The density of the forest didn’t give me a view of the top and Gaston wasn’t going to take me up close. However, windows surround my room. I looked outside as soon as I got back and located the bell tower in the distance; I’m looking at it right now. It peeks over the thick canopies; the top of the belfry is gold and the bell sparkles in the afternoon sunlight. A wall approximately 10 feet high surrounds the property. There's a main gate and 3 smaller gates that exit to the rainforest. There are surveillance cameras inside the house. Finally she stopped pouring thoughts into Eva’s head, waiting for Eva’s response.
Arielle! That's great news. We now have a couple of landmarks: the mountain and the bell tower. You know that’s more than enough to find you. I’ll be open to your thoughts and anything else you give me I’ll pass it on to the others,” Eva thought joyfully. Her spirit was now calmer, which inadvertently eased Arielle.
“What is it?” almost everyone in the room asked in unison. They'd turned to face Eva.
She folded her arms and pursed her lips. “Arielle found another important landmark.” She told them all about the bell tower. “She also said there's a wall with security gates around the property and she's pleading for us to find her soon.”
Sebastian clenched his fists and his growl was loud and heartfelt by his friends.
“Sebastian, are you going to be all right, man?” Nathan said understandingly.
“Yes…yes…” he mumbled, and his voice drifted. Frowning he looked at his friends. “Keep in touch at all times.”
That was his last request. Soon they were all gone...
***
Jon and Pierre arrived at Vanua Balavu eager to find Arielle. It didn’t take long to cover the small island and find out that there were absolutely no large estates or tall mountains. The few people inhibiting the area spread between small villages nestled along the coastline. They did observe the amazing scenery and the breathtaking blue waters. It was a tropical paradise but not where they'd find Arielle. They texted Sebastian and advised him of their findings. They agreed to join Ian, Eva and Nathan in Vanua Levu.
As soon as Antonius and Giani arrived at Vatu Vara they became aware that this island was also sparsely populated. It was covered with dense tropical jungles and limestone cliffs. Lagoons enveloped the island in a teal embrace. The beaches and broad-fringing reefs surrounding the island were amazing and draped with pure white sand. But there were no signs of large mountains or large estates. This island was definitely not the place where Arielle was held. Jacques and Girard reported the exact same findings from Vunisea. They all texted Sebastian and he asked the four of them to join him at Viti Levu. This island was the largest in Fiji so he could use more people to cover every inch.
“Have you heard from Eva?” Antonius texted.
“No, not just yet, but Jon and Pierre are going to join Eva in Vanua Levu,” he replied.
When Eva, Ian and Nathan reached Vanau Levu, they were amazed by the rugged mountain range. “This may be the place,” Eva said, glancing between Ian and Nathan. “We have the mountains and the ocean. We now need to look for a bell tower and a large estate somewhere in the middle of one of these rainforests,” she furthered. Using their immortal speed, they decided to start at the south side of the island, move carefully and search the island in great detail. This was the second largest island in Fiji and it looked as if there was a possibility of finding Arielle hidden somewhere here. They would look for the three landmarks she’d provided. They passed gorgeous landscapes brimming with rainforests, coconut plantations and fantastic views of the ocean. As they moved slowly and vigilantly they noticed huge green fields of sugar cane on the west coast. The island seemed to be surrounded by magnificent coral reefs. Expensive plantations and private estates were appeared here and there but none of them nestled in the middle of any of the rainforests and or surrounded by a tall stonewall. However the view gave it a surreal kind of quality. Eva’s mobile rang. She pulled it out of her jean pocket and answered.
“Eva, Pierre and I are going to join you. There’s nothing in Vanua Balavu,” Jon said on the other end. “I texted Sebastian and he agreed we should join you.”
“Sure, come on. The more the merrier,” she chuckled.
“Where are you?” Jon asked. Eva gave him their location and it wasn’t long before he and Pierre joined them. They were getting deeper into the rainforests covered by thick canopies and she thought it would be a good idea to ring Sebastian.
“Sebastian, I think Vanau Levu might be the right place. We’re going to look for the landmarks Arielle provided,” Eva said.
Sebastian sighed, and anticipation flashed powerfully in his brain. He looked across the expanse of land, forest lines and ragged mountain peaks and shook his head thoughtfully. “Eva,” he said faintly. “Viti Levu has high elevations and thick rainforests. There are high possibilities that we may find those landmarks here. Let me know what you find and I’ll do the same,” Sebastian said and ended the call.
***
Eva put the phone back in her pocket and humphed. She stood still for a moment and then followed the men as they resumed their search. They'd gone through every rainforest on the island, crossed every river, searched between the mountain, hills, and coastlines but they never found an estate surrounded by a tall stone wall to match Arielle’s description or an old church with a tall bell tower. Her heart sunk and she felt deep disappointment.
Ian reached for her hand and she slipped it into his, pressing her lips together. “Sorry baby,” he murmured. “We’ll find her. She must be in Viti Levu if she’s not here. Let’s call Sebastian,” he suggested and gave her a peck on the cheek.
“You’re right, we’ve exhausted every inch of this island, every possible corner.” She took her mobile out again and speed dialed. “Sebastian, she’s definitely not here,” Eva said disappointedly.
“Well, I’ve a strong feeling that she’s here. Don’t ask me how, I just do,” he said anxiously. “Let’s meet and we can continue the search together. The sun's going down but there’s still a lot of daylight left. We’re just now reaching the middle part of the island. We can see in the far distance the ragged peaks of a tall mountain and we’re all sure that this is the right place.”
“How do we find you?” Eva asked.
“Let’s meet at the city of Nadi. It’s a small quiet town. We’ll wait for you at the entrance of the Nadi Garden of the Sleeping Giant. It’s a main tourist spot and it’ll be easy to find.”
“All right, we’ll be there shortly,” Eva said.
***
It was a bit late in the afternoon but still a lot of tourists were walking through the gardens admiring the collection of tropical orchids, and all the other strange plants from Fiji. Loren walked up to the sign in the front and read out loud. “Two thousand varieties of orchids.” She stood staring at the words as she read over them a couple of time and humphed in wonder. The others looked around; they already knew what they had to do and there was very little talk. It'd been less than an hour and they were pleased to see their friends approaching, eager to get on with the search. A few hugs and handshakes and they were on their way.
“Have you connected with Arielle?” Sebastian asked Eva.
“I have, and I’ve let her know we're close,” she replied patting his hand.
Sebastian looked at her gratefully and gave her a warm smile. The thought of Arielle made his skin tingle, his arms ache and his heart pound. He felt his world falling apart without her in it and the sensation deepened. “This island seems to be heavily populated,” Sebastian said. “But the east side is less populated and less visited. I’m of the mind that's the perfect place for the house and location Arielle described.” He looked around and saw everyone nodding in agreement. They spread out and made sure to comb the grounds carefully without leaving a piece of earth unexplored or a single stone unturned.
They passed many historical sites, rain forests with waterfalls and remote villages. The steep mount
ains ahead of them had rugged peaks just as Arielle described. The cities and villages weren't very impressive but the beaches and rainforest were a different story. They were now reaching Viti Levu Bay at the northeast coast and all they could see were endless sugar cane fields, rolling grass hills and a mangrove-lined ocean seldom viewed by human eyes. Twilight was upon them but the immortal vision was just as perfect in the dusk as it was in bright sunlight. They'd arrived at the northern part of the island that looked the least developed and passed Navala, a very small village that seemed to be the last one with any type of civilization before they reached the thick line separating the sugar cane fields from the lush rainforest. On the left side mountain scenery appeared beyond the treetops and on the right side the coastline.
Sebastian’s blood started to pound in his veins. “This has to be the island...” he murmured.
Viti Levu was quiet, drenched in the beauty of the twilight. A light breeze was blowing and the moon provided a clear view of the island but under the trees the shadows loomed like ghosts. They were now deep into the forest and it wasn't long before they stumbled at the steps of a Gothic architecture old church. To the right of the structure stood a huge gray stone bell-tower that seemed to rise and disappear above the tree canopies. Eva gasped and grabbed Ian’s hand. They all knew they were at the right place. Immediately adrenalin kicked in and their minds became overwhelmed with inconceivable vigilance.
Blood pounded their ears while they tuned to every sound around them no matter how mild. Eagerness grasped their senses while watchfulness crept in. They talked to each other in that soundless immortal movement of their lips and stalked quietly like ghosts in the night. Sebastian’s face radiated restlessness and his lips curved to a remarkable smile. Every grain in his body, every particle in his mind told him to run toward the house and not stop until Arielle was safe in his arms, but he resigned himself in pursuing Arielle’s rescue according to plan.
When they reached the end of the forest line, a small gasp escaped Loren and she immediately capped her mouth with her hand. Eva put her index finger to her lips, making sure they kept quiet. They knew from Arielle that the house was full of immortals able to hear faint sounds clearly for miles away. The house stood before them like a silent giant in the night, dark and soundless, surrounded by a 10-foot stone wall.
Everyone was alert searching the shadows making sure there were no guards larking in the woods to prevent anyone from getting close to the wall. They couldn’t dismiss the idea that Gaston would take extra measures to make sure nothing disturbed his plans. They moved through the woods like shadows in the night. They surrounded the house clearing every obstacle in their way, making sure to suppress any conflict that might alert the people inside the house. They found no one guarding the outside of the wall. They scaled the wall effortlessly and dropped on the other side soundlessly. They shrunk behind the large hedges growing against the wall and stood still trying to get their bearings. Inwardly sighing Sebastian kept his eyes wide open and his mind alert.
Antonius, Gerard, Giani, and Nathan were to clear the back of the house. Sebastian, Jon, Jacques, and Pierre were to clear the front, while Loren, Christian and Isabella moved to the left and Ian with Eva walked to the right.
It wasn’t long before they observed men posted at four different locations close to the hedges in groups of two. Antonius saw a slight movement by a tall hedge a few feet from him to his left. He stopped breathing keeping in the shadows. He glanced to his right and saw Gerard, Giani, and Nathan. He pointed and they nodded letting him know that they'd seen the same movement. They searched the night and identified that in fact only those two men were guarding the back of the house.
The sound of a lighter clicking snapped their attention back to where the guards stood. The faces behind the lighter flame were that of two young males. They lit their cigarettes and the flame went out. They exchange a few words and a couple soft laughs and turned to walk in opposite directions to safeguard the grounds in back of the house.
Antonius waved Gerard and Giani to cover the guy on the right while he and Nathan crept toward the guy on their left. Nathan picked up a large rock and threw it in the center of the backyard.
Both young men spun around on high alert to follow the sound. Before they realized what was going on, they were facing 4 very angry immortals. They had no time to alert anyone in the house or use their weapons. They were the first two victims of the night. The immortals noticed that both guards were human. Since they'd all agreed to keep their mobile phones on vibrate, Antonius texted the others to let them know that the two guards in the back of the house were eliminated, and that the guards were human, which made their job a lot easier.
Ian and Eva had no problem in eliminating their guards and neither did Loren, Christian and Isabella.
Sebastian, Jon, Jacques and Pierre scanned the front of the house, making sure they only had to eliminate two guards. They were aware that their friends had clear the back and sides of the house. However they'd have to be very careful, because Arielle told Eva that all the bedrooms faced the front gardens.
They saw their friends approaching from all sides keeping between the tall hedges and dense greenery surrounding the grounds. The stars were the only faint light and the night was dark and full of shadows. They weren’t sure that they weren’t going to face more guards than what they originally observed. They also had to disconnect the power to disable the cameras inside and disengage any alarms that might go off when they entered the house.
It wasn’t long before they located and eliminated the rest of the guards. They moved quietly and searched the sides of the house to locate the power box. Sebastian gestured to a spot on the wall behind a tall bush and quickly opened it, slipped his fingers inside and pulled all the wires apart disabling all the power to the house. They remained quiet listening for any sounds or alerts but there was nothing.
They crept alongside the house and stopped at the front door. They paused and waited. Sebastian let Giani step in front of them, as he was the expert in breaking through any lock. He took a little tool out of his pocket and picked through the lock carefully; never more obvious that he was an expert. He then step aside and let Sebastian push the door wide open. They held their breaths worried about creaking sounds but there was absolute silence and they breathed in relief. They moved quickly inside and Ian closed the door behind them.
Based on the information they had from Arielle, most of the occupants were using bedrooms on the first and second floors. Only Oliver, Gaston, and Arielle used the third floor. Giani, Gerard, Ian, Loren, and Pierre took the first floor. Jon, Jacques, Christian, and Isabella crept up to the second floor while Nathan, Sebastian, Antonius, and Eva quickstepped up to the third floor. They were all to wait quietly until they saw Eva bring Arielle down the stairs and safely outside.
There was no further discussion but a clear understanding that they were to eliminate every single immortal in the house to avoid future revenge attacks and long battles from anyone who would remain alive.
On the top of the landing Sebastian glanced back and saw his friends prowling quietly toward the servant’s quarters. His breath stilled as he felt Eva’s hand slip into his. Holding tightly, she pulled him toward the left of the corridor. They reached the last door on the right and stopped to listen for any sounds but there was nothing but quiet.
Chapter 18
ARIELLE LAY IN BED, hands behind her head, knowing that Sebastian was already on the island along with everyone else. Thanks to Eva and their wordless communication she knew her horrible ordeal was coming to an end. Soon she would be in Sebastian’s arms. She closed her eyes and saw his beautiful face with those stunning flawless features. The muscular body with arms of steel, the amazing emerald ocean of his eyes, and the sensuous lips that made her lungs lock every time they kissed. Her emotions leaped, her breathing picked up, knowing that shortly they could go on with their lives as if nothing happened. Suddenly Eva’s thoughts poured in her
head and her heart skipped a beat.
Arielle, we’re here. Stay alert but don’t make any sound.
Oh, God, Arielle thought. Anxiety spread across her body not believing that Sebastian was but a few feet away. Her pulse raced and she sat up on the bed. She tip-toed close to the window and carefully lifted the corner of the curtain but couldn’t see a thing. She stood silently waiting. She could hear the blood pounding her ears and rubbed her hands anxiously.
***
Nathan and Antonius stood with their backs to Eva and Sebastian keeping a watchful eye so nobody surprised them. Sebastian set his hand on the doorknob. The thought that Arielle was on the other side of this door made his pulse hammer his temples painfully. He turned the handle slowly, soundlessly and walked into the dark room with Eva on his heels. They saw clearly Arielle standing at the window with her back toward them, trying to pierce through the dark. Sebastian moved with his amazing speed and stood right behind her like a phantom, his pulse pounding wildly. He put one hand over Arielle’s mouth and with the other pulled her tight against his body. Oh! What a feeling! he thought.
Arielle was so startled her legs nearly gave in. She started to struggle by pulling away from the hands she thought belonged to Gaston. She tried to yell but was unable to make a sound. The voice that caressed her ears calmed her senses and sent her heart leaping to new heights as tears started to fall uncontrollably down her face.
“Hey, baby, did you miss me?” he murmured, his lips brushing her ear making her legs limp. “Try not to talk; we need to move quickly and get you outside. Follow Eva, do you understand?”
Arielle Immortal Resolve (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 8) Page 23