“I have a lot to do, but I'll come back to see you soon,” she promised.
“Are you going to see Victor?”
On these words, a huge smile stretched across her face:
“Yes, but I don't have much time! That's why I need to leave now.”
Emma gave her a knowing glance:
“Have fun with your lover! You still have to introduce him to me by the way.”
“Yes... As soon as I can. I've got to get going. Take care of my niece.”
“Transferring a few million to me doesn't exempt you from coming to see her,” teased Emma as she walked her to the door.
Tara gave a half smile: Emma had no idea, but it might be the last time she could visit her. If Emily Van der Worthen decided she couldn’t see her family, Tara didn't know if there was anything she could do to thwart her decision.
With a heavy heart, she disappeared down the stairs. Emma gently closed the door, leaving her alone in the dark.
Tara walked calmly over to the light switch on the wall before the darkness completely set in. She pressed it for several seconds, but the stairwell remained dark. Instinctively, she knew it wasn’t a coincidence. She looked down over the stairwell railing and automatically felt as though she were being sucked into an abyss. She immediately stood up straight and lifted her head, so as not to be lured into the void. She decided not to take the stairs. She had the disturbing feeling that something was waiting for her a few floors down.
Refusing to give in to fear, she pressed the elevator button instead. To her relief, the elevator arrived almost immediately. She rushed in and pressed the button to the ground floor, but when the doors closed, she realized she had made a fatal mistake.
Instantly, the light turned off and the elevator went up a few feet, before stopping its ascent between floors. Tara tried to keep calm even though her heart was racing. She wanted to know who was behind all of this. Immersed in total darkness, she tried to distinguish the shapes around her, but the obscurity was so encompassing that she saw nothing whatsoever.
Suddenly, she felt a strong negative presence surround her. She felt as though she were completely immersed in a palpable mist. It was so powerful that she could feel it pushing against her chest, as if it were trying to enter her body. Tara remained motionless, trying to resist the intrusion of the spirit. She refused to let herself be intimidated by an unknown entity, especially one who entrapped her in such a cowardly way.
Suddenly, a violent feeling of anguish took hold of her, as she felt a bony hand resting on her cheek, clinging to her. Without warning, she grabbed the hand and threw it to the ground, only to realize that when she touched her cheek, she was touching her own skin. The hand seemed to have disappeared, but the presence was still there. Then, as she understood how powerful her enemy really was, she began to lose her composure.
Then, out of the blue, a whisper broke the silence:
“Welcome back Diane.”
Tara didn’t respond, appalled that she was being referred to as Diane.
“My name is Tara!”
There was a short silence during which she attempted to see the body of her enemy, but to no avail. It seemed that the darkness itself was the body of evil… Seconds later, a severe and scornful voice addressed her:
“Tara, Diane, whatever. You’re the one I’ve been looking for...”
No sooner had the demon uttered those words than Tara felt a multitude of hands on her body, tearing away at her skin. The atrocious pain made her scream hysterically. She felt their hands on her face, her neck, her chest, her arms, her legs… They pushed their fingernails deep into her skin, tearing it to shreds as the blood poured out of her wounds. There were hundreds of them, all torturing her simultaneously. The pain was unbearable. Invisible hands came at her from all sides. But every time she tried to brush them off, the only thing she touched was her own throbbing skin. She threw herself against the wall of the elevator in the hopes that it would free her from the demons’ onslaught, but to no avail. No matter how hard she struggled and no matter how much she screamed, a never-ending stream of hands sunk their claws into her body. It was as though the demons and the air were one and the same…she was totally engulfed in their presence.
Then, suddenly, the pain stopped, and the hands disappeared. Tara could feel the pleasure and amusement of her opponent.
“How did you like it?”
Breathless, she said nothing, as she searched in the dark for her enemy.
“Why didn't you defend yourself?” asked the demon, amused. “You can't, can you Diane? I think it’s because you’ve lost something…”
Still weak from the assault, Tara stared straight ahead into the darkness, as if the demon was standing right in front of her. She knew he was talking about Hagen, her sword. He was provoking her because he knew she’d lost it.
“Do you want your weapon back?” the demon asked, in a more serious tone.
“What a question,” uttered Tara scornfully. “You expect me to believe that you're the one who has it?”
“Of course,” answered the demon serenely, “since you’re the one who gave it to us.”
Tara froze on the spot.
“Oh?” he mocked. “You mean you don't remember?”
She remained silent, still leaning against the elevator wall. At first, she was out of breath, but now, she was feeling strangely unsteady. How could she have given her weapon to her enemies?
“You're lying!” she cried out at last. “Let me out of here!”
“Do you know why I didn't kill you?”
“Try it again and I'll tear you to pieces!” Tara roared, angrily.
Suddenly, she felt a hand grab her heart and squeeze it so hard that she screamed in agony. She fell to the ground, convinced that she was going to die this time. Little by little, the excruciating pain caused her to slip away into oblivion as she blacked out. This death, she thought, was much worse than the one the missionaries had inflicted upon her at the time of her Revelation.
Then, when the demon decided she had suffered enough, the pressure disappeared, and her heart began to beat normally again. Completely overwhelmed by the pain and depleted of her energy, Tara remained lying on the elevator floor, her eyes half closed. A few seconds later, the light switched back on and the elevator began its descent to the ground floor. When the doors opened, she agonizingly crawled out for fear that they would close on her again, leaving her alone with her aggressor. Neither the pain nor the dizziness had subsided. Exhausted, she lay on the ground holding her purse firmly in her hands and closed her eyes.
She remained on the floor for an unknown length of time. When she reopened her eyes, she found herself alone in her new room, facing the two guards who were perched on her ceiling, chatting discreetly to one another. It was dark. Only her bedside lamp was on.
Although she was too weak to appreciate the comfort of her bed and the softness of her sheets, she knew that she was finally safe. She remained motionless for several minutes. Her eyes were half open as she stared at the portrait of the doe on the wall in front of her. She completely ignored the guards who were busily yakking away. She could feel the after-effects of the attack. Her whole body was sore. Drained of her vital energy, she remained in a deep torpor. Her cat, who was resting at her feet, watched the guards in astonishment, still unaccustomed to their presence.
Time passed slowly. Later that evening, Emily came to her room. When she saw her, Tara turned her head towards the picture of the doe, intentionally ignoring her.
“How are you feeling Tara?”
Tara refused to answer such a stupid question. How could the woman who had turned her whole life upside down ask how she was doing?
“What happened Tara? Please tell me what’s going on with you,” Emily insisted, in a sincerely apologetic voice.
“Where are those two guards when I need them?” asked Tara.
Her body felt so numb she could hardly speak.
“You force me to live h
ere and you make me abandon my personal life to supposedly protect me. But then, when a demon comes along to attack me, there’s no one around to help! They didn't live up to their mission,” she continued harshly, pointing to the two guards with her chin. “I never want them to approach me or speak to me again. I won't even allow them to look at me.”
The two guards chastised her with their eyes, but Tara was no longer impressed.
“I didn't ask them to protect you during the day,” Emily replied as she approached her. “Nina was supposed to look after you today. She should never have let you out of her sight. But she didn’t inform me that she hadn’t gone with you. Because of her insubordination, you almost...”
Emily couldn’t bring herself to finish her sentence. She was profoundly aggrieved at the thought of what could have happened to Tara.
“Why did you entrust the mission to Nina instead of the guards?” asked Tara in an accusing tone. “I don't want her in my ranks anymore!”
“I gave this mission to Nina because our spheric weapons are able to protect you from the demons just as well as the guards. That’s why you don't need the guards during the day.”
“Then why bring in the guards at night?” Tara replied in the same tone.
Emily seemed slightly embarrassed:
“The bodies of your legionaries need to rest. Not knowing in advance how many nights you would need us to stand guard, I decided to call in the guards instead.”
Tara turned her head in the direction of the painting of the doe again. She was angry with Nina for having abandoned her and putting her in danger, despite Emily's orders. Finally, she turned to her archangel and said in a dry voice:
“I'll deal with Nina later. In the meantime, I’ve got to get Hagen back.”
“Do you even know where it is?”
“In the hands of the demons.”
A deadly silence fell. Emily looked at her as if she had seen a ghost.
“Are you serious?”
“They’ll give it back to me if I ask,” Tara added, in the same categorical tone.
Emily nearly suffocated. She looked at Tara fearfully.
“What... what do you mean? Why would the demons have your weapon?”
“I don't know.”
“They must have taken it when the disaster occurred,” continued Emily, trying to understand. “If we can get your memory back, you'll know exactly who took it and how to get it back.”
“I don't have time to wait until I get my memory back. Look what happened to me today. Besides, they seem willing to give it back to me.”
“What makes you think that?”
“The demon in the elevator... his only reason for coming was to tell me about Hagen.”
“What did he say?”
“That he had it.”
Emily gave Tara a worried look, she didn't understand.
“I think he wanted me to come and get it,” continued Tara, convinced that the demon had told her the truth.
“Tara... Do you really think the demons would give you back the thing they fear most in the world? Don’t you think it’s a trap?”
“No, I trust him.”
“Tara! You've always said that we couldn’t trust the demons.”
“I know, but this time it's different. I really think he’s the one who has my weapon, and I can get it back.”
“How will you defend yourself?” replied Emily, who found the proposal absurd.
“I'll manage. I trust my instincts.”
“It's out of the question! If we've been looking for you for two hundred years, they most certainly have been doing the same. When they get their hands on you, they'll destroy you!”
“That demon could have killed me twenty times over in the elevator,” Tara said gravely, as she turned to Emily. “None of you have been of any use to me so far, so let me handle this my way. After all, I’m the one who’s in charge here.”
Emily stopped talking. Hurt, she got up and left the room. When she opened the door, she bumped into Hugo who had his ear pressed against the door.
“What are you doing here?” she said dryly.
“I have mail for Tara,” he answered awkwardly, pointing to a small red envelope.
Tara turned abruptly in Hugo’s direction:
“Who's it from?”
“From Victor, according to the signature.”
“You read her mail?” exclaimed Emily, shocked.
“I couldn't help it,” answered Hugo, both embarrassed and amused. “When I saw the thick red envelope I suspected something exciting was going on.”
Tara reached out her hand as he approached to give it to her.
“Apparently,” the young man continued, “he misses you. He left the letter in front of your apartment door with a gigantic bouquet of roses.”
“Where's the bouquet?” Tara asked, looking for it.
“I didn't take it!” exclaimed Hugo, to whom it was obvious. “I didn't want the women in the street to take me for the subservient type!”
“Go and get it right now,” ordered Tara.
“You're kidding me, right?” asked Hugo, who didn't want to go back to her apartment just for a stupid bouquet of flowers.
Tara was seething with rage. First, she was humiliated in the elevator because of Nina's negligence, and now, this macho of a guy reads her mail and deprives her of her boyfriend’s gifts. Her gaze changed and her voice became threatening. Hugo understood that he had made a mistake.
“Go and get the flowers and I'll forget that you read my letter.”
Without further ado, Hugo turned on his heels and rushed out to pick up the flowers. Emily turned to follow him but Tara stopped her in her tracks:
“Emily!”
“Yes?” asked the lady of the house as she turned around.
“I'd like my cell phone back, if you don't mind.”
She wanted to call Victor because she hadn't talked to him for nearly a week. But she realized by the closed look on her face that Van der Worthen had different thoughts about that. She had hardly finished her sentence when Emily answered her:
“I'm really sorry Tara, but your mobile phone is too much of a distraction for you, and it’s too dangerous right now. We were wrong to let you out today. I don't want to take any more chances. We need to suspend all outside contact until you find Hagen. Once you have it, our enemies won't dare approach you anymore, and you'll be free to come and go as you please.”
Outraged, Tara opened her mouth to reply, but she felt so oppressed that it was difficult for her to voice her opinion:
“Emily...! How is my phone dangerous to me?”
“You could be influenced and make bad decisions.”
“Victor isn't just my boyfriend,” Tara exclaimed as she sat up on her bed. “He's my soul mate, the person I've been waiting for for years...”
“Well,” replied Van der Worthen naturally, “if he’s really your soul mate, you don’t need to worry. He’ll still be there for you when you get Hagen back.”
“Emily!” insisted Tara, who felt tears of rage rising. “I dream about him at night. We were already together in a past life.”
“What do you mean?” asked Van der Worthen suddenly, as she approached Tara. “What era are you talking about? Diane has never been in love.”
“Yes, I have. In the eighteenth century. I was a duchess and he was a marquis.”
Emily's face lit up:
“Tara! This is what we've been looking for! That was Diane’s last incarnation as a seraph!”
Tara looked at her suspiciously.
“When was your last dream?” Van der Worthen asked.
“Last night.”
“That's good. And do you dream regularly?”
“Pretty much,” Tara replied cautiously.
“That's excellent news!” she exclaimed, jumping for joy. “Keep it up Tara. We're going to make it. We’re going to figure out what happened.”
On that note, Emily came over and hugged her, covering
her with love. Then she got up and headed for the exit.
“Emily!” Tara called out to her.
“Yes?”
“What about my cell phone? I need to talk to Victor.”
Tara thought she would have to fight with her hostess again, but instead, she saw Emily's face relax. She looked at her with a compassionate smile:
“My little Tara, the Marquis De Villiers wasn’t Victor.”
Then, she turned her heels and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. Tara remained motionless on her bed, thunderstruck.
How could Van der Worthen know the marquis’s name? And who was this marquis if it wasn't Victor? They looked so much alike…
Tara leaned against her headboard with a heavy heart. Despite herself, she was disappointed to learn that Victor wasn’t the Marquis De Villiers...
“Unless she's just saying that to get me to focus on my mission instead of on Victor,” she whispered to herself.
Her dreams had begun on the first night she had spent with Victor, after the party organized by Cesucom and the other companies. He was the one who had triggered her dreams... And there were all those other inexplicable things about him too, like the fact that he always knew where she was, or when he knew in advance whether she was happy or sad. He could feel her emotions. He had a gift, just like the angels...
Perplexed, Tara looked up at the two guards who were still staring at her with their big black and yellow eyes.
Yes... Victor was indeed the Marquis De Villiers. Emily was just trying to put her on the wrong track, hoping she would give him up and concentrate on her mission... But it didn't work. She hadn’t fooled her.
Convinced that she was right, she picked up the red envelope that she had placed on the bedside table. Her heart was pounding. She caressed the paper with love. It was her only connection to Victor...
Trembling, she opened the envelope. The first thing she discovered was a movie ticket for that same night at 8:30 p.m. Her heart leapt. She looked at the clock on the bedside table: it was half past seven. She still had enough time to get there!
HAGEN: 1. Revelations Page 16