With Johnny on the other side of the roof and Nicky between us, I didn’t want to argue the point. “Okay, so you trained him. Are you saying he went off track and took the Yonas family?”
“Yes. He disappeared a month ago when we were tracking a pair of demons up in North Dakota. I thought they’d killed him. Imagine my surprise when I heard through the grapevine that he’d survived North Dakota. That he was going rogue, and harvesting powers for his own.” He chewed on the inside of his cheek, disgust clouding his face. “I tracked him to Arcana when I heard about the single raven’s feather left at the scene. That was my calling card, not his. He didn’t have a right to use it.”
I had to admit, the snakes in my vision made more sense now. If Theo was a Gorgon, he was related to Medusa, the most famous Gorgon of them all. Greek myths described Medusa as having a head full of snakes. We had ancient pottery at the museum with Medusa’s head painted on them, snakes and all. But, I wasn’t convinced yet.
“How do you know it was him?” I asked. “Anyone could’ve copied that. Left a feather to pin it on you.”
With the pale light of the moon, I spotted a lead pipe in the shadows to my right. If I inched close enough, I could grab it.
A cocky grin spread across his face. “The SI keeps that fact under wraps. I know because I have my own contacts in their organization.”
It was true that I’d never read about the feather in the news blogs covering his crimes. The only reason I knew it was his calling card was because I saw it at his very first crime scene, lying next to Mrs. Beckett’s decapitated body.
“Why would Theo take that family? They never hurt a fly.”
Even by my brother’s faulty sense of justice, the Yonases were guiltless. They lived simple little lives.
Nicky’s face clouded over. His grin faded into a pained grimace. “Theo isn’t what I thought he was. He has no thirst for good or justice. He wanted to learn my methods for harvesting magic, and he used me. That family just happened to have a power he craved, so he took it. And he’s going to take all of it if I don’t kill him.”
I stopped inching toward the lead pipe and put all my attention on Nicky. “Are the other two alive? Do you know where he is?”
“Yes and I’m working on it. I’m closing in on him, I just know it. But, I need you to help me.”
Here it was – finally, the reason he’d called me out here alone.
“What am I supposed to do?”
“Your museum has something I need.”
He held up the knife in front of his face, his dark blue eyes examining the shiny surface. I took the opportunity to take another step toward the pipe, and paused when he looked back at me.
“A dagger. Medusa’s personal weapon. Legend says it was imbued with venom from the snakes on Medusa’s head. It’s the only thing that’ll kill Theo.”
I wracked my brains, mentally scanning through all the weapons in the museum. I’d never heard of such a thing. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t have your dagger.”
“Yes, you do. I dug it up in South America and sent it to your dinky little museum. It was the only way to get it safely out of the country.”
With a gasp, I realized what he was talking about. The dagger that arrived just yesterday, was the weapon Nicky needed to stop that monster. I’d just thrown it aside for examination, not realizing the very thing I held in my hand was the tool that could save my neighbors.
He grinned when he heard me gasp. “See? You do have it. Hand it over and I’ll take care of this.”
He wouldn’t even need to be a part of this if he’d just hand the reins over to Gideon and Agent Silva. We already had the weapon.
“Why don’t you just tell the SI where he’s at and let them take care of it?”
“It’s personal.” Nicky leaned back against the heater. “I’m going to see this thing through. No one crosses me. Theo needs to pay for his evil deeds and I’m going to be the one to dole out the punishment.”
“Nicky, there are innocent lives at stake. You can’t fool around.”
All this talk about Theo and getting justice was making me nervous. It was like Nicky didn’t care about the victims at all, only about getting his revenge.
“This is my mess to clean up. I’m not leaving it to amateurs.”
As my brother plucked at his fingernails with the tip of the knife, Johnny made a run for it. He sprinted toward me, hands still bound together. At the same time, I sprung for the lead pipe, snatching it off the rooftop. Nicky jumped off the heater and dove into Johnny, side tackling him to the ground. They landed hard, each scrambling to get their footing.
“No, Nicky don’t!”
I rushed forward with the lead pipe over my shoulder, like a bat. Nicky still had the knife clutched tightly in his right hand. If I didn’t do something soon, he was going to use it on one of my best friends.
“Get back,” Nicky yelled.
He raised his left hand toward me, his right hand clasping the pendant. A cloud of flames and scorching heat swirled up in front of me, throwing me to the ground. I felt the lead pipe roll out of my hand as the world dissolved to black.
Chapter Nine
I struggled against the dark, reaching out for something to pull me back. Nicky still had Johnny trussed up like a calf. There was no telling what he’d do to him. I had to regain my footing. I had to save him.
Blinking away the haze, little by little, I pushed myself up into a sitting position. Nicky was busy tying Johnny to the heating unit. My lead pipe had rolled a good three yards away.
If I could knock my brother out with it, I wouldn’t have to worry about his knife. As useful as my talons were, I didn’t relish the idea of getting close enough to Nicky for him to use his weapon on me. I began to crawl toward the pipe, intent on making no noise.
“Don’t touch that.” Nicky pointed at me without taking his eyes away from the knot he was tying.
Enough of this crap. I scrambled across the roof on my knees, the pipe in my line of sight. Nicky shot toward me, his knife tucked close to his side. We both landed on the pipe at the same time. I reached for it, but Nicky knocked it further away and grabbed my wrists.
“Stop struggling,” he grunted.
There was no way I’d go down without a fight. Nicky should’ve known better. We’d had our scrambles when we were young, and I always held my own.
I tore away my right hand and felt my talons protract. With a swift slash across the space between us, I left three thin trails of blood across Nicky’s face. He grimaced, but didn’t show any other signs of pain.
Instead, he grabbed my wrists again, and threw me up against the second heating unit, crushing me with his body weight and pinning my arms down. We were so close I could smell a combination of engine grease and sweet cologne coming off of him.
“I don’t want to hurt you.” Nicky pressed the knife against my side until I gasped. “But if you move again, I’ll be forced to end this little tiff. I’ve got work to do.”
I turned my head away. The angry tears were back. My own brother would dispose of me, just like that, without a second thought. He wasn’t the brother I remembered. But then again, maybe I never really knew him.
“What happened to you?” My voice sounded bitter, even to my ears. “Why are you doing this?”
Nicky blinked at me, his mouth stretching into an insincere smile. “Nothing happened. I just had my eyes opened, that’s all.”
“Opened? To what? To murder?”
He was talking like a born-again cult member, drinking the Kool-Aid and joining the commune.
“No, little sister, to the evils of our kind.” He pulled back the knife from my side. “The supernatural creatures of our world can’t just go around taking lives without consequence. There are rules. And morals. We’re all subjects of law.”
Nicky had always been a big thinker. He’d been fascinated with the moralists of the past. He’d gone through a Gandhi phase, a Socrates phase, and e
ven a John Locke phase. But those had been people from different times. They certainly didn’t go hunting creatures down the way Nicky was doing.
“We have the SI to do that,” I said. “Just let me give your info to the SI and you can walk away from this.”
“Oh come on, you grew up in the same family I did.” Nicky chuckled and shook his head. “Since when have harpies believed in a governmental form of justice? The government just gets in the way. They take ages to prosecute. Years to dole out punishment. This is better.”
Nicky must’ve thought that he was his own carbon copy of the HQ’s justice system. If they could get away with it, so could he. There was no reasoning with his insanity. Someone would get hurt if we delayed this much longer.
I sighed and met his gaze. If I didn’t know better, I’d think those blue eyes were sincere. An almost pleading look washed over his face. He couldn’t go after this monster without my help. I just wanted to get it over with.
“Okay, I’ll get you the dagger.”
In response to my surrender, Nicky’s crushing weight eased a little bit. I squirmed against the grate, freeing my back from its painful position.
“But, you have to promise me something.”
Nicky didn’t even hesitate. “Anything.” He smiled, warmth filling his eyes.
I looked away. He couldn’t fool me with his false smiles and charming lies anymore.
“Once this is over with, you will leave Arcana forever.”
It felt like the air dropped a degree. I looked back at Nicky in time to see the smile slide off his face.
“You’ll leave Arcana and never contact me. I don’t ever want to speak to you again.”
The words stung the very deepest parts of my heart. Pain of a similar sort filled Nicky’s eyes. He pulled away from me, freeing me from the heating unit. I rubbed my sore wrists. He’d left dark red rings on my skin which would surely turn into bruises by the morning.
Nicky walked back to Johnny. He sliced through the rope between Johnny’s hands and shoved him forward. “You might think I’m delusional, Little Bird, but I know things. Secrets about our world and the people in it. I’m just trying to protect you.”
A disgusted sigh tore from my throat. “You’re not protecting anyone. Least of all me. Do you know what happened after you left? How my life was ruined?”
Not to mention, Mrs. Beckett’s life and everyone else he’d slaughtered since then. He was a madman if he thought he was protecting people.
“I’m sorry. I know the HQ came to you and asked you to hunt me down. And I know you refused.” Nicky’s eyes zeroed in on mine. He rubbed a hand across the scruff of his beard. “Thank you for that.”
“I didn’t do it for you,” I snapped.
The door to the roof access flung open with a metallic bang. Gideon came sailing through the open door, gun in hand. Following close behind him was his partner, Agent Silva, and a man dressed like a building guard. They spotted Nicky almost immediately. He was halfway between Gideon and me, hunching down low to the roof. They aimed their guns at him and shouted for his surrender. Nicky grimaced, but remained still.
“Aya, get behind me,” Gideon shouted.
His eyes flickered to mine, multiple emotions washing over his face at once. Concern, relief, and anger all made an appearance. It was hard to tell who the anger was directed at. I hoped that he could forgive me for running off without telling him.
“No, Aya, stay there.” Nicky raised his hand at me. He stood slowly, the knife barely visible in his hand.
I remained frozen in place, unsure what to do. Johnny was edging toward me, the ropes hanging off his wrists like bracelets. He’d managed to untie the gag around his mouth and mouthed the words come to me.
I took an involuntary step forward. Nicky watched me out of the corner of his eye. Every muscle in his body was tensed, like a cat waiting to pounce. I was the little starling caught in his sight, ready to be devoured.
Maybe I could stretch out my wings and make a flying jump for it. Harpies couldn’t actually fly, but they had the ability to make giant leaps. I could probably even jump to the next building if I got a good running start. But my wings were rusty, and that didn’t solve the problem of leaving behind one of my best friends and Gideon with my insane brother, so I nixed the idea.
“Put down the weapon, Nicolo Harris. You’re under arrest.” Gideon slid forward, his finger on the trigger. He took a pair of handcuffs off his belt and threw them at Nicky’s feet. “Put those on your wrists and we can all walk out of here.”
Nicky laughed and kicked the cuffs. They landed next to Agent Silva.
“I’m not going anywhere with you. Do you think I’m stupid?”
Dark clouds rolled over the city, the smell of rain heavy on the air. The moon’s thin sliver of light was snuffed out by the angry clouds. A storm was coming. It could burst at any moment.
“Do yourself a favor, Nicolo. Don’t make us kill you.”
Agent Silva’s harsh voice drew Nicky’s haughty glare. He licked his bottom lip and smiled at her, the glee clear in his eyes.
“No, I’ll do you a favor, Agent. I’m going to extinguish the monster that took those people. I’m going to do your job. And later, you can take all the praise if you want. But, let me do my job.”
A flicker of confusion went through Gideon and Agent Silva’s eyes. They still believed Nicky was the one who’d taken the Yonas family. If they killed him, we’d never find Theo or his two remaining victims. I had to stop them.
“Don’t shoot him.” I held my hands up and walked toward Nicky.
Gideon threw me a warning glare.
Stepping in front of my brother, I shielded him from their line of fire. “A Gorgon took that family and Nicky’s the only one who knows how to find them. We need him alive.”
Agent Silva’s gun remained pointed at me, while Gideon lowered his a few inches.
“He didn’t take them?”
Gideon’s momentarily puzzled expression was replaced by a blank poker face. I couldn’t tell if he was buying it. The guy was good.
“He’s saying someone else took them?”
“Don’t believe this bull.” Agent Silva stepped closer, her gun pointed at Nicky’s face. “He’s just lying to get us thrown off his trail. He took them and he’s got them hidden somewhere. Give me five minutes with him. I’ll make him talk.”
I felt the cold metal of the knife slide around my throat. Nicky’s arm encircled my ribs, pulling me close to him. He pressed the blade of the knife to my skin just deep enough to sting a little. I blinked in surprise, grabbing his arm and digging my talons into his flesh. He held on, breathing in my ear without a hint of pain.
“Put the guns down or I’ll cut her throat,” he growled.
Without hesitation, Gideon set the gun at his feet and put his hands in the air. His eyes flicked back and forth across the rooftop as if analyzing the scene. Even I could tell he was going to do something stupid. Something that would get us both killed. I shook my head at him, but he didn’t make eye contact with me.
“Nicolo, let her go. She’s not a part of this.” As he spoke, Gideon stepped forward, his hands still in the air. “Take me, instead.”
Nicky yanked me backwards, dragging me a safer distance away. There was the sweet scent of sweat in the air. Even with his stony composure, I could tell my brother was nervous. He wasn’t the type of guy who usually lost his nerve. This wasn’t good. My brother tended to do rash and stupid things when cornered.
“I’m warning you, Agent Ward…” Nicky backed us up to the edge of the rooftop.
Glancing to the right, I could see the fifty foot drop to the alley below. If he jumped, he’d probably take me down with him. Maybe I could use my wings to break the fall, but it wouldn’t be pretty.
“Don’t!” Gideon stopped his forward momentum. He looked at me, fear clearly written on his face. “Leave Aya alone and we’ll let you go. I won’t follow you.”
Nicky’
s grip loosened around my waist. He laughed in my ear, startling me. I couldn’t see what was so funny.
“You like her, don’t you?” he asked.
The blood rose to my cheeks. This wasn’t the best moment for Nicky to step back into the annoying big brother role. He’d forfeited those rights years ago.
Gideon cocked his head to the side, a deep frown pulling down at the corners of his mouth. He looked at me, his eyebrows furrowing together, and then back at my brother.
“I’m just doing my job. Now let her go.”
His words hit me like a punch to the gut. Immediately, I felt ridiculous for feeling that way, but I couldn’t help it.
Suddenly, Nicky spun me around so that we were eye to eye. He leaned down to my ear. For a moment, I thought he was going to hug me. But instead, I heard the rasp of his voice, loud enough only I could hear.
“Get the dagger. Wait for me to contact you.”
He pushed me backwards and I fell hard on the ground, scraping my elbows and the palms of my hands. The warm sensation of blood began to trickle down my arms, but I ignored it, and pushed myself up enough to watch Nicky jump up to the edge of the rooftop.
A shot rang out in the quiet. Twisting around, I saw Agent Silva aim again and pull the trigger. The guard to her right charged forward. He had a baton in his hand, raised over his head like a sword ready for the strike.
“No! Don’t shoot him!”
Agent Silva ignored my scream and chased after the guard. Her gun went off again, startling a group of pigeons nesting on a nearby roof. Nicky ran along the raised edge of the rooftop, ducking low to dodge the bullets. If he didn’t jump off soon, she was going to hit him. Gideon rushed after them, pulling the Taser off his belt. In a mad dash, they surrounded him in the corner, with no place left to go but down.
“Are you okay?” Johnny kneeled down next to me.
He tried to stop the bleeding on one of my arms, but I waved him away. I was too busy watching the scene unfold in front of us.
Nicky looked over the edge of the roof. He stood up straight and faced his foes, a small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. I didn’t like that look. Something told me he had a plan up his sleeve.
Medusa's Dagger: A New Adult Urban Fantasy (Aya Harris Collection Book 1) Page 9
