The Keepers of the Rose

by DJ Dalasta

  Anna shaded her eyes from the morning sun. Below, Seth Delega was waiting for them on the tarmac, cast in the dark shadows of a silhouette. She was halfway down the air-stairs before his expression was visible. His eyes never left her step and she could clearly see the frown he wore, most likely in response to her presence. He was dressed in a well-fitted black suit with his usual dark and neatly pressed hair. His appearance was more formal than what she had been used to. The disheveled appearance and wild antics he exhibited over their last couple encounters looked to be suppressed. Perhaps it was his father’s presence.

  He let her go by without a word and took his father’s arm helping him down the final steps. “What is she doing here,” Seth said in hushed tones.

  “Anna, is our only lead to finding Rock Tilton and the information he carries, whatever that may be. She said this would be the place to come to find answers.”

  “And you believe her. She’s offered no proof or anything. Just her word, which we know is likely to contain lies and fabrications. She’s lied to my face without batting an eye.” Seth looked over at her. “She’s exceptionally good at it.”

  “I don’t care what she has done in the past. Anna has seen first hand what the other side will do if they find Rock or anybody else involved. Now that she knows, there is no reason not to trust her, those lives are at risk and we are her best option for helping. That, for the moment, makes us allies. I can’t say what she personally thinks of us, or me, or you, or what she’ll think or believe when this is all over, but for now, we need each other and that is what I trust.” Vitori wrestled his arm away from his son. “You will do your part Seth and listen to what she has to say.”

  “You are making a mistake. I’ve tried with her. There is no way she is going to lead us to what we need. We should be investigating the cabin site and making headway on our leads involving the keepers of the rose. We should dispose of her, the sooner the better.”

  “Those leads take us here anyway,” Vitori said. “There is no harm in listening and seeing where her information goes. It could save us days, even weeks and time is now more important than ever. This is a chance I am willing to take.”

  “Then take it!” Seth’s anger flared in its usual quick fashion. “You’re wasting your time. I’m taking my men and we’ll pursue a different route.”

  “You’re men, I don’t need to remind you, are my men first. I will not waste vital resources on your whims or insecurities. You let her and Rock fuck you once and now you’re bitter.”

  “Fuck you,” Seth snarled.

  “Swallow your pride and get on board or get out of my face. Either way all resources will be used at my discretion.”

  “As you wish, but when I return you may sing a different tune.” Seth turned and started for the plane.

  “Where are you going,” Vitori yelled after him.

  “What do you care,” he called back. “Florida is where you want to be, you’re here, so follow your bitch.” He whipped his head back around.

  “Come Anna,” Vitori took her arm. “Don’t worry about him.”

  “Maybe I should leave,” Anna said. “Would you let me go if I wanted? Would you let me free without anybody following?”

  “Anna. If I said no, our trust would be severed and you would do nothing, knowing that if you found Rock I would have him as well. But if I said yes, well, then I lose my best chance at finding anything and with that act I do myself and those I wish to save a great disservice. So I cannot answer at the moment. But know if that time comes, I would weigh my options and then make a decision.”

  “I see,” she said. They walked in silence until they stopped next to a black town car.

  “But please make your choice Anna, if you get in with me, we do this until the end. I will do my best to keep anybody else from being harmed. You have my word.”

  Anna quickly mulled over her options. She could try to walk away but where would that leave her, where would that leave Rock? If what Vitori said was true, how bad would it be for the lost pages or even the full copy to fall into his hands rather than the keepers. It truly couldn’t be any worse. But maybe Rock was already caught or dead, then what was the point of going down this route. The Cooper’s may already have everything. She felt helpless and in the dark. She needed to find some answers and there was only one place that could shed even a little light on the situation. And to go there, she would need Vitori’s help.

  Anna let go of his arm and ducked into the car. The old man followed and sat next to her. He settled in and smiled.

  “I think you’ve made a wise decision. Now, where are we going?”

  “To Barrion Imports, to find Sayla. If she’s not there, we need to find a man named Harrison Burr.”

  The car lurched into gear and they fell into place within a line of vehicles. “Barrion imports,” Vitori said aloud then turned back to Anna. “That sounds familiar, though this Harrison Burr I’ve never heard of.”

  “He’s Sayla’s uncle. They’ve been involved in this for some time and if anyone knows what’s going on, it’s Sayla.”

  “I thought Sayla was Rock’s,” Vitori paused as Anna held up a hand.

  “She’s been playing him all along. How do you think they found the cabin? She’s one of them, the most dangerous one in my opinion. She’s given them everything, our every move, every step. And if I get my hands on her, I’ll kill her myself. The worst part is, Rock has no clue.”

  “Does she have access to the rose, would Rock give her the pages?”

  “My guess is she might still be with Rock, if he’s ok. He’ll meet up with her when he has an idea of where the missing parts of the rose are located. They’ll go together to find them and when Rock finds the pages, she’ll probably kill him and return to the Coopers. Or maybe head back to her uncle, Harrison. So that’s where we’ll start. We find Sayla, we’ll find your rose or the copies if she still has them and hopefully we’ll find Rock.”

  “Very well. But don’t do anything rash before I have a chance to question the girl. Though if I read your emotions correct, you may wish to be in the room for that.”

  “I would,” she said, thinking of Nate. “And I might even join in.”

  The warehouses at the port all looked alike. They were big pale buildings with rusted equipment, chain fences and pallets of cargo waiting to be taken away. Trucks by the dozens slowly crept along the streets. The air was filled with the constant warning beeps of big rigs backing up and the occasional sound of horns cautioning further movement. They passed by large storage areas with hundreds of cargo containers and winded back into smaller streets until coming to a rest in front of a fenced in warehouse with a simple sign reading ‘Barrion Imports.’

  “Sure doesn’t look like much,” Anna said.

  “That’s the idea,” Vitori replied. “This is probably one of the many places where goods are stored that are whisked off the ships before customs gets a chance to eyeball them.”

  The driver looked back. “How do you want to proceed,” he asked.

  “Snap the locks, take us in. I don’t want anybody flaunting a weapon unless provoked. And I only want our car and one other to begin with, unless needed. We’ll use force only if we have to.”

  Anna watched two of Delega’s men easily snap open the lock without confrontation. They opened the fence and let them drive through to come inside the perimeter.

  They drove around the side of the building and parked near what appeared to be the main entrance. They still had yet to see anybody and Anna was starting to feel a little exposed. Vitori must have sensed it. He laid a hand on her leg and gently squeezed.

  “Let my men secure this area and then we’ll go inside and have a look.” At his words, his men quickly jumped from the vehicles and fanned out in all directions.

  At that moment, the front door to the building slammed open and an overweight man took a few steps out.
His unshaven and unruly appearance wasn’t what she was expecting.

  “Who the fuck are you and get the fuck off my property,” he yelled, “this is a private business!” He was waving his hands and his face grew a darker shade of red with each syllable.

  When five guns fanned in his direction he quickly shut up. He put his hands in the air and stood perfectly still. Vitori carefully watched the situation for a moment and then decided to get out. It took him a couple of deep breaths to gather his strength and then he slowly approached the man, leaning heavily on a walking cane. He came within a few feet and started speaking. Anna couldn’t hear what was being said but the man didn’t look too pleased about it. Then together, they disappeared inside.

  One of Vitori’s men came to her window. He peered at her through the glass. “Mr. Delega says it is safe for you to come in. We’ll keep an eye out here for anything.”

  Anna hesitantly removed herself from the car and walked towards the entrance. The plain building was nothing special. She was expecting a lavishly adorned place with attendants and lights but this was run down and in many ways looked as though it could be condemned.

  Inside, she started down a pale cream hallway with various stains left from over the years. She passed by a few offices and heard voices coming from a door at the end. She crossed through and found herself in the front part of the warehouse. The roof jumped up well over fifty feet and the heat and moisture from the Florida summer was trapped inside. She immediately began to sweat.

  To her right Vitori, with three armed guards stood on one side of a plain steel desk while the burly man stood, with his belly hanging out of a plain white t-shirt, on the other. Another man with a shaven head and scrawny arms stood next to him. There were two guns on the table with the clips removed. In her peripheral she saw a dozen more of Vitori’s men slink into the warehouse and move to the far corners.

  She tiptoed until she stood directly behind Vitori and waited silently. He was engaged in conversation. “I want all your people here,” he said, “I want them to come to this table and lay down their weapons and then we’ll have a conversation. I will be sending my team through this whole building in a few moments. If they find anybody other than the people that we know of, they have orders to shoot and kill and then I’ll kill you.”

  The man nodded, his three chins overlapped with the movement. He picked up a phone and hit a number. His voice then came over the loud speaker. “All employees are to report to the front hangar, come unarmed and immediately. If you do not, you will face severe penalties.” He hung up the phone and looked at Vitori. “That good?”

  “We will see.”

  Within a few minutes, men started showing up. Each one made Anna thankful to be with Vitori. They were unshaven with either a baldhead or long greasy hair. Most of them wore nothing more than a stained sleeveless white shirt and the smell made her want to run outside. All of them had beady eyes that lingered on her longer than on the men pointing guns in their direction.

  “That’s it,” the man said after the fifth worker had come forward and lain down his weapon. “Now what do you fucking want cause I’m sure you don’t realize what you’re getting yourself into here.”

  “Actually I do realize.” Vitori came back. “I realize because I was part of your organization before you were even born. And now I intend to end it.”

  The man smirked. “So once again old timer, why the fuck are you here, and who are you and who is this bitch?”

  “I am Vitori Delega and this is Anna Riley,” he paused. “And we’re here to speak with one Harrison Burr.”

  “And,” then man said.

  “And are you him,” Anna cut in.

  “Sure,” he answered sarcastically.

  “We need to get in touch with your niece, we need to find Sayla.”

  He started laughing which quickly turned into a wheeze as he attempted to catch his breath. When he was finished he lit a cigarette. “My niece? That squirrelly little bitch? You ain't the only ones lookin’ for her.”

  “What do you mean,” Vitori asked.

  “Exactly what I said.”

  “So you’re looking for her too then,” Anna said.

  “I don’t see why I should answer any of your questions.”

  “Because if you don’t,” Vitori lowered his eyes. “I’ll have you all slowly gutted and thrown in the ocean.”

  “So pretty much the same thing as if we do talk. You see, I know both of you. Delega, you’re name’s been thrown around a lot recently with Oak Island and all. And yours too, they’ve been lookin’ for you Ms. Anna Riley. But at this moment I know I’m a dead man. Don’t know how you came to find out about us here, probably my bitch of a niece but I do know you tie up loose ends as good as we do. So get on with it, nobody here’s gonna talk so don’t waste your breath.” He took a puff on the cigarette and blew out a broken circle of smoke.

  “You may be mistaken once my men start in on you.”

  Harrison smiled. “You’re fucked and you don’t even know it.” He pulled up a chair and sat down throwing his feet up on the desk. Two of the unloaded guns were knocked from their position and fell to the floor. “Now fuck off.”

  Anna decided to speak up. “I need to find your niece, I don’t care about any of this between whoever you are and whoever they are,” she gestured to Vitori. “I need to find her so I can find Rock, that’s it, I don’t want to harm her or anything.”

  Harrison Burr took a long drag before answering. “I don’t give a shit about you or about Rock. But when Elias sorts this out, when he gets to you and he will, both of you, you’re going to regret you ever came here.”

  “I think you have it wrong Mr. Burr,” Vitori said. He snapped his fingers and one of his men came running over. “Kill him,” he said. “Quickly.” Vitori took Anna’s arm and began leading her away. “You know Anna, perhaps we should have a look around. We may be able to learn something that could help us locate either Rock or Sayla. That man won’t do.” He led her towards the back of the room in the direction of an odd revolving door. She looked back to see Vitori’s man pointing a gun at Harrison Burr’s head and pulling the trigger. The muzzle lit up with a bright flash and the fat man’s head flapped backwards. The cigarette slipped from his lips and he died just as he knew he would. Anna almost vomited as she realized this is how Nate’s final moments were most likely played out. She clasped Vitori’s arm as her legs felt light and wobbly. He seemed not to notice or passed her weight to his cane to hold them both upright. He pushed her forward trying to remove her from the room and together they shuffled through the revolving door.

  Anna immediately felt a blast of cold air as they spun through the panels. It was a good twenty degrees cooler than in the other parts of the building and it brought her back to her senses.

  “Why is it so cold in here,” she asked.

  “Usually to preserve things. Notice, the humidity is gone too. It’s cool and dry.” She breathed deeply feeling her strength return.

  She walked towards a set of shelves directly in front of her and opened a wooden drawer. Inside were metal sheets. They looked worn and rusted. She closed the drawer. The next shelf over held a few broken stone carvings. One of a hand, and two others were halves of badly cracked spheres. “What is all this,” she whispered. She looked down the row and it must have continued for a hundred yards before she saw the end. And it looked like every shelf was full though she couldn’t discern what was held on each.

  “Anna,” she heard Vitori call from the next row over. “Come here.”

  Ann walked around the corner and found Vitori standing in front of a four-foot statue. It was of a bearded man raising a pole over his head. On either end was inset a red crystal. The statue itself was crumbling on the edges. The man’s beard was half gone, his toes were missing and the tails of his robe were also absent. On the bottom there was a plaque with an
inscription.

  “What does it say,” Anna bent down studying it.

  “I do not know, I was hoping you could read it by now.”

  “Is this?”

  “Yes Anna, this is Atlantian. I knew the keepers had items from their culture but to this extent and at this location, I had no clue. It’s incredible. This whole building is full of artifacts.”

  Anna stared down this row and instead of narrow shelves it was lined with statues like this one. On the other side there were pipes and blocks and cups. She hurried over and picked up a cup. She flicked it.

  “This is plastic. There’s no way.” It was a faded blue and was worn thin and bubbled. There were holes in it and markings she couldn’t explain. “This isn’t that old, plastic breaks down in 500 years.”

  “Starts its breakdown.” Vitori added. “And this may have been a very hardy cup in ideal conditions to weather time. Who are you to say?”

  “I’ve never come across plastics like this from an ancient culture.”

  “And you never believed in Atlantis either, yet here is the evidence it existed.”

  “This stuff should be in a museum,” she said picking up a piece of pipe and twirling it in her hands. “And how do they know this is Atlantian?”

  “Location, testing, truthfully I don’t know but it’s here for a reason. And most of these things that have markings are marked in that language we can’t read. Or can we?” He looked at her.

  “The dead people back in Tennessee could probably read them, but not me.”

  “Too bad.”

  Anna kept walking down the aisles. She found coins, jewelry, household items, plumbing, and even a few weapons that looked eerily like modern bomb casings. But she found nothing that would help her find Rock. She was in awe at the amount of items and could easily spend days in here, weeks even. This room could probably keep her busy for the rest of her career. And here it sat, alone, untended, in secret.

  Vitori sat down on a nearby crate. “I think this isn’t the correct course of action.”

  “I agree. We don’t even know what we’re looking for, and this place needs to be turned over to someone who can categorize and take care of it. Display it and study it. This is perhaps the most amazing find ever in history. I see examples of artistry, mathematics well beyond what should have been capable, scientific findings, and architectural advances that weren’t considered feasible until just recently. If it dates to when you say it does, we’ve had everything wrong. It’d be like starting over.”

  “That doesn’t matter Anna. Everything resets in just a few months, we’re starting over.”

  “Right, if you believe that” she replied. “But let’s go. This isn’t helping to find Rock.”

  They made their way back to the revolving door and spun through to the other side. As they came into the original warehouse, they heard the first gun shot echo from outside. Quickly, it was accompanied by loud voices and a thunderous sound of running feet.

  Chapter 40

  Florida, August 2012