by Multiple
“Yes. The usual clauses,” Athena said, typing on her laptop with quick, precise movements of her fingers.
Julie signed the contract without even bothering to read it. When she finished, Athena reached over and tucked the contract back into its file. “The money is in my account. I think we’re all set.”
“Excellent.”
“Just let me reset her collar for you.” She pressed a button and the static buzz of an intercom filled the room. “Please send Fred up to my office.”
Moments later, Fred brushed past me to scurry into the room, eyes blinking rapidly at the bright sun streaming in through the windows behind Athena’s desk. Putting Fred under harsh light was a mistake. His gray skin was paper thin with mottled blue veins running underneath. He wore the same tattered dress shirt and ill-fitting pants I had seen him in the day before. Fred may have left the basement, but the basement hadn’t left Fred, he smelled of wet steel with the rank undertone of someone who should shower more often. “You called for me Miss Athena?”
“Yes, mage. Sofia is leaving us today and her collar needs to be recast.”
“Very well,” he said with a deferential nod.
“Sofia, please come in and let Fred work with your collar.” Athena’s tone was pleasant enough, but I caught the narrowing of her eyes. This was a command, not a request.
Fred, Julie, and Athena all looked at where I stood in the doorway. I hesitated, even though I knew there was no point in fighting. Nor was there any escape, but I couldn’t just walk in like a lamb led to slaughter. There had to be a way out of this. Some last minute reprieve or overlooked loophole, but as the seconds stretched longer and longer, no rescue materialized. My life wasn’t some James Bond movie. I had no gadget to save me or advanced training or secret spook squad that would swoop in to save me at the last minute. All I had was me; psychic antique specialist. Which wasn’t much.
Athena sighed when I didn’t move. “I’m going to ask one more time. If you don’t cooperate, you’ll be disobeying a direct order. I believe you know what happens then.”
I put a hand to my throat and touched the collar. I could feel my pulse quickening underneath my skin, fluttering like a trapped bird against the indifferent metal.
“Come in and give Fred access to your collar.”
I put a foot forward, took one step and stopped. Why, I don’t know, but I just couldn’t let them take me without a fight.
Without warning, I crashed to the floor, making a grunting noise deep in my throat because I couldn’t open my jaw wide enough to scream. A sensation similar to thousands of sharp needles struck in waves across my body followed by strong, agonizing muscular contractions. I had disobeyed and now I was paying the price. The shock only lasted a few seconds, but left me worn, too weak to move. I lay on the floor, in a fetal position, and waited for the room to stop spinning.
Athena didn’t give me much time to recover. “Sofia, get up and do as I asked. The next shock will be at twice the strength, so I suggest you be quick about it.”
I flopped over onto my hands and knees, and tried to stand, only to find my legs wouldn’t hold me. With the three of them watching, I crawled, slowly and painfully, to where Fred stood. Once there, I sat, my legs tucked underneath me, and tilted my head to give him access to the collar. Just like a dog. I swallowed back bitterness while Fred tinkered with my collar. As before, the metal sparked, snapping heat across my neck and chest. This time I was prepared and didn’t flinch despite the pain.
“All set, Miss Athena,” Fred said, his smile revealing crooked, yellow teeth.
“You may go now.” Athena waited until Fred had left the room and then turned to address me. “You have been sold, but the collar you wear marks you as a renegade asset. You will always belong to us. Should Kristoff die or decide he has no use for you, ownership will revert to us. Fred has recast the collar so that you may cross the property line. The collar will still shock you if you disobey a direct order from a renegade or Kristoff, but is no longer set to kill if you run. However, any attempt to escape will be considered disobedience and will result in continuous shocks until you return or are re-captured. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” I stared at the floor.
“And just to save everyone the trouble, don’t be stupid and try to take the collar off. It can’t be cut or removed by anyone except Fred. Are we clear?”
“Yes,” I said again, my voice barely above a murmur.
“You can take her now,” Athena said to Julie with a dismissive wave in my direction.
Julia nodded and came toward me. “Thank you Athena.” To me, she said, “Can you stand?”
“I think so.” I rocked back on my heels, but my legs were shaking so much I couldn’t balance well enough to stand. Julia leaned down and grabbed my hand to help me up. The zap of the collar had scattered my mental shields and Julia’s touch was like a match in oil. A connection flared between us and, just like Detective Wallace, she wasn’t alive.
Who wasn’t a zombie these days?
Chapter Sixteen
Julia escorted me out to a sleek limo in the driveway. The driver held open the doors, his face impassive as if collared slaves were an everyday thing.
As the limo smoothly drove away, I turned to Julia and asked, “Why don’t you rot?” Ever since I’d touched her, the question had been burning in my brain—once it came online after being shocked, that is.
She gave me a surprised look. “Excuse me?”
“I know you’re a zombie. I’ve met others like you, ones that pass for human. Why don’t you rot?”
Her lips thinned. “That’s not a question for me to answer.” She pulled out her phone then and made a show of writing a text, obviously not wanting to talk.
I slumped in my seat, wondering if the nightmare I was trapped in would ever end.
*
The dilapidated brick building Julia delivered me to was located in the middle of a warehouse district. In the distance, the Boston skyline gleamed in the sun. The air carried a tinge of salt with it, signaling the ocean was close by. I wasn’t far from home, a thought that excited me for all of two seconds until I remembered the collar. So long as I had that piece of chainmail around my neck, there would be no escape. Not unless I learned how to overcome the effects of an electric shock long enough to get help. Something I doubted would happen.
Julie led me inside the building and we climbed, silently, up several flights of metal stairs until we reached the top floor of the building. Julia ushered me into a surprisingly modern office. I had expected the interior to match the exterior and be full of dirt and debris, but the inside had been refinished with dark, cherry wood on the floors and also in panels on the walls. Very posh, CEO in feel.
“Please take a seat.” She pointed to two leather office chairs across from a glass topped desk. “Kristoff will be with you in a moment.”
I sat, a sudden nervousness making my throat dry. From this day forward I was someone’s property, and, based on what Athena said, a lifetime member of the renegades. Anxiety quivered through my hands, and I clasped them in my lap. I had to be brave. I had to believe there was another way, that circumstances could change in my favor. This wasn’t the end, not by a long shot.
Then why did my life feel like it was over?
I heard a soft footstep behind me before a hand touched me on the shoulder. Even so, I jumped, a reaction driven by the impression of death and pain his touch imparted. I turned to see a tall, slim man with a sallow face and a hooked nose standing over me, a smile denting his sunken cheeks. I gasped. It was the man in black, the necromancer that had killed Jacob’s brother and his family.
He smiled down at me. “So at last we meet.”
“You’re Kristoff?” He didn’t look like a necromancer, or even a master criminal for that matter. Although, he did look like death warmed over which fit with the whole ‘raise the dead’ thing.
“Yes.” He moved past me to sit behind his desk.
&
nbsp; “Where’s Vera? Do you have her?” I asked, forcing my voice to be firm and steady. Being scared wasn’t going to get me anywhere. I had to be stronger than fear.
He gave me a sly look. “Your friend? She’s fine. Safe.”
I absorbed that for a moment, caught between relief and panic. Relief that I still had a chance to help Vera and panic that the same guy I’d seen murder three people had Vera and now me. Not a happy thought.
“Let her go.” I glared at him. I was in no position to make demands, but I had to try.
Kristoff arched an eyebrow, that looked extra dark against is pale skin. “Why would I do that? She’s fine where she is. I’ve even made arrangements for the renegade’s mage to make a collar for her. A futurist is a valuable asset to my operation.”
I winced at the word asset. I was rapidly beginning to hate it.“You don’t need a futurist to rob banks.”
“No, but I have other interests where she will be useful and, if that fails, I’ll sell her to the renegades.”
In short, he was never going to let her go. She would be trapped just like me. I rubbed my forehead and fought back tears of despair.
Kristoff watched me, an impassive look on his face. “Crying won’t help.”
“I know,” I said, miserable. “It never does.” So much for being brave.
Kristoff gave a nod of approval. “You’re practical. Good. I can use that.” He pulled open a desk drawer and threw a black velvet pouch at me.
I caught it by reflex. “What is this?”
“A crystal. You are to meditate with it every day for at least twenty minutes.”
“What are you a New Age murderer?” I cringed as the words left my mouth thinking I had gone too far, but Kristoff only laughed.
“No. Crystals are natural energetic amplifiers. We use them a lot in our work.”
“Our work?” I opened the bag and pulled out a long, oblique quartz crystal. Polished and transparent as glass.
“Yes. It’s essential to raising zombies.”
I dropped the crystal back in the bag. “I’m not going to raise zombies.”
He pressed his palms together and smirked. “Not yet, but you will.”
I shook my head. “No. I’m a psychic, not a Sidhe or supernatural. I don’t have the magic to raise the dead.”
“Sofia,” he leaned toward me, his dark gaze boring into mine, “Why do you think you see ghosts?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Bad luck?”
“It’s because you have power over the dead. All necromancers start out seeing ghosts.”
My stomach sank. “No.” It couldn’t be true. I’d never read any such thing in all of my research.
He settled back in his chair with a slight shake of his head, the corners of his mouth tightening. “Contrary to what you and most humans believe, psychic abilities aren’t the only human power. We also hold sway over death. Think about it, we’re the only species of the three that dies. The Sidhe live so long they are immortal by our standards and the supernaturals are truly immortal. We’re the only ones who know death and who can see it. If you know something and can see something, you can control it.”
“No,” I said again. He was making it up. Had to be.
“Yes.” He pointed a bony finger at me. “You, my dear, are destined to be a necromancer like me.”
I shook my head. “No, that’s not true.”
“Not true that you see ghosts?”
Well, I couldn’t deny that.
“Not true that your powers are expanding?”
I bit my lip. How did he know that?
“Don’t lie to yourself, Sofia. Lies coddle you, keep you from your full potential.” He leaned forward, his expression intense. “Your destiny lies with the dead. I will make you a mistress of death and together we will rule the world.”
My hands clenched into fists, ready to fight. “I won’t do it.”
“Yes, you will,” he countered.
“You think just because I wear this…” I pulled at the collar around my neck, “thing that I’ll do anything you want like a trick pony? Well, you’re in for a surprise, I’d rather die than raise zombies.”
“It’s not the collar you have to worry about it, Sofia, it’s me.” Kristoff captured my gaze again, and invaded my brain with the force of train flattening a penny, dominating my very being with his energy. Which is to say, it hurt. A lot. “When the time comes, it will be me who makes you lift the knife.”
My hand rose as he spoke, fingers closed as if holding a knife.
“And it will be me who guides your hand when you make your first kill.”
My arm reared back and then plunged down even though I threw all my strength into stopping it. It didn’t matter, I wasn’t in control of my body any longer. Kristoff was.
Kristoff laughed at my look of stunned horror. “This must be quite a shock to you after only using your clairvoyant capabilities with antiques. You haven’t even begun to test the full range of your limits yet.”
I remained silent. Kristoff’s version of ‘full range’ involved too much blood and gore for my taste.
“There’s so much you don’t know. I can’t wait to show you, but first you must learn to use the crystal.” He opened another drawer and took out a small white box. “And here’s an incentive for you.” He held the box out to me.
I leaned forward and took it from him.
“Go on. Open it.”
I did and shrieked, throwing the box back at him in shock. There had been a finger inside, small and gray. Probably a pinkie although I hadn’t gotten a close enough look to be sure. “What the hell is that?”
“You’re going to have to control your squeamish tendencies. You’ll be touching worse than this soon.” Kristoff calmly picked up the finger from where it had landed on the edge of his desk and placed it back inside the box. “It’s exactly what it looks like. A human finger.”
“How is that an incentive?”
“Come here.” Kristoff motioned for me to join him behind the computer.
I moved to stand behind him, peering over his shoulder as he typed. A series of security camera images popped up, staying on screen for a few seconds before switching to another shot of the building. I saw several views of different stairwells and a kitchen before a familiar face came into view. Vera.
I gasped and put a hand to my mouth. “You didn’t,” I said from behind my hand.
“I did and I’ll do it again.” Kristoff turned to look at me with cold eyes.
I tensed, wanting to launch myself at him, to wrap my hands around his throat and squeeze until I felt bones break. He must’ve sensed my intent as he held up a hand. “I wouldn’t do that. You’ll be shocked by the collar and it won’t help your friend.”
I stepped back and made an effort to relax. I might not like Kristoff, but that didn’t mean he was wrong. There was no point in fighting a battle I couldn’t win.
“Look, she’s fine.” He pointed to the screen where Vera lay on her side sleeping on a cot, her good hand curled almost defensively around the other, which sported a bulky white bandage. “I have a doctor on staff. We stopped the bleeding instantly and even administered a local anesthetic so she wouldn’t feel any pain.”
“She’s still missing a finger,” I snapped.
“She will lose another if you don’t learn to harness the crystal’s energy, “ he snapped back. “The state of your friend’s hands rests in yours. I would suggest you cooperate.”
I put my hands on my hips and glared at him. “What? You can’t force me? I thought you were all powerful.”
“I could, make no mistake about that,” he paused and I briefly felt the weight of his power pressing against my aura, threatening to snuff it out like a candle hit by a breeze. After a moment, he backed off and said, “But I need you to know what you’re doing. Brute force isn’t a substitute for skill. Consider yourself lucky, Sofia. I’m a master, a history maker. There’s never been a necromancer like me in the hi
story of raising the dead.”
“You’re talking about how your zombies don’t rot,” I said flatly. A raging headache pounded in my temples, I didn’t have it in me to be anything but blunt.
“Yes, exactly. It’s an innovation of mine, a twist on the old magic.” His dark eyes bored into mine. “I can bring back the dead, Sofia. I can make them live again and so will you.”
My mouth opened and then closed. I didn’t know what to say to that. A chill shivered up my spine as if the cold of the grave had reached out to touch me. As if it wanted to be sure I knew I was owned by the dead.
Kristoff pushed himself away from the desk and stood, smoothing the lapels of his suit. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a meeting downtown. Julia will be by shortly to go over the house rules and show you where you’ll be staying while you’re here.”
“Wait, how do I do this crystal thing?” Was he going to leave me with no idea what to do? That would just cost Vera more fingers.
“Meditate, find its energy, and you’ll figure out the rest. It’s not hard. Shouldn’t take more than a day or two to get it down. Actually, any more time than that and I’ll take another finger from your friend.”
And then he left, leaving me alone to wait for Julia, my zombie nanny.
She came just a few minutes later and took me to a small room with a single bed, lamp, and a small chest of drawers. “This is where you’ll sleep. Down the hall is the kitchen. There’s food if you’re hungry. You may go freely between those rooms, but do not go anywhere else in the building or try to use the phones. You will be punished.” The way she looked at my collar I knew exactly what my punishment would be.
“What about a bathroom?” I glanced around the room for a door leading to a bathroom, but, aside from the entrance, there wasn’t one. What was it with these people and the lack of toilets? Oh right. Dead people probably didn’t pee, but Athena wasn’t dead, at least as far as I knew from my reading of her. Nor was Kristoff.