Encala : Book 3 of the Heku Series

by T. M. Nielsen

  “But I…”

  They watched as she dusted straw off of herself and went into the storage room.

  “Tell me if anything happens,” Chevalier said, disappearing into his office.

  “What do you think she’s doing?” Mark asked.

  Kyle shrugged.

  “Erm… does she… no way,” Mark said, watching Emily walked toward the palace.

  “Yeah she does,” Kyle said, frowning. “Kind of weird things to have.”

  “Should we move back?” Mark asked, disappearing into the shadows, followed by Kyle.

  Emily walked into the palace. She had a 9mm tucked into the back of her jeans, and a shotgun in her hand. She ignored the fact that the door guards were gone, and stepped into the foyer. Without stopping, she made her way to the prison entrance and walked down the stairs.

  “Damn,” Kyle said, following her.

  The guards looked at her fearfully when they saw her, “You can’t come down here, Ma’am.”

  “Yes I can. Hand me the key to Vaughn’s cell.” She held out her hand.

  “No, Ma’am, strict orders from the Elder,” he said.

  “Don’t make me ash you, just give me the key.”

  The two guards looked at each other nervously, “No, Ma’am.”

  “Fine,” she said, and Kyle watched, shocked, when both of the door guards turned to ash. Emily went through their pockets and pulled out the keys.

  “I… I… can’t believe… she did that,” Mark stammered.

  “We’ll call Damon in a sec. Let’s find out what she’s doing first, before we raise the alarm,” Kyle suggested, and they moved to the dark shadows around Vaughn’s cell.

  “Hello, my bride,” Vaughn said, standing up.

  Emily opened the shotgun and loaded two shells of buckshot into it. She cocked it back.

  “You can’t kill me with a gun,” Vaughn chuckled.

  “I’m not looking to kill you, just hurt you,” she pushed the shotgun through the cell bars. Kyle and Mark covered their ears less than a second before the first shot rang out through the palace. The second shot came a few moments later, and she sat the shotgun down by her feet.

  Vaughn was moaning in his cell, but healing quickly from the small pellet wounds. Emily unlocked the door and pulled out the 9mm. She pointed it right at Vaughn and quickly shot off 16 rounds into his head. Blood covered her and the walls of the cell and Vaughn screamed in agony.

  “We should stop her,” Mark said, and leaned back against the wall.

  “Yup, we should,” Kyle agreed, watching.

  Emily stepped inside, lowering the 9mm down toward Vaughn. She aimed directly at his groin and fired off another 9 rounds.

  “Ouch,” Mark whispered.

  Kyle cringed.

  “Still wanna get it on?” she asked, and emptied the rest of the clip into him. She hit a button and the clip fell to the ground. She pulled another out of her pocket and jammed it into the gun and leveled it back at Vaughn.

  “Ready to take the runes off?” she asked him.

  Vaughn just groaned. He was healing, but not fast enough to alleviate the pain.

  Damon, Maleth, Leonid, and Chevalier blurred into the corner with them.

  “Who is shooting a gun in my palace?” Maleth growled.

  Mark pointed at Emily.

  “Ok,” Emily said, and emptied the second lip into the heku.

  “That has to hurt,” Kyle said.

  Mark nodded.

  Chevalier raised his eyebrows.

  Emily stepped out of the cell and dropped the 9mm on the floor, picking up the shotgun. She grabbed the barrel and slammed the stock of the gun into Vaughn’s head. The sickening crack was followed by a splash of new blood onto Emily and the walls.

  “We were talking about how we should stop her,” Kyle said, leaning back against the wall.

  “Yeah I guess we should,” Mark nodded.

  Emily screamed and continued to smash Vaughn with the stock of the shotgun relentlessly. Blood was dripping from the walls, and she was covered with pieces of flesh and blood. She started at his head, and moved down to shatter both of his legs. His screaming had turned to gargles as he fought to breathe through the blood in his mouth.

  “Did you want to stop her or should I?” Kyle asked casually.

  “Doesn’t matter to me,” Mark answered.

  “We really do need to stop her,” Damon said, concerned.

  “Want to remove it now, Child?” she asked, standing over him.

  He tried to get his hands under him, but Emily smashed the butt of the shotgun down on the back of his neck, crushing his vertebrae. He fell limp to the ground.

  Emily took a second to catch her breath, and then brought the shotgun up again. She brought it down toward Vaughn’s back, but he rolled out of the way, grabbed her foot, and she slammed into the ground.

  The Equites reacted quickly. Mark and Kyle tackled Vaughn while Chevalier grabbed Emily under her arms and pulled her out of Vaughn’s grasp.

  “I’m not done!” Emily yelled, trying to crawl back into the cell.

  “I think he’s had enough,” Chevalier told her, grabbing her waist to stop her from going back inside. He lifted her up to her feet.

  She was dripping with blood and pushed her hair off of her face to see Vaughn better. Kyle and Mark managed to pin him against the ground, he was almost entirely healed.

  “Take it off,” she glared down at him.

  “No,” he growled.

  Emily ran forward and kicked. Vaughn screamed when her foot connected with his lower jaw and broke it into several pieces.

  Chevalier pulled Emily back out of the cell, chuckling.

  “Impressive, for a mortal,” Damon said, leaning against the wall and laughing.

  Maleth and Leonid disappeared up the stairs.

  “Guess I better go bring back the guards,” Damon said, and walked over to the two piles of ashes by the door.

  Emily tucked the 9mm into the back of her pants and picked up the bloody shotgun. She looked at Vaughn in the clutches of Kyle and Mark, and walked toward the door. She glared once at the one revived door guard and moved slowly up the stairs to the foyer. Chevalier followed her, keeping a slight distance.

  Emily stopped at the bedroom door and turned to Chevalier, “Where’s the money from the sale of my ranch?”

  He frowned, “It’s in an account in your name.”

  “I’ll need to get at it,” she said, turning toward the door.

  “Emily, if you need something, all you have to do is ask,” he said, following her.

  “Just give me the account, and I won’t have to ask permission for anything.”

  “I didn’t say you had to ask permission, but I’ll give you anything you want.”

  “As long as I ask for it,” she said.

  “That’s not what I mean, and you know it,” he said, sitting down.

  “What I need is a laptop with an Internet connection and that account information when I get out of the shower… add in some privacy, and I’ll be good,” she walked into the bathroom and shut the door.

  Emily had to take a very long shower to get all of the blood off of her and out of her hair. She dried off and threw on a long t-shirt and jeans, then went out into the bedroom. She nodded when she saw the laptop and a debit card sitting beside it. She grabbed her cell phone and made the call.

  A few hours later, Emily was done. She went out to find Chevalier and finally found him and the other Elders in the game room. She stepped in just in time to catch the end of the conversation.

  “We’ll find a mortal soon. We have to be selective,” Maleth said.

  “A mortal for what?” she asked, and they turned to look at her.

  Chevalier glared at Maleth when he stepped forward, “We need a mortal’s blood to seal the door forever.”

  “No,” Chevalier hissed.

  “That’s all you need? A mortal’s blood?” she asked, skeptically.

  �
��Emily, no,” Chevalier said to her.

  “Do it then,” she said, and walked forward, holding her wrist out.

  “I said no,” he growled.

  “Oh sure, then what? Let Allen walk through there?” she kept her wrist out to Maleth.

  “There is another way,” he said.

  “Not fast enough,” she said to Chevalier and then turned to Maleth. “Do it.”

  Maleth grabbed Emily’s hand and watched Chevalier as he stormed out of the room, “Just a bit, Emily.”

  She nodded, “Do it quickly.”

  Leonid began to chant in an ancient language, and Emily watched as the doorway began to glow. She felt the sting on her wrist as Maleth pressed the tip of a dagger into the soft flesh of her arm. He held her arm out toward the door, and as the blood dripped onto it, the doorway began to collapse into a swirl of black clouds.

  Emily watched, wide eyed, as the doorway showed, for one moment, what was on the other side, and she had to fight the urge to run. There was a loud clash of thunder and a flash of light when the door sealed.

  Emily stepped forward and touched the wall, running her fingers along the solid wall. She fell to the floor suddenly, crying out in pain when her thigh began to burn.

  Maleth leaned down beside her, “Breathe through it, Emily, take deep breaths.”

  Leonid watched them, helplessly.

  Emily groaned and clutched at her thigh. Maleth tore the side seam of her pants open to her thigh, and looked at the runes. They were red, and inflamed, and blisters started to appear.

  “There has to be a way to get this off,” he said to Leonid.

  “I have been researching it. I can’t find anything,” Leonid said.

  “Come here, Child,” Maleth said, picking Emily up. He cradled her in his arms and left the game room, heading up the stairs.

  Emily squeezed her eyes shut and moaned as she leaned her head against Maleth’s neck. He walked into her room and laid her on the bed as Chevalier stood up from the chair and blurred to her.

  “It’s the runes,” Maleth said, when Emily grabbed her thigh and screamed.

  “I have her,” he growled at Maleth, who left quickly and shut the door.

  Emily finally relaxed some and laid her forehead on the bed, still holding her thigh.

  “We’ll make it stop, Em, I swear,” he told her, and touched her hand lightly.

  She pulled her hand away from him, “Don’t touch me.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said, and took a step away from her.

  Emily slipped her torn jeans off and turned to look at her thigh. The runes were no longer red and inflamed. She touched them, surprised they weren’t even sore to the touch.

  “Emily, we need to talk,” Chevalier said, watching her closely.

  “Yes, we do,” she agreed.

  “I haven’t done anything to make you not trust me, but I know that you don’t,” he said, and slowly moved to the bed and sat down.

  “I trust you,” she told him, but watched him carefully.

  “No you don’t, or I would still be able to pick up feelings and emotions from you. Do you still love me?” he asked, unsure.

  She nodded, “Yes.”

  “Then what’s wrong?”

  “I… need time,” she said, looking into his eyes.

  “Time away from me?” he asked, hiding the hurt from his eyes.

  “Time away from everything,” she said, laying her hand on his leg.

  He nodded.

  “Allen and I are leaving in two weeks.” She sat up cross-legged beside him.

  He frowned, “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to visit my Uncle Alec,” she told him.

  She could see the concern and frustration in his face.

  “We’ll stay for two weeks, and then we’ll come back,” she said, touching his face.

  “Is there no other way?” he looked into her eyes.

  “My cousin is getting married. I’m going to be in the wedding. Right now I need to just get away for a while,” she tried to make him understand.

  “It wouldn’t be away if I went, would it?”

  She shook her head, “Please don’t take this the wrong way. I’m not getting away from you. I’m getting away from everything here.”

  He nodded, “One guard?”

  Emily smiled, “No.”

  Chevalier put her head in his hands and pulled her face close to his, “Come back.”

  Chapter 14 - Vacation

  “I’m done packing,” Emily said, turning to Sam and Chevalier. “Will you two stop moping?”

  “I don’t see why I can’t go,” Sam said, sulking.

  “Because it’s an Allen and I thing. Allen’s one of the ring bearer’s and I have to wear this and act like I like it,” Emily said, holding up a light pink, rather revealing dress.

  “You’re going to wear that in front of Jeff?” Chevalier asked.

  Emily laughed, “Rein in the jealousy, Chev.”

  Emily crawled onto Chevalier’s lap and faced him, her knees at his sides, “Remember what I said, about followers?”

  He nodded, “Yes, but I don’t like it.”

  “That’s the deal… I catch one follower, and not only will I ash them, I won’t come back,” she said, seriously.

  “I don’t like it, not at all. What if you happen across an Encala or a Valle?” he scowled.

  “I won’t.”

  “What if you do?”

  “I won’t,” Emily said. “Hold out your hand.”

  Chevalier held out his hand and frowned when she set her cell phone in it, “No.”

  “Yes, no calls,” she crawled off of his lap.

  “You have to take your cell phone,” he growled.

  “No,” she said, and threw a bag over her shoulder.

  “Emily, I have to insist, in case of an emergency,” Chevalier said.

  “No.” She walked up and kissed him softly.

  “I can’t lose contact with you for two weeks,” he said, narrowing his eyes.

  “Yes… you can,” she told him and picked Allen up.

  “I’ll walk you out,” Chevalier said, taking Allen from her. He grabbed their bags with his other hand and followed her down the stairs.

  “It’ll be good for the palace. They don’t have to be on mortal alert,” she grinned.

  “They aren’t on mortal alert,” he told her.

  “Oh? What about those guards in the barracks? They can come give these guards a much needed vacation.” She smiled at one of the door guards.

  “I don’t see why one guard can’t go with you. Take Frank, he fits in well with mortals,” he said as they walked up to the Durango.

  “No”

  Chevalier kissed Allen and buckled him into his car seat.

  “What flight will you be on?” he asked.

  “One going up high,” she said, and slid into the Durango.

  “You aren’t going to even tell me your flight information?” he frowned.

  “No and it’s good for you,” she said as he leaned in and hugged her tightly.

  “I still can’t read you. I can’t follow your emotions or your feelings, it’s not safe,” he said, looking deep into her eyes.

  “I will be back in 2 weeks,” she said, and kissed him softly. She pulled back, but he kissed her again passionately.

  “Two weeks,” she promised, and then shut the door and drove off.

  Chevalier watched with a heavy heart as they drove away. He couldn’t express to Emily how dangerous this idea was, and how much he hated how she left after having such a hard few weeks. Once the Durango was out of sight, he went into the castle to see if he could find a way to pass the next two weeks.

  “Sorry, Elder,” Kyle said.

  “Two weeks,” he told Kyle.

  “Want me to go or are you sending Mark?” he asked.

  “I’m not sending anyone,” Chevalier said, snarling.

  Kyle frowned, “No one?”