by R. Lee Walsh
“Dude, you can't sleep here,” the leering face says. “This is me and Buster's spot. Go find your own alley.”
Frowning, my mind races to recall where I am. Who are these idiots? I go to sit up and the pain is blinding. “Where am I?” I rasp, my throat so dry it chokes me.
“Dude, what're you on?” leering man snorts.
“Yeah, give us some,” the one called Buster says, nudging me with a tennis shoe.
My tennis shoe.
Grabbing the foot, I twist it. The bones splinter audibly. Buster let's out a piercing shriek.
“What time is it?” I roar, scrambling to my bare feet. Leering man stumbles back as his partner goes sprawling.
“I dunno! Sometime around three, I guess,” leering man says, an arm raised protectively in front of his face. Rising to my full height, I seethe at both of them. Leering man is wearing my jacket, wiping his sweaty hands on the sides. The smell of urine assaults my senses and I feel liquid dripping down my neck. Wiping it away with the back of my hand, I snarl.
“You peed on me?”
Buster whimpers and leering man flinches. “Listen, m-m-m-man, we didn't mean no harm. We were just m-m-marking our territory.”
“Filthy vermin,” I mutter. “And where is this territory exactly?”
“Burnside and tenth, man. Behind Powell's bookstore.”
“Give me my shoes.” Leering man tries to help Buster with the shoes while keeping a terrified eye on me. I dig through my pants pockets but the baggie with the micro earbud is gone along with everything else.
“I don't suppose either of you has a phone?”
Leering man fumbles in the pocket of my jacket, handing me my own phone. With a guilty look he slides the jacket off too, offering it to me.
“Might as well keep it,” I say, waving him away. “I'm not touching it now.”
Focusing on my phone, I scroll to Nell's number, but the screen goes black as I'm dialing. Cursing, I toss it aside and drop down to put on my shoes, scanning the mouth of the alley. The Irin can move at speeds invisible to humans, but mainly stay on the ground. Glancing up, I consider my options. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Standing, I roll my shoulders, then revert to my natural form. Turning my gaze to leering man and Buster, I watch as their panicked gaze turns to horror.
“Sorry boys,” I hiss, my shiny black scales glittering under the streetlight. “Some trash just can't be recycled.” Faster than they can blink, I strike without mercy. When nothing remains but bloody heaps of mangled flesh, I pause to regain my composure.
I can't meet my girl smelling like a toilet and at the very least I need to wash my face and put on a clean shirt. I'll have to stop at Merde first. With one last look to make sure there are no witnesses, I unfurl my wings and take off into the night sky.
~Twelve~
3:25 a.m
“What the hell?” Thorn growls when he yanks open the back door. I've been banging on it for the last five minutes.
“I need a clean shirt,” I mutter, brushing past him. “And a bar of soap.”
Wrinkling his nose, he stares at me incredulously. “Why do you smell like a urinal?”
“Don't ask. Just help me get cleaned up.”
Shaking his head, he stalks off through the kitchen as I beeline for the industrial sink. Yanking off my shirt, I lean under the faucet, cold water blasting over my head.
“Here,” Thorn says, handing me a green bar of soap and a bar towel. I immediately soap up my whole head and torso, desperate to rid myself of that smell.
“Seen Storm tonight?” I ask as I scrub vigorously.
“Nope. He's not scheduled to come in until Friday.” He pauses for a moment, choosing his words carefully. “I take it things aren't going well?”
I glare at him from the corner of my eye.
“Aside from the Irin trying to kill me and being left for dead in an alley where two bums decided to rob my corpse then pee on my body?”
His eyes widen and he leans against the counter, handing me a dry towel. “You're kidding.”
“Do I look like I'm kidding?” I growl.
“Calm down, okay? I'm just trying to figure out what's going on here.”
“Yeah, well, when you find out, let me know. The last thing I remember is a head on collision and the red haired witch trying to strangle Nell. Storm showed up and touched me with the Joyeuse and I woke up next to a dumpster while being urinated on.”
“They killed Nell?”
“I have no idea and even if they did, there's nothing I can do about it now.”
“Yeah, but you don't think they'd really--”
“Frankly, I don't have time to think about it. By now Hope's at the bus station and I should have been there hours ago.”
“Do you want me to call my people? See if she's still there?”
“If you haven't heard anything, we can assume she's there. I'd rather just show up, even if I'm a bit later than originally planned.”
Nodding, he hands me a clean shirt. I finish drying my hands, then pull it over my head. It's a tad snug but it'll do. And it's Armani. He hands me a brown suede jacket that's so soft it feels like silk. Also Armani.
Like father like son.
“I need your keys,” I say as I quickly comb my hair.
He tosses them on the counter. “Want me to drive you?”
I pause to consider this, then shake my head. “We can't risk the Irin seeing you with me. Just do me a favor and see if you can find out what happened to Nell. I'll call as soon as I'm done. Which reminds me, I need your phone too.”
He raises an eyebrow, then pulls it from his pocket. “Keep it. I'll pick up another one tomorrow.”
“No need. I'll have this one back by then. I just need a way to contact my people.”
“I'll wait here until I hear from you then,” he says leading me to the back door. “Let me know if you need my help.”
Nodding, I dart to his shiny black Porsche, feeling slightly more in control. Pulling out of the lot, I glance at myself in the rearview mirror, smoothing my wet hair.
Refocusing on the task ahead of me, I run through my mental checklist. Without Nell to keep me on task, I have to rely on memory.
When I'm a few blocks from the bus station, the first thing I notice is all the traffic. We're supposed to have several detour signs around the depot, but not one of them's in place. If anything, there appears to be more activity than usual. Frowning, I park a few blocks south, surveying the area.
Exiting the vehicle, I begin walking toward the depot. Scanning the roofline, I telepathically broadcast a signal. No one responds. I pause to listen for a moment. No helicopters.
Detouring down an alley, I walk the surrounding blocks. A light rain is falling and I pass dozens of people and several vagrants, but not one of them are my people. Taking out Thorn's phone I dial Merde's number, then curse as it goes to voice mail.
Approaching the front entrance, I glance inside, quickly noting a large number of people. As usual, the homeless are taking shelter from the rain along with the travelers. Rather than enter, I keep walking around the building to the loading area where the busses pick up and deliver passengers. There are no busses waiting at the moment so I approach the back entrance. Peering inside briefly, I survey the various faces, none of them familiar.
Then I see her.
Pale, disheveled and trying desperately to fade into the background, she sits facing the entrance with her hands clutched in her lap. Her looks are drastically altered, her hair chopped above her shoulders and dyed a mousy dark blonde. To anyone else she appears unremarkable but my entire being responds. Everything else seems insignificant, compared with seeing her safe and sound.
The phone in my pocket vibrates and I pull it out. Still watching her, I hear Thorn speak before I can open my mouth.
“Where you at?”
“Outside the bus depot.”
“Okay, well, before you go in, you should know Nell showed up a few
minutes ago. I think you better talk to her.”
I frown and walk away from the doors. “She's there?”
“Hold on.”
“Sir? Are you alright?” she screeches, forcing me to move the phone away from my ear.
“I'm fine. What the hell's going on? Where are our people?”
“It's the Irin, sir. They got everyone. Including the cops.”
Scowling, I walk further from the depot toward the back alley. “What are you talking about?”
“After Storm touched you with the sword, that lunatic Peach knocked me out. I woke up on the floor in the back of some van. Peach and Storm were up front with some other guy I didn't recognize. They were discussing your um, package and laughing about what happened. They didn't know I was conscious, so I listened to them talk.”
Stopping to lean against a brick building, I force myself to remain calm. “And?”
“They knew everything, sir. Even things we discussed earlier today--they were ahead of us. For every person we had in place, they had two. Our people were rounded up one by one and given a choice. Either swear loyalty to the Irin or be exterminated.”
“All of them?”
“Yes, sir.”
Storm.
Gritting my teeth, I stare at the back of the bus depot. The rain has started to let up and the homeless have begun trickling out of the building. The immortal words of an ancient story echo through my mind. . . A lightning storm struck from heaven. It burned up the sheep and the servants and devoured them. I alone have escaped to tell you. . .
“Let's hear it.”
“Sir?”
“The message. I assume that's why they let you go.”
Nell doesn't respond immediately and I hear Thorn telling her to pull it together. A moment later she finally speaks. “Peach said to remind you of what you two discussed earlier,” she says, her voice shaking. “Then, she got out of the van and Storm and I were alone. He said to forget whatever Peach told you and to tell you he'll kill the girl himself before they let you have her.”
“He's bluffing. The Irin have as much to lose as we do if she dies. Besides, my brother would never let that happen. He may not be the Scepter anymore, but you can bet he's still around. This girl means almost as much to him as she does to me.”
Almost.
“I don't know, sir. You didn't see the look on Storm's face when he said it. I believed him.”
“Put Thorn back on.”
I squint at the sliding glass door of the depot, watching as two more people exit the building. There can't be that many left inside. So far I've not seen one of my people or an Irin.
“Still there?” Thorn asks.
“You buying this?”
“Frankly, I don't know. I lost a dozen of my best people tonight and you lost what--over a hundred? They're getting their information from somewhere.”
“You think we have a mole.”
“Obviously, but that's not what worries me. Storm's not like your brother. I've never known him to make an idle threat. Have you?”
He already made it clear there are no more rules and while it's true he can be ruthless, he also has a secret--one that could easily destroy him.
“Can you get a message to Storm?” I ask.
“Now? I can try.”
Walking back toward the depot, I stretch my shoulders and smile to myself. How easily they forget I was once their leader. “Tell him if she's harmed in any way then I will personally tell the Council about Adam.”
“Who's Adam?”
“An insurance policy.”
Thorn chuckles. “Alright. I assume you'll fill me in on that later. Anything else?”
“That should do it. Tell Nell to meet me here in a half hour. I'll be in the depot.”
Hanging up, I pocket the phone and run my hands over my hair. Rather than come through the back entrance, I take a leisurely stroll around to the front of the building. There's still no sign of any Irin. While I have no doubt they're somewhere close, both of us are bound by one rule that cannot be discarded. She must choose of her own free will and can't be manipulated.
Walking past the front doors, I note only a handful of people left in the depot and glance at my reflection in the sliding glass doors. When I'm a few feet beyond the entrance and just out of sight, I pause and straighten my borrowed jacket.
Although nothing about this day has gone as planned, as usual the Irin have sorely underestimated my determination. If history has taught me anything, it's to expect the unexpected which is why I've accumulated several insurance policies over the years. It's times like this when knowing your enemy's darkest secrets is invaluable. Unless Storm is willing to risk his own life by taking hers, the rest of this evening should go as planned.
The sliding glass doors open with an audible hiss and I walk into the depot. Heading straight for the closed ticket booth I peer through the glass, appearing to be in a hurry.
My girl glances at me then hides behind a newspaper she picked up since I first saw her through the window. Surveying the depot as if I'm looking for a passenger, I head her way, stopping several feet in front of her. “Excuse me. Do you know if the bus from Denver has arrived yet?”
I see her wince and she lowers the paper only slightly. She looks around briefly and shrugs. “I really don't know.”
The sound of her voice sends a shudder through me. I nod and sigh like I'm disappointed. She immediately raises the newspaper, pretending to ignore me.
After one last look around, I sit on the bench next to her.
“Not my idea of a fun place to hang out,” I offer after a moment. “This place is pretty creepy at night.” Her nostrils flare and she frowns, leaning away from me slightly. The newspaper starts to shake and I notice her hands are trembling.
My poor girl. She's all alone in a strange city with nowhere to go and no one to turn to. Of course she's terrified.
Not wanting to upset her further, I lean back casually on the bench, observing the few people left in the depot. An old woman wearing a dirty red stocking cap sits one row over and I recall her as one of the people waiting in line when Nell and I were here earlier. Hunched over a shopping bag, she appears to be asleep. Two other gentlemen are sitting on the floor by the entrance doors, too engrossed in sharing a bag of potato chips to notice much of anything. Their faces are averted and they whisper to each other between greasy bites eaten with filthy hands. Grimacing, I clear my throat as the woman in the stocking cap abruptly stands. Shuffling toward the restroom I watch her walk away, leaving her bag on the empty seat. The two by the door get to their feet as well, walking out the front door. The hydraulic hiss from the entrance doors startles my girl. I can feel her anxiety as she surveys the empty depot, glancing nervously at me.
If it weren't for free will, this would be the perfect moment to take her. In the blink of an eye we'd simply disappear. Unfortunately, as Peach so helpfully pointed out, she'd also never manifest her true power.
Striving to appear bored, I gaze around the depot and yawn. In a few minutes I'll pretend to give up waiting for someone and leave. Whenever she works up the courage to leave the depot, I'll simply follow. Then, over the next few days, I'll arrange another chance meeting.
Her sideways glance is increasingly agitated, her face turning almost scarlet. I open my mouth to ask if she's alright, when the entrance doors open again with a hiss. We both turn as a middle-aged Asian man enters the depot. Whistling softly and jingling a set of keys, he walks directly to the closed newsstand. Frowning, we both watch as he goes to unlock the stand and before I can turn around, my girl bolts.
I watch as she races for the restroom doors, chuckling to myself. Shaking my head, I pick up the newspaper she left behind as a throat clears noisily behind me. I turn to see the woman with the red stocking hat standing in front of a vending machine. Familiar celery green eyes stare boldly at me and before I can even process this development, the entrance doors open again. The blue haired boy from earlier enters.
Nodding acknowledgement to the red-hatted traitor, he pauses to grin at me. His chocolate brown eyes flash white blue fire and I recognize my brother, Yuri.
The station doors open and one by one, more Irin enter the station. The two men who just left and the woman with the shopping cart Nell almost hit earlier, even the homeless couple sitting outside El Goucho.
For days I've walked right by all these people and never once sensed they were Irin.
Impossible.
My girl suddenly walks out of the bathroom and my brother and Peach disappear. To her it must look like any other depot with a handful of employees and travelers milling about the waiting area. Rather than take a seat, she meanders toward the newsstand. I watch her from behind the newspaper she abandoned earlier as she peruses the morning headlines then purchases an Oregon Ducks baseball cap.
At this point I'm clearly outnumbered, not to mention dumbfounded. I knew my brother would never truly leave the Irin, but in all of my existence I've never heard of them passing for human to another Irin--it's like a bug passing for an elephant. There's no hiding the difference between species, yet they somehow even fooled me. Unless. . .
Thorn's remedy.
For days I've been unable to sense the Irin unless they directly spoke to me. The only explanation that makes any sense here is that they've also been taking Thorn's vile elixir. When I asked if there were side effects Thorn neglected to mention that along with being undetectable to humans, the Irin would be undetectable to me--which means my son's not only cooperating with the Irin, but appears to have his own insurance policy.
My girl wanders toward an empty bench, where a lone paper shopping bag sits, the one the red-hatted woman left behind earlier. Eying it curiously, she peers into the bag and my brother suddenly reappears behind her. Frowning, she leans in for a closer look and the eager expression on Yuri's face intrigues me. Whatever it is, he wants her to see it. Unaware of his presence, she glances briefly at me. Her expression changes from uneasy to startled as my brother nudges her lightly. She turns to see who's touched her, but he once again disappears.
