Seeking Information

Isabel leaned against the brick wall with her arms folded against her chest as she watched approvingly as Casey worked his magic upon Judith's scorching flesh. Such new designs that she had taken from the base of the Fellowship of The Sun. She had to admire their creativity for what they had planned for the torture of vampires. Although it brought back memories of Godric as she quickly dashed those memories away.

"Enough now Casey...I want her kept alive. Soon you shall have your fun" she grinned.

Signalling Casey to take a step back as Isabel approached Judith who was now chained to the wall with silver shackles to both her wrists and ankles and one around her neck. Her clothing burned from Casey's over enthusiasm with the blow torch.

"Come now Judith, tell me what I need to know then this can all stop. You have my word" she lied.

Judith took in a long, unneeded breath as Isabel approached her.  She was infuriated but far too weak, and in too much pain, to be able to do anything about it.  Lifting her head and wincing against the white hot pain where her skin had been roasted, Judith simply stared ahead defiantly.  There was no way that she would allow herself to betray her brother; the one person whom she truly loved and had loved her in return.  

"I am not stupid enough to think that this will stop even if I were to tell you what you wanted to know.  Just kill me Isabel.  I will never betray my brother."

Once again, Judith looked on as the room began to swirl and darken around her.  When the darkness faded, she found herself looking on at William.  Tears began to threaten her face, despite the fact that she hadn't fed for quite some time.  She knew this place and remembered well what events would unfold after this night.  It was the beginning of the end to her and her dearest.

Bill's feet slithered along the concrete floor as he stood appraising his one remaining relative. With her head hung low for a moment as she slowly began raising her head to gaze at him. A smirk spread across his face as he approached Judith and stood before her.

"Judith my love" he whispered as his hand reached out to cradle her face in the palm of his hand.

Pressing her face against William's hand, Judith felt as the tear that threatened escaped her eye and rolled down her cheek.  

"William?  Is it truly you?  I'm sorry my love but I will die here, in this place.  I'm sorry for everything that I've done to you; for betraying you the way that I did.  But I did not betray you this time.  No matter what is done to me, I will not tell them anything.  I love you William.

Judith wished that she could wrap her arms around him; to hold him once more before she met the True Death.  Having him here with her, however, would be enough. She could now die happy.

"Shhh Judith..." he whispered.

His thumb caressed over her cheek and down to her cracked lips, her body deprived of blood as it fought to keep her alive.

"It's going to be okay....It won't hurt much longer, we will always be together" he whispered again.

"Yes, William.  I will always be with you; always by your side, just as it was meant to me.  You may not be able to see me but I shall never leave you my love.

Judith was so grateful that William had come be there for her death.  Suddenly, the unwelcome thought of Isabel infiltrated her mind and she knew that she had to warn him of what was to come.

"William, this is important.  Isabel is planning to kill you and seize your throne.  That's how I got here.  She wants me to tell her William but, I swear, I didn't tell her anything.  I will die before I betray you again."

"Judith. You will die down here if you keep my secret....What do you know? You need to tell me what you know my love. I will come for you, I promise. But you need to tell me" he encouraged her.

He took the last final step towards her as his lips were inches from hers.

"Tell me my love" he whispered again.

"I will not tell her your secret William I swear it.  And you must not come for me my love.  I swear I will never tell her how you're not truly the King of Louisiana.  I love you too much to let her use that against you.

Using every bit of strength that she had in her body, Judith leaned forward and closed the gap between herself and William.  Feeling the contact of his lips against hers once more made her decision to give up her life worth it.

"I swear to you William, I will never tell."

Isabel watched from afar as Judith seemed to be having some sort of hallucination that involved her dearest brother Compton. She had expected her resolve to be diminished at this stage, but it appeared that she had underestimated her, as she did Compton.

"I swear I will never tell her how you're not truly the King of Louisiana"

She could not help but let a smirk spread across her face as she repeated the exact words of what Judith had revealed to her, well her hallucination of Compton. Slowly she approached Judith and slapped her hand hard against Judith's face to bring her back to reality.

"Having a nice dream were we? Dear old brother coming to your rescue? How sweet" she chuckled sarcastically "My, my, my we do talk a lot don't we....Compton is not the King of Louisiana. I suspected that you were hiding something my dear, but this is not what I expected"

Judith gasped at the sharp, sudden sting to her face.  William was gone and Isabel stood in his place.  As she spoke, Judith's heart sank.  She had unwittingly told what she had just sworn would follow her to the grave.  She had betrayed her brother once again, this time unknowingly.  Still, she would have to figure out some way to make it right.

"Something that you hear in the middle of a dream? And you're foolish enough to believe it?  Well, that's your folly if you choose."

Judith's mind reeled. How in the world would she make this right?  She would have to get some blood in her and find a way to escape.  If that didn't happen, she would surely die soon and Bill would have no idea what Isabel now knew, thanks to her.

"Judith my dear I am no fool, you could have revealed anything about your dear brother but instead you choose something that would surely begin his downfall" she smirked.

She signalled to Casey to approach Judith once again as he stood ready to act upon her command.

"He shall know...When I have a silver stake to his heart he will know that you were the reason that he fell from his pedestal...You will live with the knowledge that you killed your own brother....Casey, have fun, but keep her alive" she smirked.

Turning from Judith as she knew that Casey had been waiting to try his new toys on her. He was at least entitled to have some fun.