“Well, I guess I could just call you by your nickname,” I smiled and looked over at him.

“My nickname?”

“You know, Strawberry.” Then I snorted out a little laugh.

“The entrance to tunnels that lead to Angelica’s lower level begins here, at this church,” Jacob used the feather to point, looking back to see if I was paying attention. “The dead of old were taken in shrouds and laid to rest in the catacombs beneath the church. It is guarded by priests’ that roam its halls and will be very hard to get around. And never call me that again, I had an allergy and it was not my fault.”

“I’m sorry, Cates told me the story and I wanted to make you smile.” I gave him a little wink and got a frown in return. So I changed the subject back to the one at hand. “They have to sleep don’t they?” I asked, looking at the artwork on the parchment paper.

“Many have desecrated the church over the years and they do not leave it to the likes of us to come strolling about at will. They have curses laid about here and there, and spring water from the tears of your God himself to burn our flesh.”

“That’s the craziest thing that I’ve ever heard. I was raised in the church and I’m telling ya right now, there ain’t no such things as curses and burning water. If they’re men of God, then we just ask their permission.”

“You have lost your mind,” he said, turning to look at me. “Normals have tricks of their own, and just because you had never heard of our kind before, does not mean the world shares your naivety.”

“You’re telling me, the normals of this church know about the breeders?”

“That is exactly what I’m telling you,” he replied, standing straight and stepping closer. “Most in folklore but all of its caretakers in one way or the other.”

“Then why haven’t they done anything to stop our kind?” I stepped back.

“Fear,” he whispered, “that is instilled in them at bedside tales, of what the beasts do. Beasts that drink the blood of men and can only live under the cover of night. They are also told to hang herbs on their windows and lock every door for they will take away the bad one’s soul leaving nothing but a corpse.”

“Please stop, Jacob, I don’t wanna here anymore.”

“This is what the superstitious tell their children about us, because of the rumor of the old church,” he added, reassuring me that it was true with the look on his face. “Normals too, have to deal with the things we have seen in the dark of night, Renee. They hear what we hear and their members disappear. It is how our numbers either grow or the sickest of our kind’s stomachs are filled. They tell horrible tales of our kind.”

“Can you blame them? I would say the same thing if I had to keep my family safe from the likes of Angelica and her demented sister. At least Cheree takes their leftovers, the sick son-of-a-bitch.”

“Yes, but why taint a child’s mind when they should and could live with dreams of pleasantries. Only a handful would harm a child, Renee. Most are like the ones who follow you and the ones that we will save.”

“This whole world is strange and messed up, Jacob, and I will not pretend to understand any of it. Not now, and more than likely, not ever.” With that, he just looked at me and nodded.

“We have four nights to plan, and gather the costumes that we will need to disguise who we really are.”

“And about two hours to find that tunnel that leads under Angelica’s castle. I’m going after Martin! That will give everyone time to eat and grab their weapons.”

“Then I will have another talk with Alex and Bernard. We will need to know what awaits us once we enter Angelica’s domain.” Jacob dropped the quill pen back in its holder, turning to find me smiling from ear to ear. “What? You thought I would say no to an adventure?”

I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, then threw my hands in the air and yelled ‘Yahoo’ causing Jacob to laugh. I thought I was going to have to put up a hissy fit, and, as it turns out, it was a piece of cake. As Jacob was going up the stairs and I was heading down the hall, he leaned over the banister and said, “We shall soon find out about the normals at the church.” Then just as fast he was gone. I thought to myself that he was as fruity as a bucket of rocks if he was going to make me believe in some stupid superstition like curses and burning water they called the tears of my God. I was on my way to free the man that I loved so I could take care of him, nurse him if he was in a bad way, and then beat his ass for lying to me. I wasn’t going out to prove who was right or who was wrong. ***

The whole group sat around in the study listening to Jacob explain how we had to go through what he called the Narrows, a part of the city that was in ruins and a place that the worst scum in London lived in. He then told us it would take us to a portion of the city that held the church and that we would have to sneak into it in order to find a way into its underground levels. It wasn’t until he began explaining what we should expect when we reached the tunnels that adjoined to Angelica’s that my skin began to crawl. Alex told Jacob that Angelica held the favor of a man with magical knowledge and he gifted her with several of the walking dead to guard the first section of the passage.

“They’re easy to take down,” Derek said, pulling his long blade. “We’ve fought them before.”

“The deeper we go the worse it gets, young Derek,” Jacob replied, causing Derek to sit back down. “This man of magic finds favor in her because of her love of taking life. Angelica finds favor in him, because she can use his skill to benefit her needs. He has many deviant things that he has created from the dead she sends his way. As a gift he deems one a Sentry of sorts for her personal safety.”

“How many bullets do we have left, Derek?” I asked, opening my .22 caliber handgun that only had two bullets in it.

“None for your gun and only six for mine. I really doubt we’ll be finding any more around here,” he replied, closing his gun in an angry manner.

“Your guns will not work against these beings that Jacob speaks of,” Cates claimed. “I have placed my sword into the brain, as well as the heart, and it did not fall.”

“How did you kill it?” Tanda asked, sliding to the edge of her seat.

“I did not, little one. I ran.”

“Alex also mentioned that this man of magic crossed the waters like we had, and came often, returning just two weeks ago bringing the news of an invasion on his home. I believe we have found the doctor to the notes we found when we sent the walking dead back from where they came from,” Jacob continued. “The master of the estate must have been away the night we were there. I believe the doctor we hung on the cross had a partner in his endeavors.”

“A breeder with a skill like that can be a hard kill,” Cates added, getting to his feet. “He will have many forms of protection around this person.”

“Tanda will have to stay behind,” Derek said, looking down at her. “This is something you can’t fight.”

“I’m afraid to stay here alone.”

“And I can fight,” Tammy interjected before she was volunteered to stay back as well.

“She can’t stay alone, what if they break in and take her,” Garvin adamantly stated.

“At least if she’s with us we can protect her,” I said, hoping Derek understood I wasn’t against him.

“She will not go up against the walking dead, Renee. If we die and they take her…it’s not gonna happen. I’ll stay here with her before I let her go,” Derek slammed his gun down on the table looking around the room, and ended up staring at me.

“I can hide, Derek, you don’t have to stay with me,” Tanda stood, walked over and wrapped her arms around his waist. “They need you to get Martin out. I shouldn’t act like a child. I’m a grown woman and can take care of myself.”

“I’ll stay with her.” Sydney stood, with pride, from his reclined position in the desk chair. “Someone should stay and keep an eye on the prisoners…at least until we know what their master's gonna do, right?”