Hello! I'm so sorry, I haven't upload for such a long time. I was a bit busy, but here's the next chapter and as you can see, the end is close, the end of this part, I mean. O.K, keepo reading! And review!

Chapter 21

The baby, the pact and the plan

"Give up, hunter-r-r!" roared werewolves, surrounding Van Helsing. They caught him in the narrow lane of San-Francisco and were sure, he killed LaSalle. Gabriel of course knew as much about it as they do, the Holy Order's enemies' murderers have just done his work.

So hunter as usual did best – killed them all with his arbalest and a pair of silver knives. Still he felt tired after the fight as the full moon was close and he has already started getting tranquilizers. In some way they helped to control himself. Butt now Van Helsing more worried about his mission. The hunter didn't want to hurt the child; he didn't feel anything evil in Diana. "That's ridiculous," he said to himself, while walking down the avenue. "How can the small child be dangerous?"

Gabriel stopped near the large house, where Angelic lived.

"I must do this …" he whispered, trying to convince himself that it needs to be done.

'God, why me? Another testing of my faith?' he thought, reaching Angelica's house.

He was surprised when witch opened the door and embraced him tightly, sobbing bitterly:

"What's wrong? What happened?" Van Helsing asked, calming her.

"Maya! I'll kill her!"

"Maya? I'm sure she didn't do anything … bad."

"You know her not as well as I do. She kidnapped Diana. And now … she's certainly going to kill my girl." Angelic wiped tears, smudging mascara by the face.

"But how could she do this? I mean if you were with Diana all the time."

"Maya is a very strong witch; she can manipulate demons … Still she's in Washington now. Gabriel, please, help me to save my daughter."

"And you trust me?"

"Absolutely. You're a good man, of course, I sin a lot in my life, but Diana … my child … she's not evil, you know it, don't you?"

Angelica stared at Van Helsing, waiting for his decision

"I help you and nothing else matters, but have you got any ideas where Maya hides your daughter?"

"Hmm, I know the one who can get to know."

"Who is it?"

"Oh, you know this person very well, believe me."

"I'm not sure if I can leave Valdemar now," Selina said to Angelic by mobile.

"Ask him, please, Diana …"

"Wait a minute …" she broke and faced to Lora:

"What!"

"Sorry, Sel, but …" the girl could hardly speak.

"Quickly, Lo, say, what you want to."

"Sel, we know who killed LaSalle and all those older men."

"Really? Who?" By her intonation it was clear that she knows everything, still Lora wasn't so brainy.

"The Holy Order!" the girl breathed out, and made Sel stunned.

"No, it can't be …"

"Yes! One of our sanctums in San-Francisco (where children of witches were kept while the situation becoming clear) was … burnt …"

"What do you mean 'burnt'?"

"Like: 'puff' and 'the end'!"

"Children?"

"Werewolves saved them, but the fire made all older men, including Valdemar, to move back to San-Francisco."

Selin returned to the phone, she was squeezing in her hand:

"Hey, Angel, tomorrow I'll be at home, don't do anything before I arrive, O.K?"

"Alright, goodbye."

"Lora, what were you saying?"

"Yes, werewolves saw Malletty and his troops near the sanctum."

"How did they find the sanctum? It's secret information."

"I don't know, but let's hurry; we should accompany Valdemar to the airport."

"Yes, let's go."

On the 3d of March older men of the East part of the USA with their retinues and guard-troops. Red general as Van Helsing always meant bad luck for night society.

Selina just had to separate her duties between Valdemar's protection and searches of Diana. One day when the main older men: Diamond, Luka, Sylvia and (surprisingly) Maya were on the meeting, by the way a very strange one. No guard was near, all doors were locked and there were no windows. Valdemar, as the youngest and less experienced, haven't noticed anything yet, but others became nervous, still Maya was smiling as usual.

"So, let's start?" Diamond asked timidly, making vampiress to laugh.

"Oh, my darling, are you so blind not to notice anything?" she grinned devilishly.

"Is it a joke, Miss Fern?" Luka took a word, while Maya in her white open dress was walking around.

"No, wolf, you understood right – I control the situation."

"You? Alone?" Lady Sylvia tried to smile, but Maya looked absolutely calm:

"Not alone, of course, me, my army around the building and …" she clicked fingers and a tall, brawny vampire entered the room, there was a small child in his hands. Maya took Diana and faced to the older men.

"It is … Maple's daughter?"

"Yes, cute, really? And you wanted to kill this innocent creature, Sylvia?"

The witch stayed impervious.

"Is it true, madam?" Luka asked her, his face frowned.

"Yes! We read the ancient manuscripts! This child would bring death to us all!"

"How could you hide it from the Great Council!"

"It's far from your mind, Luka!"

Suddenly Diana's cry broke the older men conversation.

"Shut up, you, little misery," Maya said tenderly, becalming the girl as she did when Romulus was a toddler.

"So what are you going to do, Maya, keep us here forever?" werewolf asked almost in whisper, he, too, knew how to act with children.

"I'm going to offer you a kind of pact first and then … I'll finish with the girl."

"What pact?"

"Marcelo!" she called and one of her soldiers came in with specially prepared sheet of paper and inkwell with feather.

"I thought it would be nice to sign the pact as we did some centuries ago. Ah, I just love such ceremonies!"

Marcelo put the pact and the inkwell on the table and took place at the door, crossing hands on his chest.

Valdemar started reading the document:

"'With this pact, I am Lord Valdemar Tiberius Diamond commence to leave the place of the Head of the Vampire Council and to fix Lady Maya Candida Katherine Fern my successor', Maya, are you still joking?"

Vampiress shook head; meanwhile Luka wrested the paper and read his part thoughtfully.

"Absurd! Maya, you can't require such things!"

"Really think so?" she faced to Marcelo, who made few steps away from the door and let the other soldiers to come in. They all were armed and looked dangerously - it was a tip-off for older men actually.

"Werewolves won't obey you as the head of the Council, of all Councils. Do you need a new war?"

"Yes, Maya, witches hate you, you'll lose anyway!" Lady Sylvia added thoughtfully.

"And how about Count Dracula?" Valdemar finally found the weak place to bewilder Maya. Still she was absolutely sure that acts right.

"He's so tired from your incompetence and won't be against of my decision. By the way, don't you know how much one simple paper with your sign can make?"

Diana yawned sleepily, making Maya to smile:

"I think my new daughter wants to sleep, hurry up with signs, please."

"Your new daughter?"

"Why not? Mine and Dracula's, but this is the other part of the plan, put your signs now!"

Valdemar flinched, he didn't want to give the Council to this woman; Victor could find the way out surely, still he wasn't Victor.

"I won't sign it! And your threats won't change my decision!" Luka said firmly, Lady Sylvia supported him, too.

"Our lives – almost nothing, eternity – the only and important."

Maya smirked on these:

"Bravo, Sylvia, I could even applaud, but you see, I'm holding the baby. Take them three to the Castle!"

(Under word 'Castle' vampiress meant the fortress built when Victor settled in the New world. It was the sanctum of vampires to hide from the sunlight and the Holy Order. Years passed and the Castle, hidden from humans, became a kind of staff for Diamond's forces, Selina also lived there before she met Dracula and they started living together. Now the Castle was almost empty, but stayed a good sanctum and place where special ceremonies were held. Maya decided to use it for her own aims.)

Well, the vampires headed with Marcelo took the older men away, into Castle. Maya's plan already started working right as she wanted. Still, clever girl has forgotten about a small detail …