Forging Day (Crucible of Change Book 1) (36 page)

He didn’t see the winged demon coming up behind him, but I did. “You have sinned,” said Tessa. “It’s time for you to atone.”

He spun around and grabbed her by the throat, snagging her out of the air. “Your tricks won’t work on me, demon, but we can fuck later if you’d like.” He laughed, and threw her against the wall of the house. Her wings made a sickening noise when she hit, like the snapping of brittle sticks. She struggled to get to her feet, and then collapsed to the ground.

I pushed the pain deep, and focused my will. Silver grey fluid jetted from my hands into the coarse fur of his back. Skin bubbled under fur and an oily smoke filled the air. He roared, and turned away from Tessa. “You’ll pay for that! You’ll all pay!”

Massive talons scooped me up from the ground, and I was airborne. My flight came to an abrupt and painful end when I slammed into the side of the dog run. I gasped, trying to breathe. I heard the ping of popping metal fasteners and the fence sagged under me. I finally sucked in a lungful of air as Colby stalked toward me. Gunfire and shouts came from the far side of the house. I really hoped the good guys were winning this one.

“Crom!” I screamed, and held out my hand. The leather-wrapped handle of the silver-chased hammer was solid in my grasp. “Come on Colby! You owe me, you son of a bitch!”

He leaped at me, claws extended. I launched myself to the side. His claws scored deep across my shoulder, missing my throat. I lunged upward with the hammer. It greeted his exposed scrotum with a satisfying crunch.

He screamed and leaped over me, onto the dog run. Metal shrieked and tore. He launched himself at me again. Words like
enraged
and
berserk
took on a grim new meaning.

I swung with everything I had. The hammer caught him across the muzzle with a crack of bone. This time it vanished from my hand in a burst of silver flames.

He roared, spraying me with spittle and blood, and his arm drew back to tear out my throat. I knew I couldn’t evade his claws.

I gathered my will again with laser focus. “Hey Colby! Swallow this, bitch!” I sprayed the silver grey fluid into his open mouth. His scream turned into wet gurgles. Finally, there was nothing but the hiss of silver eating flesh.

I heard a
bamf
, and my sheathed dagger dropped to the ground next to me. I drew it and stared at Colby’s body. Hatred burned my soul. I drove the blade into his exposed belly, again and again. “Tell me you like it!” I screamed. “Tell me how much you like it!”

Someone grabbed my wrist. For a wild minute I didn’t recognize Cordie. “Shhh, sis. He’s dead. You can stop now. He won’t hurt you again.” I let her pry the dagger from my nerveless fingers.

Sharon stood there, staring at me, and then she was talking into her radio, but I couldn’t make sense of the words.

I fell back to the ground, suddenly hurting in a thousand places. Cordie cried while she cradled my head in her lap. From my vantage point, I could see Imhotep under the truck, and Evans on the ground just beyond him.

“Nearly done here,”
I heard in my head.
“I’ll see you at home.”

I held out my hand, and called to my holy symbol. “
Come!
” I mentally commanded it. Something silver glinted as it crawled its way out of Evans’ front pocket. The tiny anvil and hammer flew into my waiting hand. I wasn’t going to lose this again.

The back door of the house burst open. A man ran out, wearing jeans and glasses. He stared at Colby’s remains, and then at us, and still went for one of the bikes.

Sharon yelled, “Halt!” just as a shot rang out.

He screamed and grabbed his leg, and then screamed a lot more when the bike overbalanced and fell, pinning him to the ground. Two SWAT officers rushed into the yard. One stood over the guy on the ground while the other nodded at Sharon and kept scanning for more hostiles.

“This one’s Human,” I heard. “And he’s still alive. I told you it was worth a shot. You owe me ten bucks, Dave.”

The shooting and yelling from the far side of the house had mostly died away, and I could see Berto kneeling next to Tessa. Cordie pressed something against my shoulder. I was exhausted and numb when I finally heard the sirens.

Leo ran around the corner of the house, followed by Mikah and Korembi. Mikah rushed over to Berto and pulled him into his arms. “I thought my heart was lost to me.” Tears rolled down his face as he hugged Berto and tenderly kissed him.

“I’ll never leave you. You know that.” Berto smiled and stroked Mikah’s face. “There’s no one but you. I love you.”

Leo ran over to us. He carefully hugged Cordie and gently took my hand. “I suppose I’m going to have to teach you how to duck, kid. You look like hell.”

I tried to smile at him, but couldn’t quite manage. “About usual, then?”

The street was filled with ambulance rigs, and I’m pretty sure I saw a fire truck and fire rescue too.

The EMTs had blankets for Cordie and Berto as they were led over to one of the ambulances so they could be checked out. I could hear them trying to get Tessa onto a stretcher. “Mind the wings,” said one of them.

I was dreading getting loaded onto my own stretcher. The ground seemed more comfortable by the minute, because I knew it was going to hurt like hell as soon as they tried to move me.

“Ma’am, can you tell us your name?”

“Olivia. Not ma’am.”

“No problem, Olivia. We need to get you onto the stretcher. We’re going to help steady your leg, but it’s going to hurt. The sooner we move you and have a look, the sooner we can give you something for the pain. We’re going to lift you on three. Ready? One. Two,” and then they swiftly lifted me onto the stretcher.

“What happened to three?” I whimpered.

Leo followed the stretcher, making sure I could see him. “Hang in there, sis.”

I could just see Cordie if I craned my neck. She was talking earnestly to one of the SWAT officers and pointing back toward the house. I called out, “Leo, there was another prisoner in the basement. I saw them when Colby did his video call.”

“Be right back, sis. Listen to the nice paramedics and stay out of trouble.”

My two paramedics raised the bar for efficiency under pressure. They interrogated me about my unusual physiology while starting IVs and cataloging my newest injuries.

Leo walked over to the SWAT officer Cordie had just been talking to, checking his magazine for bullets. I guess he had at least a few left. Along with the SWAT officer, he disappeared around the corner of the house.

Helicopter rotors whumped overhead, and there was a screech of tires as one of the local news vans skidded to a stop. A BMW with tinted windows pulled in behind them. Vivian emerged, looking utterly distraught for the cameras.

Lieutenant Clark, using a crutch and looking fairly grumpy, hobbled over. “This is an active crime scene. Get these people out of here!”

Vivian went up to him. “Are you in charge here? I’m the owner of the house. Assistant District Attorney Vivian Davis. What happened? Is it true the Cheesman Park murderer is dead?”

He couldn’t quite turn his grimace into a smile. “Yes, I’m Lieutenant Clark, and I am in charge of this scene. Miss Davis, I appreciate your concern, but we’re not yet prepared to make any official statements.”

“I totally understand, Lieutenant Clark. Of course you can’t confirm that Colby Green was the Cheesman Park killer, and I know you have to notify his next of kin, but this city owes you a debt of gratitude that simply mustn’t be forgotten.”

Before he could order her to leave again, she ran over to me. “Oh, Olivia, you poor dear. What did that monster do to you?” Based on the horrified look in her eyes, I was pretty sure she recognized what was left of her nightgown. She looked in the direction of Colby’s body and swallowed hard.

When she looked back at me, I smiled at her, and, just for a moment, she flinched. She recovered just as fast, and gave me the slightest, most imperceptible of nods.

That’s right, bitch. You may have the attitude, but I’ve got the body count. I win.

Just then shouting and the unmistakable sound of gunfire came from the basement of the house. There was a
whoosh
followed by the screech of breaking glass as the basement windows blew out.

“Leo!” I screamed. “My brother was in there. Help him.” I aimed my hand at the shattered window, shooting a jet of water into the fire.

The fire crew sprang into action, but it seemed to take forever as they hooked up the hose and went to work. Flames and smoke were pouring out of the open windows. I didn’t release my magic until Leo staggered out, soot-stained, coughing, and supporting one of the SWAT officers. Even from here, I could see the officer was covered in burns and oozing blood. Berto ran over to them. The news crew never stopped filming.

“Two more people in there.” Leo paused to cough. “Both dead. Couldn’t get them.”

My whole body was floating in warm molasses and I was vaguely aware of pain, but it was very far away and possibly happening to someone else entirely. They must have got the happy juice hooked up. I heard Cordie arguing with someone, and then she appeared on the stretcher opposite me. “I’m staying with my sister,” she said.

Targets Acquired

Memo

To:General Dxxxx

From:Major Parker

Operation Bad Dog went off with moderate success. We acquired two individuals for the program. We were unable to acquire the Alpha without inserting ourselves into the greater battle.

You should be aware that the team recognized the sisters of Sergeant Mitchell, and at least one member was seen by the older sister. Our monitoring shows she has not shared information with the Sergeant yet, but we expect this to happen within the day. Unit morale is currently suboptimal.

Subject one is content to eat raw meat and make suggestive comments to female personnel while pleasuring himself. Subject two refuses to play with his squeaky squirrel toy or his squeaky bone. He also ignored the rawhide chews.

Memo

To:Major Parker

From:General Dxxxx

Subject two is not a pet. If I hear any more about flea collars or squeaky toys, you’ll be sharing his enclosure.

Please remove all female personnel from contact with both subjects. Evidence from the operation indicates they would be in extreme personal danger should the subjects get loose.

If Sergeant Mitchell makes contact, remind him of his oath, and that he is still a member of this team. He served, but in a different way. Unit morale is your issue. Handle it.

Do Hospitals Offer Frequent Flyer Programs?

I think I must have drifted off. When I opened my eyes, bright hospital lights lazily flowed by overhead. I half expected to see a fluffy white Cheshire cat grinning at me from around a corner.

“Olivia?”

“What?” I didn’t recognize the man talking to me, but he was ruining my dreams. “Go away. You scared the cat.”

“Olivia. I’m Doctor Kingston. Do you know where you are?”

“Not in Las Vegas,” I replied.

I heard Cordie say, “Olivia!”

“In a hospital. Again. Where else would I end up?”

“Do you know what day it is?” asked Doctor Kingston.

“A sucky one. No wait, that’s not right. It’s the day that bastard Colby died.” I smiled and pictured Colby’s face with a big, red X across it. “Swallow this, bitch,” I said, and couldn’t stop giggling.

Kingston’s face swam back into view. “Olivia, stay with me,” he said. “They’ll be bringing you to X-ray shortly, but I believe you’re going to need surgery to repair your knee. We’ll know more about your shoulder and arm after your scans.”

“I don’t want surgery. Surgery sucks. Get with the times and get me a healer,” I muttered.

The doctor turned and looked at the computer screen. “Don’t let your sister have morphine in the future,” he said to Cordie.

“That’s not the morphine,” said Cordie. “She always sounds like that.”

“Cordie, you silly,” I said, and suddenly realized something was missing. “Where’s my necklace? Who took my necklace? Where’s my dagger? The werewolves might come back.”

“Olivia, it’s okay. I have all of your stuff. I won’t let any werewolves get you. I promise.” Cordie squeezed my hand, trying to be reassuring. She smiled weakly at Doctor Kingston. “You might be right about the morphine.”

“Hey! Doctor. I got a question for you,” I half whispered.

“Yes, Olivia?”

“Do hospitals have punch cards? Like after ten visits, I get a free kidney or something? Or how about a dozen donuts? I like donuts.” I couldn’t stop giggling. I guess I wasn’t surprised when I didn’t get an answer. I watched the dust motes sword fight in the air while Cordie and the doctor talked near the giant seahorse.

“I’m going to start a new record type for your sister. What does she call herself?” asked the doctor.

“A Dark Elf,” said Cordie.

“Okay, new file, Dark Elf. Morphine is contra-indicated. Appears to act as a hallucinogen,” said Doctor Kingston as he typed his notes into the computer.

The doctor vanished in a puff of purple smoke, and a pink-and-yellow-striped tiger bounced into the room on its tail. “Olivia, I’m Nurse Lily. We’re going to get you cleaned up.”

“Okey-dokey. You’re so bouncy. How do you get your tail to do that? Do you think Kat could bounce like that, Cordie?” I was getting dizzy watching her boinging up and down and up and down.

The nurse chased the puffer fish away from the bed, and put a clownfish in its place.

“How do they breathe?” I asked her.

“How do what breathe, dear?” asked Nurse Lily of the bouncy tail.

“The fish. How do they breathe in the air like that? Are they magic?” I reached up to poke at the fish, but Cordie grabbed my arm.

“Leave the fish alone, Olivia. You’re right. They’re magic fish. Don’t tell anyone.” She held my hand while the tiger nurse probed and poked at me.