Found (Book #8 in the Vampire Journals) (18 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

Now Caleb understood. As he stood there, looking up at the blackening skies, now he understood why he and Caitlin were meant to part ways. She wasn’t destined to be here. She wasn’t destined to witness this slaughter, to die with all of them, here, on this mountain. She had a different destiny.

He, Caleb, was the one destined to die today. In her place.

Caleb felt the old warrior inside rouse itself. He raised his chin proudly, held out his chest, and breathed in, jutting out his jaw, holding his ground. It was the stance of a warrior prepared to meet his death—and to go down with honor.

Caleb reached down and instinctively extracted his sword from his scabbard. It slid out with a metallic noise that echoed in the hills.

All around him, Aiden’s coven members did the same.

Except for Aiden. He merely stood there, looking as relaxed as ever as he closed his eyes and merely raised his staff before him. Caleb could sense the energy radiating off of it. He had never fought with Aiden before, not shoulder to shoulder like this, and he wondered what it would be like.

Caleb’s heart started beating faster as the black cloud grew thicker, came closer. The sound grew louder, incredibly loud, a million vampire wings flapping up above. As they descended, Caleb could see them taking aim, right for them.

As he stood there and raised his sword, bracing himself for the attack, he could feel the approaching army, before it even hit, coming at him like a gale force wind. The sound grew louder and louder, as the skies blackened. The entire horde descended, aiming right for them.

Caleb looked to his left and right, and saw Aiden’s men holding firm, veteran warriors, all holding the line. None of them even flinched.

The army approached. 100 yards…50…20…. Caleb could begin to see their faces. As they got close enough, he was shocked to see who was in front, leading the charge.

There, right in the center, was Kyle.

Caleb could not believe it. He was sure that Kyle was dead, gone forever. He could not understand how he could be here.

And there, beside him, he saw
Rynd
, another creature he was sure was gone forever. Caleb could not understand how they could be back in existence.

Beside them he recognized vampires from his days in New York, when he was infiltrating the Blacktide coven. Vampires who he knew were gone forever. He could not understand how all of them could be here.

And then, suddenly, it hit him. And the realization struck him deeper than any sword, than any battle.

At that moment, he realized that all these creatures had been brought back from the other side. Resurrected. And there was only one weapon in the universe that had the power to do that.

The Shield.

The Vampire Shield.

Caleb’s heart sank, as his breath was taken out of him. They had found the Shield first. They had beaten them to it, and had already used it. These creatures, these thousands of demons, had all been resurrected with the Shield, dragged up from the depths of hell. The shield had fallen into the wrong hands.

That meant they had no chance. No chance at all of survival.

As they got even closer, Caleb looked up and saw Sam—and beside him, Samantha, a face he had not seen in years. As he saw Sam getting closer, he could see Caitlin’s face in him. It was hard for him to see his brother-in-law like this, so transformed, fighting for the other side. But there was nothing he could do. He would have to face off with him.

A moment later, there was impact. There came the awful sound of a million clashing swords and wings, as Sam came down, right for Caleb, a horrible grimace on his face. He raised his sword and brought it down right for Caleb.

Caleb stood there proudly and met his sword with his own, blocking it. There was a loud clash, and an instant later, dozens of vampires landed all around him.

Aiden’s warriors fought back bravely, blocking and dodging and ducking and slashing back. There was the clang of metal on metal, weapon on weapon, as they all fought expertly. Caleb caught a glance of Aiden: amazingly, he hadn’t moved. He stood very still, his staff up before him, eyes closed. It was as if there was an invisible bubble around him, a shield, and everyone who flew towards him bounced back as they got close. He was untouched, standing there in his bubble.

But Caleb didn’t have that power. He could feel the power rippling through Sam’s sword slash as he blocked it, the vibration of the metal shaking his entire body. He slashed back—but Sam was too fast: he blocked Caleb’s every blow, and immediately slashed back. It was the toughest battle of Caleb’s life, and he was being pushed back, with nowhere to go.

Making matters worse, dozens more vampires were landing all around him at every moment, encircling him from all sides. He was soon completely outnumbered.

Caleb fought furiously, swinging in every direction. The chaos helped him a bit, as some vampires, in the confusion, fought against each other.

He rolled away from Sam, not wanting to hurt him, and instead focused on other vampires. Moving with speed and dexterity, he managed to kill several of them. He was actually gaining momentum, when suddenly he felt himself elbowed hard in the back, right in the kidneys.

He wheeled, and found himself face to face with a hideous, sneaky creature.

Standing there, scowling back, missing one eye, was Kyle.

Before Caleb could react, Kyle raised his battle ax high and brought it down right for Caleb’s head.

Caleb dodged at the last second, then reached over swung back, for Kyle’s arm. Kyle blocked the blow with a shield, then leaned back and kicked Caleb in the gut, knocking him back.

Kyle came in for another blow with his axe, but Caleb anticipated it; he leapt over it, high in the air, and kicked Kyle hard in the chest, knocking him back. Now, Caleb had the upper hand.

But dozens more vampires landed, swooping down from every side. Caleb was already getting tired, already beginning to see that this was a losing battle. He saw no way they could possibly win. He wondered what Aiden was thinking, trying to even face off against an army with only a few dozen men.

Just when Caleb thought things couldn’t get any worse, suddenly, the earth around him shook. As he looked over in astonishment, he suddenly saw the thousands of graves on the Mount of Olives start to shift. And then, to his horror, the dirt rose up, and bodies began to emerge from each grave—dark, demon souls, hideous-looking black shadows, with long, sharp fangs. As if the army in the sky weren’t bad enough—now, Caleb was surrounded by thousands more evil creatures, from every side.

And he realized that, in the coming minutes, his life would be finished.

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

Caitlin stood there, watching the sky, wiping her tears, and finally tore herself away. She was jostled in the crowd, and felt a small hand grip hers, and finally snapped out of it.

She looked down and saw Scarlet looking up at her with her joyful, innocent eyes.

“Mommy?” she asked.

Caitlin beamed at the site of her, forgetting all her sadness. She bent down and embraced Scarlet, holding her tight, smiling, radiant. And then she remembered: Jesus.

Caitlin took Scarlet’s hand, checked to see that Ruth was by her side, and then hurried through the mob, heading after him. They were jostled as they went, and it was an effort just to keep them together. The masses flocked around Jesus, who was far away now, and the crowd was growing thicker and thicker. He was such a polarizing figure, Caitlin could feel the tension in the air, so thick it was palpable. Brawls broke out, as some people wept openly, while others argued with each other. It felt like Jerusalem was on the verge of a revolution.

The Roman soldiers stood back, watching carefully, Pontius Pilate overseeing them. Caitlin noticed more and more soldiers filtering in, their ranks swelling as they followed Jesus.

Caitlin had to get closer; she pushed her way through the crowd, and slowly, she narrowed the gap. In the distance he turned down a side street, and Caitlin lost sight of him. She elbowed with more force, but the crowd was thick—and growing thicker by the second.

Suddenly, Pontius Pilot gave his soldiers a signal, and they rushed into the crowd, cordoning off the street where Jesus had went. The crowd booed and screamed, trying to follow him, but the soldiers wouldn’t let them. The crowd got pushy, and the soldiers started to raise their clubs and beat them back.

A riot ensued. People started fighting, then stampeding toward Caitlin to get away from the soldiers’ brutality. Caitlin could tell the situation was about to worsen, and realized that if she didn’t do something fast, they’d all be trampled to death.

Caitlin bent over, put Scarlet on her back, grabbed Ruth with her free hand, and leapt up into the air. Her wings caught, and soon she was flying, up above the crowd. She made it just in time, right before the stampede headed her way. She didn’t like to fly like this, so out in the open, so conspicuously in front of humans, who she knew would spot her. But she had no choice.

They spotted her indeed—and the effect was electrifying. Caitlin heard the shocked cries and looked down to see hundreds of crowd members stopping and turning, pointing up at her.

“Witch!”

“Heretic!”

“Demon!”

Several people grabbed rocks and hurled them up towards Caitlin.

But Caitlin flew higher just in time, and the rocks sailed by, missing. In moments, she was higher, and higher, far away from them, over Jerusalem. She kept flying, and soon she was over the barricade set by the Roman soldiers.

She gained speed, and within moments was able to spot Jesus and his apostles, down below, on a quiet side street. They had just finished ascending a small hill, and were entering a large, Roman house.

Caitlin dove down, landing out of sight, then hurried to catch up to the last of the apostles, just before he entered the house.

As she ran up to him, he turned and faced her. Caitlin braced herself, assuming he’d tell her to go away; but to her surprise, he smiled.

“We were hoping you would come,” he said, looking at Caitlin, then down at Scarlet and Ruth. “Will you join us?”

Caitlin nodded, relieved.

“It is the Passover meal,” he said. “It is our last supper before the holiday begins.”

He stepped to the side, and motioned for Caitlin to enter.

The Last Supper. The words rang through Caitlin’s head. She could hardly believe it. Here she was, with Jesus and his apostles, on Passover evening, during the Last Supper—the night before he was crucified. The night he was betrayed by Judas. She could hardly believe it. Here she was, right in the middle of history. Could she somehow change it?

Caitlin entered the small house, holding Scarlet’s hand, Ruth beside her, and followed the apostle down a corridor. They passed a small, open-air courtyard in the middle of the house, framed by columns and arches, with immaculate gardens and olive trees. They continued down another corridor and up a flight of stairs, and she saw the apostles clustering around a door.

The energy was palpable. There was excitement, preparation for the holiday and for the meal. They filed into the room one by one, and she followed on their heels.

As Caitlin entered the room, it took her breath away. There, spread out before her, was a long, wide table. The apostles were taking their seats, all alongside it. And there, sitting in the center, was Jesus. He sat with his eyes closed, palms out, as if meditating.

As she entered the room, he opened his eyes and gazed right at her. She could feel the intense energy radiating off of him; it was unlike anything she had ever experienced. It was like the sun, trapped in this room.

“I am glad you have come,” he said to her.

Once again, Caitlin found herself unable to respond. She was overwhelmed in his presence.

The apostle gestured towards empty seats not too far from Jesus, and Caitlin and Scarlet took their seats. Caitlin could see the wonder on Scarlet’s face, and wanted to explain it all to her. But she hardly knew what to say.

Caitlin saw a man sitting to Jesus’ side, and recognized him from paintings. Judas. The one who would betray him.

Caitlin felt an urge to jump up, to warn Jesus, to tell him that his time was limited, that this was his last supper; that they were coming for him; that tomorrow they would crucify him; that he should beware of Judas.

But she didn’t want to cross a line, and she didn’t know if it was her place to do so. She felt she was caught up in the hands of history, and that it wasn’t her role to try to change it. And she didn’t know if she could change it if she tried. After all, could Jesus really not be crucified? How would that affect the course of history?

So instead, Caitlin sat there, trying to be in the moment, to experience this. For whatever reason, she had been led to him, and she tried to understand why. She just wanted to see her Dad, and she tried to imagine how and when Jesus would lead her to him.

Small foods and delicacies were passed along the table, and some were placed before Caitlin and Scarlet. They were round, flat crackers. Unleavened bread.

Each person was then handed a large, bejeweled goblet. Caitlin took hers, as did Scarlet. It was heavy, made of solid gold.

As soon as she held it, Caitlin could sense what was inside. Every pore of her body screamed out for it.

It was blood. The finest, purest white blood she had ever seen.

Each apostle raised a glass. They held their glasses in mid-air for several seconds, as if praying silently. Caitlin followed suit. And then, each of them drank.

Caitlin sipped it, and as she did, she immediately felt the blood rush through her veins. She felt instantly restored, rejuvenated. It was the finest blood she’d ever drank. She looked over and saw Scarlet drink, too, and was relieved to see the color returning to her cheeks.

One of the apostles handed Ruth a large slab of raw meat, and Caitlin was relieved to see Ruth eat, too. Finally, she felt at ease. She wished that Caleb could be here to share this with them.

Everyone set down their goblets, as Jesus cleared his throat. It was clear that all the disciples were patiently awaiting his teachings.

But as he spoke, it was Caitlin who he turned to, who he looked at. She felt nervous, embarrassed.

“When you are brought before rulers and authorities,” he said, “do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say.”

Caitlin flushed, embarrassed; it was as if he had read her mind. Yet at the same time, she found peace in his words. He was talking to all of his disciples, but she also felt as if he were talking directly to her.

She looked around the room and saw his disciples taking in every word, eager to hear more.

He half-closed his eyes, and seemed to enter back into a meditative state. Caitlin felt so peaceful around him; yet, on the other hand, she couldn’t stop worrying. She worried about finding her Dad in time; she worried about what would become of Caleb, and Blake, and Aiden. She worried about not returning fast enough. She tried to find peace, as all the other apostles seemed to, yet she couldn’t stop her mind from racing.

Jesus spoke again:

“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to her life?”

His eyes were closed when he said it, but still, Caitlin again felt as if he were speaking right to her. His words brought her a sense of peace: he was right. Worrying would change nothing.

A thick silence pervaded the room, and Caitlin sat there, wondering what it all meant. When would he
lead
her to her dad? She felt as if she were closer to her Dad now than ever—there were no more keys to find, no more clues to uncover. All she had to do was follow Jesus. It seemed easy enough. Yet, at the same time, it also felt so vague. She wished there was something more concrete she could do.

She looked around the room, wondering if maybe one of these apostles could be her Dad.

She was burning with a desire to speak up, to ask Jesus questions about him, about what she was doing here, about what she should do next. She felt so overwhelmed, she could barely contain herself. But she felt it would be disrespectful, somehow, to speak up at this table.

Suddenly, Judas leaned over and whispered something in Jesus’ ear. Jesus slowly stood, and all the other apostles stood, too, out of respect. Caitlin did, too.

Jesus slowly exited the table, followed closely by Judas.

As Caitlin watched them go, she wondered what Judas had whispered into his ear. It sent a chill through her: she knew that Judas was betraying him somehow. And she wanted to stop it.

Caitlin knew it was not her place to get in the way of history; but still, she was burning up inside. She couldn’t just sit there and watch this happen.

So, despite herself, she jumped up, ran around the table, and stood before Jesus and Judas, right before they exited the room. She blocked their path, and they both looked up at her.

“I…uh…” Caitlin began, at a loss for words. “Please. Please don’t go,” she said.

She felt protective of him. She couldn’t stand to let this happen.

Jesus reached out and placed a palm on her shoulder. As he did, she felt a tremendous heat rush through her shoulder and body. It was a healing power, electrifying.

“Forgive them,” he said softly, “for they know not what they do.”

Caitlin felt tears welling up. It was all too much for her to bear. Here she was, so close, so close to finding her Dad. To fulfilling her mission. To finding whatever it was she needed to help her husband. And Aiden.

And yet, she was helpless. All she needed to do was follow Jesus. And yet, she knew that Judas was leading him to be betrayed. And that she might not ever see him again.

She wanted to stop all this. To prevent them from leaving. To stay by Jesus’ side. To protect him.

And yet she knew from his words that that was not what was meant to be. What was meant was for her to step aside and let them pass.

So she did.

Caitlin stepped to the side, and Jesus walked past her, followed by Judas, who scowled down at her.