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#19
JAN 10 |
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“Mysteries Revealed”
Fontanelle smiled as she heard the thudding on her hotel room door. She opened it and a visibly-winded Jacob Gavin stood on the other side.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” Fontanelle replied. “He told me where he was himself.”
Gavin cursed and kicked the dresser. “Doesn’t he know what he’s getting into?”
Fontanelle gave him an odd look. “Of course not. Jean-Luc never told him what was going on. And don’t abuse the furniture. I have to pay for any damages.”
Gavin turned from the dresser and started pacing. “You know that he can’t die! New Son will kill us!”
Fontanelle smiled as she heard what Gavin really meant - “me” instead of “us.” She handed him a map. “Here. I’ve marked the Antiquary’s home. Go save him.”
“Me?” Gavin asked. “What about you?”
Fontanelle slowly sat down. “I have other duties I need to perform. You’re the one who is the `go-getter.’“
Cursing, Gavin left and slammed the door behind him. Fontanelle continued smiling as Gavin’s muttering died away.
“All I have to do is save him from the Antiquary,” Gavin muttered. He was fuming as he stormed through the hotel’s lobby, shoving people out of his way. “How can I do that?” His eyes lit up as he stepped outside and he took off at a run, muttering the entire way.
“Wonderful,” the Antiquary whispered. The drugs in the soup had done their job well. Gambit slumped in his chair, unconscious.
The Antiquary turned to his servants. “Take him to the ceremonial room and bind him well,” he instructed. The children bowed and scurried to obey. The Antiquary pulled off his dinner jacket and hung it carefully on his chair. He would have to hurry to don his ceremonial garb.
The Shadowtechs would have been nervous if they were capable of emotion. New Son had jumped to his feet and begun pacing. “If that fool fails to save LeBeau, everything will be ruined!” he fumed. He returned to his throne and began anxiously searching for some way to see inside the Antiquary’s home.
At last Gambit’s eyes began to flutter open. He could feel bonds around his wrists and he smiled. “Chere, let’s not get too kinky now,” he said. His eyes opened and he looked up into a room draped in scarlet. “Now dis don’t look good,” he noted as he realized that he was bound to something metallic
“At last you’re awake.” The Antiquary stepped into Remy’s field of view. He wore long flowing scarlet robes. “I was beginning to fear that my servants had administered too much of my little concoction to you.”
“I’m not dead yet,” Remy replied. “So what’s dis now?”
The Antiquary smiled as he stepped around to where Remy could turn his head and see him easily. He snapped his fingers and a child carried a chair to him. The Antiquary smoothed his robes and sat down. “We have a lot of history to catch up on before the ritual begins.”
Remy was shocked at the information of the ritual, but fought to keep his face calm.
The Antiquary continued. “Many centuries ago, I served the true Guild as its Minister Tome. I diligently kept records of the Old Kingdom. When the Guild shattered, I found myself casting my lot with the Thieves. At that time, I still required Candra’s elixir of long life.
“As I maintained my position as Minister Tome, I managed to begin acquiring other knowledge as well. I began to accumulate forbidden knowledge. And that knowledge is the reason I still live.” The Antiquary stood, then leaned close to Remy and showed his fangs. “I discovered the secrets of vampirism.”
Remy pushed a smirk onto his face. “Aren’t dere some side effects from dat?”
The Antiquary smiled. “Indeed. Didn’t you ever wonder why Blade attacked my home months ago?”
“He was searching for me. Fortunately, my espionage network alerted me to his plans and I was able to move elsewhere.” The Antiquary leaned back in his chair. “Unfortunately, those `side effects’ you so snidely mentioned quickly grew old.” He stood and began circling the table.
“My research led me to a cure. I discovered that there was one kind of blood which could cure me and still leave me with my immortality. The blood of Le Diable Blanc.”
The Antiquary bent over Remy so he could see him easily. “Yours.”
Gavin paced back and forth as he talked on his cell phone. “I don’t care!” he yelled. “You have to know something about him!” Gavin was silent as the other person responded. “Find him now!” he finally yelled as he slapped the phone shut.
He fumed a moment and stormed out of the hotel room. Maybe he could get information about the Antiquary’s location another way.
Jacques LeBeau stroked his chin as he reclined in a sitting room in the brownstone which served as headquarters to the Thieves’ Guild. His mind was racing as New Son’s offer continued to resonate in his thoughts.
Still, LeBeau couldn’t shake an odd feeling. New Son had offered friendship and assistance to the Thieves, but he had never mentioned what he wanted. Suddenly Jean-Luc’s voice echoed through his head. “Not’in’ comes fo’ free.”
Suddenly Jacques discovered he had a great deal more to think about.
Meanwhile, although Remy had feigned interest in what the Antiquary was saying, he had begun testing the strength on his bonds. He fought to keep the smile from his face as he discovered that one of them was just loose enough. He relaxed his wrists to continue listening to the Antiquary, who seemed quite content to keep talking.
“While perusing some writings from the Old Kingdom, I discovered a serum that would utilize the blood of Le Diable Blanc to nullify the vampiric side effects while still leaving me with my immortality.” The Antiquary stopped speaking and turned to face Remy. He smiled. “I have been waiting decades for this moment.” He held out a hand and a child placed an antique needle into it. A clear tube led from the needle to a glass vial.
The Antiquary moved into position and placed the needle against Remy’s bare chest, directly above his heart. The Antiquary licked his lips as the point of the needle began to press into Remy’s flesh.
Just then the door at the end of the room exploded inward. The Antiquary whirled around, dropping the needle. As the smoke cleared, a blonde woman in a red dress stood there holding an enormous gun. It only took a couple of seconds for her to morph back into Jacob Gavin.
“Nobody move!” Gavin yelled. “These heels are killing me and I’m not leaving here with Remy LeBeau!”
“No problem,” Remy said. During the confusion he’d escaped his bonds and was standing behind Jacob. “Dere’s just a little somet’in’ I need to take care of first.” Remy walked into the center of the room and smiled at the Antiquary as he placed one hand on the table. The Antiquary’s eyes widened as the heavy stone table began to glow with a pinkish glow.
“Now we’d best leave,” Remy said as he turned back to Jacob. “Dere’s about to be a hot time in de old town tonight.”
Remy and Jacob ran through the hallways of the Antiquary’s home as he stared helplessly at the table. He knew what was coming. He finally ducked into another room.
Seconds later, the table exploded. Chemicals mixed and ignited, adding to the chaos as screaming children ran for safety.
Remy and Jacob finally closed the door to the Thieves’ brownstone behind them. “You could at least thank me,” Gavin griped. “I think I twisted my ankle in those heels.”
“You’re right,” Remy said. “Why don’t you switch back to dat blonde so I can t’ank you properly?” A pat on the behind punctuated the question.
Gavin responded with a rude proposition of his own.
Remy laughed. “I’m flexible, mon ami, but I’m not dat good!”
“I hate you,” Jacob seethed. “If I could have left you in there, I would have.”
“Dat’s real interestin’,” Remy said as he plopped down in a chair. “Why didn’t you? I’ll bet it’s because New Son told you not to.”
Gavin swallowed hard, determined not to let anything slip. “You don’t talk about your employers, and neither do I,” he finally said.
Remy smirked. “I’ll bet,’ he said. He leaned forward. “Don’t worry. I’m not gonna push right now. But when de day comes, and I t’ink it’s gonna be soon, me and you are gonna have a long chat about New Son.”
“Like you said,” Gavin said as he turned. “It won’t be today.” He gathered the remaining scraps of his pride around him and stormed out the door.
Remy watched him go.
New Son frowned as Jacob Gavin finished his report. “I would have wished that the Antiquary’s equipment had remained intact,” he said. He held up a hand to fend off Gavin’s protests. “Don’t worry. You acted properly. LeBeau must survive.” He waved dismissively and Gavin vanished into a teleportation portal. New Son returned to his throne and thought.
The Antiquary studied the charred remains of his laboratory and sighed. He knew that he would have to move again now. Still, there would be another day. But first, he decided, a small snack. He selected a young girl and she obediently bent her head back, exposing her neck.
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To Be Continued...
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