SWNOVELS Chapter Chapter Fifteen
In New Philadelphia Ohio, Gabriel pulled into a parking area by the park before he parked his car. He looked through the front window towards the park. He had always wondered what had happened to that child that the Black Hand had tried to sacrifice to the spirit of the Horseman of Death. He had always assumed that the family was still safe. But after hearing what James had told him, he wasn’t so sure anymore. If anything, it sounded like the child might be in even more danger. He looked at the seat next to him. It was the file that Jasper had sent him fifteen years before. He picked it up and opened the file. He started reading what Jasper had sent him.
The dead woman they suspected to be the child’s mother had been discovered dead shortly after the child had been delivered to the orphanage. No one knew where she came from. She hadn’t even been in the system. Jasper had been the one to have come up with the theory of her being a possible descendant. Either the killers knew that as well or they had just killed her just because she had been an easy target. Gabriel doubted the second idea. If she had dropped her baby off at the orphanage, wouldn’t she have done that because she was aware that she was in danger? He kept going through the thin file. Jasper didn’t have much else about the woman except for what they had found in the newspapers and police files.
Gabriel flipped the page and frowned. It was the sketch of a family tree that Jasper had been working on. It looked like Jasper had tried to piece together the possible lineage of the dead woman’s family. It looked like Jasper tried to connect the woman to the missing princess of Russia, Anastasia. Gabriel shook his head. Jasper mainly had a few names on thin branches and not that many. He noticed that the family tree had many stumps. He recognized that the stumps were where the Black Hands had ended the lines. Besides the branch with the dead woman, the only other long branch was Emily’s family branch. The branch ended with Joan. Jasper must have made the tree before Emily’s birth.
Gabriel noticed how close the branches were. He wondered if Jasper had done that on purpose. Gabriel took out a pencil and added Emily and Rachel’s names to two tinier branches sticking out of Joan’s branch. Now the tree was as updated as they could make it. He looked up as he closed the file. After all these years, he would try to see if the child and her family still lived in the area.
That was when he spotted it. The black SUVs parked in another parking area at the park. To anyone else, they would just be a pair of normal vehicles parked along with the many others. He knew though that they were Black Hands’ cars. His eyes glowed grey and he could see through the side of the SUVs. Sure enough, there were Black Hands in them. He frowned. They just looked like they were talking to each other and just hanging out in the SUVs. Why was that? The Darkness and the Man with the German Accent wouldn’t just let Black Hands do that. Not even in the lowest Circle where they did very, very few assignments were allowed to just hang out like that.
Gabriel took out his hat and put it on him. He then stepped out of his car and started walking. As he walked, he made a cane appear and covered his eyes with black shades. The way that he held the cane out in front of him would make anyone think he was a blind man. That would make it easy for him to walk by the SUVs and not draw attention to himself. As he walked, he focused on the Black Hands in the one SUV. It sounded like the Black Hands were enjoying themselves.
“This is apparently an important assignment.” He heard one of the Black Hands say. Gabriel slightly slowed down his pace so he could hear what they were saying. Why would the Black Hands be just hanging out in their SUVs if this was an important assignment?
“According to him, it is.” Another one said. “Apparently there’s supposed to be a possible lead here to another Chosen One.” Gabriel frowned. Were they talking about the child he had left with that family? Or was there another bloodline that not even Jasper and he knew about? He took a seat near the SUVs with his back to them.
“If this does turn out to be another possible Chosen One, do you think that he’ll give the order that that brat who he has been protecting will let everyone have a go at her?” One of the Black Hands asked. Gabriel had a feeling that the Black Hand was talking about the Man with the German Accent. He had given an order to not go after Emily?
“No you idiot. That brat is supposed to be the one he uses for the ritual.” Gabriel was interested in that. The Black Hand was going to try the ritual after all? The ritual to bring back the Darkness on the day the Black Hand worshipped.
Gabriel was about to do something right there when he saw a vehicle pull up next to him. It was a red van. The driver’s door opened. Gabriel’s eyes widened. It was the man from the couple that he had left the child with all those years before. The shotgun door opened and a woman came out. It was the same woman. So the family was still there after all. Gabriel looked at the side door as it rolled back. A girl came out. She had dirty blonde hair and eyes that were blue and green. She looked like she was fifteen but Gabriel recognized her as the baby he had removed from the orphanage all of those years before.
Audrey, the fifteen year old girl, looked at her parents. “Did you get the picnic basket?” Her mom asked.
Audrey smiled. “I was just about to.” She answered as she reached into the van by her seat. She got out the large picnic basket. “Dad, what did you pack in this?” She asked as she set it down to close the door. “I thought you packed food in here.” She continued. “Feels like you packed bricks.”
Her dad smiled. “I thought you said you could carry just about anything?” He asked his daughter.
Audrey rolled her eyes. “Everything but fifteen tons of bricks.” She answered with a smile. She knew that there weren’t fifteen tons of bricks in the picnic basket but she felt like giving her dad a playful bad time. She crossed her arms over her chest. “How about you carry this to the table?” She asked her dad before she left the basket so her dad didn’t have a choice. Her dad laughed to himself and went to the basket.
Audrey’s mom wrapped an arm around Audrey and looked at her husband. “Try not to drop the picnic basket.” She told him with a smile.
Audrey’s dad looked at his wife. “Have I ever dropped the basket?” He asked before he laughed and shook his head. Audrey and her mom shared a knowing look. The three walked towards a picnic table.
Gabriel’s ears perked up as he heard the doors to the SUVs open up. “There the possible Chosen One is.” One of the Black Hands said. So the Black Hands were there to go after Audrey.
Gabriel shook his head. He didn’t know if Audrey was a Chosen One or not. He did know one thing though. He had to keep her safe as long as he could. He stood up and turned around to face the Black Hands. “Hello boys.” He said.
The Black Hands stopped and looked at him. The way that they were looking at him told him that they didn’t know who he was. “Are you talking to us Grandpa?” One of them asked, making the others laugh.
Gabriel smiled and laughed a little. “I am talking to you.” He told them as his face grew serious. “And I suggest you stay away from that family.”
That made the Black Hands stop laughing. Their leader took out a gun. “Sounds like you were eavesdropping on us Grandpa.” He aimed his gun at Gabriel. No one around them acted like they saw them.
Gabriel shook his head. “I know you were waiting for that family because I was here trying to find out how to find them.” He explained.
The Black Hands looked at each other before they looked back at him. “And you are?” One of the Black Hands asked.
Gabriel looked at him. So these Black Hands had no idea who he was. “I am Gabriel.” He answered simply.
That made the Black Hands all draw their guns out and point them at Gabriel. That drew attention. People nearby quickly took off to hide from the fight that looked like was about to happen. Gabriel noticed that Audrey and her parents quickly took shelter between his car and their van. At least they would be safe. He turned to the Black Hands. It was time for him to get rid of them before they caused any more trouble. If the police got involved, it would reveal everything and just cause more panic.
His eyes glowed grey and his cane changed into a staff. He wasn’t going to back down at all. The Black Hands started to shoot at him. Gabriel twirled his staff fast and blocked the bullets. He charged in and started to beat the Black Hands with his staff. The Black Hands tried to fight back but Gabriel took them down too quickly. He looked at the Black Hands after he finished them up. He frowned and knelt down by them. These Black Hands weren’t members of the Seven Circles. These Black Hands were in the uniforms of the Triad. The Triad from Europe.
Gabriel stood up. Why would Black Hands from Europe be working in the States to go after a child that could have been a Chosen One? He could hear the police sirens coming towards them. He looked at Audrey and her parents. They were still hiding by his car and their car. He couldn’t stay there anymore. He ran to the restrooms and his eyes glowed. His outfit changed into different clothes. He looked down at himself. Not exactly his first pick of wardrobe but he knew that Audrey’s family had to have seen him fighting the Black Hand. He left the restrooms.
Audrey and her parents were still hiding. “Josh, do you see what’s happening over there?” Audrey’s mom asked. Audrey’s dad looked in the direction that he had seen the fighting. His eyes widened. “Whoever those guys were fighting, it looks like he defeated them all on his own.” He looked around them. There was no sign of the man who had fought the thugs.
Just an elderly man rushing over to them. The elderly man joined them. “Did you just see that?” He asked the three. He looked in the direction of the thugs. “Who do you think that person was?”
Josh shook his head. “I don’t know but he saved all of us here.” He told the elderly man. The elderly man looked at the car next to their van. Audrey’s dad had a feeling that the car belonged to the elderly man.
“I should get going.” Gabriel told them. “My son will flip out if I don’t get his car back to him. Especially after everything that just happened here.” He glanced quickly at Audrey. He could see why the Black Hand was so interested in her. She looked like Seraphina. That was probably why whoever had sent those Black Hands had been after her. She looked more like Seraphina than Emily did. He got into his car and drove quickly away.