Illegal King

by Mason Dakota

  “Wait, there’s no need,” I said, my voice harsh and quiet. But Chamberlain was far too quick for my resistance. He laid gentle hands upon me and held me down. I wasn’t sure if he was putting himself at risk touching me, being an Illegal. There was Noble blood in him. That at least put him at some sort of risk, but there had been no hesitation in him. He winked when he noticed I understood what risk he was taking.

  I was confident that even in my full strength I couldn’t have moved free of Chamberlain, but everyone in the room lunged to grab a limb and hold me down.

  “Now this I must see,” said Erikson, peeking at the scene from the doorway at a safe distance from me.

  Oh no, not him too! I’ll never hear the end of this from him!

  Gabriel saw him and shouted, “Erikson, get out of here! You could get infected!” Erikson waved his hands, turned and left the room.

  “Thank you,” I whispered to Gabriel.

  “Keep him still. I’m going to try to seal up the wound on his leg. Griffon…this is going to hurt,” said Alison.

  I turned my head up high toward the ceiling, not wanting to see her operate on me. “Don’t worry, I can—” I never got to finish that sentence before pain burned so hot in my leg I screamed. My body twisted and contorted in fierce spasms. Blood and spit coughed from my lips. A migraine settled itself into my skull.

  “Keep him still!” Alison shouted.

  “We are trying! But we don’t want to hurt him more,” said Michael.

  “Then distract him. Make him think about something other than the pain. If he doesn’t settle some he’ll bleed out!” shouted Alison.

  “How do you expect us to distract him?” Evelyn asked.

  But Gabriel was quick to find that answer. “Griffon! Griffon, can you understand me? Tell me what happened tonight. What do you remember?”

  I stopped screaming longing enough to chuckle and gasped out, “I got Evelyn out. Just like we planned.”

  “More like I got you out,” said Evelyn.

  Something powdery touched my wound and felt like my skin was boiling. I screamed until it ended in a coughing spasm. I licked my lips and whispered, “Team…effort.”

  Even in that torturous moment Evelyn chuckled. “You’ll never let that pride of yours go. It’ll get you killed someday.”

  Something hot touched my leg and I screamed out, “NOT…DEAD…YET!”

  Gabriel didn’t find our banter amusing, but that’s why Evelyn and I are fun and he is not. “What about Thomas and Agent Lorre? Where are they?”

  “Did…did they not make it out?” I whispered. I looked at Evelyn and suddenly that smile vanished into sadness. She wouldn’t look me in the eye.

  “I…didn’t know they were there. I never looked for them. The military surrounded the entire building. On our way out the military reinforcements arrived and arrested anyone they could get their hands on. And then there was that mob. It was a miracle that we got out alive ourselves. I’m not sure what happened to them. Maybe Lorre and Thomas were arrested.”

  Or maybe they’re dead. I…I failed them…

  “Michael, put some gloves on. I’m going to need you to put pressure here,” said Alison, bringing me back to my horrible reality before I dropped into that pit of guilt.

  Pressure ceased on my right leg as Michael stepped away. He snapped on a pair of gloves and I practically heard him turn white.

  “Michael! Stop standing there and put your hands here!”

  “There’s…so much blood,” I heard him whisper.

  “Michael!” barked Gabriel. Suddenly Michael moved to where Alison wanted him to be and I felt his hands press into the wound on my left leg. I cringed and stifled a scream.

  I turned my head toward Chamberlain and said, “Weren’t these the bed sheets I gave you for your wedding?”

  Chamberlain laughed and said, “Don’t worry…we kept the receipt.”

  I used another scream to turn my head toward Gabriel. Was the pain getting less or was I just becoming numb? “We’ve got to save them. Adam’s got them, and we’ve got to save them.”

  Gabriel smiled and said, “Don’t worry. I’ll get them back—personally.”

  “What about the convention tomorrow? We need you, Gabriel,” said Michael.

  “Michael—focus!” snapped Alison. I was so glad I couldn’t see what Alison and Michael were doing to the wound on my leg.

  “The rest of you will have to stop Richard. Thomas and Lorre will need my help. Don’t worry; the plan will work.”

  “What…what is the plan?” I whispered. The pain had turned into a hard, rhythmic throbbing. My heartbeat dropped. Dark fingers scratched on the edges of my vision. I started to black out and was determined to hear my question answered before I slipped into that familiar oblivion.

  Gabriel looked around at everyone and then back at me as he said, “Erikson was given a special invite for media coverage for the Convention. That’s our entry as part of his media team. We’ll find Richard once inside.”

  “Is it still going to happen after all the chaos tonight?” Chamberlain asked.

  Gabriel nodded and said, “I know Adam. There’s no stopping it. It’s still happening.”

  My hand shot out and grabbed Gabriel’s wrist. I cringed and kept myself from another scream. The dark fingers were spreading and I squeezed Gabriel’s wrist as tight as I could. He didn’t seem to notice it. “Save them, Gabriel. Even if it means my father wins, save Thomas and Lorre. They can’t die because of me.”

  Gabriel smiled, patted my hand, and said, “Don’t worry. I’ll get them back.” He looked up at Chamberlain and then back at me and said, “And don’t worry about your father. We’ll stop him. You just focus on recovering.”

  “Done! That should stop the bleeding!” shouted Alison victoriously.

  Chamberlain and Michael shouted with excitement. Evelyn cheered. But Gabriel only smiled, laid a hand on my shoulder as gently as he could, and whispered, “Relax now, Griffon. Sleep. When you wake up this will be all over.”

  The dark fingers stretched until I lay there blind. Sleepily, I smiled and whispered, “Happy to oblige.”

  Seventy-Three

  The nightmare woke me with a start. I flung myself up out of bed. The burst of energy was immediately followed by a cringing groan as pain exploded in pockets all across my body.

  The nightmare’s details abandoned me, but the fear and sweat it left behind stayed. Heart racing, blood pumping, pain coursing through my body, I stifled screams.

  Alison rushed to my side. She laid a loving hand on my shoulder and whispered, “Easy—easy. It was just a dream. You were having a nightmare. Now lie back down before you pull your stitches out.”

  Panting, I submitted and slowly lowered myself back down onto the bed. There was no shortage of pain in my broken arm and injured leg. Bloody bandages were wrapped around my naked chest and arms. My right arm was in a sling. I felt cloth wrapped around my head and part of my left eye. There was dried blood on the sheets. I would have to buy them new bedsheets when this was all over.

  Alison looked as bad as I did. Bags hung under her bloodshot eyes. Her hair was a mess, and her clothes had blood stains all over them—my blood. It wasn’t until then I smelled the ash in her hair and clothes. They must have barely escaped the burning of the Stinks. I looked around the room to see Chamberlain asleep in a chair and Evelyn curled up asleep on the bed next to me. She wore her own share of bloody bandages.

  “There you go. Now stay still so I can check you,” Alison whispered just loudly enough for me to hear.

  When did she last sleep?

  I looked at the bloody bedsheets and Evelyn sleeping there and said, “First I destroy your bedsheets and then we force you and Chamberlain to sleep on chairs…on your honeymoon!”

  She smiled and whispered, “Don’t worry. You’ll just owe us.”

  How come those words coming from her scare me more than the Lady and her whole mob?

  “How are you
feeling?” she whispered as she removed a bandage to inspect a cut.

  “Like I got hit by a train,” I moaned quietly.

  She smirked. “It looks like you opened up a few cuts here. Sit still while I stitch these back up.” She grabbed the first aid kit and with a needle, thread, and some hydrogen-peroxide began treating my injuries.

  “Thank you,” I whispered.

  “Don’t mention it. I’ll just add it to your tab,” she said. She looked up and something sinister and yet still playful sparked in her tired eyes. “You’ll want to see a doctor once this is all over. I can stop the bleeding and bandage you up, but there’s not much more I can do here. You’ll need lots of rest. Those are my orders! You better stay in this bed and rest. Do that and you’ll be up and fighting again soon enough.”

  Unless this virus kills me in the next few hours.

  “You should have been a doctor, Alison.”

  “Actually growing up I always wanted to be a trauma surgeon. Ironic, I know. Never could be one, though, being an Outcast. People feared my genetic imperfection would make me sloppy and allow a Noble to die. Apparently being a woman and an Outcast makes me inferior in Chicago.”

  That hurt more than the two explosions. The world missed out on a great individual like Alison who wanted nothing more than to serve others.

  “Sorry that you get to spend your honeymoon putting me back together. You and Chamberlain should be off having a great time, not saving my life…again,” I said.

  She shook her head, finished with one cut, moved on to another, and then whispered, “You are family, Griffon. That’s what family does; we look out for one another. My husband and I don’t need a honeymoon to be happy. We are satisfied with the life we have now with each other and with all of you.”

  I smiled and asked, “How does it feel to finally call him your husband?”

  She blushed and said, “That it’s about time.”

  I chuckled. It hurt my ribs and caused me to wince.

  “Where are Michael and Gabriel?” I asked, counting heads in the room.

  “And Erikson?” added Alison with a wicked smile.

  I cringed, more from the name than any injury, and said, “Yeah…him too.”

  “Michael and Erikson are in the other room keeping watch on the streets and finalizing details for their heist in the morning,” said Alison.

  “And Gabriel?” I asked.

  “He’s…gone. Left not long ago. Saying he was going to get Thomas and Lorre back.” She swallowed and said, “There’s another thing. He took with him your last Shaman mask from the hideout.”

  So that’s how it’s going to be?

  I swallowed. I didn’t have the heart to discuss that subject further. Gabriel could take care of himself and knew what he was doing. After all, he taught me everything I knew. If he said he would be back shortly, then I believed him. I found my eyes glancing over toward Evelyn and I couldn’t help but smile.

  Alison noticed it and asked, “So you went through all this pain for her?”

  I slowly nodded in reply.

  “You still love her don’t you?” Alison asked.

  I spent a long time lying to myself, running from the truth, but I couldn’t lie to Alison. She was the sister I never had. She deserved to know the truth.

  “I always have,” I whispered. Joy lit up on Alison’s face and she slapped me with a rag. “Hey what’s that for?” I quickly asked.

  “That’s for dragging everyone through the mud about all this. You’ve been quite the pain since she last left. That girl has been the best thing to ever happen to you, and now you’ve got yourself a second chance. Don’t blow it this time!”

  I snickered and looked over toward Evelyn. “Yeah…you’re right. This time things will be different. I promise, Alison.”

  “I know. We all do.” She patted my hand and said, “That’s it. Looks like everything is all stitched up and cleaned. Get some rest now. You’ll need it later.”

  She stepped away from the bed and sat in the chair next to Chamberlain’s. As I lay back down to rest, the last thing I saw was Chamberlain, who appeared asleep during this whole time, reach out and take Alison’s hand next to him. He had been faking it all along to listen in. I would have to say something to him about that in the morning, but for now it was sweet to see their love even on a night like this.

  Seventy-Four

  Daylight woke me. No morning alarms or loud cries outside the window, but just a simple stirring as daylight peeked through the curtains and brought me from slumber.

  It was so foreign, so peaceful even, as if my body and mind were convinced that there was no such thing as daylight—as if the whole earth was nothing more than fire and darkness. Still, I could smell the Stinks burning, I could still hear the flames crackle and the buildings burn.

  I turned my head in the direction of the light. Evelyn stood at the window and peeled the curtains back just enough for her to see outside, letting in the smallest sliver of light that struck my face.

  Maybe she heard me stirring, or maybe she heard the audible groans any man makes when he wakes (mine are some of the worst). She didn’t turn to address me as she whispered, “It’s still burning. The Stinks will be gone by this afternoon.”

  That made me groan even more.

  “Well, good morning sunshine,” she said. There was something far too sarcastic in her voice to make me believe that the morning could be considered good.

  “And how are we feeling today?” She chirped. I glared at her and wasn’t surprised when even that made me hurt.

  I cringed and moaned, “Oh, just kill me now!”

  She giggled and said, “Always so dramatic. If you stop complaining you’ll find Alison left some medicine for you on the bedside table.” She was right. I swallowed it down as quickly as I could. It was nothing powerful, but every bit helped.

  None of it will stop the virus from soon killing me.

  “Where is everyone?” I asked.

  “They left. Off to save the world I guess, leaving just the two of us here to wait it out.” She turned toward me, a smile of mischief on her face and said, “A bit unfair, wouldn’t you agree?”

  “Babysitting me is that unpleasant?” I teased.

  “You said it, not me. How could they expect to leave someone like me behind and left alone in such miserable company?” Again a flash of mischief sparked in her eyes.

  “Miserable company?”

  “If I didn’t have such an awesome personality this company would be dangerous to my sanity,” she teased.

  “I always thought you enjoyed the company of handsome charming men,” I said.

  “Oh, I do. Were you thinking that described you?”

  “Some have been known to say such things about me.”

  “Handsome has always been a stretch for you. Now, it would be an insult to make you believe you looked handsome,” she said. She giggled at her sarcasm like she was having the time of her life.

  Yes, let’s poke fun at the man dying from a flesh-eating virus!

  “So you were ordered to stay here and make sure I stayed in bed and rested?” I asked.

  “Yup. Strict orders from Chamberlain. He seemed quite serious about it. They did leave gifts for you.”

  She moved to the end table on the far side of the bedroom and picked up an ear piece for a radio headset and a letter with my name on it written in Gabriel’s handwriting.

  “I’m guessing they are allowing you to listen in on their operation,” said Evelyn.

  I took the items from her, stared at them, and then laid them to my side. There was a heaviness in my chest at seeing the letter. Evelyn stood there patiently waiting but I never let my eyes meet her questioning gaze. Evelyn, though, has limited patience and asked, “Well, why don’t you open it?”

  “Don’t have to.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I already know what it says,” I whispered. She started at me quietly, waiting for me to explain. After a m
oment or two I finally said, “It’s a goodbye letter. He’s not coming back.”

  “But I thought he was going to go save your friends?”

  I scoffed at the thought of ever being considered a friend with Jeremiah Lorre. “He is.”

  “Do you expect him to fail?”

  I shook my head and smiled. “Gabriel never fails. He’ll get Thomas and Lorre out somehow.”

  “But after that he’s not coming back?”

  I lifted up the sealed letter and said, “If he were coming back, he wouldn’t have left this. Gabriel only writes goodbye letters. No, he’ll get them out and then he’ll disappear—probably back to working with Nebula.”

  I sighed. Silence fell between us. I know it bothered Evelyn more than it did me—she hated quiet in the company of others; I found it comforting. Being considerate, I asked, “So what happens now?”

  “Now? You get dressed. We’ve got a meeting with your father soon,” she said. She grabbed a pair of clothes and tossed them at me. I loathed to see the dirty overalls and ugly sweater I had bought. It went perfectly with the juvenile sling I wore with pictures of kittens and candy all over it.

  Now I’ll really look like a hero.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me. I can’t wear these,” I complained.

  “Well, all that’s here are Alison and Chamberlain’s clothes. The big guy is well…big…and none of his things will fit you. Unless you want to wear one of Alison’s dresses, which I would very much enjoy seeing, this is all you’ve got to wear.”

  I grumbled something impolite and said, “You’re serious about this? You want to go out there? We could be killed.”

  “And you could die waiting on them to return with the cure. If Chamberlain really wanted you to stay behind he would have left Alison or Michael here to watch over you. He wouldn’t have left that radio for you either. If you ask me I think he wanted you out of this bed but wasn’t going to say it.”

  “I…can’t believe your serious,” I said.

  “What? Were you not planning on sneaking out of here when I was in the other room?”