Shades of Memory

by Diana Pharaoh Francis

  “Sure. I totally understand.” I stood up. “I wish you good luck and I’ll get out of your hair.”

  “Please, Miss Hollis, I’m sure we can find common ground,” Wright said, blanching slightly.

  Tracey Erickson thumped the table with his fist. “Just tell her already. We don’t have time for this crap!”

  Another exchange of looks, and then the air seemed to go out of them all.

  “Savannah took members of our families to guarantee our loyalties,” Ruth Blaine said, taking over from Wright. “We have no idea where they are, who is looking after them, or if they’ve been abandoned or killed.” Her eyes glittered with desperation. “I want my son back.”

  I don’t know what I’d been expecting, but this was worse. Sympathy put my ass back in my chair. “How long has she had him?”

  Blaine closed her eyes, her lips pinching together as if the pain was overwhelming. Collecting herself, she replied. “She took him when he was two. He’s sixteen now.”

  I blinked. “You haven’t seen him since he was two?”

  “Oh no, my dear,” said Fineman. “Savannah didn’t want us to forget how much we loved the people she took. We saw them every month, sometimes more if she was particularly happy with our work. Then came months where we couldn’t see them because of our failures.” His mouth twisted. “On occasion, she went further and rewarded us with bits and pieces she’d cut off them.”

  I wiped a hand across my mouth, staring wide-eyed. I don’t know why I was surprised. This is how Tyets worked. I’d been kidnapped and tortured by a drug lord; my own father had fucked around in my brain so that thinking certain thoughts would have killed me if Cass hadn’t been able to fix me. Hell, Savannah had just blown up a bunch of buildings, killing who knows how many people, just to make a point with Touray. Evil was her calling. Evil was what the Tyets were all about.

  Not mine. I would not become that sort of filth. I’d rather be dead.

  “We’ll pay you whatever you want,” Flanders said, speaking up for the first time. He sounded just like the grizzly bear he looked like.

  The perfect opening. Under the table, Patti grabbed my hand. Taylor grabbed the other. It’s like they knew what I had to do and were telling me they had my back. I never doubted it.

  “All right. Your invitation came at a good time. I planned to find you and make a proposal. People are out to kill or control me. People like Jackson Tyrell, Gregg Touray, other Tyets, and the government. I need a power base so I can protect me and my own. I don’t have time to build my own from scratch. That’s where you come in. I want you to give your loyalty to me and let me run this Tyet. You do that, and I’ll bring your people back to you.”

  Wow, that sounded ridiculous. Like teaching donkeys to talk and growing money on trees. I kept my expression impassive and channeled Touray, eyeing each of them with an arrogant confidence I didn’t feel.

  Ruth Blaine laughed harshly. “Just like that. We put you, a nobody with nothing to back you up but trace talent, in charge of the strongest Tyet in Diamond City? The hell we will.”

  “Shut up,” snapped Erickson. “We need her.”

  “So you’re willing to just turn around and make the same stupid mistake with her that we made with Savannah? Let her hold our families over our heads? It’s stupid. We’ll find another tracer,” Blaine returned.

  “Not one as powerful as she is.” Flanders ran his fingers through his thick red-blond hair. “With Savannah dead, who knows what might be happening to my Rachel. This woman is our best chance for finding her before—” He broke off, teeth scraping white dents across his lower lip, his face flushing red as he swallowed convulsively.

  I thought quickly. “From what I know about Savannah Morrell, you’re fresh out of time. I’d bet Savannah had standing orders that said if anything happened to her, execute the hostages. She’d have assumed one of you killed her, or failed to protect her. When word of her death makes it to the hostage locations, game over. You need me and right now.” I spoke boldly, despite the fact that I could barely drop into trace sight for a few seconds. How was I going to actually find the hostages?

  I didn’t want to feel guilty, but I did. I hated when innocent bystanders became victims of Tyet machinations, and here I was, doing exactly what Savannah had done. Using their family members as leverage.

  I told myself I didn’t have a choice, and besides, they’d probably done the very same thing to others. Turnabout was fair play, wasn’t it?

  I disgusted myself. I also didn’t back down.

  “We’ll do it,” Fineman said finally, and again that exchange of speaking looks. He held each of their gazes until they cowed to him.

  I’d have to remember that. I also didn’t believe him in the slightest. He was telling me what I wanted to hear to get what he needed. A bridge I’d have to bomb later. Or I could use Savannah’s Seedy Seven’s hostages against their good behavior. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself, but to protect my family, I might have to do it anyway.

  I wanted to be sick.

  Vasquez nodded, folding her hands together in front of her. “Fine,” she snarled.

  Going around the table, each of the others added their grudging assent. None of them sounded happy about it, but none dug their feet in.

  Now all I had to do was figure out a way to heal up so I could actually find the hostages and Arnow’s three missing operatives. And do it in the next few hours.

  “I’m surprised—given your relationship with his brother—that you’re not taking shelter under Gregg Touray’s wings.” Fineman’s brows rose, asking a silent question.

  Thinking about Price made my heart hurt. Did the fact I hadn’t called back make him think I was ending things? Dear God, I hoped not. This was not the time to worry about it. It would, however, be the first thing I dealt with when this meeting was done. I forced myself to focus on the men and women sitting opposite to me.

  Since the cliché had it that honesty was my best policy and it certainly couldn’t hurt at this point, I decided to be candid. “I can’t be sure he’ll be able or willing to protect us down the road.”

  Touray would run into a burning building to help the people of the city. He would, and had, walked into a trap set by Savannah in order to save victims of a massive car accident, ending up in her private prison cell. He’d made protecting Diamond City his life’s mission. His sacred calling. I’d never believe my name wasn’t on his expendables list, not when it came right down to it. And even if he had left me off, Taylor, Leo, Jamie, and Patti wouldn’t be so lucky.

  “I have to take care of my own,” I added.

  That was met with solemn nods of understanding and agreement. So we had at least one thing in common. Could I build on it?

  “Touray might think twice about attacking us if she was driving the bus,” Vasquez mused speculatively.

  “I wouldn’t bank on it,” I said, hoping that this time honesty didn’t shoot me in the ass. “Jackson Tyrell is backing him to take over Savannah’s empire. He’s got to do it fast and he wants this badly. He’s not going to let anything stand in his way, least of all me.” I smiled. “Unless I push him back. Hard.” I didn’t mention Touray’s deal with Vernon. Tyrell would find out about that soon enough, but I didn’t want to help him learn about it. That would only hurt Touray, and I didn’t want to do that if I didn’t have to.

  “Who is Jackson Tyrell?” Erickson asked.

  “Don’t you read the papers? Watch the news?” Wright shook his head in disgust. “Maybe if you looked away from your computer screen occasionally, you’d learn something about the world.”

  “I’m here, aren’t I? No screen in sight. So teach me something, Grampa,” he said, slouching down in his chair.

  Wright groaned and gave a shuddering sigh. I could almost see him grabbing a cane and
shaking it at Erickson while muttering about kids today.

  “Tyrell is a gazillionaire philanthropist in a class all alone,” he said. He looked at me, shaking his head. “You’re wrong or you’re lying. He won the Nobel Peace Prize. He practically lives under a media microscope. The idea he’d be Tyet affiliated is ludicrous. Someone in the public eye like him can’t just hide that.”

  I thought about explaining about the deepwater Tyets that kept themselves hidden and ran countries, and the Consortium, which had come high enough to the surface that Arnow had discovered their existence. In the end, I decided I didn’t have time. It wouldn’t make much of a difference anyhow. They’d want to see proof I didn’t have. “I’m neither wrong nor lying, but have it your way. You’ll eat the truth sooner or later. But Touray now has all the money and man power he could want to take over the city.”

  Blaine gave a dismissive wave, unimpressed. “We expected him to come, and every other vulture in the city. We’re prepared.”

  “With Tyrell’s backing, he’s going to have almost unlimited resources,” I said. “He can hire anybody, bribe anybody, and buy anything he needs or wants. I’ll bet my right hand you didn’t plan for that.”

  I leaned back and crossed my arms, thrusting out my chin. “If you don’t take me seriously, you’re going to get slaughtered. Since that will be bad for me, I’d really appreciate it if you pretend that I know what I’m talking about. Which brings me back to the hostages. Did you bring something each of them touched?”

  I was sure they’d come prepared, and I was right. They reached into pockets and purses. I stiffened at the seven bloodstained ping-pong balls they set on the table, each contained in a plastic bag. On the other side of Patti, Arnow sucked in a sharp breath.

  When the three members of Arnow’s off-the-books strike team had been kidnapped during a mission to capture a serial killer, the kidnapper had left behind ping-pong balls with the names of Arnow’s team, and a message: Welcome to the game. Take up your paddle and play. They’d been sitting in pools of blood from each of the victims. The similar MO couldn’t be a coincidence.

  “Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone,” I murmured.

  Arnow turned her head, holding her hand in front of her mouth so that only I could hear her words. “If you can.” Her eyes skewered me. She really cared about her missing people.

  Patti stood to collect the baggies and set them on the table in front of me.

  “What’s up with the balls? Weren’t toothbrushes and socks good enough?” The Seedy Seven didn’t need to know a serial killer might be involved. At least not yet.

  “You’d have to ask Savannah,” Flanders growled. “She’s always used them. Liked to roll them on the table, and tossed them at us to make sure we remembered what was at stake for us.”

  “What a bitch.”

  “On that we can agree,” Blaine said. The others nodded.

  I took a breath and blew it out. “Let’s get down to the brass tacks. The trace will go faster if I know where to target,” I said. “Arnow says Savannah kept detailed records of just about everything. They might give us details on location, and possibly more importantly, how they are guarded. Finding them’s only half the battle. We’ll still have to get them back alive.”

  “Someone inside has decided to make a stand against us, likely her husband or one of her flunkies. We’ve already sent teams to break into the manor,” Flanders said. “It’ll take a while. The place is zipped up tight and the security magic is significant.”

  “I’ll get you in,” I said before I shut myself up. My habit was to stay hidden, to keep people from knowing what I could do. That had kept me alive and free in the past, but that was then and now was a whole lot different.

  “How?” demanded Vasquez.

  Patti snorted. “How do you think? Nulls.”

  The Seedy Seven eyed me speculatively. Well, more like skeptically. Knocking out Savannah’s security would take the magical equivalent of nuke.

  Luckily, I had just that.

  I had several nulls that I’d been powering up for years. The one I had in mind was the smallest. It would easily handle the dense magic of Savannah’s manor and a hell of a lot more, though I had no idea how big the nulled zone would end up being. Maybe a mile, maybe twenty, maybe fifty. I was guessing somewhere around the latter. Wherever it hit would be thrown into chaos. So much of the city and daily life depended on magic. The null would suck dry every active spell as far as it could reach until it reached its limit. I hoped there wouldn’t be a lot of collateral damage, but I couldn’t worry about that right now.

  Silence had fallen at Patti’s declaration. Now Taylor leaned forward, knocking hard twice on the table.

  “Let’s cut to the chase. This is how it’s going to work. Riley does your trace, and in exchange you give her the head chair at the table for a year with your full support and cooperation. If, after a year, you want to move on her, you can.” She smiled, and it wasn’t friendly at all. “We don’t plan to go down easily.

  “Second, we get you into Savannah’s manor. It will serve as the base of operations for the organization, as well as a safe house for anybody who wants or needs it, starting with you and your families.

  “Finally, if you live up to your side of the bargain, Riley will owe each of you one magical favor of her particular brand of magic, which you can collect anytime after the end of the first year. Any one of you violates the contract, and the deal is off. Then you’ll find out just how dirty we can fight.”

  I clenched my teeth to keep my jaw from falling open. My sister had balls. Not only that, she’d come up with a deal that should keep us all safe for a year—providing the Seedy Seven agreed to it. By then, hopefully we’d manage to guarantee ourselves continued control.

  “That’s preposterous!” Matokai sputtered.

  Despite the fact that they’d already agreed in principle, a chorus of agreement followed his pronouncement, followed by a general melee of angry retorts and then an argument about how much they needed me, which quickly devolved into brainstorming on how to force me to cooperate.

  I was not going to let that happen.

  I watched a couple of minutes. Anger steeped inside me, growing hotter and more explosive by the moment.

  “We need to think about getting out of here. If they decide not to play nice, they’ll use me, Taylor, and Arnow to force you to trace for them,” Patti said in a low voice. “We can probably take them down—I doubt they allowed each other to have weapons in here and I’m betting most of them don’t know how to fight.”

  “That’s not going to help a lot against the guards outside who are armed,” I said.

  “We could use these assholes as human shields,” Taylor suggested.

  Arnow shook her head. “To take them down fast, we’ll have to knock them out at the very least. Can’t fireman carry a body shield. Leaves too much of yourself exposed. Not to mention the fact that most of the bodyguards won’t care who becomes a casualty, as long as it isn’t their particular boss.”

  I considered our options. It had been a calculated risk to attend the meeting. Leo, Dalton, and Jamie couldn’t do anything with the binders up that the Seedy Seven had brought with them, though I expected they’d be charging in soon. Our half hour was almost up. I couldn’t see the three of them getting far. Not against a full room of guards and no magic.

  I glanced around. No windows, no back doors. There’d never been any before, either, but that didn’t mean Patti and Ben hadn’t miraculously installed one since I was here last.

  I could see only one possibility.

  Somehow I needed to unleash the magic stored in the security web, and I couldn’t just activate it. The binders made that impossible. On the other hand, just summoning magic wasn’t the same as activating it. Maybe because it was a function of a p
erson’s spirit. I don’t know.

  Theoretically, I could summon the power out of the null field, then release it all at once. None of that would be active. And if it wasn’t active magic, I had hope that I could handle it better than at the skating rink. Here, I’d just be holding a lot of magic for a while, then letting it all go in one big burst. I could do that. I snorted inwardly. I had to do that.

  The wash of passive power output should overwhelm the binders, since they didn’t care what sort of magic they attacked.

  What did I have to lose by trying?

  I decided not to answer that, since the first step involved me opening myself to the trace. If I couldn’t manage to maintain the connection, the plan was doomed before I started.

  I took a breath and let it out and opened myself to the trace. I expected the pain that crawled over me in popping jolts of laser energy. My hands began to shake. Suck it up, I told myself. You’ve been through a hell of a lot worse, and failure is a really bad option.

  Taking another breath and holding it, I summoned my null magic back to me. Good news: because I’d built the field, it responded easily. Magic flowed into me.

  It hurt.

  What’s worse than agony? I didn’t know the word for it, but I’d sure as hell found the experience. I’m pretty sure I’d gone to hell, not that any of the seven talking heads noticed anything. Their argument was growing more heated. They really didn’t like each other. The sensation of spinning broken glass filled my insides. A flock of steel-beaked woodpeckers pounded against my skull. It took everything I had to stick to the right side of consciousness. All the same, elation buoyed me.

  A person can only hold so much magic inside herself before she goes up in flames. Or explodes. Literally. I’d never in my life tried to contain this much magic at one time. It had taken me weeks to first establish the null web, and I’d been adding onto it for years. Now all that magic came gushing back to me like an uncorked fire hydrant.