Found (Book #8 in the Vampire Journals) (9 page)

“Judas here will infiltrate Jesus’ circle, and will help us bring him down. And then, we will catch your sister.”

Rexius turned to Sam.

“But without you, we can’t find her. Without you, we can’t finish her off.”

Rexius stood from his throne, staring down at Sam.

“Samson of the Blacktide Coven, are you prepared to help us in our cause? Are you prepared to help us find the shield, to help us kill Jesus, and to help us kill your sister?”

Sam stood there, feeling his body shaking, rising with thoughts of violence and destruction. He tried to think clearly, but all he could see in front of him were flames, rising higher and higher. It was a vision he could not shake, as much as he wanted to.

“I will kill anything and anyone in my way,” Sam replied. He stared at Rexius. “I might even kill you, if I choose.”

Rexius stared down at him, and slowly, his surprised look morphed into a smile.

“Exactly the words I longed to hear.”

CHAPTER TEN

As Caitlin and Caleb flew over the Israeli countryside, the sun beginning to set, the sky blending in shades of pink and the temperature finally cooling, Caitlin ran over in her head the inscription on the wall. Caleb had explained it to her, but still, she couldn’t quite process its significance.

It had read:
Where the graves rise, the olive tree has many branches
.

She’d had no idea what that meant. Caleb explained that he thought it was a reference, a clue that they needed to go to the ancient Mount of Olives, the legendary mountain that sat on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It was a mystical place, he said, part cemetery and part olive grove, and had been one of the most important places of vampire power for millennia. It was rumored, he said, to be home to the most powerful vampire coven of all.

They hadn’t stopped flying since, racing towards the Mount, towards Jerusalem. The entire time, Caitlin couldn’t stop wondering if she would find her Dad there. Or the Shield. Or, she dared to hope, Scarlet. She couldn’t get there fast enough.

The Israeli countryside below her was breathtaking. As they headed south, getting ever closer to Jerusalem, the terrain constantly changed, from desert, to mountains, to hills, to rolling green valleys. They passed rivers, small, rural towns, endless farms, and groves of palm trees. The country seemed barely populated, looking like one huge rural stretch of farmland, with just the occasional house, and small village, here and there.

As they rounded a bend, the sky now alight with shades of orange, Caleb suddenly pointed.

“There!” he said. “See that peak in the distance? That’s it.”

Caitlin squinted, and in the distance, she could barely make it out. It looked like every other mountain peak, except that she could see, even from here, it was completely covered in small olive trees, their silver branches glistening in the last light of sun.

“The Mount of Olives is famous not only because it towers over Jerusalem,” Caleb said, as they flew closer, “but also because it is the place where Jesus gave his sermons. In the future, centuries from now, it will be home to one of the most important churches in all Christianity. It has also, for thousands of years, been home to the most famous cemetery in the world. Everyone wants to be buried there, because the Bible holds that in the End of Days, when the Messiah comes, this is the place he will appear first. And those buried here will be the first to resurrect.”

“But I still don’t understand: why does our clue lead us here?” Caitlin asked. “How is this related to our search?”

Caleb shook his head.

“I have no idea,” he answered.

They dove down, circling the Mount. Up close, it was even more beautiful. Caitlin could see the thousands of small olives filling the branches, the beautiful slopes rising up and down, the small, twisted trees looking ancient. And over the edge of the mountain, on the horizon, she could just begin to see the ancient city of Jerusalem, nestled in the valley like a jewel shining in the sunset. She could feel its energy even from here. It was breathtaking.

Caleb dove down for the mountaintop, and Caitlin followed. They landed high up, on a plateau, in the midst of the olive trees.

They stood there, getting their bearings, taking in the incredible vista, the sweeping sunset in every direction. It was incredible. Caitlin felt as if she were atop the world.

But as beautiful as it was, Caitlin still had no idea what they were doing there. She didn’t know what to look for, and she didn’t see any sign of her Dad, or of Scarlet—or anyone.

She did, in the distance, see a row of small, marble headstones, a graveyard on one of the slopes. She ambled over, drawn to it, Caleb by her side. She walked amidst the stones, examining them. They looked as if they’d been there for thousands of years.

She saw a few stones which seemed bigger than the others and she knelt beside one, reached down and brushed off the dirt, feeling an energy coming off of it. As she did, a name appeared.

Caitlin stood, as if she had been struck by a lightning bolt. She could not believe it. It was a name that she knew.

Caitlin Paine.

She stood there, shocked, wondering what it meant. Caleb seemed equally surprised, and he knelt down beside the other and brushed that one off, too.

Caitlin was even more surprised: it was engraved with Caleb’s name.

“What does it mean?” Caitlin asked.

“I don’t know,” Caleb answered, grimly.

The two of them stood there, frozen, almost afraid to check the third stone. Finally, Caitlin knelt down and brushed it off.

She could not believe it.

Aiden
.

She turned to Caleb.

“Can it be?
Our
Aiden?”

As Caitlin saw his name, memories came flooding back. She recalled the last time she saw him, in Scotland, standing before the castle, informing her of all the tragedy that had befell their coven. Telling her she was their last hope, that she had to fulfill the mission. She thought of all the times she had seen him, all the places, going back to Pollepel, and she was overwhelmed with emotion.

“Yes, it is me,” came a voice.

Caitlin wheeled, and was shocked to see standing there, barely a few feet away, the man himself.

Aiden.

He wore a long white robe and hood, with his flowing gray hair and beard, and stared back at Caitlin with his large blue eyes, as if he had just seen her yesterday.

Slowly, he broke into a smile.

“I thought you would get here sooner.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Scarlet felt herself being pushed and prodded down the dark stone corridor of the prison, as they descended lower and lower into the earth. Her hands were clasped tightly behind her back with silver shackles, while Ruth was being led beside her, a muzzle over her mouth. Scarlet was terrified as they went, hearing the distant shouts of prisoners, getting ever closer. They sounded like vicious people, and she felt as if she were being led into the depths of hell, right towards an insane asylum.

As she was shoved again, hard in the back, Scarlet caught a glimpse of her warder: he was a huge man, with a big fat belly, unshaven, with missing teeth. She could smell his awful breath even from here.

“Keep moving, you little brat!” he said.

He then wound up and kicked Ruth hard in her back, sending her flying forward, too, and banging her head into a stone wall. Ruth yelped. There was nothing she could do, though, with the muzzle securely over her face.

Their warder laughed. Scarlet felt her rage well up, but there was nothing she could do: she tried again to twist her arms, her wrists, her hands. But she couldn’t break free. They were securely bound behind her, and the silver made her powerless.

Scarlet thought back to what had happened earlier, to her rampage, her first feeding, her fighting all the soldiers…. She regretted hurting anyone. She really hadn’t wanted to. But the need for feeding, for blood, had consumed her so completely, she hadn’t been in her right mind. No one had ever taught her how to feed. What to do. She had to fend for herself, and she did the best she could.

But she did not regret hurting those mean soldiers, and she was still furious they’d caught her in a silver net. She didn’t feel that she deserved to be thrown into this dungeon. She felt more alone than ever. She could only imagine what horrors awaited her down below, as she was led deeper into the darkness, the corridors lit only by flickering torches.

“You’re a feisty one, aren’t you?” came the guttural voice behind her. “They told me to take you to the lowest chamber, to the silver room. Lock you up behind silver bars. But I don’t see how you need it. You’re just a flimsy little girl, aren’t you? No harm to anyone, are you?”

Scarlet felt his fat, sweaty palm suddenly grab the back of her neck, and then run up the back of her head, under her hair. She could hear him licking his lips, swallowing.

“Before I bring you down, I think I might teach you a thing or two. Break you in. Have my way with you, if you know what I mean?” he said with a laugh.

Scarlet felt the hair rise on her arms; she despised the sound of his voice. Beside her, Ruth snarled.

But she was helpless. She yanked again and again, but couldn’t break free.

Suddenly, the man grabbed her and threw her into a side chamber. Scarlet sensed that he was defying orders, not doing what he’d been directed to. That he was going to take advantage of her, for his own means. She looked up and saw the lustful look on his face, as he stared down, licking his lips. She realized that this would be bad.

He suddenly grabbed her by the shirt and tore open the buttons.

Scarlet squirmed, turning her back on him. She could feel her body shaking, and was more afraid than ever.

“Don’t you touch me!” she screamed back. But she knew it was useless.

The man smacked her hard in the back of her head, and she cowered from the pain.

She then felt him undo the silver clasps binding her wrists, unlocking them.

“You don’t need these after all, do you?” he asked. “No. Taking them off will make my time with you more fun.”

Scarlet felt the clasps slip off her wrists, then slink down to the ground. They landed on the stone with a clink.

She could not believe her luck. As the silver fell off of her, she felt a new power rise within her: it was as if a huge chain had been lifted from her. She could not understand the effect that silver had, but now, she felt completely rejuvenated. She felt all her power rushing back, infusing her from head to toe.

The man reached around and grabbed her from behind. He was strong, and his beefy hands clamped down on her. He reached up and began to squeeze her throat.

And that was his last mistake.

Now Scarlet had strength to fight back. She grabbed his huge wrist, spun it around, and easily held it there, in mid-air.

The man looked down, eyes wide in shock, uncomprehending.

Scarlet held his wrist for several seconds, enjoying the moment, feeling so much stronger than he. Now the tables had turned. His hand shook as he tried to break free. But he could not. His astonishment deepened.

Scarlet slowly turned back his wrist, turning it nearly upside down, until the man finally dropped to his knees before her, crying out in pain. She kept turning it back, more and more slowly, relishing the moment.

Soon, the huge man was shaking, trembling.

“You little witch!” he screamed. “I’m going to kill you!”

Snap.

The man screamed out in pain as Scarlet broke his wrist.

Now, she wanted vengeance. Not just for her, but for any girl this man may have victimized. And, of course, for Ruth. No one treats Ruth that way.

Scarlet wound up and kicked him hard in the face, snapping back his neck, and he collapsed in a heap on the floor, not moving.

Scarlet ran over to Ruth and tore off her muzzle. Ruth snarled, and without missing a beat, leapt onto the man, sinking her teeth into his throat.

The man squirmed on the ground, in agony, then scurried to his hands and knees and crawled into the corner, covering his head with his hands, trying to get away. But Ruth kept biting him, leaving bite marks all over him, as the man cowered in the corner.

Suddenly, Scarlet felt a silver net cover her again from behind. She couldn’t believe it.

She collapsed to a heap on the ground, powerless. Several guards rushed in and stood over her, just as they threw another net over Ruth.

Scarlet chided herself. She should have been more careful, and made an immediate escape.

Moments later, the warder was back on his feet, bloody, and scowling down at them. He stared down at Scarlet with a hatred she had rarely seen.

“Now you’re going to suffer,” he said. “Before, I was going to put you in isolation, in the silver chamber. Now, I’m putting you in with the murderers. You just dug your own grave. I hope you enjoy it.”

The warder marched out, moaning in pain, and as he did, the guards picked up Scarlet and dragged her out, back down the hall.

Scarlet, in the net, twisted and turned to break free—but it was no use. She was carried deeper down the corridors. After several turns, they reached another level below ground.

She looked out and saw an endless row of bars, behind which was a cacophony of noise. Hundreds of voices, screaming in the darkness. They were lit only by the torchlight, and as they shoved their faces against the bars, it made them look even more creepy. She could see the ugly and dangerous faces of dozens of treacherous types, sticking their heads through the bars, screaming out at her.

She swallowed. With the silver clasps back on her, she was weak and defenseless again. Surely, these prisoners would kill her.

The bars opened and the guards hoisted the net and threw her into the room. She landed hard on the stone floor, Ruth thrown in beside her, as the bars were slammed shut.

She scrambled to her feet and threw off the net—but she was still chained with the silver clasps. There she stood, in the midst of the cell, looking out at the faces of dozens of murderers. They stared back at her and licked their lips, as if a lamb had just been thrown into a lion’s den.

Ruth squirmed beside her, but with her muzzle back on, she was useless.

“Well
well
well
!” one of them, a particularly large and nasty-looking convict, said. “Look at what we have here!”

“If the lamb hasn’t come to slaughter!” said another.

“I didn’t have my breakfast yet today!” another one added.

“This is going to be years of enjoyment for me. Do you know what it’s like to suffer slowly, little girl?” another asked.

Scarlet squirmed against her shackles, but no matter how much she tried, she could not get free. The group of convicts slowly approached. She backed up, until she was flush against the stone wall.

Soon, she hit it, and there was nowhere else to go. Outside, she could see the guards watching, the sadistic smiles on their faces. Clearly, they would revel in this, watching her suffer.

The crowd closed in, now only feet away.

Scarlet only wished that she didn’t have to die this way.