Chapter Twenty-five.
T hose occupying the lab were dressed in white coats, and there were eight in total. Armed men observed their actions.
Guards.
Alert, I glanced around, seeing machines I had no hope of understanding. I was not a scientist. A few appeared to work with blood, while others tested a substance. There were microscopes and small refrigerators. Test tubes abounded everywhere, as did syringes and other stuff.
The question was, what were they doing? How long had this been here, and was anyone aware of it? This must have been a government program, considering the armed guards. They didn’t want anyone getting in or out.
Amelia tugged on my shirt as she spied James.
Instantly, I was riled. James was in a steel cage, and the bars were at least three inches thick and were close together. He looked pale and ill and was slumped listlessly in a corner.
There was nothing in it apart from him and a bucket. Two guesses what the bucket was for. Not that we needed it, but the debasement was infuriating. I was livid! How dare they treat a Vam’pir so?
The bastards would treat an experimental animal better.
I opened my senses and learned that James was weak from the lack of blood, and then I clicked on what they were doing.
“God!” I whispered, appalled.
The scientists, for that’s what they were, had identified James as a Vam’pir. They were taking his blood and trying to understand how it worked.
Amelia nodded pale as she caught the implications. “Why?” she asked, and I shook my head.
I wasn’t sure, and at the moment, it didn’t matter. It was impossible to attempt a rescue without help. There were simply too many, and we remained unaware of how they had captured James. Those guns might contain something that neutralised a Vam’pir.
Gently, I tugged at Amelia’s arm, and she shook her head, refusing to leave James alone.
‘Amelia, we must get help, ’ I sent the thought to her.
Amelia received it and baulked.
‘Do you want both of us to end up imprisoned with James? No one will know where we are, and nobody will care. Others must be warned about this.’
Finally, Amelia nodded and rose silently.
Amelia sent a message to James, and he raised his head a little. Pretending disinterest, James glanced around the room. James blinked when he spotted me standing next to Amelia. For a brief instant, I thought James would shout out, but then he looked back down.
James’s eyes had told the story, and he wondered if I was making a move on Amelia.
Typical James.
That idea was what made me believe James was going to call out. James hadn’t, thank God, and we quietly made our way back outside.
I breathed in a sigh of relief that we hadn’t been found. Quickly, we left, dragging the body of the dead man into the forest.
“What are you doing with him?” Amelia asked.
“Bury him. Hopefully, the others down there will not realise he is gone until it is too late. He might have finished his shift and been on his way home. I bet those locked rooms are offices and there’s at least one corridor leading to cells. They’d lock that to prevent an escape. There must also be more research rooms. Help me dig a hole and we’ll put this carcass in it. While we are doing that, send out an SOS. I’ll hide my presence, so maybe any Vam’pirs in the area will come.”
Quickly, we dug a hole and rolled the body into it, and as we filled it, a vampire answered the call. Dan was a middle-aged man and quite confused as to what was happening, but he was sound of mind. He presented well and was unlike the rabble with which I had dealt with in the past.
Dan grasped the situation and wanted to go storming in, but we held him back.
“Who knows what’s happening in there?” Dan argued.
We told him to wait for others to answer, and Amelia repeated her call. It was very rare for a vampire or Vam’pir to shout an SOS. However, I was surprised when five more vampires arrived.
I sighed because they were all young and more interested in the caller than the reason for the call.
But at least they had arrived to assist. Just as I was thinking none of the Vam’pirs would answer, I got the shock of my life. I turned and faced Ami, Li’zel, Nathan, and Ricardus.
They stared at me with bitter hatred on their faces and began to leave; only Amelia stepped in and begged them not to. Quickly, Amelia explained the situation, and they settled down to listen.
The other six vampires were astonished at being amongst what were considered being legends and held their tongues.
“If what you say is true, then we’ll need more help than what we have here,” Ricardus suggested thoughtfully.
“Ricardus, I’ll put a call out. They’ll answer me were, no offence, they would ignore you,” Li’zel replied gently to Amelia.
“Don’t worry, we will get James out,” Ami added reassuringly.
I was thankful that they were listening to Amelia and taking what she said on board. None looked at me, which wasn’t that surprising. The Vam’pirs didn’t understand the circumstances behind Julia’s death. They remained convinced that I had killed Julia for kicks.
Warily, I decided not to approach anyone and kept my distance. They did the same, and there was an obvious chill between us. The situation didn’t improve when Seti and Antonio arrived with Suzan.
“I could not contact Julius or Ana, and there is no response from Tobais, Pal, Mera, or Kait and Pari.”
“We’re here,” a voice said from the darkness, and Kait and Pari emerged from the surrounding trees. “Emil and Raymone are on their way. Mihal and Eduardo, we cannot reach, which is unusual.”
“What about Diana and Curtan?” Li’zel inquired, frowning. “They would not ignore a call from us. Well, they’d ignore one of us,” she added, with a stab in my direction.
I felt like shouting and screaming the reasons for why I’d killed Julia. Instead, I bit my tongue and caused blood to flow.
For the way they treated me, Vam’pirs did not deserve the truth. They had judged me out of hand. Nobody had asked for an explanation. No, my family was happy to believe the worst. So be it.
“This is of grave concern. They would not ignore an SOS call. Something must be wrong. How many rooms did you see? Are you sure nobody else was with James?” Kait asked.
Amelia looked at me for reassurance. I nodded back, and she seemed puzzled as the others still ignored me. I sensed the question before Amelia asked and I shook my head, and she left the questions unasked.
The other six vampires looked confused, too. They were too overwhelmed by the novelty of being among the first born of our race to ask questions though.
“You have no idea how they captured James?” Nathan questioned.
“No, all I know is that he disappeared three weeks ago. I have been searching for him since. Jacques and I found James here, and we need to free him, please.”
“We will, do not worry about, dear heart,” Raymone said from the shadows as he and Emil walked forward.
I got the expected response from them, and then they sat down to try to work out a strategy. The idiots decided to just walk in and reclaim what was ours.
Brilliant! The plan reflected considerable forethought—not. Naturally, I didn’t consider that too good an idea, but they ignored my comments. So, I tagged along at the back with Amelia and the six vampires. Amelia was now looking a little angry with them and their attitude towards me.
“If it wasn’t for you, we would not know James was here,” Amelia whispered, and I saw Nathan twitch.
Nathan had overheard and wasn’t too pleased by the looks of it.
“This goes back a long time. Amelia, I don’t let it bother me anymore.”
“Jaq, I’ve heard the legends. You must have had your reasons,” Amelia still defended me.
“I did, and tragically, they were valid ones. But those remain between Julia and me. This is not the moment. The thing that Vam’pirs won’t forgive me for is the fact that I drained her blood so Julia couldn’t escape from her bonds.”
Now you understand why the other Vam’pir’s obeyed my directive to stay out of London. I had the blood of two Vam’pirs in my veins.
I was undoubtedly the strongest Vam’pir alive.
“Oh, I see. Julia, was that dangerous?”
“Very,” I replied.
Nathan looked at me with such hatred that my heart broke. Never before had he looked at me like that in our entire lives. Rejection from Nathan, fuelled by hate, was especially painful, but I shoved the pain aside.
Nathan turned back, and with the Vam’pirs, they entered the lift and descended into the laboratories. Opening my senses, I touched something and quickly pulled the others back. Amelia and the six stared at me in confusion.
“They know we are here. How?” I stated.
Gut churning, I looked around and noticed what we’d all missed. A hidden camera. I pointed to it, and Amelia swore under her breath.
“What’s the betting the others have been captured? Now I’m concerned. As I cannot sense how they have managed this.” I paused, thinking furiously, “I have a plan, come here.”
Everybody crowded around me, and I whispered my idea. Then we entered the lift. The door opened with a ping, revealing a flash of lightning.
“Shit! They’re not here,” a deep voice exclaimed, surprised.
“Where are they? We saw them get in.”
I smirked from above as we clambered our way through the air vents. The tunnels were large enough for us to crawl silently through them. Then, the tunnel split three ways.
“Where now?” Dan asked.
“Let’s split up, meet back here in five minutes,” Amelia suggested.
They nodded, and we split the vampires into groups of three, and Amelia and I took the left. Three followed Tony down the right tunnel, while Dan and two others chose the middle.
Our tunnel led us directly above the cells. Amelia and I peered through the air vents, and I was surprised when I saw Mihal and Julius in one. I got an even bigger shock when I realised that all the missing Vam’pirs must be here. There were also several vampires. How the hell had they been captured, and how were they being held here?
Amelia and I returned to the others. Their reports were not good. The Vam’pirs that had come to our rescue were being kept in a large cell together, but they were all unconscious. That left just the eight of us. I frowned and asked what else.
Dan said that James remained in the lab and under watch. He reported James looked terrible. Amelia’s expression softened before intense anger threatened to overwhelm her.
“We have to get help,” Dan said.
“We got it, and look what happened,” I replied, frowning. “No. Can you six get into the cell corridor and open the doors to free them?”
They shook their heads.
This was so frustrating, I sighed. Damn it, direct action was needed. “Stay here, Amelia and I will go, as we are the strongest. If we don’t return, flee and get help. Bring an army of vampires to raid this place.”
Dan and Tony nodded. Amelia and I crept back to where Mihal and Julius were being held.
“Mihal!” I hissed through an air vent.
He looked up, startled.
“What happened?” Mihal huffed and turned away, and I cursed.
“Listen here, you little bastard. I don’t have to rescue you, and I am quite happy to leave you here to be experimented on,” I threatened, and panic crossed Mihal’s face.
Amelia crawled forward and took my place.
“Mihal, you don’t know me, but I’m Amelia. Ana’s vein. Everyone who came to rescue you was captured. What’s going on?”
Mihal looked up and slowly began to speak. The effort proved overwhelming; Mihal appeared gravely ill, perhaps dying.
“I was in Aberdeen and on the hunt when I felt someone hunting me. Initially, I believed it was a Drainer until it struck me.”
“What hit you?”
“It’s like a bolt of electricity, only it freezes the whole body, leaving you unconscious. I’ve witnessed nothing comparable. Be careful, if it hits you, that’s it, you’re going nowhere.”
“Thanks. How many weapons are there?” I asked.
“There is sufficient for every guard. The cells are also shielded, and we cannot contact each other. I suspect others like me are here, but I’m unsure.”
“Everyone is here. The guards captured the rest of you earlier. They tried to rescue you but got caught instead,” Amelia explained.
“Including mother?” Mihal demanded.
“I assume Inka was captured earlier. She never answered the call,” I replied.
Mihal gritted his teeth. “Then who’s left?”
“Just me and your father,” Amelia said.
“Then we are all doomed,” Mihal snapped bitterly and turned away to face Julius.
I sighed at the anger and hatred in Mihal’s voice, but that didn’t matter. I couldn’t leave Vam’pirs here to die or be experimented on, no matter what they thought.
“Who they are?” Amelia asked, ignoring Mihal’s pessimism.
“Some type of secret government branch. They boasted the government was unaware of their existence. I think they are working outside normal procedure,” Julius answered.
“Thanks, we’ll be back,” Amelia said and motioned for me to continue.
I crawled until we came to the air vent above the main chamber. James remained in a cage, and he wasn’t alone this time. In a cage, there was another body curled into themselves, making it hard to distinguish their identity. However, there weren’t many staff or guards present. The others, I imagined, were out searching for us. There were two armed guards at the door, and they held guns.
This time, I saw the weapons clearly. At first, they resembled typical guns. However, I could see that they held some sort of electrical pack. The barrel was longer, and they seemed quite bulky, difficult to aim quickly, I surmised. That gave me an idea.
“Amelia, I’ll kick this vent out and make a run at the guards. The right one’s mine; the left one’s yours. Then hit the scientists before they press an alarm.”
Amelia nodded.
I kicked and sent the vent flying.
The guards spun around, but it was too late. Amelia and I were on them. I wrenched the gun out of my target’s hand and backhanded him with my arm. The bastard went flying and hit his head with a sickening thud. Movement caught my eye from the corner of the room, and I ducked. The shot flew wide, and I stalked the scientist that had fired upon me.
Amelia killed the second guard and had begun to round up the remaining scientists. They were sheep and horror was etched on their faces as they realised just what they were facing. I caught the scientist that had shot at me and broke his hands.
The fool screamed in pain and fell to the ground.
“Jacques!” Amelia gasped, and when I turned, I saw Ana in the cage.
Ana looked like death warmed up and couldn’t even lift her head up.
“Keys!” Amelia demanded, and a frightened woman threw them.
Blow the keys.
I ripped the door off and picked Ana up. Ana weighed next to nothing, and her lips were pale.
Gently, I laid Ana down on the floor and glared at the scientist, whose hands I had broken.
“How long ago did she last eat?”
“I…I.”
“How long?” I shouted.
“Five or six months.”
Months? Horrified, I stared at him before fury took over me. Beyond reasoning, I dragged him forward and fastened Ana’s lips onto his neck, but Ana was too frail to drink.
Cursing, I held him by the scruff of his neck and bit into his wrist. Blood spurted, and I opened Ana’s mouth and allowed the blood to trickle in. Ana’s colour returned a little, but she remained weak.
Her eyes opened and looked at me in confusion.
Carefully, I laid her back down and grabbed another prisoner as Ana drained the first. Without remorse, I tossed his carcass aside.
“Please, please don’t hurt me,” the woman begged as I dragged her forward.
Angrily, I slapped her across the face.
“What do you suppose you were doing to Ana?” I demanded.
I repeated the process and was relieved when Ana roused herself to fasten on.
Another person did the trick, and Ana stood unsteadily on her feet.
“Jacques!” Amelia called from the doorway. Heading towards us were five armed men carrying Julius.
“Get back from the door. Knock them out, don’t kill, we need their blood.”
As they entered, Amelia and I swung into action, taking two guards apiece, and Ana grabbed the last and drank. The colour returned to her cheeks as the blood rushed through her veins.
“I’m fine,” Ana said as I reached out.
Without an argument, I released her, and Ana turned to Amelia, who was repeating the process with Julius and James.
I took over feeding Julius and left Amelia to deal with James. Amelia looked gratefully at me as she held James’s head in her lap. James only required two people. He was still weak but could stand and walk under his own power.
The minute Julius stirred, I handed him over to Ana and took guard at the door.
“Thank you,” a weak voice muttered, and I turned to face James.
“Nothing that I didn’t owe you.”
“It’s more than that, and you know it, Jaq. Even though they could have caught you too, you stayed.”
“As I said, I owed you, James.”
“Thank you, Amelia,” Ana announced in her soft voice.
Amelia rounded on Ana angrily.
“It wasn’t just me. Jacques helped, too. What about a thank you for him?”
“You don’t understand—”
“Too damn right, I don’t. Jacques risked his life to save you, and all you do is insult him and the aid he gave you. Jaq could have left you to die and didn’t. That deserves some thanks, it doesn’t matter what Jacques did in the past, he is here now.”
“Amelia…” Ana began again.
“Don’t bother,” Amelia said sharply and turned to James.
“What’s the plan?” James questioned.
“We have to get the others out.”
“They are here?” Julius asked.
“The idiots came to rescue you tonight and got caught themselves because they thought, like Kaltons, they were invincible,” I replied bitterly.
Julius rocked back at my words. But couldn’t deny them. The Vam’pirs had acted arrogantly, and I knew Julius was plucking the images from Amelia’s mind, just like Ana.
They both winced. Arrogant fools!