A Requiem Eternal

Chapter 21 - Truth

Tess looked up slowly from her breakfast, "Okay. What is going on? What's wrong, Mom?"

"Why don't you tell me, Tess?" Kate said stern and quiet.

"That's not fair." Daniel said, slowly shaking his head, "Would you have believed her?"

Tess's face drained of color.

"Mom, you know about Daniel?"

"She was there last night. I don't know how or why," Daniel replied, glaring at Kate.

"What? How did you find out about the club?" Tess asked Kate.

Kate took a deep breath at finally having to reveal her deception.

"I found a book in the house. It is written in code. I found out how to translate it and read it. A woman named Sara O'Duinn wrote it. A Psyon named Sorin spoke in visions to her and described feeding on a woman at the club," Kate said.

"Oh, so that's why we had to go out to the O'Duinn place?" Tess said in final recognition.

"You've got to show me the book. I need to know more about them," Daniel said.

"I don't understand, don't you already know?" Kate asked.

"This happened to me by mistake. The ones who made me didn't know how young I was. I'm not sure, but I think the only reason the Psyon have left me alone so far is so I can get to you," Daniel said.

"What about Tess?" Kate said, in desperation.

"They know about her, but I think it's you they want."

"I don't know everything, I haven't translated the whole book yet," Kate reasoned.

"Good, don't touch it again. Who knows what damage has been done by you reading it and going to the club. Teach me and I'll read it," Daniel replied.

"You come with me," Kate said to Daniel.

"Tess, I don't want you anywhere near that book. And we still have a lot to talk about later," Kate said.

Kate took Daniel to the small room outside of her office.

"Daniel we have to be straight with each other from now on, okay? I have to tell you everything and you have to do the same," Kate said.

She sat down at the desk and took her notebook from the drawer.

"I'll try. There are so many things I don't know. I don't even know my name. The ones who made me called me Daniel when they were trying to chase me down. I couldn't remember anything. I couldn't go home and I didn't know how to keep on living. Everything I know, I have learned just by experiencing it...except... I don't know if it was real," Daniel said with a drop of his head.

"What did you see? They talk about appearing in dreams and the astral plane," Kate offered.

"I saw a woman. Her name was Lorelle," Daniel said wistfully.

"Lorelle speaks in the book, she is the one who made Sorin," Kate remembered.

"I didn't know if I could trust her," Daniel said.

"They tried to execute her." Kate said, thinking aloud.

"Look, here's what I already have for you to read. We need to translate more when you are done," Kate said, leaving Daniel alone to get Sara's grimoire.

Kate entered her office and found everything out-of-place and in disarray. Her personal papers and books were strewn about throughout the room. She went to the hiding place hoping they hadn't found it. She felt inside, on her face a visible squirm at having to subject her hand to the old cob webs, spider dinner remains and dust again.

"They're not here. The book and primer are gone." She thought.

"What? Are you sure?" Daniel said from behind her, scaring her to death.

Kate felt around further back. The dusty void was flat and cold. Her face turned red with the thought of who might have taken them. She couldn't believe he had the nerve to do it.

"God damn it, why didn't I lock them up? What was I thinking? Or not thinking. Crap!" Kate said.

"Who do you think took them?" Daniel asked.

"I don't know for sure, but I have a really good idea." Kate replied loud with her anger.

"I was trying to find out about Natasha and Sara and told someone about it. His name is Nori Laurent. He was close to them, knew them both and used to work with them. He is so close to Sara's family they asked him to run her business, just in case she came back. She's been missing for two years. He told me to burn the book."

"Geez, Kate," Daniel said. "You're right about the crap part. He probably burned it himself."

"Maybe not--- Maybe there is still time. I remember he said no one knows why Natasha and Sara are missing. At first, I thought he was threatening me. But maybe he really doesn't know either and wanted to find out why," Kate reasoned.

"Well it's not like he will have it out just lying around. How will we get it back?"

"I don't know, yet...I could tell he is still grieving. He needs to open up about the whole thing. He can't talk to anyone who lived around here when it happened. The police thought he was responsible for a while. He lost two close friends. I've got to get him to open up to me somehow," Kate replied.