Sharp Edges (Wildcat Wizard Book 12), page 8
"We need to get out of here," I shouted above the din as bullets kicked up shards of concrete worryingly close to my body, all of which I needed in my everyday life, even the little bits.
Ivan nodded and then without warning did the maddest thing. He kind of rolled, kind of flipped, kind of launched, and somehow had grabbed me around the waist and tucked me under one arm at the same time. Before I could gasp and say, "Ooh, you're strong," he was sprinting across the yard as fast as the bullets were flying.
He dumped me against a graffiti-covered wall then crouched beside me and checked to see if anyone was approaching. "All clear, for now," he said, grim-faced but moist around the eyes.
"She meant a lot to you, didn't she?"
"She did. I never knew how much such betrayal could hurt. She's gone now though, and we need to think about ourselves."
"Sorry, buddy, it's a shame she got killed." I patted him on the shoulder, feeling stupid, but showing you care is more important than worrying about doing it the right way.
"Thanks."
Several of Ivan's men ran past, guns blazing, and judging by the screams they'd got themselves a few Hounds. We stood and brushed ourselves down then took a proper look around by peeking from behind the wall. It was chaos, carnage, and loud. Hounds were everywhere, Ivan's people were speeding around the compound like assassins on methamphetamine, and the body count was rising rapidly.
Wand was nagging from inside my pocket so I released him from his musty prison. He shone proud and fierce as my will surged, our power combining. Betty felt left out and grew warm in my hands. The red pulsed insistently so I lifted her high and she caught the sun, glinting with menace.
"Such a show-off," moaned Wand.
"Play nice. You two have got a lot of work to do." And they did. We surged forward, slicing, blasting, generally causing as much destruction as possible. Ivan tore through Hounds like a thing possessed, incensed as he was about the attack on home turf; I suspected he was mostly fueled by Kim's death.
He sped past me after running around like a madman, scooped up a machine gun, and fired at Hounds whilst simultaneously grabbing one that ran past, yanking so hard the dude's arm came off, which had to hurt.
I spun, distracted, warned by Betty just in time to thrust forward and stick it to a Hound before Wand yanked me the other way and blasted several more with eye-popping results.
Vampires were on their game now, and making short work of the remaining Hounds, moving too fast to be shot, or recovering quickly from anything that wasn't instantly fatal.
Gunshots grew infrequent, then ceased, screams faded as Hounds died, and then all was silence apart from the odd moan from a vampire as he or she regenerated or succumbed to their wounds. Daytime wasn't the best time to recover from severe injuries and many were new to such a world; quite a few didn't make it.
I sidled up to Ivan, put Wand away and lowered Betty, then cleaned her best I could on a dead Hound. We stood side by side and surveyed the carnage. It was rough, and gross, but it could have been worse. We could have all been killed.
"What the fuck is going on?" I asked, truly at a loss.
"I have no idea." Ivan shook his head, as dumbfounded as me by the latest turn of events.
Wasn't Expecting That
"I don't believe it. No way, no goddamn way." I watched the man approach through the smoke of a burning building. A ghostly apparition of times long past, unfortunately not forgotten. He was familiar in a way I could never forget, yet I knew it couldn't be possible.
"It can't be," said Ivan, but he knew as well as I did that the man we were seeing was real. "You killed him, didn't you?"
"Not me, but yeah, he's dead. Or was, or should have been. Ugh, this day keeps getting worse." The man continued to approach, seemingly unconcerned by the horde of pissed-off vampires, not to mention Ivan and me. The gait was memorable.
He walked with a slight limp, used a cane for assistance. He had perfect posture though, back ramrod straight, a military bearing about him, a man who was used to giving orders and being obeyed. His beard was short and smartly trimmed, with a full waxed mustache. His hair was buzzed on side and back, longer on front, blond and perfect. His jaw was weak, but his eyes were piercing and confident. The overall impression was an entirely smackable face.
The intruder stopped and leaned on his cane. He smiled. I wanted to punch him right on the nose.
"Nathan," I said, still amazed it was him.
"Arthur Salzman." He turned to Ivan. "Hello, Ivan, it's been a while."
"It has," said Ivan, doing well to remain so unflustered.
"Surprise," shouted Nathan, beaming, spreading his arms wide.
"Yeah, sure is. Why aren't you dead? Please be dead," I said, wishing it were so.
"Sorry to disappoint you, old chap, but I'm made of stern stuff, not so easy to kill me. Just been keeping a low profile of late, putting the house in order. How have my replacements been? I understand you have killed several, driven others to distraction."
"They've all been utter fuckwits, same as you."
"Now, now, no need for name-calling." Nathan stared at Kim's corpse beside him and tutted. "Such a shame. She was a beautiful woman and a credit to Cerberus. She was very good at her job, you know, and that stunt she pulled with you, Ivan, a mark of true genius." Nathan laughed; I was amazed Ivan didn't rip his throat out there and then.
"If she was so great, why'd you have her killed? I'm guessing you're behind all the current problems?"
"To answer your questions, she is dead because she was too loyal to the old ways, wouldn't sully herself with what is now necessary. And yes, I am running the current operation. In fact, I am running all operations. Oh, why don't I just come right out with it?" Nathan made a show of umming and aahing about a decision he'd clearly already made, then he grinned. "You are lucky enough to be in the presence of the true head of Cerberus. At least in this country. Not the face of Cerberus, not the one put in charge of running things, but the one who does actually run things. Shocked? Surprised? Happy? Do I get a cake?"
"Bored," I said, stifling a yawn. "Anything else, or are we done?"
"What, no congratulations? No asking why I have been gone so long? Why I am telling you this now? Why nobody knew, not even Kim, who was really calling the shots?"
"Nope. Don't care. You can play all the games you want, and I'm not surprised you think it's amusing, because you always were an utter twat. All I care about is stopping you, and we will do exactly that."
"I care," whispered Ivan. "I care that you're killing innocents, destroying people's lives."
"Haha, that's so funny. Because, if I am not mistaken, you are a vampire, a murderer, a drug-dealing gangster who deserves whatever he gets. You are scum, both of you, and all of your kind. Well, the day of reckoning has come. The fun times are over, boys, it's about to get serious."
"Why? You can't kill us all."
"I don't intend to kill you all," snapped Nathan. "What I do intend to do is destroy your world. Your numbers will be decimated, you will be hunted and killed like the dogs you are until I am satisfied you will cause no more trouble for us. Until I am sure you know your place and will abide by the rules. My rules. Until that day comes you are now enemy number one. All of you. Every shifter, vampire, adept, stealer of artifacts, or anyone else I deem trouble, you will all be eradicated or made to tow the line. Am I understood?" Nathan stared hard at us both.
"Twat," I coughed.
"Utter twat," agreed Ivan. I did a double-take, and he winked at me. He knew how much it would be winding Nathan up too. He'd expected dramatics and we'd refused to play along, it would be driving him nuts.
"So, fancy a cuppa?" I asked Ivan, turning my back on Nathan to further incense him.
"That would be nice. Are there any biscuits?"
"It's your place, how would I know? But I bet you've got some in your desk drawer."
"Haha, maybe I do have a packet or two."
"Cool, so let's go."
Without looking back, we headed to the warehouse. Ivan's people stood around in utter confusion, waiting to see what he would do. They moved out of our way as we walked away slowly, both of us knowing Nathan wouldn't let us get far before saying something.
"You dare insult me in this juvenile manner?" he shouted.
We turned back to him, me smiling, Ivan stony faced. Nathan had spittle at the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were fierce.
"Sorry, was there something else? I thought you'd finished being the dastardly bad guy."
"I warn you both, you are finished. All of you."
"Okay, yeah, you said that. Nice catching up, see you again some time. You got a ride back to your evil lair or you need a lift?"
Without any warning, and I'm an expert at anticipating future aggression, Nathan lifted his walking stick that I knew was also a potent staff and let loose with a barrage of voluminous magic that almost did for us both. I forced a shield into protective mode in the nick of time but we both felt the power, the weight of magic behind his assault.
As the magic dispersed, I lowered the shield and said, "You've been practicing, haven't you?"
"No, I was always this good, I merely chose not to show you."
"Then well done you." I turned away again and said to Ivan, "Now, about those biscuits. Are they plain or chocolate?"
"Chocolate, of course. What else?"
We walked on, and Ivan spoke two words to his people. "Kill him."
Sneaky Dead Guy
I knew it was a pointless exercise, but you gotta try, right? As the vampires opened fire and rushed forward to destroy Nathan, I already understood it wouldn't work. If there was a chance he could be killed so easily, he wouldn't have come in the first place. I left thinking about how he was even here until later, as it needed quiet time, and this most certainly wasn't that.
Ivan and I turned to watch the fight, but there was no fight to be witnessed. Fast as the vampires were, Nathan, dodgy leg and all, was faster. His slender frame was lithe and energetic, you could tell there was power beneath the stupid tweed suit, but this was remarkable, if not downright astonishing.
One minute he was there, the next he wasn't.
He smiled from a safe distance away and shouted, "I'll be seeing you. All of you, soon." Then he vanished for good.
"He had a Teleron," I noted.
"Let's go inside, we need to talk about this," said Ivan.
"We sure do."
Ivan gave the command for his men to stand down, then he took the lead and walked wearily into the cool of the warehouse.
I got the feeling my lack of sleep would continue for some time yet.
A Chat Over Biscuits
I munched my Hobnob, brushing the crumbs off my shirt as they fell, and drank my coffee. I needed both as this had come as quite a shock. Ivan was in a similar way, and was currently on his fifth biscuit. Neither of us had said much of anything yet, as where did we begin?
When we finally finished our drinks we locked eyes, keen for the other to start.
"Okay, I'll say it. What the fuck?"
"I have no idea. He was dead, right?"
"Yep."
"But he's not really dead."
"Nope."
"And he's the head, the real head, of Cerberus. In this country anyway."
"That's what the twat said," I agreed.
"And he's a wizard, or knows magic anyway, and who knows what else besides?"
"Yes, and yes. Oh, and he has a Teleron, access to all of Cerberus' artifacts, clearly has control over the Hounds, and has unlimited men, cash, vehicles, weapons, and the power of government and corporations at his disposal. That's leaving out all the spy shit and anything else we've missed."
"So he's powerful. But we are too."
"True, but we don't have that kind of manpower. Everyone's out for themselves, and it would be impossible to anticipate what Cerberus would do next anyway."
"So we've lost before this has even really begun?"
"No, of course not. You clawed back what Cerberus took from you, this is no different. We get in early and stop this dead in its tracks. It's the only way."
"That was different. Hounds haven't been going around killing for no reason until now. Our numbers are already down considerably,what will it be like in a week?"
"If we let this go on for a week, then yes, we are screwed. Utterly. So we deal with this now, today, and show them we are not to be messed with. Nathan can go fuck himself, the smug bastard. He thinks he's being clever, trying to scare us by revealing himself, but it won't work."
"Maybe not on us, but everyone else?" mused Ivan.
"We don't tell them. And c'mon, he's just one guy. Damn, but how did he fake his death?"
"I have no idea, that's something you wizards seem to enjoy doing."
"Yeah, but still. And why do I get the feeling my life is coming full circle? These last few days have been like a blast from the past, as though this is all leading right back to where much of the problems began. Cerberus, I mean, but more. It's freaky."
"Sounds like every other day to me."
"Hmm, I'm not so sure." I got a bad feeling, worse than usual, like this was all heading somewhere, and that somewhere would be a place I didn't want to go. Call it wizard paranoia, call it gut-instinct, but I just knew this would end badly, and usually I'm a very upbeat fellow.
I couldn't even begin to make plans with Ivan at the moment. I was too beat, too overwhelmed, and so sleepy I could have curled up and slept right where I was. All I managed were several calls to warn people about what I'd heard, and to be even more vigilant than they currently were, and then I was done. Ivan was busy on his phone mustering resources, getting all vampires up to speed, so I left him to it and told him we'd speak later. I needed to rest. I needed peace. I needed to go home.
So that's what I did. Or tried to.
Tiny Temper
I made it as far as the city house before my peace was blown apart by a miniature time-bomb. The drive had been one where I couldn't recall the streets or even how I got to the house, pure auto-pilot. Mind empty, unable to think until I was settled, I drove in a numb fugue, but was blasted from it by a vicious onslaught as the bomb exploded.
"Where have you been?" shouted my angry sidekick, her ponytail dancing like a frisky pony's mane.
"With your brother," I said, wincing as my eardrums threatened to burst.
"Without me?" she screeched, "I thought we were partners? Why haven't you called? What's been happening? I heard there's been attacks. I was worried. Don't leave me out of this, I want to know what's been going on." Vicky hopped about as I ignored her and unlocked the front door.
I stepped into the cool interior; she followed behind, giving me grief the whole time. Guess the time for quiet contemplation and the formulating of excellent plans would have to wait a while longer.
After getting an earful while I made coffee, we moved to the living room and I gave Vicky all the grisly details of what had happened. She was incensed. Not only with the mindless killing, but with missing out on all the action. She had some serious issues she needed to work through, and no mistake.
Once I'd finished telling her, which took a while as Vicky was never one to sit quietly while I told her things, she asked a very good question.
"What now?"
I didn't have an answer. What should I do? I'd warned who I could, everyone in the community knew the score now as the news had spread far and wide about the murder-spree and it wouldn't take long for the news about Nathan to spread too, so we were all on high- alert. The question remained—what to actually do?
"I guess we go hunting."
"For Nathan?"
"Of course for Nathan. What's wrong with you?"
"I was only asking."
"Then ask sensible questions, not daft ones. We need to stop him, we need to end this. God knows who'll take his place, but I doubt they can be as insane as him. Fingers crossed. He's got it in for us all, won't stop until we're almost wiped out, so we need to destroy him."
"And how do we do that?" Vicky smiled despite the seriousness of the situation, itching to get some action.
"You really need help, you know. You're an addict. You love the danger too much."
"Do not," she protested. "You do."
"Me!? That's rich. I've been keeping my head down, behaving. It's you who started all this, agreeing to get that tablet from Ace."
"What's that got to do with any of this?"
"Nothing, I guess. Ugh, I'm so tired. I need to lie down. I'm going upstairs, I'll see you in a bit." Before she could protest, I left her to it and plodded up to the bedroom for a lie down.
I got under the covers, only removing my boots, and pulled them up under my chin. The covers, not my boots, as that would be weird. I hadn't come to sleep, I knew that would elude me, but I had to have quiet, time to think. I was still in shock about Nathan's rising from the dead act. Did it matter? Guess not. He was here, Cerberus was under his control, and he was clearly insane. I felt sorry for Kim, kind of. She hadn't been so bad, not really. Not compared to this.
I lay there, thinking things through, trying to come up with a way to stop him. I got nothing. The only way was kill him, but that was easier said than done. It was basically what I'd told Vicky. We had to go hunting. Root him out and put him down.
Unable to figure out how to find him, where to start or what to do first, I merely rested and let my thoughts drift, floating on a sea of exhaustion, despair, and desperation. I'm not sure how long I lay there, but at some point I must have fallen into a stupor, not asleep, yet not awake either. I heard a noise, someone trying to be quiet and failing miserably, so opened an eye to discover Vicky climbing into bed beside me.
