The Blood Gardener (The Dark River Book 2)

by Michael Richan

  Yup, Derick said. Probably scared the hell out of the stormwatchers in Corbin.

  Do it again! A replied.

  No, Derick answered. Too much unusual firestorm activity will just draw attention. You and I need to reach Jayce. Come on.

  A watched as much smaller firestorms kicked up again, sending some of the energy in the air back down to the ground.

  Come on! Derick repeated, and A pried himself away from the ledge.

  - - -

  After descending from the canyon, they reached Jayce, nestled in a small valley. More mountains rose behind it, and it was in those mountains that Derick had pegged their final destination, according to Monkey’s notes.

  We’re going to skirt the town, Derick said. We’ll try to stay quiet and not draw attention. No sense marching right through the middle of it.

  You should take a seed, A suggested.

  Right, Derick replied, grateful A had reminded him. He reached into his pocket and popped the bitter kernel into his mouth, crushing it between his teeth and swallowing it down.

  Jayce was not as big as Corbin, but it seemed more affluent; materials used to build homes looked more refined. He guessed the core of the town to be about ten blocks deep, and the illuminated sign for worm treatments was the brightest light source in the center of town — as it was in most settlements — raised up on top of the tallest structure.

  The rest of the town’s lighting carried a soft yellow glow that was easy on the eyes and gave the place a picturesque quality. They occasionally passed someone on the side street they were following, and were greeted with a hello, which they returned.

  Friendly people, Derick commented to A.

  Much nicer than Valkin, A replied.

  Glancing down the small roads they passed, Derick could tell there were many more people downtown, nearer the worm treatment sign, but the street he’d chosen to navigate through town was lightly used, and he was grateful.

  Soon they reached the other end of the settlement, and were forced back to the main path. It was smaller than the one they’d taken into town, and it meandered up into the mountains again. Derick led A as they climbed, occasionally passing someone. A warm hello was exchanged at each meeting, and it was beginning to make Derick nervous.

  Once the path stopped climbing and leveled off, more homes appeared. Most were on the left side, and it didn’t take long for Derick to figure out why; another overlook was just beyond. These homes had a view of the dancing firestorms below, a different angle than the one he and A had observed before reaching town.

  I wonder what they thought of my show, Derick thought to himself.

  He consulted Monkey’s directions one last time, deciding on a house near the end of the row. It was large and ornate, more decorated than most. Whoever lives inside is well off for the Dark River, Derick thought. They walked to the front door, Derick scanning for motion or activity. The houses on bordering sides were completely secluded by fences and foliage. Everything seemed quiet.

  Are we going to knock? A asked.

  In this case, no, Derick said. Stay close.

  Derick led A round the side of the house, looking for windows that might be open. When they reached the other side, he was stopped by the sheer drop off of the cliff; the house was perched with the ground floor right up against the edge, and a second-floor balcony jutted out and over the precipice. It was taller than Derick could reach.

  If I lift you up on my shoulders, do you think you could reach that pole? Derick asked A, pointing to a post that secured the guard around the edge of the balcony above them.

  I can try, A replied, jumping into Derick’s arms. Derick raised A to his shoulders, but the child’s hands were still feet away from the post.

  Here, Derick said. Stand on my shoulders. Be careful.

  He helped A position each foot on one of his shoulders, raising the kid another three feet, but he was still several inches from the target.

  I can’t quite get there, A said. I could jump?

  No, Derick said. That’d kill my shoulders if you came back down.

  A seemed steady above him, not swaying in the least. Do you feel balanced? Derick asked. Do you feel shaky at all?

  No, A replied. Not shaky.

  Derick raised his hand near his shoulder. I want you to try stepping onto my hands. Then I’m going to push you higher.

  Alright, A replied, and lifted his foot onto Derick’s hand, resting his weight on it.

  Derick felt his arm wobble a little, then he pushed up, moving his other hand into position so A could step on it. The kid was launched upward rapidly as Derick straightened out his arms.

  Got it! A replied, his hand wrapped around the post.

  OK if I let go? Derick asked, but A was already climbing over the edge of the guard and onto the balcony. I guess so.

  A’s head popped over the edge of the balcony, looking down at Derick. Now what? he asked.

  See if there’s a way into the house, Derick said.

  A’s head disappeared, and he was back within seconds.

  There’s a window cracked open near the floor, A said, trying to whisper.

  See if you can get inside, Derick replied. If you can, try to make your way to the front door and open it for me. Do it quietly and if there’s anyone inside, don’t let them see you.

  A’s head disappeared again, and Derick walked back around to the front of the house. He stood by the front door, waiting to see if A would succeed. After a few moments he heard the click of the lock, and the door swung open.

  I don’t think anyone’s here, A said.

  Let me check it out, Derick replied, his cop training kicking in as he began to search methodically through the rooms of the house, clearing each as he went.

  While he was focused on making sure no one else was in the house, the expensive nature of each room’s furnishings wasn’t lost upon him. This was not just a comfortable house, it was rich compared to any others he had seen in the Dark River. Most of the rooms on the ground floor were filled with art and objects. He made note of one room, an office, intending to give it more time once he completed clearing the rest of the house.

  Upstairs on the second story was a large living room that opened onto the balcony. The landscape below was stunning; firestorms far in the distance, looking like tiny glowing coils dancing in the black expanse of the valley. For the Dark River, it was an impressive view.

  Most of the upstairs rooms were bedrooms, including the master that had its own balcony with a similar view.

  He walked back into the living room, where A was looking out over the dark valley below. Impressive, isn’t it? he asked. A lot nicer than Monkey’s.

  I like Monkey’s place, A said.

  He heard a thump from downstairs, and raised his finger to his lips, signaling to A to remain still.

  “I know you’re here!” came a voice from the lower level of the house. It sounded to Derick as though it was on the move, searching for them.

  Hide, Derick said to A. Stay out of sight.

  A nodded. Derick ran to the stairwell in anticipation of whoever was looking for them. He hid around a corner, with a view of the top of the stairs, and waited.

  “I have nervespikes!” the voice called, and Derick heard the electrical crackle of the weapons. “They hurt, I assure you! Show yourself!”

  It sounded like a woman’s voice, but unusually deep and rough. As he saw her head crest the stairwell, he pulled back behind the corner.

  Do I confront her? he wondered. I need information. Searching the place is out of the question with her here; the nervespikes give her the upper hand.

  “Show yourself!” she yelled again. “If you make me hunt you down, I swear to god I’ll ram one of these nervespikes right up your ass!”

  Derick felt his butt muscles clench a little. He considered summoning a firestorm, but thought better of it. Burning up the place was a last-resort option.

  “Here,” he said, stepping out and seeing the w
oman for the first time. She had shoulder length red hair, and was wearing a suit that looked distinctly masculine in design. They were twenty feet apart.

  “You!” she exclaimed upon seeing him. “How dare you break into my house!”

  “Just looking for some information,” he replied, smiling.

  Suddenly she rushed at him, the nervespikes extended in each hand.

  Derick easily dodged the rush, and grabbed one of the nervespikes as she passed, using it to knock the other from her grasp. It fell to the floor and rolled. The woman went for it, and as she bent to retrieve it, Derick sunk the end of the one he was holding into her back. She screamed.

  She twisted around quickly, the action pulling the nervespike from Derick’s hands, and raised the one she’d picked up from the floor, sending it into Derick’s abdomen. He felt the tip of the weapon enter him and send an excruciating shock through his system. He leapt away from the weapon’s tip. Behind her, the nervespike he’d sunk into her back fell and hit the floor.

  “The man who controls firestorms!” she hissed at him. “Got you now!” She thrust the nervespike at him again, backing him into a corner. “You and I are going to take a little trip to Atina,” she leered at him, shoving the weapon, keeping him at length.

  “Who do you work for?” Derick asked.

  She thrust the stick at his head. He slammed back against the wall, feeling the prickle of the electricity in the tip of the spike, waiting to surge out into his skin if she made contact.

  “I think it would be better if you were knocked out for our journey!” she said, and shoved the weapon at him hard. The tip hit in his shoulder. Derick felt his legs giving out from under him as volts of electricity coursed through his muscles. The image of the panel of nervespikes that Yann had intended to use on him in Valkin appeared in his mind, and if one nervespike delivered as much agony as he felt surging through him now, he couldn’t imagine how horrible dozens would have felt if Yann had been able to lower his torture device onto his body.

  Suddenly the weapon fell from his shoulder and the pain stopped; a grid was forming over the woman, rapidly duplicating from her neck outward, covering first her head and then racing down her body. The nervespike fell from her hand and hit the floor as her body stiffened and began to fall backward.

  She hit the ground with a thud that Derick felt reverberate through the floor. Behind her stood A.

  The mesh? Derick asked him.

  Yes, A answered.

  So glad I showed you how to use that! Derick replied.

  A beamed at him.

  Derick approached the incapacitated woman. Her face showed through the mesh.

  “Who are you?” he asked.

  “Just working for a paycheck,” she replied with a grunt, the mesh making it hard to pull air into her lungs.

  Derick walked to the corner where the fallen nervespike was still on the floor. He picked it up and brought it back, aiming it at the woman’s face.

  “Any idea what a nervespike feels like in a neural mesh?” he asked her. “Want to find out?”

  She pressed her lips together defiantly.

  “Who are you?” he asked again. “You can tell me, or we can turn your place upside down before we leave. I’ll find out either way.”

  “No, don’t do that,” she said. “Leave my house alone!”

  “Start talking!”

  She doesn’t want us to find something, A said. I’m going exploring.

  Be careful, Derick replied, then turned back to the woman.

  “You commissioned a creature from The Blood Gardener.”

  “Yes,” she replied.

  “Why? You said there was a paycheck.”

  “There’s a paycheck, yes, but it’s not like I had a choice in the matter.”

  He brought the nervespike close to her face, and lowered his own until he could feel the prickle of electricity from the weapon. “I feel like burning things,” he said. “If you don’t start talking, I’ll start with your face and this nervespike. Then I’ll torch your house on my way out. You know I can do it.”

  Even thinking the thought made the markings in his hand heat up. He saw fear enter her eyes.

  He concentrated, and saw the room illuminate as behind him, just past the balcony and the steep drop off, a firespout descended, twisting and spinning. Heat from the storm blasted into the room. From her position on the floor, he knew she could see out the balcony window behind him, and her face turned orange, reflecting the color of the tempest outside. Her eyes went wide.

  “No!” she cried. “Not my home! I’ll talk! I’ll tell you anything, just leave my house alone!”

  Derick relaxed his thoughts, and the heat rapidly dissipated as the funnel cloud retracted back into the sky, returning the lighting in the room to its former levels.

  “Who are you?”

  “Osanna.”

  “You commissioned the creature from Mazlo?”

  “Not exactly,” she replied. “I’m a broker. I placed an order for my client. I didn’t request a creature exactly; that was Mazlo’s choice.”

  “What did you order, then?”

  “The spiders,” she replied. “The flesh collector was Mazlo’s choice of a way to deliver them. Allowed him to gather up body parts in the process. It reduced the price.”

  “To frame me?”

  “Yes. After the spiders incubate, they hatch when you’re in proximity.”

  Derick was suddenly glad he hadn’t gone back to visit Hauer.

  “Who planted the bloody snips in my house?” he asked her.

  “It was just some guy I paid. Random criminal.”

  “Was anyone from the police force involved?”

  “I don’t know. It was up to the guy to make sure you were involved and set up. I don’t know who he might have contacted.”

  “Who do you work for?”

  “A man named Gideon,” she replied. “He hired me to design and execute the frame job. Although I’m being generous when I say ‘hired’.”

  “So the decision to use The Blood Gardener was yours?”

  “I thought using something foolproof would be best. His stuff is very high quality.”

  “What else? Other plans? What else are they trying to do to me?”

  “That’s the only contract I’m involved with,” she replied. “He could have dozens more underway with other brokers, I wouldn’t know. Probably does.”

  Derick pulled the nervespike back from her face and sat down on the ground, letting the information sink in. Dozens more? he wondered, feeling overwhelmed.

  I need to show you something, A said behind him, and he turned. A was standing in the middle of the room. I’ve found something you should see.

  “Don’t go anywhere,” he said to Osanna, and she wiggled within the mesh in response, trying to break free.

  He followed A, who led him to the office downstairs he’d noted earlier. A panel that looked like others lining the walls had been slid open, revealing a staircase leading down.

  It was open when I found it, A said. She might have come into the house this way.

  Derick looked down the staircase. It descended past his light.

  It’s a good bet, Derick said, taking the first step. Let’s see where this goes.

  A followed Derick as they progressed down the stairs. There was no built-in lighting like the house upstairs, so they were relying on their glasslights. At the bottom the passage turned left and ran another fifty feet. The walls were bare, constructed of the same materials as the house above, but there was no paint or decorations on the walls, and no doors. Soon they saw a dead end approaching.

  What’s the point of this? Derick asked, stopping before they reached the end. It goes nowhere.

  A took a few more steps forward. There’s something there, he said.

  Derick followed A, and as their glasslights came closer to the wall that formed the end of the passage, he saw it too: a thin black line, running vertical, almost like a perfectly st
raight piece of dark string, suspended in the air, looking vaguely familiar.

  What is it? A asked.

  I’ve seen this before, Derick answered, trying to remember where.

  I can feel it, A replied. Do you feel it?

  Feel it? Derick asked. How?

  It’s pulling me. Tugging me toward it.

  Derick examined it closely, observing the way the light from his glasslight bounced off its rounded surface. Then it hit him.

  It’s a fold!

  Chapter Eleven

  His only experience with folds had been in the wilds with Anna, when Maddie Lancaster had used her fold to save them both from Eaters. Somehow he suspected that this one would not lead to Maddie’s black-walled world. After explaining what a fold was to A, he stepped through, carrying the kid. He found himself at another dead-end passageway.

  Did it work? A asked.

  This isn’t the same place we were in before, Derick replied. Look, the walls are different.

  They walked down the new hallway, finding a staircase that led up, and slowly proceeded up the stairs.

  Stay close, Derick warned A behind him. We don’t know what could be up here.

  The door at the top of the stairs opened without resistance, and they stepped into another study, similar in contents to the one they’d just left, but arranged differently. The furniture was of another style; the desk was sitting near the corner instead of in the middle of the room.

  Derick walked to the desk. It was littered with papers, including a small ID badge that bore the LeFever logo. There was a picture of a man on the badge. Derick showed it to A.

  Look familiar to you? Derick asked.

  A studied the ID. His name is Fulton. Osanna’s brother?

  Maybe, Derick replied, taking the badge back. He read through some of the other papers. Project plans, he said to A. My address in the real world. Instructions to the contact there.

  Is it all consistent with what she told you? A asked.

  So far, Derick answered, shuffling through more. Wait, he stopped, reading through another document carefully. Oh…here we go.

  What? A asked.