Renhala (46 page)

Chapter 57

Afraid

“She’s coming to!”

I cough and drag myself to a sitting position. My body is sore, and I feel like I
’ve just finished a boxing match.

“Why is this always happening to me?” I say as I grab my pounding head.

“Well, well. You’ve finally decided to come around.” Ladimer sits on my bed next to me, petting Kioto. She looks at me out of the corner of her eye.

“What happened?”

Bu comes into my bedroom, bringing me a cup of hot tea. “Kailey all right?” he says. I can sense his genuine concern.

“Yeah, I think I
’m fine,” I respond. 

“Bu give Cheeto and babies treats. That okay?”

“Cheeto?” As I try to get up, Ladimer lays me back down.

“Your mangy little friend found you before Conner got there,” he says. “That you ended up as far north as you did amazes me. While you were gone we also took care of Mortimer’s body. I had to let him go. He couldn
’t handle the guilt. He’s being cremated in a small town outside of Meadow’s Edge, where he was born. The man even made his own urn, knowing his time was coming.” His mouth stops moving, but I feel he wants to tell me more. 

“What?” I spit
, a bit more angrily than I’d normally reply.

“He wanted you to have his
urn,” replies Ladimer. “You are to be the soul possessor of Mortimer’s ashes.” I frown, but do not cry, for I have shed all my tears. “He left instructions to have his ashes mixed with powdered lutheose, and they are then to be delivered to you.”

Jenna, excited, comes running in and stops right before jumping on the bed. She looks to Ladimer, making a disgusted face—sticking her tongue out and all—and then looks back to me and says, “Nice to see you up.”
I know she wants to hug me, but is resisting the urge. She speaks to me, softly and sympathetically, which makes me feel she’s pitying me in some way, making my anger swell. “Good thing Mr. Syla caught you.”

“Mr. Syl
a?”

Her eyes widen, and her excitement returns. “Yes! He is so cool—grabbed you in motion and held you down until we all came and got you. Trees are very sensitive to the change.”

“What change? Why did you make that face?” My blood pressure is so high I feel my eyesight begin to shake slightly, and my hands ball into fists. The fact that I feel remnants of Devoten’s appalling energy doesn’t help, either. I can feel his prior thoughts, feelings. My monk’s spade warms up on my back.

They both stare at me, saying nothing.

Jenna’s eyes widen. “Kailey, please calm down. It’s just that...you need to calm down.” She looks toward Ladimer again.

“You should know
...” He hesitates a bit too long for my liking. “You have not only acquired Quicksilver.”

My heart beats rapidly as the
realization sets in. “No,” I blurt, clenching my teeth as my breathing becomes shallow. My anger turns on like an opened faucet. “No!” I scream.

Ladimer rushes to me and hugs me, rocking slowly until I feel the anger subside. “We need to keep this between us, Kailey,” he says. “It
’s best that others not know. It resides deep, and is unrecognizable unless you are a seasoned reader, like our little Jenna.”

“It
’s ugly!” she squawks. Ladimer shushes her quickly and she shrugs. “Well it is,” she says, quietly. Kioto growls very quietly. “See?” Jenna says, giving Kioto a dog biscuit.

“Promise me that you will fight it, Kailey.
Do not
let it consume you. I am going to do whatever I can for you. I
will
find a way to abolish it.”

“I
’m afraid, Ladimer,” I sputter, shaking a bit.

“We both are, honey.”

Chapter 58

Brave

“Are you coming with me to work today, or what?” I won’t admit it, but Jenna’s a small comfort, knowing she’s there in my purse witnessing everything I see. It also helps that she recognizes when sudo-abominor awakes before I do, somewhat.

It seems that this morning
, sudo-abominor took the liberty of picking out my outfit for the day: black pants, low-cut black shirt and a black pashmina.
How uplifting.

My boss thought it best I took bereavement leave, but I couldn
’t handle being in my apartment any longer, so during our phone conversation I begged until he let me have my way. I need interaction, and something to concentrate on besides death. And I also remembered it was my day to have lunch with my client at True.

On the way to the bus, I notice my favorite band of gangbangers hanging out, as usual
, on the corner. Today their game of choice is roshambo, and evidently the loser gets five-finger slapped as hard as possible—anywhere on their body and a random obscenity thrown at him.

“What the-”
I hear Jenna say as she peeks out at them.

Suddenly, after Joe receives an exceedingly vicious blow to the side of the face, he pauses in place, staring at something near him—something that scares the shit out of him. “Jesus! What is that guys?” He
’s pointing. As all heads turn and view what he’s pointing at, their energies—almost as a combined effort—scream.

They start running, as the creature—a particularly scrawny, four-legged spirithound—prepares to start after them, digging its feet in the ground, and screaming as it foams at the mouth.

I immediately step forward, monk’s spade already in hand, and chase after the creature as it starts running after them. After a block, and a wrong turn, Joe and his friends find themselves in a death trap dead-end. I come up slowly behind the creature, avoiding making any sound, but as I approach, Jenna sneezes.

As the creature slowly turns from its catch, my monk
’s spade swings lightly in my hands, connecting with its neck, at the exact moment its body suddenly disappears, only leaving black sludge on my blade.
Black sludge.
I simply wipe it on the ground and nearest brick wall, not feeling one bit of fear rise.

I look to all the boys shuddering in the corner, hugging each other, and say a simple, “You
’re welcome...bitches.” I then smile as Joe stares back at me, a smile of relief appearing across his face. I start to walk away and hear, “I gotta go change my underwear.” I laugh a strong and bordering-on-wicked laugh. Jenna stares at me from my bag.

On our way to the office, I decide to take a different route. “Let
’s take our time today,” I suggest. “It’s such a beautiful day—so many people are out already. Oh, and I have to find a gift for that client... What was her name?” I think a bit and then remember. “Ms. Carmela Johnson! English teacher.” 

“Whatever, boss. You
’re my ride anyway,” Jenna says, munching on something in my purse.

We pass tiny boutiques and antique-ish stores as we walk, but as I pretend to ignore the anguish I am feeling, every mother and baby couple, every steaming cup of hot liquid being drank, and every gaudy angel souvenir I see reminds me of her—my mom—and I cannot help but shrink inside myself.

“I love you, Kailey,” rambles Jenna from my purse.

“Love you too,” I say, taking a breath which seems to help a bit.

On our route, we come upon a small, hole-in-the-wall bookstore, which seems to be getting a shipment of new arrivals. Upon further examination, they’re boxes of recent donations.

The storekeeper sees me rifling through a box. “Take your time,” he says. “You might find something grand!” He
’s an old, wrinkly soul, with a love of typeface all over his hands. A particularly worn book catches my attention. A dusting of the cover reveals a copy of
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Someone has evidently written all along the inside of the cover, but I find it intriguing anyway. And that’s when it hits me that karma has struck—the perfect gift has unfolded itself before me. I purchase the book for a modest price and feel a soft glow from my aura around me.

“Why
so chipper?” Jenna sneaks a peek out my bag.

“I found an awesome gift.” I wave the book which the shopkeeper has wrapped up with butcher
’s twine.

We arrive very late, but our receptionist smiles at me. Hell must have froze over. “I
’m so sorry about your mother,” she says, teary-eyed. She stands up, and after I think she’s actually going to hug me, she hands me a mug of something warm and steamy. “I made this for you,” she says.

“Oh
...thanks,” I respond, bringing my lips to the liquid. I then realize it’s coffee—and not tea. I almost choke on it. “Delicious,” I say and she pats me on the back. As I walk to my office I pour the coffee into a potted plant.

As I enter my office, Evan comes up behind me. “Hi,” he says. I can feel his sympathy without even looking at his face. I turn around slowly and once our eyes meet, my tears flow. He hugs me tightly and says, “You should have stayed home.”

“No. I need this, really. I’ll be okay. Just get me working on my case and I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah
...about that,” he says, his energy suddenly twisting with nervousness. “It’s been transferred to someone else. Here’s a new one to work on.” He hands me a manila folder.

“What?!”
Sudo-abominor awakes and I hear Jenna shriek in my bag. My boss scrunches his face, looking at my bag.

“I thought you nee
ded to have a little alone time,” he says. “You might...break down at lunch or something. Please understand, Kailey.”

“I
’ve worked hard on that case, before everything in my life blew up. No, I’m keeping it!” Evan’s eyes widen, perhaps sensing the suddenly malicious anger growing inside me. I inhale, attempting to quiet sudo-abominor. “Well, then, at least tell me who got it.”

“Your buddy. Amber.”

The look on my face makes him jump back. “She’s here?” My internal hate explodes and the heat generated inside me feels like it’s singeing my internal organs.

“Yes, she works here, remember? Ms. Johnson should be here any minute to meet with her. Her case is a boring one anyway.” 

Grabbing the book off my desk, I stomp toward Amber’s office, displacing a few trinkets on a few desks. As I reach the front desk, I see the backs of Amber and who I assume to be Ms. Johnson, just about to exit through the front door. My boss follows right behind me. Sudo-abominor swells inside me, spinning around and around, feeling as though it wants to escape. It tugs at me, but instead of pushing me toward Amber, it almost forces me backwards, away from her and Ms. Johnson.

They hear the commotion behind them and Amber turns, slowly.
Despite the look of desperation on her face, I still want to slice her head off. The baby in her belly, my half-brother, wouldn’t survive, though, and this thought alone calms me.

When Ms. Carmela Johnson turns around to face me, the book slips through my hands and onto the ground. As she eyes me intensely, examining me inside and out, her eyes soften with compassion, and she says, “Oh, my dear.” She bends over, her braids hanging low, to pick the book up. Sudo-abominor pulls me two steps away from her. She eyes the card—her name, written in calligraphy across the front. “Beautiful!” As she opens the book, she giggles deeply. “And a signed copy! This is the best gift I could ask for. Absolutely amazing.” I cannot seem to make any words come out of my mouth as I stare. “Well, I thank you for this gift. Now, you let me and this pretty little thing”—she grabs Amber
’s hand softly—“go have a good lunch and some very decent, meaningful conversation.” She then leans near me as the energy inside me fights both to get away,
and
to hear her whisper, “Karma will get it straight.” She turns back to Amber.

Amber’s eyes avoid my own as they turn to leave for
my
reservation at True
.
She most likely had nowhere else to run, except back to her life here.

And that is when Neda turns to me slowly and winks at me. She turns back to Amber, and her hand on Amber
’s back is grotesquely disfigured. “Come on, now, sweetie. We’ve got lots to talk about.” Sudo-abominor cannot help but hideously laugh to itself as they leave and enter the elevators, but my conscience feels like I’ve just delivered a soul to hell. I feel guilt like a lump in my throat.

The internal struggle makes me feel nauseous as I stumble back to my office, where I find Jenna on the phone with Gunthreon. I motion for her to get off my desk. “Yes, I
’ll tell her,” she says, placing the phone down quietly, as she stares at me. “Your aura! Oh, geez. Dear Neda,” she eyes me, looking all over my entire body, seeing something that is leaving her uneasy. “You’re a mess!”

“I know. Jenna, I pray Ladimer can help,” I fall into my chair, feeling dizzy. She comes to me, wiping my hair back from my face. She caresses my face, and whispers, “Gunthreon says the urn is healing. And, it seems that creatures a
re disappearing across Abscondia by the handfuls. It’s on every channel.”

I smile, feeling a wave of relief wash over me. The dizziness lifts. “Thanks, Jenna.” I look downward toward my desk and spot the
new case my boss gave me. I open the folder. It’s some carpenter wanting to find investors to make a specialty tool for fixing wheelchairs. “Sounds like something for Bu,” I say. With this simple statement and the thought alone, Bu appears in my office. He jumps up and throws his cake in the air, and it lands on Jenna.

“Ahhh!” It drips down her face and her clothes.

But I don’t care she has cake on her face—just that I brought a massive greble here, to my work, in my moment of confusion. “Dammit,” I swear, running to close my door. “I have to learn to control this new trick. Bu, you gotta leave. Sorry,” I say. He stares, cake hanging off his open mouth. Then he disappears.

I look to Jenna and all I can do is laugh. She
nervously laughs along with me.