Allgeir looked up from his work and gave me a look that was equal parts crazed and desperate. “Stay back! Don’t you see how important what I’m doing here is? Don’t you understand what I can accomplish for all of us? Why should power and immortality only belong to monsters? I can make it available to the masses! I can market it! Super strength, immunity to disease, perpetual youth, I have all the tools I need, I just need them to work together!”
“You’re insane.” I realized antagonizing the guy holding sharp objects over your friend might not be a great idea, but the words came unbidden. “You’re also an asshole.”
“Am I?” He smashed his fist down on the tray, crumbling the metal like someone might crumble a soda can. “You see how close I am? It took sacrifice. I nearly died, but I am more than I was before. I just need to perfect the chemical processes in their bodies!”
For someone who claimed to be so strong, I noticed his legs seemed wobbly, and I realized why he hadn’t just attacked me yet with his newfound strength. “You’re dying. Whatever they did to you, it’s not right.”
He grimaced, and something left him in that gesture. “The rot, like the mummies have, only I’m not hundreds of years old. A side effect of the procedure performed on me. I thought that having my body prepared as mummies were prepared would be perfect for allowing it to adjust to the new chemical processes, and in a way, it was a success—my strength is proof of that. But unfortunately, the concentrated nature of my formula accelerated the decay process, causing me to get the mummy rot in a matter of days. But I think I know a way to fix it! I just need a little more time.”
I looked over to Jexie. “And test subjects.”
He shrugged apologetically. “Sacrifices need to be made, for the good of all. You’ll thank me when we are all strong and eternally youthful.”
I took a step forward and Allgeir practically jumped. “You realize Benazir will never let that happen? All she wanted from you was a way to make longer lasting golems. Whatever deal you think you have with her, it ends when you run out your usefulness.”
“That’s where you are wrong. Our goals are aligned. The golems are fate for her enemies, but for her and her allies, true immortality awaits, once I finish my work.”
“Benazir has no allies, just pawns.”
His face twisted up in rage, and I was worried I had gone too far as his scalpel came close to Jexie. “Who are you calling a pawn? My mind is unparalleled—"
He was cut off by a needle being inserted into his neck. Behind him, the doctor’s form slowly started to shift to that of Darcy’s. “Sorry to interrupt, but I didn’t think you were getting any more out of him, and I was getting really tired of his voice.” She looked at him in disgust. “Gah. What a fucking bore.”
Allgeir’s mouth opened and closed like he had something to say but promptly forgot it, then his body suddenly dropped to the floor.
I rushed over to Jexie and examined the tubes running into her. Having no medical training, I was worried about doing more harm than good by just ripping them out of her, but I wanted to stop whatever process Allgeir had started from continuing. I managed to make some progress on that, and thankfully Eve and Lyanne made their way into the lab shortly after to give me a hand. We eventually got Jexie unhooked from all the tubes, though we had no idea whether it was already too late.
We all breathed a sigh of relief when she opened her eyes. “Kurt?” Her voice was weak, barely more than a whisper. “Is that you?”
I took her hand in mine. “I’m here, Jexie. We’re going to take you home.”
“Kurt, they—they traded me.” Her voice was a whimper. “My parents. The sold me to Allgeir in exchange for promises of power. He promised … he promised he could make them immortal, and they …”
“It’ll be alright,” I tried to assure her, as the force of my voice could make that true.
She tried to shake her head but she was too weak. “They already sold themselves out to Benazir, Kurt. They were playing both sides this whole time, helping Pembroke while telling Benazir about it every step of the way because she promised them power. She’s going to kill them all, Kurt, all of Pembroke’s people, and turn them into mindless golems. And my parents think they’re going to be immortal and rule by her side. They were willing to give up everything for that … even me.”
“So that was her play, was it?” Pembroke strolled into the lab, cleaning off his bloodied rapier with a handkerchief. “She’s a clever old gal, isn’t she? I never once thought it was Jexie’s family that was the source of Benazir’s information. That explains why she decided to show up in New York just as I did, doesn’t it? Well, as a proper Brit, I cannot let this insult stand. It is time for me to rally the troops. This war waits no longer.”
I tried to call out to him to advise patience, but it was no use, he had already turned on his heels and marched off.
Things were about to come to a head between Pembroke and Benazir, and I no longer had any ability to stop it. But perhaps I could at least minimize the damage and fallout.
I turned Jexie over to the other women. “Get Jexie back through the portal and get her into bed. Call a doctor if it looks like her condition’s getting worse. I’ll meet you back there, but first I’ve got a few errands to run.”
There was only one person in the city who could help me arrange things the way I needed them to be. It was time to pay another visit to Maura.
20
The Dispensary was not host to its usual carefree bar atmosphere. The mortal patrons had apparently at least gotten the vibe and had decided to steer clear, meanwhile the few immortals who still hung around all seemed tense, like they were expecting a fight to come at any time. Apparently Allgeir’s threat to Maura had made the rounds, and only those willing to put up a fight to defend the bar had bothered to stick around.
I found Maura going through the motions of cleaning the bar counter, but based on how shiny it already was I figured she had gone over that spot a dozen times at least.
She looked up at me as I approached. “Kurt, I just tried to give you a call but you must have been out. About what you asked me to look into—a connection between Jexie and Benazir—"
“I know. It’s her parents.”
Maura frowned. “You know, if you’re going to figure shit out on your own, you really leave me with nothing to do.”
“Didn’t so much figure it out as was told it by a half-dead Jexie. She’s in bad shape, Maura.”
She softened and gave me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry to hear that. She didn’t deserve that. But there are going to be a lot more casualties soon if something isn’t done.
I nodded grimly. “I know. And soon. That’s why I came to you. Is there somewhere we can talk in private?”
Usually when I wanted to speak privately she would show me to a secluded part of her kitchen, but this time she led me up to the roof of the building her bar was situated under, which turned out to have a pretty impressive view. We sat together and looked out at this city we had both been working to protect, in our own way. It all seemed so peaceful from up here, it was hard to imagine the bloodshed that was about to happen in what might only be a few hours.
I was the one who broke the silence. “Jexie was betrayed by her family. They sold her to Allgeir and Benazir in exchange for promises of power. Allgeir nearly killed her with his experiments.”
Maura lit a cigarette but didn’t bring it to her lips, leaving it in the ashtray to send smoke up in a forgotten swirl. “Fucking awful.”
“It seems Jexie’s parents were playing both sides from the start, both Pembroke and Benazir. I figure they were hedging their bets, putting themselves in the best position to get what they wanted no matter who one. You ever heard about something like that happening before?”
There was a brief flash as Maura threw her cigarette at my face. “What are you implying?”
“I was just asking—"
“You want to know if I’m in league with Benazir, i
s that it? Or if I’ve been playing both sides, looking for an opportunity to profit as the city goes to shit? As dead scientists come into my bar and make threats and punch out my clients? While my friends are in brutal fights for their lives? Is that what you think?”
I was silent, looking back out at the city and gathering my thoughts. “I’ve been thinking a lot lately, about what made Tandi’s network tick. How she gathered so much power and actually managed to maintain it, despite there being hundreds of threats to it every day.”
Maura seemed suspicious about this sudden change in topic. “And what did you determine?”
My hand went to a wristlet on its chain around my neck. “The portals gave her an advantage no one else has. She could be anywhere at any time, and so could her enforcers. She was like the boogeyman. Her subordinates would be afraid of even thinking of betraying her for fear she could appear behind them. In a profession where she shouldn’t be able to trust anyone, she made sure there was only one side you could be on: hers.”
“And neither Pembroke nor Benazir have that ability.”
I nodded. “Pembroke came here hoping to get control of her network so he could exploit her research to find a cure for mummy rot, but he really had no idea what he was getting into in terms of the scope of it all. I’ve seen how he works: off the cuff, impulsive, he thought he could gather everyone on his side by hosting parties and being polite. Benazir, on the other hand, she had history with Tandi. There is no way she didn’t know about Tandi’s portals. She never had the intention of controlling Tandi’s network—at least, not for long.”
“She orchestrated everything entirely to get at Pembroke.” Maura lit another cigarette, the first one forgotten in her distress, and this time she took a deep drag.
“I think that’s at the center of her goals, but she’s … chaotic. And I suspect not entirely sane. If she gets her way, not only will she be rid of Pembroke, but I suspect she intends to leave a path of bodies throughout the city like nothing its ever seen before.”
Maura sighed and looked up at the sky. “So one’s a fool and the other’s a psycho, and whoever wins things aren’t about to get any better.”
“That’s why we need another option to take over Tandi’s network.” I held up the wristlet. “With this, someone with the right knowledge, contacts, and cleverness could try and pick up the pieces.”
She did not look enthused by the prospect. “You mean me? I’m mortal, you know.”
“I know. So am I. Doesn’t mean I don’t scare the shit out of some supernatural creatures when I walk into a room.”
Maura gave a forced chuckle. “I don’t think anyone is really afraid of me like that. More like they respect me because of what I do.”
“Respect can be even better than fear. People come to you for information because no one is more tapped into what is going on than you are. Certainly you see how that can be an advantage?”
“I don’t know.” She flicked out her cigarette and stood up. “I own a bar and I trade information. But running an entire network of immortals and undead?”
I rose as well, my body choosing to remind me how tired I was. “How about a test run, to see just how good you are at using your knowledge to arrange things?”
She arched an eyebrow at that. “What did you have in mind?”
“We can’t prevent a battle between Benazir and Pembroke, but we can prevent civilian casualties if we can make that battle happen somewhere away from people. Any place you can think of that would fit the bill?”
Maura thought for a second and then grinned. “How about under the city? There are all sorts of tunnels around Voortman’s. I bet with the right bait we could get the battle to take place there. We could even have the ghoul deal with the bodies afterward. That’s his area of expertise.”
“See? Already thinking like leader. Start making the arrangements.”
As I walked back inside, I said, just barely loud enough to be heard, “Unfortunately, I have one more errand to deal with first.”
Considering he was intent on having the battle take place before the end of the day, Pembroke was surprisingly cooperative with my request to borrow Dart one last time. Perhaps it was because I announced my intention to fight alongside him at the upcoming battle. It was mostly the truth, as I did intend to fight Benazir.
With Dart’s nose, it only took a few hours to find where Jexie’s parents were holed up. The wealthy importer/exporters who had traded everything away for power and a chance for immortality had been reduced to squatting in a storage rental. I had Dart wait outside and keep watch, not wanting even a mummy to see what I was about to do.
I had never killed a mortal before. The army trained me for it, but as a truck driver I never engaged in actual combat. Since becoming a Succubus Hunter and dedicating myself to ridding the world of its most vile monsters, I had put an end to a number of immortals and undead, but never to one of my own kind. If there was one lesson this past day had taught me, it was that some of the worst monsters were of the mortal kind.
Once they realized what I was there for, they pleaded for their lives. I had to bury that part of me that still felt empathy, and I couldn’t replace it with the rage I felt for what they did to their daughter either, since that would make this petty revenge. This couldn’t be personal. Despite being mortal and appearing so helpless right now, the two of them were dangerous, with connections and the willingness to exploit them for personal gain, whatever the cost to others. As long as they were around, they posed a danger to any kind of peace we might bring to the city.
Because I had to know, I asked what exactly Benazir had promised them that made it worth selling their own daughter. They tried to lie, claiming Benazir had threatened them and they never wanted any of it. Even now they tried to negotiate their way to the top, making all sorts of promises if I could deal with that evil Benazir for them.
I struck the father down. The Night Flail was designed for killing Succubi, but a solid strike with it would kill a mortal man all the same.
The mother screamed and I asked her again. She bared her arm and neck to me and let me see the scars there, the first stitches as fabric made from her own flesh was sewn back onto her in the same manner as the golems. She became desperate for me to understand that Benazir can take parts of them and give back so much more—even life everlasting.
I killed her then, because she was corrupted and beyond saving. I knew that the guilt I felt at that moment would remain with me for the rest of my life, but it was a price I was willing to pay.
To me, Jexie’s reaction was the tougher cross to bear. I went to her bedside and she could sense what had happened right away. Even now I don’t know if it was something she saw in the spirits around me, perhaps even her parents’ own sprits, who will no doubt haunt me for the rest of my days, or if it was just the way I looked her with an expression that betrayed something terrible.
She broke down, becoming inconsolable, and shrank back into the bed, asking to be left alone. For all the horrible things that they had done, for the terrible way things ended between them, at the end of the day they were still her parents, and she would never be able to completely forgive me for killing them.
As I left her there to her sorrows, both because she didn’t want me there and because I was still needed, I knew that wasn’t the only tough weight I was going to have to carry.
21
“Limos with darkened windows for one hundred and fifty?” Over the phone, Maura’s voice was incredulous.
I took a sip from my fourth cup of coffee of the day. “Pembroke always insists on travelling in style. I’ve already hinted to him that I know where Benazir is going to be to stall him from tearing up the city with his family to find her, but if we want him to go where we want, we need to appeal to his sense of class. He won’t be able to resist the limos.”
She gave a light chuckle. “I guess that’ll help us convince him when it’s time to go underground. Alright, I’ll pull some strings a
nd get the limos.”
“Have you been making progress with Benazir?”
I heard her flipping through papers. “Her exact hiding spot is as cryptic as ever, but I know how to get a message to her. Though we could always try to call her again.”
The number Pembroke gave me had gone to voicemail every time I’d tried to call since our one exchange of threats, which led me to believe the number was abandoned. Which was fine, since this deserved a more personal touch. “Are we sure that no one reported the deaths of Jexie’s parents yet?”
Maura’s voice couldn’t hide her distaste. “Yeah, I had someone check the storage unit to make sure it hadn’t been disturbed.”
“Good. Send Benazir this message: they are spilling all of her secrets, including a way to defeat her golems—she’s probably found the melted remains of Timur by now so she should believe that—and that I’ve got them hidden away with Voortman. We already know she knows where his butchery is, so it should get her to come running.”
I heard a click that at this point I knew by heart as her lighter. “So I guess this is it, then. Once we set this in motion, it won’t end until one of them is dead. Are you ready for this?”
“Ready as ever. We’ll put this bitch down and be home in time for breakfast.” And much overdue sleep.
“Your confidence is infectious. I’ll handle things on my end. Be ready for the fight.”
I reached for The Night Flail and felt its comforting presence. “I will be.”
I hadn’t really noticed the first time Maura took me down to the abandoned subway tunnel that led to Voortman’s butchery, as at the time I was mostly concerned with not stumbling in the dark, but there were many paths that branched out from it. If you kept your eyes open for it, you could see the breaks in the early 1900s décor where the narrow openings to rough tunnels were concealed.
Succubus Hunter 2 (The Succubus Series) Page 17
