Joe nodded. "Two teams are out there looking, basing their searches on what Manuel discovered in Montreal."
Discovered in Montreal? I looked from him to Mom. "What does that mean?"
"No big leads, baby," Mom said. "Manuel found the area of the park where you and Daniel were attacked and did a bit of cleanup."
"Cleanup?"
"Daniel bled. A lot," Joe said. "And the last thing we want is for some forensic hematologist to get hold of a Revenant's blood."
Oh. Right. Good point. "Did they?"
Joe grinned. "Not anymore."
I narrowed my eyes at him, then glanced over at Nick. "Was that why those two were in there questioning me?"
Nick shook his head. "I stand firm in my opinion. They wanted you to confirm you were with Daniel so they could tie him to the rapist."
That remark brought me back to what I needed to know. "Guys," I said, and I looked at each of them, "I need to talk to Mom. Alone."
Joe started to follow Jason and Nick from the room, but Mom ushered them back in. "Joe, this is your room. Get some sleep. That Veil is going to be more taxing on your physical self than you realize."
"I feel fine."
"Uh huh. Give it time." She motioned me to follow her out of the room, past the nurse's station, and down the hall. Eventually we took the elevator upstairs to the main lobby, where she continued down a hall to the right.
I didn't say anything. Not once. I was trying to figure out how to broach the subject with Mom.
We ended up in her office. Her massive antique desk had Tiffany lamps in various spots. Books covered the walls, from classic volumes to encyclopedias. When was the last time I'd cracked one of those?
A leather couch sat in front of a darkened fireplace. I plopped down and watched as Mom walked over to it, said a few words, and a few flames danced on the logs. "Is that real?"
"Not in the beginning," Mom said as she sat down next to me. "I create a sort of spark that ignites the wood. Eventually the magic burns out and the fire burns on its own."
Magic. Scares the shit out of me.
"So, what did you need to talk to me—"
"Did Daddy make that man rape me in Piedmont Park?" Whoa…not good with the subtlety, are we? Just blurt it out there, Zoë. Blah.
I wasn't sure what answer I expected. I'd seen the mark on that man's face and knew it was my dad's. But…had there been a tattoo there when he'd attacked us that night?
I couldn't remember, and it was driving me crazy.
Mom stood and moved to the fireplace. She closed the chain-link screen and brushed her hands on her pants. I'd seen Mom nervous a few times in my life. This wasn't one of those times. She looked downright worried.
"Mom?"
"Zoë, I—"
"Those cops in Montreal had a witness drawing of him." I kept going even though I was sure she already knew this—secrets being pretty much nonexistent in a house full of Abysmal. "He had a mark on his face. It was Dad's mark. And the picture Nick had—it was the same guy with the same mark. Did Daddy do it?"
She shook her head quickly. "No. Your father didn't send him out there to attack you that night, Zoë. Your father wasn't a Virtue yet—he didn't have that kind of control."
"So the guy didn't have a tattoo?"
"No."
"Mom, Azrael's always hinted that night wasn't a coincidence, that it was planned."
She looked directly at me. "It was."
Okay, that wasn't at all what I'd expected to hear. I'd always thought Azrael was messin' with me. "It was…" I swallowed. "By whom?"
"Me."
Chapter Eight
I couldn't breathe.
It…it had to be a lie.
I couldn't hear.
But I knew from the expression on her face and the tone of her voice, it wasn't a lie.
It was the truth.
For a second, I couldn't see anything as my vision shot forward into a long tunnel and I was taken back in time to that night. Unmoving on the ground, bleeding from a knife in my chest, unable to speak or escape as that man grunted on top of me—
And when I finally broke free of my body that night and saw him raping me, I saw Barry's staring eyes.
Betrayal.
"Zoë?"
I could still hear that bastard making those disgusting sounds, hear him muttering to himself about how he wanted a Mexican whore. How he was going to finish off and then use a broken bottle to mess it all up.
And I was…
I was…
"Zoë—listen to me—"
Betrayer.
And then I was in the Botanica at mom's, and Rodriguez was there. I heard him telling me how Rhonda wasn't my friend but one of his little spies, placed near me to report back to the Society so they would know how my powers were developing.
Betrayed.
"Nona, what's happening? Is that an earthquake—what's wrong with Zoë?"
"Joe, get out of here, now. Go back to bed."
"Nona—"
"Now!"
And then I could hear and see, and I could breathe. I was still in Mom's office, but I wasn't on the couch anymore. I'd stood up and moved away—and Mom—no, not Mom.
She could never be "Mom" again.
That woman was too close….too close to me….
I reached out to shove her, and saw my skin. Ashen, clothed in black sooty spirals. My nails were black and long, and I realized I'd somehow shifted. I just didn't remember doing it.
And I was mad.
No.
I was pissed.
No.
I was…über-pissed.
And the powerful should never be über-pissed off.
Zoë, what are you doing? It was Mephistopheles. His voice rang clear in my head, and it hurt.
"Don't butt in, Old Man," I said in a low voice.
What happened? Talk to me. I can feel your power. You need to calm down before you shake the foundation.
"Zoetrope Adiran—"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I thundered. And oh yeah, I thundered it. I was freakin' loud and clear. And I hadn't even tried. I had a long, sharp nail pointed at her. "You have no right to use that tone with me." I took a step toward her as my wings unfurled behind me. It felt so good to stretch them. "How….how could you do that to me? Do you know what it was that bastard did to me?"
"Of course I know," she said in a voice as full of anger as my own. "I was there at the hospital when they brought you in. But you have to believe me that he wasn't supposed to rape you—and he wasn't supposed to kill Barry."
"What?" Joe said from behind me. He hadn't gone away like Nona warned. "Wait…Nona, what are you talking about?"
Joe was figuring it out. I'd never discussed it with him and he'd never asked. But Daniel had investigated my past. He knew. And if he knew, I was positive Joe did.
"Joe, just stay out of this and get out of my office."
"Why, Mother," I said and I felt and sounded like I was twelve again. Hurt. Bruised. Angry. Resentful. "Don't you want everyone to know how you arranged your daughter's rape?"
"I just told you that wasn't supposed to happen!"
"And I'm supposed to just believe you? So tell me…what was supposed to happen?" I was airborne before I could stop myself, and the movement of my wings knocked over a few of her precious lamps. "An innocent boy died that night, Nona!" I spat at her. "Your own daughter had a stranger's dick shoved repeatedly into her dying body—and you calmly stand there and say that wasn't supposed to happen?"
"Zoë, just please come down and talk." Joe had his arms out at his sides, and I could see his palms glow a soft blue. Would he dare try and use his magic on me?
I ignored Joe. He was a bug to me, an irritant as I demanded answers from this woman. "You…you let a man rape me." I'm not saying I was entirely happy with my actions up 'til this point. It really wasn't the mature, adult face I'd sort of assumed I possessed, especially in comparison to Rhonda's actions lately.
But da
mn it…this was bad!
"No, Zoë. Please, just calm down and listen to me. You have to know the events leading up to that night."
The door to the office burst open then, and five men dressed like something out of a special ops movie filed in. They wore black camo, vests, boots, and masks.
And they were all carrying what Joe once referred to as BFGs—Big Fucking Guns.
"Hey, hey, hey—" Joe held up his hands. "What's going on? Why are they in here?"
The last man to file in motioned for Joe to move. "Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"Not 'til you tell me who and what the hell you are."
"Joe, just move," Nona said in a very tired voice. "They're our safety unit. Something the council set up in order to protect…"
When she didn't finish it, I did it for her.
"To protect you from things like me?" I balled my hands into fists. Not a real good idea when you have very long nails. "So you do have a goon squad to keep creatures like me in line. To police us. Is one of them going to rape me one day? And, who knows, kill another innocent man?"
"Zoë, grow up and stop this!" Nona shouted, and she had her witchy-poo finger pointed up at me. I was also very much aware of the men pointing their guns at me. Which seemed kind of silly since I could just go incorporeal, and the bullets would just hit the ceiling. "You need to sit down and listen to what I have to say."
"No, I don't!" I held out my arms with the intention to sieve through the roof and up and away from there.
But that didn't happen—'cause one of those bastards shot me. And it wasn't a bullet that hit me.
No…it was something worse. Something very familiar. Those guns didn't look like the old L-6 weapon developed by Randall Kemp, but they sure fired the same glowing arc. And when they hit me—I saw stars.
I also lost everything else and crashed to the floor below.
It used to be if I got hit with one of those, I'd crash back into my body. And if I was Overshadowing someone (could I still do that?), then it forced me out of their body. And it zapped me of all my strength for a little while.
I hadn't been hit with one since this latest incarnation of me as Wraith and Scary in My Body. And I wasn't prepared to stop a fall I didn't expect. When I hit, I landed on top of the end table next to the couch I'd been sitting on. My head connected with something very unforgiving, and the pain made me black out for a second. I was pretty sure I'd broken that table, and my head along with it.
I couldn't see—hell, I couldn't move. But that was what that damned gun did, and I cursed Randall again for creating it. It was like being stunned, literally unable to move. But I could hear and I could feel—oh, hell, I could feel.
And it hurt!
"Stay back!"
"Joe, don't go near her. She's obviously upset."
"Nona, she's obviously hurt. Christ—Sergeant, who fired? She wasn't going to hurt anyone."
"We didn't know that, sir, and Ms. Stephens gave us strict orders to protect the humans over the supernaturals."
"The supernaturals?" Joe sounded very sarcastic. "Really? Is that what you're calling them?"
There were a few muffled sounds as I managed to open my eyes. It wasn't much really—just slits. I saw boobs.
Mom was kneeling over me, and there was another commotion as the boobs disappeared.
And I heard a voice I hadn't expected to hear.
"Move, witch, or I will move you myself."
Azrael.
"This has nothing to do with you, Azrael. She's my daughter—"
"And whether you like it or not, Nona, she's my daughter as well."
!!!
"TC, don't you touch her!" Joe shouted from somewhere behind me.
But someone was touching me. I knew it was him. My Vin Diesel muse. He was gentle as he slipped a hand under my shoulders and then under my knees. He even moved his arms so my head rested against his chest. I wanted to say thank you, and tell him he was warm.
But I couldn't talk yet.
And having him hold me was the most comforting thing in the world right at that moment.
How long had it been since I'd been held like that? I thought I could feel Azrael's thoughts. I could certainly hear Mephistopheles and Morgan.
…shouldn't do this. There is something else happening here, Mephistopheles was saying.
Yes, Brother, there is. A reveal of just how insidious this place is. I'm taking her with me. Azrael's mental voice was softer than his physical one.
Don't cause a rift at this time, Azrael. Morgan's voice sounded pleading. We have to work together to get the Grimoire away from them.
And you do this by hurting the one creature capable of doing that? All of you disgust me. She's safer away from the sickness that's eating this place. You all know Domas is a fool. And you are an even bigger ones if you believe she can become your Advent. Now get out of my way.
Advent? Domas? What the hell were they talking about? And why bring up my dead great-uncle? Other than the fact he's the cause of all this stupidity.
I felt Azrael move, and I was able to see some things. I could see Joe nearby as we moved to the door, and the men with their guns as they kept them trained on us.
"Sir, if you do not put her down, we will be forced to fire."
Really? You're gonna shoot the Phantasm?
Oh. Funny man.
"Sergeant." Joe's voice sound tired and upset. I felt for Joe. And wow…he must really feel odd having all that stuff spinning around him. "Stand down. You really don't want to try that. Not against this guy."
"I'm sorry, Detective Halloran, but my orders come from Miss Stephens."
"And hers come from me," my mom said in her you're-in-trouble voice. "Don't even try to shoot the Phantasm, Sergeant. You won't survive."
Must have worked, 'cause we weren't shot at. But as we moved to the door, I managed to say something. "W-wait—" It was soft and so not like me.
Azrael stopped walking, and I could feel his breath on my check as he leaned in close. "What is it, Zoë?"
I cleared my throat—and that was about all I could do as I managed to speak in a room so quiet a pin dropping would sound like an elephant jumping.
"I quit."
Chapter Nine
The last place I expected Azrael to take me was Piedmont Park. We landed in the exact spot where Barry died and I was raped. It was an empty space near the gazebo overlooking the water. I'd avoided this area since that night.
At first I'd done it to bury the memory. After the whole OOB thing started and I saw ghosts, I avoided it because I was afraid I'd see Barry and that made me feel guilty. Guilty because he'd died and I lived.
But I had to wonder now—which was better?
For the past year, everything I'd ever believed was true had been proven a lie. My father. What I was. My family. Who I thought was my best friend. Discovering my mom had set me up—
—for what?
I was a little surprised to see the sun was setting. I'd lost track of time since waking up in the hospital in Montreal—when—this morning? Yesterday?
I wasn't sure if Azrael could read my mind or he just knew me well enough, when he said in an uncharacteristically soft voice, "I took you someplace you could rest. Let the effects of their weapon disappear. Took a while. Seems they've upped the voltage on those things."
The park was empty except for the occasional dog walker. It was too cold to be out in the park when the sun went down. I shivered and saw my breath in front of me. Azrael wrapped his arms around me from behind. It struck me kinda funny that of all the people, creatures, and entities—human and non-human—that could make me feel loved, Azrael was one of them.
Knowing our history, it was kinda freaky.
Oh, I was still mad. Screamingly so. And I felt a bit proud that I hadn't banshee-wailed my mom's ass into the Abysmal Plane. I wanted to.
In fact, I wanted them all to go away.
"Thoughts?"
I smiled and s
ettled back against him. We faced the water, the setting sun's glow of yellow, orange, and rose the palette for the scene. Everything else was brown, dead for the winter. "I figured you could read them."
"Sometimes." He set his chin on top of my head. Yeah, he was that tall. "But not right now. It might be my own problems clamoring for attention."
"You?" I looked up. "Have problems? You're the Phantasm now."
"Yep. That's me. The big bad. The grand muckety-muck—"
"Hey." I elbowed him, and he laughed softly. "That's my moniker for you."
"You're where I got it. In fact…because of you…a lot of things have changed."
He sounded somber. Why was a First Born so sad? "Azrael? You okay?"
There was a long pause. "I like it better when you call me TC."
"TC it is." I was grinning from ear to ear. "But you still haven't answered my question."
"I think it's because I never worried about the future before. When I was just a Symbiont, or believed that was all I was, enslaved to my sister, I only worried about her needs. And then when we touched…" He moved his left hand to mine and lifted it up. His mark was hidden under my coat, but just visible on my wrist. A handprint that had once looked like a henna tattoo and was now gold, sometimes silver. "I only worried about my future. What I wanted."
"And now you worry about the future."
"Yeah." He threaded his strong, thick fingers with my own thinner ones. "Not sure if that was happening before I stepped into the Throne, or after."
"I don't know. I sort of missed a couple of months."
"They were actually good months, Zoë. I think I sort of learned what it was like to have friends."
I was glad he couldn't see my face or the surprise on it. "You and Joe grew pretty close."
"I consider him my best friend. And Daniel."
Wow. Confessions from a lonely Phantasm? I'd come a long way from arguing with a weenie-mouthed clown in a hospital room to being in its embrace in a park at sunset.
This…is weird.
"Does Joe know that? About how you see him?"
"I think he does. On some level. Of everyone in your circle, Zoë, I trust him the most. He's stable, and he's loyal."
Dominion: Zoë Martinique Investigation, Book 6 Page 5