Judas and the Vampires (24 page)

“So, we’re talking about ‘magi’ in the biblical sense?” Amy snickered. “Aren’t they the guys who brought gifts of jewels, frankincense, and myrrh when Jesus was born?”

“Yes, I believe that’s exactly what we have here,” said Alistair, looking over at Jeremy, who smiled and nodded.

“Oh, Christ, you’ve got to be
kidding
me!” said Amy. Apparently we had just reached the threshold of her bullshit meter. “So, these guys are like the ‘three wise men’ we see in standard nativity depictions?”

“Do you really want to take a chance and insult them?” I interjected. “Regardless of their exact role in all of this, I do believe a bona fide angel counts as a reliable source. So, if Ophanim says they’re magi, then that’s who they are. I think the earlier question of ‘where the hell are we headed?’ is a better one to focus on.”

Yeah, that did get her to shut up. It also got me a wicked stare that would’ve ignited my garments and melted me into a puddle if she had Ophanim’s power. Her lovely green eyes were immediately transformed into narrow slits of Medusa fire. Luckily, Jeremy found another way to distract us all. He pulled out a small leather pouch that Zoran had given to him and poured its contents into his left palm.

“These things that look like black lima beans? They’re supposed to keep us nourished until we can find time to eat properly.” Jeremy smiled at us all, and gave an especially loving look to his sister, as if he knew her temperament under stress and hunger. “Zoran says you only need to eat a few of these to last until we make it back to Tehran.”

“Even though we’re headed in the opposite direction?”

Very nice Ali! He took the very words out of my mouth.

“Yes,” said Jeremy, eyeing my son thoughtfully for a moment. “Zoran promised it will make complete sense once we reach our destination, and that we’ll be back in Tehran by morning.”

We took the beans and swallowed them—without the aid of anything to drink, mind you. I didn’t feel anything at first, but again my metabolism isn’t normal. However, once I saw both Amy and Alistair relax, I knew we’d be okay. One weird side effect of the strange little beans was an apparent inability to keep track of time. Before I knew it, twilight was upon us. Then, just before the onset of night, the dilapidated old truck pulled into a very small village.

This village was significantly bigger than the last one we had been in, but without much that indicated its people even knew the world had moved into the twenty-first century. With rudimentary amenities at best, I knew we’d never find anything resembling a Howard Johnson’s. But it did have a church. One that I recognized from my previous painstaking research.

Al-haroun.

I couldn’t believe my eyes, and in the dimness I checked for other landmarks...the nearby mosque, and a marketplace across the street from it. This was indeed the right place—
the
place where a certain silver coin called to me. I felt an incredible wave of gratitude for whatever inspired Zoran and his cohorts to bring me here. Whether it was the angel Ophanim, or some providence from the Lord he serves, and Whom I have desperately sought reconciliation with.

But, it came with a bit of a problem, too. The village was crawling with soldiers, though Iranian instead of the mercenary type we had most recently dealt with.

“Since when did this place become part of a militarized zone?” Alistair’s tone was wary as he looked from one side of the road to the other. “I take it that you didn’t come across any information like this during your research, Pops?”

“No, son, I didn’t.” It was the truth. Somehow things had changed very recently, and seeing how many armed troops were in attendance dampened my enthusiasm. “But it’s too late to turn back now.”

More than likely that was indeed an accurate assessment. I now had a much better understanding of why the less-than-desirable mode of transportation had replaced the Mercedes, as well as why we were dressed in robes. Perhaps our nighttime arrival in the village that spawned the desire to come to Iran in the first place was also not by accident.

Zoran motioned for Jeremy to tell us to keep our heads down, just before the truck was accosted by a pair of soldiers. The pair spoke with Zoran, and I have to admit I was impressed with how fluently the magi leader spoke the modern Persian dialect the soldiers preferred. Apparently, the content of what he said was just as impressive, as we only garnered a cursory glance from either guard as they motioned for the truck to pass through.

Zoran drove down a street near the church, and I had the strange sensation that my coin’s mysterious ‘call’ pulled on him in the same manner it did for me. He pulled the vehicle into a deserted lot where a community center was burned down several years ago, and never rebuilt due to the populace’s fear it would happen again. The former building’s location was close enough to where the coin lay hidden to count as a veritable ‘cursed site’. Burnings, earthquakes, and even the tornado I mentioned at the outset of this story all claimed structures built upon this very site. Only the church and the mosque have been spared, although their constituents have suffered grievously over the centuries.

“Here is where we must leave you,” said Zoran, after he and his two comrades climbed out of the truck’s cab. “William Judas Barrow.... What you seek is calling loudly, and like you, we’ve been listening to its voice.”

Gaspar and Balthazar nodded silently to confirm Zoran’s words.

“Listen with your heart and mind, so that you find it quickly,” Zoran continued, and then turned to face my companions. “All of you must be ready to leave at the first light of dawn. You will be protected only until then, and you must make it outside of the village. Otherwise....”

“Otherwise what?” I didn’t like the way that sounded.

Zoran studied me intently for a moment. His warm brown eyes appeared to turn slightly luminous under the glow from a solitary streetlight nearby.

“Otherwise, none of you will ever have to concern yourselves with going back to America,” he said, his tone suddenly low and solemn. “It is your destiny to survive...but only if you heed my instructions.”

To me, it sounded as if it should be an easy deal. After all, I knew the general area where the coin was resting. Someplace inside the church...or perhaps it was in the outbuildings. Maybe it lay hidden under the road itself. Or, it could be inside one of the ancient tombs lined in several rows behind the church.

At least we didn’t have to contend with finding the right church, since there was just one Christian house of worship in the village. The soldiers seemed preoccupied with an area nearly half a mile away from the church and mosque, so that was good, too. But I realized that could change before morning—especially if someone called to report four strangers hanging around the church this late at night. At least we were clad in outfits that seemed more in line with the garb worn by the few people I noticed mulling around the village entrance.

Despite the gravity of Zoran’s words, I offered the traditional hug and kiss, following Jeremy and Alistair’s lead. Amy apparently knew enough of Middle Eastern customs to avoid Western awkwardness, simply bowing to the three men before they climbed back into the truck.

“Okay, everyone, since the outcome of this situation rests squarely upon my shoulders, I suggest you let me take the lead so that we get it taken care of as quickly and safely as possible,” I said.

Once I got either a head nod or a ‘yes’ from everyone, I led the way over to the church. Dark enough to hide in the shadows, we soon reached the side entrance to the one story building. It was unlocked.

“Try to keep things quiet, and it shouldn’t take long to get a feel for the general area where the coin is hidden.” I kept my voice to a whisper. “It may be in here, or it might not be.... I should know if this is the right place in the next few minutes.”

I waited for Alistair to step inside the church since he was the last one in line, and then I closed the door behind him. Just before I did, I glanced back to where the truck had been. When Zoran had dropped us off, he cut the noisy engine. I expected to hear it restart and idle loudly again. I heard nothing, and thought the mysterious trio was waiting to make sure we made it to the church okay. But now I wasn’t so sure what to think. The big ugly and loud Volvo truck had vanished from where it sat earlier.

I didn’t share this information with the others, since I thought it might lead to some needless panic and a distraction that would make our expedition more difficult. I only wished we had a light, since once again we were in darkness. Yes, there was electricity in the building, since I found the light switch. Unfortunately, that would immediately give our presence away. What I wouldn’t give for the small flashlights Cedric provided for us.

“Is this what you need?”

Jeremy produced a similar flashlight, after I openly lamented about the lack of having a suitable light source. He explained that Zoran had given it to him. This was starting to piss me off, since even though I think of my personal ‘coin hunting’ as a game, I’m not so keen on anyone other than Alistair treating it the same way.

“Yes, it is...but this is not the right place,” I said.

“Huh? Pops, we just got in here. How in the hell can you tell already?”

Really, Alistair should know me better by now. Unlike the casual jaunts we sometimes have taken to collect a coin, this time the added onus of three peoples’ lives put some extra petrol in my tank. Everything was intensified as a result, including my already heightened sensitivity. The ‘feel’ for where the coin lay resting had been juiced seriously.

“You and everyone else here are just going to have to trust me, Ali,” I told him. “It’s got to be inside one of the buildings outside...that’s what I’m picking up.”

Without waiting for any more questions, I prepared to lead the way back outside. I almost caused everyone to trip on their robes behind me. A handful of soldiers had gathered across the street from the church.

“Well, fuck me running!”
I hissed angrily.

“What in the hell now, Pops?”

“Shush!!!”

This latest chapter in our misadventure just got a helluva lot worse. But we didn’t have the option of waiting. I knew it as much as I knew anything else at that moment. More soldiers would come, and it was a matter of time before someone carrying a loaded assault rifle ventured over to us.

“Why are these guys everywhere?”

Amy’s question would’ve been a great one to ask Zoran a short while ago, and it certainly wasn’t her fault. None of the guys thought to ask it either.

“I wish to God I had been smart enough to find out,” I said, quietly. “But now that we know they’re here, we will have to get to my coin
very
soon!”

I motioned for everyone to follow me outside. After closing the door carefully, I whispered for them to stay low to the ground, moving catlike to the rear of the church. The call from the coin grew stronger...we were on the right track. But it wasn’t inside the outbuildings, as the feeling grew weaker as I approached either one. A good thing in a sense, as both doors were bolted shut.

At this point, I told everyone else to wait in the shadows beneath one of the main church building’s eves. I knew what I had to do next would be extremely risky, but three more soldiers had joined their comrades across the street. Logic told me that we’d be discovered within the next half hour if we didn’t find the damned coin first. I had no choice but to move out in plain sight.

I must have looked like such a lunatic, dodging back and forth between the rows of sepulchers, each one’s bleached cover glistening under the glow of another streetlamp near the end of this graveyard. The coin began to call loudly about halfway through the middle of the second row. The sensation sent small shockwaves through my left arm. My prize was somewhere inside the tomb next to where I crouched.

I waved covertly for the others to join me, but at first they didn’t see me. While I waited, a pair of soldiers crossed the street to the church. I thought surely they saw me, and I felt a thick lump form inside my throat. But they headed to the front of the building
instead. Luckily, Amy noticed my desperate signal by then. The three of them crept over to me.

“It’s here!” I whispered excitedly, once all three rejoined me. “We’ve just got to bust into this thing.”

“What, and bring the entire Iranian brigade over here?!” Alistair snapped. “Isn’t there a latch on these things that we can use instead?”

“No, there’s not.”

“Your father’s right,” said Jeremy. “These tombs can only be entered by breaking what amounts to a plaster door in the front, and then we should be able to climb down into the main chamber.... Are you sure what you’re looking for is in there?”

“I’m reasonably certain,” I said. “If I had to bet all the money I have to my name, I’d say ‘yes’. But I’ll admit I’m a little nervous breaking into this thing with so much unwanted company around.”

I dared to peek over the top of the tomb, and my hunch that the area would soon be visited by more soldiers proved correct. Worse yet, the two we saw from earlier were checking the locked doors to the out buildings. I worried that we had left some evidence of our presence.... Did I not get the side door to latch
fully?

“Oh
shit!
They’re coming this way!” Amy pointed across the street where five other soldiers moved toward the other two.