“What is it with you? I’ve been sending dark magic at you for the past two years, and it barely affects you.” He laughed. “At least I can knock you down, my son. You should be more respectful of your father.”
“Regent!” Jess started toward him. She reached down to help him up, but it was as if he’d been glued to the road. He couldn’t move, and she wasn’t able to budge him.
“Just a tiny show of my strength,” Vasilli said. “I want you to know what you’re up against. It’d be better if you realized right now you can’t defeat me.”
With that, he raised his hand again and the air on the street started whirling around them, building in intensity until it was difficult to stand. It was a good show . . . but it would have been more convincing if he hadn’t just admitted that he hadn’t been truly able to mess with Regent the last couple of months. Though it might explain Regent’s dizziness and forgetfulness.
And then the wind stopped as if someone had blown out a candle.
At that moment, Joseph Emanuel Calmet stepped out of his protective barrier. He was dressed all in white—blond, blue-eyed, and statuesque. He had also grown in size very similar to Vasilli.
It reminded Jess of the giants mentioned in the Bible.
“Brother,” Calmet said to Vasilli. “The time has come for you to end your reign of terror.”
Vasilli laughed, and his voice reverberated through Jess’s chest. The way everyone else pressed a hand against their heart told her they’d felt it too.
Calmet went directly to Regent and easily helped him off the ground. Jess remembered that Calmet had been in hiding all these years because he wasn’t quite as strong as Vasilli. Did that mean he’d fail? Or would they be able to add to his strengths?
The book flew through the air next and landed in Calmet’s hand. “You will never have Corvus. You well know he resides in this book. He, of all people, will not help you.”
The sound of a raven’s wings flapping filled the air and the distant caw echoed in Jess’s head. Had everyone heard that, or had it been for her alone?
Calmet began to glow, and he handed the book back to Regent, then stepped back to stand in line with the rest of them. “I am not alone, anymore. My strengths will increase with the help of John Brittain.”
Regent remained in the center of the circle, silent and strong, surrounded by his sisters, Britt, and Calmet.
“Father Vandermire, you have read the book. It has given itself to you, therefore you will speak for it,” Calmet said.
Regent opened his mouth, and Jess heard the distant sound of a raven’s caw again. But even though she heard a bird, she also heard her brother’s voice.
“Your time here must come to an end, Vasilli. You have used your abilities in ways that have been decreed against the laws of man. You must not interfere with the children of this planet, or the vampires, who have as much right to be here as the humans, as long as they don’t break the laws of humankind,” the raven said from Regent’s mouth.
That statement surprised Jess, and she looked at Britt and Calmet, both glowing and pulsing in unison.
“We are holding court, and you have been deemed guilty,” Regent continued, this time in a foreign voice.
“I don’t accept your judgment or your laws, Corvus. You, who have been forever cast into the purgatory of a book, what power do you pretend to have over me? I rule the vampires in Paris, and I intend to rule the rest of the vampires on Earth, as well. They are my minions, and I will succeed.” He laughed. “In truth, you have no idea what powers I’ve gained in the centuries that you’ve been unable or unwilling to face me. I’ve been delving into the alchemy and wizardry of this world, and I’ve been able to adopt some of the black arts into my powerful arsenal.”
“Is that true?” Morana asked Sinclair.
He wouldn’t make eye contact with her. Maybe he couldn’t.
Morana turned to Jess. “If he’s been using alchemy, it’s Sinclair who’s gotten the information for him. His lab in the tunnels under our house virtually sings with black magic. I’d guess it’s there that Vasilli’s been gaining extra power. If we destroy it, we might destroy his abilities.”
“Good luck with that,” Vasilli said, moving his fingers and making the air around them warp inside the giant bubble. “You won’t be able to escape. Calmet wasn’t the only one who created vampire traps within the city, and he knows it. He created a few weak ones, I’ll grant you. But the powerful ones captured many a vampire to add to my herd. Not even Calmet can break free from this trap, so you’ll never make it back to Longina’s lab to destroy it.”
Jess leaned toward Britt. “That means the lab really does give him power. It needs to be destroyed. But how will we escape this place?”
Britt still glowed. “Maybe I can do it alone. You stay here and protect everyone, okay?”
She smiled at him. As much as she feared she couldn’t do it without him, Calmet would still be here to help. And, according to Calmet, it was Regent who had the true power, since the book had chosen him. She could only hope this plan would work.
“Don’t get yourself killed, my love,” he said, kissing her as if they were alone. “And keep Regent safe.”
Morana had no idea why they’d suddenly started kissing, so she made a disgusted noise. “Can’t you two ever stop? Not even in a situation like this? Merde!”
Jess winked at Britt and turned back to her sister. It was time to create a diversion so Britt could slip away. And Morana had just created an opening.
“I’m tired of your bitching,” she said, walking up to her and getting in her face. It was weird to be staring into eyes that were so much like her own—almost as if she were looking at an angry version of herself in the mirror.
“Yeah! What’re you going to do about it?” Morana shoved her shoulder, but Jess laughed and held her ground.
“I’m going to kick your ass, finally. I’ve wanted to do this since we first met. You think you’re so much better than me. Well, I’m going to teach you a lesson,” Jess shouted at her.
“Sure you are!” Morana shoved her hard again, instigating the fight to start right away, then mumbled. “It’s not working.”
Calmet raised a hand, and a powerful blast of blue light sent Vasilli to his knees. Rattled for a split second, he roared in anger and the ground shook so hard, they all lost their footing. At that moment, the bubble disappeared, but it quickly formed over their heads again. Still, it gave Britt the chance to escape by diving into Sinclair’s hiding place. Vasilli didn’t notice.
“Stop it now, my twins! You are both going to become the catalyst to my plans whether you like it or not. And your brother is going to be the device through which my plan will be realized, because he controls the book.”
Suddenly Regent moaned, and the book in his hands started to shake. His body grew rigid as he lifted it higher in the air. Beams of light shot out of it, and Vasilli suddenly cursed as if the light had hurt him. The bubble he’d created popped with a deafening sound. They were no longer prisoners.
BRITT COULDN’T BELIEVE that he’d been able to get away without Vasilli noticing. All he knew was that he had to get to Sinclair’s house and find the lab in a tunnel underneath. He had no idea how he’d break Vasilli’s magic, but he had to find a way.
It killed him to leave Jess behind in such a volatile situation, but he had no choice. The lab had to be taken out.
Hopefully Calmet could protect them somehow until he returned, because he very much doubted that Vasilli would spare their lives if they weren’t of use to him.
His heart pounded, and his hands shook as he hotwired a vehicle on the next street over. The engine roared to life, and he rammed it into gear, then sped off toward Sinclair Longina’s house.
The house was in darkness when he pulled up to the front door. It was locked
so he worked his way around back, at the same time that he watched for a basement door or window well. Nothing. For all intents and purposes, it appeared that the home had no basement. But he knew otherwise.
He tried the back door. Locked, of course. He smashed his shoulder into it and heard wood breaking at the same time that tearing pain burned through his shoulder. There’d be a bruise in the morning, if there was a morning for them.
He definitely sensed the destructive power building in Paris. Maybe it was because he had the same angelic genes as Calmet and Vasilli. Too bad Vasilli was intent on destruction. His goal was to create a civilization that bowed to him. Sick bastard.
They had little choice but to do everything in their power to beat him at his own game. If Vasilli had controlled the olde vampires for so many years, though, what chance did they have? The olde ones were intelligent, yet they’d never found a way to get rid of him.
He searched Sinclair’s house and found a door, but it only led to a basement with no entrances to the tunnels.
He went back upstairs. Could the tunnel room door be somewhere else in the house? After all, Morana had said she hadn’t known it existed until recently. Where could it be?
He began at one end of the house and started pressing walls, and knocking here and there. He ended up in the kitchen near the back door, the only wall he hadn’t checked. Finally, behind the coat closet he found the entrance to the sub-basement. The door popped open, and he descended old stone steps.
Fluorescent lights illuminated automatically as he moved down the dark tunnel. Longina must’ve added these modern fixtures because it was obvious this place had been here for centuries.
He knew exactly where the lab was the second he saw weird emissions of light erupting from an open door into a subterranean cavern. The power fluctuations from the battle above ground had obviously blown the door clean off. Now, at random, bolts of electricity burst out of the room.
How would he stop whatever was going on in there?
He’d have to enter in between the flares—there was no other way. So he took a deep breath and waited for an opening. He’d been developing abilities ever since he’d awakened with angel DNA. And he definitely needed those abilities now, if he was going to be able to destroy the evil inside that room. Because he had no idea how he’d do it. He looked skyward, crossed himself, and wished for help. A prayer would be too self-serving.
When he dove into the room, magic swirled around him, burning, smothering, and cutting him down. Britt inhaled and flung out his arms, using the only method he had at his disposal.
Angel Fire built inside him, the blue fire growing in intensity while the magic attacked him, snapping through the air like a charged bullwhip.
He should’ve been electrocuted at the very least.
But his own Angel Fire seemed to be repelling it. His best guess was that it had somehow grounded his body, because he was still standing.
He scanned the room, looking for the apex of the magic. Where was the electric light show coming from?
Unless he was crazy, the room seemed to have its own source of energy and intelligence, because it was currently in self-protection mode. Just then he spotted an ancient vase in the corner. It was handmade, roughly molded, but light and sparks swirled above it in a growing cloud.
Usually Britt’s Angel Fire built quickly, but something about this room slowed its pace, dampened it just a bit. He concentrated harder because if the second onslaught of magic was stronger than the first, he might not win this battle.
Suddenly implements in the room started moving. First the lab equipment took to the air, flying at his head. He blocked the glass and metal projectiles with his arms. Next, bigger objects started to rise, and he feared he’d be crushed by an oak cabinet.
An armoire in the corner started rocking back and forth, then lifted just a foot off the ground.
“Angel Fire, it’s time!” he shouted, and expressed his desire to blast out a wave stronger than he’d ever managed before.
It happened.
His own light warped through the room in a swirling vortex that seemed to swallow the magic whole.
He needed to continue. He still felt the remnants of magic here. Fighting against wave after wave of electrical currents, he made his way to the ancient vase and crushed it with his foot. As if it knew it was beaten, it crumbled away until nothing remained. The room turned dark, only lit by his blue flame, which still searched and destroyed the evil magic wherever it lingered.
Finally, with sweat beading off his forehead and his arms and legs limp, he managed to snuff out every vestige of magic. Vasilli would get no more help from this location.
Britt leaned over with both hands on his knees and caught his breath, then made his way topside again through the enveloping dark. The battle between magic and Angel Fire had taken out the lights. And hopefully, more than that.
He needed to get back to Jess. Had his efforts done anything to impact Vasilli’s abilities?
JESS WATCHED AS Sinclair suddenly slumped to the ground and cried out. “Master, someone has ended the magic!”
Vasilli swung around, his gown swirling as if he were in a constant wind, while the rest of them could feel very little air at all. “No! Your magic should have protected itself. How could you have left us vulnerable?”
“My protections were very powerful, Sire. I made sure of it. Whoever managed to get in must be one of us.”
So far, Calmet hadn’t lifted a finger. It was as if he were only here to safeguard the humans.
Vasilli looked at the group. “Wait a minute! Where’s John Brittain?”
Sinclair gasped. “He’s gone. That means—he truly is one of us.”
Calmet grimaced. “If you were as powerful as you thought, shouldn’t you have recognized him? I’m afraid the evil you’re spewing is clogging your ability to truly see. And it will be your undoing.”
Vasilli screamed at such a high pitch, Jess had to cover her ears.
“You will die this night, Calmet. And it’s about time. You’ve been a thorn in my side for an eon. Always there, always trying to thwart my attempts to create a better place for Immortals like me.”
“You can call yourself an Ancient, or an Immortal, but you’re just the same as us. We’re Watchers. And Watchers like you shouldn’t exist,” Calmet said. “We’re meant to be good. Not evil.”
Vasilli’s eyes glowed red now. He removed his Cardinal’s vestments, and underneath he wore an ancient garment that looked like something Merlin himself might have worn.
Regent still maintained his stance in the center of the road with the book aloft. His arms must have been killing him.
“Regent, do you want me to hold the book for you?” Jess asked.
“No, love. This is my role to play. And now I know that Vasilli didn’t call me here to France—it was someone else. Someone who knew Vasilli’s strength was building and that he’d need to be cut down.”
Vasilli’s eyes narrowed on Regent. “And, who would that have been?”
“Oh, Vasilli,” Calmet said, “you know it was me.”
Vasilli glowered at Calmet, then stepped closer to him. “How is it possible you still have a connection to the Church?”
“You thought I was completely unable, that I could not leave for a second?” Calmet laughed. “That’s what I wanted you to think. That’s the story I perpetrated. You’re not the only one who can assume another’s guise, Vasilli.” Calmet instantly changed his persona, and he now looked very much like the Pope’s Camerlengo.
Jess gasped.
“You!” Vasilli screamed.
Calmet smiled even wider. “Someone had to make sure the Church wasn’t corrupted by evil Watchers.”
“But that means . . .” Vasilli’s eyes bulged.
Calme
t pressed his hands together in front of his face. “That my abilities are every bit as good as yours. Yes, it does. But I chose to give you a choice—either enough rope to hang yourself, or a chance to come back to the light. You have light inside you, Marcus. It’s not too late to change.”
“You can’t turn me from my path,” Vasilli said in a voice that had gone hoarse with anger. “If you’re so powerful, why do you need this priest?”
Calmet grinned. “I’m sure you know the answer to that. This is a world of humans. They are the most powerful source of magic on this world. True believers have light that shines the brightest, and Regent has more power than you and I put together.”
“Magic?” Jess asked.
“Not in the same sense, my dear. It’s his belief in the all-powerful that gives him his strength. He doesn’t need to put on a light show, or blow up a storm to prove his strength. It is inside him, and he can defeat us all, if he has to.”
Regent turned his head just slightly, his eyes wide at Calmet’s statement.
Vasilli took advantage of the moment and raised one hand. A bolt of lightning flew from his fingers, directly at Regent.
The book caught the lightning and absorbed it.
“What in hell?” Vasilli said, then slowly and with obvious malice turned toward Jess. “If I can’t take him, I can kill you, Jess Vandermire, and every one of your friends who think they can help you,” he said. “And I will do it—unless Regent puts the Corvus down and surrenders to me.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
WEAKENED BEYOND WORDS, Britt made his way back to the vehicle in the driveway. He pressed a shaking hand to his pounding head and hotwired the engine again. When this was over, he’d return the car and pay the owner generously for its use.
Driving back to the city, he realized his vision had been affected by the magic in the sub-basement. It felt as if he were looking through a thick screen door. It wasn’t easy to drive that way, and was nearly impossible to read the street signs.
Graves of Retribution Page 24
