Chapter:   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

Night Vengeance

Chapter Twenty Two

Justin and Rae quietly entered the hallway and slowly made their way to the end, where a door was open. Light filtered out, spilling onto the hardwood floor.

Placing herself beside the door, Rae stiffened as she identified Salazar's raspy voice chanting a spell. The spell was the same one her mother had used countless times when tracking the evil warlocks that had ran rampant across the country.

"Justin, we have to stop him now!" she whispered frantically in his mind. "He's chanting a locater spell, if he completes It..."

"Can you counteract it?" Justin asked.

Rae's mind raced as she delved deep into her memories and sighed in relief. She'd found it, the spell that would neutralize Salazar's attempt at finding them. Closing her eyes, she focused on the memory of her mother teaching her how to stop a warlock from finding her.

"Foltenay Nabatu Seelaree," she murmured under her breath.

The locater spell's power dropped and was no more. Inside the room they heard a crash as something went flying, the light went out, and that something hit the wall with a thud.

"Damnit! Why didn't it work! I was holding the crystal as I said the spell. Witch! I'd kill you too quickly!" he roared.

This was their chance to take Salazar by surprise. Justin quickly positioned himself by the door, opposite Rae. With a nod they burst into the room, Rae performed a tuck and roll, going low for Salazar's legs, but the vampire must have sensed something, for he shimmered, and Rae rolled right into the leg of the desk and hit her head.

Justin prepared for an aerial attack when he was blinded by light. He swiftly closed his eyes, reopened them to see Salazar standing over Rae, his foot on her chest, and a long sword pointed at her neck.

"Hello, Justus," Salazar greeted. "Welcome to my humble abode. Why don't you sit down?" he said and pointed to the medieval straight back chair to his left.

Justin stepped forward.

"Uh-uh uh, don't even think about it. I can cut her throat before you ever reached me," Salazar threatened softly.

Justin clenched his fists and tempered his anger. He needed to remain calm if they were to succeed in defeating Salazar. He sat down in the chair, his hands on the armrests when suddenly, metal clamped around both his wrists, and his strength began to slowly ebb.

Salazar chuckled and lifted his hand. In it was a little black box with a red button. "You didn't think I'd be prepared for you did you, Justus?" he gloated. "Right about now, your strength should be diminishing at a low rate, that's the chemical I created, which when it touches skin, will draw the strength out of the victim."

Justin tried to break free, but it was no use, it seemed he wasn't strong enough.

"Justin, are you alright," Justin went still when he recognized Devon's voice in his mind.

"We're in a bit of a pickle my friend," he replied as he watched Salazar grab Rae by the hair and pull her up. His eyes roamed over her face as she stumbled, her gaze when she looked at him was unfocused. He tried to reach her mentally but her mind was fragmented, jumbled. "I'm stuck in a chair with metal restraints that are sucking my strength out, Salazar has Rae, he's taking her out of the room."

"Why isn't she fighting back?" Devon asked.

"She's dazed, she must have hit her head," replied Justin. He tried again to get out of the chair but it was no use, he roared in frustration. "Are you well enough to help me?"

Outside, Devon was already nodding and heading back inside the house.

"You cannot go back in there!" exclaimed Salazar's former servant as he put a restraining hand on Devon's arm. "You're strength has not yet returned for you to battle the master."

Devon growled, "I have to, Justin is restrained in a chair and Salazar has Rae."

"Oh no! No, no, no! The Chair of Calvitus! You can't touch the chair. It will draw all the strength you have left. No. I will go in your place. I know what to do; I was there when it was built," George Leeds said, and Devon was amazed that a two hundred year old human could move that fast.

~~~~~*~~~~~

Rae's head spun as Salazar pulled her up the stairs to the attic. He opened the door and pushed her, sending her sprawling across the gleaming hardwood floor.

Dizzy, she sat up as she heard the door slam shut. Opening her eyes, she tried to glare at Salazar but didn't succeed for there was two of him standing over, her staring at her.

"At last, your power will be mine and then no one will be able to stop me. I will finally have it all!" exclaimed Salazar as he walked past her to an open book sitting on a pedestal.

Her head still spinning, Rae focused her gaze on the door and began crawling to it, but cried out when Salazar gripped her hair and pulled.

"Oh no, my dear. You are staying right where you are," he said as he dragged her to a chair that sat in a circle and pushed her in it.

Rae's heart began to pound as she looked down and recognized the circle drawn on the floor. It was a ritual circle, meant to conjure demons, or in this case, transfer power from one to another. That was Salazar's goal. But what the vampire didn't know was that the first time she'd made love with Justin, she'd transferred some of her power to him as he'd made her a vampire.

"I see you recognize the ritual circle and know its meaning," said Salazar his smile revealing rotten and yellowed teeth. Soon you will be dead and I will have everything I deserve."

Rae wasn't listening; her mind was frantically trying to reach Justin. "Justin, answer me! Why can't I hear you?" she begged.

~~~~~*~~~~~

George entered the living room and gasped at the site of a man, he assumed was Justin, slumped in the Chair of Calvitus. He quickly grabbed some surgical gloves from the desk drawer and pulled them on.

Then he went down on his back and scooted under the chair where he knew a metal lever, drenched in the same chemical as the metal clamped were, was and pulled on it. He heard the click as the clamps opened, freeing the man.

He quickly stood, pulled Justin out of the chair and lowered him gently to the floor. He then grabbed the sharp letter opener from the desk's surface, cut his wrist and brought it to Justin's mouth.

Warm blood trickled down Justin's throat, his eyes opened and he stared at the gaunt man as he drank his fill. His strength returned, he closed the wound and sat up.

"Thank you," said Justin.

"Go, they're in the attic," George whispered as sat down hard on the floor.

Justin nodded and stood. Halfway out the door he turned back and looked at Leeds. "Are you going to be alright?" he asked.

George nodded, "I'll be fine. Just go, stop him from gaining her power," he said.

Justin nodded and ran up the stairs.

 

©2006 Romance at Heart Magazine.

©2000 Angel Young.

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