"It's time you guys clue me in to what else might be affecting my flux," Damali said, her gaze holding the group. "There's some serious yang going down in Australia. I was standing by Carlos when his squad showed up, and apparently another master breached his borders."
Marlene touched her face as she walked forward. "The sixth biblical seal is in jeopardy, baby," she said in a quiet tone. "We need our Neteru."
As clear as day, Damali heard Marlene's mental instruction: Go find the missing key - by any means necessary.
Damali touched Marlene's cheek. "Trust me, Marlene. Let me see."
Marlene's gaze opened to Damali, and images rushed into Damali's awareness. But with that information also came a sad understanding; if the seal that matched the stolen key was discovered, Carlos would trade it for her life.
Now his agitation and stress made all the sense in the world to her. She understood where all the posturing and hollering was coming from - brother was caught between a rock and a hard place and wasn't coping well at all. He knew that she'd give her life for humanity. The fact that he'd hunt down the key just to spare her, bartering it away for one human life, that in and of itself was enough to make her never want to speak to him again. Yet, she also couldn't ignore the fact that he'd done that simply because he couldn't bear the concept of her death under any circumstances. It was too complicated. Damali closed her eyes and let out a long, weary sigh.
"You know that's why I have to go with him," Damali said, her voice just above a whisper. "He's scared, Mar. I've seen him go through a lot of mess, but all the bravado is about fear."
Marlene nodded. "Definitely a male reaction, human or vamp, it's the same."
Both women shared a tender smile.
"Maybe that's why you had to intimately learn about his world," Marlene said after a moment, and then glanced at Father Patrick. "She has to go in under their radar as one of them. We'll back her up from the outside."
"This is what I was meant to do as the millennium Neteru," Damali said firmly "The timing of my birth... hey, we all know we're in the end of days, so, this is it, people. Win or die trying."
Father Patrick tossed Damali the small dagger that matched her Isis, and she caught it fast. "In Australia, follow the song lines of the Aborigines... tell him that will lead you both to a safe house."
Monk Lin nodded and glanced at his clerical team. "In case you need to know so they don't burn you, they appear like infrared, but blue-white lines, and stretch across the protected sites like an alarm grid might... hopefully, you'll never be able to see them like he can." The monk sighed. "Make sure you get a map of all the sites with hallowed ground between wherever you're going, and there."
"What!" Shabazz shouted, whirling around on the priests, his line of vision tearing between Father Patrick, Monk Lin, and Marlene. "She can't stay with him - one, and two - she cannot go over there and do a concert as a cover for an international vampire hit, dragging a master vampire with her! I don't care what she's searching for!" He looked at his team for support, and the other men stepped in closer toward him. "She's not stable, one more nick could turn her, and she'll be on their side and doesn't need the Isis in her possession!"
"Set up a concert over there, Dan," Marlene said flatly, ignoring Shabazz.
"Marlene, face it, the girl might not even be able to cast an image. The whole plan to go country-to-country dusting topside master vampires to weaken their empire and bring back our stolen property is an abort until she stabilizes," Rider said in a defeated rush, gaining a nod from Big Mike. "Accidental stroke of luck on their side, notwithstanding - they won. They took out our power center - Damali."
"No, D is still the Neteru," Jose said, his voice fervent, just like his eyes. "Come with us, baby. Please don't stay with him." His voice hitched and he opened his arms. "We'll make it all right... I'm begging you, D. We'll keep the plan, as it always was, all of us. Just come home."
"Even if she stayed with us and we flew out at night," Big Mike said, lowering his weapon as his shoulders slumped, "we'd be flying from night into day because of the layovers and time-zone changes... she's unstable, could torch on impact right in her seat on the plane."
"I'm aware of that risk, so I'm traveling a nontraditional route, if I can get a ride." Damali let her breath out hard, sharing a supportive glance with Marlene. "Which is why I'm going inside to do some damage repair on one critical member of our team. And that's also why you all are going to have to have more faith than you've ever had before." But it broke her heart to watch Jose slowly lower his arms and look away from her.
"See you in Sydney, kiddo," Marlene said calmly. "Travel safe. If we don't see you in a couple of nights..."
"We'll send a rescue and recovery party," Imam Asula said, glancing at the other members of the Covenant. "If you're beyond repair, we will bury you on hallowed ground... or scatter your ashes there - either way."
Rider hawked and spit, and even the clerics' expressions held unconcealed worry.
"Gentlemen, Mar," Damali said, looking at the doubts held in every pair of eyes, "maybe what I did was instinct, who knows? That's what's driving me now. A gut hunch."
"You don't even know if Carlos will go or still guide you to the lairs so you can pick them off one by one to eliminate the threat," Dan said, his gaze fervent. He glanced at the others; J.L. nodded and Jose let out a long, disgusted sigh.
"Oh, he'll take her to a lair, all right. But not to clean one out." Rider sputtered in fury, walking back and forth. "In this condition, he'll be setting up vampire housekeeping!"
"We're supposed to protect the Neteru, but also assist her destiny," Father Patrick said, his slight smile knowing, evolving on his face in slow increments. "If Heaven is willing to gamble, who are we to throw in our hand?"
Marlene kissed Damali's cheek and walked away from her. "Let's go, gentlemen. I think our girl just created something even Hell can't deal with."
The long walk back to the mansion gave her plenty of time to think. What could she tell Carlos that made any kind of sense? He had trusted her completely, and there were so many times she'd mistrusted him. He'd been up-front and had told her about what he could do to her, but she'd never explained all of that to him in equal measure. Truth was, even she didn't know at the time. She was making it up as she'd went along.
Yet, what she was sure of now, just as sure as she'd always been, was that there was pure intent behind the soul-sharing exchange. There was no fraud in it, no trickery or guile. She had gone into his depths to restart his heart, to dredge up every abandoned hope and dream inside him that he'd ever had, and had coated it with every ounce of love she could siphon from herself. That was real, and it wasn't a game.
As she entered the mansion, Carlos was pacing in the foyer.