Beacon's Fury (Potomac Shadows Book 3)

by Jim Johnson

  Bello sighed. “This is all true. However, none of those locations are protected by this agency. I know I haven’t given you much reason to, but trust me when I say this, Rachel. You are, right now, in the safest possible place from any attack that may come through the etherics, in any direction. We also have some resources guarding the Veil in and around this building, so if the Spinner or anyone else tried to breach the Veil and infiltrate the building, we’d either stop them cold or have them isolated and neutralized quickly.”

  I stared at him as he made his statements, and even though he had his shields tightly focused, I tried pinging him with some sensor threads anyway. I didn’t pick up anything from him other than what I gathered to be the truth. After another feeble prod with a ley thread, I sighed and threw up my hands.

  “Fine, all right. It’s not like I have much else to do here, anyway. Malcolm’s my boss, Bonita is my part-time boss, and if Abbie is safe, my grandpa is safe, and my house is off-limits, I guess I’ve got nothing better to do.”

  Bello stood up from his chair. “That puts you in a bit of a unique situation, Rachel. I don’t want you to answer just yet, but I’d like you to think about staying here with us for a while, maybe answer a few questions, and maybe help us understand what you’re capable of in terms of harnessing and using the ley threads. I think we can help you with some things, and I’m willing to bet you’ll have things you can teach us as well.”

  I rubbed my forehead, barely able to believe all that I was hearing. “Sure, fine. Whatever.” I gestured toward the door. “Can I actually get out of this room, you know, and walk around a bit? Maybe go see how Malcolm is doing?”

  Bello grinned and opened up the door for me. “I thought you’d never ask. Besides, we need to clear this room in case we get another emergency case. Guest suites are two floors up.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Of course they are.” I glanced around the room. Other than what I was wearing, there was nothing in the room I could claim as my own. “I, uh, I guess I’ve got all I need.”

  He nodded. “Then follow me. I’ll take you to the security station and we’ll fix you up with a security badge so that you can get around a bit, and then I’ll show you to the guest suite we have set up for you. We’re still processing Malcolm, so I think it’d make the most sense to meet up with him for lunch. Fair?”

  He had on a warm, expectant look now, and even though part of me thought he was full of shit, the other part of me was just sick to death of running around being worried about what the Spinner might do next.

  And a little tickle in the back of my mind told me I needed to figure out a way to contact Miss Chin, to bring her up to speed on all that had happened.

  Finally, I gestured toward the hallway beyond the open door. “Lead on, A.J. I’m guessing if this place really is government-owned, I’ll enjoy some hospitality on Uncle Sam’s dime.”

  He chuckled. “Well, it’s all taxpayer money anyway.”

  He led the way out the door, and that was good because it just dawned on me that somehow, I was going to have to break out of this place and get home, before Bello’s goons managed to find my secret stash of gold coins hidden under my floorboards. Sure I had plenty to talk about, but that particular situation would be hard to explain, and would lead to more questions that I really didn’t want to answer. I had no idea how Charity was doing, and I didn’t want Bello or his organization anywhere near her or her remains.

  Crap. Except that he said there were already forensics people there. I followed him down the hall, trying to figure out how I was going to get out of here unnoticed, but no answer presented itself by the time we got to the security station.

  Processing my fingerprints and essentials didn’t take long, and in short order I had a plastic badge with my grim face on it, plus a plain black lanyard to hang it on. It went over my neck and hung just below my crystal pendant, which I cupped a hand around and held close. Now more than ever, the thing was a good luck charm, a touchstone, and a comfort all rolled into one.

  Once we were done at Security, Bello led me to a bank of stainless steel elevator doors, and took me up two levels to what he referred to as the guest level. We got out of the elevator, but not before I noted that the button panel had enough buttons for sixteen floors, plus basement parking. There was also a card reader attached to the panel, which made me think that maybe a couple of the floors needed a special card in order to access them. Interesting.

  Malcolm, never really one for small talk as far as I could tell, silently led me down the hall from the elevators and glanced at me as we walked. The hallway was decked out much like any hotel—plain but clean carpet, generic paintings at even intervals on the walls, uninspired paint colors.

  “Would you prefer a suite with a window or an interior unit? We have both available.”

  I shrugged. “Is the view any good?”

  He mimicked my shrug. “We’re in the middle of a heavy construction zone in Southeast. You can kinda see the river and the spire of the Washington Monument, and a bunch of buildings and construction cranes. Nothing exciting, but in my opinion, better than staring at a bunch of beige walls.”

  He had a point. “Let’s go with the window view, then. Better than nothing, really, and if I get too stir-crazy, I guess I could always jump.”

  He chuckled as he lead me to the left down another hallway and then stopped in front of a door labeled with brass numbers designating room 1119. He produced a key card out of a pocket and tapped it against the door’s electronic lock. A little LED light cycled from red to green, and an audible click echoed down the hall.

  He opened the door and held it open for me with one hand while he offered the key card with the other. “Your home away from home, for as long as you need it. Floor eleven, suite nineteen.”

  I took the key card and ducked under his arm to walk in through the open door. “Thanks, I guess.” I hit the light switch closest to the door and glanced down the suite’s short hallway and into the room beyond. Looked nicer than any hotel I’d ever stayed in.

  I turned around and focused on Bello, who stood just outside the door, in the hallway. I put my hand on the door, preparatory to shutting it.

  “Thanks for your help, and for the room. I have to ask you, Bello, er, A.J. What’s the catch? No way is the government letting me stay here out of the goodness of its heart, and there’s no way you put in a good word or anything for me and got me into this suite.”

  He stared at me and then smiled, though I saw no mirth reach his eyes. “Let’s save that discussion for lunch, with Malcolm. It’ll be easier to discuss this once with the both of you together. But trust me in the meantime—you’re not under arrest and you’re not in trouble.”

  I let out another exasperated sigh. “Fine. Just, I guess let me know when lunch is and come get me.”

  I pushed the door hard, intending to slam it shut in his face, more to make me feel better than any act of defiance, but the automatic hydraulic arm on the door robbed me of a satisfying slam. Best it managed was a ‘whoof’ of air and a click as the lock latched.

  Slow enough that I caught a smirk from Bello as the door closed. Jerk.

  I shot the bolt anyway, knowing he’d hear that, at least. I leaned forward and rested my forehead against the cold metal door, wondering what I had gotten into and what the hell I was going to do now.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  I DISCOVERED PRETTY QUICK THAT, WITHOUT a phone, book, or friend to talk to, sitting in a suite was pretty darn boring. I was tempted to check out the flat-screen television hanging off the wall across from the couch, but decided that I didn’t really want to get distracted.

  I flopped down in one of the chairs looking out onto the suite’s small porch. I could tell from the haze in the air outside that it was a hot morning. The suite had some nice air conditioning going, and I was fine with that, honestly.

  I really wanted to move around and do something, because the last thing I wanted to do was sit and thi
nk. I knew I had a lot to deal with and I just didn’t want to face it all right now.

  There was a phone in the room, and an experimental pick-up of the receiver brought me a regular dial tone. There was a little placard next to the phone that said to dial “9” before making any outside calls.

  I stared at the phone, wondering if maybe I should call Miss Chin or Bonita, or maybe Abbie. Bello had said Abbie was fine and at work, and I knew she got busy a lot. I guessed if she was all right, maybe I could talk to her later.

  I called her anyway and left a message on her phone. I glanced at the clock—just after eleven. She was probably consumed by meetings. I thought about calling Miss Chin again, but left it at a thought and replaced the receiver.

  I checked out the rest of the suite, since I had nothing better to do. I did reach out for some etheric threads and got my Sight going. The room was mundane, but I easily detected the strong shielding set just outside the building’s walls. Whatever this place was, it was an etheric fortress. I had no idea what kind of ley power would be needed to support such a shield or how the thing was fueled. It had to be plugged directly into the ley grid somehow.

  The bedroom had a king-size bed and unspectacular but entirely functional furniture. Bathroom had the usual appointments and a bathtub with a shower head. Lounge area had the couch, pair of chairs, a couple tables, and the flat-screen.

  There was a tiny kitchenette sort of thing with a mini-fridge and a microwave. The fridge was stocked with bottled water and an assortment of sodas, so I grabbed some water and settled back down on one of the chairs.

  From here, I could see rooftops, and, in the distance, the tip of the Washington Monument to the left and just a hint of the Capitol dome to the right.

  I sipped my water and then let the memories and recent events flow into my mind. It was hard to imagine Tonia and Cooper dead, but I’d seen them with my own eyes, and there was nothing I could do for them now. Except make the Spinner pay dearly for their deaths.

  I scanned for Charity’s presence in the ley but only caught a flicker of recognition. I didn’t know if she was gone for good, or just resting, or what, but she wasn’t there, and that dropped a weight on my heart that I hadn’t expected.

  It’d been a couple years, since before meeting Abbie, that I had felt so alone. And having Charity as a daily companion had become second nature and so comfortable. Her absence was keenly felt. She’d taught me a lot and I know there was a lot more she could have taught me, but…

  That thought moved me toward darker thoughts about the Spinner. That bastard had been a problem for a long time and was now more powerful than ever. And he seemed willing to throw that power around without a concern for the consequences.

  I downed the last of the water and threw the empty bottle at the sliding glass patio door, but it bounced off and rolled over by the couch.

  I was so angry at feeling so powerless. I grabbed hold of several ley threads and pulled their power into me, trying to figure out how to channel them into hand fire like Malcolm did on a regular basis.

  I knew the theory, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t replicate his ability to convert ley energy into a form of fire that I could throw around.

  Which, I had to admit, was probably just as well. The last thing I wanted to do was burn up the room loaned to me, much less the building I was standing in. Why do the Spinner’s job for him?

  Impulsively, I stood up quickly and rushed to the patio door and flung it open. I stepped out onto the balcony, and at the top of my voice yelled, “I’m coming for you, Spinner! Whatever it takes, however long it takes, I’m gonna be the last thing you see before I take your Sight away and shove it down your throat!”

  My heart was hammering in my chest and hot tears were rolling down my face. I hadn’t felt so angry in a while, and God did it feel good. My whole body and soul was vibrating with power, and I could feel the ley all around me, just waiting to be harnessed.

  I grabbed hold of the balcony railing, so tempted to use my powers to tear it off and fling it out into the air.

  Or, even better, to rip a hole into the Veil itself and go after the Spinner myself. Would he be expecting an attack so soon after what he’d done to my house mates?

  I bit my lip and seriously thought about going to alone. Maybe if I went after him alone, he’d leave my friends be and just be satisfied that he had me.

  But, no, I doubted he’d be satisfied with that. He was a murderer and a beast, and I doubted he’d ever be satisfied.

  The hammering in my heart eased as I took a few deep breaths to ease out of my anger. With the edge off, I caught the sound of someone knocking at my door.

  I took one last glance at the city, and then rushed back inside my suite and yanked open the door.

  Malcolm stood in the hallway, a worried look on his face. “Rachel? I sensed you through the ley. I tried contacting you with…”

  I interrupted him by leaning in and wrapping him up in a big hug. I held him tight and said, “Thank you for being here.”

  I let him go and waved off his confused look. “Just…come in and sit down. We need to talk.”

  He followed me into the room and closed the door behind him. I sat down again and gestured toward the mini-fridge. “Water and soda if you want something.”

  He shook his head as he took a seat on the couch. “Nah, thanks. My room has the same thing.” He craned his head around to take in our surroundings. “Looks pretty much like the room they gave me, except my room is a little more beige and I don’t have a patio or windows. It’s an inside unit.”

  I leaned forward and clasped my hands in front of me. “So, what happened? What did they tell you?”

  Malcolm leaned forward as well. “Man, there was a lot going on. You passed out right about the time Abbie and Bello showed up. A bunch of people came running up and pulled us all into a bunch of black SUVs, and carted us off here. We pulled into this, like, emergency room thing and you were put onto a rolling bed and whisked off.”

  He sighed. “I tried to stay with you, but we ended up in separate SUVs. When you came out and they put you on the bed, it looked like you’d been drugged or something. They had an I.V. in you and everything.”

  “Bello did tell me they sedated me for a little while.”

  Malcolm shook his head. “That’s messed up, man. They didn’t let Abbie go with you, either. After they wheeled you away, me and Abbie were escorted to separate rooms. I got grilled pretty hard, lots of questions about you and Abbie and your house mates.”

  “What did you tell them?”

  He opened his mouth, then closed it and looked around. “Hey, you think this room is bugged?”

  I raised an eyebrow. “I hadn’t even thought of it, but I guess it’s possible. It’s a government building, Isn’t everything bugged these days?” I glanced at the phone. “And the phones too. Maybe they’re monitoring everything.”

  “Shit, for that matter, maybe they don’t need to. Did you feel that shield they have around the building? Ain’t nothing getting through that.”

  I nodded. “I know, right? That thing is no joke. I checked it out a little while ago and I think even at our peak, we couldn’t bust through it. I doubt even Miss Chin could.”

  He made a shushing motion. “I don’t think we should talk about…”

  I shook my head and cut him off. “No, Malcolm. You know what? I’m tired of it. Of the secrets, of not knowing what Bello is all about, of sneaking around and being afraid of the stupid Spinner.”

  I gestured toward the patio. “That freak killed two of my roommates and possibly Charity as well. I’m so done with him. I want him to suffer for what he’s done.”

  He stared at me, possibly surprised at the strength and anger in my voice. I know I sure was. Imagine me being passionate about something.

  He stared at me. “What do you want to do?”

  Another knock at the door interrupted my train of thought. I sighed. “We’ll talk more later.
For now, I think it’s lunch time with Bello.”

  Malcolm nodded and stood up. “Maybe time to get some answers, too.”

  I got to the door before Malcolm did. Bello was standing in the hallway. He glanced at me after I opened the door and then past me. He nodded. “Hey, Malcolm. Thought I’d catch you two together in here. How do you like the room?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Can the small talk, Bello. Is there somewhere the three of us can eat and talk in private?”

  He raised an eyebrow but must have seen the look on my face because he nodded and then indicated that we walk back into my suite.

  “I’ll have the kitchen send up lunch rather than take you two downstairs to the cafeteria. We’ll have all the privacy we need in here.”

  “Great,” I said. I helped myself to another bottle of water and sat back down, and spent the next few minutes silently glaring alternately at Malcolm and Bello. They were both silent as well, which made for a pretty awkward scene as we waited for the food to arrive.

  Bello was the first to stand up when there was another knock at the door. He thanked someone at the door and then wheeled in a cart that had an assortment of food on it.

  He wheeled the cart over to us and parked it sort of between the three of us, and then scooted his chair closer to the cart. He indicated the bowl of salad and the small pile of cold sandwiches. “Dig in.”

  Malcolm and I traded a look and grabbed plates and filled them.

  As we ate, Malcolm asked, “Did you get any more information on the moving truck or the area around the house we were supposed to move the other day?”

  Bello nodded and finished chewing what was in his mouth. “After you gave us the information on the Spinner’s strike, we sent a team to investigate. Your day worker, Carlos Montera, was the only casualty during the event. Unless you also count this Spinner’s two agents, of course.”

  I frowned. “Agents? We call them ‘geists.”

  Bello nodded. “We call them that sometimes. ‘Agent’ is just what we happen to prefer.”