Eventually I reached a clearing. The road just ended, and a towering church stood there.
Johann wasn’t lying. The place looked like it had been taken right out of the heart of old Europe. Gothic architecture. Gargoyles perched on the top of the building. I imagined it had been erected here early in the history of westward expansion. I mean, Kansas City wasn’t nearly so old a city as even St. Louis, just to the east. And it was a lot newer, relatively speaking, than cities on the East Coast. And those cities had hardly any history at all compared to those in Europe.
But this church…
Who built it? New-world Catholics, perhaps? But that was questionable, too. This wasn’t exactly the part of the country were Catholicism thrived in the early days of the Americas.
As I looked at the building, I spotted words etched into the white stone that formed its exterior: Der Orden des Erzengels Michael.
The church not only belonged to the Order, it predated the Order. It was what the Order used to be… the one that Wolfgang helped establish in the Americas.
There wasn’t a parking lot, per se. This church was erected before people drove cars. But the cars of the Order members who’d already arrived were scattered along the tree line.
I saw Devin’s car. He was here. I knew he would be. But seeing his car… for some reason my chest tightened up. I was more nervous, oddly enough, about how Devin would get through the night. I mean, this was supposed to be an initiation into the Order’s inner circle.
But once I tried to save Alice…
Once the shit hit the fan…
He’d probably hate me even more than he already did.
I hated the idea of him hating me. But not as much as I hated the idea of seeing him get sucked into an Order that would never accept him, that would tie him to some kind of dark plot to do whatever the hell Alice had tried to tell me before Tom and the other hunter interrupted our conversation and Devin staked her.
I looked around. A man in a black cloak and hood stood at the entrance of the church. He had another gown draped over one arm.
Parking my bike next to Devin’s car, I approached him.
He lowered his hood. “I’m glad you joined us.”
The hood obscured most of his face, but I recognized his voice. “Thank you, Tom.”
“I need you to put this on,” Tom said. “It’s a part of our tradition.”
I sighed. All this work getting fabulous to just cover myself up with a black cloak? The thing looked like something a monk might wear. Or the grim reaper. Take your pick.
Let Johann know I’m wearing this. Tell him to be as inconspicuous as possible, I thought, hoping Brucie would hear it and pass the message along. I had no way to verify it. But this cloak did more than spoil my get-up—it had the potential to spoil any advantage we might have by him acting as my doppelgänger.
“Are you ready, Nyx?” Tom asked.
“I suppose. I mean, I don’t know what I need to be ready for.”
Tom nodded. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
“Wait.” I grabbed Tom as gently as I could by the arm. “What about Devin?”
“I’ve spoken to him,” Tom said. “He’s agreed to tolerate your induction alongside him, for the good of the Order, provided you respect his boundaries.”
I cocked my head. “Boundaries?”
“You and I both know what that means.”
I nodded. “Of course.”
Tom pulled the door open. It was probably six inches thick, heavy and made of oak. “Ladies first.”
I nodded. I wasn’t a girl who cared much about chivalry, and I knew Tom was being a little cheeky about it. But at least he’d acknowledged me as a female. I walked through the door.
The whole place was filled with smoke. Burning incense. It was sweet—almost enough to cut through the smell. Like when we were in the funeral home before, though this place contained a mixture of so many different vampire scents that I couldn’t focus on just one.
As I stepped into what looked like an old sanctuary, I saw why.
Three crucifixes.
Alice hung from the middle one, nails in her hands and feet, and the stake that Devin had lodged in her heart still protruded through her chest.
Two other vampires hung on either side of her in similar fashion. One was Chad, the vampire that Devin and I had staked before.
I didn’t recognize the third one.
There were at least two dozen Order members gathered and seated in the pews on either side of the center aisle.
“Where should I sit?” I asked.
“Right next to Devin.” Tom gestured toward two chairs situated at the foot of the two crosses. Devin was already occupying the one on the right. At least I presumed it was him, since Tom had said so. I couldn’t tell, since he was wearing the same cloak and hood as me. The chair on the left was still vacant—reserved for me. “You and Devin are our guests of honor.”
“I know Alice and Chad,” I said. Who’s the third vampire?”
“Devin was busy today,” Tom said. “Just another youngling he managed to wrangle a few hours ago.”
“Impressive.”
“We never conduct the rituals until we have three,” Tom said. “Again, it’s a tradition.”
I bit my lip. From what I’d learned from both Wolfgang and Johann, these rituals weren’t exactly a part of recent tradition. They were either something revived from a previous age or something brand new. By the way Tom was speaking, it seemed more along the lines of the former than the latter.
CHAPTER THIRTY
I took my place beside Devin in one of two chairs. I looked at him, but he didn’t acknowledge me. Even if he had, it would be hard to make eye contact given the oversized hoods covering our heads and half our faces.
With the hood, in fact, I could barely see the three crosses.
Vision was the sense I relied on the most as a hunter. But it wasn’t the only one. My sense of smell was unreliable due to the fact that multiple vampire scents were mixed together in the air. I’d have to rely on my hearing.
Then a pipe organ started to play.
I knew music, but the tune they were playing was unlike anything I’d ever heard. And it was so loud that I didn’t even hear the footsteps of the two cloaked men who appeared in front of us. Unless I really craned my neck, I couldn’t see them past my hood. And even then, their faces were covered even more than mine.
The organ stopped playing.
“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” Tom said. I only knew it was him from his voice.
“Amen,” the whole crowd responded in unison.
“Amen,” I added, trying to play along. But I wasn’t quite in sync with everyone else. My voice stood out from the rest.
I didn’t know who the man standing beside Tom was. Presumably he was the same hunter who had accompanied him at the funeral home. He stood a few steps behind Tom, but was completely silent.
“Today, we welcome two initiates to the inner circle of the Order of the Morning Dawn,” Tom continued. “Our Lord bid his disciples that if any wished to save his life, he must take up his cross and follow him.”
“Amen,” the congregation replied, again in unison. “Praise be to you, oh Lord.”
“As such, these who would be disciples in the inner circle, followers of our Lord, must endure the path of redemption that our Lord endured on our behalf. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood, the Lord declared in John the sixth chapter, will be risen on the last day.”
Again, the congregation responded, “For my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.”
“When the morning dawned,” Tom continued, “they bound him and led him away and delivered him to Pontius Pilate.”
I expected the congregation to respond again. But before I knew it, something fell across my lap. And then it was pulled tight from behind.
A rope.
/>
They were binding me to the chair.
Devin grunted. Apparently they were doing the same thing to him.
Shit, I thought as they continued wrapping the rope around my body. What the hell are they doing?
They were binding me, like Jesus was bound… I could only hope that this was just a part of the ritual. But how in the world was I going to save Alice now?
Brucie, I thought, Make sure Johann knows what’s happening…
“Those who eat his flesh and drink from his cup proclaim his death until he returns!” Tom said.
“Amen! Amen! Amen!” the congregation replied enthusiastically.
“Remove their hoods that our initiates might gaze upon their salvation,” Tom said. “May these sins be bound eternally, even as our Lord was bound. And may they taste of the blood of life!”
“Amen! Amen! Amen!”
Someone—presumably the same people who had tied me up—pulled down my hood and Devin’s. I glanced at him, but he remained fixed on the sight of Alice.
“Present the centurion’s spear!” Tom declared.
Another shrouded figure appeared with a long item wrapped in purple linens.
Tom unwrapped it and retrieved a long spear. “This very spear was used to pierce our Lord’s side, calling forth blood and water,” Tom declared. “But these creatures of the night, these antichrists, have arisen from the pits of hell. They come wielding the power of resurrection, but their existence is a mockery of our Lord!”
“Amen! Amen! Amen!”
“But our Lord has taken what the devil intended for evil and has given us a great gift,” Tom declared.
Another shrouded figure emerged behind the three crucified vampires and retrieved a golden chalice from the altar.
Tom took the spear in his hands, and with the chalice-bearer kneeling next to Alice’s cross, he thrust the spear into her side.
Black blood poured from her wound.
The chalice-bearer caught it and filled the cup to the brim. The chalice-bearer handed the cup to the second shrouded man, the one who’d stood in watch behind Tom and the rest of what was happening.
He took it in his hands.
“As is the custom, our Lord will drink of the blood and feast on the hearts of these wretched ones on behalf of our initiates.”
The man who held the chalice snapped his fingers.
Tom cocked his head slightly and approached the other man, who whispered something into his ear.
Tom nodded. “Our Lord has seen fit to bestow this gift upon one of our initiates. For blood and water poured from the Christ’s side. And today, one of our initiates is not of flesh and blood, but of water by essence.”
My eyes darted back and forth. Where the hell was Johann? I mean, if ever there was a time…
The second man approached me and put the cup to my lips. “Take and drink.”
The moment he spoke, I knew his voice. I cocked my head.
Then then man removed his hood.
Wolfgang…
“What the…”
Wolfgang smiled. The saliva on his fangs caught a glare from the candlelight. “This is a gift for you, Nyx,” Wolfgang said in a low tone. His words were meant only for me. “In gratitude for your fidelity and your aid in capturing this vampire.”
I cocked my head. So much started to make sense. His radical views—the ones Johann had mentioned—were reflected in the ritual that had led to this moment.
“Wolfgang,” I said.
“Your Lordship,” Wolfgang corrected. “I am the Lord of this Order. A personification of the Christ, here to bless the world with immortal blood.”
I shook my head. “I don’t know if I can…”
“This blood will return your abilities, Nyx,” Wolfgang said. “Albeit temporarily. If you wish to restore your abilities indefinitely, you will have to partake in her heart as well.”
At least we hadn’t gotten that far. I’d seen vampires drained of their blood before—it’s not pretty. But they can still be revived. They return with one hell of a craving, of course, but if they’re unstaked…
“Look at me,” Wolfgang said.
My eyes met his. And the moment it happened, I regretted it. When he spoke, it was as if I couldn’t resist. It was like something else had taken me over.
“Take and drink,” Wolfgang said again.
I opened my mouth and Wolfgang placed the chalice of Alice’s blood to my lips.
And I drank.
A cool energy filled my body. It was a sensation I had forgotten ever experiencing. But it was how I felt before…
Wolfgang pulled the chalice from my lips. “Look at me again.”
I tried to turn my head away. I didn’t want to allow him that kind of control, that kind of compulsion over me again. But I was tied. I was bound.
He grabbed my face by the chin and, aided undoubtedly by his vampiric strength, forced me to look him in the eyes. “Target me, Nyx,” Wolfgang said. “Make of me your next meal.”
The moment he said it, my body began to change. My waist thinned, my legs shortening until my stiletto boots were loose around my calves. And my hands softened. They became delicate.
Wolfgang looked at me. I could swear there was a tear in his eyes. Then he turned and retrieved a silver plate from the altar. He placed it in front of me. “Look upon your new beauty.”
I couldn’t believe it. I was a woman. Strikingly beautiful. My lips were full and red. My nose, almost like a button. My ears, tiny and delicate.
“Katarina,” Wolfgang said. “My long-lost Katarina.”
I cocked my head. “Who is…”
“She was my beloved,” Wolfgang said. “When I was still human. And now you have given me a great gift-—the chance to gaze upon her face again. Perhaps, if I changed your memories. Led you to believe you were my Katarina…”
I wiggled as best I could within my bindings. The ropes were looser now that my body was smaller, and I nearly managed to shake myself free.
“You are free to leave if you like,” Wolfgang said. “For now, at least. But you will never change forms again unless you consume Alice’s heart.”
I shook my head. “But I’ve targeted you now. If I’d targeted her as my prey again, I’d look as I did before.”
Wolfgang nodded. “It was temporary. But once the blood you’ve consumed is flushed from your body, your abilities will fade.”
“And I’ll return to my shape from before?”
Wolfgang shook his head. “You will not. For years I left this Order. I scoured the world looking for more of your kind that I might… experiment with this process. But never did I find one such as you who would target me as a meal. Then, to hear that Alice had succeeded in the same endeavor that had eluded me for years, I knew you were the answer.”
I glanced over at Devin. He looked back at me and, for the first time, his eyes met mine. He nodded.
“You see,” Wolfgang said, “even this one tells you that you have no choice. We must allow this ability of yours to fade. And now, when I consume the heart of Alice, your form will be bound to the one I desire forever.”
“No!” I said.
Wolfgang grabbed me by the face. “Silence.”
I struggled against my bindings. I could move a little, but I still couldn’t get loose.
“Give me the spear,” Wolfgang commanded.
Tom obediently handed it to him.
Brucie, I thought hard, tell Johann he needs to come now. Unleash the vampires!
But it was too late.
Wolfgang thrust the spear again into Alice’s body, and with its tip he cut his way across her sternum. Then he thrust it against her ribcage.
“No!” Wolfgang said. “Her heart. Where in the devil’s hell is her heart?”
Then Alice opened her eyes.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
“Alice!” Johann shouted from the back of the room.
Five vampires charged forward, each of them diving on the closest human
Order member they found.
Alice pulled her hands and feet from the cross, and the nails went flying across the room. She jumped down from the cross and approached Devin, quickly loosening his bindings. “Thank you, my faithful servant,” Alice said. “The craft runs strong in you.”
Devin nodded, then he looked at me and shrugged.
“A witch!” Tom shouted. “My son is a witch!”
Devin leapt from his chair and threw his robe to the side before he helped me out of my bindings. “Are you okay, Nicky?”
I cocked my head. “You called me Nicky.”
Devin smiled. “I know that’s what you prefer. I’ve known from the start.”
“But how…”
Devin winked at me, then kissed me on the cheek. “I’ll explain later.”
Wolfgang charged Devin, but Alice intercepted him, tackling him and knocking over Chad’s cross. His body remained fixed to it as it crashed to the ground.
“I must have your heart, witch,” Wolfgang shouted as he struggled to get out of Alice’s grip. “It’s the only way!”
“You’re a witch?” I asked as I removed my cloak.
Devin nodded. “A warlock, technically. My father already hated me for what he thought were unforgivable sins. I figured if I was damned already, I might as well go all the way, you know?”
I laughed. “That’s brilliant. But we’ll have to talk about it later. I think he wants your heart.”
Devin nodded. “Alice gave me her heart to consume at the funeral home. It’s why I was a bit out of it at the time. It bound her life—her existence, rather—to my soul. So long as I’m alive, she’s alive without a heart.”
I shook my head. “Just like what happened to Mercy Brown.”
Devin nodded. “An old spell Alice picked up a long time ago. She taught it to me.”
I nodded.
The vampires Johann had freed were making their way through the Order, devouring the members one by one.
Screams filled the air.
And the stench. Lord, it was awful.
Alice and Wolfgang continued to struggle with each other. He was older than she was. I didn’t know how long, no matter how powerful she was, she could hold him off.
Scared Shiftless: An Ex-Shifter turned Vampire Hunter Urban Fantasy (The Legend of Nyx Book 1) Page 20
