I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get this done before the holidays or not. But, here we are! Giving a fair warning there are mentions of blood and stuff in this chapter. Nothing super graphic though. As I said before this was done from my phone so I'm sorry for any errors.
Happy Holidays everyone!
Enjoy~
Santos let his eyes drift around the poorly lit cave. His plans were finally coming to fruition. His life goal, finally within his reach. Thankfully, the children had done just as he'd requested. The redheaded woman laid face down, on the ground. Lorenzo leaned up against the wall, staring at the unmoving Madrigal.
"She's been given the sedative. But we need to start. The effects have been lasting less and less."
Santos gave the muscular man a nod of understanding. It wasn't as if he didn't already know that. But he appreciated Lorenzo's careful watch of the situation. "Her body's adjusting much quicker than I originally expected."
Santos let a smile grow as he walked over to Zara. Reaching out, he patted the girl on the head. Leaning down, he pressed a kiss to her hairline. "You've done well, my daughter. You as well, Lorenzo. I'm proud of both of you. None of this would have happened if it weren't for you."
"Thank you, father." Zara beamed up at the older man with sparkles in her eyes. The only thing she wanted in her life was to make him proud and she'd done it. All her hard work and dedication to their cause finally paid off.
"Gather around." The leader ordered as he gestured to everyone. The members of their group wasted no time. Each of them took their spots, forming a makeshift oval around the unconscious redhead. Instantly, the leader noticed that they were missing someone. "Where's Dante?"
"He's coming." Heidi spoke up from her spot beside Hernesto. "We had to separate. The strong one and her father were trailing us. So, Dante decided to backtrack and lose them."
"Yes. The family have grown very suspicious."
"It doesn't matter if they are or not. They can't do anything. We got what we needed.
"Enough." Santos called out, silencing the room. The family was suspicious, that much he was certain. He'd seen the look in the matriarch's eyes. They didn't have time to wait. They needed to finish the ceremony before the Madrigals got lucky and found them. "It's time to begin."
"Zara."
"Yes father."
The dark-haired girl's own smile widened with excitement. Picking her mochila up off of the ground, she rummaged through it. Seconds later she pulled her hand back, bringing a silk green cloth with it. Letting her mochila fall she gently placed the cloth in her father's waiting hand.
Pulling back the moss-colored cloth, it revealed the ceremonial knife. Its white blade was no longer than six inches. The wooden handle was engraved with various symbols of the deity they served. "With this blade, we ready the vessel for the almighty. The mother of all. The Goddess Pachamama."
Kneeling, Santos brought the edge of the blade to the back of Pepa's shirt. With a quick flick of his wrist, the yellow blouse she'd worn split open revealing the bare skin underneath. Pushing the torn fabric to the side he pressed the tip of the blade into the center of her exposed back. Slowly, and carefully, he dragged the knife across her pale skin.
"What are you doing?"
Santos' hand stilled as he lifted his gaze to the last member of their group. Dante stood slightly behind Heidi. His own eyes were glued to the knife. "The vessel must be marked."
"Marked?" Dante's tone held nothing but confusion at the simplicity in the man's voice. Surely, he wasn't being serious? "You mean you're going to carve the symbols into her?"
"How else do you think Pachamama's going to find her way to the vessel, idiot?"
"This wasn't a part of the plan."
"This has always been our plan."
"But you're hurting her!"
"Sacrifices must be made!" Santos shouted. Lifting the blade away, he turned his attention to the young man. The marking process needed to be perfect. Not only the chakana, but all the markings needed his focus. If he made a mistake, there was no way to fix it. No way to just erase it. All their planning would be for nothing. "The symbol must be present on the vessel. If not, then the Goddess won't be able to find her way. Don't you want your wish to come true? Don't you want your family back?"
"I do." Truly, it was the one thing Dante wanted most in the world. The feeling of holding his son in his arms again. The sound of his wife's laughter filling the walls of their home.
"Then take your place and be quiet."
Is destroying someone else's family really what they would have wanted?
As much as he hated to admit it, he knew the answer to Pepa's question. His wife wouldn't have wanted this. She'd be horrified to know that he was letting an innocent woman go through this. Even if it were to bring her back.
"No. I can't do this. My family wouldn't want this." Dante locked his stare with the white-haired man. Santos could see it in his eyes. The resolve to bring his family back had been replaced. Replaced by something new.
Determination to stop him.
Santos quickly stood, but Dante had already made a run for the opening of the cave. "Hernesto. Lorenzo. Do not let him reach the village. Do whatever you must. But do not let him get to the Madrigals!" He growled.
"Yes sir." Both men wasted no time sprinting after Dante.
Zara spoke up as the pair left. "What about us, father? What do we do?"
"We continue."
Dante's lungs were burning. The last time he'd run this fast was the day his wife died. The day he'd gotten the feeling that something was wrong. The time he'd sprinted home, just to be too late.
But he wouldn't be too late this time. He couldn't.
Pushing through the tall brush, he collided with something. All the air left his lungs as he hit the ground, hard. He couldn't help the panic that seized his heart. How did Hernesto and Lorenzo gotten in front of him? Was he caught?
"Woah. Hey, are you okay?" The voice was far too familiar and feminine to be either of his pursuers. Cracking his eyes open, he felt relief wash through him. Two familiar faces filled his vision. Mirabel and Camilo Madrigal hovered over him.
"You." The curly haired boy growled as he watched the older man with narrowing hazel eyes. "What are you doing out here?"
"I- um."
"Well?"
"I'm sorry. I-I didn't know what Santos had planned."
"Didn't know what-?" Realization crossed the boy's face. His confusion twisted into anger. Leaning down, he pulled them man up by his shirt. "It was you! Where is she?!"
"Cam wait." Mirabel placed a, hopefully, calming hand on her cousin's shoulder. Saying that Camilo was upset would be an understatement. Mirabel had overheard the conversation between her uncles. That her dear cousin had taken the news worse than anyone in the family. Now that the man all but admitted to his involvement, she could see the anger building in the shapeshifters face. He had every right to be angry -they all were- but she couldn't just let him beat the man. At least, not before he told them the location of their missing family member. "Let's hear him out."
Camilo released his hold on the man's shirt. Dante hadn't been prepared for it, and sprawled back onto his back. Cautiously, he sat up slowly, not wanting to upset the shapeshifting Madrigal any more than he already had.
"I promise I'll explain everything later. But right now, they're chasing me."
"Who's chasing you?"
"Lorenzo and Hernesto."
"Why?"
"Because..." Dante began. How could he even begin to explain to them what was happening? How could he look this kid in the eyes and tell him the role he played in his mother's current fate? "Because what they're doing isn't right. It wasn't part of the deal. I can't-"
"Get down." Mirabel hissed as she shoved both Dante and Camilo to the ground. Pressing her finger to her lips she warned them to be quiet.
A few seconds later a small rustling sound came from the other side of the brush. The trio held their breath as the footsteps stopped. From his spot on the ground, Camilo could just make out two pairs of boots. "He's got to be around here somewhere. There's no way he could have outran us."
"Shut up." Lorenzo's said steadily. "He'll hear you. Keep looking."
The trio on the ground waited in silence until the footsteps completely disappeared. Sitting back up, Mirabel fixed her bespeckled gaze on the outsider. Unlike her cousin, she didn't seem to harbor the same hostility towards him. Not that he blamed the boy. "You need to tell us why are they chasing you."
"Because I want to stop their plans."
"Why now?"
"He never told me his plan involved hurting her." Dante said sadly. He watched as the boy's hazel eyes widened. Holding his hands up in surrender, he tried to offer some comfort. "She's alive. At least, for now. That's why I ran. I wanted to find your family. To tell them where she is."
"If you want to help then take us to her."
"I can't." Dante said with a frustrated sigh. Raking his hands through his hair he stared the boy down. "You don't understand. It's not going to be as easy as you think. There's too many of them for just the two of you. Especially considering..." He said awkwardly as he gestured to the one Madrigal who didn't have a gift. "We're going to need more of your family."
"I still have my gift. All I need to do is get her free. Then Mamà can use her powers." Everyone in the Encanto knew that his mother's gift was the most powerful of all the Madrigals. Even if she couldn't always control it. Surely if he freed her she'd be able to stop them.
"Right now, your mother can't use hers." Dante muttered. "Santos has been drugging her with a sedative. It's how he's been able to keep her from using her powers." Taking a breath, he leveled his eyes with the teens in front of him "Look, I know you want to save her, but right now our best bet is finding the rest of your family. Ones that can help." Dante watched as Mirabel flinched at his words. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."
"You don't understand, we don't have time for that."
"No. You don't understand. He knows all about your family. He's had someone inside the Encanto for a while now. Researching you. That's how he knew how to get to your mother in the first place. And how they've been able to keep her out of range from your sister's hearing. He knows all your gifts. He's got plans to counteract any of you. But even he knows he can't stop all of you."
"Cam, he's right. We need the family."
Camilo sighed. Rationally, he knew they were right. That if what this man told them were true, that they'd need the help of at least Luisa and Isabela. "Fine. Let's go back to Casita-"
"Lorenzo, over here!"