Protect

by Laura Wylde

  Back then, I wasn’t more than a teenager by phoenix standards. After using the “big trouble” voice, he explained to me, it wasn’t my friendship with Janis and Jimi that disturbed him, not even helping them explode on stage with phoenix-worthy glory. What bothered him was how fond I had become of the sex, drugs and rock and roll life-style. So fond, my magically backed favorite musicians were starting an interdimensional revolution. It was against protocol. If it got back to the gate-keepers, it would be called interference and I would be grounded from guardian services for the next fifty years.

  I felt again like that teenaged boy. “I don’t know.”

  “You don’t know?” I wished he hadn’t come into focus. He did look angry. “You separated from the group. You almost got yourself killed. You almost got Tanya killed. Why?”

  “She was running. I was trying to stay close to her.”

  Steel-blue annoyance flashed through his eyes. He started to say something more when Jamie touched his arm. “Later, boss. We need to get this lad home. It’s nearly sunset. The harpies could come back. If they strike us at night in the open, they have the advantage.”

  Jack had just dropped the bloody towel in the waste bin. He rejoined the circle and took one last look at my wound. “I agree. Lenny’s in no shape to be interrogated yet. He won’t be able to help fight off another attack. Let’s get back, recover and reconnoiter.”

  Daniel’s hair still bristled with anger, but he smoothed back his scowl and sniffed loudly. “We’ll fly back. It’s the fastest way. I’ll carry Tanya.”

  That hurt. I’d blown my big chance to impress Tanya and Daniel got to fly away with the damsel in distress. I shape-shifted miserably, not even caring that some of my feathers looked a little bedraggled. I had been an idiot. All I had seen was wheat-colored hair and long, shapely legs bounding through the park like a gazelle.

  The sun was just beginning to set when we took flight. To an observer, we would have appeared as bright colored, hurrying clouds, touched by the sinking sun. We landed in the deeply shadowed alley between the two apartments. The two thin rows of grass were scented with dew. I breathed in the sweet scent, still trying to forget the horrible stench of the harpy’s mouth close to mine, and the sting of her poison. “Russian tea inside the apartment,” promised Jack, whispering into my ear. Quickly, I shape-shifted into a human and followed the others climbing up the fire escape. We could no longer discount Bunny or Miss Crandon or anyone really, as a harpy ally. Somebody was watching Tanya’s every move. It was time to rely on stealth and secrecy.

  I had just climbed through the window into the kitchen when I felt another wave of nausea and nearly blacked out. I staggered to the couch and waited for it to settle. I groaned miserably. It was all my fault. I hadn’t been paying attention and nearly got Tanya killed.

  After a few minutes, I felt those soft, gentle hands lift my head and place a pillow under it. She washed my head and hair with a warm cloth, her fingers rifling back my hair. She brought a blanket and tucked it around me. I began to drowse. It was my fault and at some point, Daniel was going to rip into me but right now, all I wanted to do was drift under the sweet touch of her hands.

  Tanya

  I had to come to terms with the truth. I was not the victim of a random attack in the subway. I was the intended target. I was prey. Anyone who tried to help me was in danger. My disbelief had been careless, and my carelessness nearly got Lenny killed. I was the one who broke and ran. Lenny had only followed me. He tried to protect me, and he paid for it.

  He was sleeping now. I checked his brow. It was clammy. I pulled the blanket up and tucked it around his neck, which caused him to stir and groan slightly in his sleep. I felt tears sting against my lids and blinked them back. They built up in my throat, causing a hard, aching lump.

  Jack gave me a comforting pat on the shoulder. “Give him an hour or two. He’ll be fine. He’s simply fighting off the last of the poison.”

  “The wound is almost healed.” There was a touch of awe in my voice. The harpy had left a wide -open gash when she had first attacked Lenny, ripping open nearly the whole side of his face. It was almost closed now, with healthy, pink scar tissue building around it.

  Jack nodded and patted the seat next to him on my adaptable couch. “We regenerate quickly. It’s why we don’t need much sleep. An hour or two nap is as refreshing to us as a solid eight hours of sleep is to a human.”

  I thought about my recent sleep experiences and how much more relaxing they had been. “When you sleep, do you dream?”

  He steeple-chased his fingers while he considered his answer. “It’s not really dreaming. It’s a state between states, a sort of energy field. We soak in it the way flowers bathe in sunlight. “

  “I haven’t dreamed since you’ve arrived, and I haven’t required much sleep.”

  “It’s an energy field overlap to keep you protected. There are quite a few black creatures of the underworld who can access human dreams. Usually to their own purposes, such as manipulating, tormenting or haunting a human, but sometimes they do it to discover a physical address.”

  “The dark forces have allied?” I asked, forgetting Lenny for a few minutes. I had never worked on the hierarchy within the dark underworld before, finding earth-bound mythological creatures more fascinating, but now it seemed to be information I needed to know.

  Jack chuckled and shook his head. “They’re never truly allied, but they do exchange favors. They can be hired for the right price. Individually, though, they’d just as soon cut each other’s throats as one of us.”

  It was half-way comforting to know they would betray each other without a second thought. It meant collaborations were distrustful and short-lived. It didn’t help my current situation, however. I was on somebody’s short list and I had no idea who it was.

  I put out an effort to smile. I think it came out crookedly because Jack patted my hand reassuringly. “I smell something in the kitchen that needs my attention,” he said as he stood. “Watch Lenny. As soon as he smells pizza, he wakes up.”

  This time my smile was a little more sincere. With Jack in the kitchen, Daniel came over to sit beside me. He took my hand in both of his while his eyes gazed deeply into mine. Underneath that icy blue exterior, there was something very warm and glowing. His touch was warm. I remembered being carried swiftly on his back, my arms wrapped tightly around his neck, the bright feathers softer than goose down. Daniel had layers. As you peeled back each one, they became more tender.

  His words were warm. “How are you feeling?”

  “Still a little frightened,” I admitted. “I don’t really remember what happened. I just…. Never expected to see something so grotesque flying over me in Central Park. I couldn’t stop running.”

  “I couldn’t, either.” Lenny was sitting up, looking a little pale but the fever had broken. “I know it shouldn’t have gone down that way, but I couldn’t stop running.”

  Daniel left me then to tower over his junior team member. Even the hair on his arms was bristling. “Why didn’t you shape-shift? You broke rank!”

  “To follow Tanya! I couldn’t leave her alone.”

  “If you had stayed with us, there wouldn’t have been any harpies following her into the brush. She would have been safe there.”

  “How do you know?” Lenny stood up to face him. Even at his full height, his hands drawn into fists at his sides, his chin stubbornly tilted, he was several inches shorter than Daniel. “One of them could slipped away while you were fighting them. Nobody else was watching the girl. All you wanted was the battle.”

  “That’s not true. You left an opening. You did. We had the rest under control. You didn’t shift in time.”

  “I shifted! I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t shifted. Tanya wouldn’t be here.”

  “You weren’t paying attention! That’s what happened. You weren’t paying attention and the harpy attack took you by surprise.”

  “That’s not true!”

>   “It is true. You froze.”

  The two looked like they were going to slug it out, right there on the spot. From the kitchen came the imploring scent of pizza and Russian tea, yet neither moved an inch from their stare-down. Lenny’s lip curled. “You’re always on my back. Ever since the 1960’s, and I’m still not sorry for what I did. We’re all about peace and love, or have you forgotten? Maybe you’ve spent so much time glorifying in being a police hero, fighting bad creatures and locking them away, you’ve lost sight of our true purpose. We’re not just battling demons. We’re protecting humans.”

  Daniel gave Lenny a push. “You were a reckless youth then, and you’re still a reckless youth. Maybe you should take a post in Billings, Montana for a while to cool your heels.”

  Jack stepped between them just as Lenny drew back his fist. “Come on now, you’re saying a lot of things you’re both going to be sorry about afterward. We all need to eat. It will all look different on a full stomach.”

  Lennie still glared, trying to find a way around that solid hunk of a man who could probably stop an elephant in its tracks. Jamie took his arm. “Let it go, Lenny. You’re upset. We’re all upset. It was a close call and the boss man doesn’t like close calls.”

  “It was my close call, not his,” Lenny muttered, but he was hungry, and I think he really didn’t want a fight. He followed Jamie into the kitchen, filled his plate and sat down. Daniel watched him go, his brows drawn into a heavy scowl.

  “We’ve all been there,” Jack reminded him in a low voice. “We’ve all been young and foolish.”

  “He panicked.”

  “He did, and so have we. Do you remember what it was like when the mob took over New York?”

  “I lost Bethany Howe.”

  “Yes. You lost Bethany Howe. You panicked. There was a Gargoyle breach, the first Gargoyle you’d ever seen. You froze, and in that moment, she was gone.”

  “That’s why I have to be hard on Lenny. I want him more afraid of me than any monster who suddenly pops up in his field of vision.”

  “Just don’t be too hard. Don’t goad him.”

  I’m not sure how much of the quarrel had been settled, but they did all simmer down. There were only four chairs at the table, but Daniel solved the problem by wheeling in the desk chair. He sat in it while we ate, holding his plate on his lap and gliding around the kitchen. Whenever he spoke, he moved the chair in close to the one he was addressing. It was a very tactical way of showing his dominance. I could imagine a future of stationary cabinet members, while the president wheeled around in a desk chair, imposing his will on each one through his omniscient presence.

  Somebody had noticed me picking the anchovies off my pizza. Along with their favorite seafood delicacies, the table held a Canadian bacon and pineapple and a pepperoni with olives. They wanted to cater to my tastes. They picked off the meat but seemed to like the pineapple and olives just fine.

  They had some bird-like tastes when it came to food, but they didn’t have bird-like appetites. They finished off several large pizzas, a tub full of ice-cream and a quart of blueberries, before settling down to snacking on party mix and drinking coffee.

  “We can’t stay here any longer,” Daniel announced midway through a discussion between Jack and Jamie on dolphins and their connection to mer-people. “We’re compromised. We don’t have full access to our data base unless we go to the precinct. There’s a possibility of a spy in the building. The building itself is insecure. Anyone with a file and a little know-how can pick the lock. The only security cameras are in front. We need to move.”

  “Move where?” I asked weakly, imagining some cheap hotel with cheesy curtains and a view of a neon-lighted cocktail glass.

  “Our main base of operations.”

  “He means our home,” explained Jack. “It’s the only other place beside the precinct where we have full access to our files. Case studies, forensics, criminal background, even sealed files and Interpol sharing. We need our work stations.”

  “Where’s it at?” I asked, still feeling a little reluctant to leave home.

  “Close to Central Park,” Daniel answered. “But it has better security.”

  “Not Central Park!” I pleaded. I never wanted to see that place again. The nightmare still danced in front of my eyes.

  Lenny pushed back his chair and clasped his hands behind his neck. “Daniel is right. Your security sucks. Even homeless people can break in. Single pane windows. Cheap bolts. You might as well put out a welcome sign. We’re closer to the park, but we’re fortified. It would take an army to break in.”

  I supposed they were right. My apartment building would be a bit of a push-over for a gangsta, but since the quietly middle-class neighborhood didn’t have a gangster mentality, I had never considered just how poor my security measures were. I was still a little reluctant to pack up. This had been my home for three years and it had almost begun to feel like a family unit. I liked my routines, and this was blowing my entire routine into pieces.

  I made a few whimpering objections, but I don’t think they heard. Now that they had an end goal, they were already making plans. Daniel wheeled around in the desk chair, plotting things out. “Jamie and I are going down to the precinct to gather the case evidence. We’re also hoping to compare the DNA found on a corpse we discovered a month ago with the piece of flesh Lenny bit from the harpy. If it’s a family, a cross-match will help identify it.”

  “A family of harpies is coming after me?” I was really trying not to sound like a marshmallow, but family syndicates are scary when they’re only human. I’ve read all the books and seen all the movies. Family members don’t give up. You kill one and the others keep coming.

  Daniel stood, tucked in his shirt and slipped on his jacket, adjusting it around the shoulders so it aligned at the neck. “We don’t know yet. We want to find out. We can begin an analysis as soon as we receive the lab results. We don’t even need to stick around. Just hand the sample to our forensics specialist and get out. The results can be sent directly to our home computers.”

  “Okay. Okay,” I said nervously, helping him adjust his jacket in front. He was a spiffy dresser, but a little hasty, unlike Jack who dressed so precisely, the only thing he lacked was a carnation in his lapel. “How much time do I have to prepare?”

  “About an hour. We’re zooming in and zooming out. Take what you would pack if you were going on an extended vacation because we don’t know how long it will take to resolve this. One harpy wouldn’t take more than three or four days, but now we know there are more than one. We’re going to tread lightly until we know what we’re up against.”

  I was beginning to learn that when Daniel spoke like that, he was all business. He was explaining his strategy and what I was expected to do, without further questions or hesitation. I’ve never had any police training, but I understood discipline. My dad had served in the air force for eight years and still carried remnants of his military training. He was probably the one to teach me appreciation for routines and that there are times when discipline gives strength. I nodded. “I’ll be ready.”

  Daniel went out the door without a backward glance, but Jamie caught me by the shoulders and held me with his Smoky Mountain eyes. “He is trying to reassure you, not hurry you. We plan to take no more than an hour because it’s not a good idea to keep the team separated right now. If you need a little more time to prepare, he’ll understand.”

  “A team is as strong as its weakest link,” I said. “Something my father likes to say. I’ll be ready.”

  It’s difficult to describe the look he gave me, but I’m sure it was this type of look that inspired Mona Lisa’s smile. It was tender, amused, delighted and cautious all at the same time. However, all he said was, “you’re a good sport,” before hurrying after Daniel.

  I thought I would feel a sense of urgency as I began packing my bags, but I didn’t. Maybe it was Jack’s influence. He was very calm. He was calm as a Buddha. He had beautiful,
Buddha type eyes, thick-lashed, heavy lidded, a little upturned. As I pulled things out of the closet, he folded them neatly on the bed, then arranged them in the suitcases so every corner of space was utilized. He allowed me privacy with my lingerie and personal care products, though, wandering into the living room and pulling out the books I’d probably need from my collection.

  I think Lenny was trying to make up for not paying attention at the park. After boxing up the perishables, he stalked around the apartment and peeked furtively out the windows. He wasn’t taking chances. He looked so forlorn, I had to say something. “Lenny, I think what you did out there was very brave.”

  He continued to stare out the window. “I was afraid.”

  “But you faced your fear. You’re not afraid anymore, are you?”

  “No. It won’t happen again.”

  “Then we’re good?”

  “We’re always good. That’s not the problem.”

  “Daniel?”

  Instead of answering my question, he said, “you should finish packing. I’ll keep watch until the others are back.”

  That stung a little. I knew it wasn’t personal. Lenny was hurting but didn’t want anyone to know how he felt. He wasn’t fooling anyone. Jack took time out to talk with Lenny a few minutes. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I saw Lenny shake his head, then look down at his feet. After a few minutes, Jack patted him on the back and returned to the living room. “You don’t need these,” he advised, putting back five or six books I had laid out. “I have copies at our apartment.”

  That lightened the load. I now had room for my college notebooks, my manuscript and my books all in one bag. I had just wrapped up my battery charger and headphones when the others returned. The sudden surge of relief I felt as they walked through the door was a little unexpected. I had done quite well in convincing myself I had everything under control.