by R. R. Virdi
He toppled from the blow. Blood pooled from his mouth and once again split lips.
Healing can work wonders. It’s also a good way to suffer if you keep getting hurt.
Ashton groaned but managed to get to his side. “You can stop now. Things stop aching and screaming after a while. Eventually, the pain is more like parts of your body going numb. Besides, you know you can’t actually kill me?”
Technically. Although I had a theory about that bit, one I had good reason to believe I was right about. It just needed testing.
I was looking at the dummy for it.
Ashton brushed off what remained of his clothing, more for effect than anything else. He got to his feet, eying us. “So, now that you’ve worked that out of your system, are you ready to hear my offer?”
Ortiz and I exchanged looks.
“There’s a reason I haven’t killed you yet. There’s no doubting I can.” Ashton’s smile stretched the skin of his damaged lips further than should have been possible. The tissue ripped under the strain, and crimson gushed over his teeth.
Ortiz suppressed a shiver.
“I don’t know. I’m pretty sure I can kill the bat.” I winked at him.
He tilted his head like he didn’t know what to make of that.
I sighed.
“Look, no one here is good to me dead.”
I glanced at Caroline, then shifted my gaze to Ariel. I raised my brows.
“I got what I needed out of Caroline. Ariel wasn’t one of mine. I just finished her.”
Ah. I was right.
“You two made deals then ganked each other’s humans. That way, neither of you broke your own word because, hey, accidents happen, right?” I clenched my jaw.
“Anna got careless though. She’s new in this business. The girl rushed for souls, trying to make a good impression.”
Impression. Meaning there was someone to please. Someone who had a name. One I intended to get out of him.
But this wasn’t the place for that.
“Ortiz, what do you think? Should we trade up our souls for one itty bitty wish?”
She rolled her eyes, but a hand went to the chain around her throat and the cross that hung from it. “Only costs me my soul. But I’m kind of using that right now.”
Ashton grimaced. “You’re joking.”
“No shit. I mean, you and Anna have great track records at keeping deals, right? But I’m sure they’re swell monsters. I mean, you might just be walking about your business one day, Ortiz, and then bam, a piano lands on you.”
Ortiz eyed me and smiled. “I’m more of a drums girl.”
“Enough!” Ashton blurred into motion. He reached out, brushing past me and taking hold of the gun. It barked into his hand. The Faust didn’t seem perturbed by the bullet in his palm. He ripped the weapon free and sent a furious backhand across Ortiz’s face.
I moved to catch her. My shirt went tight around my body. Ashton pulled me close. My ribs screamed as his fist collided with them. His foot caught the back of one my ankles, pulling it out from underneath me. My back met the floor, and air fled my lungs.
Ashton stood over me, bloody lips peeled back in a gruesome snarl. “I’m giving you a chance at something. But if you can’t see that, then maybe I should take something from you that will make you want to deal.”
Oh shit.
He drove a heel into my gut, causing me to gasp for air I already had an issue inhaling. The Faust planted his foot there before stepping over me and towards Ortiz.
She struggled from the strike, clearly rung.
He moved with serpentine speed, sinking his weight and grabbing the back of her neck. Ashton hauled her up and swung an open hand at her face.
I heard a resounding smack.
Ortiz fell to the ground in silence.
I wheezed in protest, clawing at the ground behind him.
He snapped out with a short kick that drove his boot into her stomach.
She coughed and fell flat. Flecks of blood peppered her lips.
“Now, tell me. What would you give up for her? What’s someone else’s life worth to you?” Ashton planted his foot against her body and shoved.
Ortiz rolled to her side, a hand falling to her stomach and clutching it in agony.
“Stop it.” The words strained my chest, but I had to say something.
“Make me. This is on you. It’s all on you. Daniel, or whoever you are now. It’s your fault. Give me a reason to make it stop. Give me something worth a damn. Otherwise, she’s just another dead human. The world is full of them. Without their souls, they’re worthless to me.”
But not to the rest of them.
People always have worth. Always.
The Faust pushed Ortiz onto her back with his heel before placing his foot down on her throat. “Make me an offer. Make me a deal—a good one.”
Thunder, amplified by a megaphone, filled my ears. Ashton’s back exploded, and he was thrown to the ground like a truck had hit him. A grapefruit-sized chunk of his body was missing.
Holy shit!
Kelly stood several feet to our side, the shotgun hanging from one of her hands. She pressed her free hand to her shoulder and rubbed it. “Ow.”
What little air I’d managed to suck in left me as I broke into laughter. “Famous last words. ‘Ow.’”
“I’m sorry.” Kelly shook the weapon like she was terrified of it.
“Don’t apologize.” I chuckled harder, causing my stomach to tighten. I sobered as I remembered Ortiz and clawed my way over to her.
Ashton didn’t like that idea. The Faust had recovered to his feet, still nursing a hole in his body.
Kelly fumbled in her panic, struggling to work the forearm of the weapon to clear the spent shell.
Ashton screamed and leapt towards her. He ripped the weapon from her grasp, causing her to stumble in his direction. With a quick snap of his hand, he batted her to the ground.
She yelped as she hit the floor.
The Faust pumped the shotgun, ejecting the shell and priming a new one. He trained it on Kelly. “No more games. One of you is going to give me what I want.”
He was right. And it was going to be me. I couldn’t watch Kelly or Ortiz bite it.
“You win. Let’s deal.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Ashton’s mouth pressed tight. He shut his eyes and inhaled deeply. “You’re not lying.”
“No.” I didn’t know how his sniff test led him to that conclusion, but I was glad it did. The last thing I wanted for was for him not to buy my words and take it out on Kelly.
“You care about them.” His face twisted like he’d smelled wet garbage on a hot day in the city.
“I do.”
Ashton scoffed and flipped the weapon in his grip. His arms blurred, pumping the butt of the weapon into Kelly’s back.
“Stop, you asshole! You got what you wanted. Leave her alone.” I clawed at the ground as I dragged myself towards the pair. Warning bells went off in my head as I pushed myself up. Ortiz was in rough shape, Kelly too. I needed to get Ashton out of here without making things more complicated for either of my friends.
Not as easy as it sounds.
“That makes you weak. Look at yourself. You’re beaten. You’re angry. And you just sold out. It’s all because of them.” He gestured to Kelly with a thrust of his chin before pointing to Ortiz.
I folded my fingers, making a fist and pushing against the ground with it. My body felt like it was made of cheap plastic. Anymore effort and I’d crumple in on myself. “You’re wrong.”
“What?” Ashton looked at me like I’d said something in another language.
Maybe I did as far as he was concerned.
Monsters don’t always get the little things about being human. Things like friendship. Things like putting yourself on the line for someone else. It’s not rational. It sure as hell isn’t safe. But nothing about being human is. Guess that’s what separates us from them.
I g
ot to my feet and rolled my shoulders. “People aren’t a weakness. Giving a damn about someone—something—isn’t a weakness. It’s strength. It’s why people get up time after time of being knocked down. That’s why I’m going to win.” I gave him a toothy smile.
The Faust’s eyes widened like he thought I was insane, and it was contagious. He recoiled a step, glancing over his shoulder to the mirror against the wall.
That’s right. Just play Alice and hopscotch your butt out of here.
Ashton sobered, his jaw hardening. “Win?” He shook his head. “No, it’s over. You’ve already lost.” He pointed the weapon back at Kelly. “Unless you’d like to do what Caroline did—renegotiate? It won’t end well.”
I stretched my smile wider. “No, I’m good. Let’s deal.”
His eyes narrowed, and he gave me a look of suspicion. “Good enough for me.” He bent at the waist, grabbing Kelly by her wrist and yanking her to her feet.”
“The hell is this?” I took a step towards him before catching the look in his eyes. It was a silent warning.
“Insurance. I don’t like my clients welching on deals.” He gave me dirty smile.
“Yeah, because you’re such squeaky-clean deal makers.” I glared.
Ashton shrugged it off, backpedaling as he pulled Kelly along.
Kelly’s face was a worried mask. She shot me a silent plea, asking for help.
She was going to get it.
I followed Ashton step-by-step, taking care not to advance too quickly and spook him into something rash.
He neared the mirror.
I wasn’t going let him drag Kelly into the Neravene. Not with what she’d already endured, and certainly not under his terms. Not when that place was his seat of power.
Ashton looked over his shoulder to the mirror and stopped in place.
Kelly stared past me, her face going through a mixture of emotions before a hint of a smile touched her face.
I followed her look, finding myself smiling.
Ortiz shook her head, pressing a hand to it and wincing. Her free hand smacked against the ground, feeling blindly for her gun. She found it, pulling it close.
I turned back, giving Kelly a wink before I moved to the side to obscure Ortiz’s line of sight.
Good thing that worked both ways.
Ashton fumbled with his one-handed grip on the weapon and his hold on Kelly. He let the gun go slack, hanging from its strap, before cutting through the air with his hand.
The surface of the mirror shivered like the glass was made of gelatin. The movement ceased as quickly as it’d happened. A prismatic rush of color rippled through the newly made Way, like watching a rainbow pass through glass.
Ashton had a finer touch with opening passages into the Neravene.
The manner in which creatures opened a Way spoke volumes about them. Open one smooth and controlled, it was a fair bet the monster was the same. That meant some things.
Ashton was definitely the one in charge of their operation. He had mentioned that Anna had been impatient. He was the Faust who likely chose to operate in the hospital. Heck, it was likely a moving gig. Pick out an apartment in a busy city or close enough to one, enough people would pass through any local hospital. Prey on the weak.
Easy targets.
He was the freak with the eye on the finer details.
The thing about that is, when you’re eyeing things too closely, you miss the bigger picture.
Ashton tugged Kelly, forcing her to come along. His focus remained behind him.
Of course, why bother with the humans who pose no physical threat?
Ortiz was about to remind him why.
The Faust hauled Kelly up to the mirror. He tossed the weapon aside and turned to face us.
“Kelly, now!” I waved a hand to my side, motioning for her to move away.
She screamed in defiance and swiped a hand towards Ashton’s face. Her nails raked his face, drawing a series of angry gashes beneath his eyes and over his nose.
He winced, more in reaction than pain, but his grip weakened.
Kelly shoved him hard and slipped free.
I stepped to the side, turning back and gesturing to Ortiz with a thumb pointed in Ashton’s direction.
“My pleasure.” She loosed shot after shot into the Faust.
His torso jerked with each bullet. He stumbled back from the impact as she hammered rounds into him.
Ortiz performed a solo percussion beat. A staccato made solely of the sound bang drove the Faust up to the mirror. Another trio of bullets hit home before one found his forehead.
He tumbled through the glass.
Ortiz and I wasted no time catching up to Kelly.
I placed a hand on her shoulder, but my attention was fixed on the still open Way. “Are you good?” I caught a silent nod out of the corner of my eyes. “Good.”
Ortiz stepped in front of me, her gun pointed at the mirror like she anticipated Ashton returning. “Kelly, go home. He and I will take care of this.”
“No, we won’t.” I pushed gently against Kelly’s shoulder, making it clear Ortiz should step away.
Ortiz raised a brow. “What?”
I matched her expression, quirking a brow of my own. “How do you feel?”
She squinted, unsure of what to make of my random question. “Like I was the piñata at my quinceañera—wrecked by a bat. I feel sorry for the piñata now.” Ortiz gave me a thin, lopsided grin and pressed a hand to her sides.
“Exactly. Look, I don’t want to say it, mostly for personal health reasons, but you look like crap.”
She glared.
“See what I mean? In all seriousness though, you don’t bounce back like I do. I’m made to take a beating, and this is one you don’t have to take any more of.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but I waved her off.
“I need you to do something more important. Wait here.”
“That’s it?” She gave me an oblique look. “You want me to sit here and do nothing while you go finish this?”
I shook my head. “No, I want you to make sure Kelly’s safe and stays that way. Once I go through there”—I pointed to the Way—“I want you to watch it carefully. If it looks like I’m not coming out after a reasonable amount of time, I want you to shoot it into as many pieces as you can. If you see anything in it, anything freaky or monstrous-looking, blow it.”
“But…” she trailed off.
“Yeah, I could end up stuck in there. I’m not a fan of it, but it makes sure Ashton’s not coming back that way. You and Kelly will be in the clear for a while. That matters.” I gave her a knowing look. “Make it happen, please.”
She bit her lower lip and nodded. “Yeah, I can do that.”
“Thank you.” I didn’t look back as I stepped through the mirror. In truth, I don’t know if I could’ve handled that.
The mirror clung to me like an army of small, liquid hands pulling me close.
I didn’t fight it.
The world faded, replaced by a familiar scene painted from a palette consisting of brown and gray.
I touched down against soft ground and looked ahead.
Ashton stared back at me from a dozen yards away.
He had recovered while Ortiz and I had our conversation and felt it necessary to put some space between us. He could have lingered next to the Way and ambushed me as soon as I’d stepped through.
Which meant he didn’t want me dead.
“What gives?” I turned to my side, eyeing him and positioning myself to guard the Way. If he wanted to get past me and have a shot at Ortiz and Kelly, I was going to make him work for it.
“I take it you’re no longer interested in honoring that deal you made?” He gave me a weak smile. The prospect of me backing out on my word didn’t seem to bother him much.
“What’s in it for me?” I grinned. “You lost your leverage.”
He waggled a hand. “Some of it, not all.”
Say what?
/> Ashton cracked the knuckles of one fist in the palm of his other. “I’m patient. I once traded a man eternal life for his soul. Bound his age into a portrait. So long as he lived, I couldn’t claim his soul. He thought he was getting the deal of a lifetime. I knew better. The vain guy eventually peeked at the picture and bit it. I got paid.”
I blinked. “That was real? That was you?”
He grinned. “All stories come from somewhere. And I know the one you want to hear most.”
“Yeah, and what’s that?” I took a couple of steps in Ashton’s direction. A whip crack sounded behind me. I turned my head without moving my body. The Way had shut behind me. A mirror, much like the ones floating around the rest of the place, hung behind me.
My way out.
Ashton moved a few feet towards me. “You want to know your past. I would too, in your shoes. Now, as you are, you’re nothing more than a soul—currency, as far as I’m concerned.”
The little shit trumpet.
“What, don’t tell me you’ve convinced yourself that you’re something more? Oh, I got it.” He pressed a hand to his stomach as if to keep himself from laughing. “You think you’re some sort of protector, helping people. Great job you did with Ariel, with Caroline, with the others.”
My jaw clenched tight enough that the pressure spread through my gums.
“Or do you think of yourself as something else? Maybe a spirit of vengeance, righting those who’ve been wronged? Sorry, they haven’t been. They’ve gotten what they asked for. Humans bring about their own suffering. No one does it better.” He smiled like he was pleased with himself.
“Maybe so, but we don’t need you helping us. So, go fuck yourself.”
He puckered his lips together in an O. “Oh, riled up, aren’t you? Maybe the problem isn’t what you think you are; it’s what you don’t know what to think. Let me help you by asking the simple question.” He cleared his throat. “Do you even know what you are? What or who you’ll be tomorrow?” His grin widened. He was taking pleasure in the mental gymnastics he was sending me through.
I’ll still be Vincent Graves. I’m not my body. I’m something more.
My fingers flexed. “You’re right. My body—my face—will change tomorrow, but I know who I am today. And I’ll still be that man tomorrow. Let me show you.” I charged him, pulling my fist back. His face seemed like a good as place as any to bury my knuckles.