“She thinks that’s still happening to her?” Chevalier asked.
“Yes”
“You’re right. She does look back to normal,” Kyle said, sitting down.
“She said you wanted this,” Quinn said, and handed Chevalier the restraining belt the Physical Therapist had given her.
“You took this off of her?” Chevalier asked him.
“No, it was sitting beside the pool… why?”
“It’s helping her. She’s not supposed to get it off.”
“Of course she’s not,” Quinn sighed, and looked down at Dain.
“Where is she now?”
“Swimming laps.”
Chevalier stood up and took the belt, “I’m going to see if I can get this back on her.”
Kyle chuckled, “I won’t make you wait long before I revive you.”
“Much appreciated,” he said, and left the council chambers, followed by Dain. He stopped at the pool door to talk to Silas and Kralen, the only two guards on her at the time.
“We didn’t take that off of her,” Silas said when he saw the belt.
“Do you know who did?” Chevalier asked.
“Someone in the prison is all we know.”
“Once I get this on her, keep her out of the prison, and alert the palace that no one’s to take it off.”
Kralen grinned, “You’re going to get it back on her?”
“I’m going… Why do I smell blood?” Chevalier asked, and burst through the doors. He quickly dove into the water when he saw Emily floating face down in the pool as the water turned pink around her.
Kralen called for Mark and jumped into the water after Silas. Chevalier flipped her over in the water and held her while Silas checked to see if she was breathing.
“Get her up on the cement,” Kralen said. Chevalier lifted her onto the cement just as Mark arrived with Dr. Edwards. A few rough hits on the back and Emily began to breathe on her own.
“What happened?” Dr. Edwards asked as he lifted her eyelids.
“She was just swimming and we smelled blood,” Kralen explained.
Dr. Edwards watched her for a moment and then picked her up, “I don’t think the water did much damage. You must have caught it when she first went unconscious.”
“It happened again then?” Chevalier asked, watching Emily in the doctor’s arms.
“Looks like it… When did you get back?”
“Just four hours ago… so it is something in this palace causing it.”
“Not necessarily. There aren’t a lot of environmental causes for strokes… in fact… I can’t think of any. This could all be coincidence.”
Dr. Edwards started inside with Emily while the others followed. By the time he got into the Elder’s bedroom, most of the Council had gathered. He laid her down and they all left so Chevalier could get her out of her wet swimsuit.
“You can come in,” Chevalier said when she was tucked in bed.
Dr. Edwards did a thorough examination and then turned to Chevalier, “Elder… it’s the same thing. She’s had a stroke, but her blood pressure is good. I don’t understand why this is happening.”
“The closest turning we’ve found is over 6 hours from here,” Mark explained. “They’ve turned 1 in the last four months.”
“Maybe I should take her away from here, just in case,” Chevalier said, mostly to himself.
“Let’s wait this out and see how she is when she wakes up,” Dr. Edwards suggested.
“You should just let Mom and I join the Valle,” Alexis said from the door.
Silas quickly ushered Alexis out of the room when Chevalier turned to yell at her.
Chevalier sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Emily, “This is going to set her back again… back to the slow movements and slurred speech.”
“Maybe… strokes affect people differently,” Dr. Edwards said. “If it’s small enough, we may not notice anything at all.”
Chevalier cocked his head slightly to the side when he heard an emergency meeting of the Council.
“Go, I’ll watch her,” Dr. Edwards said, and watched as Chevalier left. He was the first to the council chambers, but the others soon gathered.
“Why were we summoned?” Zohn asked, but none of the Council knew.
“Let’s…” Quinn started, but stopped speaking when the palace went into lock down. “Oh… well I guess we’ll see soon enough.”
Kyle looked over at Chevalier, “So is it true? It happened again?”
Chevalier nodded.
“Damnit”
“If we can’t stop them soon, I’m going to take her away for a while.”
“Speaking of taking Emily away,” Zohn said. “We have two turnings next week that we’ve put off for too long.”
Chevalier nodded, “I was planning on visiting the coven for those days. Emily wants to go see Allen.”
“Just… no yachts,” Kyle said, grinning.
“Not a chance.”
“Oh good, here comes Mark with a report,” the Chief of Staff said. They all looked up when Mark, Silas, and Kralen entered.
“What’s the problem?” Chevalier asked. It was obvious that Mark was furious.
“We found Vic… he’s dead, and the stench of Encala is all over that place,” Mark growled.
“What!?” Chevalier yelled, and stood up. “Are you certain?”
“Yes, he was the Cavalry member assigned to Section A3 in the trees, and when he didn’t come in for shift-change… we went out and found him.”
Quinn’s eyes were enraged, “I say we pay them a visit.”
Zohn stood also, “To hell with tradition, I say the Elders go with the Cavalry and handle this once and for all.”
Mark nodded and disappeared from the room.
“Kyle, you’re with us,” Zohn said, heading out of the council chambers. Kyle nodded and blurred from the room.
“What about Emily?” Dustin asked.
“Dr. Edwards is there, he knows what to do,” Chevalier said, seconds before disappearing. Within the hour, helicopters left the front lawn carrying the Elders and the Cavalry.
The Chief of Staff sighed, “This makes me nervous.”
“It does seem a bit dangerous to have all three Elders go to the enemy,” Dustin agreed. “However, it is their decision to make and I’m certain their presence will more strongly affect the Encala if they are all together.”
“I suspect they better back off or soon there will only be two factions left,” the Chief of Finance said.
“Maybe that’s not all a bad thing,” Dustin added.
Chapter 18 - Encala
“We have no idea what you’re talking about, and I won’t sit here and be insulted!” Encala Elder Aaron yelled.
“Don’t play stupid,” Chevalier said, his voice controlled and even. “Your stench was all around him.”
“We have no guards… we don’t have the resources to attack the Equites,” William said as calmly as he could. “We would be stupid to attack you with our numbers.”
“Well… the Encala have never been known to be all that bright,” Kyle said, and grinned when the Encala Council looked at him.
“Where is Frederick?” Quinn asked, scanning the Council.
“Out,” Aaron said.
“Out causing problems, no doubt.”
“No, he’s visiting his coven.”
Zohn’s eyes narrowed, “Stop lying to us.”
“Fine!” William growled. “We have no idea where he is. He’s been unreachable for almost two weeks.”
Chevalier grinned, “Did he abandon ship? You should check with the Valle.”
“No use… they were too busy taking care of your responsibility to take on Frederick.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning… you’re losing your touch. Emily is weakening under your control and we’re well aware that when she stayed with the Valle, she began to recover,” William said.
“What do you know about Emily’s il
lness?” Kyle asked, taking a step forward.
“Nothing, I assure you.”
“Then you won’t mind if we look around,” Mark said, and nodded for twelve of his Cavalry to move off and search the Encala’s palace.
“You have no right to do that!” their Chief Interrogator screamed.
“You going to stop us?” Chevalier asked calmly.
Aaron glared at him, “You know we can’t stop you.”
Zohn grinned, “That’s right… you’d be lucky to steal a box of Girl Scout cookies right now.”
“Get out of our palace!” the Chief of Finance yelled.
Chevalier crossed his arms, “No.”
Mark walked along the Council’s platform and looked at the wooden skeleton of the desk that was being rebuilt. He grinned and pulled out one supporting beam and the entire structure fell to the ground with a loud crash.
“Oh… oops,” Mark said, chuckling as he walked back to the Elders.
“Is that how it’s going to be from now on?” William asked. “We will be forced to endure torment and humiliation at the hands of the Equites?”
“I wouldn’t say from now on… I would say for a while though,” Chevalier told him. “I also wouldn’t say it was unprovoked, so my suggestion is you put up with it until we no longer find it amusing.”
William met Chevalier’s eyes, “Emily wouldn’t want this… she still considers us friends.”
“You’re right, she does… but lately, she’s letting us do what we feel needs done.”
“Is she ok?”
“She’s of no concern of yours,” Chevalier told him. “We’ll be out of your destroyed palace as soon as we ascertain if Frederick is here or not.”
“Look all you want, he’s not.”
“While we wait, care to explain why you have killed two members of the Cavalry while they were doing nothing more than watching an area around the city?”
“I don’t know anything about that.”
“Sure you don’t,” Quinn mumbled.
Silas walked back into the Encala’s council chamber with Kralen, “Sir, there’s no sign of Frederick.”
Chevalier looked over at William, “If we find him first, he’s ours.”
“By what authority?”
“For suspicions of unwarranted attacks on the Council City Cavalry.”
“You cannot prove that it was Frederick who killed your guards,” Elder Aaron said.
“The Encala stench was all over the area. If it’s not Frederick, then maybe we should punish the entire Council for it,” Zohn said, leaning up against one of the damaged walls of the council chambers.
“We will investigate and punish those that were there then,” William said. “If there’s nothing else, then I politely ask you to get lost.”
Chevalier grinned when William stormed out of the council chambers.
“Our guards will show you out,” Aaron said, and followed William from the room.
“I do believe our business here is done,” Zohn said. Mark nodded and called for the Cavalry to return to the helicopters. It took a few minutes for the Cavalry to gather, and when they did, some had small trophies to take back from the Encala palace.
The Elders left together and Quinn stopped at a large hole in the stone walls of the Encala Palace. He stepped through and then returned to the hallway, “Is there anything in here you didn’t destroy?”
Chevalier grinned, “Nope.”
“Let’s get back, I’m thirsty,” Zohn told them. He was the first to step into the helicopter with the others.
***
“What do you mean she’s gone?” Chevalier growled, his hands balling into fists.
“Just listen,” Dustin said. “We weren’t negligent…”
“Then how did she get out of your care?” Zohn yelled.
“Well…”
“Where is Dr. Edwards?” Quinn asked calmly.
“She… Emily told him to leave.”
“And you let him?”
“Well… yes…”
“Who was guarding her then?” Chevalier asked, taking a step closer to the Council.
“It was… well there was a small mix-up between who exactly was supposed to watch her.”
“What!?” Mark roared.
“Find her,” Chevalier ordered the Cavalry.
“How long has she been gone?” Mark asked the Coven Liaison Officer.
He sighed, “Two days.”
Mark disappeared without another word.
“I expect you to be able to take care of things in our absence,” Quinn said to the Council. “We felt it necessary for all three of us to confront the Encala about the attacks on our guards… yet we come back and things have gone amiss.”
“One missing mortal isn’t as if everything was neglected,” the Chief of Finance said.
“One missing mortal?” Zohn asked. “What were the effects on her from the last stroke?”
“Well… we aren’t sure… exactly,” Dustin said.
“So she could be out right now wiping out an Equites Coven.”
“I highly doubt that.”
Chevalier’s hands slammed down onto the desk in front of Dustin, “So help me… if she’s hurt…”
***
Emily was surprised at the lack of guards around the gate into the Encala’s main city. She pulled the Aero slowly through the burnt out city and watched as shades were pulled and doors slammed when she passed. Once at the doors to the palace, she stopped and turned off the car.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of the purple car and looked up at the broken windows along the face of the once majestic palace. She stepped over the rubble from the stone archway that used to frame the front doors, and emerged in the silent palace.
“William?” she called out. She heard a slight sound off to the side of her and turned quickly, but saw no one.
Making her way slowly up the stairs, she pushed aside the broken door into the council chambers and stepped inside. The nine Encala council members looked up at her and gasped.
“Emily?” the Chief Interrogator whispered.
“Where’s William?” she asked him.
“He’s not here.”
“Aaron?”
“I’m here,” Encala Elder Aaron said, coming in through the back entrance and sitting in his seat. He sighed, “You cannot be here.”
“Did Chevalier do this?” she asked, looking around at the destroyed room.
“He led the way, yes.”
She frowned, “I didn’t realize.”
“You must leave,” Aaron said, looking nervously around the council chambers.
“Why?”
“If Chevalier finds you here, we will be punished.”
Emily looked closely around the room and walked over to one of the walls. She reached out and touched a shiny spot on the surface of the dark rocks and realized it was blood.
“Please… you have to go,” Aaron said.
“Where’s Frederick?” she asked, and turned to Aaron.
“We don’t know.”
“Do you have him?” the Chief Investigator asked.
“Not this time,” she replied, and picked a torn Encala banner up off of the floor. She turned and laid it across part of a broken desk.
“Emily, we aren’t joking… you have to go,” Aaron told her.
“No, I want to know what the Equites did to this place,” she said, and walked out of the council chambers. Aaron appeared at her side and touched her arm.
“You have to go. We can’t take any more anger from the Equites.”
“I’ll handle them, ok?” she said, and walked up to the room the Encala kept for her. She opened the door and stepped in. The room had no damage at all. Her favorite book was still sitting by the dead fireplace, propped open to where she’d left it. Clean clothes for her hung in the wardrobe and an empty tray sat on the wooden table.
She picked up her hairbrush and looked around the room.
“This
is the only room they didn’t destroy,” Aaron said as he walked into her room.
“I didn’t ask for them to do this,” she whispered, and set her hairbrush down on the table.
“We know that,” he told her.
Emily sat down on the bed and ran her hand along the soft comforter, “I don’t know what to do.”
Aaron ordered the other heku to leave and then sat down beside her, “I’m not sure there’s anything you can do.”
“Was this because I was gone for a year, or because you all held the Council members?”
“Both”
Emily looked over at Aaron, “Where’s your guard staff?”
“Either dead or in hiding.”
“Servants?”
“Same… though there are enough here to take care of what Council is left.”
“Do you think Frederick is dead?”
“No, I honestly don’t know what he’s doing.”
Aaron looked toward the door suddenly.
“What?” Emily asked.
“Your phone is ringing in your car.”
“You can hear that from here?”
He smiled, “Yes.”
“How many Encala are left?”
“It’s hard to say… a mere fraction of what we once were though. Some are still in hiding, so it’s hard to get exact numbers.”
Emily nodded and pulled her pillow into her lap, “Have any joined the Equites or the Valle?”
“The Equites won’t take them. The few that have petitioned to join the Equites have been wiped out.”
“I can ask Chevalier to stop.”
“It could make it worse… as will you being here.”
“He doesn’t know I’m here.”
“I figured.” Aaron gently took her hand, “Are you ok?”
“I’m dying.”
“You’re immortal though.”
She shook her head, “No… I don’t age, but I’m far from immortal.”
“You seem fine though.”
“I keep having strokes… and since the last one… I feel on the edge of something.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, watching her closely.
“I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like at any moment, I can lose myself.”
Eternity of Vengeance (Extended Edition) : Book 7 of the Heku Series Page 46
