Part 15 (1/2)

Chapter Twenty.

Over time, waters had infiltrated the underground pa.s.sageway. Marcus waded through waist-deep water as he trekked through the ancient tunnel he had seen in Selene's memories. The dark, silty water was bitterly cold, but Marcus barely noticed. This close to the end of his sacred quest, he was not about to let a little freezing water slow him down.

Soon, William. Your long captivity is almost over.

His right hand held aloft a blazing torch. In human guise, he navigated the subterranean labyrinth. His eyes searched the shadowy nooks and crannies. The pa.s.sage of time had taken its toll on the flooded tunnel. The granite walls were crumbling and coated with fungus. The air within the corridor was dank and smelled of mildew. Water dripped from the arched ceiling.

A dash of faded color caught his eye. Above the waterline, vestiges of red and yellow paint still clung to the moldering stonework. His finger traced the lingering smears of paint and he chuckled in amus.e.m.e.nt. Although the design was barely discernible now, he recognized the sun and flowers that little Selene and her sister had scrawled upon the walls some six hundred years ago. He felt destiny's multifarious strands coming together at last.

Almost there, he thought.

The primitive drawings were the final proof that he had come to the right place. Indeed, he felt as though he could almost sense his twin's presence nearby. Their shared blood called out to him, urging him onward. He quickened his pace through the turbid waters.

At long last, I will fulfill my vow-and the sons of Corvinus will be united once more.

Just beyond the childish paintings, he came to a wall of blackened stone. The barrier appeared solid enough, yet an ornate design had been cut into the heavy granite blocks. In the center of the pattern was a depression in the shape of the open pendant.

Marcus smiled.

Traveling at over 250 kilometers per hour, the Lynx headed southeast, crossing the border into Romania. Soon the jagged peaks of the Carpathian Mountains loomed before them. At six thousand feet in alt.i.tude, dense forests of firs and pines gave way to desolate outcroppings of barren rock, now surmounted by tons of acc.u.mulated snow and ice. Selene felt a pang of nostalgia at the sight of the mountains, familiar to her from her long-vanished childhood, but swiftly thrust the feeling aside. This was no time for bittersweet reminiscences. She had an Elder to kill.

She sat beside Michael's body in the c.o.c.kpit. The top of the body bag was still unzipped, so that she could gaze upon his lifeless features. Even in death, his face retained its rugged good looks. She found it hard to accept that his eyes would never look upon her again. The gross injustice of it all stabbed at her heart. After six centuries of solitude she had finally found the love of her life, only to lose him in a matter of days.

Her face hardened as she took her grief and converted it into anger. A hunger for revenge came easily to her, and she let her all-consuming need for vengeance fuel her determination to end Marcus's obscene existence. Forget the threat posed by William and his highly infectious brand of lycanthropy; Marcus would pay for taking Michael from her. She would see to that...or die trying.

Marcus stood where Selene's father had once stood, six centuries before. He ran his fingers over the intricate design etched into the wall, then inserted Sonja's pendant into the matching depression. He flicked the switch upon the pendant's side and its bronze blades emerged from hiding. The blades fit perfectly into the slots intended for them, locking the key into place. Marcus reached out and gave the key a decisive turn.

Click. Concealed machinery came to life after centuries of slumber. Reanimated gears creaked loudly, before being drowned out by the grinding of stone against stone. A sizable portion of the wall began to lift from the floor, receding into the ceiling. The newly exposed doorway opened onto a hidden corridor, just as Selene's childhood memories had promised. Through a s.h.i.+mmering curtain of dripping water, Marcus glimpsed the flooded alcove beyond. For a moment, he feared that the frigid waters might have filled the dungeon entirely, drowning William in his forgotten cell, but then, to his relief, he saw a dusty stone staircase rising up from the water on the other side of the alcove. The polished stone steps, which looked as though they had been untrodden ever since the dungeon had first been sealed off centuries ago, led off into the darkness.

Marcus's eyes gleamed in antic.i.p.ation. He smirked at the thought that, somewhere beyond the grave, Viktor's restless spirit was crying out in dismay.

You hid my brother well, he thought vindictively, but not well enough.

He removed the pendant from the lock, then stepped forward through the falling water.

The chopper soared above the frothing waters of a rus.h.i.+ng river. This high in the mountains, the rocky pa.s.ses churned the river into turbulent rapids. White water tumbled down a winding path toward the dense pine forests below. The tumultuous course of the river matched the turmoil in Selene's soul, although she did her best to hide her heartache behind the cool, emotionless mask of a warrior. She needed to be a Death Dealer now, more than ever before.

”We're getting close,” Samuel announced.

Good, she thought. Reluctantly looking away from Michael, she focused on the mission before her. The Lynx banked sharply, roaring around a bend in the river, and the ruins of a medieval castle came into view.

Viktor's once-mighty fortress had been destroyed by centuries of warfare and neglect. Selene recalled it rising proudly from the craggy slopes of the mountain. Now, however, nothing more than a skeletal remnant of its former glory remained. Its formidable walls had collapsed altogether in places. Fallen stones dotted the snowy landscape. The wooden roofs had rotted away, exposing the castle's gutted interior to the elements. The drawbridge leading up to the gatehouse was long gone, discouraging visitors, although that was hardly likely to keep out the winged Elder. Frost-covered spires and parapets jutted upward from the packed snow and ice like the stumps of amputated limbs. Thick black clouds obscured the moon, adding to the impenetrable shadows veiling the lower levels of the abandoned citadel. Selene tried not to remember playing with her sister on the sunlit slopes below the castle.

The last time she'd seen Cecilia, many years later, her throat had been ripped open by Viktor's fangs....

Samuel leaned forward in his seat, peering out over the nose of the chopper. ”I don't see a way inside.”

”Head back around,” she instructed the pilot. ”Toward the river.”

The pilot glanced at Samuel, who nodded his consent. The Lynx swooped down toward the water, then leveled out several meters above the choppy surface of the river. Selene looked at Samuel and motioned toward a rocky riverbed up ahead. The raging waters crashed along the side of the steep granite slope.

Samuel peered through the winds.h.i.+eld. ”I don't see a way inside.”

”There used to be a river entrance just there,” she explained. ”It must be submerged now, but it should lead straight into the catacombs beneath the dungeon.”

Samuel did not question her a.s.sertion. He turned toward his men.

”Looks like we're getting wet.”

The strike team immediately went into action. Locker doors were slammed open to reveal multiple wet suits and other pieces of diving gear. Selene was impressed; apparently Corvinus's men were prepared for anything.

As the Cleaners suited up, Selene glanced at Michael's body one last time. It was possible, she knew, that she would never leave the ruined castle alive. She wanted to think that they might have beaten Marcus to the site, but she knew that was highly unlikely. Chances were, the hybrid Elder was waiting for them below. They could only hope that he had not yet liberated his equally fearsome brother.

Marcus is bad enough, she thought. Heaven help us if we have to take on William, too. She recalled the fearsome albino beast depicted in the ancient woodcut. Viktor and Amelia had needed an army of Death Dealers to capture William the first time. What hope do we have, especially now that he's allied with Marcus?

A fatalistic mood descended upon her. She would do her best; what other choice was there? Perhaps Corvinus's blood would give her the edge she needed. Perhaps not.

Bending down over Michael, she lightly kissed his forehead. The inert flesh felt cold against her lips. She rose and turned away from the body, her eyes s.h.i.+mmering like ice crystals. She wiped away the incriminating moisture, then strode over to the chopper's side door. Unfastening the latch, she yanked the door open in midflight, allowing a gust of freezing air to buffet the interior of the Lynx. Her fingers wrapped around the edge of the doorframe as she checked their position.

”Closer,” she shouted to the pilot.

The Lynx descended into a low hover above the river. The wash from the copter's blades stirred up the already foamy water, sending concentric waves cras.h.i.+ng against the rocky sh.o.r.e. Selene felt the cold spray against her face.

By now, Samuel and the other Cleaners had geared up for the dive. He tossed Selene a transparent face mask. She glanced at it briefly, then tossed it back to him. She didn't bother with a wet suit either; her slick black leathers were still damp from fighting Marcus beneath the pier. Staying warm and dry were the least of her concerns.

Instead she reached out and claimed a Remington 870 combat shotgun from the weapons rack. She deftly slung the weapon's strap over her shoulder.

”Ladies first,” Samuel said.

Selene wouldn't have it any other way. Shooting him a look, she leapt from the chopper without hesitation.

Gravity grabbed her and didn't let go. She plummeted, falling fifteen feet toward the river below. Her boots broke the surface of the water with a tremendous splash as she sank beneath the waves. Five more splashes confirmed that Samuel and his men had hit the water as well.

The icy water was even colder here in the mountains than it had been in the city. The freezing cold came as a shock, but Selene's undead nature protected her from hypothermia. Moonlight filtered through the murky water above her. She surfaced long enough to conduct a quick head count, then dived beneath the waves once more. Waterproof flashlights lit up the way before them as she swam toward the mouth of a submerged tunnel. The Cleaners followed closely behind her.

Darkness swallowed them as they left the moonlight behind.

The French had a word, oubliette, which referred to a hidden dungeon in which an unfortunate prisoner could be forgotten forever. It was a fitting term for the granite tomb in which Viktor had confined William. Immortality only added to the diabolical cruelty of the concept.

Marcus stood before another stretch of seemingly impervious wall. A second ornate design, twice as large as the one before, was carved into the solid rock. Lodging his torch in an empty sconce, he extracted both parts of the key from the pockets of his overcoat. He carefully inserted the pendant, its inner blades once more withdrawn, into the larger component he had captured from his father. Making sure the pieces fit together securely, he again activated the hidden hinges inside the pendant. The bronze blades blossomed outward, engaging with the larger key. A new set of intricate blades opened along the outer edge of the joined keys.

What exquisite workmans.h.i.+p, Marcus thought. He spared a moment to admire the ingenuity and skill of Selene's late, unlamented father. The long-dead metalsmith had been quite talented for a mortal. A pity his craft cost him his life.

Delaying no longer, he inserted the master key into the depression upon the wall. He held his breath as he turned the key clockwise. His action was rewarded by the sound of clandestine machinery fulfilling its destined function. Harsh grinding noises echoed within the gloomy catacombs as a vertical sheet of rock descended into the floor. Marcus glimpsed a cramped, coffin-shaped alcove almost completely shrouded in darkness. Straining his eyes, he spotted only a few stray glints of metal, reflecting the flickering glow of the torch.