by C. L. Roman
“Liberty, don’t be that way. We were friends.”
“Friends don’t cheat.”
“I didn’t cheat. I’m just that good. Honey, we’re not here for entertainment tonight.”
“Oh, my place is not good enough for you anymore?”
Kai dropped her arm around the lady’s shoulder. “I’ve brought you a lot of business in the past. You owe me.”
She followed the lady into a bigger anteroom. Couches and lounges lined the perimeter of an intricate oriental carpet. Potted miniature palm trees decorated the corners of the room. Two crystal chandeliers lit the room with a soft glow, and rainbow reflections filled the shadows. Couples sat around whispering and snuggling, females giggling at private jokes. Two men dressed to match Hamlet stood as sentries for a massive oak door.
Liberty slapped Kai’s hand away from the handle before she could open it. “You are not welcome here and no amount of sweet talk will get me to change my mind.”
Kai noticed Seth rubbing his shoulder again and worried he was having another spell. If the situation went bad, an ailing partner was a useless partner. Her messenger bag slid off his shoulder.
“I’m not looking to stay. Help me find the demon named Winston.”
Liberty’s mocha colored skin paled. “My guests come here to partake in fantasies. They enjoy the highest level of privacy. I cannot help you.”
“Can’t or won’t?” Kai tightened her grip on the handle.
Liberty pulled away. Her eyes glowed and energy radiated around her. “Do not bully me, Valkyrie. I am not the one who lost her key.”
Kai looked at Seth and winked. “I never mentioned my key.”
“Yes, you did. I’m sure you did.” Liberty’s energy faltered and disappeared.
Seth slumped on a nearby couch. It split Kai’s focus, but she had to push Liberty harder. She didn’t know what would happen to Seth if he never crossed but knew enough of Odin’s wrath to know his afterlife would know no peace.
Liberty nodded to the two guards. They screeched when their bones broke and joints twisted. Fangs grew from their mouths and wings sprang from their backs as tattered jackets fell to the ground. Gargoyles. Kai lowered her glamour, reached for a knife and assumed an attack position. Seth struggled to stand but managed to break off the arm off the lounge and held it like a club. They stood back to back preparing to fight.
Drool pooled on the floor as the gargoyles circled Kai and Seth. Their nails snagged on the carpet and their wings knocked paintings off the walls and overturned potted trees.
“Are you feeling up to fight?” Kai asked Seth.
“I hope so.”
One sentry punched his claw toward Kai falling an inch short from her mid-section.
“Liberty, you can call off your guard dogs. I didn’t come here to fight.”
The other beast took a swipe at Seth and again fell short of doing any physical damage.
“They’re just playing with you for right now. If I wanted you dead, it would have happened by now. You have to learn your lesson the hard way though.” Liberty snapped her fingers, and the gargoyles sat on their hind legs.
“Aww, good boys. Wanna treat?” Kai teased. Both growled in response.
A side door opened, distracting everyone. A tall, handsome man walked next to a stalky clumsy man. Both stopped and smiled at Kai. Seth tensed behind her.
“I’ll give you credit Valkyrie. I didn’t think you’d find me so fast,” the tall, ebony man said.
Seth whispered in her ear, “That’s the man who shot me.”
“Winston,” she hissed back.
“No.” He nodded to the other man.
“What do you need with my key? You’re not in my family. The key won’t work for you and you don’t need keys to travel between realms.”
“So, you know who I am, do you?”
“I know you’re Lucifer’s second in command.”
Winston and the other man snickered. “For the moment, that’s correct.”
“Are you looking to take over?”
“Just waiting for the right moment. See my friend, here—” he put his hand on the other guy’s back, “—has a plan.”
“Does his plan involve shooting cops?” Seth asked.
“I didn’t shoot you,” the man said. He smiled and clapped his hands. Energy swirled around, and the pudgy, old, manly body melted into a tall slender red-haired woman. Seth stumbled back, and Kai clenched her fists.
“Oh, that’s right,” Winston started, “I believe you know my friend.”
“I don’t understand. You were the man who shot me. You killed me,” Seth protested.
“No, silly man. That was glamour,” she said.
“Huh?” Seth asked.
“Should you tell him, or should I?” the strange lady asked Kai.
Kai turned to Seth. “I’m so sorry you got involved in this.”
“Involved in what?” He stared at Kai.
“Seth, this is Dahlia.” She paused, looked at the ground, and exhaled. “My sister.”
The redhead stepped away from Winston, stretched her gray, gold-tipped wings, smiled, and bowed.
Chapter Six
Several things happened simultaneously. Kai released her glamour and opened her wings. The two sisters charged each other. A gargoyle attacked Seth, and Liberty ushered Winston into the door he used before.
The two sisters met with an explosive impact of power. Kai slammed her fists into Dahlia’s midsection forcing the Valkyrie to her knees. Dahlia kicked out her leg. Kai opened her wings, jumped, and used her sister’s shoulder to catapult herself behind Dahlia. Dahlia tucked and rolled, twisting to face Kai, she pulled out a katana and held it low on the hilt. She slashed down, attacking Kai’s wings. Kai closed her wings around her cocooning herself as she twisted aside.
Dahlia swung the blade again attacking Kai from the other side. Kai held up her arm to defend herself and the katana slashed into muscle. She stumbled back holding her cut as blood oozed on the floor.
“Why are you here?” she asked her sister.
“The shame you caused our family has never disappeared. We all live as outcasts and are shunned by Odin and Frigg. I came to claim what is mine and return to find favor from the Gods.”
Kai’s attention focused on Seth fighting the gargoyles. They attacked him from all sides. She saw a gash on his head and his shirt hung loosely, torn by claws. The smaller gargoyle knocked Seth’s gun across the room.
“Go for the eyes,” she called to him.
Dahlia looked over her shoulder and sneered. “Why do you bother with him? He turned down an eternal gift only the chosen are offered.”
“Did you kill him to find me?” Kai’s heartbeat echoed in her ears and heat radiated from her wings.
“You act like that’s a bad thing. This city is too big, and I don’t have an eternity to fulfill my destiny.”
“The key is not yours. It’s passed down to the firstborn. That is not you, dear sister.”
Dahlia switched her grip on the sword and straddled her feet balancing her weight. “I will be once you are dead.” With her weapon out prepped to jab Kai, she ran for her sister.
Kai held her breath and opened her mind. She smelled blood, sweat, and fear. Palm fronds and dirt floated on the air as Seth and the gargoyles continued to knock them over. The chandeliers rocked with vibrations. The main door opened as guests filed into the foyer to investigate the commotion. Kai gathered her energy. Dahlia advanced with a frontal jab. Kai waited until the sword was a hair-length away then caught the tip in a prayer-like hold. A surprised Dahlia relaxed her hold enough for Kai to flip it up, cartwheeling it up in the air. She knocked her sister back with a roundhouse kick to the face. With Dahlia distracted, Kai crashed a chair over her sister’s arm. Kai jumped, using her wings to propel her across the room. The bigger gargoyle did not notice her soft landing behind him. She jumped on his back and used her Bowie knife to jab one eye and then the other. The gargoyle th
rew her back and sank to the ground holding his face. The other gargoyle squeezed Seth in his hands.
“Hey, big guy. Come get me instead.”
Accepting the challenge, he tossed Seth aside, who collapsed against the wall. Kai prepared for the tackle, but two gunshots dropped the gargoyle at her feet.
Kai leaped over the fallen beast now turning to crumbled stone. “You couldn’t have done that in the first place? Are you okay?”
“Maybe.” Seth struggled to stand.
Kai wrapped her arm around him and helped him out the door. She didn’t want to wait around for the spectators to attack. Hamlet flitted around the main door.
“Hamlet, I need you to run interference,” Kai said.
“Why would I involve myself in your mess?”
Kai cocked her head and growled. “Because you pipsqueak, I introduced you to your wife. She likes me, a lot. And if she finds out you didn’t help me, you’ll sleep outside.”
He frowned. “Good point.”
The guests must have wanted a bigger show because several of them ran after her. At the top of the stairs, Hamlet pushed over a tarnished set of metal armor. The crowd stumbled back to the bottom.
“That should buy you a little time, but haul ass and get out of here.”
Kai winked at the little-winged man. “Tell Ophelia I said hi.”
At the top of the stairs, Kai the flame from last sconce died, and the door opened. She pulled Seth through and they both collapsed on the damp grass
“We can’t stay here. They may not stop.”
“We can go back to my place.” Seth worked to sit, holding his shoulder and his left eye only visible through a slit in the bruised, swollen flesh.
“No, I don’t think that would be a good idea. We need to go somewhere no one would expect to find us.
“My cousin’s place?”
“Where does he live?”
“Queens.”
Kai kneeled behind him, put her hands under his arms, and helped him to the car. Blood from her gash smeared on his bare arms.
“You’re bleeding.”
“I’m okay. Don’t worry about me. This time of the day, traffic shouldn’t be too bad. We’ll swing by your place to clean up.” Kai looked around. “Did you grab my bag?”
Seth shook his head.
“Well, I guess I’ll be paying Liberty another visit, soon.”
Once they were on the road, Seth laid his head back against the seat and closed his eyes. “I need to just catch my breath. I’m right here if you need me.”
“Give me the address before you pass out.”
Kai punched it into the GPS. Before long, Seth’s breathing slowed and evened. The passing streetlights illuminated his various wounds. Watching the cuts clot into scabs made no sense. How could his blood still be pumping when he was dead? She pulled out her knife and used her power to heat the blade. It cauterized her cut and stopped the bleeding. She whimpered in pain but slowed her breathing and relaxed her muscles as much as possible.
She reflected on what happened and what she learned. Her sister disguised herself, killed Seth, and joined forces with Winston. Dahlia hired Winston to steal the key. It surprised her to see Seth, but not Kai. Liberty and Winston had to be friends. What she wasn’t sure about was who had the key. Did Winston give it to Dahlia? Knowing Dahlia, she would have flaunted it.
A half-hour later, they pulled alongside the address Seth shared. Before Kai opened her door, she scanned the surrounding area to make sure nothing followed them. Seth’s cousin’s house sat in the middle of a quiet, older neighborhood. A swing set in the front yard twisted her stomach. Kids. It was bad enough to bring Seth’s family into this, but children made it worse.
Kai grabbed her knife when headlights glared through the back window. She didn’t want to be responsible for destroying this homey neighborhood, but she would not let anyone hurt these people. A flying shadow landing in the gated yard drew her attention, and the car drove to the next house. Early morning paper delivery. A jogger wearing black shorts and a gray wife beater appeared in the side mirror. Kai timed his gait and focused on any subtle changes he might make as he ran past her. Satisfied he was not out for them, she closed her eyes for a short rest.
In what felt like two seconds, a knock on the window startled her. The sun was now high enough to be obnoxious. A sweet, round, boyish face with innocent eyes stared at Kai. He smiled and waved. A man’s voice called him to the house. The same man stood in front of her car with a Louisville Slugger and a how-dare-you-bug-me-before-coffee-you-crazy-freak look.
Kai nudged Seth. “Hey, is that your cousin?”
Seth woke up, rubbed his eyes and nodded. The swelling around his eye was almost gone. He opened his door forgetting that no one from his side of the human spectrum could see him.
“Wait.” Kai reached for his arm too late to stop him.
When the man saw the car door open by itself, he jumped back. “Who the hell are you?”
Kai stepped out and held her hands out in front of her. “I’m not a whacko. I’m not here to hurt you, and I can explain what just happened.”
“You best get your ass back in that cab, and get out of here.”
“I’m here with Seth.”
“Now I know you’re crazy, lady.”
Seth walked to his cousin and waved his hand up and down in front of him. His cousin didn’t blink or react. “Mateo, it’s me.” He snapped his fingers. “Yo, Mateo.”
“Don’t bother. He can’t see you,” Kai said to Seth.
“I can’t see who? I see you fine.”
Neighbors peeked out of their windows. One opened his door and asked if his neighbor needed help.
“I’ve got it, George.”
Unsatisfied, or nosey, George stayed on his porch.
Kai took one step closer. “I know this is unbelievable, but Seth is here with me right now.”
“You mean like his ghost?”
“Something like that.”
Mateo adjusted his grip, holding the bat higher. “I have no time for con-artists like you.”
“Seth, tell me something that only the two of you know.”
“Stop talking crazy, lady.” Mateo closed in on Kai.
“Hurry up, please.”
“I’m thinking. Give me a minute,” Seth pleaded.
“Um, I may not have a minute.”
Mateo aimed for her headlight. Red plastic shattered to the ground. “Seth, now, please.”
“Tell him about the time we went to camp,” Seth said.
“He wants me to remind you of the time you went to camp,” she said.
“A lot of kids go to camp.” He took aim for the second headlight.
“Yeah, but not every kid sneaks into camp and is there for a whole week before anyone realizes they didn’t pay,” Seth told her.
Mateo stopped short when Kai relayed the message. “How do you know about that?”
“I told you Seth is here with me. It’s hard to explain.” She noticed the neighbors getting bolder and more curious. “I’d rather explain inside, though.”
“I’m not letting you in my house, lady. Anyone can find out stuff about other people these days.”
Seth shared another secret with her. “Seth says you have a scar on your butt from where you tried to light—”
Mateo lowered his bat. “Whoa, okay. I’ll let you in, if you don’t finish that story. But you have ten minutes to convince me that this isn’t something hokey.”
He walked ahead of them. Kai joined Seth. “I don’t know if this is going to work. We probably should have just gone to a hotel.”
“Trust me,” he said. “Mateo is a computer genius. He can help us. I have some questions about what happened back there.”
“I imagine you do.”
Seth held the screen door opened, and they sat on the couch. Two little bundles of energy rushed over to him with open arms. “Uncle Seth,” they cried.
He scooped them up sitting
one on each knee. “You can see me?”
“Don’t be silly. Of course we can see you.” To prove his point, the boy who knocked on the window hugged Seth.
Mateo grabbed them off. “What kind of game are you playing with my kids?” he demanded.
Seth stood between him and Kai with his arms out to block him from attacking. When Mateo made contact with Seth, a small spark flickered and they both stepped back, Mateo rubbing his chest and Seth flapping his hands.
“That hurt,” Seth said.
“Huh? That’s interesting. Kids can see you and your cousin can feel you,” Kai said.
“Daddy, why are you fighting with Uncle Seth?” the little girl asked.
Mateo looked to the empty space in front of him and crossed himself with the sign of the cross. “Seth are you really here?”
“Well, he’s a little to the left, but yeah he’s here with me and if you don’t help us, his story is not going to end well.”
Mateo sent his children to their room, put his bat behind the door, and said, “Let’s get some coffee.”
Chapter Seven
“Start from the beginning,” Mateo demanded once they settled in the kitchen.
Kai skimmed over the crazier parts and didn’t exactly explain what she was. When he asked her if she was an angel, she went with that story. It made the most logical sense for a human like him.
“If I understand this, you can’t help my cousin get into heaven without your key, but someone stole it and you don’t know who has it?”
“I know who has it but I don’t know what he wants to do with it.”
“Your sister?” Mateo asked.
“No. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t have it. I’d bet anything that Winston still has it.”
“What does he want to do with it?” Seth asked.
“Did he say something?” Mateo asked.
“Seth asked what Winston wants with the key.”
“Does he need it to go somewhere?” Mateo poured the last of the coffee into their cups. It was odd that Seth didn’t have any with them.
“He can already go anywhere.”
“Then what does he want?” Mateo asked.
