Free JAVIER by Miranda Jameson Page A

predictable. No shooting
required Javier, here’s the combination.”
    She had the safe open in an instant. Javier rifled
through it; two handguns, jewellery, some documents which he handed to Cassia
and a blue velvet box. He opened the box and frowned; the item inside had been
removed but it had left its imprint and it looked familiar. Javier went to the
door and shouted for Gabriel then came back to the desk and checked through the
documents;
    “These are old, all in Latin…”
    Cassia peered at the writing;
    “I read old documents all the time. This is a covenant,
very old. See all the signatures? This newer looking one is a copy but updated.
See the heading? Flavia and I heard correctly…The Knights of the Obsidian
Dagger…” she stopped abruptly as Javier exhaled on a hiss.
    “But that’s a myth isn’t it? I mean, it doesn’t exist.
Javier?”
    At that moment Gabriel came in and Javier opened the
blue velvet box;
    “What do you think was kept in here Gabriel?”
    Cassia watched with alarm as Gabriel visibly paled and
raked a hand through his hair;
    “Oh shit, I really hoped it had been lost over the
centuries. The legend must be accurate, we have captured four of them, there is
at least one other out there, possibly two. It’s all starting again.”
    Cassia grabbed Javier’s arm;
    “What? What’s starting? Are you telling me it isn’t a
myth? The Obsidian Dagger? It’s not possible.”
    “It’s no myth I’m afraid,” Javier’s expression was
tense, “The daggers exist, I have seen what happens when they are used, so has
Gabriel.”
    Gabriel nodded, “They exist alright. Cassia, where is
this hidden space you mentioned?”
    Cassia stared at the two of them then headed into the
panelled hallway; now where was it exactly? Running her hands over the ornate
carving in the wood she shut her eyes; sometimes the body remembered better
than the mind. Delicately her fingers traced over the wood until…there it was,
she pressed firmly. The panel slid open silently revealing a dark yawning
emptiness.
    She heard it first, the faintest of scuffling sounds.
Jumping backwards she grabbed Javier;
    “There’s something down there!” she hissed.
    Javier motioned to Gabriel and they both listened
intently; there it was again. Carefully Javier reached round the edge of the
panel and felt about then smiled. A light clicked on revealing steps descending
into the gloom. Levelling his AK-47 he started silently down the stairs with
Gabriel close behind. They didn’t instruct her not to so Cassia followed them.
    The steps led down to a large dimly lit cellar. It
appeared completely empty. Gabriel moved slowly round one side and Javier
covered the other then Gabriel turned and caught Javier’s eye. He made a quick
hand signal pointing to a shadowed corner of the space partially obscured by a
pile of boxes. Cassia attuned her hearing to its most acute and caught the
sound; a frantic weak heartbeat. The sound of extreme fear. The men were
hearing it too, she could tell from the way their bodies were poised. Javier
inched silently into the shadows then darted forward so fast his body appeared
to blur. When he emerged he was holding someone by the scruff of the neck;
briefly he stared then gently lowered his prey to the ground.
    “Dios! It’s a young girl.”
    The girl was filthy; long blonde hair cloaking her
shoulders as she gazed at the two men in terror and tried to crawl backwards
making small breathless sounds of distress. She was one of them; a young
Vampire not long past adolescence.
    Cassia inched forward slowly, murmuring;
    “Pull back, she’s terrified, let me…”
    Dropping to her knees in front of the girl she reached
out and gently swept back the tangled mass of hair, her heart contracting as
the girl cringed.
    “It’s okay sweetheart. I’m Cassia, those big guys are
here to rescue you. We are your kind. You’re safe with me, understand?”
    The girl fixed huge dull eyes on her and nodded