Chapter 603
Katelina dropped back into herself, and staggered from the shock. She blinked Jorick's curious face into focus. Brad, meanwhile, gave a shuddering gasp and broke into tears. His misery echoed inside her, as sharp as if it was her own. His ache, his pain, the screaming guilt that he should have protected Patty. It was something Katelina'd felt before, once when she thought Jorick was dead.
Jorick moved her to the edge of the bed. She took slow breaths, trying to cleanse away Brad's feelings. Kai told her before that she went too deep, saw things in a way she wasn't supposed to, but that was all she could do. She couldn't touch the thoughts on the surface, couldn't hear another person's silent comments. She could only get lost in their memories.
The soft sound of Brad's sobs pulled her from the echoes. She forced herself to move to him and lay a hand on his shoulder. "She's going to be okay."
"Is she?" he demanded. "She's dying and I don't know why." He motioned to the muted TV, running pictures of a disaster area. "The news says terrorists, but why was Sarah there? I know I saw her on the porch before everything exploded. Or I think I did." He sagged. "Maybe I imagined it. Everything happened so fast. The officer I talked to said I saw a suicide bomber that reminded me of Sarah; that my memory is playing tricks. Maybe he's right. There was something wrong with her. Something-different. But I don't understand why terrorists would strike here. We're nothing! Nowhere! Why not New York or Chicago or Toledo? Hell, even Detroit would have made more of a statement."
"Maybe not," Katelina said. "Everyone expects cities to be attacked. We think the small towns are safe. They might be saying nowhere is."
"Maybe," he murmured, his attention back on the television.
Katelina returned to the bed. "How long ago did they take her?"
Brad squinted at the clock on the wall. "Half an hour? An hour? I'm not sure."
"It's okay. I guess all there is to do is wait." She glanced at Jorick. "If you want, you can-"
He gave her a tightlipped, fang-concealing smile. "I'll stay with you."
She caught his hand and gave it a grateful squeeze, then followed Brad's gaze to the muted television. Closed captioning only half worked. Amid the symbols and gibberish, a news anchor announced a radical group had taken responsibility for the bombing. Katelina wondered if the group existed, or if it was a complete fabrication of The Guild's damage control.
It was after four a.m. when they brought her mother back. The nurse's aide shoved a sheaf of papers at them with "information". Katelina asked when her mother might wake up. The overworked woman answered, "It could be a couple of hours," then took off.
Katelina and Brad drifted to opposite sides of her mother. Brad took Patricia's hand, his eyes locked on her. There was something in his gaze Katelina didn't want to see, but her mother's face was no better. She looked old, or older than usual. Katelina'd never noticed the lines around her eyes, or her mouth. Now they stood out in harsh contrast against her gray pallor. Hair that she'd recently cut into a more modern shape was stuffed in a surgery cap. Blood was still smeared across her cheek.
Katelina wet a paper towel and washed the grime away. She expected the gray to go with it, but it didn't. The sick, bloodless color remained, a testament to what she'd been through.
Brad's memory resurfaced. The flash as the world flew past, the crack of pain, the terror. The worry still echoed in his eyes and blanketed the room with a truth Katelina didn't like to think about. Though her mother was "her mother" she wasn't immortal. She was fragile. Any minute something could take her away.
A knock came on the door. Jorick opened it on Sorino. The vampire talked in low tones, but Katelina's immortal ears could hear; Verchiel was on the phone again. It would be dawn in an hour and a half and Ark was ready for the meeting.
Jorick looked to Katelina. Though he didn't send a mental message, she knew he was asking permission to go; making sure she'd be all right without him.
Except there was no reason for her to stay. Soon the sun would be up and she'd be tucked away for the day in a closet. Until then, there wasn't much point in watching her mother sleep.
Or thinking about how frail she looks.
"I'll come with you," she announced. Brad gave her a quizzical look, and she explained, "Who knows how long until she wakes up. Besides, her roommate would probably like us to clear out."
A cough from the other bed sounded like agreement. Katelina patted Brad awkwardly on the shoulder before she followed Jorick out of the room and down the hall.
"You're sure you want to go?" he asked.
She nodded. "I want to be there when you talk to the Executioners and make damn sure they don't rope you into anything."
Jorick gave a patient sigh. "They're not going to. I have Eileifr's word."
"Right."
Sorino cleared his throat. "Not to interrupt. I'm sure your-friends have a suitable situation. All the same, I prefer one of my own. If you would kindly drop Kai and I at some accommodations?"
Jorick agreed quickly and, when they climbed in the van, it was only Brandle that joked, "You're splitting up the party? I doubt you'll find a room."
After trying three motels it looked like he was right, but at the fourth Sorino came back looking smug. "Come, Kai. We'll need our luggage."
Jorick pushed out of the van. "I think I'll help. To make sure you don't take anything by accident."
The meaning was clear. Katelina settled back in the seat as they opened the back and combed through the bags.
"No electricity here, either," Des commented at the dark building. "I'm surprised they're open."
"They're only doing their civic duty," Brandle said cheerfully. "They couldn't allow paying customers to sleep somewhere free."
"From all the cars, I'm surprised he got a room."
Brandle chuckled. "I doubt he got it honestly. Whisperers"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. They make everyone do what they want." Des glared out the window, as if the night had personally injured him.
Brandle changed topics, "How was your mother?"
When Des coughed, Katelina realized he was talking to her. "Alive, at least."
"I'm sorry. The suffering of loved ones is hard to face, especially immortal to mortal. I wonder if the old way wasn't kinder."
"You mean when your master basically kidnapped you and you never saw anyone you loved again?"
Brandle nodded. "Something like that."
Des drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "Is that what happened to you?"
Brandle looked away, into years long gone. "After a fashion. He was a-lord, many miles from my village. Local legend said that he would come down from his towers now and then to choose new men for his glorious armies, men who would never come home. I thought it more fancy than reality, until he came to my village. We men were presented. He chose me and another. We marched for many nights back to his land. There we were turned, given new names, and a new life. I never saw my wife or my children again."
"You were married?" Katelina gaped. "And you didn't try to go back?"
"Things were different then. Attitudes were different. We knew our place. If we forgot, there were examples to remind us. Had I tried to leave, I'd have been killed. What good would that do anyone? I'm sure she remarried, maybe had more childrenshe was young enough, and had the hips for it." A wink softened the comment before he turned serious. "Those were the days before the Sodalitas and the Kugsankal ruled. There was no universal law; each coven was a body unto itself, and the master a lord. There was none of this living alone, or in small groups of three or four. You banded together, lived as a colony, or died alone. This era of peace-it's relatively new."
"Peace?" Des asked. "I've seen plenty of coven wars."
"Not like they were. This" Brandle motioned to the mess outside,"This is far closer to what it was like then. Blood in the streets, fire in the sky, screams in the dark. Mortal and immortal alike, murdered because they were in the wrong place, or because someone offered offense, or because their killers were bored. Now most of the maniacs at least pause before committing atrocities."
"It looks like Lilith paused," Des said sarcastically.
Brandle's chuckle held no mirth. "Maybe not Lilith, but younger ones, at least. Look how long it's taken William to rise up and join a movement."
"Who?" Des asked, but Katelina remembered him.
"He was at the party," she explained. "He joined Lilith."
Brandle nodded. "As did Angelica. Both are my friends of many years, friends I hate to see lost down dark paths."
"Is that why you're here?" Des asked.
"That and more."
Des shook his head. "I don't get why anyone would join Lilith. What did she offer them?"
Brandle sighed. "William is under the impression she's going to overturn the Kugsankal. He invited both Angelica and I to join him. Obviously, I refused."
Des frowned. "Who are the Kug-whatever?"
"The True Council," Katelina said. "In Munich, Germany. They're the ones who"
"Yeah, yeah. The ones who rule over all the different guilds. I remember."
Brandle nodded. "Yes. They're ancient, though not as ancient as Lilith and Samael. I doubt she'd need an army if she planned to attack them; she could do it alone, and would have long ago if that was her goal. It's more likely she's planning to fight an equal. I told William as much, but he didn't want to listen. Like many of the old ones, he resents the Kugsankal for imposing laws and breaking up the feudal system."
"And you don't?" Katelina asked.
"No, I don't." Brandle brightened. "Ah. Your master returns."
Jorick climbed in and gave a sigh of relief. "That's one down, though I'm sure he'll be back."
Sadly, Katelina knew he was right.
