Sirens and Scales

by Kellie McAllen

  Something in Kamala relaxed at the finality in her mother's words. "Thank you."

  Sahana nodded. "Now then, what of your project? You said you have a few days off to recover from the trip. What is next for you?"

  "We're taking care of a batch of diamondback dragons now and we have plans to clone another clutch of eggs next month. We've purchased the land and the facility for the dragon sanctuary. I'd like to personally see to its construction and then once the dragons are no longer in need of daily check ups, I'd like to start sending them there to be cared for on a permanent basis. A lab at MIT is no place for such creatures. They deserve the freedom to be what they are."

  "And what of Baba Yaga?" Sahana asked. "If they stabilize the dragon's behavior, would you try to parlay to have her sent here?"

  "I'm not sure," Kamala admitted. "That is a lot to undertake a dragon of that size. Her needs would be excessive, but it depends on what it takes to care for her."

  A faint smile touched her lips. "But I'd like to hear her sing someday. Maybe I will if I'm lucky."

  "I'd like to hear a dragon's song," Sahana smiled. "I've heard they're quite beautiful."

  "Ladies," Dr. Daeshim Anjali called from the terrace. "Lunch is ready. Come along."

  Kamala clutched her stomach as a pang of anxiety went through it. Sahana turned her head. "We'll be there in a moment, dear."

  She sighed. "It's time."

  "I'm gonna go throw up first."

  Sahana lifted Kamala to her feet by the hand and kissed her daughter's forehead. "It's alright, my flower. I'll be with you every step of the way."

  Kamala smiled weakly. "Through hell or high water."

  Sahana's brown eyes gleamed affectionately. "Exactly."

  They walked up the winding staircase up to the balcony and stepped inside. Kamala headed to the nearest restroom. Just as she stepped back out, one of the maids stopped her.

  "This just arrived for you," the young woman said, handing Kamala a small unmarked 6x9 envelope. Confused, she ripped it open and flipped it over to see what would fall out.

  She stopped breathing.

  It was an empty syringe and a note written in crooked, ominous lettering.

  "Promises to keep."

  Faye stood in Jack's kitchen, flipping the grilled cheese over in the pan, when her cell phone rang. Absently, she reached over and answered it, her mind too cluttered to even bother looking at the number.

  "Hello?"

  "Never been Tasered before."

  Winston's calm, deep voice spread over her eardrums.

  Faye went deathly still as he continued. "Hurts like a bitch. Now I know what I've been doing to people, and I have to say I feel kind of guilty. How's it going, blondie?"

  She licked her lips, trying in vain to control her breathing. She glanced around the den and out the back window, terrified that he'd be standing there, but he wasn't. "Been better."

  "Yeah. I take it you're at the beanpole's place. Didn't see you or the little lady doc at the apartment on my way out of town. How's that going?"

  Faye shut her eyes and gritted her teeth. "Did you really call to check up on me after you kidnapped me, you son of a bitch?"

  "What?" Winston said, offended. "Is that not allowed?"

  "You are psychotic, you know that?"

  "Yeah. I know." He sighed. "Really wish you hadn't taken my briefcase. That was a nice little nest egg that I'm hurtin' for right now. I hate being on the run. So tedious."

  "Then why risk contacting me? You know I'll go to the cops with this number."

  "Dunno," he confessed. "It's a long drive and I'm bored."

  "Bullshit," she spat.

  Winston laughed. "Alright, fine. Might as well be honest here. This is the first job I've ever blown, blondie. Period. Twenty years I've been at this gig and it went sideways because of you."

  An icy thread of fear wound its way around her spine. "So what does that mean? You want revenge? You gonna try to kill me?"

  "Kill you?" Winston said, indignant. "I'd rather take a shit on the Mona Lisa. You're a work of art, blondie. Why would I kill you?"

  "Then what do you want?" she hissed. "To fuck with me for the rest of my life?"

  "Eh, maybe not the rest of your life. Maybe just for a year or so until I've gotten the proper payback."

  Faye gritted her teeth. "The feds have your information now. They'll catch you if you keep playing this cat-and-mouse game with me."

  "Not worried about the feds," Winston said boredly. "I can throw enough stuff around so they're chasing their tails. Been at this a long time."

  "Yeah," she said lowly. "But not with me on your ass. Maybe I'm not an officer of the law or a federal agent, but you tried to kill me and my friend. You think I'm just going to let that slide? You think I'm just going to roll over for you because you've got experience on me? Dream on, asshole."

  Silence. She almost thought he'd hung up, but then he chuckled again. "Goddamn, blondie. Now that's what I wanted to hear. So here's the deal: I'm gonna lay low until the heat's off in your neck of the woods. It won't be anytime soon, maybe some months, maybe a year. I want you to get ready. I want you to become the biggest, baddest thing they've ever seen in Cambridge. Once you are, I'll be back. I want a rematch. I want to see just exactly what you're capable of. You're tiptoeing, Faye. You could become something incredible if you wanted to. Something no one's ever seen before. I want to see you evolve into what I think you were always meant to be. Until that time...be a good girl and take care of the beanpole and the little lady doc, will ya?"

  "Fine," Faye whispered. "Just be ready for when I hand you your balls on a silver platter, asshole."

  "I'm looking forward to it, blondie. Oh, and you're burning the grilled cheese sandwich, by the way."

  Click. Faye whirled around, panicked, her blue eyes darting around the room. She nearly screamed as she spotted Jack loping around the corner, rubbing sleep from his eyes. He immediately noticed her distressed state. "Faye? What's wrong? Are you okay?"

  "It w-was him," she stammered. "On the phone. The hitman. He said...God, I think he's watching me. Watching us. What if there are hidden cameras in here?"

  "Hey, hey," he said softly, drawing her into his arms. "Calm down. Breathe."

  He folded her into his chest, stroking her hair, murmuring that she'd be alright. Slowly, she stopped trembling after a minute or so. He drew back enough to cup her face in his hands.

  "We'll take the phone to the detectives and see if they can get anything out of it," he said. "You told me he'd tampered with it before. Maybe he's rigged the camera inside it or something. We can have them sweep my place for bugs too. But for right now, you're here and you're safe and we're going to figure this out, okay? He's not going to win."

  She nodded. He kissed her temple and gestured towards his room. "Grab your shoes and your jacket. I'll clean up and we'll go over to the precinct together."

  Faye stumbled into his bedroom and pulled on her sneakers, replaying Winston's words in her head. "I want to see you evolve into what I think you were always meant to be."

  Faye clenched her jaw and pulled her shoelaces tight. In spite of all the chaos, in spite of the terrifying threat he presented in her life, she knew one thing.

  Next time, she'd be ready for him.

  To be continued in Of Scales and Shadows

  Coming in 2018