Spectra: A Cynical Superhero Page 17

  “Amara—” Kyrian started to speak.

  “I'm going to do the translating this time,” Davorin cut Kyrian off as he stood beside me. “The lady said; Get the fuck out.”

  Kyrian's gaze shot around the room. Davorin wasn't the only one taking a stand with Landry; all of the customers inside The Wilds had stood and set their hard stares on Kyrian. The Arc was no longer welcome.

  “You're making a serious mistake,” Kyrian said to me.

  “I'm okay with that,” I shot back.

  “What a shame.” Kyrian stood and calmly walked out of the bar.

  Landry didn't set his blaster down until Kyrian was well gone. Then everyone in the bar cheered, and Landry declared a round on the house for their show of support. There was even more cheering for that. I have to admit that I was deeply touched by the Market supes literally standing up for me. These were people I had grown up around, and I did consider them to be my community, but I hadn't expected them to fight for me. I suppose that was simply my cynical nature rearing its ugly head again... and also getting proven wrong again. Soon, I'd have to rethink my whole world-view.

  As Trent, the bartender on duty started to pour drinks, Landry waved me back to his office. Davorin and the rest of his team went with me, and Landry closed the door behind us.

  “Take the hatch,” Landry said as he pushed a button hidden behind a bookshelf.

  The shelf swung out and revealed a round hatch; like the kind you'd find on a submarine.

  “This is awesome!” Jason declared. “Where does it lead?”

  “To Mama's basement,” Landry said. “It's our shared escape route if either of us needs help. You'll find a security panel on the back of hers; the code is,” Landry leaned in to whisper it in my ear.

  “What; you don't trust us?” Davorin asked.

  “No,” Landry said blandly. “And if any of you speak of my secret hatch to anyone outside this room, I will make you into mulch.”

  “I believe you,” Jason said before swallowing visibly.

  “Good.” Landry opened the hatch. “Now, get my girl somewhere safe. I'm trusting you with her, and she's far more important than the hatch. So, you'd better not fail me.”

  “Yes, Sir,” Davorin said. “We've got her back.”

  “She may not be able to die, but there are things worse than death,” Landry said softly. “And those Triari aren't going to give up any easier than the Bleiten.”

  “I've got somewhere to take her, Landry,” Davorin assured him. “I'll keep her safe.”

  Landry nodded, and Davorin climbed into the hole in the wall. I let the others follow him as I hugged Landry goodbye.

  “Give me your phone,” Landry said. “They can track you with it.”

  I dutifully handed him my cell phone, and Landry handed me my coat.

  “One more thing; I went back to the lot where you used to live,” Landry said as he pulled something out of his pocket. “I communed with the soil; I was trying to calm it before I set it on fire. But the soil had something to say. Someone disturbed it recently. When I explored the site of trauma, I found this buried there.”

  He handed me a shred of cloth with a dark stain on it. I scowled and looked it over. One of the two intact corners had a tiny blue flower embroidered onto it. I inhaled sharply and smoothed out the fabric.

  “This belonged to someone I helped over a month ago,” I said.

  “Who?” Landry asked.

  “I don't know his name,” I said. “He was being mugged, and I sent the robbers running, but as luck would have it, they ran into me, and I went crashing into a wall. I hit it hard and cracked my nose. It was no big deal—I healed in a few moments—but I had blood all over my face. The guy pulled out his handkerchief and gave it to me; this handkerchief.”

  “He took it back after you bled on it,” Landry made it a statement instead of a question.

  “He did,” I whispered. “And I didn't think anything of it.”

  “Why would you?” Landry asked and grimaced. “I didn't warn you that your blood was priceless.”

  “This isn't your fault,” I said gently. “You did what you thought was best.”

  “I should have prepared you better,” Landry said as he brought out a lighter, lit the fabric, and then tossed it in an ashtray.

  “You prepared me for the life you wanted me to have,” I said gently. “That's what parents do.”

  “Don't come back until it's safe, kid,” he said gruffly and then sniffed.

  “Okay,” I promised. “You be safe too, Land.”

  “Don't you worry about me.” He patted the blaster. “I'll be just fine.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  “We need to get you out of the city,” Davorin said as we navigated the underground tunnel to Mama's Diner. “As I said to Landry; I know the perfect place.”

  “I don't like the idea of running,” I said with a scowl. “If I start now, I may never stop.”

  “What's the alternative?” Lily asked. “We make a stand?”

  “That Arc will be back with a full cadre of soldiers,” Jason added. “Sometimes, the smartest path is one that you take running. At least until you can find a nice place to stop and make camp.”

  “Valid.” I sighed.

  “We're at the hatch,” Davorin said.

  I moved to the front and punched in the code. The hatch swung open, and we climbed into the Diner's dark cellar. I crept past shelves of flour, sugar, and spices toward the door on the other end of the room; using my infrared vision to guide us. Before I could reach the door, it opened and Mama strode in.

  “There you are,” she said quietly. “Land called to warn me that you'd be coming through. He says you need to get out of D.C..”

  Davorin smirked at me.

  “Yes; we do,” I confirmed. “Davorin has a place.”

  “Don't tell me where.” She held up her hands to ward off the information but then slipped one into the pocket of her faded gingham apron. She pulled out a keychain with a single key on it and handed it to me. “Take my van, sweetie. No one will be able to see you if you sit in the back.”

  “Thanks, Mama.” I hugged her after accepting the keys.

  “And all of you look after my girl,” Mama said to the others. “She's special.”

  “We know, and we will,” Davorin promised. “Thank you for the van; it would have been difficult to transport us all together.”

  “You're very welcome,” Mama said. “Now, scoot! Go out the back.”

  She swept her hands at us in the direction of the back door.

  “Let me go first,” Davorin offered.

  Dav went to the backdoor, opened it a crack, and then a little further. He peered outside warily and then stepped out completely. A minute later, Davorin ducked back in and gave us the all-clear.

  We hurried out to a beat-up, eighties van; something I would have called a pedophile cruiser. It was a dark blue, steel box without side windows. The sliding door in the side panel opened to reveal a faded carpet that was nearly worn down to its base fabric. There was an empty plastic milk crate, but other than that, it was clean and perfect for sneaking me out of the city. I climbed in and found a spot near the back; angling my legs to one side as I sat. It was a bit chilly on the floor but the van wall was even colder so I sat up as straight as I could.

  “Unbelievable,” Lily said as she jumped in after me. “Even in the back of an old van, you still sit like a lady.”

  “I'm in a skirt,” I pointed out as I smoothed the fabric around my knees. “If I sit any other way, I'll flash my world at everyone.”

  “Feel free to share your world with me anytime you wish,” Jason said as he climbed in back with us girls. “I'd love to explore it.”

  “Don't make me turn your dick to stone, Jason,” Davorin called back. “I really don't want to touch it.”

  “I was only teasing,” Jason said with a pout.

  Once we were all inside, Davorin started the van and drove us out into
traffic slowly; following every driving law. Luckily, Mama's Diner was near the end of the Market, and we were soon driving beneath the Chinese arch and into the human section of the city. But I didn't breathe easy until we were out of D.C. completely. Then I crept toward the front and peered out the windshield between the two bucket seats.

  “Where are we going?” I asked Davorin.

  “Berlin,” he said.

  A stunned silence fell.

  Davorin glanced at us and then laughed. “Berlin, Maryland,” he clarified. “It's only a couple hours away.”

  “Oh,” I said with relief. “What's in Berlin?”

  “Less than five-thousand people, for one thing,” Dav said. “It's a little town, and I happen to have a house there.”

  “You have a house in Maryland?” I asked. “Why do you live in D.C.?”

  “I like living in the D.C. Market.” Dav shrugged. “The house was my grandmother's; she left it to me when she passed.”

  “And it didn't go to your parents?” Leo—who was sitting in the only passenger seat—asked.

  “My parents have their own house.” Davorin shrugged. Then he glanced at me. “Leo, give Amara your seat, would ya? I think it's safe now, and she looks damn uncomfortable.”

  “Oh!” Leo looked back at me. “Yeah; sure.”

  Leo unbuckled his seat belt and climbed into the back of the van.

  “Thank you, darling,” I said as I slipped up front. “Yes, that's much better.”

  “Nobody's worried about my comfort,” Lily huffed.

  “You're in jeans, Lil,” Leo said. Then he smirked at her and added, “And you didn't call me 'darling.'”

  “Did you want the seat, Lily?” I offered.

  “No; I'm good. I just like making them sweat.” She winked at me.

  “I like the back better anyway,” Leo declared as he stretched out. “I can take a nap.”

  “I swear; every chance you get, you take a nap,” Lily said. “You're like a cat.”

  “Thank you very much,” Leo said and then yawned.

  “I guess I'll have to stop making fun of your superhero hobby now,” I said to Davorin.

  “Oh, you can still tease me, but you'll only be making fun of yourself since you're a part of the gang now,” Davorin said.

  “I don't recall accepting the invitation,” I countered.

  “You owe us,” Jason pointed out. “And you know what we'll ask for.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “Just give it a try,” Davorin cajoled. “If you don't like it, you don't have to keep doing it.”

  “Fine,” I gave in. “If I survive, I'll help you keep the streets of D.C. safe from the vicious villains prowling them.”

  Davorin grinned brightly. “Wonderful!”

  “On a trial basis,” I added.

  “I can just see you now, stopping a mugging; 'Pardon me, but would you mind terribly not doing that?'” Lily mimicked my voice.

  “I don't sound like that,” I said stiffly. “I went to Yale, not Cambridge.”

  “I don't even know what that means,” Lily murmured with a confused expression.

  “It means that I don't have a British accent,” I said.

  “Oh, she dishes it out, but she can't take it!” Jason chortled.

  “That reminds me,” I said to Davorin. “I stopped a mugging a few weeks ago and ended up with a bloody nose. The guy I saved handed me a handkerchief, and I used it to wipe up the blood.”

  “Yeah?” Davorin narrowed his eyes at me. “Then what?”

  “Then he took it back,” I said with a grim look. “I didn't think anything of it at the time because it was before I knew about the elixir, but Landry found a scrap of the same bloody handkerchief buried beneath the burned remains of my parents' home.”

  “What?” Davorin asked in confusion. “That makes no sense. Why would someone do that?”

  “And how would this person even know where you used to live?” Lily added.

  “I don't know,” I said. “But combined with that picture sent to the Triari, I'm thinking it was someone on the White House staff.”

  “Maybe you should text the President again,” Davorin suggested.

  “He's already been warned,” I said. “There's no sense in telling him that the spy in his midst is even worse than we thought.”

  “What worries me is that you said it was only a piece of the handkerchief,” Jason pointed out. “What happened to the rest of it?”

  “It could be anywhere. Someone is leading people around the city,” I muttered angrily. “And they're using my blood to do it.”

  “Not just people; Bleiten,” Lily pointed out. “The Triari didn't track you with blood, remember? They were told where to find you.”

  “Perhaps by the same people who planted that handkerchief,” Jason said.

  “Planted it for the Bleiten to find,” I whispered. “They're working both sides.”

  “Which means—and I hate to admit this”—Lily grimaced—“that you were probably right about the Bleiten not taking those women.”

  I lifted a brow at her.

  “I'm not saying that they're completely innocent,” she amended. “Just innocent of that.”

  “And just because there's a third party involved, it doesn't mean that one of the other two parties aren't aware of them,” Jason said.

  “What the fuck did you just say?” Leo asked with a baffled look.

  “He said that out of the three potential parties involved, two may be working together,” I translated. It's kind of my thing after all. “As it stands, I can see three possible scenarios. The first is that the Triari are trying to start a war and have teamed up with a group of unknowns on Earth.”

  “And kill their own people in the process?” Jason scoffed.

  “Prince Atren was an unusual Triari,” I mused. “He didn't control his emotions in the way of the Host. That might have made him a few enemies.”

  “And they used this as an opportunity to kill him?” Davorin asked.

  “And start a war in the process,” I said. “Kill a prince on foreign soil in a heinous way, blame it on your enemies, and win the sympathy of the foreigners; not only would you get your war, you'd also get allies and a safe place to have the battle.”

  “Devious,” Leo whispered.

  “If it's true,” I said. “The second option is; the Bleiten have used these unknown supernaturals to lure the Triari to Earth while they simultaneously lure me away from them. I can't work out the women, though. Why abduct all those women and make themselves look guilty?”

  “And if the Bleiten were working with the bank robbers, why would the robbers need to plant that bloody handkerchief?” Lily asked. “No; I think they're being led. Again; that doesn't make them the good guys, just the dumb asses who have been tricked.”

  “They wouldn't be the only ones,” Jason pointed out. “We're in a van on the way to Maryland, and we don't even know who we're running from.”

  “The Triari,” Davorin said. “That's who we're running from, and it sounds as if that's who is behind this.”

  “I meant that we're not sure of everyone we're running from,” Jason amended.

  “And there's one more scenario, Davorin,” I said. “Number three; this unknown party—most likely the bank robbers—is playing everyone. Their motives are unclear, but it seems to me that their goal is a Triari/Bleiten war on Earth.”

  “Maybe you should speak to that Bleiten again,” Leo mused.

  Lily and Jason stared at him in horror, but I nodded, and even Davorin looked thoughtful.

  “The enemy of my enemy,” I murmured.

  “We're here,” Davorin said as he pulled down a private lane.

  A grand, white house came into view, though not as grand as the white house I often worked in. The fields around it were a bit overgrown, but the house itself looked to be in good repair. It was two-stories and sprawling; a cross between a modern farmhouse and a colonial. In the center of the roof, a red-bric
k chimney rose up proudly, and the front door was crowned by a carved, peaked arch.

  “This is your small house?” Jason asked in shock. “Dude; I've seen your apartment; that's small. This is palatial. Why live there when you could live here?”

  “This is for after I settle down,” Davorin said with a shy look my way. “It's a house for a family, not a single man.”

  “I'd live in it by myself,” Lily said as she jumped out of the van. “Yep; no problem.”

  “Well, it will be a good hideout,” Davorin said as he fished out a set of keys and headed toward the front door. “No one knows that I have this place, and the only person that comes out here is a guy I hired to maintain the property.”

  “You didn't spring for a gardener?” Jason teased him.

  “Why am I going to cut the grass when I'm not here to appreciate it?” Davorin asked. “And the neighbors are too far away to give a shit. As long as the house is kept in good shape, that's all I care about.”

  “Fair enough,” I murmured as I followed Davorin inside. “And your maintenance man has done a good job; it's lovely.”

  “Thanks.” Davorin waved us all in but then stood in the doorway. “I'll need to run into town to grab some supplies; any requests?”

  The others rattled off things they wanted, but when Dav looked at me, I only said one word.

  “Wine.”

  “What kind?” He asked.

  “Wine,” I repeated.

  “You got it, Spectra.” Davorin chuckled as he headed out. Then he stopped and looked back over his shoulder to say, “Don't do anything drastic while I'm gone; like teaming up with Bleiten. We can talk about that shit when I get back.”

  “It's not as if I have his cell number, Davorin.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Hey, I'm just covering all bases,” he said. “The last time I left you, you wound up in an exploding lab.”

  “Fair enough.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Davorin was only gone an hour, but it was long enough for the Triari to find us.