by C. J. Pinard
Thomas snorted. “I bet you were shocked when you found out what the BSI really knew, right?”
Jason shook his head with a smile. “You don’t even know, man. As soon as I found that badge, I vowed I would get my Bachelor’s degree, keep myself squeaky clean, and join the FBI as soon as I graduated, and that’s what I did.
“Once I got into the FBI, I located the highest-ranking official I could find and told them I knew of the BSI and wanted in. It was actually a lot easier than I thought it would be. My grandfather’s name held a lot of weight. He was one of the very first agents, you know. So, here I am.”
The server arrived with their meals and they dug in hungrily.
They ate in silence for a few minutes, and as Jonathan was cutting up his grilled chicken breast, he stabbed a chunk and then pointed the fork at Jason. “You know, you’ve piqued my curiosity on what Pascal’s up to. He’s a dirty bastard, always up to something. Tomorrow, Thomas and I are gonna stake out his house. You want to come with us?”
Jason wiped his mouth with a napkin and grinned. “Oh, yeah.”
CHAPTER 10
∞∞∞
Springfield, Massachusetts USA – 1814
Sebastian – now Pascal – was grinning as he looked at Aiden’s and Elaine’s expressions.
“Pascal? That’s the name you’re choosin’? Are you pullin’ my leg, boy?”
He laughed. “No, I am not. It’s a nice name and I’m keeping it.”
Elaine shook her head. “It’s your life.” Then she said, “Excuse me.” And walked up the stairs and out of the hull.
“So what is your new name going to be?” he asked Aiden.
Aiden smiled. “I don’t know, haven’t decided. I’ll probably keep Aiden but find a new last name. My human last name was O’Douling but I don’t want something so blatantly Irish. I’ll probably go with something boring like Stephens or Michaels.”
Elaine poked her head around from the stairwell. “Sun’s gone down. Let’s get going.”
The men followed her up the stairs and went to stand on the deck of the ship along with the crew. Oddly missing from the group was Martin.
As everyone was gathered around, Aiden spoke up. “Welcome to the New World, boys. Please collect your belongings and enjoy a new life here in America. As you disembark, I will have your pay ready for you, and as you leave the port, you’ll need to register yourself at the small building at the end of the dock before they’ll let you into town.”
The men erupted into cheers and claps. Elaine handed each sailor an envelope of money as they walked down the plank and to freedom from the oppression of England.
When the crew had gone, the three lone vampyres were standing on the deck. “So what now? What are you planning to do with this great ship, Aiden?” Pascal asked.
“I’m going to keep it, for now. It’s going to cost me a fortune, but I have to decide if I like it here before I sell it. If I hate this place, we’re going back to Ireland.”
“You’re going back to Ireland. I’m not leaving. I’m going to stay here. I already like it,” Pascal replied.
Aiden laughed. “Boy, you haven’t even left the port yet! I’ve heard some tall tales about this place. But we will form our own opinions. C’mon, let’s get going.”
As they disembarked, they took their wobbly sea legs to the dock, carrying all their worldly possessions in a steamer trunk on wheels and whatever could fit in their large satchels. When they got to the end of the dock, they made their way into a small clapboard building marked “Customs Registrar.”
The line wasn’t very long, as it was nighttime, and once they reached the clerk, they were asked individually their name, date of birth, country of origin, and if they planned to stay or were just visiting. That was it. They weren’t required to show any documentation of any kind.
Talk about starting over.
Pascal Theroux walked out of the office with an official-looking piece of paper with his new name and a date of birth he completely fabricated so he could stay 21 for as long as possible before he would have to secure new documentation.
It was late fall in Massachusetts, and a light snowfall was beginning to descend as they made their way to the home they’d be staying in until they could secure jobs and their own place to live.
Through a series of letters that were exchanged over the period of a year, Aiden had made arrangements with a distant cousin of his who had moved to America ten years prior. Being that Aiden was supposed to be about sixty years old, but still looked thirty, he told the cousin he was the son of the senior Aiden O’Douling, and nobody asked any questions.
As they walked down the cold streets, silently taking in the new sights, sounds, and smells, their happy discoveries were interrupted when they reached the intersection of the street and a dark alleyway.
Martin stepped in their path with his arms folded. He was accompanied by three other similar-looking Spaniards. “Where are you going?”
Aiden cocked his head to the side, confused. “Martin… why do you care where we’re going?”
“Because mi primos and I would like to know what side of town the vampiros will be living on so we can warn our brothers,” he replied.
“Well that’s none of your feckin’ business. Now out of our way.”
Martin let out a slow growl. “I will not ask you again, compadre.”
Pascal said, “Listen, Martin, I doubt where we’re going will be crawling with vampyres; we are the only we know of here.”
Martin’s arms were still crossed. “I’m warning you, leech. Tell me now or this will not end well for you.”
Aiden ignored him and attempted to step around them and into the dark street.
At once, Martin and his cousins shifted into wolves, growling.
Pascal was so shocked, he dropped his satchel and was frozen. “What in the bloody hell?”
Aiden never took his eyes off the snarling, drooling wolves, and said to Pascal, “Lad, I was hoping I would never have to introduce you to a shapeshifter, but it seems you’re going to get a hands-on lesson on how to kill one tonight.”
Pascal let out another gasp.
∞∞∞
The Island of Nymph – Present Day
Malina and the Immortals portaled to the island on Wednesday for Seth and Malachi’s trial. Tyler had managed to get the afternoon off from the hospital so the four of them were able to attend.
As they stepped onto the warm sand, they all removed their shoes and made their way to the outdoor court. It was two o’clock in the afternoon with a bright sun overhead. Nine sylphs, in their variety of colors, were seated in the front row as Malina went to join them. They were all wearing their twisted crown headpieces for the official business.
Jonathan, Thomas, Kathryn, and Tyler took their seats behind the sylphs. Nobody else was in attendance. Bill and Nick, the island’s Immortal guards, were standing at the court’s edge, awaiting instructions.
Zoe’s yellow dress whispered against her bare, tanned legs as she made her way to the stage. Her black hair was pulled tightly off her face, mostly covered by her headpiece. “Bill, if you will bring the prisoners, please,” she ordered solemnly.
He nodded, and he and Nick walked to the jail building. Within three minutes, Bill and Nick were escorting Seth and Malachi, who were both wearing shock collars around their necks and were cuffed with iron handcuffs from behind. They were planted onstage. Both Nick and Bill were holding remote controls, which would deliver quite a jolt if the shifters tried any funny business. They stood close by and waited for Zoe to speak.
“We are here today for the trial of Seth, last name unknown, and Malachi, last name unknown, of the Portland Shapeshifters’ Clan. The charges are kidnapping a sylph and attempted extortion.”
Malina was sitting next to Serina in the front row and squeezed her hand in support.
“Is there anything you would like to say before we make our decision as to your fate?” Zoe asked, eyeing the sha
peshifters.
The normally quiet Malachi spoke up. “We would like to publicly apologize to the queen Serina for our behavior a few months ago, and beg her forgiveness. The act was uncalled for and selfish. We now see the error of our ways and request leniency from the council.”
Kathryn rolled her eyes, leaned over and whispered to Thomas, “I wonder how many times he practiced that speech? Those are some big words for such a dumbass.”
Thomas puckered his lips to keep from laughing but said nothing.
“And you, Seth, what say you?” Zoe asked, making notes on a yellow notepad.
He shook his head. “I don’t have much to say except that I agree with what Malachi said. We’re very sorry, and now my Sheena is gone and I didn’t even get to say goodbye to her. So I am already in hell. Not sure how much more you can make me suffer…” he trailed off in a whisper, his head down the entire time he spoke.
Jonathan clenched his jaw and fists.
“All right. If that is all, we will go confer and be back with our decision. Ladies?”
The sylphs filed out of the court, following Zoe into a nearby hut, leaving the Immortals and shapeshifters alone.
Malachi and Seth stood on the stage, shifting nervously on their feet. Seth lifted his head and looked at Thomas.
“If they kill us for our crime, will you tell Serina we really are sorry?”
Thomas replied, “You can tell her yourself. Now be quiet.”
Tyler leaned over to Jonathan and quietly asked, “Is this a normal court session? Seems kind of quiet and awkward.”
Jonathan smirked. “The Zie Council doesn’t follow a regular human judicial process. There are no Miranda rights or Right to a Fair Trial. Hell, most of the sylphs aren’t even American. They truly are a law unto themselves. We will go over the Treaty in detail when things calm down.”
Tyler turned his head. “Treaty?”
Jonathan exhaled dramatically. “The Zie Council and the Fae have a Treaty in place. I will show you a copy of one when we get back to Portland.” He paused for a minute while Tyler nodded. “I can’t believe they just made you an Immortal and didn’t tell you squat,” he finished, shaking his head.
Tyler grinned. “Yeah, well I got skills, my man. They knew talent and brains when they saw it.”
Thomas snorted. “Yeah, they saw your M.D. and figured you were good enough. Good thing they didn’t find out you were a Raiders fan.”
“That one’s gonna cost you, O’Malley,” Tyler chided back.
The sylphs filed back into the court and everyone’s jovial mood immediately extinguished.
Zoe took her place on the stage and cleared her throat. After the other nine queens were seated, she began.
Looking at the shapeshifters, she said, “As you know, Seth and Malachi, kidnapping is a very serious offense with this council. Kidnapping and harming humans is in direct violation of the Treaty your clan signed. But kidnapping a sylph for personal gain is not only reprehensible, it’s close to unforgiveable. Serina has been plagued with nightmares and anxiety since her incident, and there is no way to fix it, except with time. After grave consideration, we’ve made the decision that you will spend five years in the jail here.”
The Immortals let out a gasp at the same time the shifters started yelling. Malachi began to growl and everyone watched in horror as his hands slowly started to morph into claws. He then fell to the ground screaming and flopping around while Bill pressed his finger on his remote.
“Pipe down, Malachi,” he said, rushing the stage. The Immortals were also up on the stage, ready to subdue him.
Seth just stared, tears dripping down his face.
Malachi was panting after the pain from the coursing electricity subsided. “You… can’t… keep us here… five years… God, no, please,” he begged.
“If everyone will please take their seats and be calm, so I may finish my directive,” Zoe said, irritated.
As everyone took their seats, Malachi remained lying on the stage floor but was quiet.
“If you can prove yourselves worthy of release by good behavior with no incidents and no shifting, we will consider an early release within two years.”
Seth just shook his head. “May I speak, your majesty?”
“Yes,” Zoe answered.
“With all due respect, we cannot go two years without shifting, we will die.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “How do you know? Have you ever gone two years without shifting?”
He looked at Malachi, then back at her. He paused for so long, Zoe had to remind him to speak.
“Well?” she asked.
He looked at Malachi again, who nodded, then back at Zoe. “When we were inmates at Alcatraz in the 1930s, we were in solitary confinement for a year without shifting, and by the time we finally did get to shift, we were so weak, we were almost dead. The prison doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong with us, and it’s not like we could tell them. Not that I really thought they cared anyway.”
Jonathan stood up. “What in the hell are you talking about? You were at Alcatraz? How did I not know this?”
Malachi also stood up slowly. “We escaped in 1937.”
Thomas laughed. “Nobody has ever escaped from Alcatraz and lived.”
“Um, that’s not true,” Tyler said. “Two guys named Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe escaped and were never found.”
Thomas looked at him strangely.
“Book report, high school,” Tyler replied with a sheepish smile.
“That’s right,” Kathryn said. “I remember that. It made the L.A. Times, front page.”
“Dolphin,” Malachi said, pointing at himself, “and sea lion,” he pointed at Seth. “It wasn’t pleasant, but it worked,” Malachi said with a shudder.
CHAPTER 11
∞∞∞
Springfield, Massachusetts – 1814
“Now what?” Pascal asked, looking at Aiden as the three vampyres stared at four snarling, drooling wolves.
“Now, we kill some shifters, boy. Don’t let them bite you, just break their necks if you can.”
Pascal stared at Aiden incredulously.
Just then, the four wolves pounced. As Martin dove on Aiden, the vampyre pushed into Martin’s wolf torso with both palms and sent him flying up and into the alley. He heard screaming and turned around and found another wolf on top of Elaine, and as she tried to fight it off, the wolf took a good-sized chunk out of her shoulder and she screamed again. It was bleeding through her cream-colored linen dress and onto her overcoat. Aiden grabbed the creature by the scruff of its neck and with one hand, he twisted its neck, killing it instantly. It began to morph back into a man in front of their eyes, the thin, olive-skinned man lying motionless with his head at an awkward angle.
Elaine got up and grabbed her shoulder and ran over to Pascal, who had two wolves on him. She picked one up and threw him as far as she could, while Aiden picked off the other by repeating the neck-breaking.
Martin came bounding out of the alley and stopped short when he saw not only that his cousins were dead, but that he was outnumbered. There was a tense ten-second standoff. When Martin concluded he couldn’t win, he went running off down the alley.
“Go on, ya mutt! Run along!” spat Aiden.
Elaine was whimpering as Pascal peeled back her dress and looked at her wound.
“Wow, that looks… unpleasant,” he said.
Elaine shot him a look. “Yes, it is. But it’ll heal.” She pulled the material back over it and looked around. “Let’s get out of here. Who knows how many shifters are around here.”
“Good idea, my love,” Aiden said, putting his arm around her.
The three made it the four blocks to Aiden’s cousin’s small brownstone. As the three weary travelers knocked on the door, Aiden turned to the other two. “Remember, I’m Aiden’s son. It shouldn’t be too hard, as we have the same name, but just play along with whatever I say and do. We shouldn’t have to stay here long; we jus
t need this place for a few weeks until I can find us a place and some jobs.”
Elaine and Pascal nodded.
A short man with ruddy cheeks and a friendly smile opened the door. He had wild greying hair and a thick moustache. He was wearing slacks with suspenders over his dress shirt.
“Aiden, my boy! Oh my, you look exactly like your pappy!”
Aiden put his hand out. “Jimmy, so good to finally meet you!”
Jimmy pulled him into a hug. “It’s so good to see someone from the Old Country! Please come in.”
“Jimmy, this is my wife, Elaine, and my ship’s first-mate, and also a good friend, Seba… er, I mean, Pascal Theroux.”
“Good to meet ya, make yourselves at home.” Jimmy walked down a narrow hallway which led to a small kitchen. “Ella, our guests are here!”
A plump redhaired woman wearing an apron and a long dress turned around from a pot she was stirring. “Hello, nice to meet you!”
“This is my wife, Ella. Ella this is, Aiden, Elaine, and Pascal, fresh off tha’ boat from the Old Country!”
She smiled a genuine smile. “So good to meet ya.”
“Well, not exactly from Ireland, cousin. We actually sailed here from England; it’s where I’ve been living for the past few years.”
Jimmy made a face. “Eh, England? What were ya doin’ there?”
Aiden smiled. “Fishing. And building a ship. It’s beautiful, cousin. I will take you tomorrow evening to see it.”
“Ella, do you have a powder room?” Elaine asked, trying not to touch her injured shoulder, which was hidden under her peacoat.
“Oh yes, dear, just down the hall there,” Ella replied, pointing.
Elaine smiled and made her way to the powder room. She removed her coat and peeled back the material and blew out a breath when she saw that the bite, while mangled and gory, was healing.
She gingerly covered it back up and made her way out of the powder room and asked Ella where their room was. Once she was shown, she thanked Ella and went inside.