Chapter 31
The Dead Don’t Sleep
Ben
THE FACT THAT Lillian managed to buy us the time needed is all I can think of as we remain concealed in a shallow but shadowy alcove in the grand foyer.
She bought us the time, and now it is time for me to uphold my side of the bargain.
I’ve brought her allies, or what’s left of them, to her aid, and we will see to her safety.
It’s taken every fiber of my being not to pounce on them. I’d wanted to ambush them as they walked by, but James held me back, rightfully so. I’d fidgeted and drawn my weapons when Ivo had forced her to bow, when he’d placed his hands on her.
She’d found it within herself to fight. With each word she chants now, the light at her chest grows stronger.
Chants that I recognize, and some that I don’t, pour from her lips in quick succession.
Those standing closest to her take careful steps back as the pile of amazonite begins to rattle and shake the floor.
The entire fortress roars as time reverses itself and shattered gemstone rises from its grave on the floor.
Each piece falls into place, revealing a stunning mural of glistening amazonite.
We are all stuck in awe as the picture becomes clear.
Etched black amazonite forms the image of a man kneeling on the left side of the archway.
To the right, a woman with long hair stands tall and proud.
Detailed arms stretch over the center of the arch where cupped hands hold the blue amazonite Lillian had placed.
The man’s heart had been torn out and was held by the woman’s hand, to which he bowed.
There’s no question why this particular man in power would blow this mural to pieces.
As I think through the type of monster we may be facing that would carelessly destroy art such as this, I’m reminded that I am surrounded by men who would not think twice to do so. One of those men is attempting it as we speak.
The moment Ivo approaches Lillian, I’m ready to make my move.
I have one foot out of the shadows as the rattling ceases with the final resurrected shard.
I can feel the presence of those behind me equally stunned at what they just witnessed.
Keeping to the wall, I lead us a few more feet.
I expect Lillian to release the hold on her power at any moment, now that the task is complete and the path ahead is clear.
She does no such thing.
She does not relent; she does not fatigue.
She only chants. All I can do is bask in the beauty of her impossible existence and ask the universe how I became so lucky to know her and to love her.
She stands with the power to topple mountains and flood rivers, and here I am with nothing but my wit and a pistol. I’m not worthy of her.
As her chants only grow louder, a wind that should not exist seems to sweep around her in a whirl.
Ivo attempts to grab her, but the wind she’s commandeered throws him to the side.
Margaret squeals before throwing herself at her leader.
The rest of the rats are panicking now. They hop from foot to foot waiting for any type of order.
I have to give them just a little credit for not running.
But then there is Archibald, a father reduced to falling to his knees. He glances up at Lillian with equal parts fear and awe. It’s not lost on me how they’ve imitated the art behind them. His daughter's eyes turn to find him, and it’s here that I get a first look at her face since it all began.
Her eyes have glazed over; there is no distinction of color in them. There is only azure blue. Then her lips, chanting, chanting, chanting. Repeating the same hypnotic words until a slight pause. She angles her head further to the left, and I swear she spots me.
The pause, whatever the cause, costs her. Ivo is able to breach the cocoon that she’s built around herself and latch onto her shirt. With one hard pull, he knocks her from her trance, and the two of them topple over.
It’s too late.
Whatever Ivo has interrupted, the universe is not happy with it. The ground shakes in a way that takes me back, not to war or the shipwreck but to the night where all hell had broken loose.
“Run!” I yell to my group, no longer caring if I give us away.
The tearing of the earth can only mean one thing: we only have a minute or two before the dead ravage through the colony and set their sights on us.
Something tells me these particular spirits will be far angrier and corrupted than those we last encountered.
Motivated by fear, I leap forward, eyes set on Lillian, where Ivo has her pinned underneath him. He clearly understands the significance of Lillian’s chants because he is yelling at his men to be ready for a fight. If only he knew how much of one he was in for.
“I’m going for her!” I call out to the men flanking me.
“You go! We’ll cover!” James calls back before holding a new line.
There’s no time to explain what they’ll have to cover me from before the door to the room slams into the wall and an army of the dead falls through. These aren’t the same as those that clawed up from the earth and dragged victims beneath. No, these are standing on legs and running right for us.
By the time Ivo’s men can compartmentalize what they’re seeing, James has already put two of them down.
It instantly puts them on the defensive, which is exactly where I’d like them to be.
There’s no time for the Germans to search for the shooter because the magnitude of the monsters running for them has them frozen to their places.
They don’t even find the time to acknowledge me breaking through their lines.
Their terror gives me the window I need to penetrate the last of their defenses and reach Ivo without conflict. Bulldozing straight into him, I knock Ivo off of Lillian, and the two of us go tumbling to the side.
Racing to my feet with my gun raised, I begrudgingly find that Ivo is still spry and cunning as ever.
He’s also found his feet, raising a gun to meet me.
That same wicked smile that I’ve done my best to forget spreads wide on his lips.
Blood trickles from where he hit his chin on the floor when I tackled him.
“I thought I got rid of you,” Ivo says through a laugh. Even with a horde bearing down on us, his focus is on me and me only. I’m fine if he keeps it there.
The army of the dead draws nearer still, and yet there is no part of him that deviates from his trained gun pointed in my direction.
Watching that trigger finger intently, I step my right foot over my left and slowly side-step my way back to Lillian.
She’s found her feet once again, but with a chest rising and falling rapidly, it’s clear she’s still recovering from whatever mystic power had its grip on her.
I wish I could look her over, scan for any injuries, but my focus remains on Ivo.
I want to kill this man for everything he’s taken from Lillian, everything that he stands for, but taking a life is serious so I will weigh the decision until it must be made.
The moaning of the encroaching monsters tells me that this decision will have to be made soon.
“Parar!” Lillian suddenly calls out from beside me.
Everything freezes at the sound of the Portuguese command.
The monsters melt to the floor, and every head among the living whips toward Lillian.
We’ve all just come to the understanding that Lillian controls these monsters.
She called upon them, and she somehow managed to get them to stop their advances.
“Do not make me call upon them again.” Her voice booms through the chamber, but her stature wobbles.
Each command has taken something from her.
It takes everything in me not to steady her, but my attention must stay on the man across from me, and I know she is strong.
“You will let me and my friends pass through.”
She approaches me and places a heavy hand on my shoulder. I lean closer to let her know that I am here for her to take shelter. She accepts the help, showing me just how close she is to faltering.
“This has gone as far as it will go.” The strength of her voice is waning, which is something that our enemy identifies.
Ivo smirks, but I know what his next move is before he can enact it. The moment he moves to aim at Lillian is the moment that I pull the trigger.
Ivo’s body is thrown to the side as the bullet from my gun lodges itself in his upper arm.
He loses the grip on his gun, and it quickly goes clattering to the floor.
Margaret screams and quickly meets Ivo at his side.
Easing him to the floor, she quickly pulls her silk scarf away from her body and begins to apply pressure to his wound.
“Please do not force me to disturb the dead again,” Lillian says for the second time. Each word is shakier than the last, so much so that I find myself praying that she doesn’t crumple to the floor as well. With Ivo detained, I wrap my free arm around Lillian’s waist and hold steady.
The two of us are met with another crazy smile from the man bleeding out. “Let them come,” Ivo snarls. Margaret usually gives nothing away, but nothing can hide the flash of terror that follows Ivo’s idiotic wish. She rights herself as she always does and stupidly makes a play for her gun.
It’s James that intercepts her. He manages to kick her weapon away before she can discharge it. I’m grateful to him for being so aware; Margaret would have surely hit her mark this time, and I would be dead.
Turning to her father, Lillian grants the group one final chance. Archibald had been lurking off to the side without a sound the entirety of the altercation. I’d almost forgotten he was here.