Father Sinclair took a slow sip of his tea, his gaze direct as he continued his startling confession. "After the stunt you did at Philip's trial, your father was very displeased. A lot of Church officials voiced that they want me removed from office, and sponsors threatened to withdraw donating funds to the Church if they don't do it." He paused, his eyes narrowing slightly on Krista. "Then, in the middle of all that argument, the orphanage got blown up, which I'm quite sure was your doing."
"Yes. It was us." Krista's voice was steady, devoid of apology, only conviction. "I couldn't think of anything else to stop the research."
"I know. I know that now," Father Sinclair said, his voice softening with understanding. "Back then, I was just so confused. I've known you since you were little and I know how much you love and cared for the children, so it didn't make sense that you'd blow it up just like that. Then I found out that the children weren't there that day, and I figured you must have known all along and that's why it was so easy for you to do it. Then, the remaining question was why. Why did you do it? There must be a reason." He took another sip of tea. "That morning after the orphanage burned down, I went to investigate myself. I went there before sunrise to avoid confronting the Knights who'd be there to investigate. It took me an hour or two, but I found the passage. I found the way leading to the underground lab. It was on the verge of collapsing but I wanted answers, so I went there. And I saw all those corpses."
A wave of grim horror washed over me. Corpses. Not just a lab, but a slaughterhouse. My initial disgust for the Church officials deepened into a cold, seething rage.
"I was shocked. I was in disbelief. I didn't know something was going on in the orphanage. It went against our morals, against everything the Church believes in. That afternoon, your father sent for me and I was dismissed. I wanted to confront him about it, but I didn't have the courage. I guess I wasn't as strong-willed as you." He offered a sad, self-deprecating smile. "After I was removed from office, I was restless. I knew something was wrong, but I was too cowardly. The conscience was eating up on me and I knew I had to do something. I observed the Church's operations the following days. They cleared the ruins and the next thing I knew, the orphanage was already moved someplace else."
Krista leaned forward, her brow furrowed. "What about the children? How did you find Maria?"
"I was tailing your father that day," Father Sinclair explained. "I saw him leaving your house with a huge suitcase. I followed him then and drove for hours. Then, I saw him entering your estate."
"The summer house…" Krista murmured, the realization dawning on her.
"Yes. At first, I thought maybe he only wanted to rest for a while after your sudden betrayal, as he called it. I wanted to leave him alone but my instincts were telling me otherwise. I snuck into the property and that's where I bumped into Maria. She was covered in dirt and she had plenty of bruises. She looked like she was beaten up, with her left arm swollen. I then recognized her as one of the children from the orphanage. I helped her escape from there and treated her like my own daughter from then on." He gave Maria a warm smile. "She told me about what was done to them after the orphanage was blown up. They were made into new test subjects. All the children were."
My jaw clenched. New test subjects. After escaping one hell, they were thrown into another. This was beyond despicable.
"Then how? Who are all these people here?" Krista's voice was strained, echoing my own silent questions.
"I took Maria in. And I trained her to fight. I wanted her to be able to protect herself in case the elites come to take her. They never found her though." Father Sinclair's voice held a note of quiet pride as he looked at Maria.
Krista blinked, clearly surprised. "I'm sorry Father. Fight? You taught her to fight?"
"Before I became a high-ranking official, I was one of the top Knights of the Church." His reveal was met with wide eyes around the room.
"All these people then…?" Krista gestured to the bustling hidden space outside the office.
"Yes, we slowly got them out over the years. The Church kept bringing in people and we kept sneaking them out, though just an unnoticeable number of them every time. We couldn't sneak all of them out without attracting unnecessary attention. Plus, there are those that were impossible to save."
"The ones turning into low-level vampires?" Krista asked, the connection clicking.
"Yes. You see, everybody's body composition is different, so the effects of the drug injected to them will have different effects. Some people are compatible with it, others aren't. Those who were compatible and were strong enough to overcome the process of, should we say, transition will then become hybrids, as we call them, like Maria. Humans with vampiric abilities. Of course, they're still no match for true-blooded vampires, especially the purebloods." He glanced at me, a subtle acknowledgment of my lineage. The term "hybrids" was new, but the explanation made horrifying sense. They were creating their own weapons.
"All those low-level vampires that had been appearing, were they released intentionally?" I asked, my voice cutting through the heavy air, connecting the dots to the unrest in the city.
"Some were. I have an insider in the lab. They wanted to keep the Vampire Council's hands tied up with all those low-level vampires coming out so they wouldn't be able to monitor the Church's operations. They're being cautious, in case the Council suspects." A hint of fear entered his voice then. "Some of those vampires however, managed to escape the lab. Low-level vampires are unpredictable since they've lost all reason. When handling them, you can't think of things in a normal person or vampire's perspective. They have none. You can't talk to them and you can't control them. And what's worse is they are growing in number. The Church intends to pull an all–out war against the Council. If those low-level vampires are released to the open, everybody in the capital will die."
"No." Krista's whisper was laced with dread. "No way. My father wouldn't let that happen."
"Really? Then he shouldn't have started the research in the first place." Father Sinclair's tone hardened. "The fact that he proposed it and made it happen means he's willing to do everything to get rid of the vampires. It means he's prepared to make sacrifices."
The weight of the revelations was crushing. My father, the Council, the Church... a war was brewing, engineered by fanatics, with innocent lives as pawns.
Krista's heart was clearly in turmoil. "Then what's your plan? Are you going to go head on against the Church? Are you going to let these kids fight against those monsters?"
"Kids? You sound like a grandma. You are only ten years older than me," Maria interjected, a flicker of indignation in her eyes. "Most of us here have adapted to our new bodies. We can fight them."
"We are obviously outnumbered. You just said they have a lot of low-level vampires in their hands," Krista argued, her voice rising. It was ridiculous. A losing battle.
"I know. We can't face them head-on, and that's why we need to get rid of at least half of them while they're still in the lab," Father Sinclair stated.
"You mean…?" Krista trailed off, her eyes wide.
"Yes. We sneak in the estate and burn the place down." Maria's voice was firm.
A chilling sense of déjà vu washed over me as I watched Krista flinch. The thought of her going back to that estate, putting herself in that kind of danger again, made my blood run cold.
"No. We can't do that." Krista's voice was tight, the very idea filling her with visible pain. "I can't let you."
"But why not? It's a perfect plan. You know the estate more than anybody else here and you have done it before. We need you," Maria pressed, her eagerness clear.
"No. I can't blow up the estate. That summer house, the hidden garden. The place is full of memories with my mom." Tears rolled down Krista's cheeks, a raw display of vulnerability. "I can't let you destroy it."
Silence fell over the room. My heart ached for her, for the memories she cherished, for the pain of having to sacrifice them. She took a few deep breaths, trying to compose herself, her eyes closed, lost in thought. "There might be another way though." Her voice was faint, then grew stronger. "We can surround the estate and ambush them as they try to leave the property."
"You mean, after the Church releases them? That's too risky!" Maria exclaimed, seeing the immediate danger.
"Yes, but it's the best course of action. We won't need to sneak in and avoid confrontation with the staff and Church officials. Our goal is to get rid of the low-level vampires. If we blow the place up, everyone inside will die including the normal people there. But if we wait for the vampires to come out, we can get rid of them without worrying about casualties." Krista's logic was sound, though the risk was immense.
"Yes. But your plan would require a lot of manpower. The estate is massive so its boundaries would be too much for everybody here to guard." Father Sinclair pointed out, a valid concern.
"That's true." Krista paused, thinking furiously. Then she snapped her fingers, the sharp sound surprising everyone. Her eyes lit up with a daring idea. "There is only one way. But, it might be difficult."
"What is it?" Father Sinclair asked, desperation clear in his voice.
Krista turned to face Jeremy and me, who had remained silent throughout the conversation, absorbing every horrifying detail. Her gaze locked with mine. "We need to ask the Council for help."
Jeremy immediately recoiled, his face paling. "No. I don't think it's a good plan. Do you have any idea how scary Kai's parents are?" He looked at me, eyes wide. "Kai, tell her." I remained still, my eyes closed, weighing the immense risk against the overwhelming necessity. "I can't believe you're actually considering it. Our families won't like this."
I opened my eyes and met Krista's gaze. The truth was grim, the odds stacked against us, but her plan, despite its monumental risk, offered the only path forward. "I agree with Krista," I said, my voice cool and deep, the words sealing our commitment.
Jeremy slumped. "Really? Does that mean we'll have to go and ask for an audience with the Council?" He ran a hand through his hair, his worry palpable. "Damn. My mother and sister will kill me."
"You really are still a baby," Krista retorted, a hint of her old humor returning, despite the gravity of the situation. "It's us who should be worrying. There's a big possibility they'd ask us to tell them everything from the beginning."
"Yes." I confirmed, my voice firm. "We'd have to tell them everything, including Kilian." The unspoken truth hung in the air: his very existence was a violation of vampire law.
Just then, the door burst open. Kilian walked in, his eyes bright with purpose, as if he'd been listening the whole time. "Alright. Fine by me. When do we go?"