Tycho

by Stevens, Madison

  “We’re trying something new today since the last one didn’t seem strong enough.” He shrugged. “Seems like it works pretty well and fast.”

  With his last ounce of strength, Tycho grabbed onto Matt’s leg and gave a hard jerk. The loud thud of the bastard hitting the floor offered at least some satisfaction as the room went dark around him.

  * * *

  When Mia came to, her head was throbbing. The last thing she remembered was Tycho lying on the floor, and the world starting to spin. Now it felt like her head had been in a vice.

  “Glad you’re finally awake,” said a voice. “We weren’t sure just how long it might take, and we’re kind on a schedule.”

  She couldn’t tell much, but she knew it wasn’t Dmitry. No accent and no weird syntax.

  Mia tried to focus her eyes as she looked around the room. She was in the living room of the place she’d been staying in before. It was her first time really spending much time at all in the space outside of her room, but she’d know it a mile away.

  She focused finally on Matt. His glasses were cracked on the left side, and he also had a fat lip and black eye.

  Mia snorted. “Guess that fight with the floor didn’t go so well.”

  His eyes darkened for a moment before he was able to regain his composure. Mia took the moment to look further around the room. Tycho sat bound in thick ropes against a pillar near the front.

  “Tycho?” Mia asked, fear in her voice.

  “I wouldn’t worry about him.” Matt snorted.

  Mia turned to glare at the man on the other side of the room. “You keep drugging him, you bastard.”

  Matt nodded as he set a few things on the table across the room. It was only when her eyes focused on the table that she noticed they had moved things around a bit. There were beautiful flowers all over. That was the last thing she expected to see.

  Mia glanced down at her clothes. White. Nothing but white and ruffles.

  “I’m wearing a wedding dress.”

  All the color drained from her as she tried to process just what was happening.

  “It was quite the struggle getting you into it in your condition,” Matt said, his back to her. “But Dmitry was insistent.”

  Mia struggled to stand but fumbled forward, the drugs still very much in her system.

  On the right side of the room, she could see her yellow purse from earlier. Maybe they hadn’t taken out her gun. If she could just make her way over, she could end this. Mia was certain she could, especially if it was just Matt.

  She crawled on the floor, putting one hand in front of the other as she diligently tried to make her way to the only chance of freedom.

  Two shiny shoes stood in front of her. Mia slowly brought her head up to find Dmitry staring down at her with a disappointed look on his face.

  Dmitry shook his head. “Now, my Snow White, you’ll make your dress dirty crawling on the floor.”

  Mia groaned as he pulled her to her feet. Her stomach still felt like it was on the floor, and she stumbled forward, trying to catch her footing. Dmitry held out his arms and caught her.

  “That was a very bad thing you did, running off with the help,” Dmitry hissed.

  Mia shook her head. Finding any words was far more difficult than it had been on the floor. Now the room spun around her, making her head ache even more than it had before.

  “Didn’t want to marry you,” she spat out.

  Much to her surprise, Dmitry laughed. “Such backbone,” he said. “You are my ball of fire. Not like your sister. So boring in the bedroom, but I’m sure you won’t be so boring. Now she will find a new home.”

  Anger thumped inside of Mia after hearing him speak of her sister that way. She balled up her fist and swung wildly. Dmitry caught it mid-swing and only laughed more.

  “You promised to let her go, you son of a bitch.”

  Dmitry snorted. “Even if you did not leave, it’d be no different. She was never going free. Mya was always meant to be shipped off. Just as you were always meant to be mine.”

  Mia pushed herself away from him and dropped to the floor. Her sobs shook her body as she balled herself up.

  He had won. He always won. They had been so close to freedom, but once again, she was back right where he wanted her.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Tycho could hear talking nearby. Whatever they had given him this time was far stronger than the last. He could feel his whole body go slack as he tried to move his head to the side. He tried to will himself to move more, but his body wouldn’t cooperate.

  Matt. That bastard had done this to him. Ruined everything, just like before.

  The hybrid’s vision was blurred, but he could make out Mia from anywhere, even drugged. She lay on the floor, wrapped in a cloud of white, sobbing

  “Leave her alone,” he slurred.

  This time, Dmitry’s stench reached his nose. Tycho wasn’t sure what trick Matt had played before. Didn’t care. The hybrid turned his head to see the bastard standing there, grinning like he’d just won the lottery.

  The thug chuckled. “Looks like our knight has finally woken up.”

  His accent was even harder to understand than normal, but that might have been because of the drugs.

  Dmitry moved closer, and try as he might, Tycho couldn’t seem to make his eyes focus. It didn’t matter if he was a hybrid dealing with humans. This time, they had all the advantages.

  The other man walked over, bent closer, and leaned his face toward Tycho. “Don’t think you’ll be making any daring escapes now. Instead you get to watch as my new Vestal and I move up the evolutionary ladder after our wedding ceremony. I think it will be good show for someone like you who thinks he’s better.”

  Tycho frowned. Either the drugs were clouding his mind, or the fucker didn’t make any sense. Either way, he didn’t like the sound of any of it. Something bad was about to happen.

  Dmitry stepped back and made his way over to Mia. “Stand up. Now.”

  She stayed where she was and shook her head. “I’m not marrying you. You can’t make me.”

  He sneered, pulled out a gun, and pointed it directly at Tycho. “Stand up, or I blow his head off. He might be good at healing, but I doubt that’s one even he could come back from.” He laughed. “Might be interesting to test out and see, yes?”

  Tycho’s eyes met Mia’s on the other side of the room. “Run,” he croaked, his voice hoarse and hollow.

  Mia blinked out a few tears and stood. She swayed a few times but was finally able to find her feet.

  Tycho struggled with the rope around his hands. Normally it would be nothing, but in this state, he was barely able to keep his head straight, let alone break out of his bindings.

  Matt walked and stood near the door to the hallway. A small table stood in front of him.

  He smiled. “I got my marriage certification online.”

  “I will forge certificate later. Ceremony is important, not papers.” Dmitry waved his hand to carry on. “Let’s do this. She will be mine.”

  “Don’t do this,” Tycho said. “Let her go. I’ll stay and do whatever is needed. You can still have a hybrid that you can send against your enemies. That you can send against the feds. Just please let her go.”

  “I don’t need you anymore, and I don’t want you.” The man snorted and turned to stare at him. “You’re a liability. You’ll be sold off with the rest of them, and I’ll have my Vestal. As it should be. Soon, I will be more than you.”

  The hybrid blinked, still unsure what the hell Dmitry was going on about.

  Two of the grunts stepped into the room. A loud crash sounded from the back of the house.

  “There’s some trouble,” one of the men said, with a frown. “Couple guys trying to get in.”

  Gunfire echoed from the back of the house.

  Dmitry spun toward Tycho, his face twisted in rage. “Who did you call? Did you bring feds here?”

  Tycho stared at the man dumbfounded. He hon
estly wasn’t sure what the hell was going on. He didn’t know Maximus well at all, but maybe his team had been able to trace them. They seemed to know more about the general situation than he did when he called. He could only hope a team of hybrids was now attacking the place.

  A bloodcurdling scream sounded from the back. The two guards exchanged nervous looks.

  Dmitry waved his hand. “Doesn’t matter. We’ll kill them as well.” He turned to the first man. “Go take care of them with the boys. They interrupt my wedding day.”

  The other thug stayed as the first rushed outside to dispatch whoever might be there.

  More gunshots rang out.

  Matt looked over at Dmitry nervously.

  The other man snorted. “My men handle them. Let’s get this going. I will not wait any longer.”

  Matt cleared his throat. “Dearly beloved, ee’re gathered here today to unite this man and this woman in matrimony. Marriage is a sacred vow, but none more sacred than those made between hybrid and Vestal.” He paused for dramatic impact.

  More thuds, yells, and gunshots reached them from outside, along with the sound of breaking glass.

  Tycho continued to struggle against the rope binding him to the pillar. If he could just get his hands free, he might be able to free his legs as well. Although he wasn’t sure how well they would work, surely, it’d still be enough to take out a few humans.

  “Today, we not only usher these two into wedded bliss but offer them something more. A chance to separate themselves from the rest. A chance to make themselves as close to the gods as possible.”

  Tycho blinked, wondering why Matt was delivering such weird-ass vows. It was then that he saw the syringe in Matt’s hand.

  Matt smiled. “With this union, we will create a new breed of hybrid, and through your children, you will nurture a different sort of god. We’ll move beyond the failures of the Horatius Group.”

  “Jesus Christ.” The thug standing near the door stared at them all as if they had gone mad. Clearly even the thugs had limits about what they were willing to accept.

  Dmitry pulled out his gun and aimed it at the other man. “Something to say on my wedding day?”

  The man swallowed hard and shook his head.

  Something loud landed on the roof. They all turned their heads to the ceiling. Whoever was outside had made their way to the roof, and Tycho now knew without a doubt that it was Maximus, the hybrid scent reaching his nose.

  “You,” Dmitry waved at the remaining guard, “gather the rest of the men and finish them.” He turned back to Matt. “Let’s get this over with.”

  Dmitry pulled Mia close to him. “Time to kiss my bride.”

  “No!” Tycho roared.

  Mia had been waiting. There was no way in hell she was letting the bastard even close to her. She whipped out her hand and raked her nails down his face. Her nails dug into his eyes. Dmitry screamed in Russian as he stepped away from her, pawing at his face.

  She tried to dive for her purse. Thick fingers grabbed a handful of her hair as she turned. Matt had grabbed hold of her, and he was still holding the syringe.

  Mia did the only thing she could think of. She lunged toward him, throwing the man off balance, and bit him.

  Her teeth sank hard into the skin on his face. Matt screamed loudly as he dropped the syringe and struggled to push her off. Several times he hit her, but still she clung to him like an angry alligator, until at last he landed one good blow on the side of her face.

  Mia spiraled away from the man toward the right-side table. For a moment she tried to steady herself. The effects of the drug they had given her remained strong, but Mia couldn’t let them win. She had to beat them not only for herself, but Tycho and her sister.

  Fueled by the last few ounces of energy, she launched herself at the table and grabbed for the purse. Her hands fumbled inside, hoping more than anything they hadn’t checked her bag.

  Cold hard metal greeted her. Never in her life had she been so happy to have a gun in her hands.

  Mia turned around as Matt came at her again and fired. The shot went wide and struck his arm. He yelled and stumbled back. Blood soaked his white shirt.

  “You bitch!” he shrieked.

  She steadied the gun. “Don’t move if you want to keep breathing.”

  Mia made her way over to Tycho. She quickly unbound his hands, then turned to look back toward Matt, but the little rat had already fled.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Tycho worked on freeing his legs as he listened to the sounds of gunfire. With the hybrids there, he no longer worried about if he’d be able to escape. He just needed to take care of the immediate problems in front of him.

  Things were moving quickly now. Although his brain was still having trouble keeping up, he knew it wouldn’t be long before the hybrids handled the other men, and Tycho and Mia were free.

  Movement on the floor caught his attention. Dmitry grabbed Mia’s arm. Blood ran freely from the crime boss’s eyes and down his face. Although he still obviously had enough vision to cause trouble.

  Dmitry stood. “I can’t let you leave. We’re going to make children that will be gods on the Earth. You’re mine. This is destiny. You will be with me forever.”

  Mia shivered. Tycho continued to work on the binding around his legs. Just a little more and he would be free. Drugs or no drugs, he would end Dmitry.

  “We will create a new race,” Dmitry shouted. “I will be the first among the new race of gods. All will pay for what they have done to me.”

  Tycho snorted. “How? Matt has already left. You’re on your own, you asshole. Don’t you get it? You’ve lost, you son of a bitch.”

  It was only then that the hybrid saw the syringe in his hand, the same one Matt had tried to use to inject Mia.

  Dmitry grinned and raised the syringe. “You stupid, greedy dog. You know nothing.”

  Tycho gritted his teeth. “Shit.”

  He worked harder at the rope around his legs. He had no idea what Dmitry had in the syringe, but he doubted it’d be a good thing for anyone if the bastard used it.

  Tycho watched in horror. The last piece of rope fell from his legs, but it was too late as Dmitry shoved the syringe into his neck and pushed the plunger.

  It clattered to the floor, and Dmitry fell to his knees, his face twitching, and his eyes glowing. The man was changing. Growls and hisses escaped his mouth as he slammed his fists into the ground over and over again, cracking the wood.

  Despite what the Russian mobster had wanted, it was clear he wouldn’t be turning into a hybrid. His already red eyes were a clear sign of becoming a monstrous Glycon. Part man but mostly monster. Without training, he’d be nothing more than a bloodthirsty killing machine.

  “Run,” Tycho shouted to Mia as he launched himself at Dmitry.

  The two fell to the floor, and the hybrid struggled to maintain control and keep Dmitry pinned. Under normal circumstances, a hybrid would be able to make short work of a Glycon, but in his current drugged state, Tycho wasn’t sure how much longer he could continue holding Dmitry.

  “I’ll kill Mya,” Dmitry screamed. “I’ll kill Mia, and I’ll kill you. Maybe if I eat their hearts, I’ll gain all their powers. I am a god. People will fear me. People will worship me.”

  His blood red eyes glowed as Tycho struggled to keep him in place. Mia needed to escape. It didn’t matter if he died there. Everything would be fine as long as his Vestal escaped.

  Dmitry snarled. “I’ll kill them all, but first I’ll kill you, you traitorous dog.” The man let out a blood-curdling scream that set every hair on Tycho’s neck on end. He threw Tycho off and glared at him.

  They both jerked at the sound of a gun being fired, not outside, not on the roof, but in the room. A bullet shattered a window.

  Tycho looked over to see Mia standing there in the middle of the room, arms outstretched and holding the gun he’d given her.

  Mia glared at Dmitry. “You won’t kill him.” She fired
again, this time striking Dmitry in the side.

  He jerked and growled. “You won’t kill me, you ungrateful bitch.”

  She fired again, this time hitting his leg. Dmitry took a few steps backwards, his blood dripping on the floor. Tycho rolled out of the way as she advanced on the retreating Glycon.

  “And you sure as fuck won’t kill my sister,” Mia shouted. “You don’t own us, and I’m setting us free!”

  Mia screamed as she fired, unloading the rest of the bullets into the man in front of her. Dmitry fumbled and jerked backwards with each bullet that hit him. The final shot struck his skull.

  Blood soaked the ground around him as he slumped against the wall. His open blood-red eyes staring right back at her.

  He was dead. Dmitry, the man who held the keys to their freedom, was dead.

  Tycho stood unsteadily and made his way to Mia as she continued to scream and cry. The gun clicked uselessly in her hand as she continued to pull the trigger of the now empty weapon.

  “It’s over,” he whispered. “He’s dead.”

  Mia dropped the gun to the ground and buried her head against Tycho’s chest. She shook from head to foot.

  “It’s not over,” she whimpered. “It’s not over until we’re all safe.”

  He wrapped his arms more tightly around her. Once again, they were so close.

  “Tycho, I presume.”

  He spun, ready to fight. It wasn’t a thug standing in the door frame, but a tall hybrid in black urban camouflage, blood splattered all over his outfit.

  The hybrid nodded. “I’m Maximus.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Mia watched as hybrids filed into the room, rifles strapped to their backs, many covered with blood, but none looked wounded themselves. One of the men moved the flowers off the table and dragged it to the middle of the room. The cloth that had been placed over it was removed and used to cover Dmitry’s body in the corner.

  Occasionally her gaze would go over to the lumpy red spot on the floor, and she struggled over what she should think. She had killed a man.