Into the Shadows (21 page)

"What have you noticed so far?" Ragna asked
me quietly.

I leaned in and whispered, "About a third of
these people are sitting near the front and look fascinated, like
they've heard the sermon before. Zapada is taking notes. There's
someone on each side of the stage behind the curtains. Back in the
shadows on the far side is a man, I'm guessing a bodyguard. On the
near side is a woman - I saw a hand on the curtain for a second; it
was slender with nail polish. Only one guy got up and left. I also
think Elias believes his own bullshit, but he has another
agenda."

"Do you know what that agenda is yet?" Ragna
asked. I looked at her and shook my head. "Power and blood, Beck,"
she nearly hissed. "Past all the drama, after all the scheming and
lies and ego and fighting, it's always about power and blood."

I thought about what Ragna said, but then
started listening to Elias again. He was going into more detail
about those Sentinels, what they were capable of and how they
sometimes used followers - like Elias - to pass along their wisdom
or warnings. Without much detail, he described the intentions of
some of the Sentinels in his sermon . . .

". . . And, when I've done wrong, by word or
deed," Elias preached with emotion, "I call to Theodoric, he of the
wise heart, to ask how I might repent and make amends. And he will
answer. Ah, but what if you want to strike out with a righteous
hand against your enemies? Who will justify you and guide your
hand? The Sentinel called Decimus Pius will strengthen your
resolve, and will validate your actions."

Edward kept on with his Sentinel sermon. He
mentioned other beings - Octolindis, Rutilia the Red, the Beast of
Crete - and their purposes. Because of the weird and fairly
ridiculous topic, my brain started to wander. Just as I was
thinking about having a drink and getting Tanya to give me another
hummer, maybe both at the same time, Edward said:

"And, of course, we've all known someone who
has knowingly committed dark deeds. On occasion, those deeds serve
a purpose and must be sanctioned by the proper Sentinel. But beware
the one prayed to for such wicked ventures. He is called The
Veleti, and shadows carry his vengeance."

Okay, that sure as hell got my attention.

ELIAS

Viggo was one of that crackpot's gods. And
not a nice god, either. I felt the urge to go beat the shit out of
Elias right on that stage, or at least let him know how wrong he
was. I felt the surprisingly strong grip of Ragna's hand on my
forearm, keeping me seated.

I seethed while Elias went on about other
Sentinels. It took me a little while to silently calm down. By the
time I started listening to Elias again, he was talking about the
small sacrifices and rituals that the Sentinels required. He said
he understood that some folks had nothing to give, and that a
sacrifice could be a symbolic gift. Elias ended by offering to
visit with whoever wanted to know more about the Sentinel
prophesies, one-on-one so he could discern their role in the 'grand
plan'.

Elias thanked us all and walked offstage
toward his bodyguard. The woman behind the curtains came out with a
clipboard and pen, and began to speak to those who were interested
in speaking with Elias privately. She was pretty damn hot, dressed
in a low-cut vest and tight pants. It helped some of the guys sign
up faster. Hell, for a chance at some of that action, I would've
signed up too.

"So what do you think the grand plan is?" I
asked Ragna. She turned her head and just stared at me until I made
a guess. "Uh, power and blood?"

"It took you long enough." She looked around
the emptying theater; no one was paying attention to us. "In a
moment, we'll get up and go backstage. Do
not
leave my side.
Do
not
speak. Not a sound - no shuffling your feet, no
cocking your gun, no coughing, no sneezing, no belching, no
farting. Breathe through your nose. In fact, not breathing at all
would be better."

"Uh, breathing is kinda mandatory, and why am
I supposed to be Mr. Ninja when there's still people hanging
around? They kinda defeat the purpose."

"Questions fall under that 'do not speak'
rule. Now follow me." We slowly got up and moved at half walking
speed past the hot name-taker and group of possible followers. Not
one of 'em looked in our direction. Huh, neat trick. I closely
followed Ragna up onto the stage and into the back area. We saw the
bodyguard down a short hall, standing next to a closed door. Ragna
and I walked right by him, and we stood on the other side of the
door. I didn't know what kind of Gift she was using, but it was
awesome.

Soon enough, a middle-aged woman in
threadbare clothes came into view. The bodyguard waved her to him.
He asked her name, opened the door, and said into the room, "Elias,
this is Janet Kimble." Janet hesitantly stepped in. Ragna suddenly
slid past the guard and the woman into the room. Being bigger, I
had trouble not touching anyone in the few seconds I had to follow.
Ragna and I stayed against a wall of the nearly empty dressing room
while the guard shut the door. Elias sat in one of the two chairs
in the middle of the room, smiling at Janet as he stood and
welcomed her to sit.

Elias talked about some vague prophecies and
told Janet she'd do well under the teachings and guidance of the
Sentinels. He stared at her with a warm smile for a few seconds,
and then his brown eyes seemed to glow, lightening in color. Janet
stared back dumbly, and a smile slowly formed on her wrinkled face.
"My poor dear," Elias said softly, putting his hands on her cheeks,
"you may think you have nothing to give in order to receive a
Sentinel's blessing, but you do. Blood is symbolic of life to them,
a giving of yourself that they recognize." He leaned in with
elongating teeth and latched onto her neck.

That sneaky bastard was using a Gift - I
guessed the enchanting one - to take advantage of a woman who was
already down on her luck. The worse thing was that Elias was giving
her false hope, the prick.

After a few seconds, Elias pulled back just
far enough to lick the puncture wounds, and they immediately closed
- pretty damn handy. Janet's eyes, which eased shut during the
bite, began to flutter open. With the enchanting Gift still in
effect, he told her, "The Sentinels are pleased with you, Janet.
Your next bit of good luck will actually be them showing their
appreciation. Please come see me when I speak again of this - our -
new faith. Just look for the fliers around the area. With your warm
heart, I can more easily bring the blessings of the Sentinels upon
us." Janet's smile was beaming. "Off you go now, dear."

Janet got up, still dreamily grinning, and
left the room. The bodyguard stepped in and asked if Elias was
ready for the next follower. As he did, Ragna and I snuck out into
the hallway. We heard Elias say, "Give me a minute, Chuck. Go out
and tell Trish to make sure she sends me someone who doesn't smell
as bad as that first sheep, okay? Oh, and get me some air
freshener."

Ragna and I made our way into the lobby
before she stepped away from me, so I guessed that the 'ignore me'
Gift was gone. I didn't have to see her whole face to tell she was
pissed. "I already know you're angry, Beck," she said to me. "And I
know why. I took a look at your surface thoughts while we were in
there. It's a very human reaction. Now tell me why you think I'm
angry."

How the hell was I supposed to know that? I'm
not a fucking therapist. I thought for a second and threw out the
first thing I could think of. "Uh, because Elias thinks those
homeless people are sheep?"

"Not even close," she replied sourly. "Elias
already has his smooth little plan in motion, and I didn't know
about it. That upsets me. Plus, he's an ass." Ragna looked off for
a moment, and then back up to me. "This new Sentinel Church needs a
permanent delay. We both have some work to do, Beck."

CIVIL

When we got back into my car, Ragna told me
to take her back to her territory and then return to the theater.
If Elias - Edward - and his minions were still there, I was
supposed to follow them. I used his real name from then on because
Ragna planned on ending his preaching career, so there'd be no more
Elias and his warped religion. I was to report my findings to her
the next evening at the Chinese restaurant. I didn't know how long
it would take Edward to sip on a dozen or so vagrants, so I stepped
on the gas.

During the fast drive, Ragna thought out loud
about the situation. She said that Edward could have gotten info on
a lot of people through his access to hospital files; those without
insurance and destitute, plus anyone with mental health issues who
were weak or gullible. Those folks may have been located from their
files and given personal invitations, and maybe some sort of lure,
like food or money. She doubted that any Adept controlled the small
theater, so Edward most likely enchanted the manager or owner for
its use. As for where the would-be priest got his Sentinel
doctrine, she wondered if one of the other Deviants with the Gift
of Mania - whatever that was - messed with Edward's mind.

I dropped Ragna and Gungnir off and shot back
to the theater. The lobby lights were off, but windows in the back
of the building were still lit. There was a small parking lot back
there, which still had a few cars in it. I found a spot to park on
a residential side street where I could keep an eye on the lot
exit. I hoped the cars belonged to Edward and his people.
Otherwise, I would've been sitting there for a damn long time with
no food, a half-empty flask, no place to piss, and nothing to show
for my time.

After an hour of waiting and being bored as
hell, I saw two cars pull out of the lot. An SUV was first,
followed by a sporty little two-door, and they both headed to the
nearest highway. Without much traffic, it was fairly easy for me to
keep my distance and still have their rear lights in sight. The two
vehicles eventually pulled into the driveway of a big ranch-style
house in a nice neighborhood out in an eastern suburb of the city.
At that time of night, the street was deserted and none of their
neighbor's house lights were on. If only they knew what lived among
them . . .

It made some sense for a hemo to have his
minions live with him, I guess. I wouldn't have been too surprised
if Ragna let her dogs curl up around her, although I couldn't
picture Viggo sharing his space. Then again, he didn't need to;
when some young hemo thinks you're a god, you don't need any peon
watching your back.

I checked the street signs to get my
bearings, waited about ten minutes, and then drove by Edward's
house. Both vehicles had been pulled into the two-car garage. A
couple lights were still on inside. The lawn was wide and level,
with a number of mature trees both in the front and back. I
surveyed as much as I could from my car, and then circled the
block. Parked down the street between streetlights, I waited for
any other activity. The lights were finally turned off around four
in the morning. Those fuckers were probably playing Halo the whole
time.

The next day, I walked to Keegan's for a late
lunch, and ended up having a few too many drinks. Lucky for me,
Tanya came in for her check. She drove me home, where we shared a
few more drinks. She thanked me for the hospitality by giving me a
fun, sloppy romp. After she left, I had just enough energy for a
workout, and then toasted the good afternoon with more alcohol.

I met Ragna at the Chinese place that night
like I was told to. I still had a buzz, but played it cool and
tried not to breathe in her direction. I gave the boring report of
what happened, which was basically nothing other than finding out
where Edward and his minions lived. She told me I'd be on another
stake-out at his house soon, so I should get whatever I needed.
First, though, we were going to meet some other hemos for a
business deal.

Ragna made a point of telling me to act like
I was in thrall to her - be protective, follow every order without
question, blah, blah. I planned on pretending she was Viggo. There,
problem solved.

Once Ragna loaded my car with Gungnir and a
lapdog that had teeth like a shark, I was told to go to the
Nelson-Atkins, by far the city's biggest museum. It was situated in
an area of upscale shops, restaurants, and hotels, so we -
especially Ragna - really didn't fit in. She said that the museum
and its expansive lawns were considered 'Civil Ground'. I confessed
that I didn't know what the hell she was talking about.

With a surly tone, it was explained to me
that there were a handful of places declared as Civil Ground around
town - a few museums, a couple event centers, the city zoo, and a
few other specific locations where hemos couldn't attack or use
Gifts on each other. Well, they could, but that would be breaking
one of their few rules. There wasn't any legal red tape bullshit
for them; breaking nearly any of the hemo laws carried the
punishment of death.

As directed, I parked on a street that
bordered the back of the museum's land. We got out of the car and
sat on a low retainer wall that stretched along the back of the
wide property. The area was dimly lit by streetlights, but enough
to see by. With the museum one hundred yards to the south, big
houses across the street to the north, and with no trees or natural
cover between, I felt exposed.

Gungnir hopped over the low wall, and Ragna
lifted the demon terrier over it to join him. After a few seconds
of sniffing around, both dogs promptly dropped big, steamy loads on
the museum lawn. It made me wonder if the rules of Civil Ground
covered defecation.

INSULTS

Not much later, a familiar modern Cadillac
parked behind my Jeep. It was the same car that Blake and his
buddies were using when I met them at Rizzo's. The thug who wore a
stocking cap got out from behind the wheel, wearing a perpetual
grin that was anything but pleasant. The long-haired guy got out of
the front passenger door, closest to us. He didn't have a shotgun
this time, but he still had the same unpredictable look in his
eyes. They both looked like they got off from danger.