Chapter 65: A Ghost Returns

June 1999

When we arrived within a quarter mile of the Gates of Hell, I stopped to devise a plan. It was three-thirty in the afternoon. It had taken us two- and one-half hours to go five miles. That is not bad if you are walking in the dark. Julie changed our batteries in the lamps one more time while I consolidated magazines, so they were all full. I carried no grenades, and I really wished I had another claymore. Ultraviolet lights would not help me against the Jackals. Their weakness was the same as mine ... cold steel and hot lead! Julie had twelve rounds of twelve-gauge buckshot for her shotgun.

I told her, “Should you need another weapon, shoot a Jackal soldier with a rifle or pistol, and take that weapon to use against them. The shotgun is great for close in fighting, particularly if they rushed us as a group.”

“Got it!” She understood. We proceeded to the Gates of Hell to exit.

As I expected, there was a group of heavily armed Jackal sentries guarding the gate. A few black clan familiars were still helping the Jackals. I saw someone I did not expect.

Rosalva! What was she doing here? Was she a ghost or even worse, a Jackal? Upon closer look with my NVG”s, I could see shackles on her wrists. She was going to be used as bait, a hostage, or a sacrifice. Either way, I had to act. I told Julie not to shoot at her. Julie acknowledged but did not understand why. We only had to get through these guards and then into the elevator. A fast and violent action, with overwhelming firepower was the only recipe for overpowering the detachment of Jackals. We decided to go for it.

When most of the Jackals seemed to have their backs to us, we rushed to them, running at full speed with no lights, no torches. It was just two desperate people fighting for survival coming out of the dark, with guns blazing. We were within twenty yards when we opened. I was on full auto, emptying nine-millimeter ammo in black-robed figures as fast as I could.

They never seemed to know what hit them. After they went down, another group came at us from out of the dark. When they were within twenty yards, Julie opened on them, slaying them with buckshot at close range. Some staggered close to us before falling, still clutching their assault weapons. Julie showed no mercy. They had ravaged her enough and I suppose she felt dying was better than becoming a slave again to the horror she had known for months. She even walked forward to finish some of them off. She picked up an assault rifle, an FN-FAL type. Without thinking, she turned it on them as they came at her. I watched in amazement at her skill.

Meanwhile, I had secured the Gates for our purpose of escape. Rosalva was in shock and barely recognized me. I grabbed her by her cuffs and led her to the elevator. Luckily, it was available so we would not have to wait. The doors opened, and three more Jackals were inside, ready to pounce. I was changing magazines when the door opened, so they had me, dead to rights. They leveled their rifles at me. In a split second, rifle fire came out of nowhere, but not at me.

The Jackals went down in a heap, thanks to Julie who had fired from a kneeling position straight into the car. She immediately rose, running through the gates, pushing them to a closing position. She was right. We needed to seal it up. I finished loading and helped her find the lock and replace it back on the hasp.

Now, it was time to get to the surface. Into the elevator the three of us ran, guarding against any intruders until the doors had closed. The ride to the surface seemed like an eternity. I touched my pocket to ensure that the ring was still there. No doubt, a zipper on a pocket is a good thing!

As we reached the top, I knew I could not relax until that ring laid on the sundial in broad daylight. I fully expected Jackals to be waiting on us as the doors opened. I was not disappointed. There were two, who were more surprised than we were. I disposed of them quickly. Departing the elevator, we took cover, expecting more. There was none. I wanted to call out to my wife, or Dread, or Anubis, even Necro, but to do so would be stupid. They might be hiding as well. My priority was to get to the gardens.