One Last Breath

by S. C. Stokes

  Kasey and Sanders crawled out of the car. Sanders tossed the keys on the seat and closed the door.

  "You're making it a little easy for the thieves, don’t you think?” Kasey asked.

  “That’s the point,” Sanders replied. “The easier, the better. The ADI will be onto the car soon enough. If someone could steal it and take it for a joyride, they would actually be doing us a favor.”

  Kasey had to agree. She hoisted up the duffel bag and shut the door. It wasn't much, but the pickup had managed to keep them ahead of the ADI. Kasey wasn't sure just how far she wanted to be walking while smelling like the dumpster.

  She followed Sanders into the store and together, they wound their way through the aisles with a large shopping cart.

  If the other shoppers thought something of Kasey’s state, they kept it to themselves.

  Wandering the aisles, Kasey couldn't help but throw a few snacks into the cart: a bag of chocolate and some chips. She was starving.

  Sanders steered the cart toward the clothing section.

  Scouring the aisle, Kasey found a pair of jeans to replace her trashed pants and a couple of T-shirts.

  “You’ll need something for the cold,” Sanders said as he lifted a pair of hoodies off the shelf. “I’m grabbing one too.”

  The last time Kasey had worn a hoodie, she'd been breaking into Beth's apartment. The whole experience had gone rather poorly for her. She looked up to find Sanders staring at her.

  "Come on, without it, you’ll freeze. Secondly, we need to do whatever we can to conceal our appearance. So, you may find it distasteful but its privacy features will come in useful for us later.”

  Kasey raised her eyebrow, but Sanders wasn’t elaborating.

  She took the hoodie and tossed it into the cart. “Happy, now?”

  Sanders cracked a wide grin. “Yes. Very much so. I know it’s painful, but if we don't put in the effort, it won't be long before they pick us up. There are enough cameras in New York City they’ll find us eventually. If we want to stay inside the city limits, we’ve got to do something to stay ahead of them."

  Kasey grabbed the shopping cart. “We’re not leaving. If we leave, the Shinigami get what they want. There is no way in hell I'm letting that happen. There is too much at stake.”

  Sanders nodded. “Don't worry, after tonight we’ll have everything we need to turn the tables on him.”

  “Fill me in on the grand plan,” Kasey said, stalling the cart.

  "Not here. Too many potential eavesdroppers. I promise, I’ll share soon.”

  Kasey stepped away from the cart.

  Sanders grabbed a change of clothes for himself and started wheeling the cart toward the checkout. The clerk looked Kasey up and down, but said nothing, ringing up each of the items in turn.

  “That will be ninety-three, eighty-five,” the clerk said.

  Sanders reached into his wallet and drew out the cash.

  Kasey glanced at the wallet. With the purchase of the clothing, there was not a great deal left. They had been avoiding using debit or credit cards to avoid being traced, but their resources were severely depleted.

  "Running a little low," Kasey whispered.

  Sanders pulled out two fifty-dollar bills and handed them to the clerk. "Don't worry, Kasey, it won’t be an issue for much longer.”

  The clerk jammed the notes into his cash register, drew out the change, and handed it over. After sliding the coins into his wallet, Sanders took the bags and they made their way into the parking lot.

  "The pickup is still there,” Kasey said, nodding at the vehicle.

  “Don’t worry. It won't be for long,” Sanders replied.

  Ignoring the vehicle, they walked through the parking lot, across the street, and into the 24-hour gym. It was getting late and Kasey hoped the attendant behind the front desk wouldn’t be paying attention.

  “Passes, please,” the attendant asked.

  No such luck.

  "We’re from out of town," Sanders said, turning to the counter. “No passes, but we were hoping we could pay for a single session.”

  "Interested in getting a membership?” the clerk asked, studying Kasey’s disheveled state.

  "No, thanks, we’re only in town for the night,” Sanders said.

  The attendant’s gaze drifted down the bags Sanders was holding.

  Then, he shrugged. “That'll be twenty dollars each, thanks.”

  It was steep, and Kasey knew it, but the prospect of drawing extra attention was enough of a disincentive for Sanders to reach into his wallet and draw out the last fifty-dollar bill and hand it over.

  The attendant snatched it and jammed it in the register before handing Sanders his change. Sanders nodded at him, then headed into the gym. Kasey followed after Sanders as they wound through the machines. She had no intention of working out.

  Instead, she headed straight for the showers.

  As her hand hit the door handle, Sanders tapped her on the shoulder, “Any chance you can do something with your hair color?”

  Kasey paused, then ran her hand through her black hair. She loved her hair. The thought of coloring it was difficult to stomach.

  She let out an exasperated sigh. “I'll see what I can do.”

  Sanders nodded. "Thanks, Kasey. I appreciate it.”

  Kasey pushed open the door to the ladies’ amenities, duffel in one hand, her bag of goodies from the store in the other. Shuffling over to the showers, she stopped only to grab a towel off the shelf. Then she stepped into the shower and closed the door behind her.

  Layer by layer, she peeled off each of the items of clothing the dumpster had soiled. As she pulled the T-shirt over her head, she got another whiff of her former hiding place.

  “Well, I won't be sorry to see you go,” she said, tossing it in the corner of the stall.

  She turned on the shower and stepped under the heated jets. She let out a deep breath. The steaming water bathed her skin, driving away the stress of the day. She allowed herself a few minutes to relax, simply letting the water wash over her.

  After a few minutes, she went to work purging the last vestiges of her time in the dumpster. When she finished, she stepped out of the shower and pawed around in her duffel bag for her compact. She flipped it open and narrowed her gaze into the mirror.

  She was loath to cut her hair but after her time spent masquerading as Agent Helene at the ADI, she had a better idea. Running her hands through her hair, she took a deep breath.

  "Lliw Gwallt," she whispered. Her fingers began to glow as she moved them through her hair. Wherever they went, her lustrous black locks shifted into long blonde tresses.

  Not for the first time, she was grateful for her magic. Going from such a dark tone to blonde was a feat she would have never dared with mundane hair dyes. It was the sort of job for a salon, which unfortunately was not a luxury Kasey had available right now.

  The arcane dye did its job well, though. In no time, it had dyed the front portion of her hair from root to tip. Using the mirror and her compact together, Kasey slowly turned and continued administering her enchantment to ensure she managed to get all of her hair. It just wouldn't do to have a singular brown patch in a hard to reach place.

  It took about ten minutes before she was satisfied that she had hit her desired tone. Raising her fingers to her face, she ran them over her eyebrows. To the extent possible, she wanted to ensure there were no obvious flaws in her disguise. She lifted the compact and moved it behind her head. Confident everything was in order, she admired herself in the mirror.

  She'd never dared to go blonde. Something about it had always intimidated her. But admiring her new tresses, she couldn't help but smile.

  "That's not half bad," she said to herself. Her entirely different look, combined with the change of clothes, would mean it would take more than a few glances for someone to realize it was her. Short of using an illusion to mask her identity completely, this was as close as Kasey would get.

  Usi
ng magic to maintain a full body illusion was draining. Doing so for minutes was feasible, but doing it for hours or days on end was simply an untenable proposition. Kasey had no idea how the Master of Shinigami managed to do so effortlessly. The amount of energy required to impersonate Arthur Ainslie for an entire year was difficult to fathom.

  Moreover, the more magical energy that she unleashed, the more likely they were to draw the ever-watchful eye of the Arcane Council. Small spells here or there might get lost in the bustle of magic that was New York City, but the amount of energy required to maintain a full-body illusion for both her and Sanders would eventually draw attention.

  Kasey shut off the water and grabbed her towel. After drying herself, she dressed in her new clothes. They were a natural enough choice and would help with her disguise.

  She opened the shopping bag, took out the new duffel, and loaded the few possessions she would retain into it. Then, she piled all of her old clothes and shoes into the old soiled duffel and zipped up the bag in an effort to contain the stink.

  She let herself out of the stall and then deposited the entire duffel into the trash. The eighteen-year-old using the hairdryer at the sink glanced over her shoulder at the noise, but Kasey ignored her. Shouldering her new duffel bag, Kasey made her way out of the bathroom and into the gym, hunting for Sanders. Kasey scanned the room but didn’t see him.

  I’d have thought he’d beat me out.

  Turning Kasey slowly searched the room again, and did a double take. There, leaning against the wall in his hoodie and cargo pants, was Sanders. It had taken Kasey a moment to register it was him, as her fellow fugitive had done a little work himself. If she had not been hunting for him, she would have walked straight past him.

  The stubble that had been growing out over the past few days of neglected shaving was now a fully-fledged beard. Instead of its usual dark brown tone, it had streaks of gray mottled through it. The salt and pepper look added ten years to his age. Not something most men would be keen to do, but clearly a price Sanders was willing to pay to keep himself out of the ADI’s cross hairs.

  His hair had been styled with the same attention to detail but was shorter, almost a military crew cut but it too shared the same streaky gray appearance he had affected with his beard.

  Sanders was patiently scanning the gym for any sign of trouble. As she approached his gaze looked straight past Kasey. She smiled; obviously the hair was enough to fool even his heightened sense of alert.

  She bounded up to him. "Hey there stranger, love the beard. Really digging the retired grandpa-slash-homeless man vibe you got going here."

  Sanders did a double take.

  "Wow." His gaze lingered on her hair.

  "Someone has a thing for blondes,” Kasey taunted.

  Sanders laughed. "You know what they say, they do have so much more fun.”

  Kasey gave him a playful shove. "After the last few days, I'm not sure how much fun I can handle.”

  Sanders zipped up his hoodie. “If I'd known you'd be willing to go blonde, I might have suggested it days ago.”

  As they headed toward the exit, more than a few heads turned to stare at her.

  "I don't know that it's having quite the effect we were looking for,” Sanders whispered. “This seems to be drawing more attention than we were before."

  Kasey smiled and gave her hair a superficial flick. "I know. I look fan-tas-tic."

  She pretended to drink in the lingering glances of her admirers.

  "Lucky me,” Sanders said with a smile.

  Kasey raised an eyebrow. “I don't know about that, Grandpa. Everyone here will think you're a cradle snatcher."

  Sanders nodded. “That, or they will think I’m incredibly wealthy.”

  Kasey scoffed. “Sounds like a stretch. You're definitely looking more like a homeless person than an eccentric billionaire. You missed the mark if you were going for the Tony Stark look.”

  Sanders leaned in and whispered, “I am Ironman."

  Kasey laughed and with the week she’d had, it felt good.

  Sanders only had a couple of years on Kasey. While he hadn't made the greatest impression during their brief meeting at the Arcane Council, over the time they'd spent together the past few days, Kasey had to admit the handsome ex-director had been pretty good company. Kasey’s eyes lingered over him as she followed him out of the gym.

  As close as she could tell, he was single. Sanders didn't have a wedding band and hadn’t made any mention of his family. Kasey had considered asking but hadn't wanted to make things awkward. Now with his appreciation of her new look, Kasey was glad she hadn't. She didn’t want to give him the wrong idea.

  Sanders was handsome enough and until his current predicament, he’d been a rising star in the world of magic. As one of the youngest directors the ADI had seen in over a century, he certainly had a lot going for him.

  Kasey had come to appreciate his easy-going humor. In spite of all that had occurred around them, Sanders still managed to make her laugh. The last time she’d felt this way had been at the manor, with John.

  As John entered her thoughts, Kasey felt a pang of guilt. She hadn't spoken to him since she had left the Administorium. Whatever had been going on between them had been put on hold by her fresh status as a fugitive. She wondered what he must be thinking. She had dozens of missed calls from him, but Kasey knew better than to use her phone. It lay at the bottom of the duffel bag, the sim card stashed in its case. She didn't want to give the ADI any opportunity to trace her movements.

  What was happening between her and John?

  It was a question she had never expected to be asking herself. Dinner had gone well enough. John had been charming and considerate, even funny at times. His help over the past few weeks had been welcome. Kasey wondered what he must be thinking. The ADI may not have known what happened at the Cathedral but they would certainly have their suspicions by now.

  Regardless of how they considered that incident, Kasey breaking into the Arcane Council had put her on the hit list right next to Sanders.

  John was living under the roof of the Master of the Shinigami and didn't even know it. Kasey had considered warning him, but decided against it. Telling him would only place his life in danger.

  After witnessing Theo’s murder, Kasey was not going to place John in harm’s way like that. Unfortunately, that meant allowing him to believe she was now a fugitive aiding his father’s would-be killer. She had no idea what was running through his head, and badly wanted to speak with him, but there was far too much at stake. His life, her life, and the well-being of the city depended on her taking a longer term view of the situation.

  I need to deal with the Shinigami, then hopefully he'll understand.

  "What are you thinking?" Sanders asked.

  Kasey knew what she was thinking: she'd gone from no man in her life to two potential suitors, both of whom seemed interested in her, but neither of whom Kasey really understood her own feelings for.

  That is a problem for another day. She drove the encroaching thoughts from her mind.

  Turning to Sanders, she flashed a smile. “Nothing much, just wondering where we are heading.”

  "Oh, Kasey, just wait until you see the night I have in store for us.”

  "Night? You make it sound like a date.” Kasey was kicking herself as soon as the words were out of her mouth.

  Sanders’ grin widened. “You'll never have had a date like this. Just you wait.”

  He raised his hand and waved down a cab. The cab pulled over, and Kasey and Sanders slid into the back seat.

  "The Bronx, please,” Sanders called to the driver.

  The driver nodded and took off, merging into the evening traffic.

  Kasey scowled at Sanders, but he only settled against the seat, smile in place.

  The Bronx. Why on Earth are we headed there?

  Chapter Three

  The taxi ride passed in silence, Kasey having given up on trying to pry Sanders’ plan out
of him before he was ready. The taxi pulled over and Kasey and Sanders climbed out of the back seat. Her feet had barely hit the sidewalk before the taxi took off down the darkened street.

  "I hope that plan is going to kick in soon,” Kasey said. "That was the last of my cash, and your wallet is looking pretty thin too."

  "Yeah, I wouldn't worry about that too much,” Sanders jammed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. “This little stop should allow us to replenish our resources and give us what we need to strike back against the ADI.”

  "How do you figure that?” Kasey asked, searching in the darkness. There was nothing of note in sight. It was a run-down street in the Bronx. She couldn’t see how it would help their circumstances.

  “Our major problem has been running from hotel to hotel. They know we’re using cash and must be running low, so they just keep moving from dingy motel to dingy motel looking for us there. There are only really so many places we could be. They are finding us through trial and error for the most part and it’s only a matter of time. We can't rely on anyone we know, as they are still definitely watching them, so we are cut off and slowly running out of funds. We’re about to fix all that.”

  Kasey cocked her head to the side. "Call me a stickler for the detail, but that still seems rather vague, and I'm not sure that I'm a fan of your choice of lodging for the night."

  Sanders waved his hand, as if brushing away her concern. "Oh, relax, we won't be staying here.”

  “Good,” Kasey replied, eying the decrepit buildings. “From what I know, gangs run most of this neighborhood.”

  Even with her considerable skills both as a witch and a formidable martial artist, she was in no mood to hang around.

  “Just follow me,” Sanders replied, “and put on your hoodie.”

  She dropped the duffel bag, pulled out the hoodie, and slipped into it. New York was easing slowly into winter. No doubt the coming weeks would bring with them snow. It was going to be a white Christmas.