by Gary Jonas
“Voice mail?” Lina said.
“He’ll give us a yell in no time. Always screens his calls like he’s some kinda hotshot.”
Sure enough, a moment later Cantrell’s phone rang. He grinned at me and nodded as he answered. “Howdy, Mike. How’s it hanging?”
After a few pleasantries, Frank said, “Yep, we got us a pretty big problem here. You been briefed on the Ravenwood situation? . . . Good. Well, the ol’ boy snatched Naomi Miller’s body. You know any way to send him to the roach motel without killing her?”
He nodded a few times. “Shit. . . . Uh-huh. . . . Okay. . . . Will do. . . . You have any ideas on that front, you give me a shout.”
When he closed the phone, he looked at me. “Ain’t lookin’ so good.”
“I got that impression. Tell me.”
“Mike has no clue how to get rid of him. The problem is that to send him away, first you’d need to get rid of his magic. Only surefire way to do that is to get him to transfer into someone who ain’t capable of any magic. Someone like you.”
“That won’t work,” Lina said.
I shot her a look.
“Oh, sorry, Jonathan.”
“What’s she talking about?” Frank asked.
“You going to help save Naomi?”
“I’ll do what I can. Now spill it. I’m missin’ something here, and I think it’s important.”
I hesitated but figured he’d find out soon enough anyway. “It’s easier to show you than to tell you.”
“So show me, then.”
“Try using any kind of magic on me,” I said.
“Something simple?”
“Anything. Try giving me a jolt.”
“Okay,” he said. He extended his index finger, and it started to glow like E.T.’s. He tried to zap me with a simple bolt, and of course, it had no effect.
“You can try something more powerful if you like,” I said.
“This might hurt a bit.”
“Make it hurt a lot.”
“You asked for it,” he said. “Call this payback for putting that psycho lady on my ass.” His hand glowed and he tried blasting me with a powerful shot. It was enough to stun an elephant, but I just stood there.
“I’ll be damned,” he said. “No wonder Naomi went to you for help. Even kill shots won’t work?”
“Nope.”
“Bet that comes in handy unless someone uses magic to throw a piano at you or something.”
“The problem is that Ravenwood can’t transfer into me. He’s tried.”
“I’d say we could just grab some ol’ boy off the street, but we ain’t allowed to do that. Council says we can’t mess with mundanes.”
“I’d rather we didn’t get any more innocent people hurt or killed anyway. That said, if there’s no other way, it might be necessary.”
“Needs of the many and all that,” Frank said. “I can’t do that myself, but I won’t stop you.”
“But how do we get him to transfer into someone else without killing Naomi? He won’t willingly leave a magical host.”
“Hate to say it, but there might not be a way around that.”
I was afraid he’d say that. I didn’t even want to consider it as an option. There had to be another way.
Cantrell paced back and forth, thinking.
“You keep pacing, I’ll put a vacuum cleaner in your hand,” Lina said.
“Place could use some cleaning,” Frank said.
“Better get busy, then.”
“Is there some way to force Ravenwood out of a host body?” I asked. “Maybe grab his spirit and hold it?”
“Sure,” he said. “All we need is another ghost of an ancient sorcerer.”
“I can get us a ghost, but not a sorcerer.”
“Regular ghost ain’t gonna be able to touch him, let alone yank him outta Naomi and hold him while we toss a spell his way to make him dissipate. If we had them crystals, it might help.
“Is there anything else that can hold a spirit?” Lina asked.
“Nothing real,” Frank said. “There might be some critters from mythology who could take him down to hell itself, but we ain’t living in la-la land.”
“Actually,” I said. “I may know someone who can help on that front. But we’d still have to get Naomi free first.”
“And if we can’t?”
“Then we have to keep him from killing Naomi while he’s being dragged away.”
“You ain’t gonna drag a powerful sorcerer away.” He looked me up and down then rubbed his chin. “Well, maybe you could.”
“Ravenwood knows about me,” I said.
“He ain’t gonna let you get close enough. Maybe we should run this by Mike. See if he can sort out a solution.”
Esther popped into the house. “Jonathan, he’s on the move!”
“Where’s he going?” I asked.
“Mike ain’t goin’ anywhere,” Frank said.
I ignored him and listened to Esther.
“He’s taking his torpedoes, and he’s going to DGI to take over.”
I turned to Frank. “Where’s Mike now?”
Cantrell glanced at his watch. “It’s five o’clock now, so he’ll be at the office for another hour or so.”
“Let’s go see him.”
“I’ll call him and tell him to expect us.”
I looked at Esther. “I need to know when he gets close.”
“Sure enough,” she said and disappeared.
“Who are you talking to?” Lina asked.
“No one.” I didn’t really want anyone else to know about Esther unless absolutely necessary.
Lina raised an eyebrow. “If you say so.”
“You coming with us, Lina?”
“Hell no. I never leave the house.” She looked at Frank. “He shouldn’t be up and about yet. I need another day to get him properly healed.”
“We don’t have that much time,” I said.
Cantrell slipped the phone into his pocket. “We’re good to go.”
When we stepped outside, Frank saw Kelly leaning against the Firebird. “Shit,” he said. “She gonna hurt me again?”
“Only if you try to call shotgun,” I said.
CHAPTER THIRTY
Mike Endar’s office was so neat and clean, it could have been used as a model suite. There were no personal touches anywhere. I would have expected a picture of the wife and kids or at least a stray piece of paper somewhere. To call the place Spartan would imply that he’d actually added something to it.
“Love what you’ve done with the place,” I said.
“Mr. Shade,” he said with a nod. “Ms. Chan. I remember you.”
Kelly shrugged. “I can’t say the same.”
“Good,” he said. He took his glasses out of his pocket and slipped them on. “No ghost?”
“She’s busy,” I said.
“Ghost?” Frank asked.
Mike ignored the question, removed his glasses, and returned them to his pocket. He addressed me. If I hadn’t been standing beside him, I might have wondered whether or not Frank even existed. “I’ve briefed myself on the Ravenwood situation.”
“And you’re aware that he’s on his way here right now?” I asked. “I don’t see any security precautions.”
“Nor will you.”
This surprised me. “So what’s your plan?”
“Other than Phil in the lobby, did you see anyone here?”
“No, but that’s not unusual. I rarely see anyone here.”
He nodded. “There were a few people here twenty minutes ago, but now they’re gone.”
“So you’re using the Run-Away-to-Run-Another-Day method?”
He spread his hands. “Not exactly, but I’m the only wizard on site now.”
“You can’t let him touch you,” I said. “He can take your body from you.”
“I’m aware of that, and I hope he does. That would free Ms. Miller and as part of the security department, it’s my duty to keep the emp
loyees safe.”
Esther popped into the office. “He’s outside, Jonathan.”
I nodded to her. “Okay, folks, it’s show time. Ravenwood is outside.”
Mike slipped his glasses on and smiled at Esther. “Hello there.”
“Hey there, sheik,” Esther said with a lustful grin. She started to sidle up to him. “Too bad I can’t get my hands on you.”
“Excuse me?” Mike said.
“She likes you,” I said.
“Who likes him?” Frank asked. “What the hell’s going on?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kelly said.
Mike’s intercom buzzed and Phil’s voice filled the room. “Mr. Endar? You’re going to have company. Naomi Miller is on her way up with a few friends.”
Mike pressed a button. “Thank you, Phil. I’ll take it from here.”
We stepped out into the hall and waited.
The elevator light went to fourteen then dropped back down, and the doors opened. Two Sekutar warriors stepped out, followed by Ravenwood in Naomi’s body.
The warriors stood aside.
Ravenwood smiled. “Not much of a welcoming committee,” he said.
Mike removed his glasses and handed them to me. “You may find this interesting,” he said.
I slipped them on.
Naomi’s body looked normal without the glasses, but with them, I could see Ravenwood swirling within her. Tendrils of energy wove around and through Naomi, and there seemed to be a glowing blue aura around her. Above Naomi, I could see silver lines of light flowing from a thick web of interlaced mesh that seemed to throb with power. I didn’t know what to make of it, but Mike explained it before I could ask.
“I see you’re loaded for bear,” he said. “Were you expecting to need that much energy?”
“One never knows,” Ravenwood said. “Are you prepared to turn this establishment over to me?”
“Yes, sir,” Mike said.
I handed the glasses back to him, and he slipped them into his pocket. I guess he’d seen all he needed to see.
“No fight?” Ravenwood asked, suspicious.
Mike shook his head. “There’s no reason to fight, sir.”
What was Mike playing here?
“What a pity. I was looking forward to establishing my dominance here.”
“Consider it established, sir,” Mike said.
“Where are my subjects?” Ravenwood asked.
“Down in the catacombs, trying to figure out a method to strip you of your magic.”
Ravenwood laughed. “I almost believe you.”
I was starting to believe him too. Was he trying to get Ravenwood to drop his guard a bit?
Mike shrugged. “It’s the truth, sir. The way you’re tied in with the power lines, there’s absolutely nothing anyone here can do to retain control of the company. To fight you would simply mean my coworkers would be killed. As such, I hereby grant leadership of Dragon Gate Industries to you.”
Ravenwood seemed unsure. “You’re surrendering?”
“Not exactly, sir,” Mike said. “By my reckoning, you’re simply my new employer. Assuming you decide to keep me on the payroll.”
Kelly and I shared a look. Clearly she was confused too. But we held off a little longer in case he had an ace up his sleeve. He was on our side. Right?
Frank turned to look at Mike, as confused as the rest of us. “You’re really just gonna hand the place over?”
Mike shrugged. “DGI is normally run by the most powerful or the most influential wizard or sorcerer. My view is pretty simple. We have no way to fight a hostile takeover because Ravenwood is clearly the most powerful sorcerer here. It would be bad for business, and I’m simply an employee. I work for whomever is in charge.”
Mike approached Ravenwood and bowed his head before him. “Is there anything I can do for you, sir?” Mike asked. “I’d like to make the transition to new management without bloodshed, if possible.”
“I’m afraid there has to be bloodshed. Jonathan, his warrior, and his ghost need to be destroyed, or they’ll keep pestering me.”
“They don’t work for DGI, so they don’t fall under my umbrella, as it were,” Mike said. “I might be able to find a way to eradicate the ghost, but I suspect that if you get rid of Mr. Shade and Ms. Chan that the ghost will not be a problem.”
“This ain’t right,” Frank said. “Naomi, if you’re in there, you gotta fight this son of a bitch!”
Ravenwood laughed. “Her feeble attempts to fight me are over. Are you siding with Jonathan?”
I looked at Frank. “You might want to stay neutral here.”
“Like hell!” Frank’s fists clenched and began to glow.
“As you wish,” Ravenwood said. He pointed at Frank, and a burst of energy sent him flying down the hallway. He crashed into the wall and fell to the floor. He didn’t get up.
“I’ll go down fighting,” Kelly said. She started forward, drawing her sword.
Ravenwood aimed at her, but I jumped in front of her, and his blast hit me and did absolutely nothing. “Kelly, let’s get the hell out of here.”
“Allow me to assist you,” Ravenwood said.
The floor buckled and flipped over, sending me ass over teakettle. I hit the floor hard, and that section flipped up too. Kelly fell on top of me, and the next thing I knew, Ravenwood sent chunks of the floor flying out the window at the far end of the hall. Kelly and I tried to grab the side of the window, but Ravenwood blasted the wall around the window apart, and we went out too. I saw the ground rushing toward me and figured it was time to kiss my ass good-bye.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Bad things happen in threes. First Anselma and Esther were tossed out a window. Next Kelly and I were blasted out a window. It seemed only fair that I should be able to chuck Ravenwood out the window too.
I fell toward certain death, but a sudden pain ripped through my left shoulder and my fall arced around. I smashed through a window and landed in an office on the tenth floor. I hit the floor hard, skidded over, and smashed into a chair, which in turn slammed into a desk then toppled backward to land on top of me. It hurt but it was better than dying.
“Holy shit!” a man’s voice said.
Blood dripped into my eyes, and pain lanced through every inch of my body. My shoulder throbbed. I groaned.
I heard footsteps then someone touched my back. “Holy shit,” the man said again and knelt beside me. “Are you all right?”
“Ooohh,” I said.
“Jonathan?” Kelly said.
I shook my head. Drops of blood splattered on the floor. The cut on my arm had reopened and stained the bandage crimson. My right side hurt a lot more than my left, though my left shoulder felt like it might be dislocated.
The man stood up, looked toward the window, and said, “Holy shit.”
Threes.
“Jonathan?”
“Kelly?” I said.
“I could use some help out here.”
I tried to push myself up, but my left arm wouldn’t work. Yep, it was dislocated all right. I used my right arm to lever myself up. Nothing seemed broken.
The man stood slack-jawed and stared out the shattered window.
I managed to get to my feet and saw Kelly. From my vantage point, she seemed to be hanging in midair, but since I couldn’t see her arms, I knew she had to be holding on to something.
“I’m slipping,” she said.
I staggered to the window and saw that she had stabbed her sword into the building and had a white-knuckle grip on the handle.
My vision blurred and I felt I would pass out. I glanced at the man, who still stared. “Hey, man. Can you help us here?”
“Holy—”
“Dude, get your ass over here.”
He obeyed.
I told him to hold on to me.
I leaned out the window and tried to reach Kelly. She was a little too far out for me to actually get a good grip on her since my left arm was useless.
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