The Man Who Crossed Worlds (A Miles Franco Urban Fantasy)

by Chris Strange

  “Me? I haven’t done jack.”

  He rammed the barrel of the gun against my forehead so hard I nearly fell. “Don’t lie to me!” he roared. “You got Vivian involved. You went blabbing to her, turned her against me. She came to turn me in. You made me do this to her!” He jabbed his finger toward her unconscious form.

  I opened my mouth, but he didn’t stop. “But that wasn’t enough, was it? You talked to Andrews’ bitch. You’re in with them.”

  I stumbled back away from the gun, but Todd advanced on me.

  “I’m with no one. But I had to do something.” I sidestepped away, moving closer to Vivian. I had to check she was okay. “I had to try to make someone see sense.”

  He stared at me with widening eyes. “You fucking bumbling moron. What the hell did you think would happen when you talked, huh?” He bared his teeth. “You told them my name!”

  I needed to get out of here. Todd was off his rocker. But Vivian was cuffed, and I couldn’t leave her alone with him. Who knew what he’d already done to her?

  I glanced around for something—anything—to distract Todd. God, why wasn’t there anything?

  “Andrews hit my home, worked over my wife…ex-wife.” He clutched at his silver hair with his free hand. “That lumpfish fucker found my distributors. Was that you?”

  I held up my hands and backed into the wall. “No. Maybe O’Neil talked. I found her body.”

  He shot a look out the window. I don’t know if he even heard what I said. “He’s controlling the Chroma. All of it, except the little I distributed before he attacked. He got my imports, he got my suppliers, he got everything. You understand me now? You see what you’ve done?”

  My head pounded. I prayed that Todd was bluffing, trying to throw me off, but I could tell by the fear in his eyes it wasn’t true. This wasn’t Todd’s war anymore. It was Andrews’.

  Jesus, I’d been stupid. I’d all but delivered Bluegate to Andrews with a strip-o-gram and a can of whipped cream. With that much Chroma, he could do anything. He could play the other gangs off against each other and finish off the winner if he wanted. He could buy and sell anyone he felt like, right down to the guy picking up his garbage.

  What the hell was I supposed to do now? The cops could’ve taken down Todd. He was operating under the radar; he didn’t seem to have many people with him. But how the hell could anyone take down John Andrews with an army of gangsters and jacked-up Tunnelers at his back?

  Vivian’s head rolled to the side, her eyes flickering. She was drugged off her face.

  “Let Vivian go,” I said. “Let me get her to the hospital. She didn’t do this. She trusted you, the stupid woman.”

  Todd shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that, Miles. You should know that.”

  “Then let’s go outside and you can kill me in the alley. It’ll save her having to clean my brains off her floor.”

  “I ain’t killing you. Not yet.”

  “I haven’t got all day. Get the fuck on with it.”

  “I’m not killing you because you have to do something for me. You’re gonna make amends for selling me out to Andrews.”

  “Yeah?” I sneered to cover up with quiver in my cheek. “Like hell.”

  “You’re gonna get my Chroma back from Andrews. All of it.”

  I stared at him. “You really are a complete nutjob. I’d rather save the trouble and take your bullet here.”

  He shook his head slowly, his eyes never leaving mine. “No Miles, you’re going to do it. You’re going to do it for her.”

  He waved his hand at Vivian. Right on cue, a horrible noise came groaning from her mouth, one long, awful monotone note.

  The gun was against my ribs before I’d even realized I was moving. “Back up.”

  I watched, helpless, as a tremor ran through her limbs. Her wrists were raw where the handcuffs cut into them.

  My hands formed fists, for all the good it did them. “What the bloody hell did you do to her?”

  Then I caught sight of the puncture wounds in the crook of her left arm, the same ones that Tania had. No. Oh God, no.

  Todd read my mind, his face twisting horribly. “I had to. I didn’t want to, but you made me, Miles. This is your fault.”

  “Tell me you didn’t, you son of a bitch.”

  “Five vials of Chroma,” he said, his eyes fixed on me. “All at once. The chemist told me that would be enough to kill someone, but not quickly. She has…” He checked his watch. “…about five or six hours, give or take.”

  “No.” I reached for her, and he shoved me away. I stared at him, pleading. “No. This is ridiculous. You’ve lost, Walt.”

  “Not yet.” He absently fingered his gun. “Not yet. She doesn’t have to die, Miles. You hear? She doesn’t have to die.”

  My gaze snapped back to him, and he nodded.

  “Davies gave me an antidote,” he said, “something that’ll absorb the drug in her body, stop it killing her.”

  “Give it to her.”

  He glanced at her once, then returned his eyes to me. “That’s not how it’s going to be. You think you’re a good man? Prove it. Save her.”

  I grabbed my hair and tugged, letting out a frustrated scream. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to strike out. I wanted to make a Tunnel and run away and never return. It would be so easy. All I’d have to survive was my guilt.

  “You know what you have to do,” Todd said.

  I nodded.

  “Get me what I want,” he said, “and I’ll give you what you want. My information says he’s running everything from his mansion. That’s where you’ll find him and the stockpiled Chroma. You might want to dress up a bit. Andrews is picky about who he lets through the door.”

  “You know this is impossible, Walt. But you know what? I’m going to stop Andrews. Not just because you’ve got yourself a hostage. But because there’s good people in this city. And they deserve better than a piece of shit like you or those gangsters you think you’re so much better than.” My voice came out cold, emotionless. I didn’t think I had anything left in me. I couldn’t even look at him as I spoke. “But one day I’ll make you hurt for this.”

  “Tick fucking tock, Miles.”

  I gave Vivian one last look. She’d stopped shivering, and now she lay still, breathing heavily. I still didn’t know what she was to me, but that didn’t matter. She was a good person. Better than me. If I had to get myself killed saving her, then so be it.

  I pulled my coat closed around me and walked out of the room. Todd didn’t say anything, and I didn’t look back. I knew the deal.

  A good cop for a lousy Tunneler. It was a fucking steal.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  When I was a kid, before I knew I’d become a Tunneler, I was fostered with a rich old family, one who had lived in Bluegate for generations before it was even called Bluegate. The parents ignored me for the most part, which suited me fine; I’d always perceived adults as authority figures, and more than one social worker had noted I don’t deal well with authority.

  But the family had a pair of twin boys, a few years older than me. They took responsibility for me, teaching me the ways of school and girls and life. They even let me have the pick of their stash of Playboys and Hustlers they kept under their bed. They kept me on track, kept me away from the drug dealers that used to stand outside the school gates. The year I spent with that family was the most stable I’d experienced in my entire life.

  But when I was thirteen, my ability to Tunnel started manifesting, and I started experimenting. The Bore had only existed for about fifteen years by then, and there was still a lot of fear surrounding it. The parents were old-school; they reacted badly to what they were afraid of. They tried beating it out of me at first, and when I still found ways to get my hands on Kemia, they shipped me off to another foster family. They did it while the twins were at school. I never even got to say good-bye.

  I’d left school and was studying for my Tunneler’s license by the ti
me I tracked them down again. The kick in the guts was that it was at their funeral.

  Somehow, despite all they’d taught me, all they’d done to keep me on the rails, they’d fallen in with some nasty people. I never found out exactly what had happened, or why they’d done it, but for some reason they tried a bank robbery. They botched it, and the cops surrounded the place before they could get out with the cash.

  The media couldn’t figure out who shot first, but it’s not like it mattered. There was a firefight between the twins and the police, and when the smoke cleared, both boys were filled with holes.

  I turned up drunk to the funeral. The caskets were closed. After the service, after their bodies were shoved in the dirt, me and a few of the twins’ cousins drank the bar dry. I blubbed the whole time, asking everyone I could what had happened, how the hell they had got involved with the wrong kind of people.

  The answer I got was always the same. No idea. Not one person had been close enough to them to notice their downhill slide. They seemed so confident helping me, but no one had been there to help them.

  I thought of the twins as I pulled Desmond’s car up beside a payphone on the side of the street. This city didn’t just take innocents, it corrupted them. Maybe Todd was right, maybe Bluegate could only be purged by fire. Or maybe he was batshit insane. It didn’t matter. I’d do what he told me. I didn’t have a choice.

  Night had fallen. The rain hammered on me as I got out of the car and walked through puddles to the phone booth. Spray-painted tags covered the booth, and one of the glass panels had been shattered.

  I stepped out of the rain and picked up the battered receiver. It had a dial tone, which was something of a miracle in this city. I fed some coins into the machine and punched in Desmond’s cell phone number. He picked up on the first ring.

  “How’s Tania?” I asked.

  “She’s settled down a bit. Fought me all the way back to hospital, but they gave her something to help her sleep. She’s got sharp teeth, I’ll give her that.”

  “That’s good. Listen, I need you to do me a favor.”

  “I’ll add it to the list,” he said, but I could hear the smile in his voice. “What’s up? Did you reconsider your idiot plan to find Todd?”

  I ignored the question. “I need you to keep Tania safe. She needs to be taught how to Tunnel, okay? Like I asked you before. Her mother might not like it too much, but you have to convince her. Tania won’t take any convincing.”

  “Well…yeah sure, guy, but why don’t you—”

  “It’s complicated. Sorry to do this to you, I know it won’t be cheap, just do the best you can.”

  “I’m not worried about the money. Miles, what the hell are you planning?”

  Part of me wanted to tell him, but it was too risky. I knew Desmond, he’d either try to stop me or try to come with me. Neither was an option. I’d hurt enough people already. Hell, if I hadn’t gone meddling, the city wouldn’t be in nearly as bad a state. I was going to finish this by myself, or give it my damnedest shot.

  “I’ve got to go, Des. Thanks for all your help.”

  “I swear to God, man, if you’re doing something stupid—”

  I hung up. I wouldn’t allow myself the chance of being talked out of this. I was balanced on the edge as it was, being pulled one way by my guilt and the other by my fear. I didn’t trust my moral compass to not send me running in the opposite direction.

  I got back in the car and pulled back onto the road. Traffic was light in the darkening evening.

  There was nothing else for it, no more delays, no more hesitation. Time to wrench the city from one madman’s claws and hand it over to another.

  Andrews’ mansion wasn’t hard to find. Everyone in the city knew where it was. I passed several groups of armed suits stalking the streets on my way, but none of them gave me much more than a glance. The sounds of gunfire were distant; Andrews’ gang were fighting their war away from home.

  I stopped the car a block from the mansion and walked the rest of the way, using the surrounding cars and houses for cover. The mansion was set on a spacious section, surrounded by a tall iron fence topped with vicious spikes. The rain didn’t seem to have affected the grounds much; the lawns looked neat and perfectly trimmed with a dozen tastefully-placed trees set around the place. You could practically smell the blood that paid for the place.

  I ducked behind a parked car and watched as several men and Vei in suits patrolled inside the fence, submachine guns slung over their shoulders. There were another two or three at the iron gate, giving hard stares to the cars that occasionally passed. A pair of security cameras watched the gate, and a few more were scattered around the grounds, raised up on white poles.

  I could just make out the mansion itself behind a row of high hedges. It was implausibly white and big enough that you’d need a map and a team of Sherpas to get from the bathroom to the kitchen.

  I crouched down and rested my forehead against the cool, wet car door. My stomach twisted itself into knots just looking at the place. Jesus, how the hell was I supposed to get through all that? I was a Tunneler, not a superhero. There had to be at least a dozen armed guards in the grounds, and who knew how many more inside the mansion.

  What the hell was I doing? Todd knew damn well I couldn’t take the Chroma back by myself. Andrews had doubled his territory in a matter of hours, and I didn’t have a hope in hell of dealing with his insane, Chroma-enhanced Tunnelers.

  A bell rung in my head, a low, mournful sound. It came to me in an instant, what I had to do. A wave of nausea washed over me. It was stupid, dangerous, suicidal. The thought of it made me sick.

  And I had no other choice.

  I reached into my pocket with a reluctant hand and pulled out the little vial of Chroma. It was such an innocent-looking thing, with a dozen colors shimmering in the light from the street lamp.

  “You little bastard,” I said to the Chroma, well aware how crazy it would have looked. Hell, madness ruled the city now. Maybe it was time to let madness guide me.

  I didn’t have a needle, but I was a Tunneler. A Tunneler made his own. I flipped open my knife and scratched a quick circle in the paintwork of the car I was leaning against. Someone would be pissed tomorrow, but I wasn’t expecting to be around to deal with it.

  I splashed on a decent helping of Kemia. It wasn’t going to be a perfect Pin Hole, but it would have to do. I kept my humming quiet. No point announcing my presence early.

  As I opened the Pin Hole, it occurred to me this might be the last time I’d do it. At least with my sanity intact. I would’ve liked to go to Heaven one last time. There were whole regions I’d only heard about, places I could get lost in, free of other people’s meddling. But that was all pissing in the wind now. I had promises to myself to break.

  Energy drained from me as I blew open the Pin Hole. The knife didn’t morph into a syringe, it just was a syringe. I sucked in a breath and shook the fatigue from my head.

  The syringe’s needle gleamed in the streetlight. I pushed it through the vial’s diaphragm and drew back the plunger. The Chroma seemed eager; it flowed toward the needle and up into the syringe. I drew up the entire contents of the vial. No point doing things by half, not anymore.

  I rolled up the sleeves on my left arm and pulled it tight around my bicep to act as a tourniquet. The vein in the crook of my elbow bulged. It wouldn’t have if it knew what was coming. I cast one more look at Andrews’ mansion as I pressed the tip of the needle against my skin, then closed my eyes. Vivian’s face appeared to greet me.

  Fuck it all.

  I shoved the needle in, angling along the vein. Blood flowed up into the needle and swirled among the shifting colors of the Chroma. It was kind of pretty, in a screwed up way.

  I pushed down on the plunger. The Chroma went in smoothly, sliding down the syringe like oil. A tingling sensation rolled up my arm, away from the puncture site, and within a couple of seconds the Chroma was inside me.

  I hu
rled the syringe to the pavement. I released the Pin Hole and there was a crackle of energy, then the syringe became a knife again. I felt sick, I felt like I’d betrayed myself, I felt like I’d betrayed everyone.

  And then I didn’t feel anything.

  The Chroma hit me like a truck. It must’ve been a gasoline truck, because a second later my brain burst into flames. I can only assume I fell, because the next thing I knew I had a mouth full of stones and dropped cigarette butts.

  I screamed. My skull burned and froze at the same time, my eyes were bleeding, every conceivable sound was being pumped directly into my brain, nails were driving into every inch of my skin. The world shimmered, sparkled, twisted and writhed, became shredded and shattered, all of reality stripped away around me.

  I scrambled to my feet, but I couldn’t escape. The Universe closed in around me, imploding, sucking me outward at the same time. It was inevitable, it was everything. Every atom of my body flew apart, becoming everywhere at once. I lived. I died. I ceased to exist.

  I was born. I came screaming into a world of chaos, my arms shooting out of a space below my eyes. The rest of me grew into being a moment later, shifting into existence from some un-place.

  There was a castle in front of me, a white castle surrounded by iron walls and snaking forests. Something evil lived in there, a King that wanted to hurt me, to kill me, to take away my sanity. For I was sane now, I knew that, saner than I’d ever been before.

  Before? An odd thought. There was no before, there would be no after. There was just the now, and the me, and the castle, and the King.

  I had legs now, I realized. It took me a moment to work out what they were for, and then I remembered. They were for running. I grinned.

  I hurled myself at the castle, the stone barely touching my feet. Reality broke around me like water over the bow of a boat. I could taste the flutter of a butterfly a million miles away. I was flying, invincible. I was a mother-fucking God.

  I was almost at the wall when I saw the monsters. Dozens of the green, misshapen creatures loped through the castle’s surroundings, their jaws snapping, their limbs twisting in impossible ways. Each of them was different, each of them was hideous. A yammering escaped my throat, an involuntary screech of pure fear. They were going to destroy me.