“So it would appear. It was a minor spirit. I could sense it poking around.”
“Any chance that it might have been sent by someone else?”
The Coordinator was more worried about his rival, J. Edgar Hoover, who at best might be able to put them in jail, than the ruthless Grimnoir that would certainly try to kill them. Damned politicians. No sense of perspective. “Hoover’s got no trust of magic. I’d say it was the Grimnoir, which means they’ll be coming soon.”
“Very good. Speed up the timeline then.” Carr smiled as he sucked on his pipe. “I want the next operation to begin as soon as the Grimnoir attack us. Move up the schedule. Have some of the men prepared to evacuate Stuyvesant and the German into the city. I want it to seem as if the two events, the attack on the city, and the Grimnoir assault against our headquarters were done simultaneously. It will make their group seem more capable of nefarious scheming in the papers, and it will position the OCI as the logical force to stop them.”
It would also split his available resources and put all of them in more danger. The Coordinator didn’t care, though. He would be safe in his bunker the whole time. “Of course, sir.”
“Excellent, Mr. Crow… I’ll bring the rest of the trustworthy men here to reinforce our numbers. The Grimnoir’s little scout will not have known that… Here, let me show you something.” He picked up a thick leather book from his reading table and held it out for Crow to take. Crow had to lean way forward in his chair to get the book. The wheels of his chair couldn’t roll across that stupid lion rug. The book was battered, the cover was stained, and the writing on the pages was done by hand. “Do you know what that is?”
“No, sir. I do not.” The writing was in a language Crow didn’t recognize. He flipped through a few pages, noting the many intricately designed spells.
“I bought this book from a Romanian peddler back in ’23 for thirty-five cents. The poor Gypsy had no idea of the astronomical value of such a tome. In fact, from the pages of that very book came the spell that I gave to you, and that you gave to Giuseppe Zangara, to drastically increase your abilities. What you hold in your hands is one of the personal research journals of Anand Sivaram, an absolutely brilliant mystic, driven insane in a quest for more Power. He was one of the first to figure out how to bind new forms of magic to his own body, including the single greatest design ever accomplished by the hand of man: a spell that worked as a collector of recently severed Power. A design that no one has been able to replicate since, yet it ruined his mind, and as a result, he did many unspeakable things.”
Was this about the spell that the Coordinator had carved onto Crow’s narrow chest? Crow fidgeted nervously. Did the boss know just how difficult it was getting to control the demons? Was he going to take it away? Crow would rather die than lose his freedom.
“In the west, Sivaram was referred to as the Warlock.”
Crow had been briefed about the mad Traveler. “The Spellbound?”
“For many years, I’d thought he was a myth. You see, I’ve always been fascinated by magic. Ever since I was a child the mysteries of the Power intrigued me. Sadly, I was not born blessed with any miraculous abilities…” The Coordinator paused to stroke his huge mustache as he reminisced. “Yet, I was driven to dedicate my life, my considerable intellect, and my family’s wealth to the study of such things.”
Where was the old coot going with this? “You’ve accomplished great things.”
“With more to come, I assure you, but I have gotten away from my point-Warlock. I’d thought he was a myth, this crazed mystic that murdered man, woman, and child in order to absorb their life-force to strengthen his own Power. At the time we all believed it was impossible to manipulate magic beyond what a tiny percentage of mankind was born with. All legitimate scholars thought so as well.. until during my service during the Great War, when by fluke happenstance I came across the bullet-riddled corpse of the Warlock on a farm in France. I could positively feel the energy still smoldering in the designs carved upon the body. If he was real, the stories were true! Magic could be manipulated and molded for our use.”
Crow could only nod along with the story. The boss had never talked about this before.
“It was an epiphany. As a man of science, I do not believe in gods or fate, but at that moment in time my future was laid clear before me. I would be the one who would control magic. I would tame its wild fury. I would harness it for the good of all.” He held out his hand, and Crow had to struggle forward to give the strange book back. “For far too long, Actives have squandered their gifts through ignorance and selfishness. Magic does not belong to them alone. It belongs to all mankind. It will take a great man to correct this deficiency. History is defined and directed by the wills and vision of great men, Mr. Crow. Let us make history.”
You self-righteous idealistic bastard. “Yes, sir.”
“That will be all. I will have one of the men take you back to your quarters.”
“If it would be alright, it would be safer if my real body wasn’t near the battle.”
The Coordinator sighed, as if insulted by Crow’s cowardice. “Very well. I’ll have the men take you across the river. Dismissed.”
Even in the pathetically weak, very limited, human form he’d been born with, Crow found his dislike for the smug Coordinator growing. He’d liked the man up until a few days ago, and Crow wasn’t sure if the feeling originated with him or was lingering hate left over from the demons he’d been sharing a mind with. It was a good thing he was not allowed in the inner sanctum in demon form, because he was beginning to doubt that his employer would survive the meeting.
Chapter 17
I have killed many Mexicans; I do not know how many, for frequently I did not count them. Some of them were not worth counting. They had attacked my camp, slain my aged mother, my young wife, and my three small children. The Mexicans paid for their malicious ways with their lives. I walked through the walls of their forts and spilled their sleeping blood. Their bullets passed through me as if I were mist. They called me a ghost, but I still lived. It was vengeance, not death, that had changed my form.
— Geronimo, My Life: The Autobiography of Geronimo, 1905
Bell Farm, Virginia
“Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war,” Dan Garrett said as he looked over Sullivan’s final battle plan. The grease pencil map that covered one wall of the farmhouse living room was far more detailed today.
“I read Shakespeare in prison,” Sullivan muttered. “Why don’t you pick somebody who writes happy endings?”
“Only line I remember from a college production,” Dan answered. “Seemed appropriate.”
They’d spent the morning going over the details, filling in the blanks, and making assignments. Everyone was there, except for Whisper, who had gone to the airfield to pick up Browning. Their gear had been checked and their weapons cleaned. They’d go over the plan one last time with everybody present, have a good supper because it might be awhile before they had time to eat again, and then head north to Mason Island.
Sullivan hated this part, deciding who to use and how to use them. Just like the war, his decisions here would determine who was likely to live and who was likely to die. How had General Pershing managed this with thousands of lives at a time? There was no pride involved, just that when it came to fighting, Sullivan had seen by far the most, which meant he would be the one to make the call.
“Browning and Jane stay on the Virginia side of the river. That’s the direction we’re planning on retreating.”
“John isn’t going to like that,” Lance pointed out. “He’s a brave man.”
“He’s also an old one. Faye, Hammer, and the French girl will be here”-he thumped the wall-“On the D.C. side.”
“No way!” Faye shouted.
“Uh, Jake… She is our most dangerous Active.”
“And until those Dymaxions are shut off, she’s only a teenage girl. If the OCI gets a call out for reinforcements, they’ll lik
ely come from that direction. The Torch can set the bridge on fire and slow them down. Besides, we all know the second Faye thinks it’s clear, there ain’t nothing that’s going to stop her from popping over to the island and raising hell, regardless of what we tell her to do.”
Faye blushed. “Well… obviously.”
“That’s fine, Faye. Once the nullifiers are off, your orders are to just be yourself.”
“I can do that, Mr. Sullivan!”
“I figured you’d be okay with that.”
“What about me?” Lance asked.
“You and Ian are with Browning.”
Lance obviously didn’t like that much. “That’s an awful long way from the shooting.”
“We’ve got two Powers that can cause some harm, and I’m not going to waste them. Besides, Lance, if it all goes to hell, you know how to use the mortar.”
“Fine, but I’m stopping by the National Zoo on the way to borrow something worthwhile. Me and the kid can hang back.”
“No can do,” Ian interjected. “If I’m going to be bringing in a Summoned capable of fighting, I’ll need to be closer than that or I could lose control of it.”
The last thing they needed was another out-of-control demon on the rampage. “Fine. Me, you, and Dan are going in quiet from the north. There are plenty of boats around there that we can take. They’ll be watching the bridge, but we didn’t get any sign they were watching the forest. Wear your boots.”
Hammer raised her hand. “Why is it that all of the women are on the shore?”
“Blame it on me being old-fashioned if it makes you feel better,” Sullivan said.
“There’s not much for me to do over there, and you’re awfully thin on the island. I can shoot and I know how to handle myself in the woods. Better than the fat city boy, for sure.” Hammer gestured at Dan. “No offense.”
Jane bristled at the jab against her husband, but Dan just laughed it off. “None taken, though the fat part was unnecessary. Unless, of course, you just want to be on the island so you can warn your OCI buddies when we’ve arrived…”
“You tricky Mouth bastard!” Then Hammer shut up because she had no response to that particular accusation.
Sullivan had already thought about how to utilize her, but there wasn’t much use for a Justice in combat, and he didn’t want to get her killed. She wasn’t a knight and Sullivan already felt like getting her mixed up in this whole plot was his fault to begin with.
“She’s got a point, though, Jake. That’s me and you with no Powers and Ian who’s going to be busy concentrating, taking on at least twenty men. What are we supposed to do with only three of us?”
“Four.” Every head in the room turned toward the new voice. Toru stood in the doorway. He surveyed the group, glaring, daring anyone to disagree. “As I said I would, I thought upon your request.”
“Hell no!” Lance shouted as he stood up. “No way am I going with an Iron Guard.” Some other voices rose in agreement. “I’m not working with the likes of him.”
Sullivan had been afraid of this. Many had lost people to the Imperium, but Lance had lost his wife and child. Jane had been kidnapped by an Iron Guard. Faye’s grandfather had been gunned down by the same man. Ian was red-faced and shouting, so he was probably in the same club.
“ Silence! ” The Iron Guard’s bellow shook the farmhouse. Several hands moved to gun butts. “You have my most sincere apologies for the rudeness of my interruption. I have made a promise, and in order to fulfill that promise, I need this man”-he nodded toward Sullivan-“alive. If that means participating in your petty war in order to keep him alive, then I will do so. Whoever tries to stop me from fulfilling the promise I have made to my father,” he looked directly at Lance, “will be considered my enemy.”
Lance drew his revolver. “How about I send you to your father right now, you Imperium son of a bitch.”
“However,” Toru continued, voice completely even, “I have pledged my loyalty to Sullivan’s cause. Anyone who stands with him against the Pathfinder is my ally, and my ally’s fight becomes my fight.” Then Toru surprised everyone by bowing deeply. He held it for a long time before rising. “I will be in the barn. Wake me when it is time to begin the slaughter.” The Iron Guard turned and walked from the room.
“Well… shit…” Lance put his gun back in the holster. Dan Garrett had discreetly opened the Dymaxion box and had been ready to use the nullifier. “That your bright idea, Jake?”
“We’ve all fought the Imperium before. You know what they’re capable of. The OCI won’t know what hit them.”
“They’re evil,” Ian stated with steel in his voice. “Flat out evil. He’ll turn on us when he gets the chance.”
“I don’t think so,” Sullivan said. “I’m playing a hunch.”
Ian was furious. “Your hunch strong enough to keep us from getting stabbed in the back? Strong enough to keep him from carting off whoever he wants for the Chairman’s Cogs to murder?”
“Yeah.” Sullivan folded his arms. “It is.”
Hammer surprised him by jumping in on his side. “I agree with Sullivan. Toru’s a mean one, but my Power says he’s telling the truth about this.”
“A bunch of you are of the opinion that the OCI declared war on us. Well, in my experience, you want to win a war, you don’t hold back nothing. If that means using an Iron Guard, then that’s what it means.”
Lance sure wasn’t happy about that, but he threw up his hands in disgust. “Fine. You want to play with fire, I’ve got one condition-put that Iron Guard in front, because I sure as hell ain’t turning my back on him.”
Hammer sought Sullivan out afterwards. If she was going to do this, there was no halfway about it. Helping meant being where the action is, regardless of the danger. She figured it was because she was a woman, and this was Sullivan’s misguided attempt to keep her safe, like the rules that kept her from becoming a peace officer, even though she was born with a Power that would make her perfect for that kind of work. She resented being treated like a weakling.
Sullivan was alone in one of the back rooms of the farmhouse. The Heavy had disassembled his machine gun and was cleaning it. The parts were spread all over a card table.
“Got a minute?”
“Sure,” he answered as he inspected a spring carefully. Sullivan struck her as someone with single-minded attention to detail. “Thanks for backing me up on what the Iron Guard said.”
“He was telling the truth, though I don’t think your friends believed me.”
“Most don’t.” Apparently satisfied, Sullivan put the spring back. “We’re not the most trusting bunch. Come by it honestly.” Sullivan looked uncomfortable, like he didn’t know what to say. “But you already know that. Have a seat.”
She pulled up a stool. “I just wanted to-”
“Why do you want to help us?”
The question caught her off guard. “They’re going to kill your friend.”
“And?”
“He’s innocent!”
Sullivan nodded. “That don’t answer why you’re helping us.”
She stood up. “If you don’t want my help-”
“I didn’t say that. Sit… please.” The Heavy was embarrassed, so she returned to the stool. “Sorry. I meant no offense. I’m just curious.”
“Saving an innocent man isn’t enough for you?”
“In this world, innocent folks die every day. Why risk your neck to help somebody you don’t even know?”
“How’s that different than what the Grimnoir do?”
He shrugged. “You looking to join up?”
She’d never been one for causes. “Not really.”
He went back to his chore, picked up the bolt, and wiped it down with a rag while he waited for her to talk. Hammer had a feeling that if this conversation came down to a game of patience, Sullivan would win every time.
“All right. Don’t laugh. Since I was a little girl, I’ve had a dream. I’ve wanted to be a lawma
n.”
“Despite the fact I was a convict, I see lawman, in most cases, as a respectable profession.”
“Not for a lady it’s not. It’s a fluke or a joke when it has happened, and it doesn’t happen anymore. For me… well, I was raised by the best marshal there’s ever been.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“I wanted to be just like him. Only thing I ever wanted to do. Catch bad men, help folks, keep the peace. I was born for it. I thought maybe working for the OCI would give me that shot. Only they’re doing terrible things, and I can’t tolerate that. Theytyrants hiding behind the law. Maybe I’m naive, but I think that the law isn’t about words on paper. It’s about doing what’s right, and the OCI is not right.”
“No argument from me… Garrett told me something you need to know. Helping the Grimnoir is what got your father killed.”
She was quiet for a long time. After Sullivan and Garrett’s discussion she’d figured there was some history. “He was ambushed by a gang of train robbers.”
“Led by an Active criminal. Some of our men wanted to stop them before that got out. Lee Hammer helped us. Garrett didn’t know the details, though General Pershing told him that your father died bravely. Which is why I’m not turning down your help, but I’m putting you on the other side of the river with Faye and Whisper. The Grimnoir already cost one Hammer his life. I don’t want to be responsible for another.”
“That’s…”
“Selfish? I suppose. I’ve led men into battle enough times to recognize our odds, and without our magic, they ain’t good.”
Even though she disagreed with his logic, she could respect how he’d come up with it. Once again, Sullivan surprised her. “I thought it was because you didn’t trust me, or maybe because I’m a woman.”
“Even Faye thinks we can trust you now, and hell, far as trust goes, I’m taking an Iron Guard along, though Brutes get a pass ’cause they can punch out elephants, so they’re handy for this sort of work. As for being a woman… yeah”-Sullivan looked back down at the gun parts-“That’s kind of hard to miss. You’re quite the woman.”
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