The shopkeeper returned and resumed her seat. In a much lower tone of voice, she asked, “Now, where were we?”
“Oh, what the hell!” Cassie threw her hands up. “I might as well cut to the chase. You know those associates of Sybil’s I told you about?”
“Yes,” Rhonda confirmed cautiously.
“Well, I’m not lying about them. They’re good people, and they’ve helped me a lot since Sybil died. But there are other people...” She paused. “Other not-so-nice people who are trying to steal something from them. That’s where Hannah comes in. She was living with the not-so-nice people and ran away from them.”
Rhonda’s eyes grew wide with alarm. “Somebody should call the police.”
“They’d be out of their depth with this bunch,” Cassie replied bitterly. “We’re trying to handle it on our own. I took Hannah to a place where she’ll be safe.” She chose her next words carefully so as not to frighten Rhonda. “And now I want to be sure that you’ll be safe too.”
The older woman appeared confused. “Cassie, what on earth do you mean?”
“I’m going to have to drop out of sight for a while—find a new place to live—and I can’t tell you where.”
“If this is because I gave Hannah your address, I’m sorry. Please don’t cut me out of your life because of that!”
“Oh, Rhonda.” Cassie squeezed her hands briefly. “It’s not like that at all. You’re the one friend I had after my sister died and I’ll always to grateful to you for that. By sending Hannah to me, you actually did me a favor. That isn’t the problem.” The pythia hesitated. “The not-so-nice people I mentioned before... Well, they might send somebody to find Hannah, and I don’t want you getting mixed up in this mess.”
“What should I do?” the shopkeeper asked helplessly.
“For starters, be really careful if you see a man in a cowboy hat walk into this shop.”
Rhonda burst out laughing. “You can’t be serious.”
Cassie’s tone was stern. “Dead serious. Be on your guard around him. His name is Leroy Hunt, and he’s very dangerous. If he asks about Hannah, you can say she came to find me, but you told her you didn’t know where I was. After that, she left. You don’t know where she went from here. And you’d be telling the truth. You don’t know where she is.”
“Alright,” Rhonda agreed uncertainly.
“And there’s one more thing. If he should ask about me, you tell him I disappeared. Tell him I took a trip to Crete about six months ago and nobody has seen me since.”
Rhonda’s expression displayed shock. “Is this man after you?”
“Not any more. He thinks he killed me. I’d prefer to keep it that way.”
At those words, the color drained completely from Rhonda’s face. She remained silent for several moments. When she spoke, her voice was barely audible. “I always thought that Sybil’s death was just a random burglary gone wrong.” She stared directly into Cassie’s eyes. “But it wasn’t random at all, was it?”
The pythia met her gaze without flinching. “No, it wasn’t. Those not-so-nice people were behind it.”
“And you never told the police?”
“I didn’t know at the time. Sybil’s death was just the tip of the iceberg. There’s so much more at stake than that now.” Cassie returned to the matter at hand. “If somebody comes here asking about me, you tell them I disappeared.” The pythia laughed bleakly. “You won’t be lying about that either.”
“But how will I know you’re OK?”
“I’ll stop by when I’m sure it’s safe. It won’t be for a while though. I have to leave the country for a few months.”
“What on earth was Sybil involved in?” Rhonda asked in amazement.
“Something really, really important. And now I’m part of it too.”
“But Cassie, you’re just a kid,” the older woman protested.
The pythia smiled grimly. “If you knew what’s happened to me in the past six months, you wouldn’t call me that. I sure don’t feel like a kid anymore.”
Cassie stood to leave, and Rhonda put her arm around her visitor’s shoulder. “When I think of you out there, all alone...”
“That’s one thing you don’t need to worry about.” Her voice held a note of conviction. “I’ve got friends now, and they’re watching my back. I’m not alone out there. Not anymore.”
Chapter 19 – Man Trampled by Nightmare
It was well past two in the morning. Abraham restlessly prowled the silent corridors of the compound. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been able to sleep through the night. That was a lie. He could remember. It was the last evening he’d spent with Hannah. But too many sleepless nights had passed since then. Had it been a week? Two? The sunsets had all bled together into a single weary haze.
He wandered aimlessly down one dimly-lit hall after another. No sounds came from within any of the chambers he passed. The occupants were all fast asleep as he himself should be. He felt nervous tension and exhaustion warring for control of his body. It was an odd sensation. At the moment, nervous tension held the upper hand. His mind was disengaged—his thoughts suspended in a torpid state while his body continued to stagger forward toward some unknown destination. Without consciously intending it, his feet inevitably led him to Hannah’s quarters, and there they stopped. The door had been left ajar. He wandered in and sat down on the bed. Moonlight was streaming through the small barred window, projecting the shadow of a cross on the coverlet. He lay down on his side, just to rest his bloodshot eyes. Just for a few moments.
Abraham was standing beside the gates of the compound, but he felt a vague uneasiness. Something was very wrong. There were no sentries in the guard house. The gates had been flung open and people, his people, were spilling out. Not merely the few hundred who lived at the compound itself, but thousands more—all clad in the garb of the Nephilim—all coursing through the gates and out into the Fallen Lands.
“Stop!” he commanded. His voice was drowned by the roar of the crowd charging toward the open portal. The women were loosening the coils of their braids—shaking their long hair free and letting it swirl behind them as they ran. They removed their white aprons and trod them into the dust underfoot. The men threw off their hats and coats. Ripping the ties from their necks, they cast them aside.
“Stop!” Abraham commanded again, running toward the front of the mob. He gained speed and managed to get ahead of the multitude. Spreading his arms wide, he took a stand before the onslaught and commanded yet again, “I order you to stop! Do not go into the outer world. You will be damned for all eternity!”
For once in his life, his voice carried no authority. He was borne down by the first wave. He cast his eyes wildly about and spied Hannah standing off to the side, watching the frenzied race across the threshold. She was dressed as one of the Fallen. In her hand, she held a large iron key. She smiled slightly when she noticed him being pulled downwards. The smile never wavered as she watched him sink out of sight. The weight of all their bodies pounded down on him as they ran, breaking his rib cage, crushing his lungs. He gasped for one last breath. His heart burst—
Abraham’s eyes flew open in terror. By sheer reflex, he forced himself into an upright position. For the first few seconds, dream and waking merged. He didn’t know where he was or whether he was living or dead. Then his lungs expanded. The question was answered. He was still alive. Shakily, he threw his legs over the side of the bed, drawing in as much life-giving air as he could hold. He rubbed his chest just to make sure his heart was, in fact, beating. A cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
He tottered over to look out the window. It was night. The same night. The moon still blanketed the landscape in its sickly glow. He must have been asleep for only minutes, but it had been long enough. The dream was a warning—a caution from the Lord. It took him the space of a second to interpret its meaning. God was plainly showing him the trouble which lay in store becaus
e he had failed to grasp the true nature of his problem.
All this time, he had seen Hannah’s disappearance as a personal affront—an insult from Satan meant only for him. But his nightmare vision had shown him the larger significance of that event. Hannah must be recovered not only because it suited Abraham but because it was necessary to ensure the survival of the brotherhood itself. Where she had gone, others might follow. First one or two but the trickle would become a stream, and the stream would become a flood and the flood a tidal wave that swept around the globe. Every compound in every country was at risk unless the diviner intervened immediately. His power to contain must triumph over Satan’s power to corrupt or else the Blessed Nephilim would be lost to grace forever. The Lord had appointed him as their keeper. No matter what hideous torment awaited them in the afterlife for failing to keep the faith, it was nothing compared to the retribution God would visit on their failed shepherd.
Abraham finally understood the enormity of his dilemma. He had been wrong before. His own eyes could never hope to be vigilant enough to avert disaster. When the sun returned, and reason with it, he would see whether a legion of eyes could do what his own could not.
Chapter 20 – Feast of the Epiphany
“That was an amazing meal!” Cassie pushed away her empty plate and rested her elbows on the table. Since it was her last visit before leaving the country, Faye and Hannah had prepared a special going-away dinner for her. Stuffed pork loin with sage dressing, roasted potatoes, vegetables harvested from the garden and freshly-baked rolls.
“Hannah was a great help in the kitchen.” Faye smiled.
The girl blushed and stared down at the table top. “I didn’t do much.”
“Well, whatever you did, kudos!” the pythia said. “It was spectacular.”
“I don’t think our young friend is used to praise,” the old woman whispered as an aside.
Hannah flushed even more deeply. “Among the Nephilim, there’s a saying. ‘Compliments lead to pride and pride goeth before a fall.’”
“I’ve got a new saying for you,” Cassie countered. “Compliments lead to pride, and pride in a job well done goeth before self-esteem.”
Hannah gave her a puzzled look.
“I guess confidence training will have to wait til I get back,” Cassie said. She paused to note the change in the girl’s appearance. “You got your hair cut.”
“Daniel’s attempt to trim Hannah’s hair needed some correction,” Faye explained. “Yesterday we went to a little salon in the village. I think the style Hannah chose looks very fetching, don’t you?”
The girl had opted for a short, fringed cut that framed her face and made her look much more mature than her fourteen years.
Cassie nodded in agreement. “Très classy.”
The girl smiled. “I like it very much though it takes some getting used to. My head feels cold all the time now.”
They all laughed.
“Tomorrow we venture even deeper into forbidden territory,” Faye said.
At a quizzical glance from Cassie, the old woman elaborated. “I’m taking Hannah to the mall to buy her some more clothes. Winter will be here soon, and she doesn’t even have a coat yet.”
“You’re in for a treat,” Cassie told the girl. “You’re going on a shopping spree. After that, your morals will be completely corrupted.”
“They will?” the girl asked nervously.
Faye chuckled. “Don’t mind her, Hannah. It’s all perfectly proper. Cassie is just having a little joke.”
The pythia tried to explain. “Going to the mall is a rite of passage for every teenage girl in the world. You’re about to learn the true meaning of the word ‘charge!’ It’s a life-changer.”
Hannah’s dubious expression never wavered. Cassie sighed. “Never mind. It’s the sort of thing you need to experience for yourself.”
Faye reached across the table to clear away the dishes, but Hannah was too quick for her.
“Please, let me do that. You’ve been on your feet all day.”
Cassie tried to pick up a plate, but Hannah stopped her as well. “No, you’re a guest.”
The old woman rose stiffly. “Cassie, why don’t you and I go out into the garden and let Hannah handle this. There’s a fine sunset in the offing.”
The pythia poured them both mugs of coffee, and the two women ambled outside, allowing Hannah to finish cleaning up.
“I wanted to have a few moments alone with you anyway,” Faye confided in a low voice as they seated themselves under the pergola. The Chinese lanterns strung along the latticework were just beginning to glow in the twilight—the evening air still warmed by the last breath of Indian summer.
“Is everything squared away with your new apartment?” Faye asked.
“Barely,” Cassie said ruefully. “I found a little place in the suburbs. I thought it was safer than staying in the city. I didn’t have time to do more than sign the lease before I had to pack for Malta. Maddie says she’ll have some of her staff clear everything out of Sybil’s place and move it for me.”
“I take it you’re leaving first thing in the morning?”
“By dawn’s early light,” Cassie replied, taking a cautious sip of her coffee, which was still too hot to drink. “The guys send their regards. It would have been nice to share a farewell meal together but with Hannah here...” she trailed off, gazing pensively toward the house where the clatter of dishes could be heard. “How’s she doing?”
“We have daily lessons. The poor child’s education must have stopped somewhere around the fifth grade, so I’m attempting to fill in the gaps. The more difficult task is helping her adjust to the world at large. Every television program we watch raises a thousand questions, and I’m no expert on popular culture. I confess that the public fascination with this ‘reality TV’ business eludes me entirely.” Faye paused, frowning slightly. “Hannah often seems so normal that I’m tempted to forget her past until it surfaces in small ways.”
“What kind of small ways?” Cassie peered at the old woman.
Faye gave a tiny shrug. “Her religious upbringing comes back to haunt her at odd moments. Sometimes she has nightmares. I can hear her talking in her sleep. Now that she’s taken the plunge of rejecting her faith, she secretly wonders if perhaps she’s going to hell after all. She fears that the Nephilim were right.”
“That’s ridiculous!” Cassie exclaimed scornfully.
“Perhaps ridiculous to you and me but the pull of tradition can be very strong—especially on one so young who’s been immersed in those narrow beliefs since infancy.” Faye paused to check that Hannah was still busy in the kitchen. “She did a very brave thing to leave the Nephilim, but it came at a cost. I only hope I can help her move past her indoctrination.”
“If anybody can get through to her, I know you can. I was a head case when we first met but look at me now.” The pythia laughed briefly. “I could almost pass for a responsible adult.” She scowled worriedly as a new thought struck her. “Have you decided how you’re going to handle her condition?”
“Her condition?” Faye repeated doubtfully.
“I know she isn’t showing yet, and she says there’s no morning sickness, but you’ll have to get her to a doctor for check-ups, not to mention the delivery.”
“Oh that,” the old woman said easily. “My dear, the Arkana commands all sorts of resources you aren’t aware of. Doctors, midwives, our own medical facilities. We had to set those things in place long ago. As you already know from experience, working for a secret organization can be physically risky. Emergencies do arise, and the last thing we needed was to answer awkward questions at a community hospital.”
“I never would have thought of that.” Cassie registered surprise. “It’s good to know that Hannah will get the care she needs.”
Faye studied the pythia in silence, a slight smile playing about her lips.
Cassie did a double-take. “What
is it? Do I have crumbs on my face?”
The old woman chuckled. “No, I’m just amused to see how protective you’ve become of our little fugitive.”
“I suppose it’s because I’m not the new kid on the block anymore.” Cassie’s face grew solemn. “She is.” Her gaze slid off toward the house.
“It appears to me as if you have something more than that weighing on your mind,” Faye observed.
Cassie nodded. “I was thinking back to what it was like when I was the new kid and how much has changed since then. When I first got involved with all of you, it was because I wanted to find Sybil’s killer—plain and simple. I figured the Arkana had a better shot at helping me catch him than the cops would. I wasn’t thinking too much beyond that. It was all personal to me. And then, later on, I started to feel like you and Maddie and Erik and Griffin were family—the family I never had. I liked the feeling of belonging, so I stayed. That was personal too. But now...” she trailed off.
“Now?” Faye prompted.
Cassie took another sip of coffee. “Now it’s different. Ever since Hannah landed on my doorstep, I’m seeing things through her eyes. I think about what it might have been like if I never got to go to school, or drive a car, or travel the world. If I was surrounded by razor wire my whole life. If I was married off at fourteen and pregnant before I’d even crushed on my first boyfriend.” Cassie gave the old woman a searching gaze. “Do you think anybody should be forced to live like that?”
Faye remained silent, the cryptic smile returning to her lips.
The pythia continued. “The way I see it, we each get one life. Only one and it belongs to us. We’ve got a right to live it in a way that makes us happy and maybe makes the world a better place. Hannah never got that chance because some old lunatic thought she was his property. This diviner isn’t bad news because he sent a thug to kill my sister. He isn’t bad news because he wants the same artifacts that the Arkana does. He’s bad news because he cheated Hannah out of her own life.” Cassie sighed. “He won’t stop with her either. He won’t be happy until everybody lives the way he wants them to. If he gets his way, the whole world is in for trouble. We have to keep him from getting his hands on the Sage Stone, no matter what it takes.”
The Arkana Mysteries Boxed Set Page 63
