Preys and Predators 3 Love Binds, Family Destroy Chapter 58

 

58.

 Jessica sat on the bench provided in the holding cell. She was upset but was more concerned about Lorenzo. He was released but will be charged later. She heard the doorbell open and saw an unfamiliar face.

“My name is Jean, but here I am known as Officer 24602. I am here to release you.” Jean then looked to the back and then back towards her. “Follow me and say nothing.”

Jessica followed the officer and was led to the street. He took her to the corner, and there she met Lorenzo. They hugged, and she cried her tears.

“We do not have much time. The others will be alerted. We need to get away.” Officer Jean led the way through the alley and on to other streets. They walked as fast as they could but soon found the city gates were all with guards. All those who were leading out of the gates were checked and identified.

“We cannot leave by there. We need to find another way.” Officer Jean told the couple. “I want you to go to the next alley and wait for me.”

Officer Jean then proceeded to the gate and met the officers there.

“Jean, the others were looking for you.” The officer there looked at Jean. “We are to check for the escapee named Jessica Judas. Her holding cell was empty just now. We were deployed here to stop her.”

“I was away… busy at the tavern.” Officer Jean feigned the excuse. “Where do I position myself?”

“North gate.” The officer told him. It was then an officer rode to the gate and saw Jean. Alongside the officer on horseback was the carriage with more officers. There were two other officers nearby on horses.

“24602! You are under arrest. We caught your friend, Maurice, at the court. Surrender now.” The senior officer was on horseback. It was how the officers were deployed so fast to the gates. Jean heard the order and turned to run. He was blocked by one officer with the baton in the right hand.

“Sorry, Pieter, but you are always slow.” Jean landed a punch on the other’s face and jumped over the groaning officer. He was chased by the officer on horseback. When the rider rode next to Jean, he reached out to the horse rein and pulled hard. The horse reeled from the pull and raised its front hoofs, causing the rider to fall off.

“Hold, Jenny.” Jean held onto the horse reins and comforted the animal. His time spent at the barn was worth its while then. He climbed on the restrained horse and rode down the street.

“Stop that man!” The fallen officer called out to the others. The two officers on horseback rode after Jean. The horse ridden by Jean galloped towards one of the city’s squares, and then Jean waited for the riders. He saw the two pursuing officers and rode to meet them. He was galloping at speed, and when he was in-between the riders, Jean reached out to the officer on the left. He grabbed the baton levelled at him, and with great strength, he pulled the baton off the officer’s hand. The pull caused the rider to fall off, and Jean was with the baton held in his right hand. He turned the horse in a tight turn and faced the remaining rider who had galloped past. He rode hard at the officer who was trying to turn his horse, but Jean caught up with the rider when he was doing the tight turn. He threw the baton at the other rider, hitting the figure on the face. That caused the last officer to fall off the horse.

Jean then retrieved the second horse and galloped off. He rode towards the nearby alley and then detoured back to fetch Lorenzo and Jessica.

“Ride for the port. Look for the vessel ship named Jamaica. See the Captain. He is paid to give you passage to Spain.” Jean dismounted. “It is all arranged by your mother, Lady Sofia, through the friar. She met me outside the court and told me of the plan.”

“Here are some ducats for your travel.” Jean smiled. “Travel safe. I will lead the officers away.”

“What about my parents?” Jessica asked.

“I will see to that they know of this … much later. Now go.” Jean assisted the lady onto the horse, while Lorenzo took the other horse. He then ran back to the square. He had to misdirect the officers who were pursuing them. He saw them near the square.

“Hey, my fellow officers. I am here.” Jean hollered out to the group of officers there. They chased after him, and Jean, who had familiarized himself with the streets and alleys, took off on the run. He ran in the bazaar nearby and ran the stretch where the traders displayed their wares. He grabbed the displays and strewed them on the flooring, thus causing havoc there. The officers numbering five rushed after him, but he was already out at the next exit. He had a choice of running to the right or left on the busy street or slipping into one of the adjacent alleys. He did that and was soon into the cloth merchant’s warehouse. He ran up the stairs to the roof, and from there he ran across the roofs. It was a route that he recalled when he was pursuing a thief once, and the memories served him well.

“He is on the roof.” The officers saw him, and then they split into two groups to pursue him.

Jean was not giving up and ran across several roofs before he descended into the canal that was flowing there. It was a calculated move, but he did not bargain for the icy water then. He swam across the canal and then climbed out. He heard the calls of the officer from across the canal and directed the pursuit path to take the nearby bridge. Well, that was not how he recalled the chase. He did jump from the roof but landed on the side of the canal.

“Damn! I should have landed on my feet.” Jean shrugged off the damp feeling and ran on. He knew of another route that he could take in front.

“There he is.” Another group of officers had blocked his path. Jean took off on the adjacent alley and was lost. He was not sure of the direction and then heard the shouts of the pursuing officers. He had little choice: fight or surrender. He saw the manhole and opened it. It was not the best of routes, but desperate moves called for desperate acts. Jean jumped and landed on the watery passages of the sewage canals. He took off on the watery path, ignoring the smell there.

“Senior Officer, the …… 24602 is in the sewers.” The pursuing officer reported to the commanding officer. “We …”

“Did you pursue?” The senior officer looked at the one who reported to him. The other officer shook his head and added, “We are tracking the sewage canals at the exits.”

“I think that will suffice. He will come out soon to get fresh air.”

 “Aye, Senior Officer.” Officer Pieter smiled. He knew that 24692 Jean once pursued an escaped felon in the sewers. “It would not be his first time.”

At the port, hidden in the warehouse, Jessica looked at the ships there on the wharf. She was with Lorenzo, and they were waiting for the right moment to sneak aboard the ship.

“Jessica, we can go someplace in Spain and start over.” Lorenzo looked at his lover. “Do you trust me?”

“I do, Lorenzo, but I am concerned about my parents. What will happen to them?”

“Nothing …… No harm will befall them. This was all my mother’s idea for us to be together. She had planned it all with the friar.” Lorenzo looked towards her.

“What of my parents? Do they know?”

“I am unsure. It was all told to me this morning by Mother. She had arranged through the officer and the ship we are to board.” Lorenzo replied. “I am sure my mother will see to the well-being of your parents.”

“How can you be sure? You are not here anymore.” Jessica looked away. “I love them.”

“As I do of you, but this is our only chance to be together.” Lorenzo held out his arms towards her.

“And be concerned about them daily. No, that is not my choice now.” Jessica sighed. “I must go back to see them. I will tell the truth… once more, and then we leave. I must leave words to them.”

“We cannot leave. It is dangerous for you.” Lorenzo tried to hold back Jessica, but she pushed him away.

“Leave me be, Lorenzo.” Jessica walked away; for her, the love of her parents was deeper. She stopped in her midstride and turned towards Lorenzo.

“Go if you must, but do not expect me to… follow now.”

If only it was simpler for Vlad then, but he found himself housed at the abandoned monastery some distance into the woods. He was brought there by the friar along with Chorbaji’s men: five of them and one reluctant young lad named Romeo.

The monastery was built at the edge of the woods near a stream, which supplied occupants with water. From the left side of the monastery, you can see the woods that look like a wall of greens, with a small garden that separates the distance. There are some ruins near the woods, probably the wooden sheds or barn when the monastery was inhabited then.

The main structure of the monastery was a small basilica, with only a nave and a wooden roof, surrounded by the monks' cells. The frescoes of the temple partially date to the 12th century. Inside the basilica were decayed paintings of the saints and some depictions of their patron. Their once luxurious clothes with rich embroidered cloths were in tatters, with dusty braids and fringes.

“You are uncomfortable, Chorbaji.” Vlad looked at the commander of the Turks. They were standing inside the basilica looking at the depiction of the patrons of the monastery. “Do they instill the guilty images inside you?”

“No more than yourself, Wallachian. The blood shed for my sins is pale to yours.”

“My past? Are we reflecting on our past? I have... Yes, I have killed many others, including my fellows of the same faith. But I can see the discomfort is building in you.” Vlad smiled. “I made my peace with my victims some years back, and my nights are without nightmares. I have surrendered my soul to God.”

“So have I, Wallachian, but our gods may… Well, I shall not say what judgement day will tell of me, but I am past the need for repentance. I have submitted myself to the way of my physical life, not what God had asked of me not to do, but the devil in me drove me to it. And with that, I am given more devil spawns to groom.”

Vald laughed then.

“I can see that beyond the dedication to the Sultan; you are still a human who harbours discomfort towards me.”

“I do not understand.” Chorbaji looked at Vlad.

“You claimed to protect me as ordered by the Sultan, and yet you loathe me for the killing I had done. Now that we are in the home of ……. God, you are feeling the humanity inside of you. Am I that loathsome, Chorbaji?”

“Why the questions now, Wallachian? You were never the one to talk, more on the need to rebel then. And for your knowledge, I like you more. You were more of myself inside, the warrior and the commander, while Radu lacked but made up for it with a charming personality.”

“Does that make me likeable? Loathsome?” Vlad looked at the other. “Be honest, we stand before God now. Or they are the messengers to God.”

“Your God, Wallachian. Not mine. But to your need to know, I do not find you loathsome. Nor likeable. I much prefer your brother’s company to being with you. I could shed my warrior self and discussnon-warlike subjects.” The Chorbaji saw the surprised look on Vlad. “In my own time. I studied astrology, mathematics, and history. Not of the violent battles but of evolution or civilization.”

“Radu will sit with me on these subjects.” Chorbaji Tarmuk smiled. “My toughness on the skin does not reflect the softness of my heart.”

“Why do you ask now, Vlad?” Chorbaji Tarmuk looked at the Wallachian.

“As I mentioned, I have closed the chapters of my past, but in truth, I am still liable for it.” Vlad sighed. “I cannot escape that. Their deaths are on my soul. Like a skin to my soul. For me to shed that, I may have to join them.”

“Do not be hard on yourself, Wallachian. If I am to count on every person I had killed in battle, I am equally as vicious as you. We are servants of our fate.”

“When you came to take me away from my family, I was relieved, for my sins will not be on them.” Vlad said. “The sins of the father can be burdensome. Let them grow without knowing their true father.”

“I am …… without words for you. I am sworn to protect you and Radu. I have to say this, but we are a family here. Your safety is on the list of concerns for me there. That I will do even if I am to sacrifice my life. As to the sins we carry, I am without any kin to carry mine, although if I am the last alive, I will carry yours and Radu's. Only God can tell me if that is true.”

“Are we then your… extended family?” Vlad asked, “Are you willing to die for us?”

Chorbaji Tarmuk remained silent. He was unsure of what to say, and instead, he looked at depictions on the wall. “Maybe we are in the right place…… They may be looking at us and/or… rather you, to have our soul cleansed of the sins.”

“If that was as easy to be done as told.” Vlad smiled. “Our enemies are drawing near. Lunch then? I’d rather be fed than die of starvation.” Vlad smiled. “I think our young guest will want to be fed too.”

The two of them looked at the lad who was bound with ropes to the chair. His name is Romeo Capulet.