Page 63 of High Seas

That wasn’t what he wanted. He wanted to sire vampires and make them mind his every whim; an army that would war against him in their minds, but be unable to physically fight his will.

Terah spoke up. “Well I, for one, am glad they’re gone.” She turned and went below deck, leaving me and Asa to ready the ship. He was chipper as he went about his tasks, whistling sailor songs and climbing into the rigging to unfurl the sails once again.

I didn’t want him to come with me, but it was best I keep the enemy who was my brother close. Only then could I try and stop his plan before he brought it to life.

* * *

Maru

I left the Atrium, taking the unread letter and the sleek communicator device with me. I had no way to make fire, but I planned to hide in a nearby alley where Yarrow informed me there were no cameras, and examine what I’d been given, both the letter and the device. Then, I would wait for nightfall when the sun slipped away to return to the Compound. I didn’t want to bring an explosive inside its walls, and wouldn’t put such a stunt past Enoch.

But when I reached the mouth of the alley, I heard screaming. People were distraught, closing in on something in the yard.

Did Enoch attack while I was gone?

I rushed forward, pushing people out of my way until I came to a small wall of guards huddled over something lying on the ground. “Where’d she come from?” one muttered, his voice hushed. Through their legs, I saw a pair of shoes that looked to be from an ancient era. They were scuffed and worn, the toes old-fashioned and pointed. On the ankle peeked the edge of a tech suit, partially covered by a frill of lacy, white ruffles.

“She fell from the sky,” a girl said.

“Jumped from the building you mean,” another corrected.

“No, I mean, I don’t think so. She’s too far away from the building’s edge,” she pointed out.

“Eve?” I screamed, pushing through the throng of military police. I pulled out my clearance and flashed it at them quickly before two attempted to arrest me. “I’m her trainer.”

Eve’s sable hair was splayed around her head like a dark halo. I crouched beside her and put my ear to her chest, barely discerning her shallow breathing. “Eve?” I said sternly, gently raising her head to check for skull fractures or even a knot. “Eve? It’s Maru. Talk to me.” The inside of her lips were coated with blood. I turned to look at a woman over my shoulder. “What the hell happened?”

She was pale as she answered, “She just fell out of the sky and landed here.”

Within seconds, an alarm sounded. Victor and Kael rushed from the building, flanked by a small army of soldiers. The military police parted for them and the two men knelt in front of me. Kael checked Eve over briskly. “Her vitals are good. She’ll survive.” He tilted her arm so that he could see her inner wrist. I saw the flash of a dark tattoo before he turned it over. Then he gave Victor a strange look, accompanied by a slight shake of his head.

I would have missed it if I hadn’t been studying his reaction.

“Get her to the Med Unit,” Kael instructed calmly. Almost too calmly.

He was expecting this. Enoch said he’d seen her several times throughout the years, that her tech was faulty and I needed to get to her first. Eve’s letter burned against my chest. I’d tucked it there to keep it hidden and safe. Now I wasn’t sure it was. I should’ve read and burned it before coming here. I started to lift her, and Victor’s hand wrapped around my bicep, jerking me to my feet with him.

“Let the medics do their job. I know you want to help, but you could inadvertently hurt her.”

He was right. I didn’t know how she’d survived a fall like that to begin with. Something must be wrong with her tech – isn’t that what Enoch said? – because she was supposed to land, not plummet to the earth. The medics slid her lifeless body onto a stiff gurney, secured her to it with vinyl straps, taking special care with her neck and head, lifted her, and carried her into the Compound.

She let out a groan and I started toward her, but Victor stopped me again. “I’ll let you know when you can see her, Maru, but it’s not now,” he said dismissively. “Let them help her.”

“What was that?” I gritted. “Why was she dressed that way? And Why did she land like that?” I looked accusingly at Kael. “Was that Eve? The real Eve?”

He swallowed thickly, his eyes wide.

Victor’s head swiveled slowly to him. “There are things we haven’t discussed, apparently.”

Kael’s shoulders melted as he nodded. “We can speak later, but right now I need to see to her.”

“Dinner, then,” Victor ordered.

Kael nodded once and rushed to catch up with the medics as they brought her through one of the side doors.

Victor looked at his men. “Contain this. Then see that the video feeds catching it are tended to.”

He turned to me, a calculating gleam in his eye. “You know too much.” He and I stared at the soft, Eve-shaped indention in the grass.

---