by M. L. Ryan
“His color looks more normal,” I remarked when I realized his once pasty complexion was becoming pinker. Alex touched one of his hands and noted that Sebastian was now much warmer as well.
A moment later, Sebastian opened his eyes, and said haltingly, and with obvious effort, “Thank you, Alex, well done. And Hailey, my dear, lovely to see you with my own eyes.”
After all these weeks of hearing him only from inside my own head, his voice seemed odd. Maybe it was like when you hear your own voice recorded—it never sounds like what you think it should.
“Can you sit up?” Alex queried, even as he began to lift Sebastian’s upper body off the floor.
Sebastian was still very weak, and while he was now more or less upright, Alex kept a hand on his back to keep him from collapsing.
“I believe I shall require a few moments to recover before I can stand. But when we are out of here, I would like a very large scotch and a very rare steak.”
Suddenly, all the lights in the room came on and a deep voice drifted across the room.
“Sorry Xyzok, but we are all out just now.”
~17~
Before I could register that we were no longer alone, we were surrounded by two unpleasant looking men with really, really big guns pointing right at us.
Alex raised his hands, so I did too. Sebastian didn’t move, but he must not have looked like much of a threat, because the gunmen ignored him. Then another man, who I assumed was the owner of the voice, moved between them and surveyed us with a cruel smile.
“Alex, so nice of you to visit. I see you brought Sebastian along; I’m sure he must be delighted to be reconnected with his body,” he sneered. Turning toward me, he continued, “But I have yet to make the acquaintance of this lovely young woman—I am Otto Kashanian. And you must be Hailey.”
Yep, definitely the source of the bass. Alex stood very slowly, never taking his eyes off the men with the guns.
“She’s no concern of yours, Otto. You have us, let her go.”
“Now, now, what’s the fun in that? Besides, I am the captor, and as such, I get to decide what happens to the captives.”
He laughed as he spoke, but his grey eyes showed nothing but malice. Otto wasn’t particularly tall—maybe only an inch or two taller than I—and he was lean, but not well muscled. He wasn’t particularly good looking either, but his auburn hair was short and neat, and he wore an obviously expensive suit that fit him like it was made for him. Which it probably was, considering he had amassed a sizable fortune from his criminal activities.
Otto nodded at his lackeys and one lowered his gun and frisked us, taking both our cell phones. Great, I thought, as he handed Alex’s phone to Otto, there goes our ability to let the others know we are in trouble.
As Lackey One moved back to his original position, I noticed he had a curved pattern tattooed on his left hand. Upon further study, I realized that Lackey Two had the same tat. That explained the guy asking Wyatt questions; I wondered if all Otto’s minions were so marked. Must be something new or Alex and Sebastian would have recognized it from Wyatt’s description.
Otto walked across the room and sat behind a large, intricately carved mahogany desk. He lifted the receiver of an old-school rotary telephone and spoke in a neutral tone.
“Edita, I am hungry. I’ll have that Kung Pao now.” He looked out at us. “Would any of you like anything?” When none of us answered, he shrugged. “No? Just the Kung Pao then.”
He hung up the phone, moved around to the front of the desk, and leaned casually against its edge, feet crossed at the ankles and arms crossed over his chest.
“I have forgotten my manners,” Otto said smoothly. “There’s no reason for you to be uncomfortable. Please, come sit.” He gestured to a red, velvet-covered settee positioned directly in front of the desk.
When none of us moved, Lackey One prodded us towards the sofa with the barrel of his gun. Alex and I helped Sebastian, who was still unable to stand—much less walk—to the sofa, carefully propping him up with some throw pillows against one side of the couch. He was still sort of listing to one side, but at least he remained upright. I settled down in the middle, while Alex sat on the far end.
“Who set us up?” Alex made no attempt to hide the venom in his voice.
Otto smirked. “No one, really. I knew you had gone to New Hampshire, but it was impossible to locate your precise location. So I decided to lure you to me instead. I let it be known that Sebastian’s body was here. I knew that you were looking for it, and I was certain that once your informants got word to you, you would come here to recover it. So simple and yet so effective, don’t you think? And now, here you are, just as I planned.”
There was a small rap on the door. “Come,” Otto bellowed.
A plump woman, her graying hair pulled back in an elaborate bun, entered. She carried a tray loaded with covered dishes, a teapot, and two small cups without handles. She arranged the tray on the desk, uncovered the bowls, and poured some tea into one of the cups.
Otto turned to the food, joyfully rubbed his hands together and exclaimed, “There’s nothing like Edita’s Kung Pao Chicken. She makes it better than any place in China. Eastern European food tends to be so bland, but she knows how to use peppers!”
Without uttering a word, Edita retreated from the room. Otto tucked a starched, white cloth napkin into his collar and snatched one of the bowls along with a set of elaborately decorated gold chopsticks. He placed the bowl up to his chin and deftly manipulated the sticks as he shoveled food into his mouth. As he took his first bite, his eyes closed and his expression conveyed complete ecstasy; he swallowed and moaned, “Exquisite.”
“Why did you keep Sebastian’s body?” Alex asked.
“Well,” Otto began while he continued to chew, “I keep all my best kills preserved. I have them in all of my homes. They provide me with such warm memories of my triumphs over my enemies.” He looked directly at me. “Enemies vex me so.”
When Otto finished his food, he yanked the napkin from his neck and daintily dabbed his mouth with it. He set the bowl and napkin back on the tray and took a swig of tea. Then, he motioned to the two gunmen, who dropped their weapons and left the room. Their departure made me feel less tense; now that automatic weapons weren’t pointed at us, maybe the situation wasn’t completely hopeless.
Otto must have noticed some change in my expression or the set of my shoulders, because he wagged his index finger at me and clucked in admonishment, “I had Petr and Enrique leave because they do not need to be privy to this sensitive information. But don’t get any ideas. Even without them, the odds are still decidedly in my favor. You are human, weak and slow. Poor Sebastian here is still in no condition to do much of anything. So, potentially the only danger to me is Alex, but I believe he too is a bit depleted from his expenditure of energy when restoring Sebastian to his body.”
He moved back around the desk and opened the center drawer. “Besides,” he said, grinning widely as he pulled out a small, dark handgun and laid it on the desktop, “If Alex moves, I’ll shoot you.”
I gulped reflexively and glanced at Alex. He reached over, squeezed my hand, and then inclined his head at Otto to get him to continue.
“Now, where was I? Oh yes, all my other trophies just stand there, lifeless, as one might expect. But Sebastian was different. I suppose that shouldn’t have surprised me; he was so unique in life. His body still seemed to have just the tiniest stirrings of life, just a whisper of energy that didn’t diminish. Quite amazing, really.”
Otto sat down in the desk chair and steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “So of course this piqued my curiosity. I knew the Xyzok would try to locate the body—they always like a proper send off for the dearly departed—and you, Alex, were the most likely one to lead the search. So I had my people keep an eye on you. I must say, your skills as an investigator are decidedly overrated, considering how long it took you to unravel the mystery of poor Sebastian’s body. I was be
ginning to doubt whether you would provide me with any useful information at all. But then, during a casual discussion with a colleague concerning the demise of dear Sebastian, he mentioned that he didn’t realize Sebastian had a sister.”
Otto leaned toward us slightly and continued in a stage whisper, “It seems he noticed you two in Arizona and recognized the signature. He naturally assumed that you must be Sebastian’s sister.”
He pushed back in the chair and looked thoughtfully at me for a moment. “I checked, and indeed, Sebastian has no siblings. I also discovered that you are quite human, no Courso blood at all.”
I recalled the story we had told at the safe house, and I felt compelled to ask, “Why didn’t you think that I was pregnant with Sebastian’s baby?”
“I did entertain that as a reasonable explanation, but I quickly determined that you and Sebastian had never been closer than the same continent during the last year. Even considering Sebastian’s purported extraordinary prowess with women, I concluded that couldn’t be the source of his signature within you.”
Sebastian snorted derisively when Otto emphasized the word “purported”. Typical—even completely drained of energy and being held by a psycho-hoodlum, his male ego kicks in. As I looked closer, I noticed that he actually did look a little perkier than before.
Maybe Sebastian would regain his strength and along with Alex, the two of them would save the day. Probably just grasping at straws—Sebastian may look a bit better, but he still was obviously a long way from being able to help take down Otto. Now that I looked more carefully, Otto was right; Alex wasn’t looking all that great either.
Otto ignored Sebastian and went on with his monologue. “Then I recalled hearing that Sebastian had some long-standing interest in reconvergence and I began to think if he had somehow achieved what before had only been conjecture—had he actually transferred his spiritual self to another? But it wasn’t until you and the girl got to Pardubice that I was certain. The closer you got to the castle, the more energy was emitted by the body—like it was calling out to itself.”
The phone on the desk rang once. Otto answered, listened for a moment and said, “Excellent. Send our guest in.” A moment later, I heard the door open, but from my position on the sofa, I couldn’t see who had entered. Alex, however, was angled so that he was somewhat facing the door, and I saw his eyes narrow when he caught sight of the newcomer.
“I believe you all know Angelica,” Otto announced proudly.
I swiveled myself around so I could look. It was, indeed, Angelica. This time, instead of her sedate pilot uniform, she had on a cream-colored, clingy sweater with a neckline cut low to display her ample breasts and a hem cut high to expose her sculpted abs. The outfit was finished off with similarly colored super-tight pants tucked into knee-high, stiletto heeled boots.
She crossed the room slowly, glancing at us briefly as she moved past. When she reached the desk, she dropped into Otto’s lap and kissed him enthusiastically.
“That fucking, traitorous bitch,” I hissed under my breath.
Sebastian forced out a ragged, “Indeed.”
When Otto and Angelica finally came up for air, Alex’s voice quivered with barely controlled rage.
“Angelica, you took an oath to defend the laws of Courso. What is your explanation for this treachery?”
“I don’t have to explain anything to you. But suffice it to say that I’ve grown weary of working long hours transporting people less intelligent than I for little pay and no chance for advancement.” She traced a finger lazily over Otto’s lips. “Otto made me a better offer.”
Alex shook his head. “How long has this been going on?”
Otto began speaking before Angelica has a chance to respond. Jeez, that guy liked to hear himself talk.
“Oh, for a year or so. You will also be pleased to know that she was instrumental in supplying the information that allowed me to ambush and kill Sebastian.” A contemptuous grin spread over Otto’s lips. “Or, at least, I believed I killed him.”
He turned to look directly at Sebastian. “I watched the life fade from your eyes, Xyzok. I don’t completely understand exactly how you managed it, or how you ended up inside this human, but the ability to transfer one’s spiritual self into another is like discovering the mythical fountain of youth. It could mean immortality and those who wish to attain it will pay anything for it. You will tell me how it works, and I will be rich beyond even my expectations.”
Sebastian struggled to straighten himself but without much success. He took a deep breath and sputtered, “Never.”
Angelica laughed and disengaged herself from Otto’s embrace. Standing now in front of the desk, she purred, “I don’t think you are in much of a position to say no. Tell us, or the human will suffer for your refusal.”
Now she stared at me, pure hatred etched upon her face. “Truly, I hope he doesn’t give us the details right away. I will enjoy the pain I will inflict.”
I was pretty sure she wasn’t just grandstanding to get Sebastian and Alex to give them the information. She really, really was looking forward to torturing me. What the hell had I done to elicit all this unfettered animosity?
My stomach churned and nausea swept over me. I was terrified, but I’d be damned if I was going to let her know it. Besides, if I did vomit, I was so doing it on her and she was too far away for me to accomplish that at the moment.
“You keep your hands off her,” Alex growled. “The process is not like a recipe for a cake. I can teach you, but it will take time.”
“Alexander. Don’t.”
Alex leaned closer and whispered, “I won’t sacrifice her for this, Sebastian.”
Somehow, I didn’t think telling Otto what he wanted to know was going to keep me—or Alex and Sebastian for that matter—safe. It might prolong the inevitable, but I couldn’t see how this was going to end well.
I looked over at Sebastian. He still seemed very weak; his eyes were closed and his breathing was shallow. As I placed my hand on his forehead to check if he was too hot or cold, Sebastian’s eyes opened and he stared at me intently. I am not sure how I understood what he wanted me to do; maybe the weeks of inter-body co-habitation left us with some peculiar ability for wordless communication. In any case, I knew he wasn’t nearly as debilitated as he appeared. He wasn’t anywhere near a hundred percent, though, and he and Alex needed a diversion to have any chance at overtaking both Otto and Angelica.
And that diversion was me.
The easiest way to overcome incapacitating, gut-wrenching terror is by doing something completely insane. At least, that’s how it seemed to me. Perhaps it was having something to do besides just sit there and listen to two sociopaths prattle on, but I felt much less afraid now that I had an assignment.
Otto and Alex were trying to iron out the details of the best way for the secrets of deconvergence to be divulged. Alex was sticking with his initial contention that it would take more than a five minute abridged version. Otto was not completely convinced, but he was so obsessed with being able to sell it—not to mention being able to attain immortality himself—that he wasn’t protesting too vociferously. I was positive that Alex had no intention of telling him anything he would find useful, and I hoped that somehow these negotiations were a part of Sebastian’s plan.
I took a deep breath and stood up. Angelica watched me, not with wariness—she obviously saw me as no threat—more the way a not-too-hungry lioness might regard a rabbit.
I gestured to the teapot and said, “May I?”
She just shrugged but continued to scrutinize my movement. I poured myself a cup of tea, took a sip, and leaned on the edge of the desk near where Angelica was perched.
“You know, I really don’t see what the attraction is,” I commented casually.
Angelica raised one eyebrow. “What Otto lacks in looks, he more than makes up for with his riches.”
“Oh, that’s not what I meant. I can’t figure out why so many men are so
hot for you. You’re attractive in an off-the-strip, cheap, Vegas titty-bar, pole-dancer kind of way, but really, aren’t guys put off by the fact that there’s probably no one they know or may meet in the future that hasn’t already banged you?”
Anger rose in her face and her eyes narrowed to tiny slits as she turned to look directly at me.
“Look cunt, I would kill you now if Otto didn’t want you alive. But know this—when Otto gets the information he wants, I will kill you… and slowly.”
I smiled brightly and continued as though she hadn’t threatened me.
“Well, I may die, but at least I can make myself feel better by letting you know that after you flew us to New Hampshire, Alex spent the next night making fun of you. What did he say exactly? Oh, I remember, he said you were as adventurous in bed as a sloth and he only did it because you begged him so much he felt sorry for you.”
I knew the Coursodon were supposed to be faster than humans, but Angelica’s fist landed on my chin so quickly, I didn’t even see her move. The punch propelled me back onto the desk, and she leapt on top of me and wrapped her hands around my throat.
She wasn’t saying anything, but the pure, unadulterated rage on her face spoke volumes. I couldn’t breathe and I heard Otto yell, and saw him try to pry her off me.
As he grabbed her arms, I noticed a flash of movement to my left and felt immediate relief as Angelica released her grip on my neck. It was difficult for me to tell what was happening, mostly because of my position, but also because I was in a lot of pain. I rolled onto my side and saw Alex landing kidney punches to Otto’s back as Sebastian was grappling with Angelica.
While under normal circumstances, Angelica would be no match for Sebastian, his recent reconvergence had evened the playing field considerably. She pulled free and smashed a lamp across his face, causing him to stagger and fall to one knee. At the same time, Otto twisted away from Alex, grabbed the gun that had been on the desk but had fallen to the floor during the melee, and leveled it at Alex’s chest.
