Four of them inched toward the door, and Kevin saw his chance. He grabbed the mirror from his coat while easing his grip on the feather, probably easing too much. He landed hard on the snow. His invisibility faded as he reached for another potion, not that invisibility mattered. The falling snow gave away his shape.
The mirror was broken, but a shard would do nicely. He poured the appropriate potion on the mirror fragment.
"Hey, guys!" he shouted. "Check this out!"
The four men turned and looked at Kevin, along with a fifth person not far away. They shouted in discomfort as their bodies warped and twisted. A second later, they were all gone, their bodies and souls trapped in the shard of mirror.
One of the remaining four men charged him. Kevin barely had another potion in his hand when the man was upon him. He tackled him around the waist, driving him to the ground. The shard fell to the ground, but luckily didn't break. The man pulled his fist back, ready to strike, but coughed and choked when Kevin shoved the potion in his face. He didn't want to use that particular potion. He didn't want to terribly hurt anyone, but he also didn't want to be terribly hurt.
The man's eyes went completely dark, and Kevin knew he was seeing horrific images, created by his own mind. He screamed in fear.
"There!" Kevin shouted, pointing over his shoulder at the remaining three men. "There's the monster!"
The man climbed off Kevin and tackled the closest person to him. They wrestled for control, clawing and fighting each other. Kevin pulled himself to a knee, and caught the last two men staring at each other, silently arguing on who would approach next.
Kevin pulled out an ice cube in a plastic bag. With a magical upgrade, it would never melt, and had an interesting effect when it struck a target. He threw it at the two men, not caring who it hit. It smacked a hand as the man raised an arm to defend himself, and in that pose he was frozen. The cube changed to a seven foot block of ice, encasing the man. His partner fell to the ground out of shock.
The struggle continued between the two humans not far away. Kevin pulled what was left of his remaining sleep potion and threw it at the floor next to them. They instantly fell asleep on top of each other, one snoring into the other's ear.
Kevin never took his eye off the last man, but he'd made no move. Fear and awe had gripped him. He lay on the floor, not completely still.
"Sidekick, my ass," Kevin muttered.
"W-Who are you?" the man stammered.
Kevin pulled out a vial of an unusual potion that turned into a powder when he first concocted it. He dumped a handful into his palm.
"I'm a witch."
He blew the powder into the man's face, and he collapsed, robbed of many years of memories. Cruel, perhaps, but so was kidnapping a young girl and strapping her into a chair in front of a camera.
Kevin looked at the chaos around him. The snow continued to fall, covering the floor of the hangar. Ten humans, all in various poses and positions. The two vans continued to smoke, although the rain and snow had long put out the fire. There were a few stumbles, but overall the battle went smoothly. He wondered if Jack would be impressed.
He took a deep breath. There was still a lot of work left to do.
CHAPTER 33
Jack was confused at first, but then a smile took hold as the image came into focus on the television. The werewolf hunters spread across the office didn't even bother looking, confident in what they'd see. Sean had his stare focused on Marie, no doubt dreaming of the things he'd do to her. Marie let out a confused sigh as she stood next to Jack, the blanket still wrapped around her.
"My daughter is not an ugly middle-aged mortal."
Sean glanced at the television, and his jaw dropped at what he saw.
The camera was pointed at a chair, just like he'd expected. Instead of Tiffany, an unconscious man sat slumped over, his head tilted to the side. A single shadow seemed to move on the wall behind him.
"What the hell is this?" Sean said. He pushed the man next to him. "Give me your phone."
The men whispered and talked amongst themselves as Sean dialed a number. They kept their weapons directed at Jack and Marie. She still had a hunter behind her with a gun at her back.
He watched Sean nervously tap his fingers on the wall behind him. Sean didn't know it yet, but the leverage he had was long gone.
The shadow on the television moved as the phone rang. There was no audio, but the shadow was obviously searching for the ringing phone. A figure stepped into frame and pulled a phone from the unconscious man's pocket. Jack could only see from his knees to his shoulder, but was certain of who it was.
"Hello?" he answered. Sean's phone was loud enough for everyone to hear.
Sean clenched a fist in rage. "Who the fuck is this?"
"Hey. There's no reason to be rude. Who the fuck are you?"
"You listen to me, you little punk—"
Kevin leaned down and stared into the camera, his face obscenely large on the television. Jack laughed quietly, drawing a look from Marie. The anger and fear were apparent in Sean's gestures.
"Hey, can you see me?" Kevin interrupted. "Are you on the other end of this camera? Look, this will all go better if we can see each other face to face." He stepped back and stared at the phone. "Do you mind if I install Skype on this thing? What's your Apple store password?"
"This isn't a joke, you piece of shit."
"I guess that's a no. And who says I'm joking?" He rolled his eyes. "Okay, just wait one minute. I'm just about done setting up, anyway."
Kevin dropped the phone to the floor and disappeared out of frame. There was no activity for a moment, until he reemerged behind the chair, drawing a line on the ground. The hunters weren't afraid. They were more curious than anything else. But Jack knew, even though Kevin was the least physically imposing person he ever met, that the fear would soon follow.
Marie nudged his arm. "Who is that? Do you know him?"
"That would be the babysitter. Get comfortable. This should be a good show."
Kevin stood in front of the camera once again and did a motion Jack was all too familiar with. He reached inside his coat and pulled out a glass vial. Popping the cork, he poured a brown liquid onto his finger and smeared it on the camera lenses.
He knelt in front of the camera and held his open hand above the ground. They could still hear his voice through the phone.
"Okay. Away we go."
He placed his hand on the ground. The area around Kevin glowed a brilliant shade of white. It became so bright they could no longer see him.
Then the television began to glow.
The rear wall disappeared, taking the television with it. Logic would have dictated that without the wall, they should have been staring through the rear of the building, the woods around Sandy Cliffs. Jack learned long ago that logic didn't apply when dealing with a witch.
Kevin had brought wherever he was to Sandy Cliffs.
He'd drawn a large square on the floor, and that was the area visible. The mortals, and even Jack, marveled at the fact there was snow on the ground, indoors.
The chair and unconscious man were still there, and not far away a large table. There wasn't just one man, but nine others, stacked in piles like firewood. On the floor in front of the table were various weapons. Kevin had shoved them off and was using the table for his own purposes. Six hot-plates were spread out, each with a pot with its own unique-glowing mixture. At the very end of the table sat a black cat. The feline jumped to his feet and hissed as he arched his back.
"It's okay, Oscar," Kevin said, approaching his companion. He scratched him behind the ears. "They can't hurt you. Don't worry."
Sean and the rest of his men moved their weapons from Jack and Marie to Kevin. The witch didn't flinch at all. He simply held up a finger to get their attention.
"Uh, that won't do much good. See, I'm not really there, and you're not really here with me. This camera has a connection. I can give the connection a little boost with a potion
I made. Think of this as a magical video conference."
"Magical," Sean muttered.
Kevin looked at Jack and smiled as he waved. "Hey, Jack. I guess I should have figured you'd be involved."
"Glinda," Jack greeted. "Tiffany—"
"Don't worry. She's safe, on the other side of the world, with our mutual friend." He noticed the beautiful werewolf next to Jack, wearing only a blanket and a crimson mask. "Whoa."
"Hi," Marie said, her white smile a contrast to the blood on her face. "I'm Marie."
Kevin's cheeks turned red, and all he could do was wave. He adjusted his coat and lowered his eyes.
"What did you do to my men?" Sean asked. "Who are you?"
"I'm the most powerful supernatural creature alive." He frowned and his nose wrinkled. "It doesn't sound quite so cool when I say it. When my friend says it, she makes it sound so awesome."
"Is this kid for real?" Sean asked, looking at Jack. "Please tell me this is some kind of joke."
Jack's lip twitched. "Does it look like I'm laughing?"
"Jack," Kevin said, pointing at Sean. "Is this the guy that sent these clowns after Tiffany?"
"It is."
"Okay. All of this is for you, then. Of course, I didn't know Jack was there. You'll be lucky to live out the night now. But, anyway, let's get started."
Kevin walked and pointed to the first pile of the many men laying on the floor.
"These men all went after Tiffany. They failed, obviously. But I had to do something with them. You see, I'm not like Jack. I've never killed anyone before, but I just can't let these guys go. So, I'm always thinking up new spells, new potions, new ways to deal with the bad guys we come across."
"Spells?" Sean said.
Kevin ignored him. "So, these first five guys. When they wake up, they won't remember the last twenty years of their lives. It's the strongest memory potion I can make. Twenty years of memories, experiences, twenty years of learning how to kidnap little kids. All that will be gone. This one guy here barely looks older than me. I hope his mom's still around to change his diapers. They'll be useless to you, but they'll be alive."
He moved and gestured to more men.
"Okay, these guys, they'll wake up and not have any senses. No sight, hearing, taste, touch, or smell. Again, useless. I think it's almost a little harsh. They'll basically be trapped inside their own heads. But hey, you had Tiffany kidnapped. That was harsh."
The men were visibly distressed. They probably knew some of the men on the floor. Sean said nothing, but Jack could see the cracks in his armor. Even Marie's jaw hung open in disbelief.
Kevin approached the man in the chair.
"Now, for this last guy. When this spell popped in my head, I really didn't believe it. I told my girlfriend, and she didn't believe it either. But, seriously, check this out. This is nuts."
He walked to the table and grabbed two pots. Pouring one into the other, the mixture glowed yellow. He scooped some in his fingers, and despite the fact that it was boiling, Kevin didn't flinch.
He approached the chair and rubbed his fingers on the man's head. His skin took on a sickly green color, and his hands began to shake.
The man's eyes opened before he disappeared.
Everyone shouted in surprise. Even Marie gripped Jack's shoulder and stared at the chair. The only thing left behind of the man was his clothes. His jeans and shoes fell to the floor, while his shirt lay in the chair.
Kevin held up a finger. "That's not the best part."
He pulled away the shirt to reveal a frog. It let out a tiny croak as its eyes shifted.
"Can you believe that, Jack?" Kevin said, excited. "A damn frog! I guess all those stories you hear of witches turning people into frogs are true."
"A witch," Sean said quietly. "Can you turn him back?"
He glared at Sean and shoved his hands in his coat. The smile, the boyish charm were gone.
"I could, but why would I want to do that?"
Kevin was quiet a moment, staring at each of Sean's men. He walked to Oscar to pet him once again.
"In case you guys didn't get the point, let me try it this way. I can dream up a lot of crazy magic. Don't ever even think of coming after Tiffany again. If you do, you'll see how far my imagination goes." He nodded at Jack. "I'll see you when you get home. Marie, it was nice meeting you."
He approached the border between the two locations. They couldn't see the camera, but saw him reaching outward and knocking something to the floor. Kevin faded away, and everything went back to the way it was. The wall returned, as well as the television. The magical video conference was over.
The office was quiet. Sean's hands shook. Finally, Jack heard a gasping next to him, and turned to see Marie was behind the man watching her. The blanket she once covered up with was wrapped around the man's throat. He was on his stomach, struggling for air and clutching at the blanket. Marie's eyes turned red as she squeezed the life out of him, her foot buried in his back.
Sean and his men raised their weapons, but Jack was already in front of Marie. He took every shot they fired, acting as a shield, as Marie pressed up close behind him. He held his hand behind him, and their nonverbal communication was improving, as she knew exactly what he wanted. She grabbed the gun from the hunter she'd killed and handed it over.
Jack shot everyone. He had no choice but to take his time. The bullets striking him didn't make aiming easy. But he managed. He killed most of them outright, while catching a few others in the shoulder or throat. He purposely shot Sean in the arm.
Marie surveyed the damage. She waded through the mess, stepping in blood with her bare feet, and finished off the few left alive. Jack approached Sean while she worked.
"Wow, it's been an interesting day, hasn't it?"
Sean said nothing. He simply lay on the floor, holding his arm. Marie broke someone's neck behind Jack.
"Go ahead and kill me. Like you killed my brother."
"If I wanted to do that, I'd have to take you to where you feel the safest, and jam a knife in your throat."
If Sean had doubts about who murdered his brother, they were long gone.
"You…fuck you."
Marie stood next to Jack, holding one of the hunter's knives. She bared her teeth as she leaned forward, reaching for his throat.
"Wait," Jack said. "We're not going to kill you."
Sean blinked. "You're not?"
"Yeah, we're not?" Marie asked. "After everything he did to me? To Tiffany?"
Inspiration had struck. Kevin was a hard act to follow, but he gave Jack another path, one that didn't involve time and money killing hundreds of people.
"No. We're letting him go." He looked at Sean. "You'll be able to go back to your little werewolf hunts, do whatever you want."
"Jack," Marie said. "Are you shitting me—?"
He put a hand on her bare back, quieting her down.
"There are a few rules."
"I'm listening," Sean said.
"You scratch Marie off your list. You and your little buddies will never get near her, or my daughter, again. If you do…." He leaned in closer. "I turn the witch loose. And if that doesn't scare you, I'll be right behind him."
"A fucking witch. I didn't think they were real. But I've heard stories—"
"And they were all probably true. That's not all. You work for us now. If a little no-name team comes chasing after my pal here, guess who her bodyguards will be?"
"Hmm," Marie said. "I think I'm starting to like this."
"Do we understand each other?" Jack asked.
Sean stared at Marie. The disdain he felt for her was apparent, but he slowly nodded. For himself or his organization, there wasn't any other choice. They didn't need the hassle of Jack and a being of magic on their bad side, and Jack knew that.
"I'll make it happen. But…what are you?"
"I'm the one who will be watching you. The witch might not kill people, but I do. Keep that in mind when you kiss your kids goodnight."
Marie slapped Sean across the face before standing up. They left the room together, leaving Sean with a mess of dead bodies. She stepped on a corpse's chest as they walked down the stairs.
"That didn't end quite like I thought," she said.
"Yeah, same here. But it did end."
"Did you really mean what you said?"
"I mean everything I say. But be more specific."
"About you being in my pack."
He smiled. "Yeah. But actually, you're in my pack. Just wait until you meet the rest of them."
EPILOGUE
Marie took another bite of her ham and cheese sandwich as she unpacked the last of her boxes. Two days had passed since she'd last seen Jack. She expected he'd probably headed back to his home. He struck her as the type to not care much about a goodbye.
The police never came to her apartment. Sandy Cliffs wasn't in an uproar over the massacre of a group of out-of-towners in an empty office building. It was almost difficult to believe, the way information traveled in the twenty-first century. She drove past the office building one morning to see a collection of vans marked FBI surrounding the place, but she didn't worry. She had the feeling those particular FBI weren't gathering evidence.
Sleeping was difficult, but she knew that would pass. Insomnia wasn't something a few miles in the woods couldn't fix. It felt good to set her apartment back the way it was. She would put the werewolf hunters behind her, get a job, resume the life once again of Marie Johnson.
Everything would be fine.
Marie had just turned on some music when there was a knock at the front door. She lifted her nose to the air. Male, somewhere in his fifties, smelled like coffee beans and honey.
She opened the door to see a well-dressed man, sharp clothes with an adorable little hat. He smiled and tipped his cap, a gesture she hadn't seen in a long time.
"Morning, ma'am," he said. "Are you ready?"
"Ready? For what?"
"For your ride." He tapped his wrist. "Ten a.m., on the nose."
"Uh…what are you talking about? I think you might have the wrong address."
Damned and Cursed (Book 2): Witch's Kurse Page 38
