After the Fall (40 page)

“Why are you telling us this?” Rayna asked.

“I’ll be the first to admit it was a mistake. It was foolish, trying to hang on to the past. If we don’t fix it now, I’m afraid Anathorn will fall apart, along with any hope for the future of either human or Vampire.”

“Let’s pretend for a minute I believe a single word of what you say,” I replied.

“Why do you think you were on the council? It wasn’t because the Queen needed a boy toy. She could have had that without making you a council member. The reason you were appointed is because I put it in her ear. I wanted you close to the center so you could help me change things.”

“For all the good that did,” I said.

“Well, the past is done. All we have is the present moment and the future before us. Now, I ask you again, how can I help you?”

“Get us in that mansion,” Rayna said.

He smiled, baring his porcelain fangs. “You’ve got it.”

Rayna and I looked at each other, then around the room. We could think of nothing else to say. Lucretius was staring at Rayna, looking relieved. All the gloom from the execution was gone. I wondered what was going on there.

“Did you two cause all this fracas?” he asked us. We nodded. The alarm was still blaring, but the gunshots had ceased. They must have gotten them all, at least for now. I muttered a silent prayer that the zombies might surprise some of the guards. “Will you excuse me for a moment?” 

“Do you believe him?” I asked. She shook her head. “You see it, too. All of a sudden he’s ready to go up against her.”

The alarm stopped, much to the relief of our ears. Rayna gave me a frantic nod and hushed me. Lucretius came back looking even more relaxed. He had this silly smile like he had just had a few drinks, or maybe smoked something a little sweeter than a cigar.

“The guards said there were undead out there. For all the shooting I heard, they are either the worst shots in the world or these thing can vanish at will.”

“There’s no telling,” I replied. Now I was beginning to wonder if they were apparitions after all. Undead that show up at the right time, to do exactly what we tell them, and now Lucretius ready and willing to help us depose the false queen. I was either dreaming…or walking right into a trap.

“I know you’re wondering, ‘why the sudden change of heart?’”

“That crossed my mind,” I said. Rayna was quiet, but her eyes agreed.

“I told you the truth about the Queen, not the real Anna Thorn but this impostor I put in her place.”

“Why did you really do it?” Rayna finally spoke. “And don’t tell me it was because you were all weepy about losing the Queen.”

Lucretius let out a dry chuckle. “Nothing ever gets past you, never did. The truth is, when we lost Anna, we lost much more than our leader. There was a power struggle. The Vampires started breaking into factions, dragging the humans with them. 

“I saw the future, and it was not a bright one. We needed her back, but that was impossible. I gave them something close. Only the highest members knew at first, but she refused to see anyone else. The Queen remained this mysterious, inaccessible oracle. That is, until Mordecai came to us.”

I looked up to find Rayna giving me another withering look. 

“What?” I asked.

“Don’t try to act all innocent.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“Sure you didn’t. The Queen just fell head over heels in love with you just by looking at you? Don’t make me laugh.”

“Make you laugh? Why? What’s wrong with me?”

She eyed me up and down. “Where should I start?”

Just as our argument was on the verge of escalating to violence, the phone rang.

“Will you two be quiet for a moment?” I made a zipping motion over my mouth. Rayna made a cutting motion with her thumb across her neck. I couldn’t help but chuckle. I was probably digging myself a deeper hole, but I didn’t care.

“Am I all right? Yes, I’m all right. Where did you hear that I was attacked?” He mouthed his disbelief to me. I shrugged. Rayna followed that up with another dirty look directed at me.

Lucretius spoke on the phone for a few more minutes. The rest of the conversation consisted of him nodding and agreeing.

“Very well. I’ll see you later. Toodle-oo.” He chuckled. “Okay, buh-bye.” He hung up.

“Looks like you get your wish,” he replied. “The Queen insists that I would be safer at her house.”

Reunion

Lucretius called his servants into the room and whispered some instructions in their ears. The men nodded and left the room in a hurry. They came back with a plastic case. Inside were two sets of the same gear his guards used.

“Go ahead and put them on. I will be back in a few minutes.”

We helped ourselves to the clothes in the case. Everything was there, from silky synthetic undergarments to the stiff kevlar clothing with thin plates of armor on top. The full-face helmets, originally designed for hand-to-hand combat with the undead, also served to conceal our identities. There wasn’t an inch of our skin exposed that would give us away. My only regret was giving up my customary outfit, to include my hat and glasses.

“I bet we could even go out in daylight with these,” said Rayna.

“The sunlight might not kill you, but the heatstroke probably will. These things breathe as well as a wetsuit.”

“Don’t be so dramatic. Couldn’t be worse than wearing that ridiculous hat.”

“What’s wrong with my hat?”

“What’s
not
wrong with that hat? It looks like something I killed.”

“That
ridiculous
hat has let me walk around in the day time probably longer than you’ve been alive.”

“And how long is that?”

“I don’t know…you couldn’t be older than the Fall. You are mighty strong for a young one, though.”

“Okay, I get what you’re saying. I’m just not some fancy Elder. Sorry I’m not up to your standards, is that it?”

“Why do you have to turn everything into an argument?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot to ask first, are you recording this, too?”

“I didn’t—” I growled and balled my fists. I had to walk away from her. That woman just had a way to get under your skin.

Lucretius came back, breaking up the tension. “Ah, don’t you two look sharp. Are you ready to go?” I nod and walk out the door.

The ride back to the Queen’s mansion was dead silent. We rode in an armored vehicle instead of Lucretius’ luxurious Bentley. Anathorn was under martial law. The only vehicles left on the road were the Queen’s APCs.

It startled me to see how quickly the city became deserted. There was still food on the restaurants’ outdoor tables. Bars and nightclubs boomed with music, but no one was waiting outside. Store owners had bothered to lock their doors, but the lights were on and the display props were still outside, beckoning the nonexistent shoppers to come inside and browse. The city looked like it had been swept by the rapture, taking everyone but leaving behind their prized possessions.

Every few blocks we would see another patrolling APC with the flashing police lights. To some, they might have been a symbol of safety, but I knew better. The Queen was using this “crisis” to her greatest advantage.

We arrived at the mansion after having spent the better part of an hour circumventing roadblocks. I had not sighted one wandering zombie since we got out on the road, but that changed when we arrived at the Queen’s mansion.

The place was surrounded. There must have been a whole legion of them just outside the fence. The soldiers had stopped firing on them. They probably realized the futility of trying to kill them and decided to conserve ammo.

We pulled up to the gate, fully expecting them to rush the vehicle, but they ignored us. In fact, they seemed to be stepping aside, allowing us to go inside. When the gates opened, the guards stepped out and began to lay aggressive cover fire for us to enter the grounds. As soon as we were in, the fence door shut. A few of them had managed to enter, but the guards had no problem disposing of them. A couple of them escorted us to the house while the others watched over the bodies lest they resurrect while we were still out in the open.

“You two!” said one of the guards, his voice muffled through the face mask. “Give us a hand securing the perimeter while we dispose of these bodies.”

I nodded. Rayna almost got away, but I tugged at her arm and pulled her back. This was no time to make a scene. We walked around and pretended to patrol the area. The other guards picked up the bodies and heaved them over the fence and into the crowd.

“Why do you not burn them?” I asked the head guard.

“We don’t know if it transmits through the air. It’s not a chance I want to take right now.” I pretended to agreed with him. I knew better than that, but I could not tell him. He would just have to remain in ignorance.

I was back in the Anathorn mansion, not as a dignified council member but as a fugitive in disguise. The doors of the main hall were locked. They must have snatched Lucretius as soon as he walked inside. We waited outside, but one of the Queen’s guards leaned his head out of the door and waved us in.

“Come in, you two. Councilman Lucretius wants you two in there with him.”

He ushered us into the hall. The lights were dim, to simulate moonlight. Flickering artificial lights simulated the candles of old. There was soft chamber music playing in the background. The scene was a stark contrast to the gloom in everyone’s faces. Marie-Evangeline’s smirk had been wiped off her self-righteous visage. I wish something like this happened to her more often. A hint of suffering showed through the cracks in Katerina’s stony façade. Fortunato just sat there looking wilted.

“Have you heard from Teófilo?” the Queen asked Lucretius.

“No, he hasn’t contacted me.” He looked around the table. “Where is Gustaf? Is he still at his home?”

There was silence around the table. Everyone looked to one another to see who would tell him.

“Gustaf…did not make it,” said Marie-Evangeline. His home was overrun. They escaped in armored cars, but…” She choked up and started to cry. I almost allowed myself to feel pity for her—almost.

“His vehicle was overturned and forced open,” the Queen continued for her. “I sent a scout patrol to investigate. Their vehicle was deserted. I don’t know what’s happened to him, but it doesn’t look good.”

“What about Clifford?” Lucretius asked.

The Queen answered, “Clifford is no longer with us. I have confirmed reports that his home was overrun. No one made it out alive.”

“They’ve been targeting the council,” said Marie through her tears. “I do not know how they are doing it, but they are not acting in a disorganized way. It is almost like they are becoming one mind.”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” the Queen said. “They are not intelligent. If we give in to panic, we are already lost.”

“We might be lost anyway,” Marie-Evangeline muttered.

“The Queen is right,” said Lucretius. “We need to be the cooler heads that prevail in this situation.”

“If only we had beheaded her, burned her body…this would not have happened,” Marie muttered.

“Speaking of such, where is Mordecai?” asked the Queen. “I had a feeling he might have gone over to you.”

“Mordecai is still alive somewhere. I’m sure he’s safe.”

“Well, I have his beloved Rhiannon looking for him.”

That got my attention. I hoped the Queen did not see me squirm.

“That girl you found in that abandoned settlement? You have sent her out among those hordes? Has she not seen enough?”

“It was her idea. She’s recovered her memory, said she would rather die than lose him again.”

I didn’t realize how badly I was fidgeting, but Rayna did. She gave my arm a not-so-gentle squeeze, warning me not to give us away, but I didn’t care right then. All I wanted to do was run out of that room and go find her, tell her that I’m fine. I’ve come all this distance just to end up reunited with her. If she remembers, I mean to tell her how I feel and…

My train of thoughts was derailed. I saw Rayna turning my way. I couldn’t see her expression behind the mask, but I knew she was glaring at me. I felt the heat coming from her gaze, like sunlight at high noon. Her gesture backfired. I walked out of the room.

The Queen complained, “The nerve! Who does that guard think he is, walking out of this room without so much as excusing himself?”

“You should forgive him, my Queen,” Lucretius replied. “He has endured many hardships today. The sunset will greet that many less of those he holds dear.

The Queen let out a loud humph. “That still does not justify boorish behavior. There must be some sort of discipline for this outburst.”

“Yes, my Queen. I will see to it myself.”

Their voices faded as I walked away from the door, but I envisioned the Queen smiling in self-satisfaction under that veil. Rayna did not follow me. She might have even thanked me under her breath for taking the focus off her, though she would never admit it even if she were being tortured for it.