Roberta checked her blood pressure for the hundredth time, and appeared pleased with her numbers. “You’re coming around just fine, Serena, just fine. In fact, I think you are ready for Dr. Chappo’s visit. He wanted me to alert him as soon as you were well enough, and I shall do so. He’s been so anxious to speak with you, and there really is no reason for delay.”
“Before you go, you said you are his private nurse. Why would he need a nurse, if I may be so bold as to ask?”
“Dr. Chappo has a terminal illness. The disease turns muscles and tendons to bone, poor dear. You know, he is an archeologist, a bone digger, and he’s turning to bone himself.” Roberta shook her head with chagrin. “It’s one of life’s cruel ironies, I guess.”
“Wow, that’s pretty terrible, to slowly turn to stone, basically, must be a nightmare for him. Has he explored every avenue available to him to find a cure, or at least a way to slow down the progression?”
“Oh, he’s tried everything, but nothing has worked. Although he mentioned to me the other day that he has found a possible cure, and that’s exciting. I don’t know what it is, though. He hasn’t shared that much with me. When he’s ready, I’m sure he will. After all, I am his nurse. If there’s anything to be done medically, I would certainly be involved.”
Things had gone from bad to worse in a heartbeat.
What the hell does the lunatic have in mind for me? And if Roberta’s involved, I’m definitely screwed
.
***
The evening called for stealth, not shock and awe, so the Brethren descended from the sky shielded from detection. As they alighted on the ground, Michael made quick work of the electrified fencing, lasers, and thermal imaging cameras. One by one the barriers came down, and one by one the Brethren infiltrated Dr. Chappo’s estate. With their specially forged swords at the ready, they spread out to eliminate the guards walking the grounds. Just as Kemuel’s sword had dealt justice swiftly and permanently upon Bull, so did the Brethren’s this night as well, and so too, did their swords absorb the blood of the fallen men. One by one, the guards were shepherded to concealed areas where they never saw their deaths coming.
When the Brethren came upon the mansion itself, they split up the guards, four per person. For Kemuel and Nathanael, the Warriors, the numbers were a walk in the park. For Michael and Gabriel, the Protectors, it proved slightly more challenging; however, they had experienced much more warfare than Raphael. Raphael surprised them all, though. He stalked toward his targets, and with grace and a good dose of ferocity, cut them down, only to move on and cut down more than his share. His kills had been as skilled as any Brethren Warrior. The others couldn’t help but notice that tonight his powerful aura didn’t glow with the typical Savior’s golden hue, but rather the Warrior’s reddish hue.
It gave the other Brethren pause, and Gabriel took note since nothing like this had ever happened before. He hoped it was only a temporary condition, since he knew how E.L. would take Raphael’s crossing the line of duty. Not well. He didn’t allow any Brethren to absorb powers that belonged to another Brethren group. To each his own powers. That was the law. Finally, with the outside guards out of the way, they broke into the mansion.
“Raphael, do you feel her yet?” questioned Gabriel, as the Brethren met up by the side of the house.
“No, damn it. Why do I get the strange feeling E.L. is putting his nose into things again?”
“Well, I hope that’s the reason you’re not sensing her anymore. I’d hate to think of the alternative.”
“She’s not dead, Gabriel. She’s not. She can’t be. And that’s final. So let’s get on with things, shall we?” Raphael pressed. Naturally, he led the way. As if anyone would dare to make him wait. The rest of the Brethren fell in place next to and behind him. He motioned for Michael to disarm the front door locks. He stepped forward, and with a mere wave of his hand over the door handle, he unlocked the myriad of mechanisms installed to dissuade others from entering without permission. But he held his arms out straight so no one could pass. Raphael gave him a warning glance.
“Let me pass, brother.”
“Wait!” Michael whispered fiercely. “Something’s not right. I’m detecting some pretty intricate, hi-tech security measures right at this threshold. Give me a minute. We don’t need anyone getting injured and halting our plans right now.”
Michael’s all-powerful status as the Great Protector enabled him unprecedented abilities in the varieties of protection. That meant he could also dismantle all manner of protection as well. He stood silent and still like a statue for a moment. When he finished the sweep, he did not look happy. “All right, ladies, it’s a good thing we didn’t all go barreling in there. This lunatic has trip wires and motion detectors rigged to poison darts, Chinese stars, and machine guns. And that’s just at the threshold. Give me a moment, and I’ll disable them. But I’m sure there will be more, and that troubles me. So, stay behind me whenever we walk into a new room. I’ll search, detect, and disable anything more we find as we go. We’ve got to make this place safe for Serena to walk out of here.”
“I thought we’d split up, though, Michael.” Raphael raked his hands through his hair, immediately annoyed over this latest development. He felt a slow, suffocating squeeze around his gut. “If we split up, we can find Serena sooner.”
“I thought we would, too, but after seeing these booby traps, it’s not worth the risk, Raf. We stand a much better chance of success doing it this way. That’s what you want, right? Success?”
Raphael nodded and dragged his hands over his stubbly cheeks, trying to release the stress of urgency he knew wouldn’t go away no matter how hard he tried. Michael led the men through the cavernous foyer. Walking passed an enormous gilded mirror in the hallway, Raphael could see that they were an imposing force to be reckoned with. Clad in black leather pants and boots, and nothing more than their muscular arms and torsos serving as their armor. They brandished swords that were as long as their legs, and given the fact they were practically giants, that meant pretty damn long.
With shields still in place, the Brethren could pretty much walk the fortress without being detected; however, their voices could still be heard. So they used their threaded connections with each other to communicate. And so began the onerous task of surveying for lethal traps and seeking out where Serena may be hidden.
Chapter Thirty
Roberta had been gone for what seemed an interminable amount of time before Serena heard the sliding doors to her bedroom suite ease open. Her stomach twisted in impossible knots as she succumbed to nerves. She would finally meet the monster who had completely ruined her life. Pacing around the bedroom, the dressing area, the bathroom, and the sitting area did nothing to quell the sense of unease and foreboding within her. And every time she passed the blasted mirror she had wanted to throw something to smash it to smithereens. Oh, she was angry. Anxious and angry. Not a good combination at all.
“Dr. Chappo will see you now,” Roberta informed her. “He wanted me to smooth over the introductions since his appearance tends to startle some people. So let me tell you a couple of things before I bring him in. Understand that he can no longer make facial expressions, so please listen to his words carefully so as not to misconstrue his meaning. He says what he means, and means what he says. Also, do not try to shake his hand in greeting. Let him reach out to you first, and if he does, do not squeeze his hand. It would be most painful for him. Don’t stare at him, either. He doesn’t like that. Just look upon him as you would if he didn’t look so disfigured. Oh, you know what? You may want to fix your hair a bit. He’s a bit on the particular side.” With that, Roberta turned away and went back out the bedroom door.
“Unbelievable,” Serena muttered under her breath as she tried to quickly tidy up her mop of hair. “I’m about to meet a monster, and she’s got me worried over my rumpled hair. Where’s the logic?” She shook her head after giving up on her hairdo, and paced nervously as she couldn’t decide whether to stand or sit. “What’s the matter with me? Am I meeting royalty or an arrogant, egomaniacal psychopath?” She decided to sit down on a chair that faced the fake window. It gave her just enough room to be comfortably seated, yet enclosed her enough to make it difficult for others to touch her. She heard the clicking of the lock.
Here we go
.
Time seemed to stop as the bedroom doors slid painfully open. A motorized wheelchair hummed its way into the room. Serena’s vision narrowed to the man in the chair. Surprisingly, she felt a calmness wash over her—the same kind of calmness that had come over her when she decided to visit Bull in the garage with the letter opener.
Sirona was trying to take over.
At this juncture, Serena didn’t mind very much. She still felt mostly in control, but she believed she had the added benefit of an immortal backing her up. Working together right now seemed mutually beneficial.
I guess you don’t want to be a science experiment either, huh, Sirona
? Serena smirked.
The wheelchair came to a halt beside her. He regarded her in silence for a few moments. She regarded him. Roberta had told her not to stare, but she couldn’t seem to tear her eyes away from the surprising visage.
So this is the fearsome monster, eh? Not so much.
At first glance, yes, the rigidity of his limbs and hands were startling. But should he have been able to stand, it didn’t seem that he would be all that tall. In fact, she estimated that he would probably be of average height. His face spoke another story, with taut, shiny skin that appeared perpetually slapped. An image of a facelift gone very wrong came to Serena’s mind. His eyebrows were non-existent. That, combined with the few strands of hair left on his head, made him appear alien in nature. She gave an involuntary shiver, attributing it to the air conditioning and her revealing gown.
The way he had been staring at her while she sized him up proved to be quite unnerving, so rather than giving in to it, Serena chose to take control of the situation.
“Dr. Chappo, I presume?” she began regally.
“You presume correctly, Goddess,” he responded with reverence. His speech was a bit difficult to understand but she understood enough to know what he had called her—Goddess.
With nothing left to lose, she decided to go along with his delusion to see where it led. She took a moment and began, “You know, if you desired an audience with me, Doctor, you simply needed to request one. I am not fond of coercion, much less kidnapping. Roberta didn’t deceive me for an instant. Left unconscious by your gate. You sending men to fetch me. I know what happened to me, Doctor. I’m not a fool. So tell me why you’ve sequestered me here so that I may be on my way.”
Since facial expressions were non-existent, body language the same, she had nothing to gauge his reaction. It unsettled her, and she fought to maintain the control necessary to keep her poker face brilliant. He hadn’t responded yet. He just sat there in his wheelchair, gazing at her. Just as Serena thought she would burst, she heard him take a large breath and speak.
“I hope you find the accommodations pleasing. I have made every effort to provide for your every desire. I have decorated your suite with furniture and incidentals from the ancient Gaul period to make you feel more at ea—”
“Yes, yes,” Serena interrupted, “I see you’ve spared no expense. You’ve replicated much from my time, including this gown. All to please me? To what end? What is it you want from me?”
“I have searched so long for you. So long, it seems I’ve devoted most of my adult life in search of you. And when I finally found you, words cannot express the joy, the relief, the elation. I need you, Goddess. When you hear my story, you will understand why I have need of you, and I believe you will have mercy on me, for it is only you that will be my salvation.”
Serena noticed there were tears gathered in his eyes, threatening to break loose from their moorings. Already knowing his story, and putting aside the fact that he’d had her kidnapped, she felt a pang of sorrow and grief for him. Regardless of his misdeeds, here sat a man facing his imminent death, in constant pain, transforming into a statue. Her heart ached for the man whose dreams would never be realized. But something snapped inside her.
What the hell am I doing
?
If he were any other man, sure, feel for the guy. But, he isn’t just any man. He is the man who changed the course of my history. He’s the man who’s going to use me to make sure his dreams do come true
. She still didn’t know the how of it, and that disturbed her greatly. The moment of empathy for him passed.
“I’m not interested in stories, Doctor, only the bottom line. So what is yours?”
“I humbly request your gift of regeneration, dear Goddess.” He made a nearly imperceptible bow.
“You can throw your humility out the window since you forced my presence. As for your request, one would have to be an idiot not to see what a dire position you are in. However, you played your cards all wrong, I’m afraid. Had you come by my presence honestly, I may have considered such a request. Obviously, I would have had to weigh your deeds against your misdeeds to come to any kind of decision. But you, dear Doctor, have obtained me illegally, making any decision on my part less than desirable on yours. What I’m saying, Doctor, is no.”
Serena had no freakin’ idea what the hell she was saying, but she sensed deep down that she should let Sirona have free reign over this discussion, since she held all the power. She understood enough to know that saying no would save their lives.
“My apologies yet again for using the wrong wording. Let me rephrase. You
will
give me your gift of regeneration, Goddess. It’s not meant to be a request. I’m dying, and only you can give me eternal life, free from disease. And I shall have it, Sirona. I shall.” Although he looked like a statue, his voice conveyed his message, his intent, and his determination.