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THERE WAS NO TALKING for a while as we tapped away on our laptops, looking for more information.
I read several articles on Aztecs and Rock Lake, and I even found some unbelievable facts about paranormal links between them. “Uh, guys...” I said.
“What is it?” Julie asked.
“Well, according to this site, centuries ago, it was rumored that witches lived with Indians. Stories were passed down from one generation to the next, and there are even these structures, underwater pyramids.”
“In Egypt, right?” Julie said.
“No. In Wisconsin, there’s these strange structures on the bottom of Rock Lake. They’re 30 feet high and 100 feet long, shaped like pyramids or mounds. Archaeologists and scientists are still stumped over them. And get this...”
“Spill it,” Julie said.
“There are three pyramids down there.”
Julie’s eyes widened. “Whoa!”
“I know, right? I think we’re on to something.”
Jesse peered over my shoulder. “Who built them?”
“Some believe an Indian tribe called the Mississippians made them 1,000 years ago, before the area flooded, but no one knows for sure.”
Julie quickly typed something on her own laptop. “This website says the Aztecs made them.”
“Looks like we have our connection,” Jesse said. “There’s a huge power surge coming from Rock Lake, and it is believed that the Aztecs made the pyramids. It’s too big of a coincidence to ignore.”
“But that would mean there were Aztecs in Wisconsin. How is that possible?” I asked. “I thought they were based in Mexico.”
“Hey, there’s a video on the History Channel about this,” Julie said. “Let’s watch it.”
Jesse peered at her. “Okay. Let’s see what you got.”
She put the laptop at the foot of the bed, and we all settled down to watch the documentary.
“Darn it. I forgot the popcorn,” Julie joked as I snuggled up next to Jesse.
According to the video, there were 3 elongated pyramids, about 20 to 30 feet high and 100 to150 feet long. They were discovered by two duck hunters in the early 1900s. Much to my surprise, the Aztecs actually originated in the United States and later moved south, into Mexico.
After the show was over, I read some follow-up articles and learned that there once existed a town, in 1000 AD, and many artifacts had been found. The layout of that town was very similar to Aztec towns, with three pyramids and thick walls, with a fourth not too far away.
“The Aztecs didn’t migrate north, into the Four Corners regions of the United States from Mexico,” I said.
“It was the other way around,” Jesse said, “from America, south to Mexico.”
I smiled. “I think this is really worth checking out—Aztecs and a high energy surge. Plus, the structures are underwater, in the perfect hiding place.”
“Well, I guess we’re off to Cheese Country,” Julie said.
“I’ll call Tabby,” Jesse said, then walked out to the balcony, where he’d get better reception on his cell phone.
“This is huge,” Julie said. “We could be the very first petals to stop this madness, to keep the ceremony from happening.”
Smiling, I gave her a fist-bump. “This is a huge find.”
“If I was a petal from 1,000 years ago, I would’ve burned the book or, uh...the ancient scrolls,” Julie said. “I would’ve destroyed every single trace of it so no future generations would even know about it. The witches would never get their powers back or even know about them. Do you know how many lives that could’ve saved?”
“True, but we have to remember what Tabby said. For her whole life, she was told it was a unique honor. When someone is fed that sort of thing from birth, they tend to believe it.”
“Why weren’t we told about it from birth like that?” Julie asked.
“I think after Tabby broke free from them, they knew other petals might do the same. They were so close to the finish line that they didn’t want to take any risks, so they chose to keep it from certain future generations. That way, they could just lead their marks blindly to their cruel fate. My grandma’s sister didn’t know about her heritage. She was just slaughtered.”
“Yeah, but some of those witches in Salem knew about it. You said that chick on the beach was pissed that we didn’t accept our responsibilities.”
“It seems like some know and some don’t. Fred didn’t know what was going on, and they didn’t want me to know who I was or where I came from. My mother and grandmother never knew. I was just supposed to live in Big Bear Lake, go to school, and enjoy my life until the day of the ceremony. I’m sure they would’ve tricked me into showing up there. When I think about it, it makes me sick.”
“They didn’t count on us finding out,” she said.
“There were plenty of clues that something supernatural was happening all around us, but if it hadn’t been for Drake, we would’ve never known how involved we really were. If he hadn’t helped us get into that temple with that priest, we never would have been led to the ancient book in the ice cave. Drake could’ve just told us, but we wouldn’t have believed him. I think he wanted us to read it for ourselves. Not to mention, he didn’t want to get in trouble with the Immortal Council. So the clever vampire found a loophole. We could find out about our heritage, but technically, he wasn’t saying one single word.”
“Why though? Why would he care if we knew or not?” she asked.
“I know he’s a ruthless monster, but that’s just it. He wanted us to feel indebted to him, so we’d be at his beck and call and he could use our blood.”
She blinked. “He wanted to bribe us onto his team, so to speak.”
“I think so. He wanted us to be his employees, but the benefits package sure sucked! When Drake decided to keep me alive, he protected me, but only for his own selfish gains. I guess petal blood is pretty powerful and precious. I’m sure he wanted to thoroughly explore the possibilities.”
“You know what? Talking about Drake is givin’ me the creeps.”
“Right. Back to the Aztecs.”
Julie started to gather up our notes. “I still can’t believe all that power is coming from those underwater structures.”
“We definitely have to check it out,” I said, “the sooner, the better.”
Just then, Jesse came back through the door.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“Tabby’s checking out another important lead. She told us to sit tight here. She’ll be back in a week.”
“No!” Julie said. “Our lead is just as important as hers, if not more.”
Jesse smiled. “I know...and that’s exactly why I booked us all tickets to Wisconsin. We’re leaving tonight.”
“If you were my boyfriend,” Julie said, “I’d kiss you right now.”
I grinned. “Luckily, he’s mine.” I kissed his lips, and we tumbled onto the bed, laughing.
“Gosh, you two. Get a room or something.” Julie laughed “Wait. We have a room.”
We all chuckled, then started packing up as quickly as we could.
“I just thought of something,” I said. “Do you think that ancient staff is the key to getting in, like Glenda said?”
“I don’t know,” Jesse said. “We’ll take it with us on the dive, just in case.”
I bit my lip. “Am I gonna have to fight a fire-breathing dragon or anything?”
Jesse kissed my lips. “Let’s hope not. Besides, it’s hard to breathe fire underwater.”