He came at me again. I batted his hands away. He caught me with an elbow, and I fell back a dozen feet, landing hard.
"Do you know what it's like to be so close to the power, but never drink it?" he asked. "To watch everyone around you become something more while you're still just you?"
"No," I replied.
The answer incensed him even more. He came at me a fifth time, launching an attack with a speed and fury I couldn't match. Maybe Alyx hadn't heard me, and now I was going to die.
I did everything I could to deflect his attacks until I just couldn't keep up anymore. In a last ditch effort to save myself, I used my power on my shirt, changing its structure and letting his claws bounce off the hardened material. It was a delaying tactic, nothing more.
I continued to backpedal, searching for Bradford behind Hearst. The Nicht Creidem had to get away. He had to get to Dante and Alyx and Rose and tell them what had happened. I knew they wouldn't give up even if I didn't make it. They would find Rebecca and Abaddon.
I finally spotted him. He was on the ground; his knife buried in his chest.
He wasn't moving.
Shit.
My anger flared. Or maybe it was a renewed sense of desperation. I caught Hearst's next blow, holding his wrist tight. He tried to dislodge me with his other hand, and I caught that one, too, my arms folded over one another, gripping him in a tight cross. He struggled against me, his strength immense. I refused to let go. The two remaining vampires were done with Bradford, and they started coming our way, seeing their boss in trouble. I had to do something, quick.
I let Hearst go. He was pulling against me so hard he stumbled backward, bouncing into his cronies and falling to the ground. I clenched my teeth, reaching out with my power, wrapping it around one of the massive engines beside me. Could I move that much weight?
It was do or die, and I didn't want to die.
A horrible groan preceded the block of steel as it shifted its position, lifting into the air and rotating. Hearst bounced to his feet, ready to charge me again. I released the engine and threw my power out, knocking him over and at the same time pushing Bradford well beyond the landing zone.
"Hold this for me, will you?" I said, action-hero style, as gravity regained the humongous turbine, bringing it down on top of the three vampires.
They vanished beneath it, a spreading pool of blood that sizzled and turned to ash the only sign of their passing.
Forty-One
I wanted to check on Bradford. Instead, I fell to the ground, completely exhausted. A moment later, Dante appeared directly in front of me, his hand on Alyx and Rose's shoulders.
"Landon," Alyx said, running over and kneeling beside me.
"Landon, are you okay?" Rose asked.
"You're late," I said, glaring at Dante. "Really, really late."
"My apologies, Signore. We ran into some trouble on the deck."
I looked at Alyx. "You ran into trouble?"
"More of Hearst's vampires. I had to be careful they didn't touch me."
I nodded. I was happy she was safe.
"What happened down here?" Dante asked.
"Rebecca took Abaddon. She had a Riftstone. I don't know where they went. Hearst was under there."
"You're saying Abaddon is gone?"
"Yeah. He broke the bond. He doesn't want me to destroy him anymore. He thinks Rebecca is his dead wife."
"Why would he think that?" Rose asked.
"Because she told him, she was, and he believed it. Alyx, can you help me up?"
"Of course."
She put her arm under my shoulder and lifted me easily to my feet. She helped me walk slowly around the engine to where Bradford was resting. I fell to my knees, leaning over him.
"He's dead," Alyx said.
Damn. I was afraid of that.
"He thought he was invincible because he was immune to Divine power," I said, checking him. It wasn't the knife that had killed him. They had broken his neck, just like I had worried they would.
"Did you say immune?" Dante asked.
"Yeah, why?"
"That isn't possible, Signore."
"I tested it out myself. Nothing Divine could hurt him. He didn't even feel it."
Dante stared down at the dead man. "Do you know if he had children?"
"He said the Nicht Creidem used him as a stud for a while until he fizzled out. He said some of the kids survived, but most of them didn't make it. Is there a point?"
Dante looked thoughtful and distant. "Probably not," he said at last. "It is of little concern right now."
"He was the only one who could see Rebecca," I said. "I don't know how we'll ever find her now."
"That should be easy," Rose said. "Find Abaddon."
"Yes, but I mean when she tries to run. She's too dangerous to be having her way with the mortal world."
I looked at the third-eye on Bradford's forehead. "Dante, do you know where to find a ring or a necklace or anything that has the third-eye on it?"
"Not offhand. I can consult with Alichino."
"Yeah. Go and do that. Make sure you write it down. He's been worried about you, you know."
"The demon? He simply tolerates me."
"Maybe that's how he acts. It isn't how he feels."
"I will contact you when I find something. Be safe, all of you."
Dante disappeared.
"We don't have time to go on a treasure hunt," Rose said. "Abaddon is loose, which means it's only a matter of hours before the entire world starts falling apart." She glanced back at the engine. "I wish I had gotten to be the one to crush Hearst, after what he did to Elyse."
"I know," I said. "On both counts." I kept staring at the scar on the Nicht Creidem's head. I needed a third-eye to see Rebecca. Dante might find one, but how long would that take?
A macabre thought wormed its way into my head. In other circumstances, I might have ignored it. Desperate times.
"I have an idea," I said. "It's going to be a bit gross."
"What is it?" Alyx asked.
I reached out and pulled the knife from Bradford's chest. I put it against his forehead and began to cut.
"We need an eye," I said. "This is the only one available."
Rose wrinkled her face but didn't say anything. Alyx seemed intrigued.
"I can do a better cut," she said, one of her fingers extending into a claw.
I removed the knife, and she reached down and slowly traced along the skin, cutting around it. When she was done, she lifted the patch of flesh away and held it up to me. The sight made me a little nauseous, and her ease of handling the skin was a lot less than sexy. The next part would be even worse.
"Put it here," I said, tapping my forehead. Alyx did as I asked, positioning the eye against my head.
I used my power to push the flesh tighter against my skull while at the same time pushing my skin over it, fusing Bradford's skin to mine. It took a little doing, but as I worked the graft on, I began to feel a change in sensation coming from the stolen mark. It tingled against me, and when I looked around, I could see wisps of energy floating in the air that hadn't been there before.
"I think it's working," I said.
"Great," Rose replied. "What about Dante?"
"What about him?"
"We could use his help."
"To do what?"
"Stop Abaddon, maybe? What is it with you and him, anyway? He keeps trying to do the right thing, and you treat him like he's nothing but an errand boy."
I felt the anger, but I wasn't going to let it get the best of me. Not with Rose. "It's a long story. The bottom line is that the Beast was his fault."
"From what you've said, it seems like the Beast was either nobody's fault or everybody's fault."
"How do you figure that?"
"He fooled everyone. So either everyone is culpable because they didn't figure it out, or nobody is because he was just that good at it. Blaming one person who was doing the best they could-"
&nbs
p; "Dante did more than that. He was a Servant of the Beast for a while."
Rose paused, but only for a moment. "Which he clearly regrets, no?"
"Yes."
"Then why do you have to keep punishing him? He comes every time you call. He does everything he can to make it up to you. He told me how sorry he is, but that he can't seem to get that through to you."
I stared at her. I knew her well enough to know she wasn't going to back down. She was right, anyway. It was about more than just the Beast. It was Dante who had sent me back here to live this life, and the raw, selfish truth of it was that I hated him for that. Maybe I had saved the world. Maybe I was the only one who could do it. It had been more hurtful than happy. I had suffered more than I had succeeded. Finding things to care about helped, but it only went so far.
Especially when those things wound up suffering, too.
Maybe that was why I had fallen for Alyx so quickly and so easily. Maybe she was the one creature who might suffer less with me than she had before me. Maybe she was the one thing that could share this life and be better for it. She seemed happy in her loyalty to me, happy to live for it, and to die for it.
"It's complicated," I said at last.
She rolled her eyes. "Bullshit, Landon. Let's call off the pity party and optimize our efficiency."
I nodded a little less than enthusiastically. "Fine, but we need to save him until we need him. The fresher he is from Purgatory, the stronger his power."
Rose smiled. "Okay. You're the boss."
I couldn't help but laugh at that.
"Should we get out of here?" Alyx said.
"Not yet," I replied. "I want to check out Abaddon's prison. At the very least, I want the sword."
I got to my feet, still a bit shaky. Alyx took my arm and helped support me while we crossed back over to the open compartment.
The inside looked as though a bomb had exploded. There were bits of metal and wood everywhere, scattered around the space along with the ash of dead demons. I scanned the debris, looking for the blade Dante had told me about. If it could sap Abaddon's power, I was sure it would come in handy.
"I don't see it," Rose said. "Maybe Abaddon took it with him?"
"He wasn't holding it when he left," I replied.
"It must have been slagged, then."
I pushed some of the splintered wood aside, revealing a hilt with no blade attached.
"I found a piece of it," I said, dismayed.
"Here's another," Alyx said, lifting a shard of metal with angelic scripture on it.
"This might be one," Rose said, finding a third piece.
"Let's collect as much of it as we can find. We might be able to put it back together."
We spent the next ten minutes gathering the shards and collecting them in my jacket. Then we headed back up to the deck. I had no idea where Gervais had gone, or if he were coming back. I expected we would have to find another way off the ship.
I was only half surprised to find the NYPD chopper waiting for us when we arrived topside. I had known Gervais was going to do something I didn't like, and he hadn't disappointed. He was standing in front of the helicopter, and he waved us over when we popped out of the stairwell.
"Landon, you're still alive. Good."
"You didn't have to kill them," I said.
"I know, but it was boring being out here while you were having all the fun. Do you need a ride?" He shifted form, becoming the pilot. "I won't be missed for a few hours at least."
"Just take us back over to the island," I said. "We'll figure things out from there."
"Affirmative," he said, giving me a weak military salute.
He always had to be an asshole.
Forty-Two
"So, what next?" Rose asked.
We were back at my apartment. It had been four hours since Gervais had airlifted us back to Manhattan, and I had needed a little bit of downtime to recharge.
I had escaped to my bedroom and fallen out of everything almost instantly. Alyx was curled up against me when I woke, alert and waiting for me to come around. She greeted me with a kiss that brought me back to life in an instant, and now we were trying to decide on our next play.
"We can't stop Abaddon until we know where Rebecca took him," I said.
"Obviously," Gervais said.
"He also can't stay hidden for long," Rose said. "His power will start destroying things whether he likes it or not."
"Again, obviously."
"Even if we do find him, he's more powerful than any of us," Zifah said. He was sitting on the sofa behind Rose, his eyes shifting down to look at her bosom every few seconds.
"Is this going to be a meeting for statements of the obvious, or will we have some true mental exercise?" Gervais asked.
"What's your problem?" Rose said.
"Perhaps I don't want to lose this world to an upstart vampire ghost, eh? You should feel the same way."
"Gervais is right," I said. "Even if his motives are self-serving. Let's look at what we know. First, we know we need to get Abaddon out of action before he either destroys humanity or Rebecca uses him to get into Heaven."
"I still can't see how that plan will work," Rose said.
"It won't, which is part of the problem. Second, we know the only way to do that is to get him into the Fist of God. So let's start there. How do we get him into the Fist? Is it as simple as opening the latch and pushing him in?"
"Cain believed it was," Zifah said. "With the runes he created, and the ring." He pointed at the ring I had taken, still on my finger. "Get the demon inside, and it will do the rest."
"Are you sure it will work?" Alyx asked.
"I'm not going back to Hell to ask Cain, so who knows."
"If we don't have anything else to go on, let's assume it does," I said. "So third, we know we need to get Abaddon and the Fist of God to the same area."
"Central Park?"
"It doesn't have to be Central Park, but it would make it easier not to have to carry the armor around."
"Dante can teleport it," Rose said.
"Four," Gervais said, "We need to do something about Rebecca. How do you kill a ghost?"
"I can kill her," I said. "If I can get close enough to her."
"Oh?" Gervais said. "This is new. Do you think you will be able to do it when the time comes? Or will you feel sorry for your old flame once more?"
There was no doubt in my mind or my voice. "I'll do what I have to do. She had her chance to change, and she chose not to."
"The eye should help you get close," Rose said.
"It looks disgusting, by the way," Gervais said. "Though I commend you for the effort. I'm pleased to see I am rubbing off on you."
I put my hand up to the third-eye, feeling the marks in Bradford's flesh. It was my flesh now.
"Speaking of close, we also can't get too close to Abaddon," Rose said. "His power will destroy us before we can do anything to him."
"Yeah," Zifah said. "It has to be an ambush or a trap or something. If he sees it coming, we'll never get it done."
We were all silent for a few minutes while we considered our options. The number one problem was that of us all, only I could get near the demon, and even then not for very long and not without devoting a lot of my energy to protecting myself from him. Whatever we did, we would have one shot at getting it right. No rehearsals, no margin for error.
"I have an idea," Gervais said, breaking the silence.
I raised my eyebrow at him. Any idea of his was bound to be designed to work out in his favor.
"I don't hear anyone else volunteering," he said, smiling politely.
I didn't have a solid plan either. "Okay. Let's hear it."
"You said Abaddon thinks Rebecca is his wife?"
"Judith. Yes."
"We don't need to do anything to Abaddon. We capture Rebecca and bring her wherever, it doesn't matter. When he comes to rescue her, we throw him in the Fist."
I stared at him.
&n
bsp; "What?" he asked.
"That's it?"
"It is a good plan."
"If all of your plans are like this, I'm not surprised you never actually succeeded in taking over the world."
He sneered at me. "There is nothing wrong with my plan, diuscrucis. Find Abaddon, catch Rebecca, use her as bait, profit."
"Finding Abaddon won't be a problem," Rose said. "What about catching Rebecca?How do you catch a ghost?"
"Yeah, Gervais," I said. "How do you catch a ghost?"
"I don't know. There must be some way. What if you knock out the person she possesses before she can get out?"
"I would think that would force her out," I said. "I could be wrong."
"It's a bad plan," Zifah said.
"Oh?" Gervais said. "Do you have another suggestion?"
"Not yet. It doesn't matter. You can't catch a ghost, case closed."
I didn't want the two demons to start arguing again. "Rose, do you have Dante in your contact list?"
"I have the number he called me from before he showed up here."
"Good enough. Can you dial it?"
"Sure." She pulled out her phone and hit the screen a few times.
"What's this about?" Zifah asked.
"I asked Alichino to do some digging on ghosts. Maybe he can help us settle this."
Rose put the phone on speaker.
"Hello?" Alichino said, his voice scratchy on the other end of the line.
"Allie, it's Rose," she said.
"Hey sweet cakes," Alichino said. "Call for a date?"
"Alichino, it's Landon," I said.
"Oh. Hey, Landon. Thanks for sending Dante back to check in with me. You didn't have to tell him I missed him, though. You made me look like a sap, and I have a reputation."
"No you don't," I said. "I'm calling about ghosts."
"What about them?"
"Did you do the research I asked you about?"
"You asked me to do something?" I heard the sound of shuffling papers. "Oh yeah, here it is. I was trying to figure out why I was Googling for spirits. What do you want to know?"
"How to catch one," I said.
He hiss-laughed at the other end of the line. "Catch one? You planning on renting an old firehouse and buying a hearse?"
"Funny. I'm serious. I need to catch a ghost."
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