on the other working cell, he checked the call log. At the top of the list was ‘999.’ The call to the police emergency services had been placed at the exact time as The Ripper had left the cemetery. Had the bastard taken it off one of the dead men?

  What about the third phone? The number frozen in the cracked screen was Dr. Wilson’s. The Ripper had undoubtedly used this last cell to pose as John Reeves.

  “Check The Ripper’s pulse,” Belisarius said.

  He placed his finger on Jack’s wrist, leaving it there. Feeling a beat after a couple of minutes, he walked over to where the knife had landed. His head has to come off.

  As he grabbed the blade, he heard footsteps coming down the stairs, recognizing one set of them being his sister’s. The other had to be from his biological father, the so-called king.

  Seeing the person who appeared in the doorway with Angelique stunned him. “Lieutenant Davis?”

  Michael shook his head. “What the hell.”

  Their former commander sighed. The voice. It was his voice I remembered, though with a different accent.

  “Michael.” Angelique ran into his arms. They showered each other with comforting kisses of relief.

  “Sweetheart, I was so worried about you.” Michael held her tight.