Hope (The Descendant Trilogy Book 2)

by Theresa M. Jones

  “Good. Next time make it less.” I told him

  He nodded.

  “How many do we have total now?” I asked

  “About 300 willing and able to fight. More if you count the weaklings. Probably about 200 more that we can use for decoys.” He answered again.

  I looked to Nigel, “And where are we on the Order?”

  “We have now tortured and killed all twenty members that we captured. We still don’t know where the Compound is.” His deep baritone voice boomed as he spoke to me.

  I didn’t sigh. I didn’t shake my head in disappointment. I didn’t yell and scream at how idiotic they were, though that’s what I really wanted to do. Instead I just stared at him waiting for him to continue.

  “But we will. I will find more, somehow. The problem is that now when we look for them, we cannot find them. They must have gone into hiding after figuring out that so many have gone missing.”

  I waited again. No one spoke for five agonizing and awkward minutes. I suppressed my sigh again and kept it locked down. I would not let them see how flustered I was.

  “But don’t worry, my Leader. I will find more. I will find the Compound.” He tried to convince me, or maybe he was trying to convince himself. I didn’t know, and it didn’t matter. Because he had better live up to those words or I would really have to kill him.

  I leaned back in my black leather office chair, and crossed my ankles under my desk. I appeared relaxed, at ease. This was important. I couldn’t let them even think I might be weak.

  “And where are we on the Seals?”

  For the briefest of seconds, I thought I saw fear flash behind his charcoal eyes. Fear at failure. Fear of my wrath. Fear of me. But he quickly tried to hide that fear.

  “I went to the Russians, but even with my Power, they fear their own death too much to release the virus. I went to the Americans as well. Neither will attack without the other attacking first.”

  “Why don’t you just release it then?”

  “The virus is being held somewhere secret, not at the capitals and not with the presidents. The Russians have to have the President, Prime Minister, and ten more superior officers present in order to access it, and in the United States, you need nearly the whole cabinet.”

  I took a deep breath. I couldn’t lash out at them. I couldn’t let them know how impatient I had become. I had to show that my emotions were under control, despite the onslaught of emotions that flooded through my body.

  “We have an entire army at our disposal. Until we can find The Compound, you can have some of them kill as many as possible. We have to have a mass killing. Build some bombs, do something.” I think at the end of my speech my impatience and worry showed through, but not enough to worry them.

  I had to decide now. Should I tell them? Could I trust them enough? It was a miracle I hadn’t started showing yet, but I would soon enough. They needed to know.

  “Sit down both of you. There is something else we need to discuss.”

  They looked to each other briefly before obeying me. Rarely did I ask someone to sit down with me. In fact, I didn’t think I had ever asked them to sit with me before. But I had to spin this just the right way.

  “I have been working on another plan, something I haven’t told anyone else about. And now I will be telling you two.”

  I let that sink in; let them understand the gravity of the situation.

  “With Damien’s death, we came to realize our mortality, even more so than usual. I will kill any person who dares tries to threaten my rule, but you should all already know that. I need to make sure that our plan continues, even after my death.”

  I paused to gather their reaction. They both looked excited at a new plan, something hidden from the others. They both still believed in my leadership. And they both were confused at me planning what would happen after my death. Conceivably we could live for centuries, if we would stop killing our leaders, and if the damn Order wasn’t around.

  “I plan to train a child to take over my role. A child born with the strongest of lineage, with the best blood. A child so strong they could infiltrate the Order at any time, and could even enter the Compound.”

  Both men were thinking. How could there be such a child? Only an Order member could enter the Compound. And no Order member could ever be fully pledged to our goal.

  “I am pregnant.”

  Shock. Disgust. Desire. Hate. Their emotions betrayed them as they showed clearly on their faces. They looked to the other, wondering who could possibly have sired my child.

  “The father was an Order member, someone who is now dead.”

  Understanding. Disgust. Hate. Frustration. Calculating desire.

  “I haven’t decided yet exactly how I will do this, since this has never been done before. But I can feel the Power within me. It is strong, stronger even than I am. As long as the fetus is inside me, I will be unstoppable. And when the child is born, I will raise him to be my successor. But since he has Order blood also, he should be able to enter the Compound”

  “When did you think of this? What made you think it even possible?” Frank asked.

  “I am a fucking genius, you moron. I come up with brilliant plans. This is what I do.”

  He rolled his eyes. And Nigel asked, “So it is a boy?”

  “I don’t know yet. But it doesn’t matter. What I need from you, Nigel, is a toxin. Something Powerful and dark. Find it, make it, I don’t care. But I want something that I can ingest that can assure the child’s loyalty will stay with the Rising. That is your task now. This needs to be done as soon as possible. Yesterday.”

  He nodded.

  “Frank, you will release the message to my troops that I have come up with an unbeatable plan. Let the men know that there is no way we could ever lose with this plan. With the Seals open, and with this child, we will rule the Earth.”

  They nodded and said in unison, “Yes, my Leader.”

  “Also, Frank, I want you to go and divide up a group of men for Nigel to use in his quest to open the Fifth Seal.”

  “Yes, my Leader.”

  Go now. You are dismissed. I said to Frank alone, and he stood and left. Nigel stayed seated in front of me. He watched Frank stand and leave, then turned back to face me.

  “I appreciate you sending Magnus to me. Now this toxin…” I paused and took a deep breath. “I can feel not only the Rising Power growing in me, but I feel the Order Power as well. I need something that will help strengthen my Power but subdue the Order Power. Do you understand?”

  “Are you ill? Does it hurt?”

  “Of course it hurts. Do you remember when that bitch tried to burn us with her Power?” he nodded, “It feels like that, inside me, burning and scratching.”

  “I have some contacts that dabble with voodoo. We can create something. We can invoke the Power of Lucifer. You are his descendent, as well as Amon’s. We can make something.”

  “Good.”

  “I will find a way to make this possible. This is by far the best plan we have ever had. This will ensure our future, not just now, but from now on.” His eyes lit up as he spoke, and he truly believed the words he said. He had fallen in love with this plan, genuinely trusting in this decision and in me.

  That was the exact reaction I wanted from him. It was not necessarily the reaction I had, the fuckin’ fetus was sucking away my life. It would damage my body. It would ruin me. But it would also keep me safe. I didn’t plan on dying; I planned on ruling from behind him. He would be my minion, the strongest minion of all. No child could refuse his mother.

  “Good. Now go. Make it happen.”

  “Yes, my Leader.”

  I watched him as he left, the light shone off his baldhead and muscled arms. Before he left, I threw a small dosage of Power into his mind. It strengthened his loyalty and lust for me.

  I whispered to both of them. I will kill you both if you speak of this in any way other than how I instructed. And in unison I heard their thought
s back, Yes, my Leader.

  Yes. This would be for the best. I would win.

  Chapter 11

  New Hope

  ***Allison***

  “Can you believe Christmas is next week?” Samantha asked as we cuddled on her bed. She had been dropping hint after hint about it, as if we would forget about it. She wrote her letter to Santa, though I didn’t really know if she even still believed in him.

  “What I can’t believe is that your birthday is next month!” I told her. “How old will you be now? Ten? Fifteen? You need to stop growing up already!”

  We giggled together. We all knew how old she would be. Even she knew what would happen, or not happen, on her sixth birthday. We all did. But at least now, things would be okay. It had been almost two months since I brought it up to the Council and they agreed to let children come here, if their parents allowed. So far there were only ten children total who had been allowed to come, and only three of those who weren’t in orphanages. Apparently, parents of Order members don’t have a long life span these days.

  “I think it’s cool that my birthday is right after Christmas. That way, if I don’t get a bike for Christmas, you can get it for me for my birthday.”

  “A bike?” I asked in mock horror. “Why would you want a bike?”

  “Mom…” She said in a whiny, C’mon-you-know-I-want-a-bike voice.

  We laughed again before I kissed her forehead. Her silky blond hair tickled my nose and wafted her unique, pure child scent to my nose. I had noticed already that it had started changing. When I first came to the Compound, I realized that everyone smelled better, stronger and more potent than before. David had explained that it was because of our Power. And though Samantha wasn’t quite six, and we weren’t 100% sure she would inherit the Power, I could smell her changing. I knew she would be Powerful. I could feel it, smell it, and sense it.

  “I love you, Sammy.”

  “I love you too, Mom.”

  David was waiting for me in our bedroom. He sat on the bed as he read a larger than average book, one he had brought back from our honeymoon. It was bound in thick brown leather, but it looked old and worn and had wrinkles and creases covering it.

  When I walked in, he sat the book down on the end table and watched me as I took off my robe and slipped beneath the covers and into his open arms. His left arm wrapped around my shoulders, pulling me closer, and I breathed in his scent.

  David never wore a shirt to bed, so I could see his chest. It wasn’t smooth and hairless, but wasn’t covered in bushy hair either. It was strong and I could feel each muscle beneath the skin as I ran my hand down his chest. He shuddered at the light touch.

  “I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to this.” He said, so quiet it was almost a whisper. He didn’t say it like it was a bad thing, but like he felt very lucky to have me next to him.

  “I know what you mean.”

  I could feel his lips touch my forehead, soft and warm, and heard him inhaling me. Being so close to him was like being all warm and toasty next to a fireplace when it was snowing outside. It felt safe and homey. Perfect.

  “So, she still wants a bike? I guess that’s good.” he asked.

  I laughed out loud, my body shook in his sturdy embrace. He had gone out and bought her a bike over a month ago and we had known for months before that she wanted one. Sam was pretty consistent with things. Even though, a lot had changed recently with all the children here.

  She was happier being around them. She was blooming before my eyes, like the glorious rose I knew she would be. She took responsibility for making sure they felt at home and welcomed here, even though she was no longer with the Artists. Almost immediately after we spoke with the Council, they had put together a group of teachers and artists who would work together to help the children. And now, Samantha was with them.

  “Yeah, she still wants the bike.”

  “Good.” He answered with a chuckle.

  “So, how are things with the kids?”

  “Good. Really good actually. All of them are adapting well to being here.”

  I think he was going to keep talking, but I had to get up and run to the bathroom. It happened often now. I think my bladder must have shrunk to the size of a pea, or maybe I just thought of a pea because I always have to pee.

  Other than the constant urge to urinate, nothing bad had happened. I had no morning sickness, no nausea at all. I had no other symptoms other than the lack of a menstrual cycle. Though we were both certain about it, from the dreams we had, I still took a pregnancy test a month ago, which proved our suspicions to be true.

  Pregnant.

  The thought both excited me and terrified me. I already had one person completely dependent on me, one person I would die for. To have another person I would love as much as her was scary, but thrilling at the same time. To have a child with David, to have a child that would have a father who was present in her life. Someone who was constant and safe and real.

  I was hopeful, but still terrified to bring another human life into this devastated world. What if we failed against the Rising? After all these months we were no closer to finding them. And the Seals have remained opened. The horsemen still ravaged the Earth, shrouded it in darkness, terror and death. No, in War, Famine, Plagues and Death.

  I sat back down on the bed, the covers squished in around me forming a cocoon of warmth. David pulled me to his chest again, and placed his hand on my tummy. It was still flat, nothing to show of the new life that hid within.

  He leaned his head forward and starting singing softly to my stomach. It was funny, because the baby didn’t even have ears yet, but it didn’t matter. This was something Alex, Samantha’s father, never did. Something I always wished I had when I was pregnant with Sam. After singing a lullaby, he started singing a song in Latin. It was a prayer. Even though I didn’t know what it meant, I was still fairly positive in was a prayer.

  “What does it mean?”

  He looked up, his jade eyes met mine but he kept his hand, warm and strong, on my belly. “It’s a prayer for hope and protection. The artists sing it before we do anything dangerous, but I figure just being born these days is dangerous.”

  I could see what he meant, though he didn’t say it. He too feared for this child. A child with two Order members for parents. A child that was born in the middle of a war. What would become of him? Him… That’s how I always think of him, not it, or her, but him. I guess since I already have a girl, I was secretly hoping for a boy, but it really didn’t matter, I would be happy either way.

  “When should we tell everyone?” I asked him.

  We had discussed it several times before. We didn’t want to tell anyone too soon, but we didn’t want to wait either. We were both excited, so excited we didn’t want to wait another day.

  A baby! I was going to have another baby! I leaned into him and closed my eyes, just picturing a perfect world where David, Sam, and I could enjoy our new family member in peace.

  “We can tell them whenever you are ready.” That’s what he said, but I knew what he really meant. I knew he wanted to tell everyone. This would be his first child. Even though he had no other family members, he was very close with several Order members, and I knew he wanted to share his exciting news.

  ***

  While David had been constantly busy with arranging things for the children, I had been busy with Christmas plans and constant decorations—you think decorating a house and yard are hard, imagine a 40,000 foot hidden Compound to decorate, and Samantha’s birthday plans.

  Not everyone here celebrates Christmas, though most do. Some of the Order Members still believe we receive our Power from the gods, and not from angels, so they refuse to celebrate any Christian holiday. And that’s fine by me, but I always loved Christmas. I always loved planning what gifts I would get for Mom and Sam. I loved planning, and buying or making things, and then wrapping them while listening to Bing Crosby sing me Christmas songs.

  I loved the sm
ell of baking cookies and breads mixed with the pine from the tree. I even loved decorating the tree. It was different here. Back at my Mom’s house, we had the same fake tree every year and had old, homemade ornaments, some I made as a child that my mother kept, and some Sam made, along with the ornaments we received as gifts. It was a tradition to get a new ornament every year, and this was a tradition I wouldn’t let slide, even though we weren’t in Texas anymore. I even bought an ornament for my mom, it was a blue Christmas tree that sparkled with glitter, and said, “I’ll have a blue Christmas without you.” Sam had first noticed it, and I agreed it was perfect.

  We wrote on the bottom, We love and miss you! And it was true, I missed my mom more then, than I had in all the time I had been gone. Christmas was our time. It was our time to plan and scheme for the best gift. It was our time to laugh and reminisce. It was our time to be together, as a family, and not let the world outside come in. But she wasn’t there with me. She was in Texas all alone and I was in the mountains. I knew though, that at some point we would have to meet, not only for Christmas, but so I could tell her the news.

  The world has gone to hell, though. I didn’t really watch the news here, we had too many other things going on, and it only made me sad, but I still knew what was going on.

  I knew that there were still constant bombing and attacks to every major country in the world, even many countries in Africa, who everyone underestimated—basically Egypt took charge of every single country in Africa and claimed they would destroy who ever acts first—that was huge, because now no one wants to side against Egypt and no one wants to act first.

  I knew that there was a shortage of everything, everywhere. With all the wars happening and all the fighting, so much has ceased to happen. People were afraid of everything. The economies of every First world country were crumbling. Farms were not producing, livestock had been dying. Food was in short supply those days, when the demand was at its highest.