Arrested in Peace (The Complex Book Series)

by Jason Halstead

  Val nodded. "In time."

  "Yes, yes, I can wait a little longer. Go, see your gift. See what I did for you."

  Valerie nodded and strode across the room. She passed through the open doorway and into another room. Illiyia was gone, passing through one of the other two exits from the room. What remained in the small sitting room was a man in a chair. He wore pants and a loose blue shirt that she knew would match his eyes before she lifted her gaze to confirm her worst fears.

  "Tark?" Her lips parted and his name slipped from her mouth before the darkness rushed in and robbed the strength from her legs.

  Chapter 14

  "Val!"

  Valerie heard Tark's voice and smiled. She missed him so much. Even a dream was a wonderful reminder of how simple life used to be. Simple, but complete. They lacked in everything except each other. At the time it hadn't seemed like much, but they'd made do. Now she knew how much having each other truly meant.

  "Valerie, wake up."

  Tark was gone. Dead for seven years. So why was she hearing his voice?

  "Tark?" Valerie moaned.

  "Thank the elements," Tark whispered. "You're alive."

  Valerie blinked her eyes open and stared up into the face of a dead man. Or at least a man that she'd been told was dead. "Tark?" she whispered. She reached up and brushed her hands against his cheek. She had to touch him, to feel him. To know he was real and not some leftover from her dream.

  Her hand brushed his cheek and passed over a jaw that she'd forgotten the feel of, yet it came back like it was yesterday. It was the same. He was the same. He was real. Except… "You're so cold."

  Tark's smile faded and his eyes dropped. He backed away from her and rose from his kneeling position. "You should get up or you'll end up chilled too."

  Valerie watched him and then climbed to her feet without taking her eyes off of him. "How… how is this possible? They said you died!"

  "Magic is a powerful thing," he said. "I'm here now. With you. Davina promised me we'd find you and we did."

  Val jerked her head around and checked the doorway she'd come through at the mention of Davina. Davina was a powerful witch now, a necromancer and apparently a master alchemist. Her eyes returned to Tark and swept up and down his body. He looked exactly like she remembered. Young, perfect, in shape. Unchanged.

  "You died," she whispered.

  "Val…"

  Anger exploded in her chest, driving a heat through her body that chased away the chills. "Don't lie to me!"

  "I don't know!" he blurted out. "I don't… I don't remember a lot of things."

  "What do you remember?"

  "I remember you," he said. "And what we had. What we felt. How the three of us were going to be together forever. Now we can, with Davina's help."

  Val shook her head as fresh tears filled her eyes. "No… no I can't. You're not…"

  "Real?" he finished when she trailed off. "I am real. I am everything you remember, except I'm stronger now. Healthier, in a way. I don't get sick and I don't need to rest. Okay, I admit I've lost the will to pursue magic, but now that I've found you, nothing else matters."

  Valerie's words were clipped. "Nothing? What about the next command Davina gives you. She created you, you know?"

  "I'm not like her other experiments. She gave me freedom. She has no control over me."

  The fire died in her chest as she stared at him. She sniffed and shook her head, then stepped closer to him. "You won't grow old with me," Valerie said.

  "No, but there are always options. I can be there with you to help you… and when you do die, you can rise again. We can live together forever!"

  Valerie blinked away her tears and saw the dark purple aura surrounding him. Her heart clenched and skipped a beat. "That's not living," she whispered. "That's death."

  "If we're together, does it matter?"

  "You can't have children. That's kind of an important thing for a couple."

  He waved her concern away. "Many couples don't bother having children. Our romantic life might suffer, but I bet Davina can help with that too."

  Val's eyes widened and she shuddered at the thought. "Undead or not, that's not happening."

  He smiled. "Of course. I understand. I'm fine with it, honestly. You were always the more sexual one, I was simply concerned you would miss it."

  "Oh, I've missed it," she admitted. "It's been years since I've even attempted sex with someone. But don't get your hopes up."

  "No hopes, I promise," he said. "I want you to be happy. I want to make you happy. Everything you're saying about me is true, but being with you again is what kept me going."

  "You have a choice?"

  He nodded. "I do. You know there are many ways to destroy someone like me. Davina doesn't control me. She couldn't stop me."

  "Davina," Val whispered. She glanced over her shoulder again before saying, "Can she hear me now? Through you?"

  "No. Her magic empowered my body at first, but now that she has perfected her potion it has much the same effect."

  Valerie's vision blurred again as she stared at him. He was real. He was here. With her. Exactly as she remembered. She took a hesitant step forward and that was all it took to gain momentum. She took another and another until she could wrap her arms around him and pull him in for a hug.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, fighting to recapture what she'd lost so long ago. Tark's body was stiff and hard. Unyielding and cold. He hugged her back but it wasn't right. It was smothering. She fought to suppress the shudder and had to push harder than she should have to break free from him.

  Valerie bit her lip and shook her head. Tears clouded her vision again. "Damn it," she muttered.

  "I don't feel right, do I?"

  She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "I just… I need time. I have to get used to it."

  "Can you?" he asked. "I will never change."

  A sob slipped from her lips before she could stop it. Val spun away and covered her mouth with her hand. Her shoulders shook and her heart ached like it had seven years ago. She was breathing fast. Too fast. Splotches of darkness and colors threatened the edges of her vision. She was going to pass out again if she didn't do something.

  In the past Tark would have been there. He would have held her and comforted her. He would have chased away whatever worried her or scared her. He'd been her champion. Her knight in shining armor. Now he was a monster. Her monster, maybe, but still a monster.

  She lifted her head and, still facing away from him, asked, "Do you know what I did? After you… after the accident?"

  "You left," he said. "Much is dark. Davina found me and took me with her, but it was years before she found a reliable way to restore me. I don't anything until the last year or so."

  "I joined the Army," Valerie said. "I hated myself and I hated metas. It didn't matter whether they were goblins, like the ones that killed you. I hated them all. And I fought and killed them all. I kept searching for one that would be too strong to beat. Strong enough to kill me and send me to be with you. But I didn't."

  "You're strong. You were always strong."

  "I don't feel strong. I feel like a scared little girl that just lost everything that mattered," she admitted. She turned her head to look over her shoulder. "Why won't you touch me?"

  "Because I don't want to scare you," he said. "I felt it when you hugged me. I see it in your eyes."

  Val turned to face him. He looked even more lifelike through her blurred eyes. "You were always so sure of yourself. Of us. Of what we had to do. You said we had a purpose. I'm not like that…I can't lose you again. I don't know what to do."

  "You don't have to lose me," he said.

  Val nodded. "The potion or salve or whatever she makes, can you make it?"

  He shook his head. "I can mix it together, but I can't put magic into it. Only a witch can do that."

  Val bit her lip again.

  "Why?"

  "You know what she wants to do, right? Tak
e over the Complex and destroy the metas here."

  He nodded. "Metas are unpredictable and dangerous."

  "So are humans," Val retorted. She pressed her lips together for a moment. "I've made some meta friends. Real friends, too, although I'm just now realizing it. I've even been working with one and he's a good man."

  "Would they be if they weren't forced by the rules of coexistence in the Complex?" he asked.

  Val sighed. "Would any of us? I'm sorry, Tark. It's just… I've seen so many things I can't un-see. We're all unstable. We're all dangerous. I could become a serial killer… like I was when I was a witchslayer, except this time it wouldn't be considered legal."

  "You haven't done anything wrong."

  "Not yet, but I could. We can't imprison or murder people for what they might do. It would mean there's virtually no one left."

  "But metas are—"

  "Are people too," Val interrupted him. "They have powers, sure, but so do we. Technology is a power. Magic is a power. She's insane, Tark. Completely fucking crazy. I can't let her get away with it."

  Tark stiffened, if that was possible for a zombie. "What are you saying."

  "My job is to bring in people like her. People that break laws and hurt the citizens of the Complex. Bring her in or, if that's impossible, stop her."

  "You can leave. We can all leave."

  "She won't," Val said. "I saw the look in her eyes. I know what she wants to do."

  He nodded. "You're right. But we can go. Leave her and—"

  "And what? Live out my days running from my past and living with…" Val trailed off, uncertain of how to explain Tark. Even to herself, she wasn't sure what he was or what he meant to her. She was afraid of him. Afraid and disgusted, but her heart still ached for him.

  "A zombie," he finished for her. "It's what I am. Fully functional and lifelike, but still a zombie."

  Tears ran down Val's cheeks. In a whisper she said, "I have to stop her. I'm going to stop her."

  Tark studied her for a long moment. "Davina gave me a second chance, but I exist for you. For the memory of us— just to see you again and be with you."

  "What are you saying?"

  "I'm saying she created me, for all intents and purposes. I won't try to stop you. I can't imagine how hard this must be though, but I think you've become the stronger one. To put your love for her aside and do what you feel is right, that is—"

  "My love for her?" Val interrupted. "I've never loved her. She was a friend, that's all."

  "Only a friend? She said that the three of us were together, and that we would be again."

  "You really don't remember," Val said.

  He frowned. "The damage I suffered caused a lot of memory loss. Restoring my body halted that loss, but what's gone is forever gone. Do you mean to say we were not a triad?"

  Val let a bitter laugh slip. "In her dreams only. I'm not into girls. Even if I were, I can think of one that would be sooo much better than her... and she's an angel."

  "A meta?"

  "Yes."

  Tark watched her and nodded. "You have changed."

  "I've grown up," Valerie said.

  He bowed his head. "I can see that. You have grown beyond my wildest imaginings."

  Val hesitated. "Is that a good thing?"

  He smiled. "Are you happy?"

  She hesitated. "I… I don't know. I think so? I'm good at what I do and I enjoy it, even though I bitch a lot."

  "If you're happy, then that's that matters."

  Valerie studied him. "Are you happy? Like this, I mean?"

  Tark considered her question and then offered a trace of a smile. "I'd hoped for more."

  Valerie's heart skipped another beat. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

  He shook his head. "Don't be, it's not your fault or concern. Other than frustration at what I am I feel little."

  "Your body or..."

  "Physical and emotional."

  Valerie's chest tightened. She sniffed and nodded. "That's terrible. Not the physical, I suppose, but..." She sighed and shook her head. The sad smile on his face spoke more than she could find the words for. She felt sorry for him. No, not sorrow, pity, but pity was not something Tark would have ever wanted. "All right. Well, about Davina."

  "Go," he said. "I will be here for you."

  Chapter 15

  The witchslayer turned to the door where Davina waited. She squared her shoulders and clenched her stomach muscles. Her tattoos shifted on her arms, disassembling themselves so they could drip down her arms to her finger tips. They hardened there, strengthening her nails and sharpening them to points that extended more than half an inch beyond the end of her fingers.

  "I'll be right back," Valerie said over her shoulder. Before Tark could form a response she took her first step and then kept moving through the thick archway between rooms.

  She needed to move quick and strike from surprise. Davina was a powerful witch, but Valerie knew how to keep a witch busy and unable to use her magic. Val didn't fear the woman so much as she feared the zombies that would rush to Davina's aid.

  "My Valerie is too smart to be lured by your charms, incubus. You were a fool to think you could win her heart!"

  Valerie was knocked off her powerful stride by Davina's boast. She slowed to a stop and saw Dag'on was no longer alone with Davina. Two heavily muscles orc zombies had joined them. Dag'on had a zombie on either side of him and each had one of his arms lifted above his head and pinned against the wall. His shirt had been torn down the middle so it hung in tatters from his shoulders.

  "I told you to wait," Val said.

  Davina spun around to look at her. The wicked gleam dimmed but remained in her eyes. "I was just getting him ready. Or did you want one more ride? I admit, I haven't restored that much function to my creations…yet. It could be a while, there are so many more important things to do first. If that truly bothers you, don't worry, I can more than meet your needs in the meantime."

  Val hid the disgust behind a smile and prayed that Davina would accept it. "That sounds wonderful," she said. "I can't believe you saved him…Tark, I mean. I… I'm so grateful, Davina. Truly. I owe you more than I can imagine."

  Davina's nostrils flared and her eyes widened. "You…owe me?"

  "Anything," Val agreed. She bowed her head and added, "Everything."

  "Oh Valerie," Davina purred. "I've waited so long to hear that. I've wanted you so much!"

  "You've got me now. For what you've done, I'm yours."

  "You… you mean it?"

  Val hesitated and then forced a shy smile. "For what you've given me... for what you've sacrificed... yes. You're right. About us, I mean. I do... I think..."

  "You do? What? What do you do?"

  Val swallowed and sucked in a deep breath. "I love you."

  Davina's jaw dropped and her eyes lit up.

  "Gods and monsters," Val cursed. "Just saying that out loud clears up so much for me. I didn't— I mean, I always fought it, this strange attraction. I told myself you bothered me when you were so into me, but now I realize that it was me all along. I was bothered by myself. I can't believe it."

  "Oh Valerie!" Davina breathed. "You don't know... you can't..."

  "Know what?"

  "How happy you've made me!" she squealed. "I'm the happiest woman alive right now! Everything is perfect! Just like I always wanted. And Tark, I'll fix him. I'll find a way to make his body work like it used to. Warm and soft, except when he needs to be hard, if you know what I mean. I promise!"

  Val's smile faltered for a second. She lowered her head in a nod and hoped Davina missed her slip. "I believe in you. After all you've done, how could I not?"

  "I'll fix his memories too, I've been wanting to, I just haven't had a chance to figure it out quite yet. Binding magic to flesh that has lost its spark is a complicated process, let me tell you."

  "Fix his memories? Restore what he lost, you mean?"

  "No, that's not possible," Davina said. "The best I c
an do is keep him from forgetting things that happen now."

  Val gasped. "He forgets?"

  Davina's face turned somber for a moment, but her manic spirit couldn't maintain the plain expression for long. "It takes a while. Some things last as long as a year, but most fade within months. What he remembers from before stays and will stay forever, as long as I maintain him with my potions."

  "Oh, I didn't know that."

  Davina turned serious again. "That doesn't change anything... does it?"

  Valerie smiled for her. "Of course not! With all you've done I have complete faith in you."

  Dag'on struggled against the wall, trying to wrench his wrists free and even kicking at the wall and the floor. When his struggling yielded nothing he slumped as much as the zombies allowed him to.

  "Oh, I almost forgot about you," Val said.

  Davina's gaze scoured his bare chest and drank in each muscled contour from the belt of his pants up to his neck. "He'll make an excellent addition. Would you like him to be your personal assistant? I can arrange that. Unfailing and eager to please. A pity he'll lose his pussy-whisperer status, but he will remain handsome forever."

  "He was my gift to you, to replace the one I had to destroy in the cemetery above. I'm sorry about that, by the way, but he attacked me."

  "You caught him off guard. I saw enough to know who you were, but I didn't react in time to stop him," the necromancer said. She shrugged it away. "It's no matter, I have many others. They are replaceable and, to be honest, I would sacrifice every one of them to have you. I can always make more."

  "Yes... I suppose you can," Val said. "So is that what we'll do? Leave your thralls behind and move on? Go somewhere else, somewhere safe from metas? We can live happily there, free from threat."

  The madness slipped back into Davina's eyes at the mention of metas and leaving. "Oh now," she whispered. "Not after what they've done to us. It's not about making them pay. We both know that isn't enough. I'm smarter than that. This is about destroying them once and for all so we never have to fear them again. Humanity shall hold dominion over the universe and they will know it was us that gave that to them! We will be queens, Valerie. Empresses!"