CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

 

 

JONATHAN SHADE

 

“Esther!” I called as I stepped out of the hotel room. I had my cell in one hand. Rayna was still on the line with me.

Esther popped into view beside me. “You don’t have to yell,” she said. “I was just in Graham’s room with Brand.”

“I need you to check on Kelly, then pop right back to me.”

My tone of voice made her eyes go wide and she disappeared. I pounded on Brand’s door. “Brand, get out here. We have to go!”

The door opened and Brand gave me a smile. “Do we get to kill anyone yet?”

“Rayna’s in trouble, so yes.”

“I’ll grab my shoes.”

Into the phone, I said, “How’s that door holding?”

“They’re still scratching at it. I can’t get a good view from the camera angle. The destroyers are too big.”

To Brand I said, “You have weapons in the truck?”

He looked at me as if I were an idiot. “Duh.”

“Rayna, have you called nine-one-one?”

“These things will eat any policemen. I can’t get more people killed. Kelly is too much already.”

Graham came to the door as Brand stepped into the hall. “What’s going on?” Graham asked.

“You stay here,” I said. “Don’t open the door for anyone until we get back.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Yes,” I said. “Come on, Brand, we’re wasting time. Graham, stay put!”

“Is it Rayna?”

“We’re handling it, now get back in there. Close and lock the door.”

For once, he did as he was told.

“I’m scared,” Rayna said.

Brand and I raced to the elevator. I was worried for Rayna, and my thoughts kept going back to Kelly. Rayna said she was dead. I wanted to scream at the world, but that wouldn’t do anyone any good, so I kept my voice calm. “I know but it’s going to be all right. We’re getting on the elevator now, so if we lose signal, I’ll call you right back. Do you have any weapons in the room with you?”

“I’ll look.”

Esther popped into the elevator with Brand and me. She looked beyond pale, even for her. “Oh my God, Jonathan. Kelly is torn open, and her insides are all over the place!”

“What?” Brand said. He looked like someone had jammed a dagger into his heart and he’d actually felt it.

“Is she alive?” I asked.

“How could she be?”

“She’s a Sekutar.”

“What happened?” Brand asked, his voice breaking.

“There’s so much blood.” Esther shook her head.

I looked at Brand. “She was attacked. How much trauma can you guys take?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. What could possibly have done this to her?” I’d never seen him so pale.

“We’re going to find out. Esther, go to Rayna. I want you to go through the door and then come back to us and describe what’s after her.”

“Whatever it is killed Kelly. You can’t go there, Jonathan.”

“Go now, Esther!”

She gave me a pleading look then popped away.

The elevator doors opened, and Brand and I darted through the lobby to the parking lot. My car was still at the Nobles’ house, so we ran to Brand’s truck.

“I don’t see anything that’s going to help me here,” Rayna said.

“No guns?”

“We don’t own any guns.”

I heard something banging in the background. “What’s happening?”

“The destroyers are charging the door, trying to break it down.”

Brand stomped on the accelerator, and we were on our way, but it was taking too long.

Esther returned. “You’re not going to be able to stop them,” she said. “They’re huge!”

“We’ll stop them,” Brand said.

“The door is shaking every time they ram it,” Rayna said. “I don’t know how much longer it can hold!”

“Is there anything you can brace it with? Furniture? Anything?”

“It’s a panic room, Jonathan. There’s a fold-up chair. Everything else is built into the walls. The few cabinets have some snacks, bottled water, and a first-aid kit. No weapons, nothing useful for this kind of attack. I don’t know what to do!”

“You’re doing fine, Rayna. Brand, can’t this truck go any faster?” I was worried about Kelly. Could she really be dead? I had to force those thoughts away. I couldn’t help her if I lost control. I was also worried about Rayna. Could we get there in time to save her? Could we save her? I was worried about the animals we’d find. Could we kill them? I told myself to stop thinking. Handle one thing at a time. First, we had to get to the mansion.

“They’re massive,” Esther said. “They have claws like this!” She held her hands about a foot apart.

“Okay, Esther. I need you to go back to Rayna. Stay with her and if the destroyers start breaking through, I want you to come back and tell me.”

“Oh, if they break through, I’m definitely coming back here. I don’t want to watch Rayna get torn to shreds. I can’t believe how they ripped Kelly apart.” Her voice cracked on the last word, and I wondered if ghosts could cry. She shook her head and disappeared.

“Rayna, you still with me?” I asked.

“I’m here. I’m really scared.”

The light at the intersection in front of us turned red. Brand slowed down.

“Dude, just run the light,” I said.

“I will,” Brand said, “but I’m not just barreling through. I want us to get there in one piece.”

I knew he was right, but that didn’t make it any easier. “You’re going to be fine, Rayna. We’re almost there.”

“The door is buckling!”

I could hear the thudding as the beasts threw themselves against the door. They really wanted to get in there.

“Tell me more about these animals, Rayna. Why are they working so hard to get to you?”

“They’re incredible trackers, and they’re nearly indestructible. Once they get your scent, they will hunt you to the ends of the earth to kill you and eat you.”

I wondered if they’d eaten Kelly at all. Esther said she was torn apart, but I refused to think about that. Kelly had to be fine. She had to be.

“So you think the Marshalls stole something of yours and put these bastards on your trail? Or did they just sic them on you and trust that they’d get your scent once they were inside?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes. It does. If they gave them your scent, that means the Marshalls have some semblance of control over them.”

“Thomas raises them, Jonathan. He trains them from the time they’re cubs. He sells them to the king and the royal guard as protectors of the realm.”

“What weaknesses do they have?”

“None that I know about,” she said. “The door is starting to give. Oh, God! I don’t want to die! Not like this!”

“You’re not going to die. Try to calm down. Tell me anything you can about them.” I had to keep her talking.

Esther popped back into the truck.

Shit.

“There’s a gap between the door and the jamb now, Jonathan. I can’t stay there. I can’t watch her get shredded with those claws. I just can’t do it.”

I nodded to Esther, glad that Rayna couldn’t hear her.

Brand took the next corner at fifty. The tires screeched and I was thankful for my seat belt. The truck went up onto two wheels for a moment but then came down. The last thing we needed was to have a rollover.

Rayna sobbed into the phone. “They’re going to get me.”

“Rayna! Tell me more about the animals. If they breathe, they can die. Give me something.”

“I don’t know! One of them is gripping the door, trying to claw through!”

As long as they weren’t ramming the door, I wasn’t too worried. I didn’t think their claws could slice through metal as thick as what must be on a panic room.

“We’re just about there, Rayna. We’re going to save you. I will not allow them to kill you. Do you hear me?”

“There’s nothing you can do. They killed Kelly and now they’re going to kill me.”

Brand skidded the truck around another corner, bounced over the curb, and plowed through a bush on his way back to the street.

“We’re on your street now, Rayna. We’ll be there in no time. Hold on!”

Brand crashed through the security gate, raced down the long drive, spun the wheel, and screeched to a halt by the front door.

I bolted from the truck before it stopped moving and pulled my Beretta from its holster. I thumbed off the safety as I hurried to the entrance.

Thankfully the door was unlocked.

“We’re here,” I said. “I’m on my way upstairs.”

I took the stairs two at a time and ran down the hallway. As I passed Rayna’s room, I saw Kelly lying in a puddle of blood. Her insides were strewn against the wall. My heart dropped, and I thought, no, not again! It was like the universe was telling me she was supposed to die on that bridge, but the second floor of a mansion would work just as well. I thought my heart was going to stop beating. I wanted to trade places with her. I should be the one to die. Not Kelly. Those thoughts all hit me in an instant, but my body didn’t slow down.

I didn’t have time to stop. I had to get to Rayna.

I could hear the beasts huffing, growling, scratching. I also heard the sound of metal tearing.

“Hurry!” Rayna said.

I burst into Graham’s room, hoping Brand wasn’t far behind.

“Hey, you ugly motherfuckers!” I yelled.

The door to the panic room clanged open as I reached the closet, but the animals spun to face me. Holy shit. They were gigantic. Their eyes blazed with malevolence. As soon as they turned, I fired three shots at the first destroyer. I aimed for the eyes.

The beast howled in pain then dropped to the floor.

The other destroyer charged me, rising up with those massive claws. I kept pulling the trigger over and over and over as if that could change what had happened to Kelly, could erase the burden I’d been carrying for the five years only I had lived. The gun held fifteen rounds in the magazine, plus one in the chamber, and three went into the first guy, so I know I fired thirteen rounds at the second destroyer.

The beast plowed into me, but it was mostly momentum and inertia. It drove me to the floor, but as it landed on top of me, it expelled its final breath. I wrinkled my nose at the horrific aroma. Life had given me another Get Out of Jail Free card even though I knew I didn’t deserve it. I tried to push the beast off, but it was too heavy.

“Rayna? Are you all right?” I called.

“I think so.”

Brand rushed into the room.

“Fuck me sideways,” he said. “You alive, Shade?”

“Yeah, can you get this thing off me?”

He rolled the beast to the side. I looked down at my shirt. It was stained with destroyer blood. At least it wasn’t mine.

As soon as I pushed myself to my feet, Rayna threw herself into my arms. She held me tightly. Her whole body was trembling.

“Check on Kelly,” I said to Brand, but he was already on his way to her.

I held Rayna. “You’re okay,” I said, and because repeating it might make it true, “You’re okay.”

She didn’t speak. She just clutched me and sobbed into my shoulder.

“I need to check on Kelly,” I whispered. I rubbed her upper arms and held her tighter for a moment.

“I know,” Rayna said. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“If I hadn’t insisted on coming back here, she’d still be alive.”

“Kelly knew the risks,” I said, but the words felt hollow.

Rayna and I moved down the hall.

Brand knelt by Kelly, his fingers on her neck, checking for a pulse. Esther stood near him, shaking her head. From the look on her face, I knew that ghosts can’t cry, but I also knew Esther still felt the emotions.

Brand looked up at me, tears in his eyes. “She’s alive,” he said. “Barely.”

I knelt beside him and brushed Kelly’s hair out of her face. “Hold on, Kelly. You can’t leave us.” I pulled out my phone, scrolled through to Lina, and placed a call.

Lina was a healer. She lived in Five Points, which was too far away. There was no way Kelly would survive long enough for Lina to get here.

“Hello?” Lina said.

“Lina, it’s Jonathan.”

“Oh, how wonderful to hear from you. How—?”

“Lina, this is an emergency. Do you know any healers in Boulder?”

“Ophelia stays up in Boulder, but you’re impervious to magic, so who’s hurt?”

“Kelly. She’s dying, Lina. Can you get Ophelia to come to us?” I gave her the address.

“I’ll call you right back.”

While we waited, I held Kelly’s hand. I didn’t want to move her, and as badly as she was torn apart, I knew there was nothing I could do for her. Scooping up her intestines wouldn’t help, so I just held her hand and hoped that Ophelia would answer her phone.

“She’s not bleeding?” Rayna asked.

There was blood all over the place. I was kneeling in her blood myself. However, Rayna was right. Kelly’s wounds did not ooze any blood now. She was magically engineered, so her body must have gone into healing mode to the extent that it could. But it couldn’t recover from such gaping wounds without help.

“Sekutar,” Brand said, as if that explained it all.

I noticed a journal lying next to Kelly’s shoulder. It was drenched in blood. I picked it up and watched crimson streams drain from the pages.

“My journal,” Rayna said.

“You’ll want to buy a new one,” I said.

“That’s what we came here to get. I was going to have you read about the Marshall Clan and what happened.”

“No one’s going to be able to read this.” I set it on the floor and looked at my hand. It was covered in Kelly’s blood.

After what felt like an eternity but in reality was perhaps ninety seconds, my phone finally rang. The display read, Lina.

“Give me good news, Lina.”

“Ophelia is on her way. She isn’t far. Maybe five minutes?”

“Thank you, Lina. I have no words.”

“She can’t promise anything. For a Sekutar to be unable to heal, Kelly might be too far gone. I pray that’s not the case, but I don’t want to mislead you.”

“I understand.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“Thanks, Lina. I wish there was something, but I can’t imagine what it could be.”

“I’ll pray for her.”

Lina was the only person I knew in the magical community who believed in God. The rest of the wizards, necromancers, sorcerers, and such knew there were no gods. Those were merely stories told to children so they could face the world each day, believing someone was out there to love them if they did good and punish them for eternity if they did bad. I’d never spoken to her about her belief. She didn’t really associate with the folks at DGI.

“Thank you, Lina,” I said. “I’ll call you to let you know how it goes.”

When I ended the call, Brand looked at me. I’d never seen him afraid of anything, but now I saw fear in his eyes, fear that he would lose Kelly. “Someone’s coming?”

I nodded. “A healer named Ophelia.”

Brand sighed with relief.

“You need to understand she might not be able to do anything.”

“At least someone can try. That’s what counts.”

“I agree,” I said. I kept holding Kelly’s hand.

Rayna knelt beside me and put her arms around me. None of us spoke. We remained like that for what seemed a hundred years. Those were the longest five minutes of my life.

Finally, a woman entered the house and called out to us. “Anyone here?”

“Upstairs,” I called.

Ophelia was a large woman with olive skin and long gray hair. She was in her mid sixties and dressed in a tie-dyed dress and moccasins. She had kind brown eyes. Brand, Rayna, and I moved out of her way.

“I wasn’t sure I was at the right—” She saw Kelly. “Oh my word.”

“Can you help her?” Brand asked, his voice quivering.

She blew out a long breath of air. “I’ll do my best.”

“What can we do to help?” I asked.

“Nothing at the moment.”

She knelt beside Kelly. Ophelia ran her hands along Kelly’s wounds. She shook her head, drew a deep breath, turned, and looked at me. “I don’t know about this,” she said. “I’ve never seen anyone in this condition who was still alive.”

“She’s a Sekutar.”

“I know. The problem is that her body has been trying to heal itself. In order for me to help her, I’ll have to reopen the healed wounds. The trauma might be too much for her. The healing process could kill her. Do you know her blood type?”

“She’s type O,” I said.

“I’m type O,” Brand said. “If she needs blood, you take it from me.”

“She’s going to need a lot more than just blood,” Ophelia said.

“Anything,” Brand said. “My life means nothing without her. If she needs anything from me, you take it. Do you understand?”

“She’ll need life energy.”

“Take it.”

“She’s in a deep coma right now. Even if I can heal her, she may never come out of it.”

“I’ll take that chance,” Brand said.

Ophelia rose and faced him. She reached out and placed her hands on his face, leaned her head back, and closed her eyes. “Hmm,” she said. “Not good.”

“What?” I asked.

“He’s a Sekutar but he’s not the same as her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Different generation,” Brand said.

“So it won’t work?”

Brand shook his head. “It’s not that. Remember that she’s a permanent Sekutar. I’m not. I have maybe six more years before the magic wears off and I revert to being a regular man.”

I nodded. “I remember.”

Ophelia looked at me. “He may lose those years by giving of his life energy.”

“I’ll give my life if need be,” Brand said. “You take what you need.”

“You’re sure?”

“You’re wasting time! I’m positive. Now save her!”

“Is anyone else type O?” Ophelia asked as she knelt beside Kelly again.

I wasn’t. Rayna wasn’t even from our world, so she wasn’t either. “I’m afraid not,” I said. “Should I go to the hospital to get some?”

“They won’t just give you blood, Mr. Shade.”

“They won’t be able to stop me from taking it.”

“That won’t be necessary. Let’s see if I can get her to a stable place before we worry about that. If I succeed, we can transport her to DGI.”

“They’ll charge us a fortune,” I said.

“I’ll pay,” Rayna said. “Money isn’t an issue.”

I felt tears welling in my eyes. I wasn’t sure I could speak, so I simply nodded.

Ophelia got to work. She gathered up Kelly’s intestines and shoved them back into Kelly’s body. The visual wouldn’t have been so bad, but the sound of squishing nearly turned my stomach. As Ophelia waved her hands over the intestines, they twisted and folded into their proper place with more sounds of wet meat being wrung like a washcloth.

“I can’t watch this,” Esther said and turned away.

Ghosts can’t get sick, but I understood how she felt.

Ophelia looked at Brand. “What’s your name?”

“Brand.”

“All right. Brand, I need you to come over here. Lie on the floor with your head next to Kelly’s.”

Brand did as he was told. Blood seeped into his clothes and hair, but he didn’t pay any attention to that. He simply looked to Ophelia for guidance.

“When I start the healing process, I’ll lay a hand on you and a hand on her. I’ll be the conduit between you, so your blood will flow through my hands into Kelly’s body. I’m telling you these things because I’ll be so focused on the mental side of this that I won’t be able to speak. If you have any questions, you’ll need to ask before I begin.”

“No questions. Just get on with it.”

“As I pull your life energy, you need to let me know if you feel any pain.”

“I’m a Sekutar,” Brand said. “I don’t feel pain.”

“If your years run out, you will.”

He hesitated. “I understand.”

I wondered what was going through his mind. I just wished I could trade places with him. But my blood wouldn’t do Kelly any good, and Ophelia couldn’t magically take it from me anyway. “If Brand starts to feel pain, can I step in and donate energy too?”

Ophelia shook her head. “Lina explained your situation to me, Mr. Shade. I can’t even draw energy from you.”

“What about from me?” Rayna asked.

“No offense, my dear, but you look like you’ve been through hell. You need your life energy right now. Anything else?”

“No,” Brand said.

“Then let’s begin.” Ophelia placed a hand on Brand’s chest and one on Kelly’s shoulder. Her hands glowed. Other than that, I couldn’t see anything different. But the look on Brand’s face told me things were happening. He opened his mouth as if he’d been shocked by an electric fence.

I watched as Ophelia poured energy into Kelly’s body. Her concentration was incredible. Kelly’s flesh knit itself back together. I understood the principle behind it because Lina once explained it to me. The body knew how it was supposed to be, so Ophelia as the healer simply sped up the process with her magic. Most healers used their own energy to handle minor injuries, but for something of this magnitude, it would be suicide.

If we’d been at DGI, they had energy lines healers could tap into, but here, we were shit out of luck. Brand would have to supply the energy, and the sacrifice could very well cost him his own life. To his credit, he never wavered. He loved Kelly so there was no question in his mind that he would give everything to her. I felt the same way, but I was helpless. Being impervious to magic had its positives, but it also had its drawbacks.

Brand closed his eyes. Now that the initial shock was gone, he looked to be at peace. He inhaled and exhaled in a steady rhythm, so I knew he was doing fine.

As I looked at Kelly, I saw color returning to her face. Her chest rose and fell, something that was previously undetectable. My hopes climbed. This could actually work.

Time stretched on. Kelly’s fingers twitched. I took that as a good sign. The shredded skin looked almost normal now, just a lot of scarring. I knew the scars would fade as she healed.

Brand still looked at peace. He breathed in and out as if everything were fine. I watched him for any signs of pain. I figured his jaw would clench if the pain started or his body would tense. So far, so good.

Ophelia looked to be in pain, though. Sweat beaded on her forehead. She opened her mouth, but no sound came forth.

I looked at Rayna. “Can you get some water? I think Ophelia will need some. Brand might too.”

Rayna gave me a nod. “I can do that.” She hurried downstairs.

It occurred to me that the Marshall Clan might be nearby. They’d sent the destroyers in, so we weren’t safe.

“Esther?”

“I can’t watch,” she said.

“I know. It’s okay. Can you pop down to Rayna? Make sure she’s not in any danger?”

“That I can do. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For making me feel useful,” she said and disappeared.

A few minutes later, Esther reappeared and Rayna returned with a tray loaded down with glasses and a large pitcher of water. “I didn’t know how much to bring,” she whispered.

I took the tray and placed it on the dresser in Rayna’s bedroom. Esther followed me. “All clear down there,” she said.

“Good. Thanks, Esther.”

Esther looked concerned. “Think she’ll make it?”

“It’s Kelly,” I said and nodded. “Of course she’ll make it.”

I spoke with confidence, but inside I, too, was worried. I’d never seen Kelly in such bad shape. She was in better shape when the wizards at DGI were killing her, but that’s another story for another time.

Finally Ophelia’s hands stopped glowing. She broke the connection and lowered her head. I poured a large glass of water and brought it to her.

“Thank you,” she whispered. Her voice sounded like something from beyond the grave. She sipped the water, nodded, and sipped again. Then she tilted the glass and drained it in a few quick gulps.

“More?” I asked.

She shook her head. “Brand?” she asked. “How are you doing?”

Brand sat up. “Fit as a fiddle. How’s Kelly?”

“Stable but still comatose. I’ve done all I can for her. Such traumatic injuries may have been too much for her. As I said, she may never wake up. She needs a blood transfusion. I took only enough from Brand to stabilize her.”

“So we can move her?”

Ophelia nodded. “Her physical body is mostly healed. Once she has enough blood, the rest will take care of itself.”

“I can’t thank you enough.”

Rayna stepped forward. “You send me the bill, Ophelia.”

“Oh, honey, I’m not worried about that. Lina is my friend, so I wouldn’t dream of charging you.”

“When a plumber comes to fix the pipes, I pay the bill. You saved Kelly’s life. I’m going to pay you, and you’re going to accept that payment.”

“My mother always told me that only a fool turns down a paycheck,” Ophelia said.

“Good.”

“We need to get Kelly to DGI,” I said. “But somebody needs to stay with Graham.”

“Like hell,” Brand said. “You get him on the phone and tell him he’s coming with us because I’m not staying behind and I know you won’t leave Kelly’s side either.”

“I’ll call him,” Rayna said. “He’ll come with us.”

“I’m coming too,” Ophelia said. “The next few hours are critical, and I don’t want to turn Kelly over to any of the healers DGI employs. Not that they’re bad, you understand, but she’s my patient.”

“No problem. DGI is closed at this hour, so I’ll call Mike and have him get someone to meet us there.”

I felt ready to pass out. I’d been running on adrenaline since Rayna’s phone call. Now I just wanted to lie down, but I knew if I did, I’d probably be out for hours. I steeled myself because I knew there were long hours of waiting ahead of us. Kelly might be stable, but she wasn’t out of the woods.