by Ken Lange
Apparently, Sharron Montgomery, Leroy Thomas, Terrie Richards, Ashley Hilton, and Carl Jones were the people you wanted to meet if you were an aspiring assassin. Sharron was the mastermind behind the crew. She gathered information and used it to manipulate any situation to her benefit. Which meant she’d normally off someone using an expendable pawn.
Leroy was a sniper who loved his job a little too much, according to Phineas. Terrie was an expert in poisons, with a state-of-the-art lab to create new compounds. Ashley was their weapons master, specializing in close-quarter combat. It appeared that she was one of those sick folks who got off on killing people in the messiest way possible. Last, but certainly not least, was Carl. He was an expert in stealth, who preferred it if his victims never saw him coming. His major claim to fame was that all his victims appeared to die of natural causes.
There was something about Carl’s techniques that felt familiar. While I couldn’t be sure, I suspected he’d been the one who’d murdered Martha last year. Frowning, I set the files aside and texted the others. We were about to go hunting.
The next few hours were a blur of activity. Alexander had moved a large number of weres into the vicinity around the compound. It’d taken some doing, and a couple of favors, but we’d managed to secure a judge’s signature for a warrant.
Finally, it was 4:00 a.m. and we were ready to breach the building.
After allowing my shadow armor to encapsulate me, I kicked in the front door. Taking point, I moved inside, only to have the lights behind me suddenly black out. I turned to find a solid metal plate where the door had been.
Well, crap.
I touched the earpiece. “What’s going on?”
Baptist’s voice came over the speaker. “The building’s gone into lockdown. All the doors and windows are now blocked by a thick steel barrier. It’s going to take us a few minutes to get inside.”
I nodded. “Fine. Have some people try the roof as well.”
Alexander’s voice came across the line. “We’re on it.”
“I’ll move ahead and see who I can flush out along the way.”
Baptist cleared his throat. “Do you think that’s such a good idea? We’ll be in there ASAP.”
I sighed. “They know we’re here, and if I just stand here, I’m a sitting duck. If it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer it if they have to work to kill me.”
Alexander grunted. “Good point. We’re on the move. Stay safe.”
Since these guys didn’t have any supernatural abilities, I’d opted for a pistol today instead of a sword. I made my way down the hall and stopped at the first room. Using my foot, I pushed the door open and stepped inside to find an empty bedroom. Someone had been sleeping here, though, if the blankets on the floor were any indication… I glanced up at the emergency exit in the ceiling.
Great. One of them had already rabbited.
Before moving on, I twisted the locking mechanism in the ceiling into a warped mess. They wouldn’t be using that to sneak up behind me anytime soon.
The next room was filled with chairs, folding tables, and a bunch of boxes.
I crossed the hall and stepped into another bedroom. I’d barely taken a second step when Ashley popped out of the shadows with a shotgun. She aimed the barrel at my face and fired. The muzzle flash blinded me. My head snapped back, and I stumbled into the doorframe. Two more shots hammered against my chest, forcing me out into the hall.
My vision cleared just as Ashley slapped something against my chest and dove back through the open doorway. When I glanced down, a small piece of Symtec was stuck to my chest with a detonator attached. A half second later, it exploded.
Cracks formed throughout my armor as I fell to my knees. My ears were ringing, I couldn’t see, and my entire body ached.
After several seconds, my sight returned. While I still couldn’t hear anything, my peripheral vision picked up movement at the far end of the hall. Turning my head, I found Leroy standing there. He lifted his rifle and pulled the trigger. The slug tore half my facemask off and knocked me onto my back. I flicked my wrist. A large shard of ice formed as it flew through the air to catch Leroy in the shoulder, causing his second shot to go wide and pinning him to the wall.
I’d forgotten about Ashley, but the sound of her dry clicking the trigger quickly reminded me of her existence. Luckily for me, the gun jammed. Frustrated, she swung it at my head, catching me in the face.
Spitting out blood, I got to my feet, grabbed the weapon, and slammed my fist into her throat. She grasped her windpipe. Stumbling back, she tried to put distance between us. I darted forward and grabbed her arm. There was a loud snap at the end of the hall, which, at a guess, meant Leroy had torn himself free. Turning, I pulled Ashley toward me. Leroy lifted his weapon to take aim. I summoned all my strength, hefted Ashley off the floor, and tossed her at the man. She flew the length of the hall and hit him hard enough to be impaled on the rifle. The impact knocked Leroy into the wall, where he slowly slid to the floor, leaving a massive blood trail in his wake.
I hobbled over to check on them. Unsurprisingly, they were both quite dead. Guess they’d be skipping the interrogation session later.
A series of explosions overhead rocked the building. Either my team had found a way to break through the barriers, or the Gotteskinder had decided to drop the building on my head. When the structure didn’t collapse, I settled on Alexander and the others making an opening. Hopefully, they’d have better luck taking these guys alive than I’d been having.
I made my way down the hall to find Carl sitting at the table calmly eating his breakfast.
He held up a finger. “Mind if I finish this first?”
I folded my arms. “No problem. If you answer a question for me.”
He glanced down at his breakfast then back at me. “Sure, what’s on your mind?”
“Have you ever heard of Martha O’Neil?”
Carl picked up his fork and nodded. “Yeah, she was a vigil here in town.”
I frowned…not that he could see it. “Did you kill her?”
He took a bite of his food. “I did.” He pushed his plate to the side and got to his feet. “That’s what I do. I kill things.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Things?”
Carl reached behind his back and pulled out two daggers. “We’re done talking.”
The moron darted forward, and I raised my hand to create a wall of ice that he promptly ran into. With a simple gesture, I wrapped it around his midsection, causing him to drop his blades. The ice continued to inch up until it encased him from his neck to his toes. I walked over and slammed my fist into his jaw, knocking him out. After removing the ice, I pulled out some zip ties and secured the idiot. A few seconds later, Baptist and three of his officers entered the room.
I pointed at Carl. “He’ll need to be thoroughly searched before you move him.”
Baptist nodded at his men, who quickly followed my orders. As they were picking him up, Baptist said, “We were able to capture two others, but it seems the compound’s otherwise vacant.”
Allowing my shadow armor to fade, I said, “Damn. I was hoping for more, but I’ll take what we can get. Please tell me you got Sharron.”
He nodded. “Not me, exactly. Alexander caught her trying to escape down a sewer drain in the courtyard.”
It took nearly the remainder of the day to secure all four buildings, but in the end, we wound up with Sharron, Carl, and Terrie.
Chapter 29
May 23rd
It’d been a long two weeks and I was almost certain there were still a few Gotteskinder agents at work in the city. It was something Duncan had said that cemented it for me. He’d claimed a woman had offered to give him the lantern if he killed me. Sharron wouldn’t have done that.
Speaking of the nutbag, she’d used the corner of her bunk to cave in her own skull before Andrew could question her. From what I’d been told, she’d taken a running start and plowed into it as hard as her legs would carry
her. I hated dealing with fanatics.
The others turned out to be totally useless. They’d been kept intentionally ignorant. Their only point of contact had been Sharron. Even though they’d trained a great number of the candidates who’d come through, they couldn’t tell us anything helpful. Every student came with a dummy set of papers and a nice generic name.
As for Phineas, the moment he’d been allowed to use the toilet, he’d drowned himself in the bowl. I had to give both sides of the Gotteskinder credit here…they were equally crazy.
Today, however, there was a small, if highly unlikely, chance to get some intel on those who’d worked with Phineas, Father Alfred, and Father George. Henri, Keto, and Kimberly had been working diligently to rouse Duncan, and this morning, he’d opened his eyes, sat up, and asked for some food. Henri tried to speak with him, but he’d refused, saying he’d only talk to me…in person.
It was a little after one in the afternoon when I made my way down the stairs to find Henri and Kimberly waiting outside Duncan’s room.
Henri perked up the instant he saw me. “Good, you’re here. We can get this started.”
Kimberly put a hand on his shoulder. “You’re just going to slow the process down. You know the boy asked to speak with Gavin alone.”
I arched an eyebrow. “He did?”
Kimberly cut her eyes at her father. “I guess you forgot to mention that part of the conversation?”
He shrugged. “Maybe.”
Kimberly gestured at the door. “He’s awake and waiting for you. We’ll be right out here if you need anything.”
I nodded. “Thanks.”
Taking a deep breath, I grasped the handle and hoped for the best. I really didn’t need to get knocked onto my ass by an eighteen-year-old kid twice in the same month. When I stepped in, Duncan was sitting on the bed reading a leather-bound book that looked as old as the church itself.
Not knowing what to do, I waved. “Afternoon, Duncan. You asked to see me?”
He closed the book and laid it next to him. “I did.” He paused for a moment and frowned. “I’m not sure Duncan fits anymore. Of course, neither does Eblis. I’m neither of those people any longer, thanks to you. But I do need a name… I think Talbis fits nicely.”
I pulled out a chair from the desk and took a seat. “How am I responsible for you losing your previous identity?”
Talbis gestured at me. “The weapon you used against me was powerful and had I been either Eblis or Duncan, I would’ve perished on the spot. But when you buried the blade through my skull, it killed off a bit of each of them and what’s left is what you see before you. I’m neither man, nor jinni, technically…” He picked up a small ruby off the table. “I think this makes me a Stone Born.”
My mouth fell open slightly, but I promptly closed it. “How’s that possible?”
He shrugged. “I’m suspecting that my family has always been Stone Born, but the process was somehow stunted after Lazarus was brought back to life.”
Scratching my forehead, I asked, “How do you know about this?”
Talbis smiled. “Eblis knew many things about this world. The priests who brought him here knew the story of Lazarus’s resurrection and were discussing it at length. It was their guess that your kind had tricked humans into servitude through religion.” He shook his head. “I’ve been putting the puzzle together since I woke up, but I think Lazarus was a mistake, and that the one who brought him back to life didn’t intend for him to stay that way.” He waved a dismissive hand in my direction. “Thing is, whatever you did has allowed me to regain a part of that birthright.”
A tiny bit of panic set in, and I held up my hand. “Mind holding that thought? I need to send a text.”
I brought up Baptist’s number and sent him a quick message about Darius possibly having powers. Putting my phone away, I said, “Okay, please go on.”
He grinned. “I don’t have any quarrel with you, or anyone else, for that matter. In fact, I’d like to offer my assistance to the Archive, and to you in particular.”
This was sounding too good to be true. “Why?”
His voice softened. “Because you’re going to need it.”
“That wasn’t an answer.”
His shoulders slumped. “You seem like a good man and, more than that, I like you. When Eblis met you originally, he only wanted his freedom, and he believed he could get that by following the priests’ instructions. Things changed, however, when he realized that you were a reaper. You see, in Muspelheim, they’re in search of four beings: a reaper, the plague bearer, the Star Born, and the child born of light and darkness.” He sighed. “Once he discovered that you were a reaper, he wanted you dead for an entirely different reason. Don’t ask me what that was because his memories aren’t exactly intact. Same with Duncan’s.”
There was the Star Born again. I had to imagine that the child of light and darkness was Jade, which left the mystery of the plague bearer.
“Okay, but that still doesn’t answer my question. Why do you want to help me?”
He leaned against the wall. “Surtr, the ruler of Muspelheim, will stop at nothing to find the four of you. He will burn this world—or is it dimension?—to the ground, leaving nothing but fire and ash in his wake. If that happens, we all die.”
Self-preservation I got. “What do you propose? It isn’t as if everyone’s going to trust you right off the bat.”
He frowned. “That’s true. I’d be willing to stay here or in Phineas’s house. They both have similar protections on them—”
Cutting him off, I asked, “How do you know about Phineas’s place?”
Talbis grimaced. “When Eblis traced Phineas to his home, he broke in and was instantly stripped of his powers, even more so than in this place. It caused him to panic, and he bolted.”
It was a fair deal and one I was sure the others would go for…in time. Right now, they’d be worried about Talbis trying to kill us—or more specifically, me.
“I’ll talk to the others to see which they’d prefer. I’m betting they’ll stick with the church for a while since they don’t enjoy losing their abilities any more than you do.”
He smiled. “Thank you.”
We spent the next few hours talking through the situation that’d brought him to this world. The one thing that was still missing was the lantern that’d been used to trap Eblis and transport him from this room to the hospital. He didn’t have a clue where they’d hidden it or even who had it. It was his guess that the woman who’d offered him the artifact for my death still had it. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall anything about her.
It was nearly seven when I got out of my chair. “It was a pleasure, Talbis. For the record, I believe you when you say you want to work with us. But even so, I’d like a little more than my gut to go on when it comes to trusting you, as will the others.”
He nodded. “I more than understand. Hopefully, one day soon, we’ll be able to trust one another. For now, I’ll be happy to sit here and read about this new world I’ve become a part of.”
“Sounds like a plan.” I walked over and held out my hand. “It really was good to meet you, Talbis.”
He took my hand and shook it. “And you, Gavin.”
When I left the room, I pulled Kimberly and Henri aside. Kimberly wasn’t at all pleased with the situation. She didn’t trust Talbis, but she did agree to try to give him the benefit of the doubt, right after Andrew was able to visit. Henri, on the other hand, was absolutely ecstatic. He was very interested in how the two souls had been joined by the scythe.
Kimberly put her hand on her father’s shoulder. “Dad, you need to let Gavin go home and get some food. I’m sure he’ll be happy to talk to you at length about this another day, but right now I’m guessing he’s got things to tend to.”
He frowned. “But—”
I gave him a weak smile. “Kimberly’s right. I’m supposed to be over at Audubon Park.”
Alyosha had called m
e earlier to let me know that if I was free this evening, he’d be working late.
Kimberly arched her eyebrow. “What’s over there?”
I shook my head and grinned. “I’ll tell you if it turns into something. Until then, mums the word.”
Amusement shone in her eyes. “Then you should probably go. I’d hate for you to be late for an appointment.”
I smiled. “Thanks.”
After pivoting on the spot, I made my way up the stairs. I’d just pushed open the church doors when my phone rang.
Viktor’s voice came over the line. “Evening, Gavin. I was wondering if you had a few minutes to stop by. It would appear we need to have a conversation.”
“I’ve got an appointment this evening, but will you be up for a while?”
He chuckled. “I can wait for a bit.”
“Okay, great. Care to tell me what’s on your mind?”
He took a deep breath. “It’s probably a conversation best had with liquor and in person.”
I frowned. “All right. Let me go to this meeting then I’ll be right over.”
Chapter 30
It was just before ten when I called Viktor to let him know I was pulling up outside. He met me downstairs only to make me climb fifteen flights of stairs to his apartment. Inside, he stopped at the bar and poured us a drink.
Handing one to me, he raised his glass in a toast. “I hear you’ve been looking for me.”
I frowned. “Nope. I know where you live, remember?”
He laughed. “Okay, maybe I need to be a little clearer.”
His words registered in the back of my mind, but I wasn’t really listening any longer. An ancient sketch of Hayden was lying on top of the bar, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out how he’d managed to get it. She’d made it clear that no one knew who she was other than me—and Cole, of course…so how in the hell was this possible?
