The three of them crowded over it. As Caitlin stared, she could feel the scroll heating up in her pocket, and she knew, she just knew, that this was the book from which the page was torn.
Caitlin gently pulled back the heavy pages, surprised at its weight. She turned the pages gingerly, crackling as she went. Each page was thick, and heavy, ancient from years of use, ornately illustrated in all different colors, in drawings all along the edges. The text was in a handwritten scrawl, in ancient Latin. She felt as if she had stepped back into another time.
Caitlin turned and turned, until she reached the middle of the book, and finally, she found it. The torn page. She reached into her pocket, extracted the rolled up scroll, and carefully lined up the other half of the torn page.
It was a perfect match.
They all crowded in closer.
As the pages came together as one, Caitlin could not believe what she saw. Each page showed one half of an ancient shield, sun rays coming off of it, shining. As she lined the pages up together, Caitlin realized it could be none other than a picture of the ancient vampire shield.
All around the picture were Latin words. As the pages lined up, the sentences were now complete. Words, previously torn in half, now fit together, letters matching each other perfectly.
She turned and looked to Caleb. His eyes open wide as he read.
“It’s a message,” he said, as he scanned the page, reading again and again. “An instruction. It’s telling us where to go next. Our final destination. To find the Holy Grail. The final key. And the ancient shield.”
He stopped and looked at them both, and Caitlin awaited, breathless, her heart pounding.
“It reads: the Grail awaits in Dunnottar.”
Chapter Thirty Three
Blake could not comprehend the sight unfolding before him. It was one thing to see a vampire army approaching. That was shock enough. But it was quite another to see McCleod’s men – the human warriors they had grown to love and to trust – betraying them, attacking them. There was no doubt about it: Blake could see from the scowls on their faces, from the way they were charging, that it was an ambush.
Blake stood on the roof of the castle, with Aiden’s men, other vampires he knew and loved – Taylor and Tyler and Caine and Barbara, and scores of others – along with the dozens of other vampires in for the wedding, and knew that there cause was hopeless. They were terribly outnumbered, and the enemy had the advantage of surprise, speed, and superior weaponry. Blake looked around, and wished he saw Polly or Sam somewhere, wished that Caitlin and Caleb were back. But none of them were. They were left on their own, to fend for themselves. The few of them left on the castle rooftop against the thousands of warriors closing in on them by land and by air. Blake was not a pessimist, but he knew a hopeless situation when he saw one.
Still, he prepared to make his stand. He would certainly go down fighting.
But first, he had other priorities. He looked down and saw Scarlet standing there, beside him, and knew that his first order of business was to protect her, to get her out of here. He had to get her far away from the bloodshed that would ensue. Certainly, she would be a casualty otherwise. He also wanted to get her to Caitlin, to have her give her the message that they needed help. That just might save them all. But regardless, more than anything, he owed it to Caitlin to save her only daughter.
Blake jumped into action. He reached down, scooped up Scarlet in one arm and Ruth in the other, and lifted them into the air. He flew away from the oncoming army, over the tops of the human warriors, into the thick mist, then down low into the treetops, where he knew he could lose any pursuers. He flew with all he had, wanting to get Scarlet safely on her way and then get back to help the others.
“Where are you taking me?” Scarlet yelled, struggling, as they flew.
“To safety,” Blake yelled back.
“But I don’t want to go!” Scarlet argued. “I want to go back to the castle! And help you guys defend it!”
Blake was taken aback by this child’s fearlessness. In some ways, she reminded him of Caitlin. But still, he could not give in. Despite her warrior spirit, she would certainly die in any ensuing battle.
Blake soon reached his destination: an ocean beach, on the far eastern side of Skye, down beneath the cliffs. He dove down a cliff he recognized, and aimed right for the rowboat he had stored there, in a cave. He landed right before it, and wasted no time placing Scarlet and Ruth inside the boat.
It was a long, seaworthy, wooden rowboat, with a small sail, and looked like a miniature Viking raiding ship. Blake had used it many times, taking it far out to sea on long voyages. He had liked to sail by himself, late at night, when the ocean was completely empty, letting the waves lap at the boat, and looking up at the moon. He liked to get as far away from others as he could, and let his thoughts wander alone.
Now he could put the boat to good use with Scarlet and Ruth. He could send them off, towards Caitlin.
He leaned over, held Scarlet’s shoulders, and looked her in the eye, firmly, mustering all the intensity he could to try to convince this strong-willed girl.
“You are a brave little girl,” Blake said. “You are fearless. I know that. And there’s no other little girl in the world that I would ask to do this. But I know you’re special. I know that you can handle it. Am I right?”
Blake had sensed her pride, her fearlessness, and he wanted to appeal to it.
He was happy to see it work. She lifted her head up tall, proudly, and nodded her head solemnly.
“Good,” he said. “I’m sending you on a voyage, to your mother and father. You have a special power, a special bond with them. The sea will take you right to them. If you focus. Use your power. Close your eyes as you sail, and let the universe guide you to exactly where you need to go. You are a powerful child. You can make it happen. Can you do that for me?”
Scarlet nodded back, but seemed unsure.
“But what if it takes me to the wrong place?” she asked. “What if I don’t end up near my Mommy?”
“You will. You could end up in no other place. The vampire connection is too strong. Only focus on her. And don’t let go.”
Blake was about to turn and go, when suddenly, he remembered something. He reached into his pocket and extracted something he’d been meaning to give to Caitlin for centuries. He took Scarlet’s little hand, opened it, and placed it in her palm.
Scarlet looked down, eyes open in wonder.
It was a small piece of sea glass. A piece of the sea glass he had given her centuries ago, in Pollepel.
“Please give it to her,” he said “and tell her I will always love her.”
And with that, Blake suddenly leaned down, grabbed the hull and give it a huge heave into the ocean. Within moments, the small sail caught, and the current took the boat out, already far from shore.
Blake saw Scarlet stand in the boat and look back at him, fear momentarily crossing her eyes.
Blake raised a fist into the air, holding it up high over his head. It was a gesture of confidence, to tell her that she could make it.
After a moment’s hesitation, Scarlet raised her fist in the air, and returned the gesture.
Blake turned, took three strides, and leapt into the air.
Now he had a war to wage.
Chapter Thirty Four
Blake raced back to the castle, flying faster than he ever had, eager to get back and help his people. Now that Scarlet was safe, Blake turned all his attention towards helping the others.
As he reached the castle, he looked down and saw complete mayhem: it was an all-out war, as hundreds of vampires battled each other below. His people were terribly outnumbered, attacked from all sides, and Blake was crestfallen to see that, with the battle barely begun, several of his people were already dead, their bodies thrown over the edge of the castle.