Trinity Blood Fan Fiction ❯ Blood Sacrifice ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter Four

 

It was again late afternoon when León and Abel awoke, the priest stirring first, the pair still wrapped in each other's arms. Reluctantly, they separated and rose, taking turns washing up in the bath down the hall that they shared with the other rooms on their floor. The two were all business as they dressed, though they couldn't help the few glances that passed between them. The pair set out from their hotel, Abel wanting to speak with the old man that had led them to the church the night before, the AX agents making a brief stop at the police station to get his name and address. While they were there, they spoke briefly with the detective in charge, the man promising to have a copy of the initial report delivered to their hotel by the end of the day. The man didn't say very much, still looking a bit shaken by the slaughter inside the church.

It took Abel and León some time to find the address that they had been given, the two finding themselves lost at least twice before finding a boy who agreed to show them the way in exchange for a few coins. The house that they were led to was small and narrow, like its neighbors along the twisted streets of the inner part of Valentia. They found the old man alone, bleary eyed and perhaps even a bit drunk, his dark eyes red and haunted looking. At first, he had been reluctant to speak, but Abel's soft voice and soothing presence eventually coaxed him into answering their questions.

The man could only tell them that he had been a member of the church, and had been since he had been a boy. He had been late for mass, hearing cries from within when he had arrived. He had pounded on the doors, tried desperately to open them but they had been locked from inside. He had no idea what had happened, though it had sounded like "all hell had broken loose" he said, "like the devil himself had come." He had managed to get a look through one of the lower windows, the sight nearly freezing him to the spot with shock, before he had stumbled away and run to the police. Abel had spent a few minutes afterwards speaking quietly with the man, the two of them praying together while León waited, the broad-shouldered man leaning in the doorway.

Once Abel had finished ministering to the old man, he and León made their way towards the church once again, wanting to take another look around. The trip was a quiet one, Abel's thoughts turned inward as he both mulled over what the man had said and all the things he hadn't. While the elderly gentleman seemed to be feeling a bit better, Abel knew he would be haunted by what he had seen for a long time, and it bothered him some that he hadn't been able to do more, especially after having been singled out to help.

 

 

A single police officer had been left to guard the crime scene, the man recognizing León and Abel from the day before, only glancing at the identification card that the pale-haired priest showed him. The front doors had been chained and padlocked, the officer opening them for the two AX agents, clearly reluctant to enter the building himself as he waved the two inside. Abel took a deep breath as they headed inside, bracing himself as they passed the threshold. The priest was wary of what they would find, still uneasy after having had his Crusnik activate twice without his consent.

The first thing that both men immediately noticed was that the bodies had been removed, though the smears and now-dried pools of gore still remained. That didn't surprise them; it was no great mystery that the townspeople had wanted their dead dealt with. The first thing Abel noticed, however, was that the odd ringing in his ears hadn't started up yet, and for that, he was exceedingly grateful. León glanced in the ivory-haired man's direction, observing his partner for a few moments, watching to see if there was any change in his countenance. Abel glanced back at León at the scrutiny and gave a weak smile. "So far," he said, "So good."

Let's hope it stays that way. The brown-eyed man nodded his head a bit.

Abel only held León's gaze for a few moments, before he stepped forward to begin his scrutiny of the church. The pair made their way up the main aisle, León taking one side, Abel the other, the two of them carefully picking their way amongst the pews. The silence in the building was almost deafening, broken only by the men's muffled footsteps and the rustle of their robes. When they reached the pulpit, and still found nothing, Abel frowned slightly, looking around. "What?" León was standing a few feet away, his hands on his hips as he looked at the other man.

"Something is different," Abel said.

"Well, obviously."

Abel shot León a wry look. "I know, I know, it's not very specific...but my ears aren't ringing this time."

"What makes you think that had anything to do with this place?" the brunette asked.

"Because it didn't start happening until we were inside, last time."

"Okay, so you're not freaking out." León said. "That still doesn't give us any clues."

"No, but it means we might actually be able to finish a search," Abel said, stepping up toward the pulpit.

"I looked this place over yesterday. I didn't find anything."

"Even so, I'd like to give the place another thorough search through."

León nodded. "Yeah."

The rest of the search went more quietly after that, Abel's concentration on what he was doing. When he reached the pulpit, however, he let out a soft gasp. Lying on the pages of the bible was an ornate metallic cross, almost identical to the one he had seen in the first church. The brunette man looked over at his companion, the sound carrying easily in the stillness. "What? Did you find something?"

"I'm...not sure, but I think I may have."

León made his way over towards the pale-haired man. "I recognize this," Abel said, indicating the cross but not touching it.

"From what?"

"That first church. I found one very like this there."

"We're in a church Abel." the other man didn't look impressed. "You're bound to find crosses."

"The last one I found..." Abel trailed off, frowning, the memory starting to wander into the hazier parts of his memory.

"What?"

"It seems as if it had something to do with...what happened...but my memory's so hazy..." Leon stepped closer to look at the object, the dark-haired man reaching out towards it. "Wait," Abel said softly. "Don't touch it...not yet...I think that had something to do with it..."

The other man's hand stopped a mere inch or so shy of touching the cross. Abel looked around. He still didn't hear any ringing, nor did he feel the odd sensations he had before. His eyes traveled over the room, alighting finally on a statue nearby. "That's strange..." he murmured.

"What now?" León asked as he slowly drew his hand back.

"Come look at this statue, León..." The dark-haired man stepped over to join the blue-eyed man. At first glance, León did seem to find anything remarkable about the statue, like the majority of the interior of the church, it was splashed with blood, though only around the base. When Abel saw no recognition on León's face, he went on. "It looks like it was holding something once...I seem to remember it holding a sword..."

León stepped around Abel to take a closer look at the sculpture, his dark eyes scrutinizing the image. Abel stepped back a bit to let León look, and moved to return his scrutiny to the cross he had found before. As he got a closer look at the statue, León had to agree with the other man. The image had been carved in such a way that the angel's hands were curled as if it to hold something.

"I wish I could remember for certain..." The words fell absently from Abel's lips as he looked at the intricate designs on the cross, and exhaled a soft breath, reaching out to touch the surface gently.

Nothing happened.

That confused Abel somewhat. They've taken something, the priest thought, but kept it to himself, as he was unable to explain the suspicion sufficiently. "Well, if there was something here," the dark-haired man said as he turned towards Abel. "For whatever reason it's gone now."

"So it would seem," Abel murmured softly, mostly to himself.

"I guess the police could have confiscated it." León mused. "Though hell if I can guess why."

"I suppose we could ask them," Abel murmured. "It seems like it should be important..."

León stepped back to the other man's side. "We can stop by on our way back."

"Sounds like a plan," Abel said, nodding.

"So what now?"

"We should finish checking the rest of the church, just to be thorough, and then stop by the police station."

The dark-haired man nodded. "Do you want to split up or stay together?"

"This'll go more quickly if we split up," Abel said. "We can keep in touch via radio...er, the Professor did remember to give you yours, right?"

"It was with my uniform."

"Good," Abel said, nodding. "Then shall we get to it?"

"It's what the boss lady pays us for." León said with another nod of his shaggy dark head.