Chapter 22: Found Out


Kyle:

I got a few more bruises from J-Star's traps, Raven able to use her powers to halt the rigged projectile, but in the end, we discovered that J-Star indeed was gone and we had to coax the woman and her children out of the cellar.

Jaden examined my stomach in the van while Xao talked with the woman and her children outside. Raven, changing to Jessica, was in the back. Neither I nor she looked old enough to be part of this operation so we weren't allowed to talk to the family unless we were "in character"- ie, acting dumb.

"Sheesh, that did a number on you," Jaden noted.

"Don't think I'm gonna eat for a week..." I wheezed out.

"Good thing it hit there and not somewhere else," he noted.

"Yeah and good thing it wasn't sharp... So what do we do?" I asked.

"This is your call isn't it?"

"My mind is kinda occupied trying not to throw up," I said.

"Well- if we go straight for Jay this is probably a trap," my big brother noted.

"No kidding," Jessica noted behind him. "Assuming Devon's mission is a success, we could at least have a DNA profile for Tyrin."

"Assuming this isn't all a setup," I pushed out through the pain.

"Well..." Jessica said and then paused. "This is kinda my fault..."

"Now is not really the time to be thinking about that," I said.

"Just justifying what I'm about to say I guess," she replied. "I have the inner world, Raven and my talents are the best power set here. We split up-"

"I don't like splitting up..." Jaden said with a growl. "That's how this happened. Everyone should have back up."

"Technically I have my own backup," Jessica replied. "Besides, over a short distance, Kyle's comlinks work just fine if I have to call for help."

"True enough," Jaden noted.

"So then... keep the line of communication with the banshees open..." I wheezed out. "Best we can... If we can get Tyrin on the scanner as well as the profile for Jay that we already have... yeesh, talking hurts... anyway, if we can switch between the two profiles, maybe we can get her out and avoid him until we're all together."

"He might have other pharaohs in his employment," Jaden pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. Either way, if Jay is in Jacobson's custody, I doubt he won't be around her somewhere. This is... hang on..." a pain spasm shot through me, "down to the wire. Whether we have a lead on Tyrin himself or not, this is likely going to be the final confrontation. I don't see Tyrin letting us walk away this time and I doubt there's gonna be another last-minute rescue."

"Well," Jaden paused, looking around. "It's not like we can guarantee when this will all go down, might not even be within the week."

"You... you think they're gonna kill her?" Jessica said, fear in her voice.

"I- it's possible, but let's not panic," Jaden admitted.

"There's no note. If she's a hostage they left no rules for how we're to get her back... I don't think she's a hostage... they wanted her out of the way." Jessica continued despite him. "Tyrin might be up for a challenge but if he can't see any of us that's too much." Jessica curled up, hugging her legs to her chest. "Maybe one of you would have been a hostage, but not her."

Jaden squeezed his eyes shut. "That was my call. I let her go. If she is gone... I guess you and I share the blame."

"What are we going to say to Xao?" I asked.

"What am I gonna tell mom?" Jaden asked.

Almost on cue, Xao opened the door of the van, the family standing to the side of the door of the house. "Hey guys," he said, closing the sliding door. "So, looks like the banshees were going to arrive and pick them up later anyway- the mom kept noting the color of the people that talked to her so- kinda obvious. There are days racism is an asset it turns out." Everyone turned to look at him. "Okay... so what's the story with my girlfriend?" We could all tell he was pretending to not know.

The vehicle became quiet.

"Well- out with it. What do you all think her chances are?"

"If I have to be honest," Jessica said. "I don't think she has any more chances. We'll proceed as if we're trying to rescue her either way, but I don't see any reason to believe she's alive at all."

Xao clenched his teeth, reopened the side door, and walked back out.

Jessica returned to a fetal position and started crying, tears coming out of my own eyes.


(***)


Devon:

Austin Texas

The rain came pouring down and the thunder echoed out. I stood behind a corner, holding my breath, trying to blend in with the shadows, my switchblade extended.

'Okay, just a piece of clothing, that's all you need, you don't need to actually beat this guy yourself.' I assured myself in my head. I peeked around the corner, once, twice, three times- he still wasn't there.

'Do you suppose he was tipped off that I was going to be here? One of those banshee women a mole?... Not like I know what side ANYONE is really on.' I snickered. 'Not that they knew what if any side I was on either.' I tapped the side of the building. 'I'll probably be fine- just run in, flail about with a knife like an idiot, lose, and run like a coward- not like Tyrin will have any reason to pursue. That kid better not have been a mole. She'll pay dearly if my children are harmed by her hand...'

I heard footsteps coming in my direction, the water splashing as someone moved forward without much regard. I peeked down the alley to see a large Arabian man, near egg-shaped, with a large nose, coming down the alleyway. I flipped back up against the corner.

The footsteps stopped. "Well... I saw you. Best to just come out."

Welp- best roll with it. I rolled around the corner and held up my knife. "This is a mugging- just hand over a few valuables and I'll be out of your hair."

Tyrin, standing in a large raincoat, held up his handgun. "No. I'm in a hurry today, how about you just cut your losses and step out of the way? We all have livings to earn, I don't judge. Will say, though, we're in Texas, you must get this reaction a lot," he chuckled on that line.

I flicked my wrist, the blade being tossed out and slamming into Tyrin's right shoulder, the man firing as his hand fell to his side.

I ran in, grabbed my blade, despite the angry protests of Tyrin, and made a break for it as I dropped it in a small plastic bag, running fast as I could.

"That- was a mistake," I heard him shout behind me.

I didn't care about the specifics of what I was told to get. If a piece of clothing was enough, blood would be plenty. All I had to do now was lose a fat man down an arm in a big city. Any amateur could do it!

I ran forward towards a street full of people- and like in a cartoon I practically ran straight into the human trafficker, a glare on his face. "You made a big mistake just there... but I'm in a mood."

"Oh- how lucky for you," I heel turned and ran back from him- now back into the alley. This was not going well. I heard Tyrin's gun fire again, but I kept running. Back down the alley where I confronted him- Tyrin was there again, this time he body-checked me into the small separation where I had been waiting for him.

Tyrin stood over me and pulled out a sword. 'Who carries a sword these days?'

He flung the blade down, but- this time he didn't use his pharaoh powers- his mistake.

I caught the blade in my hand. Blood came out of my hand but I just glared at him as I stood up.

"I had an inkling," Tyrin said. "I hit you with both shots didn't I?"

"To tell the truth I don't know," I said. I looked back at my body, noticing a large hole in my coat over my left bicep. To think, earlier, at the church, I had been able to say the blood belonged to the boy I had taken from Jacobson. This time, my injuries just flat-out gave me away. "Guess you're not that bad of a shot after all." I looked down and noted my pant leg had also been torn.

"Gargoyle," said Tyrin.

"Genocider," I said back.

"Hmm-" then he chuckled. "But if you thought you could take me down yourself you would have tried."

"I have my orders," I said.

Tyrin yanked his sword back, out of the palm of my hand, me just looking at him as he cleaned the blade. "Pardon the pun, but it must be handy not only to have healing powers but to be able to turn off your own sense of pain." He sheathed his blade. "How did your kind ever lose?"

"The war isn't over."

"Not according to some people," Tyrin said. "Agents of your Gargoyle King have approached me on multiple occasions now. Each time they demanded I turn over all profits from my organization to them post-haste. I get the feeling mine isn't the only organization getting a shakedown- yes?"

"How would I know?"

"Too low on the totem pole?" he asked.

"I mean what have I to do with this king you speak of?"

"Don't even try to say you don't know who the king is. The ruler of the Gargoyle Nation that tried to conquer the world in 1721? The reason your kind was massacred in the first place- this all ringing a bell?"

"If it isn't?"

"I don't buy that."

"I should take it, you refused the shakedown?"

"Be careful little henchmen, I lived to tell the tale. The gargoyle enforcers didn't."

"Sounds like something that is their problem. What, are you rethinking whatever the King asked of you?" I asked.

"Thought you didn't know him."

"Personally? No. Do you know the story of Joshua Norton? Not every crazy person who calls himself a ruler actually is one."

"The king led armies."

"Doesn't make him my king," I replied. "My people are fractured. You've made enemies Tyrin, more than a few. Now if you don't mind, I'll be on my way."

"No- you're too eager to go. You must have gotten what you wanted- so I can't let you leave."

I smiled at this. My arm shot up and his neck was in the palm of my hand as I lifted the crime lord off the ground. "The flick of my wrist and I'll send you to the devil where you belong," I said.

"Same here," Tyrin tapped me with his sword.

I jolted my wrist, sending Tyrin slamming into the building. I leaped over him, slammed into the stone wall over him, morphing just my hands to crush them into the stone. I climbed up rapidly. "Go ahead, try to follow my way."

I watched Tyrin pull out his gun and aim it at me- but then just sigh and put it away. We both knew that thing wouldn't do enough damage to actually take me down.

At about thirty feet up I leaped off the building, wings shooting out of my back to slow my descent to the ground out of view of the alley where I left Tyrin.

A small group of men had been walking down the street and just paused looking at me as my wings fell off my back and melted into the pavement. I turned to them, many of them dropping the beers they were holding and turning away.

I chuckled to myself. "Humans."

I walked, knowing Tyrin wouldn't want to attack and fight me in the open any more than I would want those wings out for too long in the open.

I had my part of the bargain, the Tracers would need to live up to theirs.

Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top