Fear Pt. 02

CHAPTER FIVE

Maree was the first to speak, "we could use them to keep the place tidy. Cooking, cleaning, doing laundry. After this all settles down, I'm sure we can find something more useful for them."

"Agreed," said Janet, "if they're willing to swear loyalty, I'll take them into the clan."

Brittany nodded in agreement, "Gregory, can you ask them to come out when they're ready... Just... Maybe knock first."

Gregory chuckled, before rapping his knuckles on the door. He waited a moment until he heard someone call out, and he opened the door. The three of them walked back into the dining room, the women both had wet hair, and James was wearing a different shirt. John hid a smirk... Lucky bastard... They were only in there five minutes...

"We've come to a decision," Brittany started, "currently you are clanless. Not only are you clanless, but you are traitors against the council and the royal family." She watched carefully as the three of them huddled together, they had already accepted they probably weren't getting out of this alive. "If you are willing to swear loyalty to me, you would be invited into our clan. As a rightful member of the clan, you will be provided protection. You will also be given work, rudimentary work to begin with, but when the fighting stops, we can work out something more permanent."

Brittany watched in amusement, as the three stood there with their mouths open. They expected imprisonment or worse, and now the Queen had just offered them jobs.

Jane spoke first, "I have one question... What will you do with Jonah if you catch him?"

The room fell silent again, Lori and James both put an arm over her shoulders. It may not have been obvious to James, but they obviously had some deep feelings towards one another.

"Jonah must die," John said softly. "He cannot be allowed to live."

"Then I swear my loyalty to the Queen," Jane said firmly.

James and Lori quickly said the same, before hugging one another passionately. "So what do you need us to do?"

"You can rest for this evening, we need to change safe houses, so we'll be moving in a few hours. We'll put you all to work tomorrow." Janet said with a soft smile. "Now... Would you all like separate rooms? Or are you happy with your current sleeping arrangements?"

The three young vampires all turned bright red. Turning amongst themselves, they had a quick murmured conversation before Lori quietly muttered, "the one room is fine, thank you."

A few hours later, John found himself watching the sunset. He'd made his way down the alleyway acting as the entrance to the safe house, and was double checking the way was clear. Satisfied, he made his way back to the unassuming black sedan he was to drive. Climbing into the drivers seat, he wasn't surprised at all to find Brittany smiling at him from the passenger seat. Twisting around, Gregory and Maree were sitting in the rear. Everyone else must be in the limousine...

There wasn't anything to say, so John started the engine and pulled out onto the street. Gregory gave instructions from the rear, but otherwise the drive was silent and uneventful. It took less than half an hour until John found himself turning off under an overpass. It didn't look like there was a road, but Gregory assured him it was the correct direction. Again to John's surprise, a hidden wall opened up, directly in one of the foundations of the overpass.

This one seemed more military in nature. The car park was well lit, with large parking spaces. There was several vehicles already parked inside, including what looked like an armoured personnel carrier.

"John," said Brittany softly, as the car pulled to a stop.

"Yes my queen?"

"Remember your promise," she said firmly.

John blinked, before wrapping Brittany into a tight hug. "I'm compelled, remember?"

They held one another for a few moments, before realising they were the only ones still in the car. With a grin, both of them exited the vehicle. Only for John to be immediately accosted by James.

"John! We're near our old home!" He called, jogging up to him.

John immediately faced James, "is this near where Jonah kept you?"

"He didn't really move us, he called it a cell and left people in charge. There's a manhole across the street that will take you to an abandoned subway. It's a bit of a walk from there, we couldn't stay near the surface in case of cops. But that's the main entrance."

John stared hard, he wasn't sure if these kids could have been of any use. But this information could possibly be vital for their survival. Making eye contact with Gregory, John nodded towards the entrance to the facility. It was time to discuss their options. The group was mostly silent as they descended into the facility. John was correct in his assertion that this was a military facility. Starting at the front entrance, the door was six inches of steel plating. Beyond that was metal detectors and a small armoury. John had never fired a gun before, but from the looks of this place, it was probably a good idea to start.

Even Janet didn't seem like she knew this facility very well, so everyone took Gregory's queue and followed him through several sets of doors. Finally they entered into a large meeting room. John gestured for everyone to take a seat.

"Alright, did everyone hear what James told me?" John asked quickly.

Everyone nodded their agreement, it was after all hard to keep conversations private in such tight and silent buildings.

"Gregory," John started again, "you're our security expert, are we in danger if we stay here?"

Gregory sat silently for a few minutes. "Council headquarters was designed to be easily defended. It relied on manpower and narrow corridors to create choke points. It wasn't designed to withstand an attack from within. That combined with high numbers of enemy soldiers and explosives, I'm only surprised that we got out with as many as we did. This facility however was designed specifically in mind to withstand a siege. Picture this entire facility as a series of bank vaults. It's not impossible to break in, but you'll have to break into every room individually. Once manual locks are engaged, there's no option but to cut or blast your way in. Meanwhile, There's enough firepower stored in this facility to arm a small country. If all else fails, there's a hidden escape passage and enough explosives to level the building, wired to a self destruct sequence on the way out.

"Even IF Jonah was to discover us here, it would take weeks if not months to dig us out. By then, Brunhilde's dragoons will have arrived. I know the original plan was to keep moving, but realistically, this is out best option if we want to dig in."

"I think we should stay," Lori piped up. Everyone turned to look at her, and she dropped her eyes, realising too late that nobody had asked.

John hid his smile, "does anyone have a better option?"

Nobody said anything.

"Gregory, how are we for supplies?" Janet asked softly.

"I personally stocked this facility a month ago. We have enough blood that it will expire before we could use it all ourselves. There's also enough non perishable food here to last us a few years. This facility was designed to house a small army." Gregory grinned.

"Actually, about that," John frowned, "how do you collect those blood bags?"

"Donations," Janet said quickly, "blood type doesn't matter for nutrition, and our physiologies make us immune to almost all human diseases. Any time donated blood is rejected, it comes to us. In times of need, we skim a small percentage from each donation, and we take the leftovers from anyone who receives a blood test of any kind." Janet smiled reassuringly at John, "rest assured, no innocent blood is spilled to feed us. Though there is a surprising amount of volunteers who will offer fresh from the source, for... Rewards."

John was about to ask her to elaborate, when Grace put in, "drugs, sex or offers to turn them. Brittany should be able to explain how she feels when she feeds during sex. Just trust us when we say it's consensual."

John was surprised, he wasn't sure how old Grace was, but he had the feeling she was older than he thought. Turning to face Brittany, he was amused to see she was several shade's pinker than he was expecting. But when she couldn't meet his eye, he decided to drop it, for better or worse, consent meant consent. It didn't escape him though, what Jonah was doing to boost his number of followers though... The wrongness of it made him angry... It was already apparent that not everyone took to the change... Forcing it on teenagers and forcing them to fight in a war they had nothing to do with... Jonah had to be stopped.

"So we're in agreement then?" John continued. "We stay here, bed down for the time being, wait for the dragoons and maybe do some scouting?"

"Define scouting, John?" Brittany growled.

John turned to face her, taking her hand in his. He pulled her across her seat and up onto his lap, so he could wrap his arms around her. She couldn't help but melt into his embrace, the feeling of his arms around her middle made her feel so safe.

"This changes nothing, you realise?" Brittany murmured into John's ear.

"We need to secure the area. I can go out during the day, set up cameras and scope out the area. It's not safe to do this at night-"

"Fine... Ok... I get it," Brittany cut him off, "just... Please be careful..."

John pulled her down into a firm kiss, "I promise."

With the discussions over and done with, Brittany had Gregory lead everyone to their rooms. He lead the group down a series of corridors until cold concrete gave way to carpet. The three youngsters moved as one into the first available room, much to everyone's amusement. Maree took the second room. The next three rooms were for Janet and George, followed by Lucas and Gregory, the latter postponing his rest until he showed Brittany and John to their room. It was only as she thanked Gregory for information on their meal, she realised that Grace hadn't been assigned a room.

"Grace... Ah... I believe she's staying with Lucas for now." Gregory said, staring at his feet.

"Thank you Gregory," Brittany said quickly and closed the door.

Their first impression of the room was that of royal chambers you see in medieval castles on TV. There was a large four-poster bed in the centre of the room, with thick drapes tied to each corner. A large wardrobe on the far wall was probably already stocked with clothes their size. To the right was a large bookshelf, filled to the brim with novels. To the left was a large TV and a love seat. Immediately beside the door, John noticed a scanning device that looked like it was for a whole hand. Placing his hand on it, there was a slight pause before a section of wall opened up, revealing a small armoury.

"I don't think Gregory was kidding," John chuckled, placing his hand on the panel again, to close it. "I don't even know how they got my hand-print, let alone my sizes for the suits."

Brittany just giggled, taking John by the hand and leading him further into the room. Behind the bed was the object of her attention. A huge claw footed bath stood inside a small alcove. The alcove itself was covered in candles. John had a quick look around, and realised that there wasn't any other doors. He was torn between annoyance at having to take baths ever day, and the thought of Brittany's breasts floating on the surface of the water... They really hadn't bathed separately since they had met the council. Brittany caught his smile, and started filling the bath.

The remainder of the evening was spent settling in. The exception to this was Janet, who decided to touch base with the other council members. Using secure channels, she was able to get them all in private conference rooms. It was quickly apparent that not everyone was present. Nobody was able to determine if this was due to secrecy, or if Jonah had found them. After informing the council members that the royal couple were safe, she cut the line, not wanting to give away any more information than necessary. She still wasn't quite sure who she could trust.

Everyone met up for a late meal as the sun rose. Brittany had decided to forgo her chair from the start and had taken a perch on John's lap. This was the morning's entertainment as she had to cut up John's meal and feed it to him, as he couldn't see his plate.

"I know you'll be safe... Just... Please be careful..." Brittany whispered.

John smiled, leaning against her shoulder, "it'll be fine, I'm sure of it."

CHAPTER SIX

After leading Brittany back to their room, he put her to bed, before meeting back with Gregory in the garage.

"Take this," Gregory said, handing John a radio, "and this," handing john a large bag.

John grunted at the weight, "what is this lead?"

Gregory chuckled, "Wireless cameras, the weight is the batteries, should last a couple weeks before we have to change them."

John frowned, not liking the idea of having to repeat this. "Ok, I'll head out, take a look and place cameras where I think will work, you let me know if I should shift the angles."

He didn't wait for a reply, and honestly didn't expect one, as he strolled out of the half open door into the light.

It was a beautiful morning. The sun was bright, the sky was a gorgeous blue. John realised that since being with Brittany, he rarely saw the sun, let alone a sunrise. But that was a thought for the future, right now, he had a job to do. First order of business was to skirt the building and determine the best placement for the cameras. It wasn't hard to decide where to place them as the buildings and nearby roads created natural choke points. A quick discussion with Gregory, and the first two cameras were set, looking down either side of the road that passed the entrance. A third camera was directed at the entrance to the underground that James had mentioned. twenty minutes later, another four cameras were set. It was now impossible to approach the area without passing a camera and John was satisfied that there wasn't any immediate threats to Brittany.

With the knowledge of the immediate area locked away safely in his mind, John made his way back to the facility. Brittany was either already asleep, or specifically waiting up for him to come back. Slipping silently into their room however, he grinned at the adorable mix of both options. Brittany was laying horizontally across the bed, just below the pillows. Still fully dressed, it was clear what her intentions were, but the quiet of the room must have lulled her to sleep regardless. John silently crept up onto the bed beside her. Grabbing a pillow, he laid beside her and gently pulled her so she rolled up onto his shoulder... Her usual spot. With a firm tug, John pulled the blanket from the foot of the bed and threw it over the top of them. It wasn't long before the gentle sigh's of Brittany's content sleep, lulled him to sleep himself.

The sound of loud knocking woke them. Brittany quickly pulled herself away from John, allowing him to quickly get to the door. Pulling it open John found himself staring at furious Gregory.

"You need to see this," he growled, turning and storming off.

John glanced at Brittany, smiling at her concerned expression, he picked up his sword and followed after Gregory. He was lead into a side room, where he quickly recognised screens filled with pictures from the cameras he installed earlier.

"What's going on?" John asked, still a little groggy.

"There!" Gregory snarled, pointing at a particular screen.

John took a moment to realise what he was seeing. There was a woman sitting in the shade beside the entrance to the underground station. John was about to ask what she was doing when he spotted the chain around her leg...

"Gregory..."

"She's already been burnt once, they opened the manhole, pushed her out into the light and she ran for the shade. The chain won't let her escape, and the shade will only cover her for a few more minutes."

John heard a sniffle, turning he found himself face to face with Brittany. She was red eyed and puffy, silent tears rolling down her cheeks... There wasn't any need for her to speak.

"Gregory, get me a spare blanket, soaked with water, and some bolt cutters."

John took Brittany by the hand and lead her into the garage. They didn't speak for the few minutes it took for Gregory to collect what John needed. Though he was apprehensive to accept the battery operated angle grinder instead of bolt cutters. Throwing the blanket over his shoulder, he turned, kissing Brittany and gestured for Gregory to open the door.

"Gregory." John called.

"Yes my lord?"

"If this is a trap... Stop Brittany from coming to get me."

He barely heard the sharp intake of her breath before he ran out into the sunlight. His comments about how lovely the day was were long gone. The first obstacle was the road, there wasn't a lot of traffic, but he wasn't going to be getting across unseen, let alone getting back. Screw it... Darting between cars, it only took a few seconds before he hurdled over the divider on the median strip. A quick pause to let a truck pass, before he darted across the final few lanes and leapt over a hedge. Running towards the figure on the ground, he could hear her cries for help. Getting closer, he could see the desperate claw marks in the ground and her leg, a final struggle for survival. As he got close, she must have heard him, twisting around she shrieked and tried to pull away.

John immediately realised she recognised him. But she must have been in agony, all the exposed skin of her body was red and blistered. He thought back on Brittany, when he burned her... Throb... He shook his head, even the reminder of that day hurt him... This poor woman must have been in agony...

"Do you want to live?" John asked quickly.

The woman paused for a few moments, before swallowing hard. "Please don't hurt me."

John took that as an affirmative and threw the blanket over her. Bending down, he started the angle grinder, and started cutting a section less than a foot from the woman's leg. The chain itself must have been hardened steel, the angle grinder was taking a while to cut the link. As he cut through the first half and began on the second, the chain suddenly yanked hard. John barely got the angle grinder out of the way before the woman's leg was dragged into it. Unfortunately for her, that also pulled her leg out and exposed it to direct sunlight again. Listening to her shrieks of agony, John dropped the grinder, gripping the chain with one hand, and pulling the blanket back over her leg with the other.

"You have to make the last cut!" John yelled.

The chain made another yank, this time John could see the gap in the modified manhole cover, where the chain dropped in.

"Fucking coward!" spat John, "leaving her out to burn, I'll kill every fucking one of you!"

The rest of his words were drowned out as the sound of the angle grinder cutting through steel again. Now it was a game of tug-o-war, John desperately trying to give the woman enough time to cut the chain, and the unseen opponent in the manhole. Unfortunately for John, his opponent was stronger. He was slowly losing skin from his hands, as he and the woman were being dragged through the light and towards the hole. Glancing back towards the woman, she was completely obscured by the blanket, even cutting the chain underneath it's precious shade. A moment later the woman threw out the cut end of the chain.

John leapt into action, dropping the chain, he dived for the manhole. Pulling his sword free, the moment the chain cleared the gap, he plunged his sword in after it. The shriek that followed let him know he hit his target. The sound of a gunshot made him change his mind about continuing however and he quickly extracted his arm from the hole. A quick glimpse of his blade to check the dust, let John know it was a solid kill. Sheathing his blade, John turned back to the woman. He could see her crouched where he left her, the blanket opened slightly so she could see. All John could make out was the slight glow of her eyes, a soft gold colour.