by Kelly Hall
“Well, that was short and sweet,” said Wick.
“Yeah, we finally got her where we have always wanted her,” said the Bishop, taking a chair at a large oval table that was loaded with refreshments of cheese, wine, and a multitude of fruits and pastries. The other Elders made themselves at home, filling their glasses and plates while the two continued their conversation.
“I myself have waited for this day for decades,” said Crowe. “I’m really proud of your man for having the fortitude to have her followed. It really paid off.”
Elder Wick sighed. “It was the only thing Elder John did right, unfortunately for him. With his embezzlement charges, I’m afraid he’s going to have to be replaced, and since he made a mess of the Nevada Academy, we’re still doing damage control.”
Crowe hated to hear it. He could use a man like that on his side if he weren’t a greedy bastard. “How’s that going?”
“By the time we’re done, the Church will come out smelling like a rose, and in the meantime, I’ve taken some early steps to convert the training facilities to a more Church-friendly environment. The younger hunters will see which side their bread is buttered on.”
“Good, I trust you to handle that.” He hoped he wouldn’t have to be called in anytime soon to hold more trials. As the Church’s official judge, it was his duty, though he’d rather be on his yacht, sipping drinks with his attendants who all happened to be gorgeous young women.
“Thank you, sir.” Wick took a plate. “So, how long do we have to sit in here and make like we’re deciding her fate?”
“My day is shot, and it seems a waste to leave all of this delicious food.” He cackled, and Wick joined him with a chuckle. “Besides, let’s make the commanders’ travel worth it. As long as we have them out by one, they’ll be okay. I do think that Rebekah could use a lot of time to sit and think about what she’s done.”
“Do you really think she’s guilty?” asked Wick.
“Do I think she’s fucking vampires? No. I think she’s got a taste for wolves though.” He gave a laugh and thought back to the statements he’d read in the files.
Elder Wick tilted his head to the side. “Wolves? You mean shifters?”
“Same difference,” Crowe said, waving his hand. “I told you at our last meeting that the Church has tried to take drastic measures to get rid of her before. The records show that Rebekah was captured once, taken prisoner by a group of rogue shifters. They stripped her of her weapons, her clothes, and chained her up. I imagine a few of them had a little fun with her. Could you imagine?”
Wick tried to keep a straight face, though he couldn’t help but think of his own mother and sister in the same position, and the horror of it made his stomach turn.
“I’d put it to her, all right,” said Elder Sweeny, who was sitting close. The others laughed, and one patted him on the back.
One of the other elders, Munson, spoke up from across the table. “Maybe we should bring her in here and all have a go at her. I bet those strong thighs make that cunt clench nice and tight.”
They all laughed and raised their glasses at the idea as Wick rolled his eyes.
Bishop Crowe shook his head. “No thank you. She’s been lying with dogs. Bitch probably has fleas.”
“What are we going to do with her?” asked Wick, trying to keep the conversation on point. “We can’t exactly be brutal. If the Fellowship sees us trying to rip her apart, then we’ll never win them over to our side.”
Crowe munched on a piece of cheese and then sipped his wine. He wiped his chin and gave Wick a shrug. “I still think we should make her prove her loyalty to the Church. Of course, she will never regain her position, but she doesn’t have to know that. If she’s so hellbent on proving us wrong, perhaps it will benefit us more. What better way to take care of an immortal being than with another immortal being? Surely, they know ways to destroy one another, and while they’re busy with that, we’ll win the Fellowship to our side.”
“Her men are not all going to turn against her,” Wick said. “We saw that out there today. What she says makes sense to them. They are made like her, not us. We have to play these hands just right, or we risk losing the ones who might remain loyal.”
Wick hoped that they all understood just how loyal her men were. Those who didn’t worship her hunting skills most likely had fantasies of her. Now that Rebekah had made an appearance, showing up after decades in privacy looking like sex incarnate, they’d have a harder time winning over her men. Who would choose a group of old men over a hot young huntress? He had a feeling many of the men around him would give up their vows if they really thought they could be inside of her.
“That’s where Kayne comes in,” said Crowe. “Let him do the ripping apart. It will rally the men faster than anything. And if she can’t bring him to us, dead or alive, we’ll say she has sympathy for her lover. The pictures did enough damage as it is. Whoever isn’t on our side by then will be soon enough.”
There were mumbles of agreement, and Elder Clum leaned into the table. “Did you see the way he looked at her? He’s hit that before if you ask me. The two have a long past before our time. I’m sure that’s not their first meeting.” He bit into a cracker and brushed the crumbs off his robe.
“Do you think he sinks his fangs in her down there?” Munson asked the elder next to him before popping a grape into his mouth.
The other man laughed. “No, but I bet he fucks her good with his cold dead cock.” Laughter erupted around the table again, but Wick wasn’t impressed. He didn’t get into the Elder’s Council to degrade women, Huntress or otherwise.
Wick cleared his throat and looked away from the table.
“That’s enough,” said Crowe. “Some of us are trying to eat.”
Wick brought the subject back to her punishment. “So, then we have her hunt down Kayne? When will she be released?”
“Today. I don’t want her talking with that wolf anymore. The guard said they’d been getting awfully chummy. I had hoped he’d make her miserable, but I guess I should have known how good she is at charming the enemy.”
“I only hope we don’t underestimate her,” Wick said. “If she’s able to request a meeting with Kayne, then what else would he do for her? You saw that look in his eyes. What if that’s love? We could have hell to pay for this.”
“It’s a risk I’ll take. I’ve heard about Kayne. He’s supposedly the meanest bastard in the world, and besides, his kind can’t love. They are dark, miserable creatures. Evil is all they know, and I doubt he has any real feelings for the Huntress that he would sacrifice his own kind for. Trust me on this. If Kayne does anything, he’ll find a way to kill her. Either way, her temporary suspension from leadership will be permanent, leaving the Church completely in charge of the Fellowship as it should have been from the start.”
“And what if she succeeds?” asked Wick, earning laughter from the rest of the table.
Crowe smiled. “Then we have two immortals to lock in our prison. Warden Hollow would love that.”
Elder Wick cringed. “When word of this gets out, we will have to make sure that every academy, every camp, and even the Elders beef up security. If Kayne finds out he’s being hunted, if he and his minions get wind of it, they’ll come for us all.” Suddenly, he wasn’t sure this was the right decision.
Bishop Crowe smiled. “We’ll have control of all the Fellowship by then, and we’ll have used the academies’ daggers to create some of our own hunters.” He wasn’t worried about them at all. Some would fall, but not him. “Let them come.”
Chapter 10
Rebekah was growing restless in the holding area with Dixon looming over her. The two had been stuck in the room together for hours with a guard, and though Dixon requested water, not only for himself, but for her too, his requests went ignored.
“Dammit, what’s taking them so long?” Dixon asked the guard. “Could you go down and see if there is an estimated time? I’d like us to have lunch before ret
urning. It’s nearly noon now.” They had been sitting there in the small space staring at one another for hours. Not that he was complaining about that.
She was so beautiful, he could stare at her for the rest of his life, and he wished there was a way to make that clear to her without coming across like every other man who had made a pass at her throughout the centuries.
Rebekah hated it when Hoyt got that longing look in his eyes. She cleared her throat to respond, knowing full well why the Elders were taking their time in deliberation. “They don’t care. They’re probably sitting around eating the monks’ cheeses and drinking wine like a bunch of reprobates. I’m sure they came to their decision hours ago, and this is just to make me uncomfortable. Well, I have news for them. I’ve slept on the cold earth more nights than they’ve been alive collectively, so this is nothing.”
“Speak for yourself, Rebekah,” he said, earning a chuckle from the Huntress. The nagging pain in her head had returned an hour before, and thankfully, it was slowly ebbing, settling into a faint irritation like it had been all morning.
Rebekah eased back in her chair and closed her eyes. “All I want to know is what they plan to do, and I pray it’s nothing stupid.”
About that time, the guard poked his head in and then pushed the door open. “Come with me,” he said as he turned to lead the way.
Rebekah and Hoyt followed, and by the time they reached the courtroom, the others had already filed in. There were a few more hunters crowding in the pews, giving their salutes, which made Rebekah feel a lot better. Father Timms was back front and center, and she hoped that he was going to stay around so she could head back home with him.
Before Rebekah could take her seat, still dragging the heavy chains, everyone stood for Bishop Crowe’s entrance.
“Be seated,” he said, taking his perch. “Sorry to keep you all waiting, but as you well know, we shouldn’t take our decisions lightly when it comes to the Immortal Huntress.”
Rebekah’s head hurt from trying to keep from rolling her eyes. Now he was going to recognize her as the Immortal Huntress and not Ms. Ward or Rebekah, and worse than that, he was going to make it seem like they really had a tough time with her verdict.
Bishop Crowe looked down at his notes in front of him. He hadn’t carried any papers in, so Rebekah figured it was just for show.
He cleared his throat. “We have come to the decision that the Immortal Huntress, Rebekah Cornelia Ward, has been found guilty of consorting with our enemy for the purpose of counsel without permission of the Church. While this judgement is not treason, it would also normally be carried out with a punishment of death, but it is because of special circumstances that we are going to allow the Huntress to prove herself to the Church. Until that time, she is hereby relinquished of all honor bestowed to her as leader of the Fellowship, and her rank is stripped. It is the request of the Church and its Elders for her to prove her loyalty by making Kayne her priority hunt.”
There was a commotion in the audience, and Bishop Crowe banged his fist on the table. “Order!”
Rebekah looked out and saw Father Timms lower his head as the other commanders all talked amongst themselves.
“This will cause a war!” The voice came from the back of the room.
“Who will lead the Fellowship?” asked Wick, trying to regain order.
“Order!” Bishop’s face turned red. “I’m aware that this is a big task for our Huntress. But I know she wants to prove herself to us all. In the meantime, the Elder’s council, specifically, Elder Wick, along with my help, will take command over the Fellowship.”
There were more whispers and outrage from the hunters’ side of the room. “No offense,” said Dixon, “but neither of you know anything about fighting, and if you’re going to put us in this position with the vampires, we are going to need strong leadership.”
“You’ve taken quite the interest in this case, Commander Dixon,” Crowe said. “When none of the other men wanted to take on the responsibility of representing their Huntress, you did so with much eagerness. I think it only appropriate that your kind of loyalty be rewarded by giving you a duty. So I hereby appoint you to represent the Fellowship by counseling us on battle strategies. You can come to Elder Wick and myself with any issues and keep us abreast of any and all situations regarding the academies and camps.”
Rebekah knew what Crowe was up to, and she knew that Dixon would have no choice but to take the offer, or he’d lose his place.
“Thank you, sir.” He sat down, and Bishop Crowe smiled down at him like he knew he had him right where he wanted him. None of the others said a word.
“If I might speak, Bishop Crowe?” asked Rebekah.
“Of course, Ms. Ward.” He gave her a wicked look. His narrowed eyes and smirk told her he liked talking down to her.
She started to raise her hands, but the chains rattled. “Sorry, Bishop, if you’d excuse me?” She gave him a nod, and he looked at her like he had no idea what she was requesting. She held up the chain and gripped the link, pulling it until it snapped. She tossed it aside as the Elders gasped, and as she got to her feet, she threw off the rest of her restraints. “Much better.”
She turned her head and looked at the guard who was coming toward her.
Bishop Crowe called him off like a dog. “Relax, guards. She’s only posturing. But I’m sure the others see her defiance.”
It had taken her some time to find just the right weak link. “Just making myself more comfortable. You want me to hunt down Kayne to prove my loyalty to the Church, and you’re willing to reap the whirlwind when his vamps come after the hunters?” She waited for his nod to continue. “You are aware that Kayne is the most powerful creature in the world, and he is immortal. Capturing him, bringing him to you? For what gain?”
“Once we have him locked up, you can return to your station as the leader of the Fellowship.”
“How am I supposed to do that without my hunters?” she asked.
Crowe shrugged. “You are the Immortal Huntress, are you not? Capable of breaking those cheap chains we had you bound in, but you’re afraid of taking on the Father of the Dead?” The Elders joined him in a chuckle.
“Who here would fight with me?” she asked, turning to face her men.
All of them stood up, resting their hand over their hearts.
Bishop Crowe sneered. “You have academies to command, gentleman. Any commander who chooses to leave his post to work with the Immortal Huntress will lose his rank and position.”
Rebekah spun around to look at him. “That’s not fair. My men have free will in who they can choose, Bishop. Surely, you are not suggesting that be taken from them.”
He took a deep breath. “You may take who you like, Huntress, but not from our commanders. They accepted their posts. Now they must stay and honor them. Surely, some of your hunters will help you. Meanwhile, you’re banished from the academies. I do not want any more of our recruits put in harm’s way because of you.”
She turned and looked at Father Timms, who had brought his hands together as if saying a prayer.
“The papers for your release have already been filed. Let the record show that Rebekah Cornelia Ward, the Immortal Huntress, has been temporarily relieved of her duties so that she may carry out her sentence for the Church effective immediately.” He rose from his chair, and much quicker than he entered, he left the room before many had the chance to stand.
As the Elders filed out, Dixon got to his feet, looking like a whipped puppy. “I’m so sorry, Rebekah. I feel like this is my fault. This is going to split the Fellowship apart.” He took her hand. “I’ll resign from my post and join you in the fight, Huntress.”
Some of the others came forward, crowding around and giving their salute while others filed out the back, looking disgusted.
Rebekah turned toward Hoyt. The lovesick fool would really give it all up for her. “No, you won’t. I need you men to hold the academies for me. It’s important and for the best
for now.”
One held out his hand. “I’m Tig Thompson from the Denver Academy. Tell us what you need, Huntress. You have our oaths, today and always.”
“Your loyalty means everything to me, and it will be rewarded. I’m afraid the Church has been coming against me for years, and they’ve finally gotten their way. Thank you all for not abandoning me. I will not only prove my loyalty to you all, but that I am innocent of every accusation against me.”
Another man came forward. “Charlie Oliver. We spoke about the transfer of your hunter, Cooper Carter. I’m proud to say he’s reported for duty and doing quite well. We have your back in London, Huntress.”
“Thank you, Commander Oliver. Tell Cooper I said hello. He’s a fine hunter.” She was glad to hear that things had turned out okay for the young man and couldn’t wait to get Father Timms alone to talk to him about the others back in Nevada. With Grady and his friends cutting out to join the rogues and Delilah taking off, she hoped she’d get a happy update. But Father Timms looked grim.
Rebekah shook the men’s hands, many of them for the first time, and only a couple were people she’d met before years back, though they hadn’t known then just who she was to them. “Thanks again, gentlemen, but I’m afraid I must go get my release in order.”
The men gave polite gestures and nods and cleared the way for her to walk through, with Father Timms on one side of her and Hoyt Dixon on the other.
When they were finally out front, Hoyt walked up to the counter, and she fell into Father Timm’s arms. “Thank you for coming, Father.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Frankie sends her love, as do the others. They all wished they could come.”
“Any word about Delilah?” she asked with hope in her heart.
He shook his head. “None before I left.”
“I’ve been waiting for a good time to tell you,” said Hoyt as he approached. He’d been listening from just feet away. “Delilah Miller didn’t show up in New Orleans for her transfer. My secretary claims she never picked up her ticket.”
