Medusa's Dagger: A New Adult Urban Fantasy (Aya Harris Collection Book 1)

by Lacy Andersen

  I pushed myself off the ground, ignoring Johnny’s protests, and ran in their direction. Nicky clasped his left hand around the pendant dangling over his chest and closed his eyes. He raised his right palm, fingers splayed.

  “I’m sorry this had to happen this way,” he said, his voice flat.

  I froze to watch a fireball of enormous diameter spring from his hand. It spun toward the guard, encircling him in a fiery tomb. As a painful scream tore from the guard’s throat, he fought off the flames without success. The acrid smell of burning flesh and hair filled the air, causing my stomach to retch.

  Nicky turned to the remaining agents. Agent Silva was standing with her feet far apart, her gun pointed at him. She fired another shot as a ball of fire rolled in her direction. The bullet whizzed past Nicky’s shoulder and into the inky night sky. Agent Silva ducked behind the heating unit with inhuman speed, the fire singeing her pants but missing the rest of her.

  Gideon’s puny weapon was no match for the stolen magic. The murderous look in my brother’s eyes said he knew it, too. Leveling his palm at Gideon, Nicky shot off one last gigantic round of fire before free falling off the side of the roof.

  The fire raged at Gideon, surrounding him in a ring of flames eight feet tall. I urged my legs to run, stretching every tightened muscle and tendon in my body to the max. My wings unfurled on my back as I ran. I felt them flap against the wind, black glossy feathers at the edge of my vision.

  I wrapped my arm around Gideon’s waist and pulled him with me. Flapping my wings as hard as I could, I jumped in the direction of the roof’s edge.

  The harpy in me rejoiced. It’d been too long since I’d enjoyed the freedom of my wings, and the thrill of the air current beneath my feathers. But, the celebration was cut short as the edge of the firestorm raked over my back. I screamed in agony, my skin and feathers baking in the heat.

  A pathetic flapping of my injured wings slowed our descent to the ground, but not fast enough. We both tumbled on the concrete, landing on shards of broken glass and rock. The pain was nothing compared to the searing ache along my back.

  What used to be my favorite t-shirt was now hanging off me in shreds. I knelt on the ground, my wings flapping uselessly behind me. Somewhere in the dark, Gideon called my name. He sounded miles away. I tried to lift my head to him, but the darkness consumed me once again.

  Chapter Ten

  My body lifted into the air. The pain I’d felt only moments ago had already begun to dull. I opened my eyes a crack. It was still dark, but Gideon’s face loomed above me. He carried me out of the alleyway, his arms cradling my back and the space behind my knees.

  I felt like a little child. The burns weren’t that painful. I could probably walk myself.

  “Stay still.” Gideon glanced down at me as I squirmed.

  “I can walk. Just put me down,” I huffed.

  Gideon shook his head. “I don’t think so. You need to go to a hospital. I called an ambulance and they’ll be here soon.”

  “No, no hospitals.” I struggled to free myself, but Gideon held tight. “Let me down. I’m serious, I can walk.”

  “No, I’m carrying you. You can’t see your injuries like I can. And you’re going to a hospital.” He shifted my weight in his arms, pausing a moment to get a better grip. “Now, put your arm around my neck. You’re heavier than you look.”

  Rolling my eyes, I wrapped my arm around his neck and breathed in the scent of his cologne. It worked like anesthesia, dulling the pain in my wings and lower back. I could’ve stayed there all day if it wasn’t for the flashing lights of the oncoming ambulance in the distance. Their presence meant needles and doctors and stitches – all of which I wasn’t particularly fond of.

  “Just take me back to my apartment. Please, don’t make me go to the hospital.” I looked into his eyes, hoping that my pleading would work.

  He hesitated for a second, signaling my victory. “Fine, fine. You’ll regret it.”

  I silently cheered and leaned against his shoulder. My body relaxed into his arms, soaking in the heat of his chest. I knew I shouldn’t be enjoying this.

  Only minutes ago, Gideon had declared he was only doing his job. This was his job. Saving creatures like me and putting the bad guys away. Although, this time, I’d saved him too.

  “Are you okay? Is she okay?” Johnny raced toward us. He grabbed my hand, squeezing it tight. “I thought you were dead.”

  “Not dead. Just roasted alive.” I chuckled, but it hurt to laugh.

  In the dark, the whites of Johnny’s eyes shined against the black of his skin. He ran his gaze over my body, taking in every injury and scrape.

  “It’s not as bad as it looks,” I told him.

  He gave me a frown that told me I had yet to convince him. With its sirens blaring, the ambulance pulled up behind him and two men jumped out. They ran to the rear of the vehicle, grabbing a stretcher and two big black bags.

  “There’s a guard on the rooftop. He’s been badly burned. My partner, Agent Silva, is tending to him.” Gideon nodded in the direction of the train station.

  The paramedics thanked him and ran inside. He shifted my weight again and then walked past the ambulance and onto the street. Johnny followed us, scrambling to keep up with Gideon’s pace.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  If he said anything close to the word hospital, I was going to fly right out of here.

  “You said you wanted to go to your apartment. That’s where we’re going.”

  Gideon’s black sedan was parked on the curb in front of the station. He set me gingerly down on the sidewalk. The loss of the warmth of his body next to mine left me shivering in the cold air. I rubbed my hands over my arms, the friction doing nothing but causing the small cuts and bruises on my arm to sting.

  “Get inside.” Gideon held the door to the back seat open for me.

  Johnny followed, cradling my head in his lap when the pain began to overcome me again. It moved in waves, starting at my lower back and extending out through my wings.

  Gideon hopped in the driver’s seat and started the car. His eyes watched me in the rearview mirror. I couldn’t tell if he was concerned about me or the blood that I was surely smearing on the backseat of his rental car. But I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep without another thought.

  After what seemed like only a minute, I awoke with a jolt. Gideon was lowering me to my couch, doing his best not to touch the burns along my lower back. He noticed my eyelids opening and gave me a pained smile.

  I probably looked like a wreck to him. My wings had folded back into my shoulders, but that didn’t hide the awful smell of burnt feathers. Now, in the harsh fluorescent light of my apartment, I could see the hundreds of tiny cuts along my arms. Nothing deep enough for stitches, but they’d probably scar my pale skin.

  “Johnny went to get your friend, Angel.” He sat on the coffee table, facing me. “He’ll be back soon.”

  I nodded. Angel knew some healing spells. She’d at least be able to dull the pain and maybe reduce the number of scars I’d have in the morning. No doubt, I’d be in for one of her raging lectures in broken English. Angel tended to revert to her native tongue in the rare moments she was angry.

  “You shouldn’t have done that.” Gideon leaned forward, his stony expression hardening into something like anger. “You could’ve killed yourself.”

  “Ah, but I didn’t.” I tried to push myself up into more of a sitting position, but the pain in my back reared its ugly head.

  He saw me wince and rushed forward to help. “You nearly did,” he said, positioning a throw pillow behind me.

  “Yes, and you would’ve died if I hadn’t intervened. You owe me one, sport.”

  A grin tugged at the left corner of his mouth. He looked away, the smile disappearing as he stared at the empty kitchen. “Why didn’t you call me when your brother took Johnny?”

  I had the distinct feeling Gideon’s question was more weighted than he let
on. He was hurt that I hadn’t trusted him, although he’d never say. I’d wounded his pride.

  “Nicky said to come alone.”

  “You should’ve called me, anyway. What you did was stupid. You could’ve gotten him killed. You could’ve been killed.”

  The venom in Gideon’s voice surprised me. I leaned back into the couch, feeling the force of his anger. Nicky had left me no choice. I went there alone to save my roommate. He couldn’t see that. All he saw was a ditzy selfish girl. Even if I had saved his life.

  “Well, I’m sorry,” I said while Gideon smirked.

  I wasn’t sincere about my apology and he knew it.

  “I thought I could reason with my brother, but I was wrong. He’s not the kid I grew up with.” A well of emotion overtook me. Repressed feelings of betrayal reared their ugly heads, clogging my throat with the threat of tears.

  Nicky was a monster. He killed without remorse and maimed without thought. Even if he wasn’t the one that took the Yonas family, he was just as bad. I didn’t know him at all. Not anymore.

  Gideon watched me struggle through the emotions. I blinked away the tears, but they kept coming. Nothing frustrated me more than crying in front of someone. Especially him.

  Suddenly, he leaned in close. His mouth parted, as if he wanted to say something. I stared at his lips, hating myself for wishing that he’d close the distance.

  All it would take was a few more inches. His eyes trailed over my face. Reaching out a hand, he trailed his fingertips over my temple where a bruise was forming. I closed my eyes, concentrating on the warmth of his hand. I could fall into that warmth and never wake up.

  “Aya, I want to…”

  The sound of his voice snapped me back into reality. I opened my eyes to look at him.

  “I mean, I have to…”

  The door of my apartment burst open. A barefoot Angel came roaring through, her trench coat unbuttoned and Prada purse swinging haphazardly at her side. Underneath her jacket was a barely there silky black negligee that wasn’t quite long enough to cover the black lacy bottoms.

  Without saying hello, she ran to my side, cursing in Spanish the whole way, while she pulled out an old leather-bound book the size of her hand. Flipping through the pages, she laid the book on the ground and grabbed our Zippo from the coffee table, lighting the candles sitting next to it.

  “Let me see the wound.” Angel’s usual bubbly self was gone, replaced with someone much more rigid. She definitely meant business.

  I rolled toward the back of the couch, just enough to show her the burns. She hissed as she surveyed my injuries, mumbling to herself in languages I couldn’t understand.

  “I’ve never healed injuries this severe.” She pulled the remainder of my t-shirt away, exposing my entire back. “But I’ll give it my best shot.”

  “Just make me pretty again,” I joked through the pain.

  Johnny came in and Gideon got up to meet him. They began whispering in the kitchen. I could catch the occasional names like Nicolo and Theo and Yonas. Johnny was probably filling Gideon in on everything he’d heard before he showed up. It was for the best. At least, I wouldn’t have to relive that again.

  Angel began to chant in a foreign language. She brushed her hands along my body, pausing at the particularly painful spots. Little by little, I could feel my skin begin to mend. The cuts stretched back together, the burns shedding their charred flesh.

  Life force streamed through Angel like a hole in a dam, while her breathing grew heavy from the effort of the spell. She finished up with the nicks and bruises on my front, her chanting dying to a whisper, and eventually choking off when she couldn’t go on any longer.

  Before she could collapse to the ground, I reached out and caught her. Johnny and Gideon rushed to her side, lowering her down and placing a pillow under her head as she lay blinking up at the ceiling.

  I sat up and stretched my limbs. Angel was more powerful than I’d thought. She’d managed to close up every wound and take away most of the pain. The stinging burn marks had faded into pink new skin. I still had some purple and blue bruises left, but overall, I felt remarkably better.

  “Amazing,” Gideon said, watching me flex. “Almost as good as new.”

  I smiled at him, but he looked away. For a second there, before Angel and Johnny came barging in, I thought we were having a moment. But, I must’ve imagined it. Swallowing my disappointment, I resigned myself to examining my limbs while Angel smiled weakly up at me from the floor.

  “You’re the best, Angelina José Rodriguez.” I crawled down to the floor to kiss her cheek.

  She waved me away, smiling again. “Anything for my sister from another mister.”

  Squeezing my knee, she closed her eyes. The spell had taken a lot of effort. For a nymph, Angel looked aged and tired lying on my striped floor rug. She’d be feeling the effects of that spell for days. I tried not to feel guilty and grabbed a t-shirt from my room, pulling it over my newly pain-free shoulders.

  “Now, would somebody mind filling us in on everything we missed?” Johnny stood up from his position on the floor next to Angel. His eyes flicked back and forth between Gideon and me. “And would somebody please tell me why Aya’s brother – who I never knew about, by the way – hit me over the head while I was leaving work, before he tied and gagged me? Then, hauled me to the train station to use as a hostage?”

  My gaze fell to the floor. I didn’t know how to explain it to my friends. If they knew I had a homicidal brother, they might think twice about having me in their lives. But, it was too late to come up with a believable lie. Nicky had made his presence known, loud and clear.

  “Aya’s brother is like a serial killer among the supernatural.” Gideon looked at me as he spoke, his eyes softening. “The SI has been tracking him for years. At first, we thought he was responsible for taking the Yonas family from your apartment. But from what we learned tonight, it sounds like Nicolo’s student is the one to blame.”

  “He said his name’s Theo and that he’s a Gorgon,” I said while avoiding Angel and Johnny’s eyes. They’d have to process this news and decide whether to dump me as a friend later. “Now my vision makes sense. That’s why I saw those snakes drown the Yonas family. It’s a Gorgon that’s killing them. Nicky had sent a dagger to me at the museum. It’s the only weapon that can kill Theo. It had been dipped in venom from Medusa’s snakes. He wants me to get it for him.”

  “And where’s this dagger now?” Gideon asked.

  “At the museum. I wanted to analyze it before we put it on display. We do that with all our new items, so that we have the proper security in place for dangerous assets.”

  That was a new policy I’d instated two years ago, after a harmless looking sixteenth century coin was added to our display by Mr. Jones after his trip to the Netherlands. It wasn’t until Angel and I started breaking out in blistering red skin sores did we discover that the coin had been enchanted to spread leprosy. That was a painful lesson which took dozens of healing spells and enchantments to contain.

  Gideon rubbed his temples. He paced the room between the kitchen table and the bookcase. “So, Nicolo says he can find Theo? But he won’t tell us because he wants to go after him with the dagger. We’re stuck.”

  Angel’s eyelids fluttered. She leaned her head off the pillow, her eyes wide. “Wait, do you mean this dagger?” She pulled the ornate dagger in its sheath from the depths of her Prada bag. “I took it home with me to examine, but I didn’t get around to it yet. If Theo’s a Gorgon, it makes sense that this could kill him. Medusa and her sisters were Gorgons. He must be a descendant.”

  Inwardly, I sighed. That thing could’ve been enchanted to bring about the apocalypse, for all we knew. Angel shouldn’t have been carrying around such a weird object in her purse. But, that was a lecture for another day. Now, we had the weapon. We just needed to find the monster responsible for Mr. and Mrs. Yonas’ deaths.

  Just as Gideon was taking the dagger from Angel, the
apartment door flew open again. This time, Agent Silva came hustling through. Her perfectly pressed shirt was now wrinkly and stained. A dark red bloom across her side was probably dried blood. The ponytail that held her hair back was loose, and strands fell around her face. As soon as she entered, her gaze went directly to Gideon. She only paused for a moment before grabbing his arm and inspecting the scratches on his skin.

  “I was afraid you’d be laid up in the hospital,” she said, turning his palms over.

  He tried to wave her away, but she would have none of it. Instead, she moved on to examining his face, taking in the bruises that were beginning to form along his cheek.

  “I don’t know how you survived that fall, Gideon, but you’ve got an angel looking out for you.”

  He grabbed her hands and pulled them off his face. “Aya saved me. She’s the only reason I’m still standing here.”

  “No, Aya is the reason you had to be saved.” Agent Silva turned to me, fire blazing in her eyes. “If she’d contacted us and told us about the hostage situation, we could’ve gone in prepared. Instead, we had to find her empty apartment to realize she’d gone ahead to meet with Nicolo. She was stupid and careless and I should arrest her right now.”

  I felt my jaw fall open. No smart comeback came to me. My mind was blank.

  “Easy, Rita.” Gideon’s low growl didn’t hide the warning in his voice.

  “No, I won’t go easy on her. She’s had enough easy.” Agent Silva stomped toward me, her fingers resting on the cuffs at her belt. “Your brother was involved and you said nothing. You obstructed justice, got your friend kidnapped, nearly got that guard and Gideon killed, and delayed our investigation. If Michelle or her son dies, that’ll be on your head, too.”

  A moment of shocked silence followed Agent Silva’s tirade. Then, all at once, my friends and Gideon began to shout. I couldn’t hear what they were saying above the racket, but it didn’t matter.