by Marie Hall
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Can you do this?”
I glanced at the man, who was clearly slipping into unconsciousness from Billy’s death grip on his neck. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, heart fluttering panicked wings in my chest. But I wouldn’t back down, not now. I had to get inside. Oh god, did I really want to? What the hell was down there? Did I want to know? Could I handle the truth?
Billy gripped my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Can you do this?” he asked again.
With a deep breath, I nodded. “Yes.” Then smiled, attempting to put on a happy face. Grin and bear it, as they say.
He moved his hand and let me lean over the man. It took every ounce of courage I possessed to touch him. Not because I feared him, but because I wasn’t sure I trusted myself not to grab his balls, rip them off and shove it down his throat. Maybe later, if I had time I’d gift him to Bubba. One less bastard like this in the world would help me rest easier at night.
I shoved his eyelids open. His pupils were wide, but his breathing was easy. Billy had cut off his oxygen, but not done much damage otherwise. He’d have one helluva headache when he woke up, couple of stitches, but the bastard would live. At least for one more night.
His face was covered in his own gore, and it made it difficult to keep his eyes open.
“Dammit,” I growled, “he’s slippery.” I used the edge of my dress, to try and clean as much of the blood off, but it kept oozing. Head wounds don’t even have to be bad to bleed profusely.
“Here.” Billy scooted back, resting on the man’s thighs and patted the chest like one might pat an extra space on a couch. “Maybe you can get better leverage this way.”
I sat, and even for me, using the dude like a chair was a bit bizarre. But then I thought about what he did to little girls and I wished I was my buxom size sixteen again so I could squish him.
Billy leaned around me, grabbed the eyelids and held them open. I peered into the doorway of the soul and sieved the information I needed.
All at once I felt myself begin to shrink. My legs, my arms, my torso, even my face. I had to push chubby hands against his chest to hold myself upright. I turned, and instead of staring straight into Billy’s eyes, I had to look way up.
“Okay, I’m ready,” I said in high pitched falsetto, the lisp coming naturally.
Billy’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t look at me. He got up, offered me his hand and I clasped it tight, feeling suddenly very insecure and unsure. I hated this. I’ve never turned into a child before and prayed I’d never have to do it again.
Before we left I gave the guy a swift kick in the groin with my tiny slippered foot, then dug in my heel for good measure. “Stupid sack of—”.
“Don’t swear,” Billy said, turning me and walking toward the alley.
I narrowed my eyes. “I may wook five, but don’t forget who you’re tawkin’ too.” Unfortunately the high-pitched voice, coupled with the fact that I said “w’s” instead of “l’s” made the threat more than absurd.
His lips twitched and I had the irrational urge to kick him in the shin. “You’re five,” he said patiently, grabbing my hand in his. I sighed and snuggled into his thigh. He looked down, a frown worrying his brow. “If you want this to look believable, try to act it.”
We were nearly to the door. “Fine, but one last thing...” I pinched his butt and he nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Don’t do that,” he snapped.
“What?” I grinned. “You don’t wike it?”
He glared at me.
I giggled. “Oh, I think I’m gonna enjoy dis.”
Billy knocked on the door. Pounded it more like, with the tap, tap, taptaptap, I’d heard tall man use yesterday.
I straightened my face, and gripped Billy’s hand tighter. It wasn’t really much of a stretch to pretend nervousness, I was. My mouth had grown dry and my stomach roiled.
A bald head poked out; the shiver of parasite pulsed across my skin. I stared up at the scar-covered face peeking out from behind a red cowl and felt immediate sympathy for all the countless children who’d been in my position.
“Molech. Sacrifice,” Billy said.
What? My heart thudded violently. I shot a glance at him. Molech, as in the ancient god of sacrifice? As a girl in Edom I remembered the streets filled with obelisk statues of the half-man, half-bull idol. The granite stones usually a dark shade of brown from the countless children sacrificed upon it.
I squeezed Billy’s hand until I nearly crushed the bone. This was supposed to be about a rogue neph, maybe even a widespread molestation ring, not about some antiquated god whose popularity had died out eons ago.
“Cool it,” he whispered, smacking my hand.
“Sorry.” I released some of the pressure.
The vamp stepped aside and ushered us in.
When I stepped inside, a rush of cool air lifted the skirt of my dress. I glanced at the large gaping hole that led into utter darkness. This was an underground cave, lit red by the soft glow of lamplight spaced at odd intervals.
A crowd of maybe fifteen to twenty men and women, each holding onto a child’s hand, huddled inside the stone antechamber. None of the children screamed, but many of them cried softly for their parents and friends.
My heart squeezed.
For a kid, this must have looked like the gateway to hell. I clenched my jaw, breathing growing harder and faster. Billy knelt and grabbed my face between his large hands.
“Relax,” he whispered.
“Why didn’t you warn me about this?” I snapped.
Some of the people turned, casting hard frowns at both Billy and myself. “Trying to calm her down,” he said
A redhead with frizzy bangs laughed. She patted the dark hair of her charge, a little guy who snuggled his face into her neck seeking comfort. “Sometimes I find a firm hand can go a long way with the more...” she eyed me up and down, “rebellious ones.”
I shook with the violent urge to scalp that mop top off her head. I smiled, licked my lips and tagged her. Redhead was dead.
Billy snapped his fingers.
“What!” I hissed.
“Remember why we’re here.” He lifted a brow.
“Oh, I remember all right. Don’t you worry about me.” I crossed my arms.
The vamp who’d opened the door walked to the front of the group and held up his hands. An expectant hush spilled over the crowd. All eyes turned toward him, even the children’s. It was a minor thrall. Bubba was better, or maybe I was in the mood to be contrary.
“Follow me,” he said, then turned and entered the yawning hole.
The people moved out, we followed, last to get in line. At the top of the staircase Billy scooped me up and held me in his arms. I frowned.
“Not that I mind,” I whispered, “but what do you think you are doin’?”
He rested his cheek against mine, his warm breath on my ear when he said in a voice audible to few, “As soon as we can, we’re going to separate from the herd.”
I squirmed as he started down the flight of stairs. The squeal of rubber soled shoes on the wet metal the only sound around us.
It was quiet, and the deeper we walked the more eerie the hush. The procession felt somber, like marching toward a funeral.
I shifted in his arms again. It actually wasn’t comfortable being held like this. No wonder kids were always trying to squirm out of their parents arms.
“Stop moving.”
“Your arm is making my thong slide up,” I hissed.
His nose curled and I had to swallow my giggle. His look had been priceless, as if seeing a five-year-old face admit to wearing a thong was creepy.
“What’s wrong, baby,” I nibbled on his ear, “don’t you find me sexy?” Oh man, that was about as inappropriate as it came, but honestly sometimes I couldn’t help myself.
He growled and swung at my head with his free hand. I dipped, missing the blow by inches. I grabbed his hand, bro
ught it to my mouth and bit down.
If looks could kill, I’d be six feet under.
I shrugged and fluffed out my hair. “Don’t swing at me again.”
Finally the stairs ended and we entered an even darker room. I could see fine, but most of the others were glancing around in wide-eyed dread.
I looked around too, studying the layout, committing it to memory. Now that I knew my way inside, I’d be back.
The vamp swung open another steel door and this time when he did the silence was shattered. The screams of children echoed like thunder down the hall.
And one other thing snared my attention, making my pulse hammer and my knees weak, the unmistakable odor of sulfur. A neph was here. I closed my eyes, hugging Billy’s neck.
I’d hoped Grace was wrong, but I could no longer deny the truth.
Chapter 21
Some of the kids around me started crying, others screamed and some simply stood in numb terror.
The handlers dragged some, picked others up and any pretense of nicety was suddenly stripped away. The humans slapped, kicked, and boxed the ears of the kids unwilling to move forward.
I trembled with rage and dug my claws into Billy’s shoulders, this close to losing my composure. He rubbed my back in a soothing gesture. I took a deep breath and clipped a hard nod, I was okay.
We all walked inside. The vamp closed the door behind us, locking us inside with the screams.
Blue fog rolled around the dank, earthen floor and the room stretched for what seemed like miles on either side. Spaced, side by side, were large iron cages with beds of straw and one tiny body apiece inside.
Some of the kids were screaming, several different dialects warring against each other, rattling the metal bars, voices grown hoarse from hours of abuse. Others stared with the blank look of utter hopelessness and some were curled on their sides, sucking their thumbs, mud streaked faces gazing out at nothing.
One thing disturbed me about the children—their ethnicity. Asian, African, Hispanic, European, and many if not most, looked native to their homeland. And if that was the case, then these kids came from all parts of the globe. The likelihood of the parents ever finding their kids again was slim to none.
I choked on my fury and looked away before I did something I’d regret.
The vamp shoved his glamour at us. The weak pulse of it slapped my face, I swatted it away. He was attempting to thrall the kids into quieting down. My lip curled exposing my fangs.
Billy’s arms tightened. “Look above us. Do you see the beams?”
I looked. “Yes.”
“When I say go,” he patted my hair as if he were trying to soothe me, “you go. Got it?”
I nodded. He set me down.
The group started walking again and aside from the lone vamp guiding us, I didn’t see any others. This wasn’t it. Couldn’t be. This had to be a holding cell of some sort; the real action was still someplace else.
Little by little, Billy separated away from the pack. Walking slower and slower until we were several paces behind the rest of the group.
“Do you see anyone behind us?” he whispered.
I scanned the darkness for any moving shapes, but I really didn’t need to, there was nothing there aside from the children.
“No.”
“Then go.”
I ported. The moment my feet touched the beams I heaved a heavy sigh of relief and turned to find Billy gazing out at the sea of cages.
“We need to follow them,” he said, the second he looked at me I shifted back to normal and shuddered. I wanted to wipe the memory of being a little girl from my mind.
Teasing Billy had been fun, but not enough to tempt me to ever do that again.
He started running and I followed, jumping from beam to beam with balanced ease. Just as I caught sight of the group I was overcome by a powerful shiver of paras. The second I turned the corner there were several more vamps. They were grabbing the screaming children from out of the adult’s arms and dragging them away down separate paths. In all the confusion no one seemed to notice we’d gone missing.
I bit the inside of my cheek and crouched low.
“Look,” Billy pointed straight ahead, “do you see that yellow light?”
The vamp we’d been following turned and headed in the direction he’d pointed and I could make out the barest flicker of golden yellow.
“Looks like flame,” I said.
“I think so, that’s where we need to go.”
We waited until the space cleared, then Billy hopped and I ported down. The heavy stench of sulfur clung to my clothes and hair. The further down the cave, the stronger the smell and my certainty grew that I was indeed tracking a rogue neph. Only a demon smelled of hell.
I hugged the damp stone. Billy peeked down the hall, then motioned for me to follow. Even here, walking inside the narrow confines of the hall, there were children.
The cages hung from the ceiling by metal hooks. They stared at us, eyes forlorn, hopeless. I tamped down my anger. It was one thing to have lab rats, but kids. Little beings who’d never had a chance to live.
I couldn’t take it. I turned my eyes, didn’t look. Tried not to hear the whimpered pleas or see the outstretched hands. If I looked at one more bruised face, saw one more bloody lip I’d never be able to press on, I’d have to turn back and free them all now and I couldn’t do it. I ran the risk of not only exposing myself, but making it impossible to eventually free them. I didn’t know how many vamps I was dealing with, I would come back for them. But only when I knew the odds and was better prepared.
I jogged, keeping well within the safety of shadow. Finally the hall opened up into another large labyrinth of tunnels and forked roads.
Had we stumbled on a lair?
This place couldn’t have cropped up overnight. It was large, the tunnels smooth from years of being brushed up against.
The light grew brighter toward our left. We followed and soon heard the scuffle of booted feet. I crouched, out in the open like this there was little chance of us going unnoticed.
Three hooded figures headed toward a row of cages in our direction. I shot Billy a glance and he nodded, held up his hand and three fingers and then ticked them down one by one. When he reached zero we both jumped to our feet.
I kicked one of the figures and slammed my fist into the face of another. The one I punched growled and ran at me with his arms extended. I rolled out of his grasp and around his back. Then I grabbed his jaw and yanked his head forcefully to the side. His neck snapped instantly.
He fell to the ground with a muffled thud. I turned. The last two lay at Billy’s feet, bodies unmoving.
“Oh my, two in the time it took me to do one. Be still my beating heart. Should I be scared or impressed?”
He smirked. “Both.” He then started to pull the robe off one of the vamps. “Put on a robe,” he commanded.
I did and then dragged the body of the nude vamp behind an empty cage; thankfully there weren’t many kids in this part of the cave.
Billy walked toward me, the bodies of the last two vamps draped on either shoulder. He dumped them off. “Let’s go.”
We continued walking through the labyrinth that was beginning to grow thick with bodies and the rising chant of master, master resonating off the walls.
It gave me chills to hear it. I curled in on myself the best I could, keeping my head low so no one could see me inside the robe and followed the noise.
The hall opened up into a massive, domed chamber. Hundreds of torches, both in the rock face and wedged in the dirt, lit the room in a glow so bright it almost felt like you were stepping inside the fire.
Against the far wall stood a statue of Molech—ancient god of human sacrifice. Above his head and carved deep into the rock was an inverted star with a goats head and demon’s horns set inside. A very well known symbol of demonology and occultism.
I didn’t like this. This was worse than bad and the last thing I’d wanted to
find.
The arms of the statue were carved of beaten metal and it glowed a deep orange. I swallowed the bile working its way up my throat. Placing a child on that amount of heat was tantamount to throwing someone in molten lava.
The ground below was stained a dirty brown and I knew they’d already sacrificed many. I clenched my fists. How in the name of all that was holy had this been happening right under my nose? How could I have been so blind?
Vamps and humans, all dressed in robes, spilled into the room, circling the massive golden throne at its center and joined an already large mass of genuflected worshippers. The room trembled with the heartfelt cries of master. Growing louder each time they said it.
Something didn’t make sense to me though. Everything I remembered about the worship of Molech said sacrifices only happened on the night of a full moon. Tomorrow. Yet, it looked like something would happen tonight.
I jerked when a hand grabbed my arm.
“It’s me.” Billy spoke into my ear.
From somewhere behind me I heard the bleat of sheep.
“We need to move back, away from this crowd, we can’t be caught up in this.”
I nodded and back peddled slowly so as not to draw attention to myself. I pushed a little glamour into my body, not enough to alert any of the vamps to me, but enough to go unnoticed. The worshippers hardly spared me a passing glance in their haste to get to their idol.
“Oh great god, Molech,” a deep voice rose above the noise of the chanting, “honor us with your presence. We bring you sacrifice...”
“Yes,” the chanters said in unison.
My skin prickled. Did these people have any clue who they were calling? Molech had been one of many names for Wrath. AKA Seven Deadly Sins. One of the seven high caste demon lords chained in hell.
I continued to back up, moving deeper into shadow and far enough away from the group that they couldn’t see me, but I could still see them.
“...in exchange for power and honor,” said that same deep voice.
“Yes.” The hundreds of voices reverberated through the room and a cold chill swept down my spine.
A robed figure walk toward the front of the group lifted up his hands to the statue and bowed many times.