PANDORA

by Rebecca Hamilton

  The Corolla drags belly as it comes to a halt.

  I storm across the lawn and up the porch, then kick out the front window. I'm over the sill before all the glass has landed.

  The living room is empty.

  I tilt my head and listen around the hum. Noises from the back of the house. Never one for stealth, I clomp through the kitchen and round the corner.

  The barrel of a gun touches my face. Holding the pistol, a middle-aged man with thinning dark hair and fair skin. I hit low, in his gut. He doubles over. I pull my gun. He reaches up and grabs my arm and shoves.

  I stumble back, clawing at furniture to break my fall. I only manage to pull over a table as I hit the ground. He lunges at me. I roll out of the way and scramble to stand. His foot catches me in the chest. My sternum and heart seem to collide. I fall face first into the carpet.

  He yanks me up. I swing, miss. My back hits the window. Glass shatters, and I thud to the ground outside. He leaps down. I kick his leg, knocking him to his knees. He scurries for me, but he's obviously missed the memo on who the monster is around here.

  I launch to my feet and catch him in the face with my elbow, crunching his nose. I smash him in the back of his head. Blood dribbles to the trampled grass. His hand goes to his face. Then he raises his head to me.

  I tense, waiting for him to make the next move. He stares at me. I think for a minute that he might realize who I am. But he doesn't. He spent his life looking for the jinn, and he doesn't even recognize that the jinn is kicking his ass.

  Syd did say I wasn't what they had thought I would be. Not exactly a compliment.

  Larry scuttles to his feet and darts past me. I spin around as he swings a brick. I try to dodge, but fail to channel Bruce Lee this time. The brick lands solidly against my shoulder. I stumble, think I caught my balance, then fall straight into the bushes.

  Larry clomps over me and raises the brick like he's playing the High Striker game at a carnival. I pull my knee to my chest and slam my heel right under his chest bone. The brick drops. I twist out of the way. The brick catches me in the hip.

  I curl up as the pain from my hip bolts through my body. Larry is still hovering around me somewhere. I reach out blindly and grab at him. My fingers latch his wrist. I pull him around as I kick upward. Another solid strike below the chest bone.

  He gasps, then wheezes. I'm on my feet, pushing my way through the bushes. His hand shoves against his chest. Blood is still running down his lips and falling from his chin. I'm covered in blood too, but he can't take credit for much of it.

  He swings, but it's weak. I step out of the way. There's so much anger on his face, so much hatred, that I wish I could tell him who I am—right before I kill him.

  He swings again. I catch his fist and shove him back. He stumbles, and I take a step toward him. I clench my hand and slam my elbow into the side of his head. He staggers forward, hunched over. Then I realize he found a gun on the ground—my gun. The one I had dropped when he heaved me through the window.

  He raises the gun. Satisfaction settles over his face.

  I pull a Syd and rush him, slamming my shoulder into his chest. As he falls, I grab my gun and twist it from his grasp. He jerks forward. I bash the butt of the gun into the back of his head. He drops to his knees. I flip the gun around, shove it against his temple, and look up.

  Syd is standing on the other side of the broken window, her face swollen and bruised. Her arms are bleeding.

  Her eyes fall to the man kneeling at my feet, then she meets my gaze. She gives a tight nod.

  I have taken so much from her. Probably more than I even realize yet. With a sigh, I reach my other hand into my pocket, yank out a few benzo syringes, and drug the bastard up 'til he's going to need a twelve-step program.

  Syd hops down to the ground and takes a step toward me. I want to touch her, tell her how much I love her. Another jolt hits. She halts. I try to give her a reassuring look, but that's hard to do when hooked to a cosmic jumper cable.

  We don't have to speak though. We're on the same side again.

  But I'm still under the wish, so she's not safe near me.

  I take off through the yard, over the fence, and drive the Corolla as fast as I can toward the desert mansion.

  When I hit the freeway, my phone vibrates. I pull it out, my hand and arm shaking, and jab the screen.

  Text message from Syd.

  I don't know how you knew, but thank you. See ya at Karl's.

  I clench my teeth against the next jolt.

  I haven't ate, drank, or slept in days. I'm covered in dirt and sweat and blood. Zaps of electricity keep running through my body because I won't kill the most important person in my life. I have no idea how much longer before the hum evolves into something even more horrific and manages to push me over the edge again.

  Yet, somehow, I don't feel like a monster anymore.

  ***

  The gates to the mansion are open when I arrive. This can't be a good sign. I pull into the driveway and shove the car keys into my pocket. Once Karl knows I'm in the building, I suspect he will send his men to confiscate my cars.

  I decide to ignore the fact he can summon me anytime he wants, and I can do jack shit about it. If I give the thought too much time, I might realize how hopeless this situation is, because I have no out. Even if Syd does perform a miracle akin to turning water into wine, I still belong to Karl. I can't imagine serving him knowing what I do now.

  Which, to be fair, still isn't much. I know Phillip Ballantyne paid off an infirmary doctor to steal some genie juice, and the whole plan backfired. I know Karl ordered me to kidnap Syd's little sister and blow up her uncle's research lab.

  I get the lab situation. Karl didn't like Larry poking around his dark secrets. But I don't understand why Zoe and Syd were brought into this. Maybe as retaliation against Larry.

  I also don't understand why Larry killed Syd's father. Or her brother.

  Mark had been stabbed by the same weapon Syd described was used on her father. Either Larry had come after Mark too, or Mark is . . . Syd's brother. He had been overseas studying. That's why Syd had taken his Audi.

  Holy shit, I really have been destroying Syd's family without either of us realizing it.

  I make my way across the yard illuminated with lanterns and through the mansion without being disturbed. No guards. No house staff. Not even Silvia.

  Outside the chamber door, I halt and try to listen over the hum.

  Silence.

  I take a deep breath and, with shaking arms, push open the door. The scent of argan greets me, a reminder that I belong to this house. I will until the day I die.

  The fabrics wave in a breeze, revealing a glimpse of Karl on his throne.

  I close the door behind me and cross the long room, head lowered, until I'm in front of him. To his side, Syd stands with a half-dozen armed guards at her back. Her jaw is set firm.

  “I thought I would have to summon you.” Karl looks vaguely amused. “You kept us waiting.”

  I stare up at him without raising my head. My hair falls into my eyes.

  He gestures toward Syd. “It seems your friend here has a request.”

  My stomach feels sick. I remind myself he has already done his worst to her. To both of us.

  “Just let him out of the wish, Karl,” Syd says, anger coloring her voice. “Look what you've done to him.”

  “Oh, I haven't done anything to him. He knows the rules.” Karl's gaze meets mine. “Tell her you understood your choice.”

  “He can't talk.” Syd shifts the purse on her shoulder.

  I try to swallow, but my throat still burns.

  Karl sits forward on his throne. “This operation was built by your ancestors, Dimitri. Your father, your grandfather, your great-grandfather. All the way back. Generation after generation gave their lives so we could be what we are now.

  “Her family wants to take it away. They want to destroy it. No one has rights to what we have done.” His
voice is even. “Fulfill the wish, Dimitri.”

  I give a tight shake of my head. Another jolt. Goddammit. My face tilts to the ceiling. My muscles tighten and convulse.

  Karl raises to his feet and steps down from the stage. I remain in my spot, forcing deep breaths and trying to keep my mind clear. His influence over me is never good. Syd won't be able to run far if I tumble back into insanity.

  He glowers at me. “Your father worked for my father for decades. They increased the account tenfold. Then he was passed down to me, and we had a good few years, until he became sick. We knew his time as our genie was running out.”

  I straighten. No one has ever told me why my father was replaced.

  “He tried.” Karl sounds remorseful, but for all the wrong reasons. “His body was giving out, but he was excellent right up to the end. The only time he ever let us down was when he gave us you.”

  I should be offended. I have done so many terrible things for Karl, and all he ever remembers are the failures. Yet I no longer care what he thinks. I might be bonded to him for life, but any loyalty I had has disappeared.

  He continues. “I have my backup plan, though. I had to have one. Imagine my disappointment. So many great things we could be doing, but I always have to clean up your mess. Now you have the chance to live up to the men before you. Stop the Ballantynes once and for all.”

  I glance at Syd.

  Sydney Ballantyne.

  I never knew her last name.

  More threads tie together.

  Karl smiles, and it's perverse but entirely sane. “You can end this.”

  I clamp my jaw.

  His smile twists into a smirk. “If you don't, the hum will tear you apart from the inside. Slow. Deliberate. Just do what is asked of you, and it will let you go. You know this, Dimitri. You have been terrified of the hum since the first time you tried to resist.

  “Morals aren't for your kind to decide. The master tells you what you believe, and you follow the orders. We've been doing this for such a very long time.” He leans closer and whispers in my ear, “I will never retract the wish. You will give in, eventually. You will kill her. And I'll finally have a worthy jinn.”

  His words are a sucker punch to the gut. Despite everything, I really am worthless to him. No wonder he never requested for me to carry on the bloodline. He has some big idea on how to replace me.

  He steps back, then turns and heads for his throne.

  He says louder, “No, Dimitri, I would rather let this run its course. Maybe you will find reprieve at the end. Maybe in days or weeks or months, maybe it will kill you.” He settles down in his throne again. “I am prepared to let that happen.”

  Chaos erupts to my right. I turn as Syd swings her purse like a flail. It catches a guard upside the head. The other guards grapple for her, but she keeps swinging.

  I lunge into their midst, dodging her weapon, and start throwing elbows into their stomachs. I grab a guard's head and introduce it to my knee. He slumps next to the guard Syd has on the ground. She's still whaling on him.

  A guard goes for her, but I slug him in the face. I shove him down and plant my foot into his throat. He chokes on his final breath. I pull the gun from my pocket.

  A succession of clicks issue behind me. I halt, my gun still raised.

  A guard snaps, “Drop the weapon!”

  I hesitate. There's nothing else to do. Nothing that won't risk hurting Syd. I place the gun on the floor next to one of the two guards I killed. Syd's guard might be alive, but he will have a headache from hell if he comes to.

  A barrel nudges me in the side, urging me over to Karl. Syd is right beside me, captured by another guard.

  Karl sizes me up, then her. He turns back to me.

  The gun in my side jabs harder.

  Karl's hand flicks up. Just for a second.

  My eyes narrow.

  He made the same motion the first time Syd wound up at gunpoint in the summoning chamber. He just ordered the guards not to shoot.

  Of course. He's not ready to kill me yet, not until he can grow my replacement. And he's not going to let them kill Syd, either. He's too desperate to make me the savage jinn he has in mind to let that to happen.

  The guards are bluffing. I think.

  I throw my elbow into the guard behind me. He shoves back. I spin around and catch my fist into his temple. He swings, lands solid in my chest. I struggle for air as I dive after him. My fingers dig into his face. I will take down every one of these jerkwads before letting them near Syd. Another jolt hits. I channel the intensity into shoving him to the ground.

  Clamoring picks up behind me. I don't dare look, but I know Syd is on the move again. She's a bad ass like that.

  The guard thrusts his arm up and clenches my throat. I try to shake him off, try to pull away without losing my hold on him. He pushes into it, doesn't let up.

  My chest seizes until my vision darkens. I continue to jerk and pull. His hold slips. I stumble a few steps, then crash side first into the floor. My teeth jar together. A searing tear rips through my shoulder.

  I scramble to my feet, hunching over and choking on my burning throat. My eyes lock on the guard as he clamors upright. He swings wide. I put up my arm to block him and duck in the same motion.

  “I did it,” Silvia says from behind me. “Dimitri! I did it!”

  I shove the guard back as I turn, the bottom of my jacket thudding against my legs.

  Silvia is standing on the stage. She's gripping a knife, blade and fingers covered in red.

  Karl is slumped over in his seat, his lap filling with the blood running from his throat.

  The room is silent. My head more so.

  I stare at her. The kittens at the hotel had been preparation. She'd had it out for her father for years.

  “He was going to let you die,” she says. “I couldn't allow that. You are my inheritance. He had no right.”

  Even though the pain is subsiding from my mind and body, I don't know what to say. Part of me can't believe I'm out of the wish. The hum is gone. I don't have to kill Syd.

  Another part of me is terrified to see Silvia basking over her bloody hands.

  She smiles at me. Her smile has never been more unsettling.

  I glance at Syd. She's breathing hard, looking between me and Lizzie Borden over there.

  My throat burns from the lack of water. The choking session didn't help either. I swallow hard a few times, and it takes a minute for my throat to start working. I try that speaking thing again.

  My voice is raspy. “Good work, Silv.”

  I start inching for the side door. Now would be an excellent time for Syd to learn to read minds.

  Her eyes dart to me, then she shuffles a little.

  Silvia holds the blade up to the light as if scrying in the dripping blood. I have no idea what the guards are doing. I can't take my eyes of Silvia. It might break her spell, and then she'll give the commandments and start making wishes. If the guards have any intelligence, they're backing out the other way. She's almost as much of a threat to them as she is to me.

  Syd and I are shoulder-to-shoulder, nearly to the side exit. Another few inches, and we can bolt.

  The door swings open. Silvia looks up. Her knife clatters to the floor.

  I spin around.

  Eileena gazes over me to her spawn.

  “It's done,” Silvia says, with no less passion. “The master bond is mine.”

  Eileena pushes past me and Syd, heading into the chamber. She yanks down several of the sheer fabric curtains and toss them over Karl's body like she's hiding dirty furniture.

  She brushes her hands together. “Are you ready to give the commandments, Silvia?”

  Fuck.

  I would make a run for it, but I'm sure Silvia has seen Karl summon me enough times to know how to do it. I've spent the last twenty-three years pissing off my new master. I'm in enough trouble as it is.

  “Dimitri, come here, please.” Sylvia's tone is firm. Like
she's speaking to a child.

  This is going to get ugly. I already kind of miss Karl. At least his evil was predictable.

  I take a deep breath and trudge toward the stage. My head is down. I don't want to look at her. For our whole lives, we were on the same field. Now she owns everything. Including me.

  “Eyes one me, Dim.”

  I grimace, but I do what I'm told. How the hell did I think I had won? She's going to wish Syd dead and then I will be right back where I started. Or she will come up with something crazier, because she could make the Mad Hatter flee.

  The fact her hands are still bloody and her father's corpse is rotting behind her doesn't seem to bother her. She's all smiles.

  “Dimitri, you may never tell anyone who or what you are.” Her voice never waivers. She must have practiced the big moment every day for years. “This . . . I . . . wish.”

  The hum fades in then right back out. I know the drill. It will hang out, silent but waiting for me to screw up. This is how the commandments work.

  Silvia claps her hands. “Dimitri, you may never kill yourself. This . . . I . . . wish.”

  Another little jab from the hum. Letting me know it's got this one too.

  Syd rushes from the side, swooping to the floor. “Hands up. Now.”

  I turn as she points a gun at Silvia. My gun. Why is everyone taking my gun lately?

  Silvia looks at her. I know Silvia. She doesn't think Syd is serious. I also know Syd, and Silvia probably should tread carefully. She doesn't excel at that, though.

  Syd growls. “I told you to put them the fuck up!”

  If I wasn't in love before, game over.

  Silvia glances at her mother, who is standing just to the side of me. Then she rolls her eyes and raises her arms. I have never seen a lazier resignation.

  I steal a glance behind me. The guards are gone. Smart boys. Run fast.

  Syd creeps closer to Silvia. “You're going to let me and Dim walk out of here, got it?”

  I grimace. Doesn't Syd realize Silvia already has the master bond? She can summon me from anywhere in the world.

  I swallow hard.

  “Syd, that's not going to help much.” My voice is gravelly, not quite recovered.

  Syd scowls but doesn't look away from Silvia.