The Guardian Lineage (22 page)

Mike took one look back at the flaming corridor, then ran to join his Guardian brothers.

“Where's Zachariah?” Annabella said as Mike showed up. She looked around frantically.

“He's going to be okay,” Mike said, his eyes burning with tears. He surveyed the vampiric crowd through blurred vision. Could they just drive through them? There were so many… but maybe the bigger cars, the Hummers…

“
Where's Zachariah?
” Annabella screamed, a frantic look on her face.

More of the vampires poured into the garage now. Steph and Aaron must've had the same idea, because they were trying to fight a path towards the two Hummers in the corner…

“Mike,
what happened to him
?”

Mike grabbed Annabella by the shoulders and shook her for a moment. “Listen to me. He's going to be
okay.
” Now full tears formed in Mike's eyes. He bit his lip to force the words out of him, as if that would make any difference at all. “
He's going to be okay.
”

Annabella screeched and threw herself in the direction of the corridor, trying to break free of Mike's grasp. Aaron came over, took one look at Annabella, another look through the glass, and then looked at Mike. There was a shock in his eyes, and maybe a little admiration.

Then the two Guardians nodded to each other. They picked up Annabella and wrenched her into one of the SUVs, kicking and screaming all the way through.

“Come on!” Mike cried as he climbed into the driver's seat. There had been no sign of Caroline or Alexis, but Mike couldn't afford to wait for them now. There were more vehicles in the lot; if they made it that far, there would be ample ways for them to escape.

Steph jumped into the back seat. She took one look at Annabella, who was being held down by Aaron. She was screaming Zachariah's name over and over.

Steph's hand flew to her mouth, if she just now understood.

Mike screamed, “Close the door, Steph,” and she snapped out of it, slamming the door shut as the engine came to life. Tires screeched against the rubber garage floor. Aaron jumped through to the front seat, opened the window, and started firing randomly. But it wasn't nearly enough to split the sea of bodies. Mike gritted his teeth as he pushed the pedal all the way down. If the vampires wouldn't move, Mike would just have to move them…

“Hold on!” The SUV sped up. Then it lurched. Metal slammed into muscle. Bodies flew out of the way like bowling pins, although some managed to hang on to the roof of the car. Aaron stuck his head out and fired the last of his electric bolts at the clinging vamps, who lost their grip and flew off.

Mike cringed for the first few moments, certain a Brethren squad would be right behind the vampires. But there was nothing except open road through the unguarded stone towers, the forest, and onto I-90.

Only then did Mike breath a sigh of relief.

They were alive.

For the time being.

Annabella sat curled in a ball, whimpering, holding her legs and murmuring Zachariah's name over and over. Steph was patting her hair, trying to comfort her. And Aaron was staring out the windshield, totally silent

“Where should we go?” Mike asked. It occurred to him that he was the only one in the car who was composed. Which was strange, considering he'd been a legit headcase like two months ago. An event like this should've had him freaking out – hearing voices, seeing vampires in the shadows, the works. But now he was in control of himself, as if he had undergone anxiety treatments or something.

He looked in the rearview mirror to check on Julius Brutus and Kiva, who had followed them in a hard-top convertible. When no one answered, he changed the question. “Is anyone as tired as I am?”

The only response Mike got was a silent nod from Aaron. Which, in truth, was all the support he needed. Mike punched a button on the GPS, and it gave him directions to the closest motel.

 

 

The money in the glove compartment was enough for two rooms, split between girls and guys: Mike, Aaron, and Julius Brutus in one, and Steph, Annabella, and the Kiva in the other. Mike had asked Amadeus and Nukes where their hideaway was, but all Nukes had said was that they found a good place to sleep and left it at that. Maybe the Gargoyles still didn't trust him. Or maybe they hadn't found a good spot at all, and were simply trying to make Mike feel better. Either way, Mike took what he could get.

Temporarily released of their responsibility to guard the gargoyles, the Guardians could finally sleep as long as they wanted.

Mike was the last one to wake up. When he did, he saw Aaron and Julius Brutus sitting on the other side of the bed, munching on Egg McMuffins and watching some random soap opera. Mike glanced at the clock – it was two in the afternoon.

Aaron tossed Mike a wrapped sandwich. “Morning, sunshine.” He pointed to Mike's Amp, which was resting next to the clock. “That thing's been going off the entire afternoon.”

“Why didn't you pick it up?” Mike rushed to put the necklace around him.

“Tried,” Julius Brutus said through a mouthful of food. “There was no answer each time. As if it knew it wasn't you.”

Strange
, Mike thought as he headed over to the bathroom. He didn't know the Amp could do that.

Mike splashed water on his face and looked at himself in the mirror. He had a cut on his left ear, and his hair was all over the place. Other than that, he looked – and felt – physically refreshed.

And utterly miserable.

His clan was gone. His mom was gone. The gargoyles were gone. He had no one to turn to for help, and no one to rely on but a few kids he'd met only weeks ago. He felt like Maximus from the movie Gladiator, his favorite of all-time. Alone, with only a few allies and a desire for revenge. With a mix of “I'm just happy to be alive” sprinkled in.

The Amp's gemstone was cold against his bare chest, underneath his t-shirt. Mike held it between his fingers and stared. Such a tiny thing. Yet he knew nothing about the extent of its power. He wondered if it could turn back the clock and erase everything that had happened. Then none of this would be real.

“Are the girls up?” Mike asked as he exited the bathroom, drying his hands on a towel. He looked at his sneakers, chucked in a corner, then down at his old white t-shirt and shorts. He'd probably have to buy some new clothes somewhere – he didn't know how long it'd be until they could go back to Windham.

“Annabella is for sure,” Aaron said between bites. “Probably didn't sleep.”

Mike's thoughts instantly turned to Zachariah. The guy had given himself up to save her… them, Mike corrected himself. All of them. They were all alive because of Zachariah.

Maybe he wasn't dead. He was a good fighter, and there wasn't much room in the corridor. If Zachariah kept his flames up, the vampires would have had no way of reaching him—

There was a knock on the door.

Mike snapped out of his thoughts and went over to the blinds, which were shut. He peeked through to see three girls standing outside.

“If you guys are still asleep...” Mike heard a warning note in Steph's voice. He wrenched the door open.

“We're up, we're up.” Mike waited for the three girls to enter, checked outside to see if anyone was watching them, then locked the door.

Steph plopped onto the armchair. Annabella sat on the armrest, while Kiva stood next to her, rubbing her arms. Annabella's eyes were still red; she must have been crying for most of the night.

“Annabella, listen,” Mike started, but she cut him off with a shake of the head.

“Zachariah is alive, I'm sure of it,” she insisted. “When can we go back?”

Aaron said, “Uh, how about never? Did you see how many vampires there were?”

“Vampires aren't around during the day,” Annabella shot back.

For a moment, the only sound was that of an overly dramatic revenge scene playing on the TV. Mike shot a look at Julius Brutus, who was still watching. JB grabbed the remote and shut it off, putting it down like a four-year-old who hadn't done anything wrong.

“I don't think we can go back,” Mike said quietly. When he saw Annabella's expression, he elaborated. “At least not yet. If the Brethren are looking for us – and they probably are – the first place they'll stake out is Windham. It's too dangerous.”

Kiva said, “But what about Zachariah? Or Caroline?”

“Or Alexis,” Aaron added.

“And don't forget about my dad,” Steph said quietly.

For a moment, no one said anything. “They'll have to handle themselves,” Mike said, not loving the answer even as he said it. “I don't think we have a choice.”

It was deathly silent in the motel room, almost as if there was nobody there. Mike could sense the despair hanging over them. But there was nothing else he could offer at the moment. Going back was suicide. The Brethren would have the place crawling by now.

Then, out of nowhere, Steph said, “I guess… I agree with Mike.” She shifted in her chair as everyone turned to look at her. “Even though I have my father there.” She paused, and it looked like she was about to cry. But then she composed herself and said, “There's no way we can go back, not after the numbers they came with. Especially without any gargoyle backup. If there was one thing on our side, it was them. Now they're gone.” She looked at Mike for a long moment. “To tell you the truth, I don't know where we can go. We'll be hunted everywhere, at this point. How do we know the Brethren aren't outside right now? They could've tracked us here easily.”

Julius Brutus raised a hand. “I put wards around the parking lot.”

“And that won't attract any unwanted magical attention?” Steph pointed out.

JB opened his mouth, then shut it.

Mike rested his forehead on two fingers. He had to think. What could they do, besides sit around and wait for his mother to call? As if his mom really was going to call. She was the enemy, not an ally. Who else was there for them to turn to?

Just then, Mike's necklace buzzed.
Speak of the devil,
Mike thought.
It's about time, Mom. You better have a good explanation for this.
He shushed the room, then removed the Amp from his neck. “Does this have a speaker mode?” His mom owed everyone an explanation, not just him, and he figured they should all get to hear it.

Steph held out a hand. Mike passed her the Amp. She muttered a few words, then placed the Amp on the bed.

“Hello?” Mike said aloud.

“Mister Prior, I've been waiting for you. Tell your friend he should answer his own phone calls.”

Mike looked up, startled. The voice was deep. And definitely not his mother's. He glanced over at Aaron, whose eyes narrowed.

“Who is this?”

The voice laughed. “I'm insulted. Surely they taught you about Evan Morningstar?”

Mike racked his brains. Evan Morningstar? Had Stockton mentioned that name in one of Mike's history lessons? If he had, Mike sure didn't remember. Mike looked around the room, his blank stare reflected in his friends' faces.

“Uh, no, not really.”

There was silence for a moment. “Then perhaps you've heard of my name as uttered by those who fear me. I am Dementae.”

Mike heard a curse from one of the girls, probably Steph.
Dementae.
How had he gotten a necklace? Maybe from Stockton, or another one of the teachers… or his mom…

“Nothing to say, Mike?”

Mike coughed. “Yeah, we've heard of that one.”

“Ah, good. So you know who you're dealing with. Now listen up – I don't know how many of you survived the little house-crashing party I sent for you, but you will bring the remaining Guardians to the Chateau de Vincennes, a castle east of Paris where the Grey Talons set up shop. Or, should I say,
used
to set up shop.”

The silence in the room was palpable. Mike stared at the stone on the bed. As much as he hated DuBois, Mike didn't want the whole clan decimated…

“Or what?” Aaron said, his nostrils flaring. Clearly, he was more angry than scared at this point – maybe the only Guardian who had his emotions prioritized in that manner.

“Who is this?” Dementae sounded irate. “Identify yourself.”

“Aaron Caulderon, Electrokinetic Division, Skyfire clan.” For good measure, Aaron added a slew of curses.

“Thank you, Mr. Caulderon, you will be the first to die.”

That shut Aaron up real good.

“You will bring the remaining clan members to Chateau de Vincennes. I usually don't do threats, but Mr. Caulderon, you earned one – if you ever hope to see Sepulchra, Stockton, or any of your god-forsaken clan again, you
will
show up. Tomorrow night, nine o'clock.”

A flicker of hope lit inside Mike's stomach. If Dementae was grouping his mom with the captured Guardians, maybe she wasn't a betrayer after all…

“How do we get there?” Julius Brutus said. “Our gargoyles are gone.”

Mike threw him a look that said
idiot!
JB opened and shut his mouth, realizing what he had done.

“Is that so?” Dementae paused. “In that case, there is a secret portal in Manhattan, although I doubt its confidentiality will be needed much longer. It is located in the basement of four-eighty west one-eighty-seventh street, in the boiler room. I will take the necessary steps to configure it to lead you straight here.” Dementae was silent for a moment. “Anything more to say, Mister Caulderon? Mister Prior? No? Tomorrow night, then. Au revoir.”

The opal went dead.

“Way to go, JB,” Mike muttered. He took the amp and placed it around his neck, smoothing out the sheets on the bed where it had laid.

No one said anything for a while. Finally, Julius Brutus broke the silence by dipping his head into a pillow and sobbing loudly. Mike almost strangled him then and there, but he held himself back.

“I guess we'll go, then,” Steph said quietly.

Mike turned to stare at her.

“Are you insane?” Aaron said. “Dementae just invited us to our own funeral. And we're going to
go
?”

Mike racked his brains for an alternative, but the more he thought about it, the more he agreed with Steph. Where else were they going to go? With no portal and no Gargoyles, they couldn't go to the other clans. Cassandra had made it clear that they weren't welcome back at Slayerland. And besides – now they
knew
where their clan was. And Dementae. If they could somehow defeat him…

“She's right,” Mike said. “What else are we going to do? Dementae'll have the Brethren combing the country until they find us. There's no where we can go for help. If we're ever going to finish this, we'll have to do it on his terms.”

“
His
terms?” Annabella protested. “
His
terms are for all of us to be dead!”

Mike got up and put an arm on Annabella's shoulder. “It'll be okay, really.” He looked at his Guardian family through intense eyes. “I have a plan, and it's going to work.”

“Oh yeah?” Aaron said. “And what's that?”

Mike went over to the TV. It was a really old model, from the eighties or something. He fingered the two-pronged antenna. “Dementae doesn't know we have gargoyles left.”

“Neither do we,” Steph pointed out.

Mike said, “True, but let's assume Nukes and Amadeus figured out a place to rest. Dementae also doesn't know how many Guardians are coming. You heard him, he said to bring whoever was still alive. He doesn't know there are six of us.

“Four of us will surrender to Dementae. The other two will take Nukes and Amadeus to Chateau de Vincennes and find the rest of our clan. They're alive – Dementae said so himself.”

“What if he's not keeping them at the castle?” Kiva asked.

Mike noticed her for the first time, really. She was pretty, with dimples and an innocent look in her eyes that made him feel comfortable around her. He wondered if she was dating someone – not for himself, but because she seemed more worried about finding the rest of the clan than the others were.

“A chance we'll have to take,” Mike allowed. “But I'll bet they're there. Dementae's not going to lure us to one place if he plans on transporting us somewhere else.”

“Unless he's just going to flat out kill us,” Aaron said morbidly.

Mike eyed his Guardian brother. “I guess we'll just have to find out, won't we?”