Avenger (17 page)

A smile tilted one side of his face. “Nikki, the avenger.”

She sank a punch in his arm. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not.” His smile faded. “I honestly believe you’ll bring Vessler down. You’ll avenge the deaths that he’s caused. Even your parents.”

Her eyes left him and stared at the crystal clear water at the mouth of the cave. She couldn’t erase the scene that played over and over in her head.

“What’s wrong?”

“When I was hunting Vessler, I saw a man. He looked like my dad, but he was way too thin and just too old, I guess, to be Dad. Like the guy was a brother. He was meeting a man named Townsend and getting something — I think it was money — from him. Townsend left it in a trash can, and the guy looked really, really scared to be there.”

“No wonder. Keagan Townsend is a marksman, Nikki, an assassin. He’s Vessler’s right hand guy. Zero said he probably pulled the trigger on the scientist we dragged from the fire.”

“I just wish I knew who that other man was.”

Mace took her by the arms. “You can’t bring your parents back, Nikki.”

His sapphire-tinged eyes bore into her. “I know,” she mumbled.

“I realize you haven’t had much closure where your mom and dad are concerned, but promise me you won’t go snooping around Vessler or any of his men trying to find out things that won’t change their fate.”

Bleah. Does this whole “challenging me to be stronger” really have to start now?
“But maybe I have an uncle.”

His hands dropped suddenly. “An uncle who is meeting with one of Vessler’s assassins. Not the greatest family member, in my opinion.”

“But what if he was trying to find out what happened to me? There could be answers about my family.”

“Nikki! Stop it. You
have
a family.
We’re
your family now. Why do you keep reaching into the past?”

“Don’t you ever wonder about your parents?”

“Every day. But it doesn’t change anything. There’s nothing but death back there for you. You said it yourself — you owe something to the people who died at the hands of the seeker.”

And that was another thing she’d have to live with. “Why is one person’s life more valuable than another?”

“We were sent to protect you. You’re valuable to the Throne.”

“Why?”

“Only time can reveal that. The important thing is you’re alive.”

She wasn’t convinced.

“Nikki, I don’t know what plan the Throne has for you. All I know is that he will go to no limit to keep you safe.”

“But why me?”

“Do you think Zero is important?”

“Of course. Zero runs the network. He keeps Halflings connected all over the world. Zero is the hub and no one else can do what he does.”

“Exactly. Zero’s work is vital to Halflings everywhere. If he were to die, the whole network would shut down. Like you said, no one can do what he does.”

“But I’m not Zero. I’m not anybody. I’ve barely learned to fly.”

“But you still have worth beyond measure. When Zero was younger, do you think he knew how important he’d be?”

“I guess not.”

“So stop questioning. Your worth will be revealed one day.”

She gauged his words but still felt there were things he wasn’t telling her. Things about her family, the world she left. For the moment, she’d let it go. “I have wings.”

“Shall we go try them out? Take ‘em for a test drive?”

She nodded and let the excitement drain the apprehension from her muscles.

Chapter 14

R
aven! It’s good to see you,” Dr. Richmond said, using his body to hold the door open.

“You too,” Raven returned, actually happy to be here. He wasn’t sure why he’d come, other than it felt right.

Richmond’s face dropped to a grimace as he inspected Raven’s features. “Have you been ill?”

“Uh, no. Just not getting much sleep.”

The doctor waved him in. The living room was filled with buzzing from a TV in the corner that no one watched. Some reality show with a girl dressed in clothes that had to be from the children’s department, who was crying — mascara smeared her cheek. Doc Richmond shook his head. “I don’t know why my wife likes these shows. I think they’re all staged. No reality in reality TV.”

“Well, reality is overrated.”

The older man found the remote control and hollered toward the back of the house. “I turned off your show, hon.”

A voice echoed from down the hall. “I’m doing laundry.”

As she said it, the strong scent of detergent drifted into Raven’s nose. Sometimes he wished things weren’t so intense. Smells, his sight, everything a brilliant kaleidoscope of colors, scents, tastes, and feelings. Right now, he’d be thankful for the whole world to gray down.

The phone rang. “Have a seat, Raven. I’ll grab that and make it quick, and we can chat.”

Raven sank onto the floral couch and also to a new low, seeking consolation and friendship from a balding scientist. If he wasn’t careful, they’d be joining a bowling league next and picking out matching polyester shirts. But when Raven heard the young female voice skating through the phone lines and out to him, his gaze shifted to Richmond, who stood at the edge of the hall. He cast a glance back to Raven and pointed to the phone. “My daughter.”

Raven nodded and motioned for him to come and have a seat in the living room. Not because he wanted to hear her voice. Nah, couldn’t be that. Yet she sounded so very alive and enthralling, and Raven tuned into her words as the doctor approached. Okay, so sometimes great hearing was a blessing.

Richmond dropped into his easy chair. “Yes, sweetheart, we’re still going. No, not this weekend, next. Are you taking your medicine? Good girl.”

That’s right, Richmond’s daughter was diabetic. He’d mentioned once he was worried she’d forget her daily insulin shots while she was off at college.

Raven heard laughter, and it sailed into his chest cavity, causing his heart rate to pick up. When he realized the reason why, he sank a little more. The girl sounded like Nikki. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the sound.

Something drew his attention to the hallway. Almost commanded him to look. He obeyed, and there on the wall, mixed in with a ton of other photos, was a small snapshot of Jessica Richmond standing out like a firefly among moths. He moved toward it, coupling the voice with the face and body that wasn’t Nikki’s. He needed this, to separate the two girls in his mind, or the rest of his day would be plagued with that rolling laughter. That, he could do without.

Jessica was beautiful. More so than Nikki in every traditional sense. She stood on a beach in a bikini and dared the camera to look away. Her smile was bright and perfect, natural, and it too reminded Raven of the girl he’d just given up.

He growled and spun away from the picture just as Richmond ended the conversation with his irritatingly happy daughter.

Raven dropped back onto the couch.

“She’s a card, my girl.” Richmond sat the phone on the coffee table, by a large square book titled
Castles of Europe
. “All excited about her grade in Physics.”

Raven nodded.

“No matter how busy she is, she takes time to check on us. We’re going out of town for our anniversary and she thought it was this weekend.” He brushed his hand through the air. “But enough about that. What’s wrong, Raven? You don’t seem yourself and you look like you haven’t slept in a week.”

“I’ve got a lot going on.”
Am I really about to confide in Richmond?
Seemed so. “You ever think you know something only to find out you were way off?”

Richmond raised his hands. “I’m a scientist. That’s a daily occurrence for me.”

“Well, I’m not a scientist and I don’t like being wrong. Besides, it’s a little different when it involves people.”

“Did someone betray you?” Richmond leaned forward to rest his elbows on his thighs. He studied Raven intently.

“Yeah.” Raven laughed. “Me.”

Richmond waited, lips pursed.

“Sorry, Doc. It’s just that I thought this girl and I …” No, he couldn’t go through with it. Even total heartbreak wouldn’t make him a share-your-feelings kind of dude. He stood and headed toward the door.

Richmond grabbed his arm and tugged him toward the pictures on the wall. “Did I ever tell you about the time I tried hair replacement?”

Raven shook his head to clear it.

“It failed miserably. You should have seen me. It looked like I’d sprouted miniature bean stalks on my head.” The doctor dug behind the pictures that had been stuck in the frame edges of other pictures. Some were two and three deep. His sleeve caught the corner of the beach picture as he reached past it. Raven watched as Jessica Richmond tilted and dropped to the floor. From the tan carpet, she smiled up at him. He reached to pick her up. She and Nikki definitely shared a smile. Broad, soft lips, and white, even teeth. Raven brushed his thumb over the photo, half expecting it to be three dimensional, the colors and expression were so vibrant. He tucked it back in its spot inside a framed Christmas photo of Dr. Richmond dressed as Santa.

“Well, anyway.” Richmond turned to face Raven. “The hair replacement was an expensive and utterly disastrous choice. But I had to try it, or I’d have always wondered.”

And Raven understood. “Sometimes you have to give something a chance, even if it’s ultimately the wrong choice?”

Richmond nodded. “You put it behind you, and move on. And you take what you’ve learned.”

Raven stared at Jessica but saw Nikki. “It hurts, Doc.” He was only marginally surprised when Dr. Richmond’s arm came around his shoulder.

“I know, son.”

“How long will it hurt?”

“I wish I could say. All I know is that another journey awaits you.”

At that, Raven’s attention snapped, eyes shooting to Richmond.

The older man smiled. “Life is one journey after another. Don’t get trapped in yesterday’s when tomorrow’s is waiting for you.”

Okay, that weirded him out until he realized Richmond wasn’t talking about
journeys
— at least not the way Raven knew them.

Yet, there was something prophetic and profound in the words. It’s the same thing Raven told Nikki: he was heading in another direction. And somehow, Richmond was involved. He’d felt it from the beginning. He’d always wanted to protect Richmond — always felt there was a need. Not surprising, since Richmond spent years working for Omega Corporation before he learned the horrible truth about what his breakthroughs were really creating.

The scientist released Raven and headed back into the living room. Before Raven could stop himself, he reached out and grabbed the photo of Jessica, tucking it into his back pocket. For a few seconds kept his hand over the photo. The photo that wasn’t Nikki.

Nikki and Mace rose above snow-dusted mountains. She’d been in the air for a couple hours and her wings weren’t even tired.

“You’re getting the hang of it.” Mace tilted, his gray-white wings angling just enough for her to tuck in closer.

“It’s like I’ve had them forever.” Even though he hovered nearby, she knew how much she could pump her wings to keep from bumping into him.

“You have. Are you tired?”

“We could take a break. I’m getting hungry.”

“Follow me.” He stretched to tilt one wing downward. There wasn’t much below, just a lot of trees and the occasional curved road snaking around the mountain. A smattering of houses had smoky chimneys. Nikki wondered why there were never paintings done from this viewpoint. Maybe one day she’d do that — paint from the sky. Let the world see what it looks like from above, where all the dirtiness melts into a picturesque landscape.

They touched down in a small town somewhere in the mountain range. Nikki didn’t know where they were and really didn’t care. It felt so good, so free to just
be
without the immediate threat of a seeker or a madman or a hell hound at her back. She’d purposely forced everything from her mind except enjoying Mace, the day, and her new wings. Even if it was only for a day.

He took her by the shoulders and pointed to one mountain. “Do you recognize that?”

The rocky plateau did look familiar. Then she remembered. “That’s the mountain where we watched the eagles — I mean, the Halflings.”

He nodded, and before she knew what was happening he
pulled her to him, hugging her so hard she wondered if her ribs might crack. When he released her, there was an unusual light in his eyes, an illumination born of excitement or maybe expectancy. “Come, on,” he said, and took her hand, leading her away from that particular view.

They entered a restaurant that looked like it was converted from an old train car. Nikki slid into the booth by the curved glass window and expected Mace to sit across from her. Instead, he slipped in beside her, nudging her over to make room. She accommodated him, relishing the feel of his warm body and the smell of wind and winter on his skin.

He nodded to the snow-capped peaks beyond the window. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

She noticed a winding path led up one mountainside. “Gorgeous.”

“I bet you’d love to draw it, wouldn’t you?”

Her gaze fell to the table. “I can draw things now if I’m careful. Will helped me learn, but he also warned me to be careful. Vigilant, I think he called it. It could open a door to the other realm.”

“And let hounds through?”

She nodded. “So, no drawing for me. It’s not worth the risk.”

“I’m sorry, Nikki.” He looked away for a long time, but his sudden change in posture held her attention. Nervous, maybe a little uncertain. Rather than look at the beautiful landscape beyond the window, she examined Mace.

He reached for her hand. “What if there was a way you could draw without worrying about opening a doorway for hounds?”

His hand was sweaty in hers. Very unnatural, and she could feel his pulse increase as he spoke. “If there was a way, would you do it?”

“What do you mean?”

He angled on the seat to look at her fully. “Nikki, we could leave the battle. We’ve found each other.”

She shook her head. “What are you talking about?”