Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

Lucas prods, pushes, and semi-carries me out of the building and back to my room. I can’t catch my breath. I can’t get the images of the boy begging for help out of my mind.

The first thing I do when the door closes is crack him in the jaw. With the tiniest bit of magic to back it up, I don’t cause any damage, but I do make him wince.

“What happened to pulling me out of it?” I growl.

“I did,” he frowns. The spot on his face where I hit him turns an angry red.

“Maybe before…” I shake my head. It’s too much to say out loud.

“You had to see it through,” he explains. We needed to know exactly what they are doing, who they are after.”

Who they are after. In my panic over watching an innocent victim get his throat slashed, I’d forgotten about that part, the most important part of all.

“Nick,” I say, digging my cell out of my pocket.

There aren’t any messages from him. I try not to panic. He went home with Antonio, didn’t he? Why would I expect him to message me? We left agreeing to text in the morning. He must have had plans. They must have had plans. Besides, if anything had happened, I’m pretty sure Antonio would have found a way to get in touch with me, even if it meant tracking me down at the shop.

My fingers shake so hard it takes me three tries to punch in the right number. I don’t bother texting. I don’t have time to wait and see if he answers. I need this phone ringing. God, I hope he has it turned on.

The phone rings four times, five times, six. It goes to voicemail. I curse. I try again. Lucas stands in front of me watching. His lack of an aura is definitely starting to piss me off. Can’t he panic like a normal person?

The phone starts ringing again. This time, on the third ring, Nick picks up. The blue of the screen lights up his face. His hair swirls in every direction and it’s obvious he was asleep. Safe. In his own bed.

“Hey,” he smiles, his voice hoarse. “What’s up? Everything OK?” He switches from smiling to frowning. “Lucas? He didn’t try…”

I cut him off before he can say something embarrassing.

“No, it’s not Lucas. I…” How am I going to explain this without freaking him out or giving too much away? “I just had a...dream. It was a nightmare, I guess. I was worried about you. Nobody bothered you on the way home, right? I’m sorry. I know it’s stupid.”

“Not stupid. You’re being a good friend and I know about your feelings. Thanks for looking out for me.”

“Always. So you’re good?”

Nick hesitates and my pulse speeds up. “What? What’s the matter?”

He grins sheepishly and runs his hand through his hair. “The matter? Nothing… I...I just didn’t go home.”

Wait. What? Oh. Ohhhhh.

“Jeez, Nick. I’m so sorry I interrupted. You...go back to sleep?”

He laughs. “Thanks for checking up. You’re doing me a favor anyway. I have to sneak in before Abuelita figures out I’ve been gone all night.”

I don’t want to let him hang up. I want to keep him here talking, alive, happy.

Lucas clears his throat, telling me that there isn’t anything else I can do right now. My eyes flick to his and away.

I smile at Nick. “Sorry...again.”

“Love you, Tristan.”

I look at my friend. “I love you, too. See you later.”

I’m relieved. For now.

Lucas walks away, stretching his arms over his head like he might be tired.

I’m sorry I punched you,” I say to his back.

He shrugs. “You were upset.” Lucas turns. “At least you didn’t kill me this time.”

“There is that. What now?”

“I assume that what you saw involved Nick.”

I totally forgot that I hadn’t told him what I’d seen.

“There have been three drones in that apartment. Two guys and a girl. One of the guys was following us. I saw him come into the shop and check out Nana and Miranda, but he wasn’t interested in them. He saw me, too, but he let me go down into the subway without following.”

“They have someone else watching you, no doubt.”

I shiver, but don’t respond. “When Nick showed up, the drone definitely responded, like he was exactly what he was waiting for. He watched then followed. I had the sense he was storing the information away to use later.”

“Which is why you checked in on your friend?”

“Yeah. I had to make sure they hadn’t…that’s not the only thing I saw, Lucas.”

“So I gathered.” He runs his hand across his jaw.

“It was like you said. There was a female. She had picked up some drunk guy - young. He reminded me a little of you.”

“A drunk guy?”

“Not the drunk part. He looked sort of lost, I suppose, like you did. Back when I felt sorry for you.” I frown at him and he holds up a hand.

“You’re not going to hit me again, are you?”

“I’m too tired. Maybe later. Anyway, you know how it ends.”

“You saw the entire thing?”

“All of it.” I wrap my arms around my waist, the image of the guy who was practically still a boy knowing his life was about to end in a horrifying way burned into my retinas.

“And the worst thing was, right before he was about to - you know - he looked over at me and begged me to stop it. Like I could. Like I could do anything at all.”

Lucas crouches down in front of me and takes my hands in his.

“It was already done, Tristan. I’m not sure how that happened but believe me, there is nothing that could have changed that scenario. But now, we have to make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”

“Especially not Nick. I would let the Rippers do anything they wanted to me, but not to Nick.”

“That’s exactly what they’re counting on.”

“So that means I need to take charge of the situation and not sit around waiting for them to make a move.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“I need to confront them. What if I convince that ghoul from last night that I agree to his deal and then - whatever it is I have to do - drive a stake through his heart? Shoot him with a silver bullet?”

“Not quite.”

It occurs to me that Lucas knows exactly what I need to do to stop all of this.

“Do you know where they are?” I ask.

He hesitates but then answers, “Again, not quite. But I have ideas. The Rippers tend to congregate in similar areas, things a bit on the outskirts of the populated areas. Where there are a lot of people, there is the potential for more energy, more life force to be harvested. It’s also easier to blend in in an urban area where their differences would be less likely to be noticed.”

“Like New York where everyone is weird anyway, so who cares?”

“Exactly.”

“But on the outskirts. Do you mean the suburbs? Do I have to go to Long Island? God, this just keeps getting worse.”

“It is much closer than that. A place that is both near and far.”

“It’s four in the morning, Lucas. Stop talking like a knight.”

“If I were to venture a guess, I would say a factory or warehouse nearby. At least that has been my experience.”

His experience. Like the last time. The huge empty building with columns and hanging wires. It was an industrial space.

“Do you think it’s the same place?” Bringing it up seems awkward but I’m sure he’s thinking about it even without my prompting. “You know, the same as last time.”

“We were located in a different city then. But while it will not be the exact same place, it will certainly be similar.”

“Would you be able to recognize it?”

“Perhaps, but you would most definitely know it. A fortress like that is covered in protection spells and the magic coming from it is incredibly powerful. I’m a bit surprised you haven’t felt it already.”

“I haven’t been looking. You forget, I’ve only been the world’s most powerful Seeker for the past 48 hours.”

His lips twitch upwards. “For the past 17 years. You just haven’t known it.”

“I’m sure my classmates are happy about that. Anyway, Rippers. I’m forming a plan.”

“Good.” He says it like it’s anything but. I ignore him and continue.

“First, I let them know I’m interested in their offer.”

“And are you?” Lucas says it so softly, it takes me a minute to understand.

Am I interested in being one of them? Of working with them to magnify my own power? Maybe. And maybe I would be totally into it if I didn’t believe they are scamming me and have every intention of bleeding me dry and taking my power for their own. What kind of an idiot would believe a story like that? There is also a very big part of me that is hatching a plan, a plan to turn myself into the greatest badass of a Seeker that ever lived, entirely on my own. Without sharing. Without worrying about getting my throat slit by Rippers the second I turn my back.

I can’t help wondering how things would have been different if I had known. Would I have ruled the sandbox? Created minions at school to do my bidding - and my homework? Probably not. It seems like way too much energy, too much responsibility. And while I haven’t always been too burdened with worrying about the morality of my actions, somehow pushing people’s minds and will to do whatever twisted thing I want just seems wrong.

I think of Nick happily tangled around Antonio, content to live above a restaurant packed with siblings and relatives, to crash clubs with me and dance and laugh and, when I can pull it off, do some underage drinking.

The person I would be if I had known about all this might have been more powerful but she wouldn’t be me. So no, I want to be strong enough to kick a Ripper’s ass and to protect my friends and family. Beyond that, maybe a couple of cocktails and an A in Spanish.

“Yes,” I answer looking him right in the eye. “I want to wreak havoc. I want to dominate the world. I want to destroy.”

He raises his eyebrows. “Is that a no, then?”

“Indeed - as you would say. What the hell would I do with all that power anyway? But what I do want is to take care of this situation so that it doesn’t get worse than it already is. I want to keep Nick from getting turned into a drone to be used as a pawn against me. How do you feel about that?”

Lucas is quiet. Too quiet. I start wondering if in trying to do the right thing, I’ve managed to screw things up. I can’t imagine he wanted me to take their offer. That’s not the vibe I got from him, at least.

His eyes find mine and something in his look makes my heart do that stupid sputtering thing again. “I’m proud of you,” he says.

“Yeah. Well. I haven’t done anything awesome yet,” I stammer. “Speaking of which, I want to formulate a plan. I assume it would be dangerous if I found them and stood around having to figure out what to do.”

“Without a doubt.”

“So? What do I need to know? How do I kill myself a Ripper - Rippers? There are more than one. And what about those drones? You seemed to handle them pretty easily. How many of them can you take out on your own?”

Lucas shrugs. “As many as necessary.”

“I take it you’ve done it before.”

He nods. “The Rippers, however. There is very little I can do with them. I can disarm them, trip them up, get in their way, but ultimately you are the only one who can actually destroy them. Not even your grandmother or your aunts can do that. Essentially, that is why you are considered to be the most powerful.”

“Because I’m a natural born killer?”

“As it were.”

“Back to the killing then - and let’s just be clear, I am not cool with that.”

“No doubt, but I’m afraid there is no other way. To let even one of them escape would mean perpetuating a situation that has gone on way too long and that has cost too many lives.”

“No pressure there,” I grumble. “Again, how is it done? Do I use a spell?” I pat the mattress looking for the grimoire.

“You need to eliminate the more minor Rippers with Gae Buide and then use it to…”

I hate when he trails off. “Out with it, Watcher.”

“You must remove his head.”

I open my mouth. Close it. Blink at him a few times. “Remove his head.” I think of the blood spurting from the kid I saw - and his head was firmly attached.

“That is just not going to happen.”

“You don’t have a choice, Tristan. If you don’t do this, then what you saw will happen - to one person you care about after another until there is no one left. At that point, the Rippers will simply take you and drain the power from you using blood magic gathered from the very people you care for most.”

I start to spew out all the reasons I can’t do this when I’m interrupted by pounding on my door. It flies open and Miranda stands there dressed for work. I figure she’s arrived to scream at me for having Lucas in my room all night but she totally ignores his presence.

“We’re in trouble,” she announces.

Lucas steps forward first, fiddling with some sharp thing in his waistband. Maybe I won’t need to go looking for the Rippers after all. I grab for Gae Buide on the nightstand and jam it into the sheath. I’m not ready to decapitate anyone just yet, but I’m letting my family get slaughtered right here in the shop, either.

“Where are they?” Lucas asks.

Miranda is confused for a beat. “No. They’re not here - not physically at least. But I can’t wake up Nana.”

“What do you mean can’t wake her up?”

“That statement is not open to interpretation,” Miranda says. “She was late. I went to check on her. She’s in bed and it looks like she’s asleep but like Sleeping Beauty asleep and unless you have a handsome prince stashed in here,” she looks at Lucas, “we’re in trouble.”

The three of us rush down the hall to Nana’s room. She lies in bed, her white hair arced around her on the pillow, her hands folded on top of the quilt her mother made. Graham sits in a chair by the bed, elbows on the mattress.

“Anything?” Miranda asks.

“I’m afraid not,” he answers.

I step up to the bed and touch Nana’s hand. It’s still warm and pink and I may not be an expert, but I think that means she’s alive. “Could it be a medical problem?” I look at Lucas and he shakes his head.

“I’m afraid not.”

“Have you seen this before?” Graham asks.

“A few times. It’s a state of suspended animation as it were. She doesn’t feel anything, sense anything. It’s merely meant to keep her out of the way and to…”

“Freak me out and make me do what they want,” I finish for him.

“Precisely.”

“Can we undo it?” Miranda asks. “Can she?” She looks at me.

“Not directly. But once Tristan handles the Rippers, your mother should come back to you unharmed.”

Infiltrate a building full of drones. Get past them. Find the lower Rippers. Kill them. Make it all the way to the king and cut off his head. All without being detected, without being killed myself. The odds seem extremely against me.

“Should?” Miranda asks.

“Will. Once she has dispatched the leader, there will be no one left to manage the spell. It will be broken and your mother will be back to you exactly as she was before.”

“Is that what happened in your other experiences?” Graham asks, logically.

Lucas pauses. He looks at the floor then looks back at us. I’m getting good at reading him at this point. Whatever he’s going to say is not going to make anyone happy.

“I’ve never met a Seeker who could handle this task.”

Never.

“And you didn’t tell me that because?” I shout.

“Because he knew you would freak out and he was trying to keep you focused,” Miranda says.

“Of course I’m going to freak out. What makes you think I’m going to be the one who changes the stats on your experiences, Lucas? Do I seem like someone capable of doing things no one else can?”

“Yes.” It’s Miranda who answers. “You do.”

If Miranda is beginning to give me compliments, we are in deep, deep trouble. My aunt is the one person who has relentlessly pushed me and reminded me of my shortcomings my entire existence. Trying to make me believe she has faith in me is the most out of character thing she has ever done and that can’t be good.

“I don’t care what those other Seekers could or couldn’t do. You are the most stubborn person I’ve ever met and if you can’t do it, then no one can. Besides, if the Rippers thought you were weak, they wouldn’t go to all this trouble to mess with you.”

“Well said, Love,” Graham adds. “For what it’s worth, I believe you can do this as well, Tristan.”

Lucas chimes in. “That makes three of us.”

Nana. Nick. The Rippers really do know my weak spots. The choice here is between letting everyone I love be killed or taking the chance that I’m the one who will die. Unlike everyone else, this is my fate, what I was born to do. This is my job and mine alone.

“Fine,” I agree. “Whatever it takes. Freakin’ decapitation or blood-letting or going to the suburbs. Whatever. Let’s just get this show on the road, eh?”

I bend down to whisper into Nana’s ear and my three companions turn to one another to give me a minute.

“I’ll do my best,” I say. “No matter what happens, always know I tried harder than I’ve ever tried at anything before. I love you, Nana. See you on the other side.” I kiss her cheek hoping she’s heard me.

I stand up. “Let’s do this thing,” I say out loud. “I’ve got school in the morning.”