Knights of Enmity: The Barons Have Fallen (Descending Fires Book 1)

by Sedrie Danielle

  “Bro. Maybe you should do a summoning spell. I mean, if having Naomi back if only for the closure, do it. You need to get out of this funk. Hell, I'll do it for you,” Cesare said driving down the street.

  “I already have,” he said looking out the window.

  10

  Vincenzo Borgia

  Moments before Cesare received the text message, Vincenzo was running for his life. Barely breathing, he stopped to catch his breath in an alley off the main street. Unlike the other curly haired Borgias, he kept his hair cut to a low fade. He had no facial hair which made his wide smile and teeth look bigger.

  Although tall like his brothers, Vincenzo lacked the muscle definition they had as he had not been awakened to magic just yet. His nonathletic body feeling the brunt of his current attempt at escape.

  Leaning against a large dumpster, his eyes burned as sweat mixed with the torrential rains that ran down his face. The splashes upon the wet ground just a few feet away from him, caused his heart to race as he knew his pursuer was close behind.

  In his hand he held a red bag dripping a red stain as the rain fell upon it. Knowing the sound of a gunshot would attract the police, it was a risk he had to take for the sake of his own life.

  He reached for the gun stuffed in the front of his pants and waited as the boot holsters of his pursuer began to slow to a steady walk.

  “Come out you chicken shit! How dare you steal from us! Do you know who I am?! The rain will not keep me from destroying you!” the man, shouted in a broken Spanish accent. Vincenzo tried to quiet his breathing as he knew he only had one bullet; one shot to free himself.

  The Man stood in the alley wearing a white wife beater, a thick cowboy hat and torn jeans. There was a gold ring on every chubby finger which gripped a machete and a club.

  “Salen un poco,” the Man whispered, as he unhooked a small cauldron dangling from his belt. “Los espíritus de los muertos, rise for me this night and do my bidding. Find the one who has taken something from us,” the Man said, as he sat the cauldron upon the pavement.

  Vincenzo began to feel uneasy as his body began to jerk. Three disincarnate spirits rose from the cauldron, causing the surrounding windows to shatter and the large dumpster which Vincenzo hid behind to melt from the heat of their spirit fires.

  The spirits grabbed Vincenzo and squeezed him to the brink of death. Their grips burned into his skin, causing him to shout from the pain. “Here take it!” Vincenzo said dropping the bag. The Man walked up to him laughing, resting the machete and club on his shoulders.

  “Oh, deliverance is not that easy. Death is the only payment. But before you leave this plane, you must tell me your name, so that I may summon you to my nganga!” he said, bouncing his rotund stomach as he laughed.

  “I am Vincenzo. Vincenzo Borgia,” he said almost silently as death pressed upon his heart.

  “Espíritus liberarlo!” he shouted as Vincenzo hit the ground hard. “Did you say…? Borgia?” he asked, bending over the crippled young man. Vincenzo nodded.

  The Man looked down at Vincenzo’s wrist and noticed he had a tattoo; the same red bull with the letter “B” in its center that Cesare and Lancelot had.

  “And do you have brothers? One with long curly hair, the other one short?” he asked on. Vincenzo continued to nod. The Man took out his phone and snapped a picture, sending it along with a message to a number he had listed as “Killer Priest”.

  Do you know this boy? he asked through text message, awaiting a response. Instantly, Killer Priest replied: “Sí. Mi hermano menor. ¿Dónde está? Me vendrá por él.” The Man laughed.

  “Your name saved your head little one. But I should’ve known, it was something about that chin of yours that I just didn’t like,” he said laughing. The Man ordered the spirits in Spanish, to put Vincenzo in his truck.

  Vincenzo passed out as the horrid spirits drug his lifeless body and threw him in the back of the Man’s pickup truck. He lit a cigar and began singing along with Vicente Fernandez as the seal of the Order of Martyred Saints glistened upon the dash.

  He pulled up to a small house outside of town where an old lady sat in a rocking chair, smoking a cigar and fanning herself. A man dressed in black stood at the door beside her; a Black Challenger parked in the driveway. The Man got out with a conniving smile upon his face.

  “Are we done or what?” the man in black asked.

  “That little shit in the truck stole your offering. So I will need another. Then we will be done,” the Man said laughing.

  “One more and that's it. You keep your word or you will join the spirits of your nganga,” he said stomping off the porch and driving away. The Man shrugged and looked back at Vincenzo.

  The air was thick and humid after the rain, and The Man no longer needed to cover his head.

  “Did you catch that fucker?” she asked, pulling her glasses down to look at him.

  “Sí. But I can’t add him to my collection,” he said, ordering the spirits to drag him in the house.

  “What are you doing? I don’t want him in my house!” she shouted, throwing a fan at him.

  “Mama! Don’t give me your shit right now! And this is my house! Yo soy el hombre de la casa!” he shouted back, throwing her the red bag which Vincenzo stole. The spirits placed Vincenzo on the couch and fell back into the nganga.

  Sitting on the chair next to the passed out young man reading tarot cards was Juliya Cisneros, The Man's lady. Juliya was of a thin frame, opposite of rotund Man. Her skin was a bright olive complexion which made the protruding mole on her cheek stand out.

  She wore a red dress which bear her busty cleavage, red lipstick to match; gold necklaces dangled from her neck with the seals of the Ladies of the Red Devil. She winked and motioned for him to kiss her. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around him.

  As their tongues locked, Mama brushed past them throwing up her hands in disapproval, but they paid her no mind.

  “I missed you papi,” she said, leaning her head back to the caress of his tongue.

  “You been a good girl?”

  “Of course not,” she replied giggling. He bent her over and lifted her dress smacking her bare ass.

  Their usual foreplay was quickly leading to something else as Juliya found herself on her knees between The Man’s legs. She pulled out his cock which was short and stubby, stuffing it in her mouth.

  “Yes mamita! Suck papa’s wand,” he said, grabbing her head and shoving himself further down her throat. While the oral games commenced, Cesare and Lance reached the street before The Man's house, when a Black Challenger sped past them.

  The car stopped, as did Cesare. The two Challengers sat intimidating one another; engines revved.

  “Is that who I think it is?” Lance asked, throwing his cigarette out the window looking back. The tint on both cars was too dark to see inside, but undoubtedly holding Magia on both sides. The other Challenger revved its engine and sped off down the highway leaving a trail of dust behind.

  “What the fuck is Messalla doing here?”

  “How do you know it was him?” Lance asked.

  “Oh it was him alright. I would ask The Man, but I know his code. Ask not what is not thy business,” Cesare said. The Man had a hand full of Juliya, as the brothers Borgia pulled up out front. Cesare wore a black cassock, and Lance was in a shiny black suit, their typical attire.

  The Man motioned for her to get up as they stomped up the stairs. Juliya fixed her clothing as they walked through the door.

  “Borgias welcome! Have you met my Pomba Gira? A fancy witch she is. Juliya, this here is the Borgia brothers from the Order of Magia Chaotica,” he said, as she held out her hand.

  “I’m Lancelot. Pleased to meet you,” he said, taking her hand and kissing it gently.

  Juliya smiled as she looked upon the handsome man with thick curly hair and a perfect goatee. She turned her eyes towards the other man who was poking Vincenzo's lifeless body.

  “So you are the
Killer Priest. I have heard a lot about you,” she said, as he paid her no mind. “And what is your name?” she continued to press on. He turned to her staring with his dark, intense eyes and smiled.

  “Cesare,” he said in his deep, mysterious voice.

  Mama came back in the room wearing a spaghetti strap tank and a short skirt vying for the attention of the Borgia men. Lancelot pretended not to see her and handed The Man a wad of money.

  “What did he take?” Cesare asked.

  “Nothing of value. But you should wake him. His spirit is seeking and it is not good for him to walk these streets knowing nothing of his power. You have many friends Cesare, yet just as many enemies. Your brother plays too close to the fire. I have seen him on several occasions before not knowing who he was. Protect him,” The Man said as Cesare bit his lower lip.

  “And we got a message from the Prophet. Something about dinner. Is this legit?” the Man asked. Cesare and Lance nodded. “The Knights going or what?”

  “I have to. By order of Rex,” Cesare said reluctantly.

  “Well then, I guess me and Juan will go. But first, we go to the Ball tonight! Mamita, pick me out something nice. And call Juan and tell him to dress up,” he said to Juliya who made it a point to brush up against Lance as she walked past.

  Cesare lifted Vincenzo off the couch, nodding to The Man and thanking him for sparing his brother. Lancelot lit a cigarette as the snoring Vincenzo was placed in the back seat.

  “The Man is right. It’s time to wake Vinny up. You know as well as I do that our life, the hidden world finds us. Just like it’s finding him. He needs to be able to protect himself,” Lance said, blowing smoke out the window.

  Cesare stared into space as his priestly collar seemed to tighten around his throat. “Yeah,” he said, getting out of the car. “El hombre!” he shouted, running back to the house. “I need Mama to do a divination on Vinny. You're right. It's time,” Cesare said.

  The Man nodded and Mama pointed to the back yard. Cesare laid Vinny down on the ground and the Man threw cold water on his face.

  “Wake up pretty!” The Man said laughing, showing his sporadic gold teeth. Vincenzo's first reaction was fear, but was immediately comforted when he saw his older brothers standing over him.

  “Shit,” Vincenzo said, as he knew he was in for an ass kicking.

  “Do you know who you stole from?” Cesare asked him. Vincenzo sat quiet, not knowing how to answer.

  “You, little brother stole from The Man. A powerful Palero and leader of Orden de Los Santos Mártires,” he said.

  Vincenzo looked around him and they were surrounded by rows of human skulls and candles. The outside room smelled of mugwort and wormwood and he began to feel like he did back in the alley. The Man placed his cauldron at Vincenzo's feet and he began to squabble.

  “Your nganga is mighty full,” Lance said, noticing it had grown since he last laid eyes on it. The Man laughed.

  “I have been thankful for many gifts lately,” he replied, with a somewhat fiendish look on his face. Cesare looked closely as one spirit tried to escape. He recognized the spirit and quickly turned his head ignoring it.

  “Hell no! I remember that thing!” Vincenzo shouted trying to get up.

  “Vinny. You're embarrassing me,” Cesare said sighing.

  “Sit down and be quiet. If the Man wanted to kill you, you'd be in the cauldron,” Lance said.

  “Oh you don’t think he tried?” Vincenzo retorted.

  The Man giggled as the ladies set up for the divination.

  “What the fuck is this? What's going on?” he asked quizzically. Mama placed her finger over her mouth as she and Juliya began to beat on drums. Mama cast her lot of bones before him and they began to form the shape of a magical seal. Cesare stood quiet as Lance's thoughts began to race, thinking about his first divination.

  Oddly enough for Vincenzo, the fear dissipated and he got closer to the pile of bones. As they trembled upon the dirt, Mama cut into his hand allowing the blood to spill upon them. A spirit rose from the cauldron, licking the blood. It whispered into The Man's ear and his face began to frown.

  “You no like what the spirit says Cesare,” The Man said as the bones formed the seal of Ordo Magnum Opus.

  Cesare shook his head and kicked the bones in anger, causing the divination to cease.

  “Cesare, I know you do not like what you see, but the bones have spoken. The spirit has tasted his blood. Your brother is not to be Magia like you and Lancelot,” The Man said. Cesare shook his head and grabbed his brother. “I'd rather him be a Reaper than a fucking Alchemist!” he shouted.

  “A Reaper? An Alchemist? Huh?” Vincenzo asked as Cesare drug him out of the house.

  “Thank you for the divination Mama,” Lance said, handing her an offering of cash. Vincenzo was confused and freed himself from Cesare's grip.

  “What the fuck is going on? How in the hell did you find me?” he shouted. As they stood outside the wind began to pick up and Cesare's long hair began to flap in the wind. His cassock sounded like a flag upon a pole, flowing against the breeze.

  “We're magicians. Me, Lance, Mila, The Man. All of us,” Cesare began as he leaned against the hood of his car.

  Vincenzo laughed as he thought it was a failed attempt at humor on Cesare's part.

  “Get in the car, we'll tell you everything,” Lance said pulling out another cigarette.

  “This shit is getting crazy. You know what? I don’t think I want to know,” Vincenzo said taking a step back.

  “Well sometimes little bro, our world finds us, we don’t find it. Whether you want to hear it or not, your spirit has been activated and things will begin to happen to you that you won’t understand unless we help you,” Cesare said, with a serious look on his face.

  Just as Vincenzo stood in shock of what just took place, two red pickup trucks pulled up next to them; the seal of the Martyred Saints on the side. Juan hopped out of one of the trucks wearing his good outfit: a corduroy jacket with beige slacks and a white wife beater beneath. He also wore a cowboy hat in case it was to rain again.

  “What's with you guys and the hats?” Vincenzo asked.

  Juan laughed as he fist bumped Lance and Cesare.

  “We Paleros cannot get our heads wet. Otherwise our magic will fizzle out,” he said grinning.

  Vincenzo had an awfully uncomfortable look on his face, especially when he saw the small cauldron dangling off of Juan's belt. The three brothers got in the car but rode silently. Vincenzo didn’t know what to think and Cesare was pissed about his reading. He was headed to his house when the gas light popped on.

  “Good. Stop at the gas station, I’m out too,” Lance said, pointing up ahead. Vincenzo got out, thinking about running, but curiosity kept him still. Cesare watched him like a hawk as he knew his little brother's intentions.

  “As soon as you take off, I'll be on your ass like stink on shit,” Cesare said staring. Vincenzo huffed at him and went in to buy some gummy bears.

  “Hey! Bring me a cup of ice!” Cesare shouted, as he looked down at the time on his phone.

  Lance stood outside smoking a cigarette near a gas pump, catching the eyes of other customers. He flipped an old lady a bird then blew her a kiss as she drove past. Vincenzo shoved the large cup of ice into Cesare's chest and hopped back in the car.

  “Listen bro, Lance and I have something to do in a few hours. I want you to stay at my house. You'll be safe there,” Cesare said.

  “Fuck no. I need some answers now,” he replied.

  “You'll get them soon enough. But right now we have bigger fish to fry. It’s not something we can just explain. There are things you have to see,” Lance added.

  Vincenzo was seriously uncomfortable, and although he was in his brother's home, he sat silent as his siblings stared back at him.

  “Be here when we get back. Don’t leave the house!” Cesare commanded as his phone began to ring.

  He looked at the photo of his busty bab
e and his anger began to calm.

  “What’s wrong love?” she asked as he picked up the phone. He smiled as his heart began to flutter.

  “I’m fine baby girl.”

  “Don’t lie to me. I can feel your fire raging. What’s up?” Mila asked him.

  “I'll tell you in a bit. I'm on my way to Salamanca to meet Rex,” he responded, trying to avoid answering. She cleared her throat and Cesare explained to Mila what happened and she laughed.

  “You know Mama’s readings are sometimes off. Don’t worry about it. Vinny doesn’t have the right temperament to be an Alchemist. Besides, he has to choose his Order. But, you have to be able to accept him for his choice,” Mila said. Cesare wasn’t trying to hear that.

  “You can’t make him into something he’s not. He may not be Magia-”

  “Well he damn sure isn’t going to be an Alchemist!” he stormed.

  “Babe, you control your own destiny. Vinny is his own man and there’s nothing you can do about his choices.” Mila knew there was no changing his mind. What Cesare wanted is what Cesare got; Vinny training as a Magia was going to happen one way or another.

  “In other news, I see you’re at the $50,000 mark for the Blue Palace. Looks like someone’s pipes are getting snaked tonight. Leave the backdoor opened, papa’s coming home soon,” he said.

  11

  The Black & Blue Ball

  Mila laughed as she hung up the phone with Cesare knowing he would probably get that too. The Palace was extremely busy as the ladies prepared for the Black and Blue Ball. It was temporarily closed while the Marked Maidens and Courtesans finished decorating to Mila’s specifications.

  The lower level ballroom was designed to house one thousand. The floor was painted black with bits of glitter giving the illusion that they walked on the night sky. Round tables were scattered throughout the west wing, with black and blue roses sitting on top of blue table cloths. The ceilings were lighted by chandeliers with blue light bulbs; sheer black cloth draped in interlocking patterns above.