by Casey White
“Librarian?” Rickard said, softer still. “I understand that this decision is difficult, and I will allow you time to think, but your answer is required before-”
Images flashed behind his eyelids. Of Leon and James, running. Of Maya, cowering behind the steering wheel, eyes terrified.
But...they’d come so far. They’d made it through everything up until now. If he surrendered, gave himself over, then everything came to an end. The life he’d made would be gone for good.
And he wasn’t willing to give up the ghost just yet.
A warmth welled up in his chest, spreading like a blanket thrown around his shoulders.
“No,” Daniel said.
Silence. And then, “Librarian. I do not believe you have-”
“There’s no way,” Daniel said. “You’re crazy if you think I’m going to stop just because you told me to.”
“If you continue this farce, there will be consequences. Please. One last time, I extend our offer to-”
“Fuck off,” Daniel said. His limbs felt lighter and airier than they had in years. His head spun. He was doing this, wasn’t he?
Again, Rickard sighed. He muttered something under his breath, too soft for Daniel to make out. But with his gentle whisper holding the line open, Daniel heard something else.
Voices. More voices.
And the sound of an engine revving higher.
His blood chilled. The warmth that’d risen in his chest vanished, gone in a heartbeat, turning to an icy wind that swept from his head to his toes.
Danger, it shrieked. It sang all the way to his bones, louder and louder. Danger.
His legs twitched. They needed to leave. He didn’t know why, but-
“D- Owl?” Leon said. “What the- A-Are you okay?”
Daniel glanced over. His friend leaned in, his face a mask of confused fear.
For a moment, he could see his eyes reflected in Leon’s—glowing a bright, vivid blue-green.
With a final gleam across Leon’s skin, the glow faded out. Just as quickly, the spell holding him in place vanished. Daniel snapped the phone shut, closing out Rickard’s continued complaints, and tossed it back to Olivia. “We need to go. Now.”
“What?” James said, right as Maya said “You should sleep.”
“Right now,” Daniel snapped, balling up his fists and gathering up his strength. “Before-”
His heart skipped a beat. The motel room was almost-silent, with everyone watching him in shock. Even that shouldn’t have been enough—because under the silence, somehow, impossibly, he could still hear the roar of that engine getting closer.
Fast.
- Chapter Twenty-Four -
“Daniel?” Leon said. “What’s-”
“Quiet,” Daniel said, still frozen in horror.
No. It wasn’t his imagination. When he listened out into the growing evening, he could still hear it—the steady roar of an engine.
Indira’s engine.
Rickard’s engine.
“But I thought you said-”
“Right.” Daniel twisted, levering himself to his feet. “Have to go. Right now.”
“What did she say?” Olivia whispered. “I-I mean, I know things between you and Indira are—tense—but I didn’t think-”
“She said the usual,” Daniel said, lurching to his feet. Leon was by his side in a flash, sliding his arm behind Daniel’s back. Together, they staggered forward.
Daniel reached out as soon as they were close enough, taking the dingy, stained curtain between two fingers. “It’s not her I’m worried about, though,” he murmured.
Slowly, as gently as he could, he pulled the curtain away from the window pane.
In the blink of an eye, the purr of the engine died off, as though a switch had been flipped.
Or a key.
“Shit,” Daniel whispered. Run, something inside him screamed. Get away, before it’s too late.
“What do you mean?” he heard Olivia say.
“What’s going on?” James rumbled. He and Maya stood farther back, visibly confused.
“Someone else took the phone,” Daniel said. “Guy called Rickard.”
“The Bookbinder’s rep,” Olivia said with a groan. “He’s-”
“A mage,” Daniel said. His eyes swept across the parking lot outside. Maya’s car sat right where they’d left it, all but alone on the asphalt. “Or someone with them, anyway. He’s normal. Ish. But he wanted-”
His voice died. He swallowed hard, trying to work past the lump in his throat. How could he put it into words? The choice that Rickard had put before him?
“He wanted what?” Leon said. “What was he-”
“Never mind,” Daniel mumbled. “Point being. He exposed himself by calling me. He took the next step. And he wouldn’t have taken that step unless-”
Again, his breath hitched. The world outside was bleak and dark—but figures moved in the shadows. Figures that moved from the alleys and side yards of the scant, run-down businesses around them. Figures headed in their direction.
“They’re here,” Daniel said. His heartbeat thundered. “We need to go. We need to get to the car, now.”
“Shit,” Maya gasped. “O-Okay. I’ve got my keys.”
“James, help me,” Leon said. “He’s going to be slow.”
“I’m fine,” Daniel snapped, stumbling forward. “Let’s just-”
But as Maya darted forward, reaching for the door, a light split the scenery before them. A light coming on?
No, Daniel realized. Or rather, yes, but not a street lamp or a light over someone’s door. The light came from a ball of raw energy, coalescing around the hands of one of the men.
The light warped, starting to coil in on itself, and Daniel froze.
Cyril. The mage who’d been putting up barriers around them, who’d been keeping outsiders away. He stumbled closer, clutching a hammer in his hand—the one just starting to go incandescent. The hair on the back of Daniel’s neck stood on end.
The mage hardly seemed to be comfortable standing. He wobbled with every step he took, and the arm with the hammer shook ominously. The men around him didn’t seem to want to get any closer, though.
Was one of them Rickard? The thought was small and treacherous, quickly worming its way too deep in Daniel’s thoughts to be removed. Is he here?
He didn’t have much doubt on that much, not anymore.
Cyril staggered forward another step, though, thrusting his hammer-wielding hand forward—and the light swirling around it splintered, ripping away into sheets and planes of brilliantly-glowing gold that arced toward.
“No!” Maya cried, lunging forward as the blades lanced through her car. “That’s my-”
James grabbed hold of her, pulling her back with one hand clamped firmly over his mouth. “Quiet,” Daniel heard him mutter. “C’mon, Maya, please.”
Daniel just stared at the car, one hand still clutching the edge of the curtains. Maya’s car sagged on its frame. One tire hissed, half-deflated already, and each of the dozen missiles that had sprayed through the vehicle left a path of destruction in its wake. Bits of shattered plastic and automotive paint scattered across the asphalt.
“Shit,” he whispered.
What the hell was he going to do now?
Get your shit together.
Daniel stiffened, standing straight. His hand fell from the curtains. They were coming. He couldn’t stop that, now. And they didn’t have a car anymore.
But he’d be damned if he let Indira take this life away from him.
“We have to move,” Daniel hissed. He twisted back away from the window. “They’re out there. Right now. We can-”
When he turned, though, still clinging to Leon’s shoulder, he saw only cheap plaster and peeling paint. “Crap,” he whispered. The motel only had the one exit—because of course it did. It had all the modern amenities 60’s-era construction could offer, including a single door and a single window. Both of which pointed stra
ight out toward their pursuers.
He glanced back toward the window, all too aware of the seconds that were passing as he sat here wasting time.
They could make a run for it. Bust out through the door, fast as they could, and hopefully catch Rickard’s men by surprise. If they were quick, maybe they could make it around the edge of the building before they brought out the guns. Or the magic.
No. Daniel shook his head, casting the idea aside almost immediately. He wouldn’t be able to run fast enough, and...he glanced to the side, to where Leon stood.
Even if he was prepared to accept the consequences of a mad-dash run like that, he didn’t think Leon would feel the same. If Daniel stumbled, if he slowed down, he already knew Leon wouldn’t just leave him behind. And if Rickard had been serious...there was no way Daniel was going to trust his friends’ fates to a risky plan like that.
There had to be another way. Daniel pulled free from Leon, staggering back through the motel room. His lips moved, shaping half-formed words that flitted through his mind.
Through the wall? Sure, they could probably bash through the ancient plaster and timbers—if they had an axe. And it would take long. Far too long.
Maybe the bathroom had a window. He hurled himself toward the tiny, damp room, clutching the door frame for stability.
The bathroom did not have a window, just molding tile and a fan that dripped dust from above. Daniel cursed under his breath, turning back, and-
“There,” he gasped. His nerves sang as he stiffened, grabbing for the dresser someone had stuffed into a corner. “H-Hurry. Hurry, guys.”
“What?” he heard Leon cry. “D- Owl, what the hell are you-”
“We can get out through here,” Daniel spat, his eyes turned upward to the roof.
The room’s drop ceiling was as visibly aged as the rest of the room, its tiles faded to browns and off-whites. But damn it, they could get through there. If it meant they made it out of this alive and free, he’d call the damn place vintage, instead of calling it a shitheap.
“T-That’s not going to work,” Maya hissed. “We’re too big. We’ll fall right through-”
“Into the next room,” Daniel said, twisting enough to fix his almost-manic stare on her. “We’ll fall over the wall—into the next room.”
Because these motels were all cheaply built. He could almost remember the shape of it when they’d driven in. Two rows of rooms, backed up to each other, with their exits facing out the fronts. Which meant if they could just get over there, they’d have that much more distance between them and Rickard’s men.
With every second they stood there debating amongst themselves, his pulse raced faster. They’d wasted so much time. Any minute now, there’d be someone at the door, and-
“Man’s right,” James said, shoving forward. “Come on.”
Daniel blinked, momentarily stunned. And then he grinned at his unexpected savior. “James.”
“Stop arguing and just move,” James said roughly. He glanced over to Maya, dropping to a crouch. “You first.”
Maya glanced between James and Daniel, as though doubting the whole arrangement, but when James made an irritated noise, she moved.
The dresser groaned under her weight. She squirmed up on top of it, one foot braced against James’ hands, and worked one of the tiles loose.
“Hurry,” Daniel said. His eyes stayed glued to the door. His ears strained for the slightest noise. Were those footsteps he heard? He couldn’t tell. Maybe they were—or maybe it was just the thudding of his heart, the rush of his blood ringing in his ears.
“I-I’m working on it,” Maya hissed. “Where the hell am I-”
“Move toward the wall,” Daniel said. “There should be a gap. You might have to-”
“I-I see it,” he heard her say, suddenly elated. “Crap. It’s a long way down.”
“You’re doing good,” Leon said. “Just a little more, and-”
Maya yelped. The wall shuddered. The drop ceiling swayed ominously.
James looked to Leon next, still crouching. His tanned face was uncharacteristically pale. “Go.”
Leon shook his head. “I should stay. Daniel will need-”
“Fine,” James snapped, turning to Olivia. “You next, then. Try anything on Maya and I’ll break your neck.”
She flinched under the venom in the look, but didn’t argue. In an instant, she was up and over, squirming through the gap.
A hand brushed his shoulder. “Now you,” Leon said.
“No,” Daniel said. “I should-“
“Go,” James snapped. “There’s no time to argue. You’re the one who can’t climb.”
Daniel wilted, falling back under the force of the looks turned on him. He opened his mouth to protest—and shut it again.
It did make sense. He was moving, but slowly. Him getting trapped there would be...less than ideal.
“Fine,” he muttered, shuffling forward. It felt entirely wrong to lift his foot, placing it in James’ hands. James was a person. You didn’t step on people. Everyone knew that.
It didn’t stop James from tossing him aloft as easily as if Daniel was a toy. Daniel clutched at the dresser, crawling up after Olivia, and left the two to whispering.
“Now...where,” he whispered to himself, working himself through the gap left by the tile. A mote of dust wafted into his nostrils, and he had to fight to keep from sneezing. Those dust motes had friends. Lots of friends, in that space that had absolutely never seen a dustpan—and if he sneezed, they’d all come out to play.
Right before he lost his nerve, caught in the darkness with the wood of the dresser beneath him and blurry nothingness ahead, he saw the gap, lit by a halfhearted glow beyond. The vertical anchor of the wall was like a beacon, drawing him on. He crawled forward, eyes fixed on that light, and-
Suddenly, the beams he was clinging to ran out. There was just him, and the gap, and the floor below. Daniel wobbled, his leg straining to keep up. He just had to find a safe way down, and-
His leg gave out. He crashed down through the ceiling, landing in a tangled mess on the stained carpet. Face-first.
“Shit,” he moaned, wincing. Damn it, it smelled like- like things he very, very much didn’t want to describe. “This sucks.”
Hands clutched at his shoulders. “Are you okay?” Maya hissed. “Christ. I didn’t- I would’ve tried to help.”
“D-Didn’t need it,” Daniel mumbled, grinning at her at Olivia. “Nope. I’m good. I’m-”
“Out of the way,” Leon hissed. “They’re coming.”
Daniel froze. His senses screamed out again. Numb, he let Olivia pull him to the side, far enough for Leon to hop down.
But he could hear it, then. Someone banging on a door. The sound of yelling voices rising louder and louder.
“James,” Leon whispered, twisting back. “James, hurry, before-”
“I got it,” James muttered. A massive shadow loomed through the gap in the ceiling—and James dropped to the carpet with a whumph.
Leon hurried over to him, helping him to his feet. “Did you turn the lights off?”
James blinked—and made a face. “Crap.”
Daniel chuckled sourly, watching Leon deflate. “It’s okay. We’re good. Let’s just-”
They froze as the sound of yelling rose higher—until at last, with a muted cry of one more time, the screech of rested metal and rotting wood crashed down from the room they’d just left.
Their grace period was over. They’d escaped the frying pan, for the time being.
Now, Daniel just had to keep them out of the fire.
He strode toward the door, biting his tongue against the daggers of pain that shot through him at the motion, and glanced back once more.
“Stay quiet,” he whispered, and smiled. “And stay close.”
The others looked shaken, but nodded. The time for debating was over.
The stomp of feet rose from beyond the wall. “They were here,” he heard someone cry
. “What the hell’s going on? Look for them, you assholes.”
Time to go.
Taking one last breath, Daniel grabbed the handle on the front door and turned it.
A quick shove, and the door flew open.
Daniel caught hold of it again before it could slam into the wall. Couldn’t let that happen. Couldn’t be loud.
Because the bellowing from the next room over hadn’t stopped.
“I was watching!” he heard someone cry. “I s-swear, Rickard, they never left. I-”
“Just find them.” A new speaker, their voice twisted ever so slightly behind an accent. Daniel shivered. Rickard. He wasn’t about to mistake that voice anytime soon.
Well, at least now he didn’t have to wonder if the Bookbinder was going to make a personal appearance.
He lurched through the doorway, beckoning for the others to follow. “Quick,” he hissed. “Before they start looking.”
Leon nodded, pressing closer. A pale-faced Olivia hovered at his heels—but beyond her, Daniel saw Maya freeze.
She was shaking. The realization put a fresh knot of guilt in his gut. James stepped up alongside her, putting an arm around her shoulder. His lips pressed to her ear, murmuring something too quiet for Daniel to hear. Whatever it was he said, Maya relaxed, but only just.
They hadn’t asked for this. Daniel stared at them a heartbeat longer, soul-sick. Neither of them had signed up for this. Hell, neither had Leon, but Leon had...well, he’d long-since taken on a more active role, at least.
But Maya and James were utter innocents. They didn’t belong here, being shot at and running from mages.
Daniel swallowed, shaking his head, and turned back to the outside world. All he had to do was keep everyone alive and in one piece long enough to apologize properly. To make amends. Until then…
“Here,” he mumbled, digging through his coat. “There’s, uh. I have…”
The magazine full of spare rounds hung heavy in his hand. He held it toward James. “It’s the last I’ve got,” he whispered.
He expected James to recoil—and for a second, he could see the hesitance in his friend’s eyes. It vanished as soon as James looked back to Maya, and he stalked forward, grabbing the magazine from Daniel. “Cool,” he muttered. He fumbled in his own jacket, taking the emptied pistol from within.
