Chapter 10

Hannah was seeing and hearing everything that was going on through her servant’s eyes and ears. She had watched the interaction with the state police officers and what had happened up to them coming to the door. She listened as Billy and Jacob talked with Meredith and Adrienne.

“Meredith, you and Adrienne can’t stay here tonight. If they’re doing a recon, then that’s what they want is to catch you here alone. I’ve got a place you can stay until this is over.” She heard Billy tell her.

“Tanto, there’s more going on than you know. Mom and Dad weren’t just murdered, their bodies were desecrated, burned, and...” Meredith told him.

“Meredith, Mike and Allison were killed by...” He started to tell her, but Meredith cut him off.

“A group calling themselves The Order.” she finished for him. “They kill people that they think are an abomination of God. Allison had ... abilities ... that they thought were evil and they killed her for it.” Hannah saw the surprised look on the men’s faces when Meredith told them she knew all about how they died and why. “Like I said Tanto, there’s more going on here than you know. I have my own agenda here.”

She saw the smirk on Billy’s face as he spoke. “Mike and Allison both said you’d be able to take care of yourself when the time came. Yes, she told me about your family and even did the candle lighting thing as she did for you on the back patio.”

Hannah smiled as she finally found the missing piece of the puzzle. She shook her head and smiled at the complexity of Lilith’s planning. Michael and his mancave full of weaponry and supplies, Allison with what she was now sure of was the vast majority of Cyril’s knowledge and information on magic, and Meredith caught in the middle of the whole thing. She opened her eyes and immediately reached out to find her mother. When she found her, she was sitting at a Red Sox game at Fenway Park in Boston.

“Yes Hannah, please join me so we can talk. I’m in the dugout suite and the Yankees are in town.” Lilith told her.

Hannah immediately changed into her human form and shifted to Fenway Park to meet her mother. She wasn’t really a baseball fan; Hockey was more to her liking. But much like her mother and all her sisters, she greatly disliked anything sports-related from New York. She walked down the steps to the dugout suite and where her mother waited for her. The attendant asked Hannah if she could care for anything to drink or eat.

“Lobster Poutine with extra butter sauce and a Sam Adams on tap please,” Hannah told him.

“Have it to you in a few minutes.” The server said putting her order in on his tablet.

She smiled, thanked him, and walked over to where Lilith was watching the game and sat down.

“Chris Sale is pitching well today; he’s already got 5 strikeouts,” Lilith told her.

“Good, I don’t want the Yankees anywhere near the playoffs this year,” Hannah replied.

“I don’t think you have to worry about that. Their pitching stinks worse than the Hudson River this year.” Lilith told her.

“I managed to get Lexus Loge box seating at center ice for the upcoming Penguins season. Buffalo is the season opener.” She said sitting down next to her mother.

“The Bruins are away for their season opener, so I’d love to. Would you have any objections if I invited Sarah and Rachel?” Lilith told her.

“ARE YOU KIDDING?!” Hannah yelled at the umpire as he called ball four on a Yankees batter. “YOU’RE SO BLIND THAT YOU’RE AN INSULT TO BLIND PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD!!!”

Lilith, along with everyone that heard her, laughed hearing her daughter’s comment. “I forgot how energetic you sometimes get at sporting events,” Lilith said.

“Blame the medieval tournaments. Melee, THAT was a competition.” Hannah replied.

“That’s probably why you like Hockey so much,” Lilith replied with a smirk.

“No doubt ... Go ahead and invite them. Just ask Sarah to leave her attendant at home. I don’t want a repeat of the ‘92 Stanley cup finals.” Hannah told her.

“Her attendant was just defending her,” Lilith told Hannah with a small giggle. “Besides, she’s mellowed quite a bit in the last few years.”

“Mother, the man’s skull she caved in was a Blackhawks fan. Sarah’s attendant did it because she didn’t like his tone of voice when he was talking shit to Sarah.” Hannah told her. “I spent over $3 million on that man’s medical care and punitive damages.”

Moments later, Hannah’s food arrived. She slipped the server a ten-dollar tip and thanked him. Hannah picked up a fork and took a bite. She smiled and moaned in pleasure. Lilith looked over at her and smiled as well.

“I don’t know what they do to make it taste so good, but I want to find out.” She told her daughter.

“It has to be the butter sauce they use here. I can taste a very light cumin flavor in it, but it’s not overpowering. Either way, it’s wonderful.” Hannah told her.

Lilith snapped her fingers and enveloped both of them with her magic so they could speak privately. “How is Meredith adjusting?” She asked.

After taking a drink of her beer, she started talking. “Meredith is everything you said she would be. She’s more intelligent than I thought. Her intuition serves her well in learning about our power. Adrienne underestimated her and her ability to fight.”

“She beat Adrienne?” Lilith asked in surprise. “I would have never imagined that Adrienne would lose to anyone. She’s killed men twice her size without breaking a sweat.”

“In Adrienne’s defense, Meredith probably knew Adrienne was a strong fighter, so she used her human magic to level the playing field,” Hannah replied.

“Smart AND analytical...” Lilith said smiling.

“Meredith is going to learn about knives in the next day or so. I expect the results will be different next time. Either way, she’s exceeding my expectations.” Hannah told Lilith.

“Good,” Lilith told her. She paused for a moment and then spoke again. “I already know what you want to talk about, so let’s get to it so we can enjoy the rest of the game.”

“Meredith will meet The Order sooner than later, probably within the next five days,” Hannah said. “They sent scouts to surveil her house today.”

“I knew they would.” Her mother replied.

“How do you know?” Hannah asked her mother.

“I have a source of information from within The Order. He told me that they were going to watch her house. I didn’t have any information about when otherwise I would have told you about it.” Lilith told her. “You also think that you know what my plan is regarding Meredith.”

“You’re going to war with the Catholic church and using Meredith to champion your cause,” Hannah told her.

“No, not the whole Church, just The Order,” Lilith replied. “They’re a relic of the dark ages and it’s time for their ilk to be extinguished, permanently. As for Meredith being MY champion, you’re partly right and partly wrong.” Both Hannah and Lilith paused their conversation to cheer when a Red Sox player got a base hit. “Would you like to hear what happened to Cyril the Wise?”

“You know what happened to Cyril?” Hannah asked in surprise.

“I do, he was captured by The Order in 1320. When Pope John XXII was elected, he had made irradicating witchcraft a priority. He had heard about Cyril and his abilities and sent The Order to capture him. Cyril was tortured and eventually forced to sign a confession that he worshipped Satan.” Lilith told him. “He wasn’t a Satanist of course; he was just very talented at using magic. After he was sentenced to death, the bishop’s council overseeing his trial, asked if he had any last words. The last thing he said to anyone was that there would be a descendant of his that would bring the Order to its knees. He was burned at the stake for witchcraft.”

“And you think that Meredith is that descendant?” Hannah asked.

“I know she is,” Lilith replied. She and Hannah sat quietly for a few minutes before she spoke again. “If you think about it, you can put my plan together from what you know.”

“You manipulated Cyril into having children.” Hannah speculated

“I had a very small hand in it, yes. But only from the point of view that he would need successors to leave his wisdom to.” Lilith explained.

Hannah watched the game for a couple of minutes before she figured it out. “You’ve been guiding Cyril’s descendants to find all the knowledge he left behind. You made sure that the caches of his knowledge stayed hidden and you’ve guided his descendants to the places where they were hidden. Allison was the culmination of your efforts and she has almost everything he left behind.”

“Getting warm,” Lilith said smirking at her daughter.

“Allison didn’t come into her power until she was almost 20. But she taught Meredith from age 14, so you had to know that Meredith would eventually be stronger with magic than Allison...” Hannah paused as she looked at Lilith. “What did you promise ... No, what did Allison ASK for in exchange for her daughter?”

Lilith looked at her daughter with pride. “You tell me, what would Allison ask for?”

Hannah didn’t even need to think about her answer. “Mercy for Michael when his death came. Allison knew he’d willingly give his life to defend her and Meredith, and that it would be a violent death if he was protecting them.”

Lilith nodded that she had the correct answer. “I invited Allison to Rome when Michael deployed with his unit in 1995. She was pregnant with Meredith at the time. She surprised me by accepting my invitation. We spoke for 5 days about Cyril, his descendants, The Order, and hers and Meredith’s place in her family’s history.”

“So, she knew what happened to Cyril?” Hannah asked.

“Yes, I told her all about Cyril and his last prophecy. When I explained everything that I had a hand in maneuvering, she was outraged. But after she had some time to think about it, she understood what her role would be and where the future was being guided. She called and asked to meet me in Atlanta, and we made the deal. When his time came, Michael’s death would be quick and painless, and in return, Allison would teach her daughter everything she’d learned about magic so that when the time came, she would be strong enough to fight and win.”

Another thought came into Hannah’s mind. She turned and looked at her mother in surprise. “You loved him, didn’t you?” She asked.

“Loved who?” Lilith replied.

“Cyril. You loved him and they took him away from you. This is your vengeance, and well as Meredith’s.” Hannah told her.

Lilith thought for a couple of moments and sighed heavily before speaking. “November will be 700 years since he was murdered, and my heart still aches from losing him. He was the most gentle and loving man I’ve ever known. He didn’t hurt anything or anyone unless they tried to hurt him first. The few times he had to fight, he fought enough to stop the fight and that was all.”

Hannah looked as her mother started to tear up. “I never knew.” She told her.

“None of your sisters did. As far as he knew, I was just an average human woman from a small village in Tuscany and not a demon that feeds on human beings. He was a healer first and foremost. I can’t count how many people he helped with illness, injuries, or just to make sure that their families were taken care of. All he wanted to do was to help people. It was the best 15 years of my very long life.” She explained. Hannah watched as a tear slowly made its way down her cheek.

Hannah put her hand on Lilith’s shoulder. “I’m definitely a bit late with this, but I’m sorry for your loss, mother.”

Lilith chuckled hearing what Hannah said to her. “Thank you, daughter...” She said covering Hannah’s hand with her own and squeezing it. She sat up straighter in her chair, cleared her throat, and started to speak again. “How are you going to handle this situation that’s coming?”

“Adrienne, Meredith and I are going to discuss it after Michael’s friends Billy and Jacob leaves to get more things to help them defend the house,” Hannah told her.

“I know that Meredith and Adrienne are strong enough to fend off almost any attack, but don’t discount Michael’s friend’s involvement. These humans bring an uncanny ability to adapt to any situation.” Lilith advised her daughter.

“You sound like you know him.” Hannah paused before speaking again

“I’ve never met them in person, but I’ve looked into Billy Johnson’s mind and have seen the depth of the feelings of love and loss he has for Michael and Allison. Billy and Jacob are two of more than a few that are looking for what Billy calls, Payback.” Lilith told her.

Hannah smiled again. “I missed that aspect of your plan.”

“You would have figured it out sooner than later,” Lilith replied. “Are you listening to them as they plan?”

“I am actually, and I’m impressed so far. They’re going to stay the night and leave in the morning. I’ll visit them tomorrow and we’ll plan.” Hannah closed her eyes and listened to her servants as they talked to Billy and Jacob.

Billy, Jacob, Meredith, and Adrienne were looking at a map of the area surrounding Meredith’s house. Knowing that she had run through those woods since she was 11 years old, they were trying to get every piece of information that they could in order to prepare for who was coming.

“Here...” Meredith pointed. “That’s the closest place where that logging road ends. It’s about a mile down highway 60. The other end of the road ends over near Clermont and that’s about 10 miles east from the house.”