The Four Horsemen

by Cheree Alsop

  Aleric slipped his sling over his head and was about to phase when the doors burst open.

  “Aleric!” Dartan shouted.

  The vampire carried two tranquilizer guns in his waistband. He drew them out and shot from the hip, taking down the plagued and reloading so fast Aleric could barely follow the speed of his reflexes.

  “Over there!” Aleric called out, pointing to two of the humans who crawled toward Dartan despite their darts.

  Two more darts hit home and the humans collapsed.

  “Behind you!” Dartan shouted.

  One of the plagued had worked his way behind the bed on which Aleric stood. At Dartan’s shout, the man grabbed Aleric’s ankles and yanked backwards. Aleric fell to his chest on the bed. The bed tipped over when the man pulled again. Aleric fell to the ground and rolled. The plagued man bit at him over and over. Fortunately, Aleric’s sling prevented the man’s teeth from breaking his skin. Aleric shoved his injured arm up, trapping the man against the wall.

  “Duck!” Dartan shouted from behind him.

  Aleric ducked and held his arm over his head for protection. A thwack sounded. The plague victim fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

  Aleric dared a peek over his sling. The room was silent. He lowered his arm to find Dartan grinning at him from beyond the overturned table.

  “You didn’t know vampires made such good cowboys, did you?” Dartan asked.

  Aleric let out a sigh of relief. “I had no idea, but I’m grateful.”

  Dartan made a show of spinning the tranquilizer guns around his fingers before he shoved them back in his waistband.

  “They started getting out of hand, so I ran for Dr. Worthen’s office. Gregory mentioned that the other tranquilizer guns had arrived and I knew we didn’t have enough darts to stop them all in here,” the vampire said.

  Aleric stared around the room at the fallen humans. “What made them get so riled up?”

  “I’m not sure,” Dartan replied. “But I have an idea.”

  Aleric met the vampire’s gaze. “War,” they both said together.

  Aleric shook his head. “If the Third Horseman wants to start a riot, he sure found a good way to do it. If we can track down Famine, maybe he can lead us to his brother.”

  “Good idea,” Dartan told him. “It’s still daylight, so I’ll leave the tracking up to you.”

  Footsteps caught Aleric’s ear. He hurried through the bodies to the door. He opened it just as Lilian pulled open the main doors into the D Wing.

  Chapter Five

  “Hello!” Lilian said with surprise in her voice at Aleric’s sudden appearance.

  She tried to look around him inside the Dark fae side, but Aleric pulled the door shut behind him. The last thing he wanted was for Lilian to meet Dartan. According to Gregory, it seemed all the vampire needed to do was speak to a woman and she fell for him. Aleric at least wanted a chance, and given Dartan’s track history, Gregory might be right.

  “Is everything alright?” Lilian asked. “I thought I heard something strange.”

  “Everything’s fine,” Aleric replied. “Dartan made a mess, but he’s cleaning it up.” He walked toward the door where Lilian stood, giving her no choice but to back up into the hallway.

  “I heard that!” Dartan shouted.

  “What did he say?” Lilian asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Aleric said with a smile. “I think he said he had it under control.”

  “Oh, good,” Lilian replied. She pointed toward the outside door. “It’s getting stormy. Should we go get the tent for the children in the alley?”

  Aleric nodded. “That’s a good idea. But they’re grims, not just children.”

  “Is there a difference?” Lilian asked.

  Aleric gave her a searching look. “You noticed the cat eyes and the strips on their skin, right?”

  She nodded. “Of course, but they are also children. They need someone to watch after them.”

  Aleric opened his mouth to argue, then realized he had been doing exactly what she said, looking after the grims so that they would have an easier time in their youth than he had experienced. “Yes, you’re right,” he gave in.

  “We need to get the car from Pasta-Pocalypse, so I guess we’re in for a walk,” Lilian said.

  “I don’t mind walking,” Aleric told her. “It’s the driving that scares me.”

  She chuckled, realized he was completely serious, and burst out with a laugh that must have surprised her because she covered her mouth. “How is that possible?” she asked. “This city is terrifying, even for me and I grew up here. You never know who you’re going to run into out there.” She pushed open the door and waited for him to pass through.

  He gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Well, I can guarantee one thing.”

  “What’s that?” she pressed.

  “There’s nothing out there as terrifying as me,” Aleric told her.

  She gave a little snort of humor and fell in beside him. With the sunlight on his shoulders and Lilian at his side, Aleric decided he could walk forever along the streets of Edge City. He didn’t mind the traffic, whether it was the many, many vehicles or the pedestrians that either ignored them both completely or gawked when they recognized him.

  If he wasn’t careful, he was more likely to get his shoulder run into as to meet a kind smile, but he found he enjoyed the anonymity that came with being just another face in the crowd. It was a different sensation than Drake City. In Blays, most of the fae citizens had either an acute sense of smell, a great memory, or an inherent distrust of those around them. Aleric was used to being regarded with disgust, fear, or loathing depending on where he was. In Edge City, for the most part, unless his scrubs made him catch someone’s attention, he was ignored like the majority of the crowd around them. It was nice, in a chaotic, jostled around, seen through instead of looked at kind-of way.

  “It’s strange to see it without the crowd,” Lilian said, breaking Aleric’s musing.

  He looked up to find that they were across the street from Pasta-Pocalypse.

  “It’s better than seeing hordes of plague victims ingesting their poisoned meal,” Aleric replied.

  “All the same, I’m sad for Perry. He’s much different than I thought the First Horseman would be.”

  That brought an amused smile to Aleric’s face. “What did you expect?”

  “I don’t know,” Lilian replied as they crossed the street. “Scary, I guess. I figured heralding the beginning of the Apocalypse would look a bit less, well,” she pointed at the sign, “inviting.”

  “Fire and brimstone,” Aleric guessed.

  She nodded. “Death, destruction, and all that.”

  Aleric walked around to the other side of her car. “You haven’t met Perry’s brothers yet.”

  “Are they that bad?” she asked as she unlocked the door.

  Aleric was about to reply when a truck caught his attention. The side of the vehicle said ‘Quality Ingredients Brought to a Restaurant near You, Courtesy of Barnaby Farms.’

  “Wait a second,” he told Lilian.

  He left the car and heard her fall in behind him as he made his way down the alley where the truck had turned. It backed slowly ahead of him, its driver intent on steering carefully between the buildings on either side.

  “What are you doing?” Lilian asked.

  “Well, we know Fabian is poisoning Perry’s food so that his restaurant fails,” Aleric replied. “What we don’t know is where to find Fabian.”

  Lilian’s gaze lit up. “So we find out which ingredient is poisoned and follow it to the Second Horseman. That’s brilliant!”

  “My question is why is Perry receiving a food shipment when the restaurant is shut down?” Aleric mused.

  “There’s one way to find out,” Lilian replied. She reached for the backdoor of the restaurant near the loading dock and pulled on the handle. It refused to budge. “Well, that was underwhelming.”

  Aleric bit back a smile
. “Let me try.” He tugged on it, found it locked, and put some of his werewolf strength behind turning the handle. It gave a sharp snap and turned.

  “How did you do that?” Lilian asked in amazement.

  Aleric shrugged. “I think you loosened it.”

  They both went inside the dark restaurant. The sound of voices guided Aleric’s steps. They drew near to the kitchen in time to hear a door creak open.

  “Thank you for this.” Perry’s words resonated down the hallway. “I know I owe you, and I promise I’ll make good on my payments as soon as the restaurant is up and running again.”

  “Don’t worry,” a thin voice answered. “My family can’t get enough of your pasta. Keep feeding us and I’ll make sure Barnaby keeps sending fresh vegetables. I’ve never tasted spaghetti so close to the way my mom used to make it.”

  “I’m just glad we figured out what the problem was,” Perry replied. “I hated fearing the spread of plague to my patrons. Fabian will be upset when he finds out.”

  “I’ll take care of Fabian,” Aleric said, entering the kitchen.

  “Aleric! Lilian!” Perry exclaimed. “I was hoping we’d see you again soon!”

  The Horseman walked over and shook both their hands.

  “Good to see you, too,” Aleric replied. “So you figured out where the contamination was coming from?”

  Perry’s gaze went back to the tall, extremely skinny man near the door. He stood with a dolly in one hand. His back was hunched and the look he gave them was a shy one as though he wasn’t used to addressing strangers. He had bright orange eyes that stood out in his very pale face. His fingers were long and thin from arms that looked as though they were merely bones wrapped in skin. His clothes hung on his skeletal frame that was far taller than any human Aleric had met. Lilian’s hand touched Aleric’s when the thin man’s gaze met hers.

  “It’s alright,” Aleric told her in a whisper. “He’s a slenderman from Blays. He won’t hurt you.”

  “Tell them, Reginald,” Perry said.

  The slenderman ducked his head, a habit that seemed to come naturally given his hunched form. “Well, it’s, uh….” He cleared his throat and glanced at Perry.

  The Horseman took pity on his friend. “It’s alright. You don’t have to be afraid of Aleric. He’s a werewolf, but he’s a good sort. It’s the tomatoes,” the Horseman explained. “Reginald started dumping the tomatoes he brought from Barnaby Farms and picking some up from the market instead. It seems to have fixed the problem.”

  “Are you sure?” Aleric asked, watching Perry closely. “You’ve been feeding it to people? Hold on.”

  He walked up to the slenderman near the door. Reginald took a step back in surprise. Aleric held up a hand. “Trust me. I’m a doctor.”

  He could hear Dartan’s laughter in the back of his head. The vampire would definitely have gotten a kick out of the line.

  Aleric walked slowly around the slenderman. Though Reginald stood still, his head swiveled to follow Aleric more than halfway around, then turned back the other way to continue the same. Aleric sniffed carefully, checking for any sign of the sulfur scent that would herald the plague. He wondered if he should phase to wolf form to be extra sure, but given the slenderman’s terrified gaze and ready-to-flee posture, he figured he was pushing it as it was.

  Satisfied, Aleric looked back at Perry. “I don’t smell any sign of the plague.”

  Both the Horseman and Reginald let out a sigh of relief.

  Aleric gave Perry a steeling look. “What were you thinking? You risked this man and his family. You can’t play around with lives like that.”

  The Horseman lowered his gaze. “I’m sorry, Aleric. I can’t help it.” He looked up. “All I want to do is feed people. If I’m not doing that, than why am I even here?”

  “You mean in Edge City?” Lilian asked.

  Perry’s expression was one of sorrow when he shook his head. “I mean here at all, in existence. Doyle says we’re all here for a reason, but he’s Death, so he could just be saying that for the irony of it.”

  “The Fourth Horseman’s name is Doyle?” Lilian asked in an undertone.

  Aleric fought back a grin. “Scary, huh?”

  “Anyway,” Perry continued, “I thought when we fell through the Rift that this would be my chance to start over. I have a reputation in Blays as Pestilence, which doesn’t exactly say, ‘Come try my manicotti. It’s to die for.’ I’m afraid people will take that literally or Doyle will. He has a sick sense of humor.” The Horseman pushed his top hat further back on his head. The white glow around him seemed dimmer than before given his melancholic state. “I just wanted this to be different.” His voice lowered. “Maybe I should go back to Blays.”

  The ache Aleric heard in Perry’s voice resonated with the werewolf. He felt the same way about his position at Edge City Hospital. Given his own experiences in Blays, working as a fae doctor was like a breath of fresh air, a new chance to start over at life without the prejudices and assumptions that had followed him anywhere he went in Drake City.

  “We’ll make it work.”

  Everyone looked at Aleric. He kept his eyes on the Horseman. “Perry, I know how important this is to you. We’ll get to the bottom of the plague, I’ll have a talk with Fabian, and we’ll open up Pasta-Pocalypse to the public again so that you can make your dreams come true.”

  “You mean that?” the Horseman asked with a hopeful expression.

  Aleric nodded. “I do. Just please, try to abstain from cooking until we can ensure that the contamination is gone completely. I’m worried War might be involved with this as well.”

  Perry stared at him. “What does the plague have to do with Wallace?”

  “The victims at the hospital are starting to attack the staff,” Aleric explained. He noticed Lilian’s horrified expression. “That’s what you heard in the D Wing. We got them all tranquilized and Dartan’s getting them settled.” He fought back a chuckle at the thought of the mess he had left the vampire in. At least he didn’t have to worry about Dartan drinking their blood. Even the vampire wouldn’t risk catching the plague.

  “Wallace and Fabian did take off together when we found ourselves here,” Perry said. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and glowered at the air in front of him. “I can’t believe they’re both working to destroy my restaurant.” He shook his head. “They just can’t let me be happy, can they?” He looked at Lilian. “Try having a brother whose entire goal in life is to cause chaos and uprisings. It makes for some pretty interesting family dynamics.”

  “I can’t imagine,” Lilian replied. She set a hand on the Horseman’s arm. “We’ll get to the bottom of the plague so you can open your restaurant again.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “Dr. Wolf and I will be your first patrons when you reopen.”

  “You’re a saint,” Perry told her. “And that’s saying a lot coming from one of the Four Horsemen. We know our saints. I will prepare the most amazing meal for you that’ll make all other pastas pale in comparison.” He held out a glowing white arm. “And I know pale.”

  She laughed and gave him such a warm smile Aleric felt a glimmer of jealousy that he immediately snuffed out.

  “Thank you, Perry. I’m looking forward to it.”

  Lilian nudged Aleric.

  “Oh, me too. For sure,” Aleric replied. He looked at Reginald. “Could you give us directions to Barnaby Farms? If the tomatoes are contaminated, that’ll be the best place to start.”

  “I’m heading that way right now,” Reginald replied. “Y-you’re free to follow me if you promise not to eat me.”

  Aleric stared at him. “Eat you?”

  “I told you,” Perry said. “Werewolves may have had a bad reputation in Blays, but Aleric’s one of the good ones.” He winked at Aleric. “The only good one, in my opinion. He doesn’t even like the taste of slendermen.”

  “That implies that he’s t-tried them before,” Reginald said.

  Aleric realized ev
eryone was watching him and waiting for a reply. He held up both hands, which was difficult with his sling. “I’ve never eaten a slenderman, honest,” he said. “I don’t know how this conversation landed at this point, but I prefer my meat cooked and preferably of the farm variety.”

  “He said ‘preferably’,” Reginald whispered in an undertone to Perry. “That implies that there are other options.”

  “I can hear you,” Aleric replied. “It’s one of the perks of being a werewolf.”

  “I don’t trust him,” Reginald whispered again despite Aleric’s words.

  Aleric heard Lilian smother a laugh. He shot her a look that said Reginald’s fear wasn’t funny. She attempted not to smile and failed entirely.

  She finally put a hand on the hunched slenderman’s arm. “Reginald, I’ll vouch for Dr. Wolf. He’s a good guy and he’s only trying to help.”

  The slenderman looked as though he wanted to argue, but it seemed Reginald couldn’t in the face of Lilian’s plea. He finally gave a small smile. “Alright, ma’am. I’ll trust you.” He shot Aleric a glare. “Not him, but you. I’ll show you where the Second Horseman is.”

  “I sure appreciate it,” Lilian replied. She gave Aleric a triumphant look.

  He fought back a smile at her teasing and followed her through the restaurant.

  “You’ll let me know when it’s safe to open again?” Perry called from the kitchen.

  “I’ll let you know,” Aleric replied.

  “You promise?” Perry pressed.

  “I promise,” Aleric said before he left through the door.

  He slid into the car, grateful that he didn’t have to try his hand at driving in the crazy city again.

  “It’s kind-of sweet, don’t you think?”

  Aleric looked at Lilian. “What is?”

  “The Horseman. He cares so much about feeding people. It’s sweet.” She pulled onto the road after the Barnaby Farms truck.