Fire and Fantasy: a Limited Edition Collection of Epic and Urban Fantasy

by CK Dawn

  Gabe inclined his head at a young doorman whose nametag read Claude. Wearing a stiff burgundy uniform, Claude resembled one of those English guards outside of Buckingham Palace. He stood tall and straight at well over six feet. His clean-shaven head gleamed in the overhead recessed lights.

  “Nice to see you again, Mr. Gabe,” Claude said as he buzzed them in and pressed the elevator button.

  “Yeah, you too,” Gabe answered, almost polite. He nodded a goodbye as he and Cassie stepped into the elevator. The speed of the elevator didn’t match with its ancient appearance. Before she could blink, the doors opened onto the top floor apartment.

  The front parlor consisted of two pale green armchairs and a round glass table. Behind them lay a pair of massive double mahogany doors leading into the interior of the home. Cassie stood in absolute amazement. She hadn’t even reached the inner apartment, and yet, already she was surrounded by more beauty than she could imagine--exposed solid oak walls, a black marble floor, and three exquisite oil paintings. She turned from left to right examining each canvas in detail. An idea dawned on her as she stared at the works of art.

  “These paintings?” she said. “They represent the worlds you were talking about. Don’t they?”

  Gabe’s brows rose. “You’re more perceptive than I thought.” When she looked down at the floor he added, “I meant it as a compliment.” Her lips twitched into a quick smirk and he continued, “Yes, you’re right. These represent the three worlds. This one...”

  “Wait. Let me see if I can get it.” She interrupted, waving her hand in front of him. “This one over the doors, it represents Earth. I can tell from all of the places depicted. Let’s see...” she mused. “The Grand Canyon is an easy one. So are Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid. And I recognize Mount Fuji and Mount Everest. Um...What are the rest?”

  Gabe seemed a great distance away as he said, “The Wailing Wall of Jerusalem, the River Ganges of India, Lake Manasarovar of Tibet, Mount Pico da Neblina of the Amazon Rainforest, and the remains of the Oracle at Delphi in Greece.”

  “Why all these spots? What’s so special about them?”

  “These are all places of power on Earth. It’s where angels...or demons...can connect with others here, without Keys.” Gabe paused. “They can’t stay for long though. To stay permanently on Earth, you need a Key’s power or...you fall.”

  Gabe’s solemn look disturbed her. She tried a distraction to take his mind off the dark thoughts she could read on his face. “So, what about these two?” She pointed to her left and right.

  “This one is a representation of the Light,” Gabe said, pointing to the right. “Although a poor one.”

  Cassie scrunched her face in surprise as she examined the incredible painting. Luminescent shades of yellows, oranges, and reds danced in harmony across the canvas. It was as if the artist had captured a thousand sunsets or the explosion of a star. Words eluded her.

  “Now this one,” Gabe continued waving to the left picture. “This is how I’d imagine the Darkness.”

  A black abyss covered the painting from one end to the other. The more Cassie observed, the more it pulled her. Not a trace of warmth was present in the color or design. She fell deeper and deeper into its void. She didn’t believe in hypnosis or trances, but if she had, she would have been frightened.

  Gabe smacked the armchair with an open palm. The thud broke her reverie. “Have a seat.”

  Cassie clasped one elbow. “I don’t get to see inside?”

  “Of course. But, you want to know about your decision, right?”

  “Yes,” she said. “I mean, I think so.” She sat down opposite Gabe and placed her hands folded on the table.

  “You aren’t a normal Key, Cassie. Keys come into their power on their birthday at age seven. You’re different, but I’ll explain when we look at the prophecy.” She motioned to interrupt, but he waved her off. “Just listen. All Keys regardless of when they come into their powers have to make a blood bond with either an angel or a demon, Light or Darkness. Whoever they bond with dictates how they can use their powers.”

  “So, I bond with an angel and I’m good. I bond with a demon and I’m screwed.”

  “Crude, but not incorrect,” Gabe said. “A blood bond isn’t a small matter, Cassie. Because you’re making this bond at your age, your powers will be much stronger – amplified by who knows how much.” He paused a heartbeat. “If you decide wrong, it could be devastating. Neither side will want you to choose the other.”

  “I get it. But why me? Why didn’t this happen when I was seven? You said this happens to Keys then. Why not me?”

  “Your birthday, February 29th. It only happens every four years.”

  “That’s ridiculous.” Cassie couldn’t help laughing. “It’s an arbitrary day, made up by some mathematicians.”

  “No!” Gabe stood. His voice echoed through the small room. “It is a sacred day of balance. Each side has equal power to inhabit Earth. If one side should claim the power for themselves, it could mean the destruction, if not complete annihilation of the other.”

  “Whoa.” She rose from her seat. “Easy. I didn’t mean to offend you.”

  The anger left Gabe’s face as he gripped the armchair. “It’s fine. Perhaps you’ll understand more when you see the prophecy for yourself. It’s no laughing matter.”

  “I can see that now,” she said wide-eyed.

  He nodded. “Let’s go inside.”

  Cassie followed behind as Gabe pushed open the double mahogany doors with ease. She almost collided into his back when he stopped. Straining around him, she stretched to see what made him halt. The sight before her stole the breath from her lungs. She tried to scream but found her voice captured in silence. Gabe turned, grabbed her around the waist, pushed her back into the parlor, and closed the doors behind them.

  Yet, the image would not leave Cassie. In the next room, a woman hung by electrical wiring from an enormous gold chandelier. Her arms and neck were bound to mimic the form of a puppet. Dark hair fell upon a kind round face. Her skin had turned ashen as if the poor woman had been left there for awhile. The wide eyes remained open, shock and horror evident in them. Cassie’s imagination ran wild as she pictured the killer manipulating the wires around the woman’s wrists and moving his victim like a marionette. This last piece of the scene had her choking down vomit.

  Gabe captured her in a fierce embrace. Already stunned, she didn’t try to move. A warm energy poured from his body and into her. She tried to turn her head and look into his eyes, but he held them shut muttering a language she couldn’t understand. A heartbeat later, she was still and steady on her feet. He let her go very slowly and then led her to sit in a chair.

  “What?” she said in an alien voice. The noise sounded so far away, but it was all she could manage.

  “Listen to me, Cassie,” he said while holding her hand. “I have to go back inside. I won’t be gone more than a minute. Stay here.”

  She simply nodded, then closed her eyes and leaned against the chair’s soft padded backing. Her whole body seemed to be swimming in some type of trance and she didn’t try, or even want to try, to go against the soothing current.

  With care, so Cassie would not be subjected to the horrific scene again, Gabe opened one of the double doors and slid into the next room. Once inside, he glared at the remains of the poor maid.

  “She didn’t deserve this,” he whispered trying to keep his emotions in check. Fury flooded him like a tidal wave as he thought of Maribel’s simple kindnesses--an image of her bringing him breakfast, a flash of her cleaning the apartment. He fought to bury such memories, but he couldn’t shake the rage. He allowed the anger to wash over him. It seeped into his muscles as if a tangible force and pushed him to act.

  Gabe scanned the room. In a far corner he spotted a large navy blue blanket folded on a leather chaise lounge. In a short series of blurred movements, he managed to retrieve the blanket, wrap it around Maribel’s remains, and hoist h
er body down from the chandelier. The electrical wires had bound her in a doll-like pose snapped with ease under his hand. He threw them aside disgusted, then carried the body to the sofa. The leather creaked as he placed her upon it. A pair of lifeless brown eyes looked up at him. He closed them gently and wiped some of the blood from her face.

  “I’m sorry.” The apology choked forth.

  With nothing more to be done for the dead woman, Gabe rose and made his way through the apartment. He glanced in each room as he walked the long hallway, but all seemed untouched…until he reached Albert’s study. The double oak doors hung open to reveal the wreck inside. Every stack of newspapers, magazines, and books had been strewn about the floor as if a whirlwind had entered the small space. The two large bookshelves, which encompassed the walls from floor to ceiling, were knocked on their sides and the contents thrown about. On closer inspection, Gabe noticed many of the texts had also been shredded. The markings hinted at some type of serrated knife.

  “Damn it!” He ran a hand through his hair, then paused. His eyes narrowed on a familiar black leather bound book placed open on the small table. The chairs had been knocked over but the table stood straight displaying the book. Gabe inhaled as he stooped to examine it. It was the same Keys book Albert had shown him many weeks ago. The page with the prophecy of the Sacred Key was neatly torn out.

  A bang filled the air as Gabe slammed the book into the nearest wall. He almost put his fist through it as well, but just refrained. A jumble of incoherent thoughts filled his mind. He struggled to keep his cool and think of a plan instead. The first step was getting the hell out of the apartment.

  Within sheer seconds, Gabe blasted through the outer mahogany doors. “Come with me,” he muttered to Cassie and hauled her out of the chair.

  “Wait. What about... Where are we...?” Cassie struggled to complete a sentence. Seeing a dead woman’s mutilated corpse was far beyond her coping ability.

  Gabe stopped in his tracks and turned toward her. “Cassie, I’m sorry. I know you’re scared, but I don’t have time to explain. We have to get out of here now.” He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. “Please, just trust me.”

  Cassie swallowed. “What are we going to do?”

  “The prophecy is gone. Someone knows about you. I don’t know who it is yet, but I’m going to find out.” He took both of her hands in his grip. “But, we need help. More than anything now, I need your trust. Your life may depend on it. Do you understand?”

  “Yes,” she said without wavering. “I don’t know why. I know it doesn’t make any sense, but I trust you.”

  Her blatant honesty and trust struck a chord buried deep inside him. “Thank you,” he said trying to mask his amazement. “This next part’s going to be hard to believe, but I need you to do something.”

  “What is it?”

  “I need you to come with me to Arizona for a few days, maybe a week.” Not a trace of jest in his voice.

  “Should sound crazy, right? But after all this...” She shook her head. “When do we leave?”

  Gabe couldn’t suppress a smile. “Right now.”

  Eleven

  When Gabe had said they were going to Arizona “right now,” Cassie feared he would blink them there like a genie. She was relieved to find he’d meant heading to the airport.

  “The airport, right,” Cassie said. “But, I have to run home first.”

  “Are you insane?” Gabe’s jaw clenched. “I’ve got to get you out of here.”

  “Listen, I get it.” Her stomach rolled as the picture of the dead woman in the next room flashed through her mind again. She blinked over and over to will the image away. When that failed, she pressed on. “I understand. But, I still can’t just leave. I have to go home.”

  “Anything you think you need to do at home, we’ll do on the way.” His arm shot around her, pulling her toward the exit.

  “No!” She dug her heels into the ground, refusing to go without a fight. “I’m not leaving until you agree to let me go home first.”

  “Cassie, you’re being unreasonable.”

  “I need to check on Maia. I need to call Zoey. I need to get some clothes. I have responsibilities. I can’t just takeoff without a word.”

  Gabe exhaled, rubbed the back of his neck and mumbled something unintelligible. “Fine. You get five minutes. If you take one second over five minutes, I’ll throw you over my shoulder and carry you to the airport.”

  “Uh-huh. Fine.”

  They stepped into the elevator from Albert’s front doors. Gabe’s hand wrapped around Cassie’s wrist. She cursed him inwardly, but said nothing about it.

  As the elevator descended, Cassie blurted out the second biggest question on her mind. “Aren’t we going to call the police?”

  “We shouldn’t be here for it. We’ll place an anonymous call from outside.”

  The elevator dropped to the bottom level and her heart went with it.

  “Come on,” he said as the doors opened on the first floor. He switched from holding her wrist to her hand and pulled her to the counter.

  “Everything okay, Mr. Gabe?” the doorman said.

  Gabe stood in front of him and caught the doorman in a cold stare. He muttered a set of foreign words, similar to those he used to calm Cassie down earlier. Claude looked surprised at first, but soon relaxed, remaining eerily still.

  Gabe leaned across the counter, ever closer. “Claude, we were not here. In fact, I haven’t been here in days, do you understand me?”

  The young man nodded. His gaze blanked.

  “Good.” With that problem solved, they exited to the street.

  “What did you do?” Her voice quivered. The afternoon breeze blew cold. “Is he going to be okay?”

  “He’ll be fine. He’s going to snap out of it in a few minutes, but he won’t remember us being in the building.” Gabe shrugged. “It’s less complicated this way.”

  Cassie choked on the thought of all the terrifying powers Gabe might possess, powers she didn’t understand. Her insides did an uneasy flip-flop. She would have to ask him about it soon, very soon, for her own peace of mind. For now she concentrated on just getting out of Dodge.

  After the trip to her apartment at record-breaking speed, Cassie convinced Gabe into one more side trip. “I’ve got to see Zoey and drop off my cat. There’s no way I’m leaving Maia here all by herself for who knows how long! And I can’t take off without telling my best friend.” She leveled him with a no-way-am-I-bending stare. He conceded, but gave her just two minutes to make her goodbyes as he waited at the bottom of the stairs. Jerk.

  Cassie forced herself to breathe evenly as her anxiety mounted with each step to Zoey’s apartment. What could she tell the person who’d been her closest friend--hell, her only friend--for years? Not much, because she refused to put Zoey in danger. Yet, she couldn’t leave without some kind of an explanation either.

  The cat carrier shook in her hand. Cassie hesitated at the front door and then knocked, listening for sounds on the other side. Nothing. She knocked harder with the same result. Sighing half in relief and half in disappointment, she realized she wouldn’t get to see her best friend before this crazy trip.

  She fished her keychain from her purse, locating the key to Zoey’s apartment. They always kept a spare set for each other’s places, although Cassie never would’ve imagined she’d be using it for such a purpose. Sliding the door open, she placed the carrier down and let Maia out. Heading to the kitchen, she filled up two bowls with water and cat food before finding pen and paper. She wrote in a rush, willing tears not to spill.

  “Zoey, I can’t explain anything right now but I need you to cover for me at work for a little while and take care of Maia. I can’t tell you where I’m going, but I have to take a trip. I’m really sorry. You’re my best friend and I hope you’ll trust me on this. I’ll explain when I get back. Probably in a few days, a week maybe.

  Love you! Cassie.”

  Swallowing h
ard, she gave Maia a kiss on her tiny head and headed out the door before she changed her mind.

  As Cassie gazed into the night outside the plane window hours later, the horror of the past few days, her guilt about leaving Zoey in the dark, and her worry about what was to come hit her in full force. Her head swam in a fog and thoughts jumbled together in chaos. She massaged her temples, wondering if she would ever experience clarity again.

  She stole a glance at Gabe. His eyes were closed and he looked made of marble...or dead. His restful state seemed complete. She envied it. Tapping the button with a stick figure over her seat brought a middle-aged flight attendant to her row. She ordered a shot of tequila and paid the $5 fee. Never a big drinker, she shrugged at the plastic cup in her hand. She couldn’t think of anything better than to try to stun her buzzing head into some kind of stupor. Bottoms up! Three shots later, her plan worked. Drinking the cheap tequila on an empty stomach made her drowsy. With her forehead leaning against the seat in front of her, she fell into an uneven sleep.

  The wheels of the plane slammed on the tarmac, making Cassie jerk forward, then back. Her seat belt saved her from injury. Fasten your seatbelt. No kidding. She snapped her eyes open, fingered the tangles from her hair, and looked over at Gabe. He’d been unaffected by the rocky landing, but his eyes narrowed as he peered out the plane window.

  “What’s the matter?” Cassie said. His look made the hair on her neck stand up.

  “I don’t know yet.” Gabe didn’t take his gaze from the window. “Just a feeling.”

  “That never means anything good,” Cassie muttered.

  Gabe turned to face her. Electricity buzzed in the palm of her hands, an invisible current begging for release. It had become an all too familiar feeling around him. As if in response to her energy, tiny flecks of blue leapt from his body. The sight made her shift back in her seat. Yet, his eyes never failed to entrance her. She could fall into their piercing light.