Seti's Heart (17 page)

“You really need to get over yourself,” Logan mumbled, tossing Seti his sweatpants.

Seti grunted, still smirking, stepping into the pants and drawing them up to his waist. Logan felt a pang of remorse even as a part of him felt relieved. It was for the best. If Seti remained nude much longer, Logan was apt to become mesmerized by his nakedness again and they’d both starve to death. He led Seti out into the living room, where Jason, Leo, and Chris were settled together on the sofa, watching a re-run of I Love Lucy.

All three of their faces wore identical grins as they turned toward Logan and Seti. Logan knew in an instant that he and Seti had been overheard. Not that they’d made any attempt at being discreet – as a matter of fact, Logan distinctly remembered them being quite vocal. He cringed inwardly as he recalled screaming things as he came that normally would have made his ears bleed. Still, the three of them didn’t need to take such obvious pleasure in his embarrassment.

“Shut up,” he snarled before any of them could open their mouths. “Not a word, any of you.”

Seti’s attention was caught by the television set. He’d hunkered down in front of the screen, tapping his fingers against the glass, trying to get the characters’ attention. Logan watched his face darken as Lucy and Ricky blithely continued their conversation, paying him no heed.

“You’re wasting your time. It’s not real, Seti. They’re moving pictures, that’s all,” Logan tried to explain before Seti tried to break through the screen and strangle the Ricardos for ignoring him. “They can’t see or hear you.”

Seti stood, glaring at the television set. “If they are not real, then what purpose do they serve?”

“Entertainment,” Leo said. “Didn’t you have that back in the Stone Age?”

“He’s not a Neanderthal, Leo,” Logan bristled.

“Close enough for government work. I believe I remember him throwing you over his shoulder and carting you off to have his wicked way with you,” Leo retorted, grinning mischievously.

“He didn’t throw me over his shoulder,” Logan protested.

“Oh…he just had his wicked way with you then?”

“Shut up,” Logan said, at a loss for a better come back. After all, Leo was right – on all counts. “I promised Seti pizza.”

“Wow, the man works cheap. Wonder what I could get for a Big Mac and a shake?” Jason laughed. Leo and Jason high-fived each other, while Chris shook his head and rolled his eyes at the two of them.

“Just ignore them, Logan. You know that they never matured past middle school,” he said.

Logan took Chris’ advice. He picked up the phone and dialed the number of their favorite pizza parlor and placed an order for three large pies with the works.

He sank down to the floor next to Seti and gave him a crash course on the history of television. Logan grabbed the remote, flipping through the channels, trying to explain how a television functioned.

“What is this?” Seti demanded, snatching the remote away from Logan. He shook it next to his ear, listening intently, then turned it over in his hands, looking at it from all angles. His thumb hit several buttons, changing the channel and setting the volume to max.

“LET’S GET READY TO RUMMMMMMBLE…”

“Wrestling,” Logan yelled, prying the remote from Seti’s fingers and lowering the volume. “It’s fake, too.”

“No, that is real. I know battle training when I see it,” Seti growled, pointing at the screen. “This is how we trained our warriors, also.” He squatted down, watching the nearly naked wrestlers for a few minutes. “They must be your mightiest warriors. Why do they not wear clothing like this?” he asked, plucking at the material of his sweats. “Am I not as fierce a warrior as they? They understand that clothing such as this restricts movement. I do not like being confined. ”

“They are wrestling in a ring, and are dressed appropriately. You are sitting in a living room, watching television. There’s a difference,” Logan argued.

“I think Seti’s right,” Leo grinned impishly. “Take ‘em off, Seti. Show Logan who’s boss.”

“Knock it off, Leo!” Logan hollered, shooting a black look over his shoulder at Leo. “Stop egging him on!”

Logan was spared a battle of wills between himself and Seti when the doorbell buzzed. “Thank God. The pizza’s here,” he said, standing up, digging his wallet out of his pants pocket. “Man, when they say ‘delivery under thirty minutes,’ they mean it.”

“Yeah,” Leo said. “God forbid they should have to take a couple of bucks off your bill. Better that they run over blue-haired old ladies in their walkers getting it to your door on time.”

Jason went to answer the door. He’d just slid open the deadbolt when the door exploded inward, sending him flying backward against the wall.

Two men burst into the apartment, both with guns drawn. “Hold it right there!” one of them shouted, swinging the muzzle of his gun in an arc. “Don’t fucking move!”

“Who are you? What do you want?” Logan yelled, backing up a step. He tossed his wallet at the man’s feet. “Here. That’s all I’ve got. Take it and go!”

“Stupid asshole. We don’t want your money. We want your friend,” Harry growled, taking another step into the apartment. “Where’s Seti?”

“That’s him, over there on the floor,” Joe said, motioning toward Seti with his gun. “You! Get up! Put your hands on top of your head and keep ‘em there.”

Seti rose gracefully to his feet. “These are not your allies, are they, Logan?” he asked quietly. There was ice in his voice that made Logan shiver, despite the pounding of his heart.

“Don’t move, Seti. They have guns,” Logan warned Seti, not taking his eyes off the two intruders. “They can kill you.”

“These insignificant maggots?” Seti laughed, stepping in front of Logan. “I have seen more dangerous piles of camel dung.”

“Stop right there,” Harry warned. Aiming his gun at Seti, his free hand withdrew a pair of handcuffs from his pocket. He tossed them at Seti’s feet, where they landed with a loud clank. “Put those on him,” he ordered, waving the muzzle of his gun at Logan. “Now! Move!”

“Come on, man… You don’t need to do this,” Chris said. He and Leo stood by the sofa, frozen in place. “He’s a nobody. You don’t want him. You must have the wrong apartment. His name is Ted. He’s a dancer at The Men’s Shop. You know, that new club downtown?”

“Nice try. Say something else so I’ll have an excuse to shoot your faggoty ass,” Joe snarled at Chris, pointing his gun at Chris’ head.

Logan saw Jason eyeing the first gunman. “No, Jason, don’t!” he yelled just as Jason lunged for the gun.

A shot rang out, sounding impossibly loud in the small apartment. Jason gasped, clutching at his stomach. Looking down, his face turned a ghastly greenish-white. Slick, dark blood seeped between his fingers, soaking into his shirt, dripping to the carpet. Groaning, he slumped back against the wall, slowly sliding down to the floor.

“NO! JASON!” Logan shrieked, adding his scream to Chris and Leo’s. He tried to brush past Seti to reach Jason, but Seti was as immovable as rock.

“You dare bring war to my doorstep?” Seti bellowed, his face twisting into a mask of rage. Raising his arms, he called out in a language Logan didn’t recognize. The windows of the apartment began to shake, as if being battered by a strong wind. In the next heartbeat they shattered, glass swept inside the apartment by a powerful gust. Howling, the wind whipped through the room, knocking Chris and Leo to the floor.

The fish tank tipped over, its water cascading over the table in a waterfall to the rug. But instead of soaking into the carpet, the wind picked the liquid up, swirling it through the air.
 

Incredibly, the wind and water began to take on a form, a diaphanous bubble that quickly divided in two, like an amoeba. A pair of creatures, made entirely of water and wind and vaguely reminiscent of wolves, took shape. They growled as they slunk next to Seti, chests low to the ground, ears back and teeth bared.

Guns blazed as Joe and Harry pumped several rounds at the terrifying wind-wolves. The bullets passed harmlessly through the watery beasts, lodging in the floor and wall behind them.

A strong hand held Logan back as Seti nodded toward Harry and Joe. “Kill them,” he said simply.

Logan watched from over Seti’s shoulder as the wind-wolves leapt at the intruders. Snarling, snapping their jaws, they pounced on the men, knocking them both to the ground.

Harry and Joe’s screams were gurgled as watery jaws snapped down on their throats, crushing their windpipes. They thrashed beneath the creatures, their arms and legs passing through the beasts without any effect.

It was over quickly. As soon as Harry and Joe stilled, the water-wolves exploded into a spray of water that soaked the bodies. The wind calmed until the only sound was that of the televised wrestling match and Logan’s heart as it pounded in his ears.

The intruders lay side by side just within the doorway, their bodies completely unmarked. Wide, unfocussed eyes stared at the ceiling; their mouths open in frozen, silent screams. It looked as if both had simply dropped dead in their tracks.

“Jason!” Logan cried as soon as he could find his voice. He didn’t know how Seti had conjured the creatures that had killed the intruders and he took no time to wonder about it. Not when his best friend was lying on the floor near the door, his life’s blood oozing out of a bullet wound. Logan pushed past Seti, dropping to his knees next to Jason. “Oh, God,” he whispered, looking at the blood that soaked Jason’s shirt. “Oh, God… Jason…”

Chris was the first to gather his wits about him. He had the phone in his hand and dialed 911, barking their address into the receiver.

Leo sunk slowly onto the sofa, his face a pasty white. His hand covered his mouth, his eyes riveted on Jason.

Logan paid neither of them any mind. His attention was focused solely on Jason. Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth, and his breath gurgled wetly.

“There’s so much blood!” Logan groaned, his voice brittle with grief. “Fuck! This is all my fault! I should never have brought Seti here. I should have never gone snooping in the Vault to begin with! Oh, God, Jason, I’m so sorry!” he wept. “Don’t die on us, Jason. You hear me? Don’t you fucking dare die!”

“The ambulance is on the way,” Chris said, as he knelt next to Jason. “This isn’t your fault, Logan. It’s Ethan Wilder’s fault. He’s got to be the one behind this – he’s the only one who would know who Seti is and that he’d be with you.”

“I’ll fucking kill that bastard!” Logan sobbed. Strong hands hooked under his arms, pulling him up from the floor despite his protests, and he found himself cocooned in Seti’s arms. “No, let me go, Seti! I have to help Jason!”

“You cannot help him now, Logan. He has begun his journey to the Underworld,” Seti said softly. “May Anubis guide him safely to his new life. May Osiris find his heart worthy of eternal happiness.”

“NO!” Logan screamed, struggling to be free of Seti’s embrace. “No! It can’t be! He can’t be dead!”

Chris’ face looked stricken as he glanced up at Logan and nodded slowly.

Grief and guilt tore a hole in Logan’s heart and a ragged scream from his throat as the pain of Jason’s death seared him. Hot tears flowed unchecked down his cheeks as he buried his face in Seti’s neck. “Why Jason? He didn’t have anything to do with this! It’s my fault! I should be the one who’s dead, not him!”

“It is the will of the gods,” Seti answered. “I am sorry I could not protect him.”

As Logan trembled in Seti’s arms, his grief quickly gave way to a terrible, numbing blackness that filled him. It was his fault. It was Seti’s fault. It was Ethan Wilder’s, Perry’s, and God’s fault. It was everyone’s fault but poor Jason, yet he was the one who’d paid the ultimate price.

Outside, the wail of an ambulance and police cars drew near. Blankly, Logan watched Chris step over the dead gunmen, ready to wave the paramedics and police into the apartment. Wrenching himself away from Seti, he said, “Go into the bedroom, Seti. The cops can’t find you here – you don’t have any identification. Don’t let them find you.”