Chapter Seven - Angelus
"They should be here by now."
Angelus paced back and forth on the porch leading to his palace. At any other time, he would have admired the polished granite, the tile mosaic of the sun rising up the steps, the statues that held the balcony over his head. Now, in the dark of the night with no sign of his lover or the Vampires that he had ordered to bring her back, it all seemed too much. Unimportant, as if his designs for the palace had somehow distracted him from Rosa.
Beside him, Lucilia held her cell phone to her ear again, chewing her lower lip. Her small, delicate fang had torn open the lip, and Angelus cupped her face in his hand, brushing his thumb against the drop of black blood that appeared. Lucilia winced and stopped chewing.
"None of them are answering."
A lone car pulled through the gates. Angelus tensed further. There should have been at least half a dozen vehicles in the convoy. He was taking no chances with Rosa's safety. The threats had only increased in the past months since she had chosen to live elsewhere.
When the car came to a stop, only one Vampire got out. He moved with languid motions, strolling to open the truck. The scent of death hit Angelus' nose. Rage overwhelmed him. The thought of Rosa injured or worse drove him out his mind. He charged forward, his vision turning red. He heard a shout from Lucilia but ignored her.
He was on the Vampire in a second. The smell of death was stronger, and Angelus pounded his fist into the Vampire's face and chest. His knuckles cracked and a loud screech filled the air. The Vampire he attacked never had a chance to fight back. It was only because Rosa's living scent clung to the creature that he survived the onslaught.
Angelus growled, grasping the Vampire by the collar. "Where is she?"
The Vampire was barely conscious, but his eyes managed to focus on the King's own. "Our lady Freya will rise again."
Freya? What did she have to do with any of this? Angelus stepped back, his chest heaving as he panted. Morgan was beside him now, dragging the traitor to his feet. The Vampire began laughing. Angelus resisted the urge to throttle him.
"Take him to a cell and bring Freya to me," Angelus said, dragging a hand through his hair. "I swear, if my Rosa is not returned to me unharmed, Freya will lose her head."
The traitor stopped laughing abruptly. "She was not a part—"
"Get him out of here," Angelus snarled. Another second and he might just kill the traitor.
He remained where he was, hands clenched, eyes closed as he sucked in deep breaths. Bloodlust was simmering just below the surface of his emotions. If he wasn't careful, he would lose total control and go on a killing spree. Everyone he even suspected to be a part of the conspiracy would die, whether they were guilty or not.
Isn't it this very violent streak that caused Rosa to leave me to begin with?
The buzzing in his ears was so loud that it wasn't until Lucilia tapped him on the shoulder that he realized that his phone was ringing. He dug it out, his breath halting when he saw Rosa's name and picture. Was she alive, or was this a game that Freya was playing with him? Had she arranged this before he imprisoned her?
"You should answer it, Uncle," Lucilia said.
Angelus let out a deep breath, forcing himself to be calm as he brought the phone to his ear. "Hello."
"Angelus."
"Rosa!" He held the phone with both hands, clinging to it as though it could bring Rosa back to him. Her voice trembled and had a raw quality to it that indicated she had been crying, but there was no pain in it. "Where are you? Are you okay?"
He quickly put the phone on speaker so Lucilia could also hear it.
"I'm fine," Rosa said, sniffing. "The baby is fine. But if you don't give them a billion dollars, they'll kill me."
Angelus' eyes narrowed. So she had been kidnapped. The traitor had handed her over to… who? They wanted a billion dollars, not Freya's release, so it didn't have anything to do with her. Or did it? Was one of her followers demanding money so that she could build herself an army and overthrow him? Or was it something else entirely?
"Who are they, Rosa? Where are you?"
Rosa whimpered. His vision tinged with red.
"If they hurt you, I will destroy them."
"They say to leave the money at the docks in two days. No police or I die."
The line went dead.
A roar echoed around the palace, and the phone crumpled like tissue paper. Lucilia backed a few paces from him, but her phone was already in her hand. "I will start liquidating assets for the cash drop."
Angelus yanked at his hair, pacing round and round. Think clearly. Don't be violent. Oh, how he wanted to rend Freya limb from limb! He wanted to put her head on a pike, to feed her body to the crows. But I don't know whether she's involved or not. I don't know if hurting her will kill Rosa.
He gulped in a deep breath. "I am going to question the traitor. Let me know when you have the money."
Lucilia nodded as Angelus stalked back towards the palace. He would get to the bottom of this, one way or another. When he did, heads would roll!
Or would they? What would Rosa want me to do? He couldn’t answer that. What matters most is getting her back safely. I can think about morals after she is in my arms again.
***
The next day, Angelus received an email from Rosa's address. He sent everyone away from his office before he opened it. There was a video attachment, and whatever the kidnappers were sending him, he knew that he was going to have to struggle to remain in control. Lucilia and Morgan would want to help him, but if he went into bloodlust, he might hurt them.
In case you think about changing your mind, read the email. He sat on his fancy, expensive chair, staring at the HD display, preparing himself for the worst. The mouse hovered over the attachment.
What could the kidnappers be sending him? His blood tingled in his veins, burning with the desire to find his woman and bring her home. If the kidnappers knew what was good for them, they wouldn't lay a single finger on her. Yet, he had a feeling that they didn't understand how strongly a Vampire could react to seeing someone they loved in pain.
Angelus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened the video. At first, it was dark, but then a light flickered on. Rosa sat on a chair, her large, pregnant belly emphasized by the flowing top she wore. Her eyes were wide and frightened, but she wasn't looking at the camera. They were locked on a man as he walked into the frame.
Her mouth moved. Angelus stared at her lips. Please, Michael.
Michael? Angelus mind reeled in shock. Why would a kidnapper tell her his name? He wouldn't. It was somebody Rosa already knew. A growl rose in his throat. Her stepfather. Michael Jones. It had to be him. The video had no sound, but Michael clearly didn't expect that Angelus could read lips.
Rosa was in the hands of the man she feared most. Angelus had never felt so helpless. This was all his fault.
A snarl erupted from him as the man's hand flew across Rosa's face. Her head turned, her mouth opening in a silent cry of pain. Angelus felt his fingers turning into claws as he clutched the arms of his chair, ripping through the leather. Another slap. Now a full-on punch. Tears rolled down Rosa's face.
Red settled over Angelus' vision. But his mind, rather than consumed by the rage that was usually associated with bloodlust, was focused. He knew the name of the monster that had Rosa. He would be able to find where she was being held, and he would kill Michael Jones. Slowly. By the time he was done, the man would be begging him to end his suffering.
But first, he had to find the villain. It was a good thing that there was a traitorous Vampire in his dungeons who knew where to start looking.