“Taking you to your people, requested by your uncle,” he grumbled.
“He’s not my uncle. And none of them are my people.”
The cave’s path dipped and rose and sometimes turned. Talk about isolated. We traveled what seemed like miles of tunnel, but I knew we were underground …volcano for sure. I had never been so happy to be inside a volcano. At least I knew we still walked on the human’s Earth and not somewhere in the between or beyond.
Dick suddenly gripped my cuff and jumped down, pulling me after. Down …down…down we went. My legs scissored in the air while Dick still held my arms until we landed with a thud. Clouds of dust rose around us, and it was even hotter than before. Steam drifted around us. The stench of sulfur filled the space even stronger.
“Next time, give me a warning,” I hissed, stumbling to steady myself. “I’m more than capable of jumping without help.”
Dick scowled at me. “Cyrus said I couldn’t harm you, but he didn’t say I had to be nice.”
“Do you always listen to Cyrus? He’s like your leader, boss, your master, your lover—”
Dick didn’t like his options. Before I could say another word, he lifted me by my shirt collar and tossed me across the space. My body flattened on the dirt, and tiny pebbles imprinted my cheek.
“Must you use your super strength?” I mumbled. “You’re going to…” I pushed up into a sitting position as I dusted dirt off my face. Then I gasped to see Cyrus standing before me.
“You’ve come,” he gloated, showing off his dark evil wings as if spreading his arms in a parody of a welcoming gesture.
I stood up like my butt was on fire and took several steps back. His proximity was way too close for comfort. “I didn’t come of my own free will, so I wouldn’t be so happy about it.”
He glared at me. “You sound like your mother, so disrespectful and arrogant.”
My fist rounded, muscles flexing. “Don’t talk about my mother,” I growled. Then I searched for Dick, who was nowhere to be found. Fear and panic struck me. Why was I there if not to be killed? “You killed her. And I will take my revenge upon you, but not today.”
Cyrus let out a boisterous laugh. “I have not brought you here to talk about your mother, boy. I’ve brought you here to reunite you with your family.” Just when I thought he’d gone crazy, he said, “Look up.”
I tilted my head…and then further, and even further. My mother had taught me to be observant of my surroundings, and clearly I had been careless. Countless supernatural beings were locked up behind bars in cells of their own, just like I had been. They hadn’t made a sound to catch my attention, but they were very much aware of my presence from the way they glared at me with curiosity.
“My children.” Cyrus extended his arms out. “Meet Eli. He’s a member of our family, my flesh and blood. He will be one of your leaders.”
Loud cheers rang through the crowd, the beings gripping the bars as if they could pull them off. Each individual lived behind bars within their own cell, layer upon layer of the volcanic structure, reaching to the ceiling. So many. Surely, they had been kidnapped—not just from Hawaii, but from around the world judging by their numbers and diversity. I only knew one kidnapped face, Clarissa. I didn’t know her that well, only that she was Milani’s friend.
Cyrus raised his hand. “Quiet down. I know you’re excited, but before we can make this formal, we must finish the initiation.”
Another round of cheers erupted.
Initiation? What the hell was he talking about? This was no damn fraternity. “You know what? No, thank you. I’m not into that fraternity, brotherly stuff, so you can let me go now. I don’t want—”
“Shut up, boy!” Cyrus roared. “You don’t have a choice.”
“I told you he talks too much,” Dick said, appearing again.
I ignored both of them as I came to a conclusion. Some of them had black wings with piercing red eyes, at least the ones I saw. “These are the missing children, aren’t they? What have you done with them?”
“They are not missing,” Dick answered, his head raised in arrogance. “They have been adopted.” He started to slowly pace circles around me. “The little lambs once were lost and now are found. We are giving them immortality.”
I jumped in. “That’s crap. In exchange for what? Their lives? Their freedom? Their souls? You took them away from their family and friends,” I declared. “You—”
I flew forward and landed on dirt as unbearable heat scorched my face and the palms of my hands. The molten rock flowed inches away from my body. Dick-face had whacked me from behind. He was really going to get it. The thunderous cheers of approval from his so-called family urged me to get up and face them. They acted like caged animals. I felt sorry for them … somewhat.
“Speak rudely to me again and the next time I won’t miss tossing you into the lava,” Dick hissed.
“What do you want?” I wiped sweat off my forehead.
Cyrus peered to the prisoners. “To rule the world and Heaven of course. Why else would I go through the trouble of bringing you here? Why else would I want to find the missing pages from Jacques de Molay’s book?”
I rolled my eyes. Why was I not shaking in my shoes for fear of the evil monster in front of me? When I said nothing, he took a paper from his pocket and showed it to me.
And there it was, the clue to the second missing page. I obeyed and read it purely from curiosity. Then I read it again, and again. What the hell did it mean?
“If you’ve taken the trouble to bring me here just to decipher this clue, you have wasted your time. I have no idea.”
Cyrus closed his eyes for a brief second and then opened them with an intense stare. “Try. Don’t make me do something you’ll regret.”
I swallowed hard, not liking his threat one bit. Clearing my throat, I did what I did best under stressful situations. Talked my ass off. “Above a small hill lay a home. Well, looks like you’re looking for a house. Green men peer out. Hmmm … don’t know any green men except for leprechauns and green giants on a can. Thirteen crisscrossing arches with angels…don’t know anything about angels, and I really don’t give a damn. Cubes like teeth, a door will glow...make a rainbow. Part the sea like Moses, to see roses…maybe we need to sing ‘Ring around the rosie, a pocket full of posies. Ashes. Ashes. We all fall down.’” I pointed to the paper as if I had come to a revelation. “Looks like if you’re not the heir, you’ll be dead trying. So your clue says, find the leprechaun who will take you to the end of the rainbow to find gold, only to die. Yup…that’s it.” I smacked my lips to emphasize.
A whoosh behind me put me in a state of alert. Dick had whipped out his wings, knife-like feathers ready to hurt me again. I stiffened, muscles tight, ready to jet out of there.
Surprisingly Cyrus defended me. “Don’t hurt him, Mortem. He’s mine to do as I please. I told you not to harm him.”
Ah, so Dick has a name. Mortem, meaning death in Latin. How fitting. Too bad he would know the meaning of his name as soon as the situation turned in my favor. Maybe when I had backup. I’d still call him Dick, just because he was one.
Dick Mortem scowled and backed away without a word.
Cyrus raised his hand to stop the chanting that filled the cave. His locked-up newbies approved of Dick Mortem’s intention to kill me. Then he rubbed his chin. “Now, where were we? Oh, the initiation.”
Dick Mortem’s lips curved and his eyes beamed with satisfaction. “This should be interesting.”
Hands grabbed my shoulders from behind, my neck twisted to the side, and I felt a painful sting on the exposed flesh.
Chapter 7
Eli
Initiation? They might as well have called it a death sentence. I tasted blood from my cut lip when Dick Mortem punched my face. Lucia appeared in front of me, and for a precious second, I let my guard down. My heart told me it wasn’t Lucia, but my eyes couldn’t process my brain’s signals fast enough, especially when the ground tilted a
nd the walls spun. Whatever entered my blood from the bite caused me to lose focus and see double…no, triple…no, quadruple. Shit!
“Get up!” the girl that looked like Lucia hollered, her voice vibrating through my ear, sounding from a distance away.
The crowd still behind their bars chanted loudly and annoyingly with approval. I ignored the sound and concentrated on impostor Lucia. Every inch of me struggled. I didn’t want to harm this girl, more so because she looked like Lucia, but it didn’t matter anyway. Every time I tried to block her blow, I came up short. Damn!
I flew, my body skidding across the ground. The hard edges of the rocks below me scratched and bruised my chest and legs. I groaned and spit out a mouthful of dirt. My world spun even more, and I felt the urge to vomit. Rolling over to my side, I tried to push up. Before I had a chance to find my footing, she kicked my stomach. I flopped, with one of my hands grazing the hot lava. That freakin’ hurt! Without the protection of my supernatural abilities, I would’ve cooked like a steak. Still disoriented and drugged, I came up with one crazy plan.
Knowing I could heal, I flicked the scorching liquid at her. Unable to tell which wavering figure was the Lucia impostor, I missed my target except for a few splattered drops. The sound of feet stumbling back was my cue to stand up. Right before my eyes, Lucia’s facial and body features shifted and changed to Mortem. I should have known. He had pretended to be Lucia the last time just before he—gut-wrenching pain ripped through my back. His feathers punctured my chest. Crimson liquid seeped out and soaked the fabric of my shirt when he withdrew his steel-like feathers. I had no words as I gasped and swallowed blood.
Just before my world turned black, I heard Cyrus roar. “I told you not to hurt him. Now we’ll have to wait for him to recover.”
“I’m not done teaching this boy a lesson, Cyrus. He’s going to hate the sight of her. He’s going to be conditioned to be afraid of her. And he’ll never trust her again.”
“Have Clarissa take care of Eli,” Cyrus said. “Perhaps he’ll soften to her.”
“I will soften to no one,” I grumbled, blood dripping from my mouth, as I stumbled away. I managed to take one step before I collapsed and blacked out.
I had no strength to will the power from my necklace as I lay on the hard ground. The stench of rotting flesh confirmed I was back inside my cell. But who was tending to my wounds? My propped up head under a cushion gave me some comfort, but God, pain had driven me so far past my level of tolerance that it actually stopped me from feeling. My body shook. So cold. How could I be shivering inside a volcano? Too exhausted to think. Too beaten up to move. Too damaged beyond repair. I wanted to die. Lucia, where are you?
Maybe she stopped caring. Maybe my friends gave up. Maybe I’ll never leave this place. Warm cloths bathed my wounds, giving me some relief.
“Shhh…don’t worry, Eli. I’ll take care of you,” a soft voice whispered. “Drink this. It’ll help you feel better.”
My eyes fluttered open, as I listened to what she told me to do. The liquid quenched my thirst and cooled my aching throat. Though I could barely make out the face, to me she was an angel. I didn’t know if she was real or a figment of my imagination, but I didn’t care. This angel saved me with her care and gave me comfort in the moment of need. The room still spun as the poison of Cyrus’s bite made its way through my body, and I couldn’t for the life of me focus. Whatever was inside the liquid I helplessly drank intoxicated me. God help me! I don’t know what I’ve done.
I had no idea what time of day it was or if I was dreaming. Present and past jumbled into one. I didn’t know if I was in the living or the dead. I only knew I existed. My angel stayed with me. Who was she? Why did she help me? I dozed off to the black hole. My body would heal. I just needed sleep.
My eyes flashed open. Sweat slicked my forehead and stuck to the fabric on my back. It was so freakin’ hot I felt like I was inside an oven. Then reality settled, and realization kicked in strong. I had been imprisoned inside a giant oven.
I craned my neck to the side, and my eyes fell upon a girl. My head rested on her thigh. Clarissa. Milani’s friend, the one who had been missing, the one who had taken me to my cell with the true-cross dagger stabbed in my heart. I wanted to flinch away, but my gut told me she wouldn’t hurt me. She had been the angel I dreamt about, the angel with no face.
“Why are you helping me?” I asked, sounding hoarse.
She placed a damp towel over my forehead, cooling me down from the scorching heat. Then she glided her hand over my head to move the loose strands of my hair away from my face.
“Cyrus instructed me to, but I would’ve taken care of you either way,” she finally said.
I met her eyes, expecting to see red irises, but they were brown instead. Her eyes beamed, and her lips spread wide, as if happy to be with me. I ignored the friendship she offered with her kind gestures.
“What did you make me drink?” I seethed through my teeth. “I feel...” I raised my hands in front of me. They were a part of me, and yet I couldn’t really feel them. “Like I was drugged.” They fell heavily. “Are you real?”
“Yes, Eli. I am real.” She began to stroke my face. I wanted to slap it away, but my muscles didn’t react to my brain’s instructions. “Don’t touch me,” I roared, but I knew it came out as a soft whisper.
Clarissa drew back, as if appalled by my words. “That’s no way to talk to someone who cares about you. Someone who has taken care of you.” Her words came out harsh, yet soft.
“I’m sorry.” Apologizing felt like the right thing to say to a person who tended to my wounds, which were healing faster than before. My words must have given her some kind of cue.
When she fanned out her black wings, I stiffened and remained frozen, but my heart urged otherwise. Then, her lips lowered to mine. Before the contact, I shoved myself away. I crawled, my arm muscles carrying most of the weight as my legs dragged. It took every effort and energy I could summon to move.
“What the hell, Clarissa? First you side with Cyrus, and now you want to kiss me? You don’t even know me.” My words came out slow.
A flicker of red flashed in her eyes. She stood up and backed away. “We’re not friends because you never noticed me,” she barked, as if it were my fault.
“What the hell are you talking about? Lots of girls paid attention to me, and I didn’t …” Bile bubbled up my throat. Oh God, I felt sick again. So dizzy. I placed my hand over my forehead as if I could stop the walls from spinning. “I never paid attention to them.” I groaned, determined to finish my words.
“Oh.”
“Oh? That’s all you have to say?” With one knee bent in front of the other, I tried to get up. I dropped down. “How about, I’m sorry Eli for being on the wrong side. I’ll help you escape. And I’ll help you help the others escape too, because they were taken without their permission.”
She shrugged, trying to look innocent. “Some volunteered.”
I pushed up and rested my back against the wall. Something was wrong with me. “Name one person.”
She paused for a long second, looked down and then back up to meet my eyes. “Me.”
“Why? You seemed like a nice girl.”
She glared at me. “I don’t want to be nice. Nice doesn’t get you attention.”
“How about your family?”
“They don’t care.”
“Yes they do. There’s a reward for your whereabouts. They want you home. They miss you.”
“No, they don’t,” she blurted, angrily. “My parents are hardly ever home. We don’t talk much.”
Tucking my knees into my chest to steady myself, I said, “At least you have parents. You had a roof over your head. You had food on the table. You had clothes on your body. Cyrus killed my mother.”
“No, he didn’t,” she huffed, truly believing her own words. “He gave her redemption. Eternal life.”
I had no idea what she meant, but I played along. “Maybe, but she did
n’t ask for it,” I said softly. “I miss my mom. She was the only family I had. And I’m all Milani has. Help me, Clarissa. Milani was always nice to you. Do this for her, for me, please. You can come with me. You don’t have to go back home. You can stay with…” I paused, forgetting what I had just said and who I was talking about. “And me, and—who was I just talking about?”
For a second her eyes softened, and I was almost positive she would relent, but she didn’t. Her eyebrows arched. “Liar. I don’t believe a word you said.”
My head throbbed. “What was in the drink you gave me, Clarissa? The one you forced down my throat when I could hardly move.”
“Water,” she said matter-of-factly and then continued. “Besides, Cyrus gave me power.”
“You already had power, I think?”
She shook her head, darting her eyes beyond the bars that held me prisoner, as if expecting someone. “Besides, Cyrus offered me what I want most.”
I rolled my eyes. “What?”
She squared her eyes straight at me. “You.”
I waited a second to let the shock calm. “Me?” Ask a stupid question, and get a stupid answer. I had been her crush, only I didn’t know. Then stupid me acted like an idiot. “Listen, Clarissa. I don’t date anyone. I like to play the field. I’m not good for you.”
Her lips curled to her eyes, and her eyes told me she knew a secret about me. “That’s right, Eli. You’re not good enough for me, but you won’t be good enough for anyone, especially for Lucia, when I’m done with you.”
My heart thumped faster, and my mind welled with confusion. “Lucia? Do I know her?”
Her eyes grew wider, beaming with delight. “It really worked? How I have doubted Cyrus.”
“What worked?” I asked, confused by her statement. Coordination of my muscles came back, so I stood up.
She came closer, inching her way cautiously. “Lucia doesn’t get to have you. You’re mine.” Her hands laced through my hair. “And when we are through with you, you won’t be able to stand the sight of her or your friends.” She snapped her head to the bars. Her eyes dropped with fear. “Mortem will see you now.”