Chapter 21
What Price, Freedom?
Evey listened to Rossiter's footsteps disappear down the hallway. " What?" She mouthed the word quietly. Cautiously, she approached the open door, sticking her head out into the empty hall, peering down both ways. Slowly, she emerged from the cell, retracing her path down the hall that the black bag never allowed her to see. Evey inched slowly down the hall, peeking around a corner, she gasped at the rigid guard off to the side. She straightened and crossed to him------it was a mannequin. Evey poked at his chest, the wheeled platform he was mounted on rolled back against the wall. She continued on to the room, where for so long, she was questioned and tortured in---the door creaked open as she entered. The first thing she saw was the frozen interrogator sitting at his desk. Her finger brushed lightly against the plastic hand, then rapped a knuckle on his hollow wooden head. Around his neck hung a small speaker from a cord. She continued uneasily into a back room where a discarded prison uniform hung on a rack. Sitting on a table next to a pair of leather gloves and a wig, the rat she had seen so many times before, looked up at her through the bars of a cage. Moving through another door, this one camouflaged to blend in with the wall----- suddenly the wind was knocked out of her chest when Evey realized where her prison had been.
" Hello, Evey." V stepped from the shadows.
" You....." She stood staring at him, her mouth open, " you did this....to me!" Her small, thin frame began to shake. " You did this to me!" She stumbled against the wall, bracing herself." You fucking, bloody bastard.....you tortured me, cut my hair and nearly starved me to death....." She reached up and touched the stubble on her head. She glared at him. " You did this to me......" Doubling over, Evey covered her face and began to cry as V moved toward her. Finally, she looked up at him. " Oh god, why......why did you do this to me?"
" Because, you said you wanted to be free from your fear."
A looked of horror covered Evey's face as her slender fingers balled into fists. " You wanted to set me free from my fear? Oh, god....don't you realize what you did to me? You nearly drove me mad!" Disgust and anger lit up her eyes. "I hate you!" She circled him. " I hate your bloody guts! Set me free? You put me in prison to set me free?!" Without any hesitation, Evey flung herself at him, her hands grabbing for the mask, but caught at the last minute by V.
" You were already in a prison. You've been in a prison all your life." V spoke softly, lowering her hands from the mask.
" Shut up! I don't want to hear it. I wasn't in prison....." She tore her hands from his grip, and moved away, wrapping her arms around her frail body. " I was happy....I was happy here....."
" Happiness is the most insidious prison of all, Evey." He reached out to her.
She moved from him. " That's warped! That's evil and it's wrong-----you're evil-----you're crazy!"
" You were born in prison, Evey. I didn't put you there. I just showed you the bars. You've been in prison so long, you no longer believe there's an outside world." V spoke to her gently, hoping she would understand just how much it hurt him to do what he had done to her.
Evey wheeled away from V, covering her ears, trying to escape his voice. " Shut up! You're mad! I don't want to hear anymore of your lies!"
" That's because you are afraid, Evey. You feel freedom closing in around you, and it is terrifying you."
Evey fell as she stumbled through the Shadow Gallery. " I can't feel anything! There's nothing left to feel! Don't you understand?"
" Don't back away from it, Evey. Part of you understands the truth even as a part pretends not to. This is the most important moment in your life, don't run from it." He caught her in his arms as she collapsed onto the stone floor. " Give into it."
" I don't know-------oh, god-------I can't breath—--"
V crouched next to her, holding her shoulders, steadying her. " Good. You're almost there. Go closer. Feel the shape of it as it calls to you."
" What are you doing to me? I can't breather----"
" You were in a cell. They offered you a choice between the death of your principles and the death of your body." V cradled her as she hyperventilated, tears streaming down her face.
" I feel----I feel like I'm going to burst."
" You said you'd rather die behind the chemical sheds. You faced the fear of your own death, Evey, and you were clam. Try to feel now what you felt then."
" Oh god, I felt-----I felt-----"
V hovered over her. " Yes?"
" Like an angel." Evey looked up at him as he squeezed her shuddering body. " Oh god, V, I'm so scared. What's happening to me?"
" The door to the cell is open, Evey. All you feel is the wind of freedom. Don't be afraid." He lifted her gently to her feet.
" Oh my god-----V, what have you done to her?" Jazlyn's voice broke the silence.
He turned, seeing her hurrying toward them. " Help me get her to the roof lift. She needs air."
Jazlyn stared as she helped him walk Evey to the lift that would take them into the night air.
" No more bags-----I want to see." Evey spoke softly leaning against Jazlyn.
" No, Evey. No more bags." V replied as the lift rattled shut and Jazlyn's eyes burned into the mask's black slits, a furious expression on her face.
The three figures stood in the door of the roof access, a raging tempest oozing from a split sky. Slowly, Evey broke away and walked into the storm, the wind and rain pounding against her thin frame.
" Twenty years ago, I too, stared beneath a night like this---naked, under a roaring sky." V spoke quietly as he watched Evey raise her arms, the rain mixing with her tears as a jagged bolt of lightening split the sky.
" The night you escaped Larkhill." Jazlyn whispered to him, the mask turning to face her.
" I'm not proud of what I did, Jazlyn, but there was no other way." V answered, turning to Evey again. " It almost cost me everything...."
Both stood silently until Evey turned and walked toward them. " I understand now."
V's head tilted.
" I'm ready to go in." Evey said, a new tone to her voice. She began walking to the lift that would take her into a new, and unknown world.
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Eric Finch slammed the car door as he looked at the black face of the new government building. Sighing, he tapped his pipe against the heel of his shoe.
" Finch!" He turned at the sound of his name and found Roger Dascomb hurrying toward him.
" Do you know anything about this meeting?"
" No, but I can guess." Finch answered walking up the steps.
" What?"
" Remember, remember the fifth of November...." Finch repeated the childhood rhyme.
" You can't be serious? He's long gone. He has to be. He did what he came to do and it's over." Dascombe laughed as he caught Finch's pace.
Finch chewed on the end of his pipe.
" It is, isn't it?" Dascombe asked, stopping.
" Not for us." Finch answered and walked into the building.
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" Feeling better?" Jazlyn asked as she carefully washed around the wounds on Evey's back.
" They sting a little, that's all." Evey huddled in the tub, her arms around her legs. The bath felt wonderful. She didn't know how long V had kept her prisoner------she had lost count after six weeks.
" I don't know why he did this to you." Jazlyn said apologetically.
" I do." Evey answered, " It was the only way he knew to release me from my fear."
Jazlyn looked at her. " There had to be another way...." She began as she gently rinsed the soap away.
" It was the only way he knew how." Evey answered twisting her head to see Jazlyn." I don't know everything that happened to V at Larkhill, but it has driven him and his vendetta for twenty years. I know he killed all those people----revenge for all who died there. " She paused, " I know about the fire----I did an interlink search. After reading what was on the website, and remembering what V had said about being involved in a fire that day in the kitchen when I saw his hands, guess you could say I put two and two together. I know he was the one that started the fire at Larkhill, and was horribly burnt by it."
Jazlyn listened as Evey spoke. This was not the same Evey she had met. This Evey was stronger, and a new brighter light shone in her eyes. Whatever V's method of insanity, it had forever changed Evey Hammond.
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The five men sat in silence around the massive black granite table. Peter Creedy, the new head of the Finger sat back in the shadows, out of the bright light.
" I have given you almost a year gentlemen, and you have given me nothing. Nothing!" Sutler glared at Finch.
" There's no one better than the Chief Inspector, and you know it, Chancellor." Dascombe jumped in.
" Yes, Mr. Dascombe, I do know it. That is the very fact that keeps me awake at night------wondering if perhaps there is a reason why Mr. Finch has failed."
" What are you saying, Chancellor?" Finch paused, " Are you asking for my resignation?"
" No, I am asking for some god damn results!" Sutler shouted.
" Chancellor, it's not Finch's fault. We've all been looking. The man has simply disappeared."
Sutler drew closer to the table, his face contorted with anger. " Gentlemen, this, this V is out there, I can feel him like a sickness worming it's way into the heart and mind of the public. Something must be done, and it must be done quickly, to exercise this demon from our midst, for our country is at stake." Sutler, " That is why I am now compelled to put each and everyone of you on notice that by November fifth, if you have not given me some type of solid news on this terrorist, and not your continuing excuses, I will be forced to revoke your party status and release you from your current positions within the government."
Everyone looked at each other, stunned.
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Evey walked into the gallery, her bag slung over her shoulder. Spotting Jazlyn in V's overstuffed chair, she walked to her. " Jazlyn...."
Laying the book down, Jazlyn looked up.
" Do you know where V is? I want to say goodbye."
" You're leaving?" Jazlyn asked.
" I can't stay here any longer." Evey replied.
" You will no longer find any locked doors here, Evey." V's voice came from behind them.
Evey turned to face him. " I wanted to say goodbye, and give you this." She held out Valerie's letter to him. " Since you wrote it." That rolled piece of toilet paper she held in her hand had been the only thing that had kept her from loosing that last inch Valerie had wrote so powerfully about.
V took the letter, his head dropping.
Jazlyn watched, then moved to place her hand on V's arm " May I show you something Evey, before you go?" She asked, as V looked up.
Evey nodded, and Jazlyn took her by the hand. They walked down a corridor toward a huge archway, covered by red velvet drapes. Opening the drapes, Jazlyn and Evey quietly stepped inside. The room was lit by candles, and boxes of Scarlet Carson roses were in various stages of growth through out the room. On the walls hung movie posters adorned with the image of a beautiful woman-------her name, Valerie Page.
" Oh my god......" Evey breathed, looking around the room. " She was real."
" Yes, " V's voice broke the silence, " and I delivered the letters to you as they were delivered to me."
" Did you met her?" Evey asked.
" No."
" She was in the cell next to you------that's why you did it------to get even with them for what they did to her----to you." Evey stared at the mask.
" What they did to me was monstrous!" V exclaimed.
" And they created a monster." Evey replied.
" How dare you!" Jazlyn exclaimed, " You have no idea what was done to him!"
" Jazlyn!" V spoke harshly, grabbing her by the arm.
" Let me go, V, she has no right to talk to you that way!" Jazlyn strained against V's grip but to no avail.
" Jazlyn...." He said softly, " It's all right----she has every right to." He turned back to Evey. " Do you know where you will go?"
Evey smiled softly, " Before, that question would have terrified me------no, but I'll find my way. Goodbye, V." She walked toward the gallery door.
" Evey...." V's voice stopped her, and she turned to him.
" If I had one wish, it would be to see you one last time before the fifth." He said, hope in his voice.
" All right."
" Thank you." He watched her leave, the gallery door closing behind her.
" What was that all about?" Jazlyn asked, crossing her arms, looking at him.
" She is to play a very important part in my plan." He answered, looking at the young woman before him.
" You don't trust me enough to help you?" She asked, doubt in her voice.
" Ah, Jazlyn...." He pulled her into his arms, " You also have a most important part to play." His hand lay against her cheek. " I will need you here in the Shadow Gallery."
" The Shadow Gallery----why?"
"Evey will need you that night."
Jazlyn stared, " What about me, V? Who will I have that night? It won't be you----you'll be dead." Her breath caught in her chest.
V tilted his head toward her.
" I need some air." She backed away, heading for the roof lift.
" Jazlyn...." He called after her.
" No, V.....just leave me alone...."
V felt the cut go deep into his soul, and sighed, speaking softly. " No one, my love."
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Peter Creedy always felt calm among his orchids----in these turbulent times, it was one of the few places where he could relax. His orchids were his life----his children. Looking through the magnifying glass, he checked the flower to make sure the cross pollination of this particular species had taken. He smiled at the results he saw. He began to lay the plant tongs down just as the lights in the green house blinked out. " What the hell?"
" Good evening, Mr. Creedy." An ominous voice spoke from behind him as a knife slid up to his throat.
" What do you want?" Creedy gulped.
" I'm here to offer you a deal, Mr. Creedy." V paused, " I know that Chancellor Sutler no longer trusts you, or your men it seems. That is the reason he has been moved underground. You have men throughout the ranks close to Sutler, just waiting on the word to be said. Even now, the Eye and Ear have you under surveillance."
" I don't know what you mean."
" Come now, Mr. Creedy, a man as smart as you......"
" What do you want from me?"
" I want Sutler." V answered, moving around Creedy, coming mask to face with him.
" Why should I agree to do anything for you?" Creedy asked as the point of the knife trailed along his cheek.
" Because, it's the only way you will be able to stop me." V handed him a piece of chalk. " If you agree, mark an 'x' on the greenhouse door."
Creedy took the chalk, and watched as V disappeared into the darkness.
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Green eyes flashed open, and a deep life giving breath was taken.
" Rise, Laslo." A powerful voice commanded.
Slowly, legs swung over an ancient stone alter, and Andrik Laslo, lived once again. Raising his head, his eyes focused on the figure before him. Dressed in black robes , Amduscias, Grand Duke of Hell smiled, red eyes burning into Laslo's.
" Master, I am once again, your most loyal servant." Laslo dropped to his knees as he supplicated himself before the powerful demon lord.
Amduscias placed a claw-like hand on his shoulder. " Rise, old friend."
" Master...." Laslo rose to his feet.
" The spell book-----who has possession of it?"
" Creedy, my lord master."
" H-mmmmm...."
" What is your request of me, my lord?" Laslo looked into the youthful face.
" Take a legion of my finest warriors and bring me the Book of the Chalice. Leave no human alive." The demon ordered, red eyes flashing.
" As you command, my lord."
With a wave of Amduscias's hand, Laslo disappeared.
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V closed the armory door behind him locking it, and walked to the back of the room, unlocking another door leading to a smaller room. Sitting to the side of the wall, a work bench sat, covered with various tools waited patiently for the sound of steel to ring out once again. Stripping the gloves from his hands, V unfastened the ever smiling mask, placing it on a wall hook. Taking a deep breath, he picked up the heavy hammer and began pounding out a more refined shape to the breastplate he was working on------his only chance of returning alive to Jazlyn.
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Peter Creedy marked the 'X' on the door, then broke the chalk in half, throwing the pieces into the nearby wastebasket, smiling. With V and Sutler out of the way, the path would be clear for his placement as High Chancellor. November fifth was less than two days away, and already his plan had already been put into action. Now, all he had to do was wait for V to make contact again with the location of the meeting place. Smiling, he turned the greenhouse lights off.
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Evey Hammond walked slowly down the street toward the market place. As she rounded a corner, movement caught her eyes. A young girl, no older than ten or eleven stood, spray painting V's symbol over a party poster. Hearing Evey's approaching footsteps, she looked up, dropped the can, and ran down the street. Evey stared at the half-drawn 'V' and sighed. She had promised V to return--------but promises could be broken-------. Taking a deep breath, she continued on her way.
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Jazlyn sat reading in the media room, the telly playing softly in the background. She hadn't heard V enter and come to stand behind the couch. " Jazlyn?" His voice startled her and she jumped.
" God, V. Must you always sneak up on me?" She exclaimed as her heart thumped wildly in her chest.
" My apologies, " he spoke, his hands resting casually behind her shoulders on the couch. " It seems to be a habit most difficult to break."
Jazlyn laid her hand atop his bare one. " Some habits are hard to break, some people say." She smiled laying the book on the cushions.
" Jazlyn, " he moved to stand before her." I will be going out tonight. I must make sure my plans are without fault."
Jazlyn nodded her head slowly.
" Then I will return here, to the Shadow Gallery." He said, his hand reaching out toward her, but dropping to his side instead.
" This is the begining of the end, isn't it?" She asked softly, avoiding eye contact.
V took her hand in his and slowly pulling her from the couch. " I never knew love or kindness before you came into my life that dark night. You stirred feelings I thought long dead, emotions, you brought back to life. You gave me hope again, and taught me how to love." He paused, cupping her chin in his hand.
Jazlyn looked into the silver-gold eyes she had grown to trust, and felt a single tear run down her cheek and was quickly brushed away by his bare hand. " If you love me V, please don't do this.....please....."
He was silent for a moment. " Come, I have something to show you." Taking her hand, he led her down one of the side corridors, stopping at a locked door. Reaching into his jacket pocket, pulled out a keyring, found the correct key and unlocked the door. " Stay close to me, the steps can be quite tricky. V stepped inside the doorway and lit a small lantern sitting on a nearby shelf. Then taking Jazlyn's hand once again, he began moving slowly down the dark stone staircase.
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Andrik Laslo flashed his security card at the guards and passed through the check point followed by five men. He continued down the hallway coming to Peter Creedy's office. A broad smile appeared on his face when he thought about the look that would soon appear on his old superior's face. He turned the knob and stepped inside----the office was deserted at the moment and Laslo frowned a split second before approaching Creedy's desk to rummage through the papers there. He needed to find out where the spell book had been moved to. " Tear the place apart! I need that spell book!" He commanded, watching as the demons began searching the office.
" Master...." A gruntal voice broke through the chaos, " it is here."
Laslo looked up and saw a long, skinny finger pointing to a wooden bookcase. Within seconds, books and wood lay scattered across the floor, revealing a wall safe. Reaching up, the demon ripped the door away from the wall------inside sat the spell book, a soft glow surrounding it. With a flick of Laslo's hand, it floated into his arms. " Deliver this to the Master. I shall follow shortly." He smiled smugly, " I have a small bit of business to attend to."
The demon bowed as Laslo watched the creature disappear, and he pulled the door closed behind him. The next part of his plan would soon begin with the help from an unknowing accomplice----one who would soon meet his own demise!