Fort Morgan

by Christian, Claudia Hall

  Jill had not felt so alone since meeting Jacob. He spent most of his free time by her side. If he wasn’t with her, he texted or called her every couple of hours to check in. His presence was everywhere in her life. He built this home for them. He fathered her children. He took care of her in every moment of every day.

  Now, he was gone.

  She’d listened to that fog-serpent with true horror. Her Jacob was stuck in that stuff, and there was nothing she could do about it. Her children didn’t have their father. Lipson Construction didn’t have their leader. And Jill was terribly, horribly alone.

  She worried that she wasn’t making the right decisions. Should the boys be eating more solid food? Was it better for them to be at the Marlowe School or with Edie? Was there anything she could do to help Katy with her horse issues? If Jacob were here, they would talk through all of the options and make a decision together. Katy would have accomplished her horse certification and be able to spend the weekends riding with Paddie. As it was, both children were miserable. Jacob would know what to do.

  And what should she do about the fog-serpent? According to Jeraine, Tanesha had gone off with Abi. Of course, she had asked him if he’d actually buried Tanesha in the yard so that he could go back to being a drugged-out whore, which only made him angry. Not that she blamed him.

  Jill felt like every little thing was her fault. She was the reason Jacob hadn’t come home. She was the reason Katy couldn’t pass her horse-riding test. She was failing at raising the boys.

  None of this should affect her. If she was a good person, she should be able to it all together for at least a little bit! But as it was, she was stumbling along, making one decision after the next with no real plan. Muddling through, that’s what her mother called it.

  Jill didn’t like muddling. She especially didn’t like muddling through things where her children were concerned.

  And now that Fin hadn’t appeared before them!

  Jill flopped over onto her back and pulled the covers over her head. No one would say it, but even her dearest friends thought maybe Jill had gotten it wrong.

  Or maybe they didn’t.

  Certainly Jill wondered if she’d gotten it wrong. Did Jacob just get sick of her and their life? Did he just leave? She’d asked Sam this very question tonight. Sam had just hugged her. He told her that Jacob would come home, not to worry. But Jill did worry.

  What if he never came home?

  She rolled onto her side to try to push the thought away, but her mind continued down the path. Jill would have to leave the loft. They were broke, so she would probably not even have enough money to raise the kids. She’d have to go back to waitressing because her contacts with the lucrative remodel jobs were all through Jacob.

  The boys would starve.

  Katy would have to give up her horse.

  Jill started to cry. She couldn’t hold it all together if he wasn’t here. She’d built this enormous life with him. He was an integral part of everything. Without him, everything would eventually fall apart.

  Without him, she was sure to fall apart.

  “Where are you, Jake?” Jill whispered.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Tuesday night — 9:58 p.m.

  Phoenix, Arizona

  Tanesha flew close enough to the bodyguard to make sure it was who she thought it was. She saw the distinctive burnt-orange Vivaldi “F” armband tattoo peeking out from under his sleeve. That guy belonged to Alex Hargreaves. So how did he get here? She flew too close and caught his eye.

  “What is it?” the guy with Dionne asked.

  “A bee, I think,” the bodyguard said.

  “Bee?”

  “Damned bees,” the bodyguard said. “They love me.”

  Tanesha sped across the room and landed on her mother’s shoulder. She saw the sparkling lights of the fairy corps twinkling around the room. Abi waved her wand and Tanesha heard her say, “Go ahead.”

  “Mom,” Tanesha said. “I’m here.”

  Yvonne looked up. She glanced at the bodyguard and then at Dionne. She gave a slight nod.

  “Mom,” Tanesha started.

  Without warning, Yvonne slammed the back of her right fist into Jeff-the-alpha-banker’s nose. It made a satisfying pop.

  “You stupid whore!” Jeff said.

  He raised his hand to slap Yvonne, but Tanesha flew to his hand. When she did, the five fairies protecting here flew at her side. Tanesha bit down on his thumb and the other fairies followed suit. Jeff screamed.

  “Hey!” Gino jumped to his feet.

  Yvonne turned in an arc around the man with the white hair. Tanesha flew in front of her. Tanesha came face to face with the man. He reeked of wealth and privilege bought out of the suffering of countless children including Sandy, Tink, and Ivy. Her very being pulsed with rage. This man would never see justice.

  Tanesha wished the man’s head would explode. Instead, his eyes began to bleed. Yvonne pushed his shoulders. He hit the back of the small love seat and flipped head first onto the floor.

  “How dare you!” Jeff said as he jumped to his feet.

  Gino tried to grab Yvonne, but the fairy corps intervened. He gave a yelp as if he’d been shocked and jumped back.

  “Are you going to do something?” Gino asked the bodyguard.

  “Sure,” the bodyguard said. He pulled a Homeland Security badge out of his pocket. “You’re under arrest.”

  The bodyguard looked like he was going to arrest Gino, but went to where Jeff was lying on the ground.

  “Kill him, Tannie,” Yvonne said in a low voice. “He’s already talking about starting the whole thing over again.”

  Tanesha flew forward but was knocked out of the way by the bodyguard. She spun end over end until her flock of fairies caught her. The bodyguard was pointing to the ceiling.

  “What?” Yvonne asked.

  “That’s a camera!” Dionne said.

  “We’ve got all of this covered, Mrs. Smith,” he said. He nodded to Dionne. “Gino, can you escort these women out?”

  “Of course,” Gino said.

  Dionne was so surprised that she gawked at Gino. He grinned.

  “Mrs. Smith?” Gino asked. “We picked up your clothing from the hotel. If you want to shower and change, you’re welcome to. The national news media is out there.”

  “I just want to go home,” Yvonne said.

  “Yes,” Gino said. “Unfortunately, we need to keep you here for a bit.”

  “We’re prisoners?” Dionne asked. “Is that what this is about?”

  “No, ma’am,” Gino said.

  Gino gestured to the door. Yvonne walked out of the room. Dionne watched her back for a moment before following her out. They were in the hallway when four policemen ran toward the room they’d been in. They kept going until they reached the conference room they’d started in.

  “I thought you might want to get your purses first,” Gino said.

  “Thank you,” Yvonne said.

  Yvonne went to where they had set their purses. Dionne knelt down to where the dead secretary had lain.

  “What?” Gino asked.

  “You shot and killed that girl,” Dionne said. “Right here and . . .”

  “So?” Gino asked.

  “Where’s the blood?” Dionne asked.

  “What blood?” Gino asked.

  “You shot and killed that girl,” Dionne said.

  “You sure?” Gino asked.

  Yvonne knelt down to pick up their purses.

  “Tannie?” Yvonne whispered.

  Tanesha flew in front of her face.

  “There you are!” Yvonne said. “Is Abi . . .?”

  Abi flew next to Tanesha. Yvonne smiled.

  “I knew you’d come!” Yvonne said. “Will you kill that Jeff creature?”

  “No need,” Abi said. “It’s all worked out.”

  Yvonne smiled. She got up with the purses in hand.

  “Yvonne’s in real danger now,” Abi whispered.

&
nbsp; Tanesha nodded.

  “Fairy corps!” Abi yelled. “Circle the wagons!”

  The fairy corps surrounded Gino, Dionne, and Yvonne as they moved out into the hallway.

  Chapter Three Hundred and Thirty-three

  Amber of Despair

  Rodney felt something — a nudge or some kind of pressure. It was the kind of dream feeling that, when awake, he couldn’t remember exactly what it was. He only knew that he felt something. More than twenty years in prison had taught him that anything that wakes you could easily be a threat. He never opened his eyes until he knew exactly what had awakened him.

  He tried to listen to the environment around him, but heard very little. In fact, his ears felt almost waterlogged. Any sound that came to him seemed like it was traveling through water. He was pretty sure that he was not in prison. He waited another minute or so before opening his eyes.

  He saw only a goldish-orange hue. He was in the Sea of Amber. For a moment, he cursed himself for being so trusting.

  Throughout his life, Ne Ne had been an antidote to his difficulties. She’d come to visit him while he was in solitary confinement and protected him when he was not. He’d assumed that she’d come again because Yvonne was in trouble.

  But this woman, this Ne Ne, had betrayed Tanesha and sent him here.

  Where was here?

  He closed his eyes for a moment and listened again. There were vague sounds, as if someone or something was moving through water. He opened his eyes again.

  This was the Sea of Amber.

  He remembered seeing it on Tanesha’s laptop before it caught fire. He looked around him. There were objects near him, but far enough away that he couldn’t make them out.

  And that sound.

  What was it? He listened intently. Oars hitting the water — that’s what he heard. Someone was rowing a boat on the Sea of Amber somewhere above him.

  Yvonne was in danger. He knew that Tanesha must be trying to save her. And once again he was stuck, unable to help them.

  A wave of despair came over him. The feeling was so intense that he slumped forward with the weight of it.

  Then Rodney laughed. Despair didn’t get him when he was in prison and it wasn’t going to get him tonight. Someone thought he should be stuck out of the way. They also got rid of Delphie, Jacob, and that little kid Keenan.

  Rodney smiled to himself. Whoever was pretending to be Ne Ne had made a big mistake by sending him here. He might not be able to save Yvonne. He couldn’t help Tanesha. But he sure as hell could find Jacob, Delphie, and Keenan. He could save them.

  Humming “Hello Brother” by Louis Armstrong, Rodney set off into the Sea of Amber to find the others.

  ~~~~~~~~

  In her tiny fairy corps form, Tanesha flew just next to her mother’s ear. She found flying to be exhilarating and exhausting at the same time. Her mother was walking fast. The creature Dionne had called “Gino” walked ahead of them as if he were leading the way.

  “You okay?” Dionne asked.

  “Okay?” Yvonne asked.

  “You know, with that guy and all,” Dionne said.

  “Oh.” Yvonne fell silent for a moment. “No, no, I’m not really okay.”

  Yvonne nodded to Dionne.

  “In fact, I feel very. . . “ Yvonne nodded to herself, “. . . violated.”

  “I bet,” Dionne said.

  “What’s Rodney going to say?” Yvonne asked.

  “Did you make it out alive?” Dionne asked.

  “You don’t think he’ll be mad at me?” Yvonne asked.

  “Not at you,” Dionne said. “No, I don’t.”

  “What would Bumpy say, you know, if it was you?” Yvonne asked.

  “He’d be mad, sure,” Dionne said. “But not at me. He’d figure a way to get his revenge on the guy who hurt me, violated me.”

  “Oh,” Yvonne said. “I guess that makes sense.”

  “Rodney is your husband, not your owner,” Dionne said.

  “Why, that’s right!” Yvonne said with a smile. “We should call him.”

  “No phone calls,” Gino said. “Not until we’re out of the building. Sorry.”

  “Why?” Dionne asked.

  “There’s just some stuff going on,” Gino said. “Some fed thing. They’re going to try to get Jeff to show them where all of his assets are hidden. If they can get him to reveal everything, he’ll get a better deal. My bets on them not bein’ able to do it.”

  “You know Jeff well?” Yvonne asked. Her voice was mild but Tanesha could tell she was angry with this Gino.

  “Yes,” Gino said. “We went to high school together. He wanted to be made when we were growing up, but my dad didn’t trust him. When he was in college he realized he could get everything he wanted bankrolling this filth.”

  Gino gestured to his right and turned down the hallway. Alex Hargreaves and the accountant-looking guy from her team stood in the middle of the hallway. They were deep in conversation. Alex’s brow was furrowed. Tanesha thought she looked worried.

  “Look,” Yvonne said with a bright smile. “It’s Alex and Matthew.”

  Yvonne waved and Matthew smiled. Alex gave a slight shake of her head toward the empty space next to her. Tanesha gasped. There was the ghost of a military soldier floating next to Alex. Tanesha was so stunned that she stopped flying. That’s a ghost. A real live ghost. Matthew glanced at the spirit before starting toward them. Alex scowled at something down the hallway behind them. She shook her head.

  “No!” Alex said. “Not this way. You need to go the other way.”

  Yvonne turned to look so quickly that Tanesha ran right into her mother’s head. Yvonne flicked her hand at the pain, and Tanesha tumbled end over end until she landed in Alex Hargreaves’s spiked up hair. The ghost seemed to laugh. He said something to Alex. Her hand was moving toward her head. Tanesha tried desperately to get out of the hair before Alex’s hand hit her. Her movements caused her to get stuck in Alex’s stiff hair gel. Her fairy protectors tried to pull Tanesha out but she was really stuck. The ghost moved in what looked like a belly laugh.

  Tanesha was about to say something sassy to the ghost when the ghost became very still. Alex’s attention turned to something down the hallway.

  “Serpents!” Abi yelled. “Fairy corps!”

  Alex Hargreaves gave a low whistle and, as if by magic, ten men appeared in the hallway. Alex’s eyes were locked on something at the end of the hallway.

  “Gino,” Alex said.

  “Sir?”

  “Drop,” Alex said.

  Gino threw himself at Yvonne and Dionne. They tumbled to the ground.

  “Fairy corps!” Abi yelled.

  Alex started pointing and moving.

  “Sir,” a young man said. “I don’t see it.”

  Alex pointed to her nose. He took an exaggerated sniff and nodded. Tanesha suddenly remembered that Alex and her team had been there right after they’d killed the serpent. She wondered if the serpents planned to take them to the Sea of Amber as well.

  “Fairy corps!” Abi yelled.

  “Hang on, Tanesha,” Alex said under her breath. “It’s going to get interesting.”

  Alex pulled a handgun from a holster near her belt, and started running down the hallway. Tanesha grabbed a tuft of hair and held on for dear life.

  “Ow,” Alex said under her breath. “Maybe not that tight.”

  Alex had just passed the hallway they’d come down when Tanesha saw it. It was a serpent in the shape of a man. Without hesitation, Alex raised her handgun and shot him in the forehead.

  “You need fire,” Tanesha yelled. “That’s the only thing that kills them.”

  Alex clapped her hands and two men appeared with actual flame throwers. The serpent-man was on fire when Jeff entered the hallway.

  “You’re next,” the undercover bodyguard said to Jeff, who started screeching with fear.

  “He’s still going to blow!” Tanesha yelled loud enough for Alex to hear.
r />   “He’s going to blow!” Alex repeated.

  She turned in place and started running down the hallway. Her team helped pick up Yvonne, Dionne, and Gino. They’d just made it to the doorway when the man started to swell.

  “Fairy corps!” Abi yelled. “You know what to do!”

  The fairies circled the man with their wands out. They created a clear barrier made of energy around the man. The man exploded in a massive fireball held in place by the fairy-made container. Tanesha watched in fascination as the man exploded in yellow fire and burned with dark smoke, all held inside the fairy magic. When the man was gone, the remaining immature serpents burned in yellow and orange flames. The fairy energy barrier held in all of the fire and smoke.

  When all that was left was smoke, Abi flew in front of Alex’s face.

  “Anything else, sir?” Abi asked.

  “Thank you for your help,” Alex said.

  “Any time,” Abi said. “We’ll keep an eye out in case they sent someone else.”

  Alex gave her a curt nod to dismiss her.

  “Yvonne?” Alex led Yvonne and Dionne away from Gino. “Sorry about all the drama.”

  “What was that?” Yvonne asked.

  “Nothing now,” Alex said. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

  “What about. . .” Yvonne pointed to where Jeff was sitting. “He said he was already starting another site.”

  “Wasn’t that nice of him?” Alex asked.

  “Nice?” Dionne asked.

  “If he hadn’t, we wouldn’t have been able to track down every single person he works with.”

  “And all his money?” Yvonne asked.

  “And all of his money,” Alex said with a nod. “There’s an interagency argument about who gets him first. Of course, we transferred every penny out of his accounts about an hour ago. I’d be surprised if he survives the day. Of course, we’ll do our best.”

  With a smile, Alex took Dionne and Yvonne by the arms and led them away from the people and the mess. Just as they were turning, Tanesha saw another serpent coming out of the ether to attack them. The fairy corps and Alex’s team responded. Alex watched for a moment before leading the women out of the hallway.