by Tom Twitchel
I pulled the door open and was instantly greeted with a loud steady beeping, probably warning of a much louder alarm that would begin blaring momentarily. Refusing to let my nerves paralyze me I forced myself to walk quickly into the bank and started scanning the desks that were clustered in cubicles toward the rear of the interior. It took me several moments to find Mr. Pancetta’s desk plate. I grabbed it, stuck it in my pocket and hustled back to the front door. When I was outside I reversed the lock, coaxed the security bars back into their slots and listened. The beeping stopped. As guilty as I felt about what I’d just done I patted myself on the back mentally.
Then the big alarm went off.
Moving as quickly as I thought advisable I joined the group on the other side of the street, dropped my camo and kept walking. Nobody said a word until we had turned a corner and the bank was hidden from view.
I stopped near an alley and we all huddled in the shadows of the surrounding buildings. I chucked my chin at Oso. “Do we go back now?”
He grinned. “Nice job, nino.”
“You know, I don’t think I like that. Never did. Since I just put my neck on the line for the ‘team’ I think you can call me by my name,” I said. The momentary pride I’d felt had evaporated and now I only felt compromised. Less than what I had been at the beginning of the evening. I thought back to Trey’s calling me as bad as Baffle. Was I losing myself in all of this?
Brin reeled off a couple of profane suggestions. Apparently she and her twin had more than a womb in common.
Oso chuckled and bent his head over the map. “We go back.”
I started walking and was surprised when Justine fell in beside me and slipped her arm around my waist.
We had walked about half a block when Sawyer and his group came out of an alley, blocking our way.
My senses jangled. The vibe I picked up from them was a mass of confusion.
“What you got?” asked Isaac, as they walked up to us.
“Who’s he?” asked Ethan, pointing at me.
And then it got screwy.
FIFTY-SEVEN: PLAYING FOR KEEPS
I felt Oso behind me, but without turning around I couldn’t sense his mood. Ethan opened his mouth to say something and Oso shot forward clipping him on the jaw with a hard left hook. Ethan collapsed to the pavement. Isaac leaned away but Oso got him with a wicked right jab. He stumbled back, grunted and then raised his head to scowl at Oso.
Lunging forward, he grabbed one of Oso’s arms, swung him around and pulled him into a headlock. Oso ripped off a series of elbow smashes into Isaac’s face, but other than moving the giant’s head with each blow, they didn’t seem to have any affect. He growled and closed a hand around Oso’s throat, choking him.
Talia stepped away from the fight, but Brin jumped on Isaac’s back, digging her fingers into his eyes. I glanced at Sawyer and saw him rubbing his hands together, sparks snapping and popping. I could tell he was gathering himself to blast someone. Focusing my telekinetic influence I envisioned a cocoon of knack power surrounding him. He threw his hands out and a flash of electricity flared, expanded and then washed back over him. Electrical ribbons of light danced within the telekinetic shield and over his body. His eyes popped open wide, he shook convulsively and then dropped to the ground. Talia stared down at him and then back at me. She began frantically digging at her backpack.
“He wasn’t going to shoot you!” she snapped.
We were in the middle of a fight that I didn’t really understand. Whipping my head around I saw Isaac still grappling with Oso and Brin. Oso had stopped struggling. I drew my stun gun from under my jacket and leapt at Isaac.
I jammed the gun into his neck. He reared back, convulsing, letting go of Oso and tripping over Sawyer. Oso dropped to his knees and slumped against the building next to us. Brin was thrown off, hit her head on the ground, and lay still. Partial success, but not exactly what I’d been aiming for.
There was a zipping sound behind me. I turned to see Talia pull a cord on her backpack and two huge sail-like wings snapped out of her pack.
“This would be a good time to bail,” I said to Justine.
“We can’t just leave him. What the hell is going on?” she said as she knelt by Oso. She placed a hand on his chest and the hair on my neck stood on end.
“You better pray he’s alright!” snapped Talia as she ran up to Sawyer and crouched beside him.
I was still trying to make sense of what had provoked Oso’s attack.
“What was your task?” I asked, watching Justine out of the corner of my eye as she knelt over Oso. He started moving, Justine’s hand on his chest.
Talia swore. “We were supposed to follow you and steal whatever you took from some bank.”
So the test of our morals had gone beyond breaking and entering. They’d also wanted to know if we would fight with no other provocation than competing for membership in the Shade community.
“And you were just going to go along with that?” I asked.
Looking up at me, Talia’s eyes blazed. “No ass-hat! We didn’t care about that at all. We were going to grab my sister and take her back to the old man at the pawnshop. The big goon was going to be a problem.” She glanced at the unconscious Isaac. “Him, and that skinny wuss.” She sneered at Ethan’s unmoving body.
It started to make sense to me. Oso had read Isaac’s mind and assumed that Sawyer and the others were going to jump us, and take the prize for themselves.
Oso coughed, as Justine continued to press her hand on his chest. Isaac moaned and tried to get up. I leaned over him and gave him another jolt. He trembled and was quiet.
“Justine, please. You’ve helped Oso. We can leave. This isn’t going to go anywhere good,” I said.
Pressing her lips in a thin line she looked down at the sidewalk.
“No. I want to know what this is all about, and I want to be more than a bystander.”
I considered taking off on my own. I was leery of continuing with the game and where it might end. But I couldn’t allow her to get in deeper without me. Sighing I looked over at Talia.
“What do you want to do?”
“What I said, moron. Once Sawyer comes around we’ll take Brin to the old man.” She stood up and walked over to Brin.
We were all standing around, half in and half out of the alley. All we needed was for a police car to swing by and we’d all be in trouble. I bent down and started dragging Ethan into the alley. Seeing what I was up to Talia grabbed Sawyer’s jacket by the shoulders and pulled him off the street too. Justine started to drag Brin, but Talia pushed her away and picked up her sister, gently setting her against a wall. I used my knack to drag Isaac off the sidewalk, and into the alley. Then we waited nervously for the others to come around. Oso shook off the last of the cobwebs, and pushed himself off the ground. He took in the situation with a scowl, and then knelt by Brin. She sat up, and it became obvious that we were going to have a problem.
“Come on Brin,” said Talia. “Sawyer and I want to get you looked at. This Shade thing is stupid.” At least she was direct.
“I’m not leaving Miguel, and we’re not going anywhere but back to that meeting!” Brin snapped.
She’d woken up with her attitude right where she’d left it. Ethan sat up, rubbing his jaw. No one bothered to help him to his feet.
Oso glowered at Isaac’s unmoving body. “I’m going back too, Benjamin. You can leave if you want. It would be safe. They don’t even know you are here.”
I glanced at Justine who shook her head and wouldn’t look at me. Sawyer coughed and sat up. He rubbed his chest and stared at me in confusion. “What the hell did you do to me?”
“He turned your shizz right back on you, that’s what. Come on. Let’s get Brin and go.”
“I’m not going with you!” spat Brin.
“I’m out. If Brin isn’t going to cooperate I’m done,” said Sawyer.
“You son of a bitch!” said Talia.
Sawyer glared
at her but didn’t respond.
“What the hell are all of you talking about?” said Ethan, a dark bruise blooming on his chin.
“You should just take off man,” I said.
Frowning, he waved a hand in my direction. I felt a surge of knack influence push me. It was strong enough to almost knock me off my feet.
He was trying to use his knack on me. For a second I was surprised, and then I remembered that everyone in this band of misfits was hoping to join the Shade network. A supernatural collection of crooks.
“You’re going to want to knock that off,” I grunted, fighting through the influence he was throwing at me.
In answer he redirected his focus to my legs, making me stumble backward. That was enough. I squared off on him and using my hands to guide my knack I focused on pushing him against the alley wall.
The result surprised me.
He flew back against the building and flailed with his feet kicking about six inches from the ground. His feeble attempt to mess with me vanished as he tried to free himself. I intensified my influence and he slowly inched up the building, sputtering and kicking. I suddenly became aware of the others staring at me.
“What?” I asked, as I let him slide back down onto his feet.
“Benny,” Justine said, her eyes wide.
“Whoa, Benjamin. You are badass,” said Oso.
I flushed, embarrassed as I saw Sawyer’s openmouthed awe and Talia backing up a step.
“Whatever,” I said. “What are we doing?” Ethan edged away from me, looking worriedly at Isaac.
Oso patted his pocket where he’d put the nameplate. “We win. We go back.” He looked at Sawyer and his team. “You all should go,” he said as he put an arm around Brin’s shoulder. She leaned into him and raised her chin defiantly in Sawyer’s and Talia’s direction. Even in his mission to be accepted by the Shades Oso couldn’t help trying to give other people an out. I glanced at Justine, but she wouldn’t make eye contact.
“Okay, we go back,” I said. “What do we do about him though?” I asked, nodding at Isaac.
Oso shrugged. “Leave him.”
Leaving the guy exposed didn’t seem right to me even though he’d tried to take Oso out. I focused my knack under him and used it to push him further into the alley. I ignored the stares from the group.
“I’m going back too,” mumbled Ethan.
“Why?” asked Justine. “You heard what they said. They’ll do something to you.”
He shrugged and jutted out his chin. I was amazed at all the stupid, obstinate behavior going on around me. It seemed like the only thing you needed to join the Shades besides a knack was an attitude.
“Whatever, hombre. Your funeral,” said Oso.
“Brin, please come with us,” pleaded Talia.
Brin just snuggled closer into Oso’s side and glared at her sister. Talia swore. Sawyer walked up to her and she tried to push him away, but he grabbed her arm. She looked at the rest of us, her eyes focused on Brin. She ducked her head and threw an arm around Sawyer. Without looking back they trotted into the street. Her wings caught a gust of air and they were lifted several feet into the air. The wings flexed and tilted as they ascended. It only took a minute before their flight took them over a roofline and out of view. We all stood there with our mouths open. Ethan uttered a curse and shivered. Oso chucked his chin at me and turned back in the direction we’d been headed. Brin clung to him looking over her shoulder with a smug look.
That left me, Justine and Ethan standing at the alley entrance. Shrugging, I offered my hand to Justine. I couldn’t let her go back without being there to protect her. Tentatively she took my hand and we followed Oso and Brin back to the underground entrance.
I didn’t look back but I heard Ethan’s footsteps behind us.
The trek back into the underground went faster, having been through it once already, and we were back at the entrance to the old storeroom in less than a half hour. I camouflaged myself before we entered. Weller stood by a chair, looking at her cell phone. The seating arrangement had been changed and one of the chairs next to Weller was occupied, but the occupant was covered by a sheet. My neck hairs wriggled with apprehension.
Griff walked forward, and smiled.
We all shuffled to a stop.
“So yer the group that made it back,” Griff said. “Where’s the proof?”
Oso dug the nameplate out of his pocket and tossed it to Griff.
“Nice,” he said. Then he frowned at Ethan. “What’s he doing with you? He was on the other team.”
Ethan stumbled forward, placing himself next to Griff. He pointed a shaking finger at Oso.
“We took it from them. Then they hit me and took it from me,” he said. “The rest of my team took off.”
I shouldn’t have been surprised, but I was, and I had a pretty good guess as to what was coming next.
“And there’s another guy helping them. He’s made himself invisible, but he’s probably right here in this room.”
Yep, that would be it.
FIFTY-EIGHT: BRING ME HER BROOM
I CONSIDERED LEAVING my camo in place but figured that would probably lead to them using Justine or Oso as leverage to get me to reveal myself. I dropped my camo and promised myself that I’d figure out a way to thank Ethan for ratting me out.
Weller’s eye’s reflected surprise and then a satisfied smile spread over her face. I thought back to her promise to see me soon and gritted my teeth. No one likes to be that easy to predict. She waved a hand toward the makeshift seating and we all took seats. No one wanted to be next to the shrouded thing. Weller remained standing, while Griff stood behind her giving me a suspicious look, his hand on the gun that he’d had stuffed into his waistband. Weller’s expensive-looking gray dress fluttered slightly from a breeze that swept in from the open alley door.
Walking over to Ethan she stared at his eyes and walked slowly around him. He swayed nervously.
“The exercise’s success was predicated on whoever managed to bring the prize back. Not who retrieved it first. But I think you’re lying in any event. Not necessarily a bad trait...unless you’re lying to me,” she said softly. “Griff whatever shall we do with this young man.”
Griff shrugged. “Ice him?”
Nodding her head as though considering what Griff had said she continued her slow walk around the now clearly frightened Ethan. I wanted to feel sorry for him but his betrayal made it hard for me to get there.
“Why don’t you take a seat?” she purred and gave Ethan a gentle push in our direction.
Walking on rubbery legs he staggered to a chair far from us and the shrouded form.
Turning to us she looked at me with a big, teeth-baring smile. “So, here we are, sooner than I thought. But you and your team made it back with the bauble, and you survived a tussle with your competitors to bring it here. Good. Initiative and resolve are both very important for the road ahead. We’ll need to track down the failures, I don’t like bad PR.”
My mind went to worrying about Sawyer and Talia. His motivation had made him less of a traitor in my eyes, and his sister, as nasty tempered as she was, had only been trying to save her twin. I itched to find a way to warn them. Isaac could rot for all I cared.
“But we promised all of you something. Two somethings actually. For the victors: advancing to the next step. To the vanquished...,” she glanced at Ethan, “...a just punishment.”
She stepped forward and pulled the sheet free from the hidden figure sitting with us.
I involuntarily flinched away from what she’d uncovered. The things I’d seen and experienced in the last two years hadn’t jaded me but they had made it harder to shock me. Score one for Weller. I was shocked.
What she had revealed didn’t look human. More like an extra from a zombie movie. Thin ropes held the body to the chair. Matted hair hung down over the face, flesh hung loosely on the exposed arms and legs. The skin had a greenish pallor. The torn and dirty clothing were ba
rely more than rags.
“We’ll get you something to sustain you soon dear,” said Miss Weller, signaling to Griff. He approached the thing in the chair and waved a hand. The ropes fell away and it slumped forward, almost falling out of the chair.
Then the head raised and I sucked in a breath. Two cloudy eyes looked out from the disfigured face. Lavender.
FIFTY-NINE: WRONG PLACE WRONG TIME
SONJA HAD SEEN better days.
The last time I’d seen her, she had been leering in my face, preparing to rip my knack, and my life, from my body. A blast of flame had blown away that image and I’d assumed that she had gone into hiding, healing and plotting to recapture me. Maybe that had been her original plan. There had been numerous unexplained deaths after that which I had assumed had been her doing.
Then again, maybe not.
Her face and arms were covered with burns that had not fully healed. Nasty rips in her face and head where the skin had split were crusty and black. That she was moving at all seemed like some perverted miracle. She stood up, a staggering, teetering lurch. Her right shoulder hung lower than her left, her dress stained with dried blood. Her head, hung low, swung loosely as the cloudy lavender eyes swept over the people in front of her. The broken-gate swing of her head came to a stop as she focused on me. The pale lips twitched.
Bring it, bitch.
As the once-Sonja-now-undead-thing took a shuffling, tortured step toward me Weller cleared her throat.
“Uh uh, don’t be greedy,” she said, signaling Griff. He waved a hand and it came to a sudden stop. The cracked and blackened brows twisted, the eyes didn’t leave mine. I couldn’t take more than a few seconds of that before I looked away. Weller glanced at us as Griff held Sonja back with his knack.
“This creature is an example of how the other side has been killing us off. This wretched thing has been used by the dwarf to reduce our numbers one by one. She showed the bad judgement of trying to attack a powerful individual. You can see that it didn’t work out well for her, poor thing. Now, as an abject lesson we’ll use her as an example of what happens if we allow the Naturals to defeat us.” I gritted my teeth while she lied to us. “Would you hold down the liar please?” Weller asked Griff.