Caitlin immediately heard dozens of fists pounding at the door, trying to get in. She found a spear and barred it, hoping it would hold. She only needed a few minutes to get this done.
Caitlin could feel the intense spiritual energy in here. It was almost suffocating, the strongest thing she’d ever felt. She knew that she couldn’t stay long. She had to get whatever she could, and get out. Otherwise, the energy of this place would consume her.
On the far side of the room were more curtains, and a surreal light glowing from behind them. She knew that behind them lay the holy Ark of God. And she knew enough to know that she could never dare approach it—and that she would die on the spot if she tried.
But she sensed she didn’t need to: whatever it was she needed was right here, in this room. She looked around, searching, trying to drown out the banging on the door. She took several steps forward, examining the marble floor and walls, looking for any clue.
And then she saw it.
It was there, right before her, in the center of the room: a small, golden pedestal, maybe a foot high. Perfectly square. In the center of it was a round hole. Just the size of the width of her staff.
A square within a square.
She approached it slowly, her heart pounding. She could feel the staff throbbing in her hand the closer she got. She reached up and lowered it, already feeling it would be a perfect fit.
It was. The staff slid down into the hole, and she let go. It slid lower and lower on its own, sinking into the earth. And that was when Caitlin heard it.
She turned, and her eyes opened wide: she could not believe what she saw.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Scarlet stood with Ruth at the end of the dead end, bracing herself for instant death. She looked up at the dark figure flying down towards her, saw it raise a weapon, and hurl it down right at her. It looked like a long spear. She ducked, bracing herself, and figured this was what it felt like to die.
Scarlet heard a noise of shattering metal, and braced herself for pain.
But as she opened her eyes, she was unhurt. She realized the noise she heard was the sound of her silver chains breaking. She realized that the weapon had been thrown to free her. And as the vampire landed before her, she realized it was not an adversary. It was a friend. Someone she recognized. Someone she remembered from her time in Scotland. Someone who had saved her life once before.
It was the man that Mommy once loved.
It was Blake.
*
Blake reached down and undid Scarlet’s chains without hesitating. He undid Ruth’s muzzle, and she jumped on him, licking him, remembering him, too.
“There’s no time,” he said urgently, fear in his eyes. “They’re coming. Grab on.”
Scarlet grabbed onto his back with her little hands, clutching for life, while Blake reached down and scooped up Ruth. A moment later he leapt into the air, his wings extending, flapping, soaring.
They flew above the city, above ancient Jerusalem, and as they did Scarlet was able to look down and see it all, the labyrinthine maze of alleys and side streets beneath her. She was amazed that she had been running down there, in that maze, and had been able to navigate it at all.
She checked back over her shoulder, still fearful of the hordes chasing her, and in the distance, she could see a great black mass gathering on the horizon. She could see shadow after shadow, vampire after vampire, streaming out of the Aqueduct, on the far side of Jerusalem. It looked like a flock of bats surfacing from the bowels of the earth, spreading everywhere. Scarlet’s heart stopped in her throat, as she feared they were coming after her.
But then her stomach dropped as she looked down and realized they were plummeting down, in a dive, straight towards the earth. She held on with all she had, screaming.
“HOLD ON!” Blake screamed.
They dove straight down, landing behind a large wall in another quarter of Jerusalem. Soon, they were back on the ground, in a remote alley, unseen. Blake carried them into a far corner, hiding, so that they would not be seen from overhead.
The three of them squatted there, waiting, watching the sky. Scarlet heard a great humming and buzzing noise, then a great commotion, like a flapping of wings. She looked up and saw hundreds, then thousands, of black wings covering the sky. It looked like an enormous flock of birds. When she was younger, she had once watched a never-ending flock cover the sky, migrating from one end of the earth to the other. She remembered watching for what felt like hours, as the world seemed to turn black. She had thought it would never end. This reminded her of that.
They crouched there silently, waiting for Scarlet didn’t know how long. Scarlet held her breath the entire time, and she could feel how tense Blake and Ruth were, too. She prayed they remained undetected.
Finally, the vampires passed by. All was still. They were undetected. Blake had saved her. Again.
Blake stood, and Scarlet did, too. She looked up at him, more grateful to him than she had ever been. She was also happy to see him. A friendly face. Someone who she actually recognized and who was actually on her side. Someone who was friends with her mommy and daddy. She wondered if he could help lead her to them.
“Have you seen my mommy?” Scarlet asked without hesitating.
Slowly, Blake shook his head.
“I was going to ask you the same question,” he said.
“I’ve been looking for her everywhere,” she said.
“Me too,” he answered.
Scarlet’s eyes opened wide as she realized. She hadn’t really considered it, but she could see now how much this man loved her mommy. It made her feel uncomfortable, as she thought of her daddy, and suddenly felt protective of him.
“She’s married, you know,” Scarlet said suddenly, with a touch of defiance.
Blake seemed taken aback by that.
“I…I…know,” he stammered.
“So why do you want to see her?” Scarlet pressed.
She knew it was none of her business, and that she should be thanking him, not interrogating him—but still, she had to know.
“I…” Blake trailed off. “I know she’s married,” he said. “But I…”
He turned away, and Scarlet thought she could see tears in his eyes.
“I just have to see her,” he said finally. “I’ve searched for her everywhere. I’ve been circling Jerusalem for days. I sensed a great disturbance in this time and place. I sensed that she needed me. That the others did, too. And then, today, I sensed your presence.”