(Skeleton Key) Game Master

by Scarlett Dawn

  I glanced over at Lucifer.

  He checked me out like I was doing to him.

  We had been in too much of a hurry to notice what the other was wearing. He wore long baggy black military cargos with a silver chain as a belt and a tight black long-sleeved shirt, no over shirt for color. He wore his black army boots, and he even wore a wrist guard similar to mine.

  We looked very much like we’d planned this.

  I muttered, “We need to discuss the night before what we’re wearing the next day.”

  Lucifer shrugged. “I don’t decide until about five minutes before I put my clothes on.”

  My face fell.

  I did the same thing. We were doomed.

  General Finley shook his head. “You guys look fine. Come on.” He headed to a side door on the warehouse.

  I bounced after him, seriously looking like a bunny, trying to get the soreness out. Lucifer rolled his shoulders, mentally preparing for what we were going to go through inside. I tried to do the same, but my feet hurt.

  Yes, it was pathetic. But…d-a-m-n.

  I stared at the twenty or so men and women who surrounded us in a circle. The numbers didn’t bode well. Two against twenty. And all of them lethal and in their prime. They were fit like they worked out a couple of hours a day in the gym, and no one was as short or as tiny as me. There were even a few as big as the General in the group. And one of those said people was a female.

  They were all Guard.

  I muttered over my shoulder to Lucifer, who stood at my back, “I think General Finley wants to kill us.”

  Lucifer’s shoulders shook my head. He snorted before he tensed, and stated, “Shut up. I need to focus.” A pause. “You take the left side. I’ll take the right side.”

  I couldn’t help it. I folded over and hooted in laughter. The group that was advancing paused in their tracks. I saw the masses feet halt. Or the ground stopped shaking.

  Either way, I knew they stopped moving.

  Thank God.

  General Finley’s voice echoed through the cavernous room. “Is there a problem, Ms. Creed?”

  I peeked back at Lucifer, and muttered in a deep tone, “You take the left side. I’ll take the left side.” I threw my hands up in the air. “It’s a fucking circle, Lucifer! There is no left or right side.”

  His blue eyes, already crinkling at the corners, narrowed suspiciously, almost watering. He cleared his throat. “Well, fuck. It’s the first time a mob’s attacked me all at once.” He pointed at me, finally grinning, unable to contain it. “You didn’t come up with anything better.” His dimples showed.

  I might be staring.

  “Lucifer! Arizona!” General Finley shouted, echoing at least three times around us. Both Lucifer and I snapped our heads up to the rafters, where a makeshift area had been constructed above. So he could have a bird’s-eye view of the scene. There were a few higher-ups—no pun intended—standing next to him, watching the show.

  I squinted and studied their expressions.

  Then I mumbled under my breath. “His face looks kind of red, don’t you think?”

  Lucifer snickered and then coughed hard when General Finley crossed his arms, clearly irritated.

  General Finley barked, “Is there an issue?”

  I kept my mouth shut and let Lucifer answer that one.

  “No, sir,” Lucifer stated calmly. He sounded like he wanted to choke as the words came out of his mouth. “Sorry, sir.”

  With another wise crack on the tip of my tongue, I held it in. Just barely.

  General Finley asked, “And you, Arizona? Are you doing all right?”

  That was a loaded question.

  I just nodded.

  General Finley asked dryly, “Then how about we get back to it. Does that please the both of you?”

  Oh, yeah. He was pissed.

  “Or maybe we could bring out a pair of longheels for you to do this Game in, Ms. Creed. Would you like that?”

  My eyes narrowed. He was just being plain mean now. But I answered steadily, “I’m fine, sir.” I paused, and I know it sounded like gravel. “Sorry, sir. It won’t happen again.”

  He nodded and then held up a timer in his hand, stating, “Go,” for the second time.

  The group started advancing again.

  We had managed to stall long enough to give Lucifer time to formulate a plan. He stated calmly, “We stay together. Anyone my size or bigger, I’ll take. Anyone smaller, you take.”

  I gazed around. I was pretty sure I was getting the rotten end of the deal here, but I shrugged and muttered, “This is going to hurt.”

  Lucifer nodded. “Yes, it will.”

  We charged together as one.

  We ducked and twisted at the same time, pushing right past them so we were facing their backs. It surprised them enough that we both knocked out two people each before they even turned around. The circle altered course and we were immediately surrounded.

  And it was on.

  Lucifer and I stayed directly next to each other, stopping any blows aimed at us, but these people knew what they were doing. It wasn’t easy by any stretch of the imagination. All had been taught to fight. But the one thing they lacked was the most crucial.

  They hadn’t been trained to survive.

  Lucifer and I had.

  We were not clean and straightforward.

  We fought dirty and brutally.

  Stray punches and kicks did land on us, but soon, a pile of moaning bodies surrounded us on the ground. So much so, we had to move out of the litter of people to be able to fight properly because those on the ground were still kicking and punching at our ankles, like annoying miniature dogs.

  We moved.

  But they got lucky.

  A man bigger than the General grabbed onto my bicep. His hand was large enough to easily grip it all the way around, and one look at him told me he wasn’t quite like the rest of the group. Whatever he was going to do would fucking hurt.

  He literally lifted me up by my arm when Lucifer was fighting four other people, distracted. The giant man tossed me through the air like a ragdoll.

  I flew.

  Soared, really.

  In fact, I had the opportunity to see the mob go right on by a few feet below me.

  And, yeah. I screamed. Who wouldn’t?

  I saw it coming. My shoulder was already screwed up by the beast’s toss, but the window I was flying at was going to leave a mark. Everyone was screaming below me, and somewhere, in the midst of it, I heard Lucifer enraged shout above everyone else’s.

  Time kind of slowed. It crawled.

  I watched the window come closer, the dirt and carriages—beyond the window pane—clearly in view.

  Everything shimmered as adrenaline flooded my veins and managed to make everything look pretty. I had time to plan—my brain was functioning so quickly. Right before I hit the window, I tucked and turned in the air, protecting my head and neck, bringing my knees up to my chest.

  The glass made the most amazing tinkling sound as I slammed into it, the pane breaking immediately around me. Sunshine hit my face. Even though my eyes were closed, I could still feel its heat. I landed on top of a covered carriage. But it had a ‘sunroof’ in the middle made of glass.

  I smashed right through it into the heart of the carriage. My body hit the two seats on either side. I screamed, the impact jamming my shoulder back into place.

  I couldn’t catch my breath, and the destroyed carriage blurred in my vision. But it hadn’t been that bad. My left hip and shoulder hurt like hell, but my head, legs, and arms weren’t severely damaged.

  The horses up front were distressed, though.

  I opened the door and pulled myself out, ass-over- head. I landed in a heap on the dirt just as the horses had had enough. They broke free of their binds and galloped off, the carriage teetering dangerously behind them.

  And I could still hear people shouting inside.

  I shook my head hard and pushed air
into my lungs, just as I was lifted off the ground.

  Lucifer’s face stared down at me. He looked mighty worried and pissed off all at once. “Arizona, baby? Are you all right?”

  I sucked in air and scowled. “I just went through a window and landed on a carriage. And went through its sunroof.” I paused. “Of course, I’m all right.” I squirmed in his grip since he was holding me like a damn baby. “Come on. I want to go kick that beast’s ass.”

  Lucifer’s brows scrunched in irritation for a second, but he set me on my feet and started running his hands over me. I swatted them away and turned, and then started stomping back to the door. “I said I was all right.” I glanced over my shoulder, glass flying out of my hair with the motion. “You want in on it, or am I doing it all myself?”

  Lucifer blinked, and then grinned. “Fuck yes, I’m in.”

  When we came back inside, General Finley was yelling at someone to get them down from their perch—probably worried that I was dead.

  Lucifer and I took advantage of everyone’s shock at seeing me walking and alive. We strolled straight up to two ‘attackers’ and decked them in the face.

  Two down, eight more to go.

  The rest were still lying injured on the ground.

  During that round of our fighting. General Finley shouted for them to stop taking them down so he could watch. I almost laughed as I elbowed a man in the neck, barely watching as he flopped on the ground. I stepped on his back, using the extra height to help with the next person in line. Yeah, General Finley, it takes more than airtime to keep me from my goal.

  When there were only two remaining, a female and Beasty, I stopped Lucifer from going after him. I shook my head and muttered breathlessly, “He’s fucking mine.”

  Lucifer glanced at him, and then the broken window.

  He nodded silently. He wasn’t going to argue.

  Trust. He had it for me as I did for him.

  Lucifer took the woman down in seconds.

  It took me much longer with Beasty. I just had to make sure he didn’t get his paws on me again. He wasn’t as quick as I was, and I used that as my—only—advantage. When his beefy fists came at me, I had to move or be permanently out of commission. I made him come for me, taking him deeper into the mass of bodies littering the floor since he had problems moving, making it worse for him.

  I got in at least six blows to his none when he got pissed and charged me. I dove under him just as his arms came in to swipe me up. I landed hard on my back between his feet, kicking up as I hit the ground.

  I nailed him like a motherfucker with my boot.

  Right to his crotch.

  He stilled.

  It was like watching a huge tree totter back and forth.

  Timber!

  I quickly rolled back to get out of the way as he bellowed and toppled on his back, curling into the fetal position.

  I wanted to kick him while he was down, but Lucifer caught me around the waist when I had my foot mid-swing.

  Dammit.

  He protested, “That blow you gave him will set him back a few months. Leave him be.”

  I grumbled and crossed my arms, upset he wouldn’t let me have my fun. He carried me away, through the bodies, with one arm around my waist. I glared over my shoulder.

  He laughed, sputtering, “You’re like a furious pixie.” My eyes bulged at the put-down, and he immediately shook his head. “No. No. Don’t get mad at me. Pixie’s can be very hazardous to a person’s health.”

  My gaze clearly stated I thought he was full of shit.

  He responded simply, “No, really. They’re tiny and cute, so everyone thinks they’re harmless, right? They never see the devious and dangerous side of them until it’s too late.”

  I blinked. Well, that was all right.

  I sniffed and turned my head away, trying to be as dignified as I could be—even as he carried me.

  I ignored the way his shoulder shook, of course.

  General Finley and his entourage were down from their ‘safe zone’ and scrutinizing us with guarded eyes.

  Lucifer sat me on my feet in front of them and stood next to me.

  General Finley crossed his arms and glared down at me. “You manipulated us in the beginning.”

  Ah. He was just now figuring that out.

  Lucifer rocked back and forth on his heels and put his hands in his back pockets, trying to look innocent.

  I just stood there.

  I hurt too damn bad to pretend innocence right now.

  General Finley showed his teeth. “Code word?”

  I didn’t say anything.

  Lucifer stayed mute.

  We had barely had time to come up with anything as we had raced down the hallway this morning. The word ‘kill,’ for example, was the code word for ‘stall.’ ‘Pig’ was the code word for ‘flee.’ And ‘pants’ was the code word for ‘help.’ That was all we’d had time for. No originality, really, but it had worked.

  General Finley looked like he wanted to strangle us. “That test was supposed to have surprised you. To see what you would do on your feet against so many.”

  Yeah, I got that impression when everyone had stormed into the building once General Finley and his cohorts were safely above.

  Again, Lucifer and I stayed mute.

  General Finley actually growled.

  Until someone—a stern looking middle-aged woman—grabbed his arm and yanked him away as her face showed obvious shock at his behavior.

  We twiddled our thumbs.

  Two men in dark cloaks stayed.

  They watched us.

  They had been up top with General Finley. The two guys looked pretty uptight. Upper officials, all the way. They really didn’t like being stuck near us, but there was a special gleam in their eyes as they studied us. I felt like a lab rat.

  I didn’t like that.

  But I did eventually smirk.

  I waited for a full minute for the man on the right’s covert, forlorn gaze to come back to us and alter into studying us again. I murmured quietly, “Sorry about your carriage.”

  His eyes widened to saucers.

  I leaned against Lucifer and held his gaze.

  He sputtered for a few seconds. Then he stormed off to where General Finley and the woman were having a heated argument. Apparently, he had decided to join the fray.

  Lucifer wrapped his left arm around my shoulders, fingers spread wide in front of us.

  He cried out quietly in a girly voice, “I think I broke a nail! I’ll have to fix that right away.” He sighed and then gasped, bringing his hand closer to our faces. “Freddy will just cry when he sees this. It’s two nails, not one!”

  I bit the inside of my cheek hard.

  Lucifer had correctly guessed the older, butch man’s flaw. He stopped studying us and an expression of disgust crossed his features, taking Lucifer for a gay man. The last cloak-wearing fool turned and stormed off to argue with his cohorts.

  All around us was chaos. Chaos we had instigated.

  I wondered how long it would take General Finley to put it all together. I relaxed against Lucifer, more now that no one was watching us. The sound of groans was music to my ears as people started picking themselves up off the ground or waking from being knocked out. I watched them covertly making sure none came charging at us in post rage.

  They didn’t.

  Minutes passed.

  General Finley hollered for his group to shut up.

  He cast thoughtful eyes on us.

  The General was clearly in control of his temper now.

  Lucifer and I lifted a free hand each and wiggled our fingers. Harmless. That was us.

  General Finley took a slow perusal of his co-workers pissed off faces and then at the hurt people around us. He blinked. Slowly, like a steam engine train just starting up, he began to chuckle until it became a full grab-your-belly laugh, his tan face turning pink with his mirth. I observed silently until he shook his head at us and threw his arms wi
de, shouting, “You two are fucking geniuses!”

  We nodded.

  He finally got it.

  We controlled the chaos.

  We stopped it before it even began.

  We let it begin.

  We beat them down.

  When it stopped, we started it again.

  We egged him on to the point he lost control, just as each one of his experienced co-workers had.

  We held them all in our hands.

  We were the eye of the storm.

  And we didn’t like being an experiment.

  Experience, yes.

  Training, yes.

  But when they were lifted up above, to study us, we had bristled. Maybe General Finley and his colleagues would learn from this. Perhaps they wouldn’t.

  Teach us. Show us. Help us.

  But don’t experiment on us.

  Or do…

  And face our wrath.

  After General Finley had calmed everyone down and gotten medical help for those who needed it, he and his chums took us out to lunch. All of them watched us warily, except for General Finley, who couldn’t stop shaking his head and chuckling. I was sure he was embarrassed with himself.

  While we ate, they asked us normal questions about our home lives, normally get to know you stuff, but with my past—or no past in this realm—Lucifer talked nonstop to keep the focus off me. General Finley was quiet in his seat, becoming more and more amused as the time passed by. When we left, he took us back to the keep and walked us to our rooms.

  “I’m sorry about earlier.” The General stared off to the side. “I’ve learned a valuable lesson today.”

  He didn’t say what it was, but he had apologized.

  So, I forgave him.

  While watching him from the corner of my eye.

  Our two tests were done.

  Tomorrow we would know if we were part of the Guard.

  I walked into my room to Kingsley taking a bath in my cup of water I’d left out. My brows rose. “Seriously?”

  “One must bathe to look as good as I do,” he sang and dropped one of my mints into the water. His red head turned in my direction. “What do you call these wonderful bath salts? Their scent is minty fresh.”

  I blinked. “They're called a breath freshener.”