by K V Deal
I didn't want to scare the woman, so I let out a polite cough as I approached.
She turned to look at up and then further up at me. “Oh, wow!” She said in her high-pitched voice. “You’re the dragon!”
“Err…” I wasn't sure how to respond. “I was hoping to visit Brittany. I take it she’s in there?”
“She should be.” The woman looked back at the door. “She usually responds by now.”
“Mind if I go in then?” I asked. “Just to check that she’s okay?”
“No! What if…” she paused, blushing. “She might not be decent. I’ll go in and check on her. If you'll wait here, I’ll let you know if she wants company.”
“Thank you.” I said as she opened the door.
The room was empty. I could see that from where I was. And there were the twisted bedsheets hanging out the window. “You have got…”
“Ms. Hans?” Seemed the doc hadn't made the connection yet.
I ran past her to the window, looking down to the ground below. No such luck.
“She ran away?” the doc finally caught up.
“Quick. Are you her regular doctor?”
“Y-yes. Why are…”
“Did she talk about wanting to go anywhere or do something?”
“Sh-she did talk about her uncle’s shop.”
Shit!
“Who's in charge of her sister.”
“What! That’s Doctor Marco.”
“I need him in her room ASAP! Please.”
“Ah! R-right.” Off she ran.
I didn't expect to find anything in the room, so I hurried back to Carah.
Thankfully, I beat the doctor to the room. I knocked a bit franticly if I'm honest.
“What!” The door opened. “Jake? What’s wrong?”
“Brittany's gone. I'm pretty sure she went to Vinny’s shop.”
“Wait, wait, wait! Brittany, my sister, broke out of a hospital?” She looked at me in disbelief. “The same girl who… You’re messing with me.”
“No.” I shook my head.
“Holy… We have to go after her.”
The door to the room opened, and a large man stomped in. He was seven-and-a-half feet tall, bald and had a single eye in the center of his forehead. “So, who is ordering me around in my own hospital?”
And he’s angry. Well I don't have time for that. “Me.” I turned to look the doc in the eye. I was just a little taller if you didn't count my horns, and I had come through a few fights lately. That had boosted my confidence a little, but I was very glad right about now that my dragon instincts had been tweaked.
“Is Carah physically fit to move?”
“She consumed one of those supposed healing concoctions. Until I'm sure she’s going to be alright, I'm not going to release her!” he shot back as he glared at me.
“How long has she been under observation?”
“She’s been here for about a week now,” he grunted, “but that doesn't mean anything! Until I know for sure…”
“How long till you know?”
“That’s still up in the air.” He backed down a little.
“You don't know how long till the thing you don't know happens?”
“So, your gonna…”
“Her sister escaped from this hospital, and I need her.”
“Look, Mr.--well, whatever. Even if my patient is doing better physically, she still has gone through a nasty…”
“I was there.”
“What? Wait! You’re that guy? You shouldn't be up either!” the doc exclaimed.
“Well, you can talk to the mayor about that one, buddy. And about Carah, too.” I jerked a thumb at her as my tail began to beat. Nerves from standing up to this guy, but I was hoping the intimidation worked in my favor. “I need her for the task Gloria set for me. So, we’re going. If you have any paperwork we need to sign or something, get it now or send it to the mayor, because when she’s ready, we’re leaving.”
He leaned in close. Pretty sure he was trying to intimidate me. “You think you can just come in here and order me around?”
Before, I might have been shaking in my boots, but now? I was a fucking dragon. I wasn't going to roll over for a damn Cyclops. I shoved my face right back into his. And kept silent.
He backed down. “Fine! But you had better bet were going to file a complaint about this!” Almost growling, he spun and stomped out of the room.
“Go for it! You can explain how your hospital let her twin run away while you’re at it,” I called after him.
“Wow…” Carah was staring at me for some reason.
“What!”
“Well… I mean even Drake and Axle couldn't stand up to that guy. And you just stared him down. That’s…pretty cool.”
“Oh…” I rubbed the back of my head. “Ummm… You should probably grab your stuff.”
“Right. She shook her head and headed over to a cupboard to drag out her clothing.
Without even a comment, she whipped off the hospital garments. She was buck naked before I could turn away to stare at the wall. I was extremely sure I was blushing.
I must have made a sound, because Carah called out to me. “What?” Then she realized. “Aw, shit. Not again. Just…keep looking that way for a second okay?” She sounded annoyed but not angry, at least.
After a moment, I felt a tap on the shoulder. Turning, I could see she was dressed in her normal, extremely revealing, clothing. “Sorry.” She brought up her hands. They were pressed together in an apology. “Instincts. It’s hard for me to care about public nudity. Usually doesn't even register.”
“Ah! Right. Don't worry about it.” Not that I was gonna be able to get the image of her, all of her, out of my mind anytime soon.
“So, I don't have my saber and they took away uncle--the inquisitor’s--weapon. I still have your dagger, though. Are you okay if I keep using your dagger for now?” She hefted the double-bladed thing.
“Sure… But if we have time after Vinny’s, I need to swing by the apartments, so you should grab your blade then.”
“Great.” She looked around. “Nothing else here. Can we leave?”
The doctor never did catch up with us before we were out the hospital’s front door. As we hit the streets, Carah was already looking better than when I had first seen her earlier.
“Do we need to check where Brittany made her escape?” I asked.
Carah shook her head. “Not worth the effort. Let’s just go to…the shop.” Not a good sign that she couldn't even say his name. Maybe this wasn't my best idea?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Chapter 15
It was only half an hour later when we got to Vinny’s butcher shop. The door had been boarded up, but someone had ripped the boards back off and carefully stacked them just to the side. I hoped that meant Charlie, and not Brittany, or worse, more Inquisitors.
I pushed open the door. “Charlie?” The room was dark as we looked in. Heavy blinds and shutters were drawn across the shop’s windows. I lifted my lamp off my belt and stepped inside.
“Oh, fuck!” Carah swore as she entered in behind me.
The room was a battle zone. Slash marks were cut into the counter above the shattered display case. A few tables, which had been set up in a corner of the room, had been flipped on end as if for cover. And only one of the leather straps that divided the front of the shop from the back was still hanging.
“Jake!” Carah hissed. I looked over. She pointed back at the door we had just come through. Three crossbow bolts were embedded in the wall around the door. On closer inspection, I could see that the door’s latch had been forced free from the wall, where it had been anchored.
“Well…” I swallowed, trying to stay calm. “At least we know Charlie was here.” I could feel my stomach twisting in knots even as I said it.
There were strange cuts in the walls of the room, too, clean but very long, too long.
Oh, shit!
They were from my dagger! Brittany m
ust have been here!
Carah let out a wordless cry and ran to the center of the room, where she dropped to her knees.
I didn't know what was going on, but I rushed after her, scanning the shadows just in case. Finding the room clear, I looked over Carah’s shoulder. She was cradling something.
A fleshy black spade…just like the one on the end of Carah’s limp tail.
I swallowed hard.
Blood was still oozing out of the place it had been cut from its owner. Carah’s tears rained down on it.
“Oh, no,” I whispered.
I franticly looked around the room. Maybe they were still here, hiding somewhere? Or maybe the Inquisitors were? Not in this room but maybe in the back? Should I go look?
Fuck! I had no idea what to do.
Carah just knelt there crying as I panicked.
“Wait here, okay? I’m gonna be right back!” She should be safe. I wasn't going to be gone long. I hoped.
I headed toward the back. I shoved aside the last dividing strap and stuck my lamp through.
Oh, fuck! It’s cold.
Walking into the back room was like walking into a freezer, which was what the place used to be.
I gritted my teeth and forced myself to step into the room, ignoring the sluggish feeling the cold brought on.
Looking around this room? Not pleasant. Carcass after carcass hung from hooks in the ceiling--skinned, gutted and frozen.
“Shit…”
In a place like this, how was I supposed to look for shadows? Oh, hell.
I know I jumped at every shadow as I walked through the room. I didn't want to be in here. No fucking way. But Carah had said that Inquisitors left the bodies where they had been killed…I was terrified of what I was going find.
As I reached the middle of the room, I could see a blue glow coming from behind the skinned corpse of a warg. It was a surprise, mostly because this was the first light that I’d come across that wasn't disrupted by my lamp.
My tail rattled like crazy as I tried to look in every direction at once. This felt like the perfect setup for an ambush.
The room got colder as I approached the warg. As I passed it, a wave of chills hit me like a hammer. I fought to stay awake as I looked at the source of the cold. There sitting about ten feet away, on a silver pedestal, was a blue crystal orb. Frost coated the pedestal and made a circle on the floor.
I sluggishly turned my head, trying to see if there was a way around.
No such luck. The hanging bodies were so tightly packed, there was just not enough room to slip around it.
Well, guess I gotta just push through.
Step after step took me closer to the orb. My feet began to hurt as the cold floor bit at my soles. My brain began to feel like mush. My thoughts slowed to a crawl.
A small thought worked its way into my mind. I wasn't sure if I could make it all the way across, past the orb, but what if I made it to the orb? Maybe…
I forced myself to change my path. Forcing myself to lift my feet forward one inch at a time.
Then I felt a bump. I had just walked into the pedestal.
Now I just had to… What came after ‘maybe,’ again? My brain struggled to find the plan behind the layer of pain and cold.
Oh. Right. That was it.
I reached out and put my hand on the orb. “Store…”
A freezing pain lanced up my arm, making me grit my teeth and hiss.
I tried to yank my hand back, but it was stuck, frozen to the orb.
The pain intensified, and I screamed.
I had to…
I…
“Jake!”
Sound…can’t…focus…
A burst of heat flashed across my lips. It flooded down my throat and chest. My eyes snapped open. Someone gripped the sides of my head. I was looking into a pair of silver eyes.
Carah pulled back from my lips. Smoke curled out of her mouth. She shouted into my face, “Stay with me!”
My brain whirred into gear. I remembered what I had been doing.
“Store…” I coughed. It felt like my mouth was full of ashes. My lips felt great, though.
“Store this!” With a flash, the orb vanished freeing my hand to drop to my side.
Instantly, the insistent cold stopped. The room was still cold enough to leave me shivering, but the pain began to subside.
“F-fire!” Carah was still holding onto my face, yanking down, so I was looking at the ground.
Oh, right!
I spat a ball of fire at the ground. The warmth felt amazing!
Looking down, I flexed my toes. Thankfully, everything still worked.
That’s when I got slapped in the face. Didn't hurt that much, but still.
“You fucking idiot!” Carah shouted.
I was about to respond when I actually thought about what I had just done.
“Fair.” I was kind of embarrassed about it, actually. “I really don't think well in the cold.”
I think my honesty kinda threw her off. She opened her mouth and then shut it a few times.
“Listen, I need to finish searching this place. Do you want to wait in the other room?” I put the offer out there. I had no clue how I would react if I found Brittany and Charlie hanging. I couldn’t even think about it. Still, after everything Carah had been through…
She took a deep breath. “No. We’ll look together.”
All I could think of was how brave she was.
Thank god, though, we didn't find them.
Sure, it opened up its own set of problems, but at least not…a meat hook.
“Thank you,” Carah whispered. Pretty sure that wasn't to me.
“So…no bodies.”
“No. Where are they? Could they have won?” Carah didn't sound hopeful.
“Maybe?” I was kind of dubious, too.
“They could have headed to the hospital afterward--for any wounds!” She didn't sound like she believed it.
I shook my head. “I'm sorry.”
“Then where are the bodies!” she snapped.
“I don't know! I don't have a way to track them! I'm not a bloodhound!” I think we both were getting a little heated.
She blinked. I was getting ready to apologize, when she snapped her fingers. “Drake!” she yelled in excitement. “He can track them! He knows B and Charlie, so he can track them!”
“Alright! Do you have another of those messenger things?” I asked eagerly.
“I… No.” Her face fell. “They take a while to make, so we only get one at a time.”
“Okay, no way to know where he could be. Who else do we know who would have one?”
“They only hand them out to people who have to leave the city.”
“Right, then go to the mayor’s office!” I ordered. “Talk to her or Cyrus! Tell them something happened to Charlie, and I need Drake to find her!”
“Huh? Wait. Me?”
“One of us has to go, and we have to make sure that this place isn't disturbed until we get Drake here. And if anyone comes back, I'm the one who’s more likely to be able to do something about them.” And, after everything that happened, there was no way I was leaving her here alone.
“I…”
Gonna feel like a dick about this later… “Carah, Brittany may not have time for you to argue with me!”
She jerked back as if struck. “You… Right.” And without another word, she turned and ran out the door.
That left me alone in an empty butcher shop…
Might as well be productive, especially with what would be going through my mind if I just let myself think.
I began to search through the shop looking for whatever I could find. I started out in the front room. I went through it with what I hoped was a fine-toothed comb, though there were probably plenty of places that an expert would have thought to look that I missed.
Nothing turned up. I guess that wasn't a surprise. If I were hiding something, I wouldn't do it in a room that people may wal
k into.
With that in mind, I continued my search into the back room.
Obviously, I wasn't an investigator as I didn't find a damn thing.
“I should stop playing at this and just wait,” I muttered into the silence, and gave a kick to the nearby pedestal where the cooling crystal had sat.
I blinked and looked at it again as a thought hit me.
Maybe I was thinking about this wrong? I was thinking about all of the ways that things could be hidden, things I had seen on TV. But all of that was in the mundane world, a place where an A/C unit would be what was cooling this place. That wasn't the world that I was living in anymore.
The Inquisitors have already grasped this concept with their heavy use of magic items. Could they be using one here too? I might…
Closing my eyes, I began to feel for that fizzy feeling of magic.
No such… Suddenly there was a tingle. Towards the front of the cooler.
I opened my eyes and started to move toward the source of the feeling. It was by the door, on the floor to the right of the it. I slowly reached forward to try and touch the spot only to have my hand hit something.
More invisible shit. Why am I not surprised?
Running my fingers along the thing, I could feel the shape of a large box, or trunk, with its back up against the wall. About the center of the chest, I hit a latch. It felt like a simple one, easy enough to open.
Would it be booby trapped, though? That seemed a bit farfetched. I mean, putting a trap on something invisible seemed like overkill.
Opening it seemed like an acceptable risk. With a quick flick of the latch, I had it unlocked. Cringing, I opened the chest. No traps, thank goodness. Inside looked weird, though.
It looked like a wooden box with a flat top. It was still invisible if you looked from the side, though. Doing that kind of gave me a headache.
I wanted the box… I shook my head to clear it. Not what I was here for.
I took a look again at the inside. As far as I could see, there were two compartments in the chest. An upper one filled with papers--those looked important, so I pulled them out and set them to the side. In the bottom…
“Aw, shit!”
The only thing in the bottom was a long metal rod with a handle. On its head, was the symbol of the Inquisitors. A branding iron.