“When you return to us, stop in Vicaris and pick up the father and daughter accusers and bring them back to us. Alive.”
The words pained him worse than the merge itself. He did his best to remain emotionless, but he was sure the surprise was written across his face. “The daughter too, my lord?”
“Well of course the daughter, you heard the chief say she backed up the accusations of her father. For all we know she is the instigator of the lie,” Kai answered, seemingly amused by the question. “Is that a problem?”
“Of course not, my lord. Pardon my insubordination, I did not mean to question your orders. I will return with them both in two weeks.”
“We shall see you then.”
He exited through the opened doors and stood in the hallway outside as they closed behind him, his mind still trying to process what had happened. How had he managed to get himself into such a mess? If he had only left with the inspectors none of this would be happening. But because of one impulsive decision, he now found himself charged with the task of bringing Maya here to face the Shadows and most certainly her death. A fate he would never wish on her, no matter what she had accused him of.
He remained there, silently contemplating what he could possibly do to get himself out of this predicament, as a guard approached him. “Sir, the lady from Vicaris is in interrogation room five when you are ready.” He paused, noticing his distracted state. “Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?”
“No, no that will be all. I am on my way.” The guard bowed his head and strolled away. Well I guess I should get this over with, he thought, running his hands through his hair. Making his way to the stairs, he began his climb to the eighth floor, the whole while running possible scenarios through his head on how to get himself out of arresting Maya. However, no matter how many different ways of approaching the issue he came up with, they all ended in one of two ways, either in his death or hers.
He entered the eighth floor hall, where the interrogation rooms and holding cells were located, and made his way to room five, pausing outside the door. Bending over he peeked in through the small slit, and there sitting silently in a chair in the center of the room sat a very rough and distraught looking Janil.
“Open the door,” he demanded the guard standing post only a few feet away.
“Of course, sir,” the guard replied, obediently inserting the key into the door. Before opening it he hesitated, looking the Enforcer up and down. “Sir, would you like to change your shirt first? The one you have on is, umm, ripped.”
“No, what’s the point? Just let me in.” He knew he looked like death himself in his ripped up jacket and blood-soaked clothes, but after the events of the last two days he really didn’t care. “When is the cart going out to the burn fields?”
The guard smiled. “Oh it’s that kind of interrogation, is it? Hector is leaving with it tonight, the cart filled up fast after the raids this week.”
He didn’t feel the need to respond to this, instead he motioned for him to open the door. The guard quickly obliged, holding open the door as he stepped inside then closing and locking it behind him. Alone in the confines of the cell, she sat silently staring at the floor, not acknowledging his presence in any way. He walked slowly around her, to get a better idea of what damage the inspectors had already done, but from the look of her, other than some minor cuts and bruises, it appeared they had left her alone as instructed.
He finished his stroll around the room, grabbed a chair out of the corner, and dragged it over so he was sitting down directly in front of her only a few feet away. Janil not once looked up from whatever fixed point on the tiles she had her sight locked on.
“Why did you do it?” he asked, leaning back into the chair. It felt good to relax, even if for a brief moment.
She slowly raised her head to face him. Through the strands of gray hair hanging over her face, he could see her eyes were swollen and red from hours of crying. “Don’t ask me questions you already know the answer to, just do whatever it is you are going to do to me and get it over with.”
Already frustrated, her lack of cooperation served only to relight the fire burning inside. He leaned forward, positioning himself inches from her face. “I will do what I want, when I want. And right now I want you to answer the question I asked you. If you choose to make this hard then I will be forced to show you there are things that can be done that are far worse than death itself.”
Janil looked back down to the floor and begin to sob. “I already told you back at the clinic, he came in with the tag on. Right before he went unconscious he told me it was stolen, that he had been injured while stealing it. There is nothing else to tell.”
Enforcer leaned back into his chair with a sigh. “That’s not what I meant. I want to know why you confessed to a crime you didn’t commit.”
Janil’s head snapped up in confusion, tears still streaming down her face. “What are you talking about? I told you what happened.” Then, as if she suddenly realized what was happening, she began to protest, “No matter what you do to me, I will not tell you anything against anyone else in that clinic. They didn’t know, I swear.”
Enforcer only smirked. “I know they didn’t, but I’m also sure you didn’t know it was stolen either.” He was still leaning back comfortably in the chair, both of their eyes locked on the other. “All I want is for you to explain why you confessed. Why not let one of men confess or blame it on the Full-blood that works for the clinic? It seems like an easy enough thing to do, but no, you allowed yourself to be taken, understanding what the sentence would be, and I want to know why.”
It was obvious that she was confused by the question and unsure of the best way to answer. “Is this a trick? That’s what this is, isn’t it? You are trying to get me to condemn someone else, but I won’t do it.”
“No.” He moaned, exhaustion was beginning to set in. The red Formula had healed the wounds and rejuvenated him slightly, but it wasn’t enough. “Your confession stands, so no matter what you say this matter is closed, no one else will be arrested for this crime. I am only asking out of my own curiosity, whatever you say stays in this room.”
Janil was torn. She was looking directly at him, trying to determine what evil plan he might be implementing, yet he was blank and expressionless. She did, however, take notice of his disheveled appearance for the first time, and was taken aback by the amount of blood covering his clothes. Without a second thought she glared at him. “Who does all that blood belong to?”
Despite himself, the Enforcer couldn’t keep from laughing. “Don’t worry, it doesn’t belong to anyone you care about.”
Her expression went blank. “They did that to you, didn’t they?” she asked, seeming puzzled by the idea, and pausing as he fell silent. “You know, I have spent my entire life taking care of others,” she said, staring straight into his eyes with a strength and determination he couldn’t help but admire. “After you took my husband away from me, I had nothing, no one, and lived in daily fear of the patrols or you returning. Just by chance I found that clinic and Mikel, and once again I felt like I was home, that I had a family, and I could help people again.”
Enforcer listened attentively as she continued, captivated by her passion and bravery in what he had assumed was a random desperate act. “I guess that is the answer to your question. That’s why I confessed, because I would rather deal with the consequences myself than to know I stood by silently yet again and watched as the people I love got hurt. My way of atoning for the guilt I felt for allowing my husband to take the blame when you raided our clinic. But I wouldn’t expect you to understand any of this.”
He said nothing as his prisoner stared back at him strong and proud, knowing she had, in this her final moment, faced him unwavering, and in her own way bested him. She had a passion and intensity that was rare in this time, especially in Terrians, and he admired her for it. He leaned forward, rubbing his hands over his face, trying to clear his mind and ward off the
exhaustion, when she broke the silence. “Since I answered your question, would you answer one for me?”
Glancing up at her from his hands, he leaned back, and after taking a moment to consider the request he gestured for her to go ahead with her question.
“Why? Why do you serve them? I mean, look at you,” she gestured to the torn and bloody clothes he was wearing, “you are almost as powerful as they are, yet they treat you no better than a slave. And do you know why they do it? Because they know, they know you are a threat and in being so you must be controlled. So why betray your own people and alienate yourself for those who are just using you until you can no longer serve their purpose?”
The words struck him hard and infuriated him to the core. “My people?” he growled in a low, menacing tone. “My people died a long time ago.” He stood up, kicking his chair backwards. “I was fighting to get rid of them you know, and we stood a chance, a small one, until we were betrayed by those we fought to protect, these so call Full-bloods. They ran cowering to the Shadows, begging for mercy and told them of our plans.” He raised a foot into the air and brought it down onto the chair reducing it to nothing more than a pile of splinters. Janil flinched, yet remained fixed in her own chair watching the bull of a man vent his frustration. “They lead them straight to us, sentencing us all to death and ending any chances the rebellion had of succeeding.”
“But they didn’t kill you,” Janil said in her normal placid tone, “instead they coerced you into doing their dirty work, into serving them instead of fighting them.”
He was losing this battle and he knew it; this kind older lady had looked inside him and seen into his soul, unlocking his doubts and pulling them to the surface. No longer able to face the judgment in her gaze, he turned his back to her. “You know nothing about me, and though I readily admit that I am not proud of what I have become, I have my reasons for doing what I do.” Behind him he could hear her sigh surrendering her plight. Knowing what had to be done next, slowly he turned back around and faced her. “I am sorry, but this has to be done. However, if it is any consolation, you will soon be with your husband.”
Janil sat unphased and accepting of her fate. “Just remember you are what you choose to be, only you can change this.”
But her words were in vain, for in a flash he was on her; lifting her to him, he sank his teeth deep into her neck. He drank from her, little by little, feeling her warmth and life flow into him. The blood rejuvenated every ounce of his body in a way that the red formula never could, and he continued until he felt her body go limp and her heartbeat slow. When he felt he had drained her sufficiently, he released his bite and slowly lowered her body to the floor. After taking a moment to admire his handiwork and clean off his face, the Enforcer sighed. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small blade then knelt down beside her. He pulled her shirt slightly to the side, and with delicate precision carved a small tear drop symbol into the bare skin of her neck—just below the bite—then let the shirt fall back into place.
“Guard, open the door. I’m ready to get out of here,” he yelled.
He could hear the key turning inside the lock, and the guard stood holding it open as he exited into the hallway. Glancing into the room behind him and seeing the body on the floor, the guard smiled. “I see it was a productive interrogation.”
He glared at the guard in a way that made him retreat a couple of steps. “Just make sure to get her body to the cart before it leaves tonight or I will be back for another. Better yet, perhaps I should tell the Shadows of your late night trips to Gaia’s chamber with her hand maiden.”
Shocked by the Enforcer’s knowledge of his late night rendezvous, the guard started stammering, “Y-yes, s-sir, I will see to it m-myself. Is there anything else you need me to do?”
“Yes. Go to the doctor, get me two vials of red formula, and bring them to my room. I’m going to be gone for a while and there seems to be a growing number of people who would like to see me dead.”
“Of course, right away,” the guard replied, bowing before he took off down the hall.
The Enforcer headed off in the opposite direction to make his way to the place he had called home for nearly half a century. After climbing a several more flights of stairs he entered into the hall at the top floor of the Tower. It was one of the hardest halls to navigate, and because of this it was where most of the higher ranking officials rooms were located, the Shadows included.
He walked through the maze of corridors and hallways. Finally reaching his destination, he inserted his key into the door, and entered the room he called home. Everything in it had been provided by the Shadows; Gaia herself had picked out most of the various wall hangings and statues that were scattered about the room. The only thing in here that actually belonged to him was a collection of antique weapons he had accumulated over the years until it now covered one entire wall.
Safe within the confines of his familiar walls, he took a moment to look down at himself. Disgusted by what he saw, he pulled off his ripped, blood-stained jacket and shirt, and tossed them into a fire burning in the fireplace before heading straight to the bathroom. Once again he found himself having to wash away large amounts of his own blood. He propped himself against the tiled wall of the shower, becoming wrapped up in the warmth and sounds of the running water, and allowing his mind to go blank, blocking out all thoughts of the Shadows, Maya, and Janil.
Exiting the shower, he wrapped a towel around his waist and headed to the closet. The image of himself in a mirror caught his attention and he paused to look at the figure staring back at him. Scarring covered almost every inch of him, each one left there specifically to remind him of whatever disobedience he had done in the mind of the Shadows, his face being the only thing they had spared up to this point. He struggled to push the memories out of his mind as he pulled on his pants and boots, then grabbing a bag out of the bottom of the closet, he threw in a few changes of clothes. Continuing around the room he gathered what items he felt he would need to get him through the next couple of weeks, stopping last at his wall of weapons. Normally he never carried weapons on him, but the last attack in Vicaris had him wondering how long before one of these groups finally managed to get the best of him. There had been a noticeable trend recently of Full-bloods getting braver and more open in challenging him, but never a group as large or as well-organized as the one in Vicaris.
He reached up and removed a pair of daggers, placing them in the bag before tossing it by the door. With nothing else left to do but wait, he flopped down on the couch and kicked his feet up on the table. Maybe, just maybe he could get some rest. Leaning back into the seat, he closed his eyes. Unfortunately sleep would not be coming to him tonight, for as he closed his eyes, there she was, waiting for him.
Janil, pale and bleeding, her face soaked in her own tears waited for him with her hand reaching out to him for help. He walked toward her through the void, but as he came closer and reached his hand out to take hers, she began to transform.
No longer was she the helpless lady with whom he had left lying there on the cell floor, she was changing, changing into something dark, something monstrous. He stared into her glowing red eyes, watching as her face and body twisted and turned until her form was no longer recognizable as that of a Terrian.
Suddenly she moved toward him with blinding speed, stopping inches away and baring an impressive set of fangs. He didn’t have a chance to react before she was on top of him, and just as he had done to her, she sank her fangs deep into his jugular and began to drain his life from him little by little. He struggled, trying to get her off his back only to feel her sink her teeth deeper into his neck. With each breath he grew weaker, until finally his knees collapsed beneath him and the darkness of the void consumed him.
It was a knock on the door that saved him. He started awake, still seated on the couch but out of breath and covered in a cold sweat. The knock came again. “Who is it?” he yelled angrily getting up and heading for the door
.
“Sir, it is me. I brought the items you requested,” the voice of the guard called from the other side.
He took a moment to straighten himself up before opening the door to reveal the guard from the interrogation hall. The guard remained silent, staring at him to the point he began to become angry. “Well?” he barked at him. Then, realizing that he was staring at the scars covering his chest and arms, he turned and grabbed a shirt laying on a nearby chair and pulled it on over his head.
Very few people had ever seen him when he wasn’t covered entirely in the black attire that he had become infamous for. “Well, where are they?” he demanded again. The guard shakily held out his hand, revealing two vials of red formula. Pleased at the sight, he carefully lifted them from his hand and reentered the room. “My thanks.”
“Anytime, sir,” the guard replied, bowing nervously. “I handled the other matter you requested myself and made it down before the cart left. Oh, I was also told to let you know that a horse is ready downstairs whenever you wish to leave.” The Enforcer nodded in acknowledgement, and having delivered all his messages the guard turned and disappeared back into the labyrinth of halls.
The Enforcer threw on a new jacket and loaded it down with various items, including the vials and daggers. Gloves on his hands and bag on his shoulder, he headed down the hall for the stairs. Winding his way through the narrow labyrinth he decided about midway that perhaps it would be better after all if he traveled by foot; it would give him a chance to clear his mind and run off some of the tenseness that had consumed him as of late. He exited into the main hall and made his way toward the doors, his thoughts only on what was awaiting him on the other side.
Chapter 7
Alone
It had been nearly a week since her father had gone unconscious and her world had been turned upside down. Citera had planted herself at her father’s bedside, desperately watching and waiting for any sign that he was still within this lifeless body. Occasionally she would think she saw his eye twitch or that she caught a flicker of movement in a finger, but when she waited for him to repeat the gesture or called to him, a response never came. So day after day she continued to sit there, unable to eat, unable to sleep, her body growing numb to the pain.
K: The Awakening (The Shadow Chronicles Book 1) Page 12
