by May, W. J.
“Yeah,” he kept his voice remarkably steady, “it was fun. So do you want to come back to the hotel? I could come to your place if you want. Meet in the middle? What sounds good to you?”
She paused, and, for a second, the entire room held their breath.
“Why don’t you come to my place? I can open a bottle of wine. I’ll change into the little pink thing you like. We can—”
“That’s great,” he said quickly, cutting her short. “Text me the address, and I’ll head over.”
There was another pause. “Are you…okay? You sound a little off.”
Rae’s heart caught in her chest.
But Julian spoke so smoothly, Rae almost believed him herself. “Sorry; it’s just my friends.” He lowered his voice, “They keep trying to get me to go out with them on a tour of the city. It’s driving me friggin’ crazy, and I can’t stop thinking about you. And now that pink thing.”
She laughed a clear pretty laugh that sounded nothing like the evil seductress Rae knew she was. It was a little creepy, being faced with the lie straight on. She could only imagine how Julian felt.
“Well, come to see me, baby, and I’ll help you forget all about them.”
His face tightened painfully and he looked down. “Okay; I’m on my way.”
He went to hang up the phone, but she called out once more.
“Jules…I love you.”
He caught his breath, and Rae could have sworn a single tear fell down his face.
“I love you, too.”
* * *
The address Angel texted Julian brought them to an apartment uptown. It was in a nicer neighborhood, mostly residential, while the opposite side of the building opened into a busy shopping center. Actually, the whole thing reminded Rae very much of the apartment waiting for her back in London, and she looked up at the skyscraper, jealously, from her place hidden in one of the stores.
The plan was simple.
All five friends would follow in behind Julian, invisible, and when they got close enough, both Molly and Rae would shock Angel at the same time. The only trick was that they all had to be touching to maintain invisibility, and that meant that Rae and Molly would have to detach at precisely the moment they fired off the lightning.
When phrased like that, it didn’t seem so hard.
They’d been through worse. Hell, they’d been through much worse. And, Rae had to admit, it would be rather satisfying to get revenge on the girl who’d torn out her best friend’s heart and stomped it all over the floor.
Except, the way Julian had warned them about Angel made her pause. She knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
The second Julian opened the door, Rae sensed something was off.
All the curtains were closed in Angel’s apartment, and, while that might be normal, considering the evening she had in mind, what wasn’t normal was the way her eyes darted around the outside perimeter before coming to rest on Julian.
Rae had done that same visual sweep before. It wasn’t cursory; it was tactical.
Then there was Angel herself.
Rae had to admit, as much as she hated the girl, Angel was stunning.
Long sheets of white-blond hair framed her creamy-skinned heart-shaped face; a face so pale in color it made her blue eyes jump out like little diamonds glittering in snow. Her lips were meticulously painted, and her body was slender, but fit. Knowing what she knew now, it wasn’t hard for Rae to imagine this seemingly-delicate-looking girl springing suddenly into action or abruptly whipping out a gun.
“Hi,” Julian said quietly, noting her minute hesitation just as Rae had. “Can I come in?” He smiled charmingly, and her face melted into an equally easy smile, dazzling them all with a row of perfect pearly teeth.
It’s a shame she’s such a psychopath, Rae thought to herself. She and Julian would have made some beautiful children.
“Of course,” she purred, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him inside.
It was a gamble on both sides. He made sure to leave the door open so Rae and others could slip through unnoticed, but she kept her hands on him—meaning that Rae and Molly didn’t dare shock her, for fear they’d get him as well.
“It’s good to see you,” he murmured with a believable smile. His eyes sparkled down as he took her arms and tried to gently remove them from around his neck.
She beamed back, but held fast, grinning as she stood up on her toes. “Likewise.”
For a moment, neither one of them moved. The hands on the clock seemed to be stuck in place as Rae’s eyes darted between them, wondering what to do.
Then, in a truly heartbreaking moment, Angel kissed Julian.
His head bent down to meet hers as her slender hands wove through his dark hair. Their eyes shut, and Rae realized, her own eyes prickling with tears, that the kiss was real.
Then Angel pulled away.
And Julian…didn’t.
If only Rae had realized what was going on. If only she had understood a second sooner.
Julian wasn’t lingering in the kiss.
He was frozen.
By the time she figured it out, so was she.
Angel had twirled in a wild spin, stretching her fingers into the air, when she’d caught the edge of Molly’s arm. Unfortunately, with all four of them still connected, her deadly ink worked its magic on them all. Rae’s group cloak of invisibility lifted immediately, and all four of them popped suddenly back into view, each with looks of identical shock. It was exactly like Julian had said.
It wasn’t that Rae couldn’t move—it was like she didn’t remember how. She tried to focus very hard on her feet, willing them to somehow break free, but it was like trying to hold a fistful of water. The harder she tried, the more every ounce of control slipped right through her fingers.
“So,” Angel stepped back with a little smirk, “this is the infamous gang. Let’s see,” she mocked as she stepped down the line, one by one. “You must be Molly. Little redhead, never stops talking, power to shock.” She flicked the edge of one of Molly’s fingers before she moved on. “Then we have dear old Devon, the best friend. Dean of Guilder’s son. Golden boy of the Privy Council. Fennec fox tatù.” She rolled up his sleeve and examined it curiously. “Cute.”
Rae’s blood boiled in her veins. This would be easy, huh? Five on one, huh? They’d been fools. There was a reason Cromfield had picked her. This girl was like walking Novocain.
“I think you must be Luke.” Angel paused in front of him only briefly, just to check his arm before moving on. “No ink at all, so I’m not really sure what you’re doing here.” She stopped and glared at the last of the lineup. “And, of course, that brings us to the belle of the ball, Rae Kerrigan.” She stared at Rae with a cocky grin. “Cromfield said to be careful of you. What a joke.”
Rae wished she could grab the little tart and fling her across the room. Her stupid mouth wouldn’t work either.
“So you’re the one all the fuss is about…” Her eyes took on a hard glint as she reached out and flipped back one of Rae’s curls. “I’m not going to lie, Kerrigan; it’s kind of weird to finally be seeing you in person. I feel like you’ve been haunting me. You’re all I hear about—day in, day out. You’d think you were a god or something. But, no, here you are, frozen just like the rest. Stupid little girl.”
Rae glared at her. Stupid? Little girl? She had her mother’s heart, but her father’s temper. When this stupid freezing wore off, she was going to give this dark Angel a little taste of her own medicine.
Angel grinned again and took a step back to examine them as a group. “Julian’s told me all about you guys, you see. Nothing sensitive, of course, nothing indiscreet. But you’d be surprised what a guy will say in the heat of the moment.”
Rae felt as though she was going explode on the spot. Who the hell did this girl think she was?! First she uses Julian, and now here she was, rubbing it in his face?!
But a part of her didn’t really believe that. The hear
t part. Rae had seen that kiss. It was real on both sides.
Angel had fallen for Julian just as honestly as he’d fallen for her.
“He really cares about each and every one of you,” she said matter-of-factly. “Respects you.” Her ice blue eyes flicked back to him with a hint of resentment. “He respects me, too, or at least I thought he did. So imagine my surprise when he brings all of you here to…what, honey?” She stroked the side of Julian’s frozen face. “Take me down?”
Think, Rae, just think. There has to be a way out of this.
Like clockwork, she flipped through every tatù she had, one after another. Nothing worked. It was like her whole brain had been dipped in ice. It had simply stopped moving.
All at once, her heart skipped a beat.
Stopped moving? At a cellular level? Well, maybe there was a way to speed that back up.
Rather distracted by the sudden turn of events, Angel crossed the room to where her cell phone lay on the table. “Well, I’m not going to lie; I wasn’t quite counting on this to happen. I know my boss obviously wants to meet you, but he wanted to get a few things ready first…”
As she paced back and forth, unsure what to do, Rae switched into the one and only tatù she had that was still working: Maria’s telepathy. She sent out the message to everyone at once, ironically pleased that Luke, who had never had someone speak inside his head before, wasn’t able to jump and give them all away.
Okay, guys, here’s the plan. I’m not sure if this is actually going to work, and I can only use one tatù at a time. So here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll count down from five. On the beat after, everyone hit the deck. Then, Molly, I want you to send out a shockwave like you’ve never done before, got it?
There was a pause.
Stay frozen if you got it.
Nothing like a little telepathic humor to lighten the mood.
In the background, Angel finally began dialing her phone to call Cromfield. It was now or never.
Okay, on five…four…three…two…one…NOW!
In a flash, Rae switched from Maria’s tatù to Camille’s—sending out a blast of super-speed vibrations throughout the air.
It worked!
It freakin’ worked!
Angel’s ink obviously took effect on a molecular level, slowing things down. When applied correctly, Camille’s could literally shake it loose. Just as Rae sent out the blast, she hit the deck, covering her head in the same instant.
Except…nothing happened.
Molly—now!
Nothing.
There was a gasp of shock, and Rae slowly opened one eye then the other. She cautiously lifted her head half an inch to see Angel’s boots standing in front of her.
Before she could raise her head the rest of the way, a vicious kick in the ribs made her double over in pain. She flew back with a piercing cry until she hit something hard and came to an abrupt stop.
It was Devon, she realized with a start. Still frozen. They were all still frozen, standing in a line behind her. Her brilliant freakin’ plan had apparently only worked on her.
She reached up and grabbed handfuls of his jacket, half-apologizing to him as she pulled herself to her feet. With a frustrated sigh, Angel came at her again.
“How the hell are you still moving?” she demanded furiously, tossing back her white-blond hair and storming across the room.
Rae’s eyes glittered as she relished what was sure to come. “Guess this little girl’s not as stupid as all the rest of them.” Acting instinctively, her body switched into Jennifer’s tatù. She angled herself half behind Devon, and brought her lips down to his ear as she whispered, “I’m sorry about this, too, babe.”
A disgusted expression floated across Angel’s face. “Hiding behind the boyfriend? Really? Even I wouldn’t do that.”
Rae cocked her head and glared. “Well, you wouldn’t really have the option, would you? Seeing as Julian was never really your boyfriend.” She was taunting Angel, trying to get her to come just close enough, but she meant the words with all her heart. This girl was going to pay for what she’d done to Julian. She was going to pay for it right now.
The second Angel stepped within range, Rae leapt into the air, spinning around using Devon’s neck—sending her body rocketing forward. She kicked Angel squarely in the chest, feeling the impotent hum as Angel tried to freeze her again before smashing into the sofa across the room.
Damn cushions, Rae thought as Angel pulled herself up and sprinted back across the room.
But, this time, the tables had turned. Angel might be able to freeze, but Rae could shake it.
Furthermore, Rae was suddenly able to freeze people…
“What are you—” Angel’s voice cut off in surprise as she suddenly stopped in place, a curling fist still wound up behind her head. For a moment, her eyes dilated in fear, but then she focused herself and broke free—using her childhood mastery of the ability to shake it off. “You stole my ink!”
Rae smirked, walking slowly towards her. “Well, usually I ask permission first, but seeing what a raging bitch you were to my friend…I decided just to go for it.” She held up her hands thoughtfully as the new tatù hummed through her skin. “But, thanks, Angel. It’s not one of my best, but I’m sure it’s bound to come in handy.”
Angel’s eyes flashed ice blue. “No ink, then. Just you and me.”
“I can’t think of anything better.”
With a muted crash, they came together. Fists flying. Legs kicking. Eyes flashing as they fell in a tangled heap on the floor. Angel was not nearly as delicate as she looked. The second they landed on the carpet, she knocked Rae’s jaw back with enough force that a pool of blood flooded her mouth. Rae spat it out and countered with a punch of her own, catching Angel right below the eye.
“Just…stay…down!” Angel cried, tugging on Rae’s hair and kneeing her in the face.
Rae collapsed to the floor but spun around in a wide kick, taking Angel down with her. “You know,” she panted, elbowing Angel in the eye, “we should have known it was you.” She struggled to break free of a chokehold. “You are so…not…Julian’s…type!”
They broke apart with a scream and came back together again.
This time, the fighting got dirtier, the tatù rule instantly forgotten when Angel temporarily froze Rae as she scrambled backwards. But she had barely gotten to her feet before Rae shook it off and launched herself forward in a gust of wind, sending them both crashing through a nearby coffee table.
Both girls cried out as they landed in the pile of broken glass, and, for a moment, there was a brief truce. Rae bit her lip to stop from crying as she pulled a huge shard out of her hand. On the other side of the room, Angel was doing the same thing, extracting the razor-sharp shrapnel from her leg. Molly, Devon, Julian, and Luke were still standing in a frozen line, watching the battle unfold.
For the briefest of moments, Rae looked up and met Devon’s lovely eyes. They might have been frozen in place, but it was easy to see the pain there, the overwhelming helpless fury of watching from the sidelines, unable to help.
I’m fine, Dev, she said telepathically. I’m fine.
But even as she thought the words, they suddenly couldn’t be less true.
There was a soft click. Soft but unmistakable.
One little sound, but it changed everything.
Rae’s heart stopped in her chest as she rotated slowly d.
It was a gun, alright. But Angel wasn’t pointing it at her—she was pointing it straight at Devon’s chest.
“Angel, wait—”
“Not a word, Kerrigan,” Angel interrupted, steadying her hand. “And I know all about your little powers. Try anything, he’s dead. Disappear, he’s dead. You might be fast, Rae, but you’re not faster than a bullet.”
Rae’s face paled as she wondered whether that was strictly true. Either way, it wasn’t like she could take the chance. And, from where she stood, she couldn’t reach Devon. She could only re
ach Julian.
Wait…Julian.
Her heart started tentatively beating as she slowly reached out her hand. That might just be enough.
“I said don’t—”
But Rae had already unfrozen him, using Camille’s ability to shake the freeze loose.
His head came back up slowly, finally released from his unending kiss, and his dark eyes locked on Angel. It was impossible to say who looked more devastated, who looked more betrayed. But from the moment he was free, there was something else there as well. Cold, hard determination.
“Angel,” he said softy.
Her hand trembled on the gun.
“You’re not going to shoot my best friend.”
Her eyes flickered to him for the briefest of moments before returning to Rae, carefully monitoring her behavior.
“I can’t just let you go, Jules. You don’t understand. Cromfield will—” Her voice choked off in sudden fear before dropping to a low murmur. “I can’t just let you go.”
Julian calmly ignored this, taking a step between Devon and the gun.
“Jules. Stay back,” she warned.
Another step.
“I’m warning you—I’ll shoot!” her voice shook, slightly, but she stood her ground. “Don’t make me shoot!”
But Julian positioned his body between them, staring down the barrel of the gun with the same steady determination that he did everything else in his life.
“If you want to shoot him, you’ll have to shoot through me,” he answered calmly. Whether or not he thought she might actually do that, it was impossible to tell. But, by now, the gun was full-on shaking; a shaking that only got worse as Julian started walking towards her.
“Julian…please,” she whispered.
The gun was almost touching his chest now, but he didn’t give it a second glance. His eyes were only on Angel. “Put it down,” he said softly, his voice as low as hers. “Angel…just let it go. It’s over.”
There was a wretched cry, and the gun suddenly fell to the floor. It hit the carpet with a dull thud as Angel’s eyes welled over with tears. She didn’t look at anyone. It was like she didn’t dare. But Rae still kept a close eye on her as she walked over and quickly unfroze the rest of her friends.