“Other parts?” Gary asked, shocked. “So that’s what he was looking for. What did the gems do to him when he touched them?”
“Remember the picture of the Juggernaut you found?” McCoy asked.
“He’s like that?” Gary asked, even more shocked. The Juggernaut, from all the accounts, was an unstoppable force. There would be no fighting Robert if he got like that.
“I’m afraid so,” McCoy said. “And he’s heading back your way right now. His ETA is about three hours.” “What?” Gary couldn’t keep his voice from shouting into the phone.
“Our plane is faster, so we should be arriving shortly before he does.” McCoy hesitated. “And Gary—he’s killed at least one person that we know of.”
“You can beat him, though, right?” Gary asked, the hope again gaining strength.
“We don’t know yet,” McCoy said. “But we need to do something before the Juggernaut catches up to him. He’s between us and your brother.”
“Oh,” Gary said. Now his head really was spinning.
‘ ‘My suggestion is for you and your father to not be there when we arrive.”
“I think,” Gary said, “that I will take that suggestion. Thanks.”
“Good luck,” McCoy said and hung up.
Gary dropped the phone back in its cradle, then leaned back, forcing himself to take deep breaths. Robert had turned into another Juggernaut.
He had killed a man.
And he would be home within hours.
Gary pounded his fist on his desk. What was he going to do? It felt as if the end of the world was at hand. All his years of planning, of gaining control of his father’s estate, would be wasted. His dream of using all of his father’s dirty money to give to charities would be lost.
Lost in one day. All because of a stupid emerald.
Robert would kill him when he learned what he had done, or at least force their father to sign it all back over to Robert. If Robert really was the size of the Juggernaut, there would be no fighting him.
Then suddenly Gary laughed. Wait, you idiot, he said to himself. Robert killed a man. If he can be reverted back to a regular human, he will spend the next twenty-years-to-life in prison. And Gary would be free to give away the old man’s money as he pleased. Maybe this dark cloud had the old silver lining after all. If Robert could be stopped.
But not even the Beast was sure he and his people could stop him.
Gary suddenly had a clear plan, as if it had been there all along. He had three hours, which gave Gary barely enough time to get everything fixed. Maybe, just maybe, this might turn out to be all right. If he was lucky, and could prepare fast enough.
Gary quickly stood and headed back for his father’s room. As always, the smell of rotting flesh greeted him twenty paces from the door.
Gary smiled at the nurse who was sitting near the door of the room, reading. “We’ve got a problem,” he said. “We’ve got to move my father out of the house as quickly as possible. Anywhere away from here will be fine.”
The nurse, a large woman with thick, solid arms, frowned, then said, “Andreassi Memorial Hospital’s closest.”
“Good. Call for an ambulance.”
She reached for the phone while Gary moved over beside his father, who slept fitfully.
“Father?” Gary said aloud. “I’m afraid we’ve got to move you to a new location. Before Robert returns.”
The old man slept on, half snoring, half choking.
Gary stared at the rotting face of his father. The man’s sickness had been appropriate for the way he had lived. Maybe he should just leave him for Robert. But still, the man was Gary’s father and Gary had to protect the changes in the will, just in case Robert couldn’t be beaten. He wondered if there was a jail cell that could hold Robert, if he was the size of the Juggernaut.
“Sorry, Father,” Gary said. “But we’ve got to be going.” He nudged the old man gently under the sheet.
The nurse talked quietly for a moment on the phone, then hung up and turned to face Gary. “They’re sending an ambulance. It will be here in ten minutes.”
“Good.” Gary looked at the rotting skin on his father. Gary felt bad having to move him, yet it had to be done.
“Father,” Gary said, a little louder. “Time to wake
up.”
Suddenly his father coughed, then sighed.
And stopped breathing. Just like that.
The heart-monitoring machine screamed into a long, high-pitched call of alert.
“I just tried to wake him,” Gary said, more for himself than the nurse.
She moved over beside the bed and did a quick check, then reached over and turned off the machine. “Nothing you did,” she said. “It was just his time.”
Gary nodded.
He stood for a moment, staring at his father’s body. Having the old man gone was such a relief. Gary almost felt embarrassed that he was feeling that way standing over the man’s death bed. Almost.
Now Gary just had Robert to deal with.
He turned to the nurse. “Cancel the ambulance.”
The nurse nodded and smiled. “I’ll take care of getting your father’s body to the funeral home and getting this room cleaned up a little.”
“Thank you,” Gary said. “I appreciate it.” He turned and headed back to his office. He had a lot of people to inform, business transactions to complete in only a few short hours.
And he had a few other calls to make. If the super heroes couldn’t handle Robert alone, maybe he could help a little. Now that he had the money.
Then, after Robert was locked away in jail, Gary would start giving his family money away. Slowly, but surely. Every last cent of it. It would be the least he could to repay the world for his father’s greed.
And the sins of his brother.
Outside the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, the sun was starting to set, and the air remained thick, hot, and humid. In the cooler interior of the mansion’s study, Professor Xavier hovered in his floating chair near the door and reached out telepathically to the X-Men as they winged their way northward in the Blackbird.
The most palpable sense was fatigue and discouragement. They had hauled Cain around the country trying to catch Robert Service. And they failed to do so before Service killed one man and was transformed into another Juggernaut-like creature. Then Service had beaten them rather soundly in a fight. Xavier sensed failure and frustration hanging heavy in the Blackbird. It was not a feeling these X-Men were used to.
As Phoenix brought him up to date telepathically— including Gambit’s own adventure with Wingate Toole, the Assassin’s Guild, and Service—the Professor shuddered. Service had killed the man in Idaho in cold blood, and probably would have done the same to Toole had the Guild not beaten him to it. Cain Marko having the power of the Juggernaut was bad enough, but Cain was basically a bully and a thief. Service was an order of magnitude worse.
He had to be stopped.
So for now the question was how to handle Service. And the Professor needed his team thinking, not of the failure of the last day, but of the future.
There was also another factor he feared: What would
be the results when the two jewels were together? Touched by the same person? He had a few theories, and none of them were good.
The Juggernaut’s and Service’s power came through the jewels from the bands of Cyttorak. It was as if the jewels were funnels, focusing the power of Cyttorak into this world. But if the jewels were together, controlled by only one person, there would be no telling what kind of destructive force could come through into this world.
The Professor closed his eyes and relaxed, using his own mutant abilities to send out mental probes that would allow him to mindlink with his students. Instantly, he felt the presence of all seven X-Men, as if they were in the study with him.
Cyclops was the first to “speak.” Do you have any recommendations as to how we should proceed, Professor?
“In fac
t, I do, Scott. For one thing, I believe we should concentrate on doing everything in our power to keep Cain and Service apart.”
Why? Rogue said. Seems the two of them beating on each other might be the best solution.
‘ ‘Perhaps. But I fear the consequences of the two jewels coming together.”
As do /, Hank said. Those jewels are basically windows into another dimension. We don’t want that window opened any farther than it already is.
“We can’t afford to take the chance,” the Professor said, “if we can stop it.”
He felt the impact of his words on his team. The entire group seemed to stiffen, sit up straighter at the challenge. They were tired, hungry, and beat-up. But the nature of who they were always brought them up for the good fight.
We have two advantages, Scott said. We know where Service is headed, and the Blackbird is faster than his plane. We can arrive at the estate ahead of him. The other advantage is that Cain doesn’t know where to go. All he can do is follow where the ruby tells him, but that isn’t precise. It should buy us some time.
The Professor nodded. ‘ ‘I agree, that is the best course of action. Cain’s delay in arriving should give us time to find a way to revert Robert Service to his former self.”
Wolverine laughed. We ain’t had much luck doin’ that to Marko.
“No,” the Professor said, keeping his voice from showing the disappointment he felt over that very subject. ‘ ‘But Robert Service has one weakness that Cain does not have.”
The stone, Hank said, already clearly following what the Professor was saying.
“Exactly,” the Professor said. “The emerald was in three pieces and did not initially attach itself to him. Cain’s ruby was always intact. We need to return the emerald to its broken state.”
We have considerable power at our disposal, Storm pointed out. Perhaps if we focus our energies in one blast on the emerald, we can shatter it.
I can work on him telepathically, too, Jean added. He doesn’t have the protection Cain has—no helmet. But Cain’s presence will ruin that. Once the ruby gets loo close to the emerald, the psychic interference is too much for me to overcome.
“It’s a start,” the Professor. “Godspeed, my X-Men.” '
Charles Xavier sat once again alone in his library, and he worried. Even with the Blackbird's speed, it would be at least an hour before they reached the Service estate. This break would also allow him to do some research into this problem. And right now it just might be any little detail that would spell the difference between success. And unthinkable failure.
On the Blackbird, Rogue looked over at Remy. He looked like hell. He had taken a moment at the airfield to wash the worst of the dust off his face and purchase a fresh deck of cards from Kris—the old set had gotten moldy— but his duster and costume still were almost caked with dust.
But weirdest of all was the smile Remy had on his face. Where the other X-Men looked tired, or had expressions of grim determination, only Gambit looked pleased.
“Sugar, you sure do look happy for someone who just got his butt whupped.”
“Cherie,’s far as ol’ Remy is concerned, it’s mission accomplished. De rest is jus’ cleanup.”
“Cleanup? How you figure that? We still got us two Juggernauts t’deal with.”
Remy laughed. “I went back home ’cause t’ings was goin’ wrong. Well, de cause o’ dat was Wingate Toole, and il est mort. And de source o’ his power is takin’ up residence in M’sieu Service’s chest. So t’ings should be goin’ back to normal.”
Rogue shook her head. “If y’can call Thieves Guilds an’ Assassins Guilds normal.”
“Well, as normal as dey get in N’awlins, anyhow,” Remy said with another laugh.
“I’m jus’ glad you’re okay. Even if you do look like a human dust bunny. Do me a favor, don’t go harin’ off to a place where they wantcha dead by yourself again, okay?”
“It’s a deal, p’tite. It’s a deal.”
Cain sat in the tiny chair at the front of the Raven. He wondered where his stepbrother got his hands on a ship like this. Probably that alien chick he was sweet on. She’d rebuilt the mansion for him when it had been destroyed, so it figured that she’d give him ships like this one.
Cain liked it. All he had to do was think a direction, and it went. Sweet. Real sweet.
He’d been flying northeast toward New York. Summers had mentioned that Service’s estate was in central New York, and he could feel himself getting closer to Service the closer he got to that state.
Perfect.
Soon the pain would be gone. Cain was going to enjoy this.
It was shortly after one in the afternoon when Scott brought the Blackbird into a soft landing on the edge of the Service estate private runway.
This time no one came out of the shadows to greet them. Scott sincerely hoped that Gary Service had taken his advice and left. Service’s little brother in the middle of the fight was the last thing they needed to worry about at this point.
Beside him, Scott could feel that Jean really didn’t want to be back here. Their last experience with the dying old man had not been pleasant. Scott didn’t want to be here, either.
“Don’t think about it,” Scott said, grinning at her and patting her hand.
“Easy for you to say,” she said, smiling back. In his mind the words, I love you, formed.
“We gonna sit here all day?” Wolverine asked.
“Sorry,” Scott said. He released the side door, letting in a wave of humid, hot air.
One by one, the eight X-Men exited the plane. Wolverine lead the way through the heat toward the large main mansion.
As they got closer Wolverine stopped and sniffed the air. “Smells like something died in here.”
“You might say that,” Scott said.
Around them nothing was moving. On this hot, summer afternoon, even the birds seemed to have found a place to hide.
“Anyone inside?” Scott asked Jean.
She shook her head no. “Totally empty, from what I can tell.”
“How long until Robert Service arrives?” Bishop asked, staring at the building, then scanning the grounds.
“From what we can figure,” Scott said, “within the hour.”
Jean nodded and focused off into the distance while Scott glanced around. ‘ ‘We should set up out here to make our stand.”
Bishop spoke up. ‘ ‘With respect, Cyclops, I disagree. We should take the battle inside.”
“Inside?” Scott asked, surprised at Bishop’s suggestion.
“Explain,” Storm said.
“Since Sendee owns this building, he might hold back on damaging his own property. Also, inside, his increased size will put him at a disadvantage in movement in the comparatively cramped indoors. Plus, we can use the natural lay of the rooms to our advantage.”
Scott nodded, and looked to Storm, who did likewise. His natural inclination would be to stay outside, but this time Bishop’s logic sounded right. Still, he didn’t want to put all the eggs in one basket.
“Storm, take Gambit and the Beast and guard the front of the house. The rest of us will guard the rear. If Service arrives first, we go back to the main plan and attack the emerald on his chest with everything we can throw at him. If we break that thing off him, all our problems are solved.”
“And Cain’s also,” Hank said.
‘ ‘If Cain arrives first, we shall endeavor to keep him away from Service, at least until the emerald is destroyed,” Storm said.
Scott nodded. “Good. Inside, then.”
The red creature felt very close, but still south, as Robert Service’s plane landed at the family estate’s personal runway. Another jet sat to one side of the runway. The same one that had been in New Orleans. Somehow it had gotten here before him. More than likely it belonged to those annoying mutants he’d crushed in the warehouse. Didn’t matter to him one way or another. He’d just flick them away like flies, then get to business.
He taxied the plane inside the hangar and squeezed out, managing to not damage the plane too much.
The first order of business was his dear old father. His fondest hope was that at the sight of his new size, his father would have a heart attack and die. That would make the day perfect. Otherwise Robert would just have to kill the old man. Not anywhere near as much fun as scaring him to death.
Then Gary would most likely run away, to never return and that would make it even better. Could he be that fortunate? Could he scare his father to death and have his younger brother disappear, all on the same day? Over the last two days he’d been very, very lucky, so the chances were good.
Very good.
He laughed and his laugh echoed through the trees of the estate on the hot, summer afternoon. It felt good to be home.
He went around the side of the hangar and headed for the house, going in the back way. He cut through the
kitchen and into the large dining and formal living room area. The picture windows were open, an attempt to alleviate the awful stench of his dear father’s disease, which permeated the whole house.
The room was huge. There were many times his father had entertained fifty people here. How small the place seemed now. What had once felt like a gymnasium-sized area now seemed small and cramped. And he had to duck to get through every door.
Near the dining room table stood two of those mutants he’d been fighting in New Orleans. One had a singlevisor lens over his eyes and the other wore a skintight yellow and blue outfit, with long red hair streaming down over her shoulders.
“You people,” Service said, “should really learn to mind your own business. Now get out of my house.” His voice shook the room and a picture dropped off of one wall.
“Don’t think so, bub,” a feral-looking man in yellow and blue said as he moved around the dining table to come in from Service’s right. Behind him was a huge black man with an “M” tattooed on his face.
In the doorway beside the woman with red hair, another woman entered with a green and yellow body suit on, with a brown flight jacket over it. A white streak ran down the center of her brown hair.
The Jewels of Cyttorak Page 14
