Crow - The Awakening (40 page)

"Teeth, Migalo." Lohet looked at him and Migalo covered his canines with his lips. They may be in the privacy of their safe house, but habits were important to keeping their existence a secret. Lohet returned his attention to Penipe as he tried to calm her again. She didn't want to be calmed, however.

"It's taken us several nights already. Tomorrow we will move to the safe house there and document the results." He pointed on the map. He had already worked out a grid that they would adhere to. He looked at Penipe. "Are you up to the task?"

Penipe wiped her eyes and nodded. She was overwhelmed by how helpless she was. Having an active plan of action helped enormously, however, and lifted her resolve. She was more determined than ever to capture the deviant that had stolen her daughter and was wrecking her own sanity.

Sirel floated off the bed and left the room to consume the rabbit. Migalo goosed her in the side with his elbow as she left the room, smiling and flashing his teeth. Sirel gave him an uncharacteristic frown, sobered by her partner's suffering. She looked at the rabbit, glad she had something to distract her. She was still distinctly unhappy with her teeth caps, however. She could pop them off, but it hurt to do that every time she ate and risked breaking teeth that took a long time to be replaced. She has had to resort to using a knife to cut up her prey for now.

Lohet walked to the window overlooking the bluff the safe house was located on. Looking out, he could see the glow of the city and was sure that somewhere in that glow their target was now sleeping soundly. Accessing his dreams again tonight could prove hazardous to Penipe, so he resisted the urge to task her with that so soon. Tomorrow night they would get back to work, then. The east was starting to glow almost imperceptibly. None of the others could see it yet, but the day was coming fast.

Saturday was a day long in coming. Steven was on call today, but had the whole day to himself up on the roof playing in the garden and working with the search. He unpacked some of the mushrooms he collected, grabbed a couple of eggs from the refrigerator, and cooked up an easy breakfast as he basked in the warm glow of sunrise out on the roof. He thought of Sally and Jonah as he ate, remembering breakfast with them. He sorely wanted to call them, but was waiting until he turned eighteen so they couldn't try to bring him home. Steven figured Jonah wouldn't, but Sally might be hysterical enough to do that. Trying not to ruin a good morning, he distracted himself with other thoughts. His phone was probably fully charged by now so he put his empty plate on the little wooden table by his door and went to the greenhouse.

Steven held out his hands as he walked past the raised beds, brushing the now massive tomato plants and taking in the distinctive odor that the disturbed leaves emit and feeling their energy that swirled around him in little eddies. They were already laden with tomatoes, and the residents in the building were buying them as fast as they ripened. His squash was heavily flowering and their large, yellow flowers were fully crowded by honeybees this morning. Herbs and vegetables had transformed the roof into its own kind of jungle and Steven loved the life all around him. It wasn't the forest, but was refreshing nonetheless. The myriad of scents coming from the garden was intoxicating.

Steven opened the door to the greenhouse and felt a little whoosh of warm air escaping. The vents were already automatically opened, but even then the air got rather tropical inside. The smell inside was stimulating as well. Not many flowers yet, but the overall richness of growth combined with the moist soil lent their own aroma to the air.

He left the door open and brushed through the overgrown palms, bananas, figs, and other tropicals that threatened to fill the greenhouse canopy completely. Just a few steps in and he could almost imagine himself in a thick jungle on some tropical island. The only thing that was missing was the fauna that filled the jungle with their own symphony of sounds. Maybe later, Steven thought to himself, smiling.

As he ambled through the foliage he could just make out someone over by the potting bench at the end of the greenhouse looking at his freshly potted plants. He could tell it was a woman, but couldn't get a good enough look at her to identify her. Sarah would have met him at his apartment, and most of the other residents there met him at the garden beds. But then his greenhouse was starting to attract attention, too, and more than once he had found someone in there examining his plants. Not that he minded. It was nice to have people enjoy what he was doing.

"Hello?" Steven called out. The woman turned and stood up, clasping her hands as she waited for Steven. He wondered if she was one of his vegetable customers? She appeared to be waiting for him. "Sorry for all the overgrowth. I kinda like it, personally." Steven attempted small talk until he made it over to the visitor. After pushing past the final palm frond, Steven stepped into the small clear spot that his desk and the potting bench occupied, and then froze in his tracks, his mouth still open for the next sentence he was about to say. Asherah smiled and waved timidly, but didn't say anything. She looked in his eyes and bit her lip. He could feel her wanting to run to him but stopping herself and she stood there trembling slightly.

Steven turned around and stared back the way he came at the jungle he had created. His heart was in his ears, thumping loudly. She looked stunning without trying to, and with every fiber of his being he resisted the urge to run to her and grab her up. He peeked over his shoulder and then turned back, looking hard at the banana tree in front of him, swallowing hard. His chest hurt and his arms tingled as vertigo washed lightly over him in waves.

"Oh, this so can't be happening now." He put his palms to his eyes. He took a deep breath and fought to calm himself, mentally willing the fantasy away. "It's gone. She's gone." He peeked around again. She wasn't gone. In fact, if it weren't for her very short fur, he could swear she was blushing. She had been caressing the leaf of the tropical dandelion Steven had dug up the night before. It actually looked better this morning. Steven blinked hard and turned back around.

"I'm having an episode or whatever it's called," Steven said to himself. But she looked so good. If he wasn't going crazy, she was driving him crazy. "Stop calling her 'she'. Fantasy. Just fantasy." Steven turned around, took a deep breath, and squinted at Asherah. She had a sympathetic look on her face as she wiped her moist cheeks and moved to the side out of his way as he walked up to the bench. The plant was still there. As he reached out and touched it, he remembered how real the meadow felt, and how it really was. Just a meadow with a dead snag in it. Why wasn't the plant disappearing? It should be just a pot with dirt and nothing else. And yet, it was there, pushing out new flowers as it began to thrive under his care. He glanced over at Asherah and his heart ached. She looked down, humming their ballad quietly as she turned away to hide her tears. Steven shook his head. "No, this can't be happening now."

He sat down heavily at his desk and grabbed his phone, using every bit of his willpower to resist turning around and gaping at the stunningly gorgeous vision standing beside him. "Argh, I'm doing it again!" he whispered to himself. His heart was still loud in his ears and he felt out of breath. He started programming his phone and had to stop and reprogram it a couple of times until he put it down on the desk. His hands were shaking badly and he balled them up in fists in an attempt to still them. "Why is this happening now?"

"Normally you don't see me. I can usually hide," Asherah whispered quietly. She couldn't restrain herself from answering, feeling badly for Steven's consternation.

Oh, I'm so not having this conversation, Steven thought to himself. But he couldn't resist another look. She smiled apologetically and his heart jumped. Her smile was like an explosion of happiness to him. He gasped as her joy washed over him, grabbing the edge of the desk as he rode out the wave. Fighting it with all his might, he took a deep, quavering breath and looked hard at his computer.

"It was the plant. You potted it up. That's how gating works." She stepped forward as she tried to explain, then stopped herself, looking away.

"Gating?" Steven looked back at her, quizzical.

She shook her head sharply, her eyes moistening again. Steven could tell she had been crying a lot and it made him want to cry. He blinked hard, resisting the urge. "I'm not supposed to tell you. I'm so sorry." She was obviously extremely conflicted.

My own fantasy is keeping secrets from me. Great, Steven thought to himself as he looked back at the computer. Seeing the plants were one thing. He wasn't in love with the plants. He peeked at her from the corner of his eyes, seeing her smile wistfully at him and wiping tears from her cheeks. "This is going to be awkward." Steven said to no one in particular. How he wished he had not left that bag of tea behind. But then he'd be out by now anyway.

"I've got an address now. Dr. Dougherty can send me more tea!" He grabbed his phone and called the number, trying hard to keep his back to Asherah. All he got was an obnoxious whistle and a notice that the number was no longer in service. He tried again, thinking he mistyped the number but got the same result. He pulled up the phone database on the phone's screen and searched for him, verifying the number.

"Oh, this is not good." Steven put the phone down, wondering why James had turned off his phone service. Maybe they're having some problems.

"I'll stay out of the way. I promise," Asherah offered, distressed by the discomfort Steven was feeling as she clasped her hands over her chest, trying to still her own heart. A deep melancholy washed over Steven and he winced as he bit his lip. He looked sideways at her and wondered if it were even possible for him to ignore her. He could tell she was blushing again and it suddenly occurred to him that she could hear his thoughts. Asherah nodded, looking down at her feet. Well, duh, he thought to himself. She was his fantasy after all.

"Is that him?" Lohet asked Penipe as they waited for the homeless man to enter the alley.

She nodded. Brian. He had affirmed that Steven had indeed visited him at the homeless shelter, but refused to divulge anything more about him. She was sure that Brian knew more, however. So it would take a bit of persuasion to coax that information out of him. They concealed themselves as Brian approached the alley, and waited for the right moment to spring their trap.

As Brian entered deeper into the alley, away from the street and prying eyes, Penipe emerged behind him, approaching him stealthily. She was about to put her hand on his cheek when he stopped suddenly and leaned back, bumping her. "Hello, Penipe." He looked over his shoulder at her, smiling kindly. Penipe stood there, shocked. How did he know her name, or that she was even there?

Lohet arrived so fast in front of Brian that he appeared to materialize like a wraith. He walked the last few steps and reaching out, touched Brian and expected him to fall unconscious. Brian smiled back at him. "Hi there. You must be Lohet." Lohet furrowed his brow, confused. The only ones there other than his team that knew his name were golems and Brian was not a golem. Nor was he afraid. And most importantly, he wasn't unconscious.

Penipe came to her senses and put her hands on his cheeks, turning him around to look into his eyes. All she saw was kindness and no fear whatsoever. "We need Steven," she said, digging deep into his mind but seeing nothing but blinding light and joy. She blinked.

"You can't have him," Brian answered her as a simple statement of fact. He smiled at her and put his hand gently on her cheek. Penipe gasped and fell to her knees, her eyes wide. For a moment she was completely blind as the light overwhelmed her mind. There was nothing she could do to shield herself from it and her entire world was blinding white. "Not yet," Brian said as he held her for a moment to make sure she didn't fall over. Penipe sat down, stunned.

Alarmed, Lohet grabbed Brian and spun him around. Brian touched Lohet on his shoulder and his arm suddenly came out of its socket, making Lohet cry out in pain. Brian touched Lohet on the hip and his leg came of its socket and he fell down to the ground in agony. His breath left him as pain shot up and down his body and for the first time in his life he was completely helpless.

Brian knelt down beside Lohet. "You, my friend, will soon have a choice to make. It could save two lives, or take two lives. Trust in compassion." He put his hand on Lohet's chest and suddenly his limbs were restored and Lohet lay there bewildered, looking up at the homeless man. He had not ever felt that kind of pain, and the shadow of that agony remained with him, fading slowly. "Who are you?" His voice finally came back.

"Who I am is not important." Brian smiled kindly, patting Lohet on the chest. Lohet felt it, like one of his own kind were patting him. But Brian was most certainly not a Keratian. "Don't try to figure it out, Lohet. Just remember what I told you."

Penipe gasped as her sight came back and she slumped over. Brian caught her and kept her from banging her head on the pavement, then caressed her hair. "You two are remarkable creatures." He looked at Lohet and winked.

"Have a good day, now." Brian stood up and picked up his sack lunch and started walking down the alley again, whistling his favorite hymn as he kicked a rock in front of him. Lohet stared at him as he ambled off, then looked at Penipe who was trying to stir but having trouble making her limbs work. He thought to pursue the man, but realized it would end in yet more futility. He was completely incapacitated by a mere touch, and Penipe as well. There was another force at work there that was completely off the grid.

The computer in Eliot Coleman's apartment was in pretty bad shape, but nothing that Steven couldn't overcome. He had tackled these issues many times in this apartment complex, the ubiquitous trojan virus that represented almost full time job security for Steven. He didn't mind too much, though. It made him feel good to help his fellow tenants and ease their fears of losing all their family pictures and emails and data as he made their computers work again. It also helped distract him from what awaited him up in the greenhouse. A little. Asherah did stay out of the way when she was there, but his desire to give in to his fantasy was so powerful that he found it nearly impossible to function up there. He wanted so much to take her in his arms that it drove him nuts. Steven blinked. Computer. Think computer.