She responded with a smile as she knelt down and picked up his jacket, passing it to him without a word before she disappeared out the door.
CHAPTER 26 - Chloe's Sacrifice
“Sir, that makes fifteen in less than six hours,” Jester said in a panic, as he slid his chair to another monitor to pull up the location of the latest attack.
“Fuck,” Commander Claesson replied, sliding his hand over his face, “How many soldiers are still on the compound?”
“Twenty-five; excluding us, the guards, and Cami, but Dante and his team should be returning any minute. The building at the back of Sean Taylor’s property was deserted but, based on the weapons and gear they found, it is, or at least was, being used as a training facility for Lucias’s humans,” Jester replied.
“Like those who attacked Elijah in Indianapolis?” William asked stepping closer.
“Precisely; Cami was here when Dante called in so she took the photos he sent to her father in the lab. He confirmed that the gear was identical to what the human soldiers who destroyed his clinic wore.”
“So Elijah and his wife are still holed up in the lab?” Claesson asked; regarding William carefully.
“Yes; they’ve been working non-stop with some of your researchers, analyzing the sample of infected blood Jasmine found on her clothes. As I’m sure you can understand, they’re desperate to find a cure as soon as possible,” William replied.
“Of course; I just hope he’s more successful in the endeavor than we were in the past,” Commander Claesson stated; giving William a knowing look.
There had been an entire team of scientists working to synthesize an antivirus when the first round of infected vampires appeared nearly seven hundred years ago, to no avail. Technology had come a long way since then, so they were hopeful that a cure would be found. The real concern was if it would be found in time; both leaders knowing that, as an infected vampire, Ethan Kellar was an enemy their forces simply couldn’t defeat.
“This area is only a few blocks from Blood Runners,” Jester chimed in; pointing to a spot on the satellite feed which had just loaded on the monitor. “We could give Winston a call; maybe have his people handle clean-up since all we seem to be finding are bodies, and it’s unlikely that this one will be any different.”
“Make the call,” Claesson responded, before turning to the High Commander. “It seems we’re about out of time. The next wave of reinforcements won’t be here until morning. If there are any more bodies tonight, I’m afraid we’re going to have to enlist the help of a lot more civilians. Even with the witches’ protection on the gates, we can’t send out any more of our soldiers. Doing that will leave the compound virtually unguarded and, with one of our own missing, we can’t take the risk.”
“And what of the Boston coven; will the witches come to our aid?”
“They know what is at stake; I have Esther’s word they will honor our alliance. But until we know more about Lucias’s intentions, they will not leave the protection of their homes.”
William nodded his understanding. “What do you think he’s trying to accomplish with these blatant attacks?” he asked; slumping down into a chair.
Having spent the last several hours trying to appease the civilian leaders, and after many consecutive sleepless nights worrying about his daughter, William was beyond exhausted. The threat of widespread panic was imminent, as word of the violent deaths, which had been occurring in Boston since the sun went down, spread throughout the civilian vampire population. The body count was somewhere around thirty, consisting of a pretty even mix of humans and civilian vampires; all either dumped out in the open, or attacked within public view. It was a media nightmare, as evidenced by the three separate human news channels running the stories seen on the monitors that were mounted on the walls.
Thanks to some of The Elite’s human allies, the murders were being attributed to a new drug, commonly referred to as bath salts; which had quickly become famous for the psychotic, and often cannibalistic, episodes it caused in its users.
“My guess is he’s testing us. If he was looking for battle, his men would be waiting for us; and if his intent was to expose us to the humans, well, you know how easy that would be,” Claesson replied; taking the seat beside him.
William cringed when the word zombie scrolled across the bottom of one of the screens. “If he keeps this up, it won’t be long before the humans make the jump from zombie to vampire, especially if they get to one of the bodies before we do.”
“The story was just picked up nationally,” Jester said; pulling up the latest update.
“Shit; Thompson and our other contacts with Boston PD have been able to give us first pass on scenes, but if other outside agencies get involved, things will be far more complicated,” Claesson observed, as he stood and began to pace the room.
William sighed heavily. “I suppose there’s no point in putting it off any longer. I’ll notify the civilian leaders in and around Boston and have them assemble teams from those amongst them who have been properly trained. I’ll order them to keep the information local and need-to-know only, but you know as well as I do it won’t keep for long. Their families and friends around the world will be warned within a matter of hours; not that I can blame them.”
“My lord, if I may; I am of the opinion that the entire population should be informed of the threat. We are well beyond the point of maintaining secrecy amongst our own kind. It makes us more vulnerable; besides, we may not be far from the need to activate the human integration protocols,” Claesson stated; his voice low.
“I hope it doesn’t come to that,” William replied solemnly though, with all that had happened, he realized his hope might well be in vain.
Lucias intended to rule completely; over humans and vampires alike. If they didn’t find a way to stop him, the exposure of their kind was inevitable. Understanding that possibility, the vampire race’s leaders and their human allies had developed a plan to minimize the backlash of their discovery.
“Sirs, I’m sorry if this is out of line, but maybe you should consider implementing those protocols preemptively,” Jester interjected.
“Why in God’s name would we want to do that?” William asked; sharply turning to the young vampire.
“Well, my lord; I’ve spent a lot of time following culture and trends with the humans online and in other media and millions of them are utterly fascinated by our kind, or at least the myths of our kind which have become so popular in recent decades. Even believing some of the worst stories about our people, many of them would be, well, thrilled to find out we are real,” Jester responded; his tone growing more excited with each word.
“So you’re suggesting that we reveal a secret which has been kept for millennia because you think some of the humans will be pleased that the monsters from their movies actually exist? And what happens when the excitement wears off and their fear sets in? How do you suggest we handle the remaining humans who are anything but thrilled to learn the truth? They outnumber us at least a thousand to one and, if history has taught me anything, it’s that while a single human can be very kind, understanding, and compassionate, their species as a whole is intolerant and fearful of the unknown,” William stated, feeling a chill run over his skin as he considered the catastrophic possibilities which lay before them.
“Yes; but how long before they find out about us because of these attacks, or whatever else Lucias has planned? Do we really want him to control our inevitable introduction to the humans? If their path to knowledge is lined with death and blood, who can blame them for their intolerance? But if we give them the truth now, show them we are not the threat, they could be our allies in the fight against Lucias and his army of infected,” Jester added.
“Jester, take care how you speak to our lord and commander,” Claesson warned.
“It’s all right, Alek,” William said, raising his hand. “Perhaps the boy is right. If we were to—”
William’s words were cut off by the loud blaring o
f an alarm which sliced through the previously quiet air of the compound.
“What’s happening?” he asked; watching as Claesson sped across the room and picked up the phone.
“Jester, lock it down now!” Claesson ordered; ignoring the High Commander as he hit a button and put the phone to his ear.
Jester’s fingers skated over the keyboard efficiently, as he systematically engaged the emergency security protocols to secure the interior of the compound.
“Damn; no answer at the gate!” Claesson yelled over the screech of the alarm. “The compound has been breached!” he continued; turning to William.
He opened his mouth to yell something else right as Jester cut the alarm.
“All of the cameras in front are out,” Jester stated; inclining his head toward the wall of security monitors behind the other men. The three of them had been so engaged in their discussions about the attacks, and the resulting television news stories, that they hadn’t noticed when the security feeds had been cut.
“My lord, we must get to your family. The attacks must have been a distraction to weaken our protection here on the compound. Jester, you know what to do,” Commander Claesson said and sped off after William, who was already gone.
✧
Chloe took her hands down from over her ears, breathing a sigh of relief as the ear-piercing screech of the alarm fell silent.
She felt surprisingly calm, despite her knowledge of what was coming. Watching her mother pacing anxiously across the floor, she knew the source of her serenity. Her parents would finally be reunited, even if she couldn’t be there to see it.
Alexa looked toward Chloe and threw her hands up. “How can you act so calm?” she said; her voice cracking as she spoke.
Before she could respond, the sound of the door sliding open got their attention.
“We need to move,” William said, stepping inside.
“What happened?” Alexa asked, unable to pierce the strong shields of her father’s mind.
“Someone has breached the outer defenses of the compound. We have to move to the training room. According to Commander Claesson, it doubles as a sort of panic room in case of an attack,” he said; quickly signaling for both women to follow him.
The trio sped down the corridor, followed closely by William’s personal guards; including Captain Erikson, who had remained posted outside of Chloe and Alexa’s rooms since the start of the attacks in the city.
“What about everyone else?” Captain Erikson inquired when they arrived at the door to the training wing. With the compound on emergency lockdown, special security clearance was needed to move between the various wings.
“He went to the lab to collect Elijah and the others. They should be joining us shortly,” he replied; quickly entering the code and standing aside for Chloe and Alexa to pass.
When the group arrived outside the training room, they found Commander Claesson, along with the rest of Chloe and Alexa’s family, already waiting.
“My lord; once you are all inside, enter the code I gave you. It will engage the silver-plated security doors and panels. No one, not even I, will be able to gain access from the outside, and only the code will release the doors from the inside.”
“Alek; you are not staying with us?” William asked; his voice full with concern.
“I cannot abandon my men. The intruders have not yet breached the building; only the outer grounds. We will hold them until reinforcements arrive if we can; but even if they break through, this room is impenetrable. There are enough supplies for weeks and a satellite phone to contact the outside. Jester’s room is also secure; he will be able to run the entire compound from there and, when it’s clear, one of us will come for you. For now, you and your family will be safe here,” he said; placing a hand on William’s shoulder.
“Captain, take the rest of the men and go with the commander. You will help secure the building,” he ordered.
“But, my lord—,” Captain Erikson began; only to be cut off.
“You heard the commander; this room is impenetrable. Your skills will be better utilized helping the soldiers hold the perimeter until help arrives.”
The captain briefly glanced at Commander Claesson with disdain before nodding his understanding.
“Sir, let me come with you,” Cami chimed in as the commander turned to leave.
Jared’s jaw clenched as she dropped his hand and moved towards the door; but he remained silent, knowing with certainty that Claesson would deny her request and understanding why she had to make it.
“Your place is here with your family,” Claesson replied; offering his hand with eyes full of sadness.
Cami looked at it for a brief moment, and then hurled herself at the large vampire; wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug, saying goodbye for what they both understood would be the last time. Though he didn’t know it, she’d overheard the call he’d made to his wife and daughter from his office only minutes before, when he’d sent her and Jared to retrieve her parents from the lab. She’d told Jared to go ahead and had stayed long enough to know exactly how her fearless leader expected the night to end.
Reluctantly releasing him, Cami stepped back into the training room as the door slid closed between them. She stood there, watching Commander Claesson and the members of the High Commander’s guard until the security panels dropped down, blocking the small window with the only view to the outside.
Cami closed her eyes as Jared pulled her against his chest, wrapping her in his strong arms as they stood in silent anticipation.
✧
It seemed like hours had passed as Chloe sat on the floor leaning her head against her mother’s shoulder; though, in reality, it had only been a few minutes.
Barely a word had been spoken among the group, as they all tried to cope with the uncertainty of what was occurring beyond the safety of the walls surrounding them.
Chloe looked around the room at her family, her mouth turning up into a sad smile as she grabbed her mother’s hand and pulled it up to her face. Pressing Alexa’s knuckles to her lips, Chloe inhaled deeply and closed her eyes.
He will be here soon. You must renew your blood bond; it is the only way to save him. I love you, Chloe sent telepathically.
“Chloe, what’s—” Alexa began; but before she could finish, Chloe pushed the rest of her vision, the parts which she’d carefully shielded, into her mother’s mind. Alexa’s tensed, realizing her daughter’s intentions, but before she could fully process what she’d seen, everything went black.
Chloe flashed to the door and entered the code she’d pulled from William’s mind. She paused for the briefest of seconds to look back at her family, each of them lying unconscious on the floor around the training room as a result of the mind blast she’d sent out to incapacitate them. While she wished there was another way, she knew none of the people with her in that room would have ever allowed her to leave, no matter what visions she shared with them. They would all die to keep her safe; and if she stayed, that was exactly what would happen.
Uncertain as to how long she had before her family revived, Chloe reentered the code and sped across the threshold before the security panel fell back into place; moving with every ounce of her speed towards the front of the compound before it was too late.
Entering the elevator, Chloe reached out for Commander Claesson’s mind and breathed a sigh of relief at finding that he and the other soldiers were still inside the mansion above; but the feeling was short lived. Through his eyes, she watched the wave of infected soldiers flying over the fence before he looked to the detonator in his hand.
Commander, please don’t, she sent, trying to buy some time; knowing that if those land mines exploded, everything she cared about would be lost.
“What the—” he whispered in confusion, turning just as the elevator doors opened. “Chloe, you can’t be here; go back to—”
The pulse of energy rattled the walls as it flew out from Chloe’s body, knocking the commander
and every soldier in the room to the ground. Before her fear could set in, she moved to the front door and pulled it open, stepping out into the flood of the security lights which lit the porch of the mansion.
Redemption of Fate (Fate Series Book 2) Page 27
