Judging from the surprise on Quan’s face, hugs were not a usual thing. She was probably more a ‘punch to your throat’ kind of woman.
“You’re welcome,” Quan answered, awkwardly returning the hug. “You did help, you know. Without the three woods, it would have been for nothing.”
Roxanne stepped close to Monty and gently touched his face. “It’s good to have you back,” she whispered. “Try to stay in one piece, yes?”
He put his hand on hers and nodded as she headed off downstairs to sub-level four.
“Suave, Monty,” I said with a grin. “You should write a self-help book on relationships. Call it ‘The Eloquence of Silence’ or something like that.”
He gave me the one-finger-salute as he followed Lydia and Quan to the elevators. I was about to join them, when my phone went off again. Monty looked at me sharply. It was the one ringtone I dreaded hearing—the “Imperial March” and only the Hack used it. I didn’t even set it up for him. He just managed to have it play that way every time he called. I waved Monty and Quan ahead and connected the call.
“Hack, this is a bad time.” I put it on speakerphone and braced for the convoluted response I called Hackspeak. “What’s up?”
“Completely bad, Simon!” he yelled. “Completely!”
“Hack, take a breath and pretend I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said slowly. “What is going on?”
“I was recalibrating my runic filter and there’s a spike...a spike! I have ghost particles dancing with Majorana. My runic filter detects spikes in magic-use and there’s…there’s a tear!” he said all in one breath. “In the middle of the city! This is bad…oh, this is bad.”
“Hack, I don’t know who the Major is or what ghosts in the machine you’re referring to. Can you start over again, in English this time?”
“Middle of the city. Tear in space-time. Tiny now, but it’s starting to grow. Think of a magical black hole, only on steroids. Will swallow everything. Maybe it’s a door?”
“How long, Hack? How long before it starts to grow?” I knew what he was talking about and it chilled my blood. The words ‘magical black hole’ reminded me of how Monty dealt with Slif.
“Maybe a few days, maybe a year. I don’t know! Leave now while you can. Hack out!” He hung up.
Cassandra stood a few feet away and gave me an icy stare. “What was that? What tear and where is this tear?” she demanded, looking around as if the floor was about to open up into a chasm beneath us.
“How’s George doing?” I asked, deflecting her question and putting my phone away. “Is he still with the NYTF?”
“How did you—how did you know who I was talking to?” she said with a puzzled look. “He’s retired now That sounded bad. Do you know what he meant?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” I replied as I looked up and saw Monty and Quan running our way. Behind them, my eyes saw the image, but my brain refused to process what my eyes saw and declared it a hallucination. A pack of angry Werewolves was chasing Monty.
THIRTY-FOUR
PEACHES GROWLED NEXT to me and squared off in attack mode as Monty and Quan approached. I grabbed Cassandra by the arm and made for the entrance to the building.
“What are you doing?” Cassandra tried to shrug off my hand. “Let go of me! What the hell?”
“Stay close, boy,” I said under my breath. “Those are extremely bad dogs.”
The howls behind me indicated the entrance was blocked. Monty and Quan caught up. The Werewolves at the entrance remained outside—trapping us inside.
“Good news,” Monty said as he caught his breath. “We won’t have to find Davros.”
“And the bad news?” I asked, taking a quick count of the Werewolves around us and losing track after twenty. “That is a buttload of Werewolves.”
“You do realize that a ‘buttload’ is a unit designed to measure liquid?” Monty said and pushed some hair from his face.
“Thank you, WikiMonty.” I drew Grim Whisper and held out my hand. Monty passed me the last two magazines of entropy rounds. “The bad news?”
“We won’t have to find Davros, because he found us,” he said as the Werewolves parted.
“What do you mean he found us?” I said, looking at the parting pack of Werewolves. A figure stepped through the gap. “That’s one hell of an entrance.”
“He always was a bit full of himself,” Monty said under his breath. “Remember he’s not too stable.”
Davros was an imposing presence. Standing almost as tall as Monty, he wore a dark suit with an off-white shirt that would have made Piero proud. His dirty blond hair was cut short on the sides and long on top. His eyes were the bluest I had ever seen.
When I looked into them, I realized two things: One—he was about as stable as a two-legged stool on thin ice. Two—we were fucked. I pushed open my coat and made sure I had access to the bullets and blade. Somehow, I knew they weren’t going to be enough. The wind started to pick up around us, which felt odd since we were inside the lobby of the building.
“I’m not sensing the Phoenix Tail,” Quan whispered. “He doesn’t have it with him. This isn’t good.”
“Monty,” I said under my breath as Davros approached, “he’s gone way past unstable into batshit-crazy territory. We need to get some fighting room before he unleashes this pack on us.”
“I’m working on it. Just try to stay indoors,” Monty whispered back and adjusted his staff in his hands. He focused on Davros, who stood about twenty feet away. “How did you find us?”
“Find you?” Davros said with a crooked smile. “Are you joking, Tristan? No, you never did have a sense of humor. You opened a void vortex in the middle of Manhattan. We can find you anywhere you go after that. You've marked yourself and probably destroyed the city.”
Monty shifted his staff around on the floor. “Who’s we?” he asked matter-of-factly.
“Yeah, about that,” I whispered as I turned and unholstered Grim Whisper. “Hack said there’s a tear in space-time and it’s growing.”
“That would be bad,” Monty answered, still moving his staff on the floor. “Catastrophic.”
“Worse than getting shredded by these Werewolves?”
Monty gave me a short nod. “Infinitely worse. We have to go close it, before Slif returns.”
“Okay, just wanted to know the priority here,” I said and looked at him. “This isn’t looking too good, Monty.”
“We’ve seen worse, haven’t we?” he said, his voice grim, and I nodded.
“Do you know what precious metal most hospitals have an abundance of?” Davros asked, spreading his arms wide. “It’s quite amazing, really, how much I found just lying about.”
“Oh, shit,” I said when I realized what he meant. Davros laughed. It was actually closer to a cackle and it set my teeth on edge. “He’s controlling those Werewolves pretty well, isn’t he?”
Monty grimaced. “Seems he found platinum.” He ran his hand through his hair and squinted at Davros. “The Permutation is almost complete.”
“Can you take him?” I asked, as I made sure I had easy access to Ebonsoul.
“We’ll find out, won’t we?” Monty raised his staff.
“Confidence—that’s what I’m talking about, Monty,” I said as I turned and fired.
THIRTY-FIVE
DAVROS LAUGHED AND slammed his hands together. The entropy rounds dispersed. They flew in every direction except the one I wanted—toward Davros. I felt the shockwave before I saw it. The air grew thin and I felt the whump in my stomach. I pressed the main bead on the mala as Monty slid his staff across the floor, trailing runes in its wake.
Quan grabbed Cassandra and jumped behind me as the wave of energy crashed into us and ejected us through the window and into the street. We stood up, unharmed, but the lobby was obliterated. Several Werewolves lay dead around us. The rest started closing in on where we stood.
Lightning hi
t a car next to us and punched a hole through the engine and into the ground, crushing it. The wind howled, whipping the rain as it began to cascade around us.
“I thought you said he was erased?” I winced at another lightning strike that hit twenty feet away. I was acutely aware that the mala shield had dropped. “This doesn’t look erased. This looks like he has full command of his abilities.”
“Drake’s blood,” Monty said. “It can awaken dormant powers. Rumors say it can undo an erasure.” Monty raised his staff. A bolt of lightning hit it and he redirected the energy into the ground. Davros walked outside, trailed by the pack of Werewolves. “I’m inclined to believe the rumors at this point.”
“You left me, Tristan. Abandoned me,” Davros said and formed an angry orb of electricity in his hand. “You let them erase me—strip me of my power, and throw me in a box. You left me there to die.”
“You needed to be stopped,” Monty whispered, looking around as his jaw clenched. “You were out of control. You killed—you killed so many senselessly. We—I—had to stop you.” He flexed his hand. “Look around you. How many more have to die?”
“What I needed was my sect brother to stand by my side!” Davros screamed, pointing at Monty. “I needed you to understand. These Werewolves are like the others—aberrations that need to be purged. They aren’t pure—they’re wrong—mistakes that need to be corrected. Magic belongs to us, not to these—these things.”
I stepped back from Davros, who reminded me of a human Tesla coil at this point. “Monty, I think the train has left the station but the conductor is nowhere to be found. That orb looks nasty.”
“You think I’m crazy?” Davros said, looking at me, his eyes wild. “I’m not crazy. A crazy person knows when they’re crazy, right?”
“No you’re not crazy,” I said calmly with one hand up. I unsheathed Ebonsoul with the other, since bullets weren’t going to help here. “Maybe we can help you.”
“I’m the only one who sees everything clearly. If we don’t get rid of them—they took everything from me,” Davros said, rushing the words. “Don’t you understand? I have to do this—I have to. It’s the only way. The only way!”
I glanced at Monty and nodded. “Wait, maybe there’s another way. We can sit down and figure this out. Right, Monty?”
Monty nodded back, his lips tight. “Davros, you need help. Let us help you. We can get through this.”
“Help me? Help me. Help me!” Davros said gasping between each plea. He began crying and then was, quite suddenly, laughing hysterically. “Where were you when I needed help? No, no, you won’t help.”
“I want to help you, Davros. Let me help you.” Monty took a step forward. “We can end this.”
“You don’t want to help me—you want to erase—erase me again. The dragons. The dragons helped me, gave me power. Power you took away,” Davros said, and then he did something that scared me more than any of his words. He grew quiet and stared at us. “No more help—time for you to die.” Glancing at the werewolves, he gestured towards us. “Kill them!”
The Werewolves howled as one and lunged at us.
“There’s no reasoning with him,” Monty said as the Werewolves closed on us. “I’m going to have to subdue him.”
“What gave it away? The rant of madness, or that he just sicced a pack of mindless, homicidal Werewolves on us?”
“How droll,” Monty said as he flexed his hand. “Dispatch them as quickly as possible. The Permutation isn’t complete, but he may have many more under his control.”
“Fine, how do you want to do this?” Quan said and undid the sash around her waist with a metallic ring. She shook it out and the sections fell into place, forming a flexible sword.
“You and Simon take the Werewolves. I’ll deal with Davros. I suggest the lieutenant take up the rear guard.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Cassandra backed up and drew her weapon. It was a Taurus Tracker Model 627 in .357 Magnum. It made Grim Whisper look like a Grim Whimper.
“You plan on going bear-hunting after this?” I said, shocked at the size of her hand-cannon. “That’s not NYTF standard issue.”
“No. Today I’m hunting wolves,” she said with a grin. “My dad gave this to me the day I joined the NYTF. Said I might need it.”
“Can you fire that thing without breaking your wrist?”
“Distinguished Marksman, Pistol, and Inter-Division Pistol,” she said with a nod. “Been firing weapons almost before I could walk. Where do you want me?”
“Back there with Peaches,” I said quickly. “Any of them get past or around us, you put them down. Whatever you do—don’t get scratched or bitten. Understand?”
She nodded. “The Beast and I are clean-up. Don’t get clawed or chewed on, roger that.”
“Peaches, keep her safe. Don’t let any of the bad dogs get to her,” I said, hoping he understood. He rumbled at me and stood by her side in ‘pounce and shred’ mode.
< As long as she remains by my side, I will keep the scared female safe from the bad dogs.>
I heard Davros laugh again. “Tristan! Come erase me if you dare!” he yelled and released the orb.
The orb sped at us, growing in size. Monty ran toward it as another bolt of lightning came his way. The orb and the bolt reached him at the same time. An ear-splitting crack filled the street a second later, and Monty was gone.
THIRTY-SIX
I DIDN’T HAVE time to register what happened to Monty before a claw tried to eviscerate me. I leaped back and ducked under another swipe. These Werewolves were dangerous but slower than the ones I remembered facing. The mind-control of the Permutation slowed them down but made them relentless.
I twisted around another lunge and slid into Quan’s hand as she shoved me back and removed a Werewolf arm and head in one smooth stroke. I stepped to the side and slashed down with Ebonsoul, stopping another attack from the side. I glanced quickly at Cassandra, who stood ready to blow away anything that got too close.
That momentary distraction almost cost me my head. A Werewolf slashed at my neck, and I saw it too late. I brought up Ebonsoul, but I knew those razor-sharp claws were going to dig into my flesh. An orb of energy blasted the Werewolf, forcing the slash high and raking my cheek instead.
“Keep your wits about you or lose your head,” Quan said as she dispatched another Werewolf. “There are too many of them. Davros can’t be doing this. The dragon must be close. If Tristan doesn’t act soon we will be overrun.”
I peered into the building but didn’t see Monty. It didn’t help that Werewolves were lunging at us from every direction.
The burning sensation followed by the intense itching let me know my face was healing. I raced to Cassandra and Peaches as several Werewolves closed in. I removed the leg of one and stabbed through the neck of another. Peaches pounced on another. He shredded through its throat in one bite. Ebonsoul siphoned the power and channeled it to me. I removed three more, but they kept coming.
Cassandra fired her hand-cannon a few times, putting down several more. Quan was right, at this rate we were going to be overcome by Werewolves. I looked down the street and saw a figure surrounded by energy.
It was Slif.
“Quan!” I pointed up the street. She followed my arm and nodded. Her sword sang in the night as she cut a swath through the Werewolves as the pack trailed after her. I stood in front of Cassandra and Peaches as Slif released a blazing orange orb in our direction. I held up Ebonsoul, expecting to absorb it. It was a mistake. The orb punched through my chest and crashed into Cassandra behind me. We both flew back several feet with the force of the blast and bounced on the street. My body dealt with the wound immediately as my chest seized and pain shot through me.
Cassandra wasn’t so lucky. She coughed a few times—a wet, broken sound. Peaches came over, licked her face, and sat next to us in ‘defend and shred’ mode. I crouched down and removed the charred pieces of her jacket. The damage of her wound was gut wrenchin
g and I clenched my jaw. Most of the left side of her chest was gone. Her chest cavity was crushed and she was losing too much blood. She must have seen the expression on my face.
“That bad, huh?” she wheezed and held my hand. “Take this and give it to my dad.”
It was the .357 Magnum.
“I’ll get Ramirez down here—we can rush a unit. Stay with me, Lieutenant.” I placed the gun next to me. “You did great. Your dad would be proud of you. Hang with me. You’re going to make it.”
“Anyone ever tell you you’re a shit liar?” she said with a grin that quickly became a grimace as the pain gripped her. “You tell my dad what I did. I held my ground and I kicked ass. Make sure—make sure you tell him.”
“I will,” I whispered, looking into her now vacant, lifeless eyes. “I’ll make sure he knows. I’ll make sure he’s proud of you.”
I closed her eyelids, picked up her gun and stood up. I heard the sirens in the distance, but they weren’t going to get here in time. At least not for Cassandra, and not for the dozens of broken, bleeding bodies that lay in the street. All of the remaining Werewolves were chasing after Quan, who closed on Slif.
Even though Slif was the immediate threat, Davros was the closest one. I rushed into the lobby of the building as a fireball screamed past me and crashed into the street.
Monty held his staff in one hand and formed an orb of white flame with the other. He threw it and stood behind a column as I jumped over debris to join him. The resulting explosion echoed through the lobby.
“Where are the Werewolves?” he asked as he batted another fire orb away. “Where’s Quan and the lieutenant?”
“Quan went to have a conversation with Slif, hopefully a violent one. The lieutenant…she didn’t make it,” I said, looking at her gun. “Slif hit me with something that Ebonsoul didn’t absorb. Punched through me, and she was standing—”
Montague & Strong Detective Novels Box Set: Montague & Strong Detective Novels Books, 1 through 3 (Montague & Strong Case Files) Page 35
