Charade (Heven and Hell #2)

by Hebert, Cambria

  If I put up a fit, then Ms. Merriweather would know that I suspected something. There was nothing I could do but agree and go back to where we were sitting.

  “Hev?” Cole asked when I sat back down.

  “Something isn’t right,” I murmured, hating the fact I didn’t know what it was.

  Sam covered my hand with his. “You’re just nervous that we’re returning the scroll today. Once it’s where it belongs, you’ll feel much better.”

  I nodded, threading my fingers through his. I sincerely hoped he was right.

  Deep down, I knew that he wasn’t.

  It was a beautiful day in Rome. The sun was shining, filling everything it touched with light and joy. The sky was a cloudless blue, brilliant and perfect. Yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling of impending doom and it darkened my mood. I wasn’t sure what to expect at Via Appia Antica because I had never been there, so when we pulled up, I climbed off the bus feeling a little nervous. It was unnecessary. The place was beautiful and I understood its tourist appeal even though it didn’t seem like much. It was green and lush with trees and plants of different shapes and sizes. There was a long road that ran through it and people of every age were running, walking or cycling along the path. Others were picnicking on blankets and soaking up the sun’s rays.

  “Feeling better?” Sam asked, his hand rubbing my back.

  “Yeah.”

  We all gathered around while Mrs. Britt outlined the activities that were available. A group would be formed for those who wanted to walk and explore, stopping at the shops that lined the street. Another group would be formed for those that wanted to cycle along the path and explore.

  The cycling group would be led by Ms. Merriweather.

  How would we manage to get away from the group to ‘get lost’ with her leading us? She seemed to have an eagle eye trained on me at all times. But we had to try because this was our only shot at getting the scroll into the catacombs.

  Luckily, the cycling group was larger than the walkers. Being on a bicycle allowed us to cover more ground and see more of the attractions, so most wanted to do that. Ms. Merriweather led us to the rental place and we were all given a bike and a map, highlighting the main attractions and best eateries along the road. It also boasted a lot of history and trivia. I noted where the catacombs of San Sebastiano where located, then shoved the map into my bag. I didn’t need information about anywhere else.

  We started the tour in the center of the group, then gradually fell back until we were the last three, trailing behind. It was good that Ms. Merriweather headed south because we could travel that way with the class and then “accidentally” separate later.

  Butterflies fluttered in my stomach and I ignored the fine shaking of my hands as the time drew closer for us to go off on our own. What if she saw us? What if she kept us from doing what we needed to do?

  Turns out, separating from the group wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. Small groups of students began going to the attractions that they wanted to see most. We fell in with a bigger group that was heading toward where we wanted to go. They all passed where we stopped, probably because it didn’t look like much.

  The small two-story church told of its age. It was made of stone with three great arches and large columns at the front. The church had a pitched roof and windows along the second story. There were tourists here, of course. Inside was a marble slab with the impression of Christ’s feet. It was said to be the original with a copy housed somewhere else in Rome. Most people were studying the marble, so it was easy to find the staircase that led down into the catacombs without much notice.

  The Catacombs of San Sebastiano is one of the smallest cemeteries, so it wasn’t preserved very well. The stairway that led down was dark and murky. The stairs were covered in dust and dirt and very steep.

  Sam went first and I was next with Cole bringing up the rear. We each had a flashlight, but none of us turned them on because while it was pretty dark, we could still see due to what lighting there was. At the bottom of the staircase was a restored crypt. It was the crypt of San Sebastiano that held a table altar. On top of the altar sat a bust of Saint Sebastiano. Underneath were platforms which were the tombs. I shivered, knowing that people were buried there. It seemed like such a desolate, creepy place for such revered men to be buried. The platforms were covered in paintings; some were faded because of their age.

  Tourists were down here as well. Everyone was hushed out of respect or maybe fear. We stood amongst the people, pretending to study the paintings. Most people did not linger down here long and soon Sam was tugging me across the crypt and pointing down a narrow hall. I nodded and the three of us began walking. We were alone here, probably because the crypt had been creepy, but this narrow, dark stone hall was downright scary. As soon as we rounded the bend, all three of us clicked on our lights. The walls were dark stone, and when I say stone, it isn’t the pretty kind that people put in their kitchens and bathrooms. It’s little more than rock. Black rock that appeared to have been chipped away with old-style tools to make room for the burial places. The walls were jagged and uneven, dusty and dark. The place smelled musty and old… A scent I was beginning to associate with death.

  “This place is scary,” I whispered.

  Sam stopped walking and turned. I ran right into his chest. Cole bumped into me from behind.

  “You can go back. I can do this.”

  I shook my head and he sighed, and the three of us started walking again. Paintings and drawings lined the walls here too. They were of crosses and men dressed in robes. There were a few that I thought might be of God and Jesus. Wine and fish, angels and men also made up many of the drawings. The next corner we rounded brought Sam to a halt. Built into the stone walls were arches with ledges. Upon these ledges rested corpses dressed in dirty brown robes with hoods. One of them clasped a giant silver cross in his hands.

  “Wow,” Sam said, hushed.

  “I hope those aren’t real mummies,” Cole murmured.

  “I really don’t think they are props.” I said, goose bumps racing along my arms.

  “Where are we supposed to leave the scroll?” Cole asked.

  I looked up to shine my light around, looking for a sign. The rays of my flashlight fell upon another drawing. This one wasn’t as faded as the others and I was drawn to it. I stepped away from Cole to study it.

  It was of a dagger with gems on the handle. The dagger had great white wings that jutted from behind and it was surrounded by yellow, representing a bright shining light. Beside the image was another of a man lying on the ground with another dagger sticking out of his chest. The man’s eyes were yellow as well as his mouth and ears. His face was full of pain and I imagined his screams.

  “Stop,” Sam said, gently turning me from the sight. “Come away.”

  I allowed him to lead me away and I tried to banish the sight from my thoughts. It didn’t matter though because my mind would hold onto the picture and it would haunt me forever.

  It was cold down here. Without windows or light, warmth could not get in. There was also no sign of life and I had a feeling if a person stayed here long enough, this place would suck the life out of them too. I never imagined that crypts were so sad.

  “Maybe we should go. Maybe we are in the wrong place,” I told Sam, my steps faltering.

  He pulled me against his body, wrapping his arms around me. Warmth from his skin seeped into me and I sighed.

  “Up here!” Cole called from ahead of us and we went running.

  Cole was standing in some sort of alcove in the crypt. Like everything else, it was made of rough, dirty rock. Inside was another archway, but there was no body resting on the ledge. The feeling around this little corner was different than the rest of the catacombs. It wasn’t depressing or sad. I felt better in here, like this place really was blessed and was the resting place of the most sacred of men. The air wasn’t warmer here, but it didn’t have the chill of the other areas, and it brush
ed against my skin in welcome. “This is the place,” I murmured.

  Sam and Cole looked at me. I stepped further in the room, as if being called. Along the top of the archway were words written in script in what I assumed were Italian or maybe Latin. “I wonder what they mean.” I said, studying the words.

  Here lies hope. The words drifted into my mind and settled. I repeated them out loud and knew it was right.

  “How do you know that?” Cole asked.

  “This place told me.”

  “Let’s leave the scroll and go,” Sam murmured, unzipping his bag and pulling it out. I grabbed it and felt it begin to vibrate in my hand.

  “It knows it belongs here,” I said.

  “Where do we put it?” Cole asked, looking around.

  Why were they in such a hurry? Couldn’t they feel the power and peace of this place?

  “Heven, we need to go. It isn’t safe here,” Sam said, tugging my arm.

  “Of course it is,” I said. He gave me a little shake and I looked up. His eyes were filled with concern and maybe a little fear. I reached into our Mindbond and felt his anxiety.

  “I’m all right,” I promised. “We’re fine.”

  He didn’t look convinced.

  “Okay, let’s get this done.”

  We spent the next several minutes looking for a place to leave the scroll. There weren’t many places in this tiny alcove. “Just leave it on the ledge and let’s go,” Cole said restlessly. “People are going to start looking for us.”

  It felt all wrong. We couldn’t just lay it there and go. “Maybe there’s a trap door in the stone,” I said, walking to the arch.

  All three of us began tapping on the stones and feeling for loose ones. I pushed on one in the center of the archway. I heard the softest of clicking sounds before the stone came out, falling to my feet. From the wall a blinding white light shone out. It illuminated the space and infused us with warmth.

  “Here,” I murmured, reaching my fingers into the light.

  There was a great cracking sound behind us and we turned. The alcove was empty, but as we looked, the floor began moving and crumbling. From beneath the floor rose a demon. Its eyes were red and its teeth were black. It crawled out of the floor, bringing with it thousands of black bugs. The bugs began scattering everywhere, up the walls, across the floor and onto my shoes.

  I screamed and began stomping on them.

  The demon launched itself at us, teeth barred. Sam and Cole attacked it, sending it backward, only to have it come at us again. In one swift move, Sam hit the demon, sending it backward into the hole it climbed out of. It didn’t appear again.

  Cole walked over to the hole and looked down. “That’s a long way down.” Sam joined him and they both stood staring down into the pit.

  “I wished it had taken these bugs with it,” I screeched, stomping on another. “Come away from there,” I ordered, bending to pick up the scroll, which I dropped in the chaos. A large black bug was crawling on it and I flicked it, sending it into the air.

  It morphed and turned, landing as a snarling demon. I swore and turned to run, but the demon was fast and caught me around the waist and hefted me up to rush out of the alcove. Bugs all around us began turning and twisting into demons, blocking Sam’s path and keeping him from following.

  I fought as hard as I could as the demon ran through the crypt. In one swift move, I hit him upside the head with the very scroll he was after. He screamed and dropped me. I landed hard, but scrambled to my feet. I was trapped against the wall and he came at me. I backed up, bumping against something. I turned to see one of the robe-wrapped men fall to the ground. He hit with a sickening thud and I watched as his head detached from his body and rolled away. Thinking fast, I scooped up the head and threw it at the demon; my aim was good and the head smacked into the demon’s face.

  The demon stumbled as Sam appeared behind it, clutching a dagger in his hand, and rammed the demon through. It dissolved into ash before us. “Did you just throw a head?”” Sam asked, shock in his voice, but there was also a hint of amusement.

  “Well, no one will give me a dagger, so I had to be creative,” I said, trying to rush past him and back into the fight.

  Before I could get very far, he grabbed my arm and pulled me around. Without saying another word, he handed the dagger to me, handle first.

  I looked up at his face. “I was wrong to keep you from trying to protect yourself.”

  “Yeah, you were.” I took the dagger. It was heavy. “But I forgive you.” I smiled.

  “Remember that next time you think about throwing a head.”

  I laughed and held up the scroll. “Come on, let’s get this in there and go.”

  His smile fell away and we rushed back toward the alcove.

  The place was crawling with demons. Some more dangerous than others, and there were still so many of those bugs, promising even more if we fought too hard. The bright white light was like a beacon in the dark, leading us back to where we needed to be. When we rounded the corner, what I saw made my blood run cold.

  Cole was covered in demons. He was throwing punches and trying to shake them off, but there were too many. I watched in horror as one bit him. His scream echoed around us.

  I felt the familiar tremor course through me as Sam prepared to shift to save my brother. He ran forward and leaped, only to fall out of the air onto his knees. I watched him writhe in pain.

  “Sam!” I screamed.

  Run, Heven!

  I looked down at the dagger in my hand. I wasn’t running anywhere but into the fight. I turned to go help Cole and ran right into Kimber.

  “Kimber!” I gasped. I didn’t have time to be shocked. “Help us!”

  Her eyes were vacant and she stared into me without any real emotion. “Kimber!” I screamed, shaking her.

  Then I noticed her aura.

  It was black.

  The same exact color I saw briefly surround Ms. Merriweather at the hotel. It hadn’t been my eyes playing tricks on me. The color was real and it meant something. I didn’t have time to figure it out, but I knew it wasn’t good.

  She blinked and looked down. I followed her gaze. In her palm lay an amulet identical to the one Gemma had. I gasped and grabbed for it. She snatched her hand back.

  “You have no idea what you’re doing!” I yelled. “Get that thing out of here!”

  “I am not here to help you,” she spat.

  I heard a scream and turned back. Sam had gotten to his feet and was fighting as best he could to free Cole of the demons. Sam was a great fighter, even in this weakened state, but he and Cole were outnumbered badly.

  They needed help.

  “Kimber, please,” I begged.

  “Give me the scroll,” she said, reaching for it.

  I stepped back automatically, holding up the dagger in warning. “How could you betray us like this?”

  She laughed.

  A flash of light ran by and Kimber screamed. I turned to see Gemma picking her way through the mountain of demons.

  Oh, thank God.

  Turning my back to Kimber, I ran forward and did what I could to fight off the demons, trying to help my friends. I wasn’t very good with a dagger, so I wasn’t much help. I did manage a few good swipes and was proud to take out a couple of demons.

  Gemma managed to get to Cole and lifted him in her arms. I didn’t like the way his body seemed to just collapse against her. Thank goodness she had the superhuman strength of an angel.

  “Cole?” Kimber said with more emotion than I heard all day. I turned, taking a hard kick to the side and fell, the scroll falling out of my hands and rolling away.

  “No,” I moaned, reaching. Black bugs covered my hands and arms.

  Sam picked me up from the ground and I fought him. “Not me, the scroll.”

  Suddenly, the demons around us fell to the ground and lay there, unmoving. The black bugs fell from my arms and legs. Sam pulled me up and we all turned to Kimber. She wa
s staring at Cole, who was now leaning heavily against Gemma. His breathing was labored and he had bite marks along his arms.

  “Get the hell out of my way,” Gemma growled.

  “Cole, are you hurt?” Kimber said, seeming not to hear Gemma.

  He made a sound in the back of his throat. Gemma kicked out her booted foot at Kimber, but the hit was deflected by some sort of invisible shield that surrounded her. Harsh, high-pitched laughter filled the tiny room and someone rose out of the hole in the ground.

  It was Ms. Merriweather. This time she didn’t bother to disguise her aura—that had to be what she was doing before. Black completely surrounded her, no hints of any other color. We watched as she walked to Kimber’s side, the demons and bugs seemed to part, giving her a cleared path in which to walk. Once there, her façade of the teacher gave way to someone else entirely. Kimber was the only one who didn’t seem surprised. The woman had long, flowing hair of onyx that reached the backs of her legs. She was wearing a dress, more like a robe of the darkest black. A blood-red belt cinched her waist. Her face was unlined, yet I somehow knew she was thousands of years old. Power sparked from her finger tips and sizzled around the room. Her evilness was palpable in the thick air. I noticed how she avoided standing directly in the bright white light that still shone through the room from the wall.

  “Hecate,” Gemma hissed.

  This was Hecate, Queen of Witches, who was aligned with Satan?

  Now I knew exactly what the black meant. It was the color of a witch.

  “Kill them,” Hecate ordered Kimber.

  Still gripping that damn amulet in one hand, Kimber lifted both her arms over her head and began chanting in some weird tongue. The black in her aura pulsed around her.

  Gemma turned to look at me.

  “Go!” I yelled.

  Gemma ran forward, with Cole firmly in her arms, but Kimber stepped in her path. Gemma tried to fight, but once again was blocked by the invisible shield that seemed to surround Kimber.