Public Enemies (32 page)

“I think so.”

“Listen, I'm not telling my parents any of this, and I'm not taking no for an answer from you. In a month, I get time off for spring break, and I am definitely coming to see you.”

“Okay,” I said.

“When's your break?”

“Always. I'm finishing school on independent study. With all of the crises lately, I can't make myself sit in a classroom when I'm worried about my dad.”

“I get that.” Vi's tone was gentle. “But it means we can hang out the whole time I'm there. Seth said he'll try to come for the weekend, at least.”

“Wow, really? So it'll be like a reunion.”

“Minus Ryu.”

“Heh, well. We can't expect him to come from Japan. Have you talked to him lately?”

She shook her head. “Not since Christmas. He was in the States for a while visiting his grandparents, but he was too busy to Skype.”

“That doesn't surprise me. He was the most popular guy in the SSP.”

“He's kind of a flower boy,” she agreed.

It was time to change the subject; Ryu felt like he belonged to another lifetime, back when everything was simple. “E-mail me when you know when you're arriving. I'll pick you up at the airport.”

“You have a car now?”

“My boyfriend does.”

“Kian, right? I saw you kissing on campus. He went all the way to California for you, and you guys weren't even
dating
 … he must've been so into you.”

Weirdly, she wasn't entirely wrong. Back then I didn't realize how long he'd been watching or how much I meant to him. I had no idea he'd quietly given me the best day of my life. With a half smile I twisted the blue beads on my wrist.

“Maybe,” I said. “But we couldn't get together. Things were complicated.”

“Yeah, starting a new relationship when someone's going away for the summer doesn't make sense. It was smarter to stay single until you got back.”

“Exactly.” Though not for the usual reasons.

We talked a little longer, mostly about the robotics project she was working on, and then her brother, Kenny, came banging on her door demanding that she do the dishes like their mom had asked four times already. Vi sighed and said, “Sorry. Apparently I'm not allowed to have a social life or go to sleep if there's a single dirty cup in the house.”

Kenny yelled, “The kitchen's gross, Vi! I used the last clean glass this morning. We haven't seen the sink in two days. It's
your turn
.”

“Oh my God, will you shut up already? Tell her I'll be right down.”

Their exchange made me smile; I'd always wanted an annoying younger sibling. “Talk to you later, 'kay?”

“Yep. I'll check in with you soon. Be careful. It sounds scary there.”

“It is,” I admitted.

After hanging up, I remembered that she was an hour behind me, so it was only ten thirty there. Here, it was ticking away toward the witching hour, and I was so freaking tired just from hovering over my dad all day. Worry was weirdly exhausting. Quietly I washed my face and brushed my teeth, not lingering in front of the mirror. Since that terrifying day that my reflection confessed to wanting to kill me and/or steal my life, I was afraid to spend much time primping.

I turned off the lights and got in bed. The curtains were open, showing a thin gold sliver from the streetlight nearby. It angled across my floor and I stared at it, willing my brain to shut up about disaster scenarios. Sleep had nearly claimed me when the
tap, tap, tap
came at my window. Jolting up, I half expected to see the creepy black-eyed little girl in her bloody pinafore.

But no. Instead it was a large black bird, rapping against the glass with its beak.

Peck, peck, peck.

“It can't be,” I said.

Peck, peck, peck, peck.

Muttering, I went over to the window and raised the sash, so icy wind washed over me. The screen was still between us, though the bird could probably tear through it. For a few seconds we just stared at one another. I hadn't seen the Harbinger since he went nuts in Rochelle's kitchen. The bird didn't speak—and I started doubting my own certainty. To test my theory, I came a little closer. A normal crow would startle and fly away. This one waited.

Wondering if this was the dumbest idea ever, I slid back the screen. “Did you want to come in?”

Then in a dark flutter of smoke and feathers,
he
was perched with inhuman grace and balance on a ledge far too small to hold him. “Are you inviting me? Rituals and niceties matter, especially to someone like me.”

“I guess I am.”

“Yes or no, dearling.”

“Then … yes.” I stood back so he could leap lightly inside, and I closed everything after him to banish the chill.

Retreating to my bed seemed like the warm, safe option, so I scooted back under my covers. I also needed to get away from his aura, washing over me like a noxious sweetness. He was a gloriously red poison apple, tart juice to tingle my tongue even as the slice lodged in my throat. The Harbinger paced, his great coat flapping about his ankles with each stride.

“What have you done, you wicked thing?”

“You're talking about Dwyer?”

“Indeed. You cut the sun from the sky. Aren't you worried that glaciers will envelop the world again with no counter for our Wedderburn?”

My eyes widened. “Not until now. Is that possible?”

“Who knows? There's always been a sun god for as long as there was a winter king. But you've changed the game board, you adorable idiot. I'm quite jealous, you know. Your ability to create chaos rivals my own.”

“Is that why you came? To warn me I might've caused the next ice age?”

Ignoring the question, he perched at the foot of my bed and wrapped his arms about his knees. “No. It's simply an interesting diversion. Like you.”

“You don't seem so mad anymore.” It was a cautious observation, one I wasn't 100 percent sure of, since he might be hiding it and would soon make my room explode into wood chips.

“Crafty little cat. With Govannon's gift, you have
so
much potential. Are you
truly
not afraid of me?”

I thought about that. “Not really. I've seen so many scary things that I have to draw the line somewhere. You're mercurial but you've helped me. And you've never hurt me, though I was pretty pissed off when you let those Cthulhu assholes take my dad.”

“I am not your knight,” he said silkily. “Don't mistake the compact with your beloved for something more. Under the right circumstances, I would, indeed, hurt you, dearling. Maybe … until you liked it.”

His tone struck me as off. Desperate even. It was strange that I'd come to know him well enough to realize it, but beneath that glossy menace, he was a ragged thing, raw and wounded. Wondering if I was crazy, I still whispered, “What's wrong?”

“Why are you asking?”

“I don't know. Why are you in my room at midnight?”

“Because you invited me.”

I saw we'd get nowhere this way, so I let it go. “Then what did you want to talk about? Let me guess, you have a warning or punishment for me.”

For the first time since his arrival, the Harbinger smiled. “No. Quite the opposite, in fact. I'm a gambler, you see, and I must have my curiosity sated.”

“About what?”

He leaned forward and let his hand hover over the golden wristlet wrapped about my forearm, but he didn't touch. His gray eyes went dark as old pewter, with a glimmer like distant lightning in their depths. “There's a way you can save him, dearling.”

I stilled. “Kian?”

“This is the
only
way.” The Harbinger took my hand and flattened it against his chest; it was like touching marble or alabaster, hard and unyielding, no life within. “End me, as you did the sun god. And your beloved will live.”

 

THE GIRL WHO HUNTED DEATH

Frozen, I whispered, “This is a trick. That's what you do.”

“Do you think so?” The Harbinger tilted his head back, offering his neck. “If you're so sure, put the blade to my throat. Take my head and let there be an end to all this. You hate me, yes? Consider what I did to Nicole … and Aaron too. Imagine the crimes against humanity you'll prevent with one swing, and as an added bonus, your darling boy, well, he lives. Huzzah, no? Of course I'll no longer be around to shield you from immortal wrath, but that hardly matters. You've no need of my protection any longer.”

“I can't just execute you.” The words came out before I thought them through, but they were true. “It was different with Dwyer. He attacked me on multiple occasions.”

“But you hunted him to his stronghold with a blade to cull him from existence. You didn't wait for him to strike again. That shows a certain martial predilection, dearling, and shouldn't you save your boy at all costs?”

I remembered what Rochelle said—keeping a spirit familiar enchained forever being true evil. But I thought it also applied to doing whatever it took to achieve your desires, regardless of the cost. Yeah, I wanted to save Kian, but … I couldn't just behead the Harbinger while he was sitting on my bed for no better reason than to get my boyfriend out of trouble. While he might be scary and destructive, he'd also helped me a lot, and I couldn't get past the idea that he was in terrible pain beneath all the spectacle and buffoonery.

“You should go,” I said quietly. “I'm not doing this. I can't.”

From a flicker in his shadowed gaze, I guessed that I'd surprised him. “Why not? I won't fight. That would be ridiculous. Rather I submit and await judgment for my sins.”

“No way. You know I'm only seventeen, right? Plus … it's not your fault. That doesn't help the people you've hurt, but I know we did it to you.” As Buzzkill said,
we
wrote the stories. These creatures were humanity's darkness, given strange and terrible form.

“How astonishing,” the Harbinger breathed.

“What?”

“You
care
for me. I'm no longer purely a monster in your eyes.”

“Don't be stupid.”

“If that wasn't true, you wouldn't hesitate to strike,” he said gently. “You have ample reason, as my demise represents the only sure way to save your Kian.”

“But it would be wrong.”

“Only if I'm not a monster, Edie Kramer. Is killing a demon ever wrong?”

His words made sense, but I still couldn't bring myself to press the side of my wrist and activate Aegis. The idea of executing the Harbinger made me feel sick inside. My hands curled into fists. He wore a silly, charming smile, and I didn't trust the playful side of him. As Rochelle had said, in many ways, he was like a cat. Instead of doing anything dangerous, he fell back onto the lower half of my bed, not something I ever thought I'd see. His aura dimmed to low buzz, an intentional downshift that let me observe his true features.

“You're most unusual, you know. When I wore the false face that attracted everyone else, you found me creepy and unsettling. And when I show you everything, you offer kindness.”

“I'd always rather have the truth,” I said.

“Perhaps I'm meant to be
your
pet,” he mused, folding his arms beneath his head. “Will you care for me and keep me out of trouble?”

I hoped he was joking. “That sounds like a lot of work.”

“Sadly, yes. Right now I'm on my best behavior, but it won't last. It can't.” His voice dropped on the last two words, went soft and sorrowful.

“I know.”

I hesitated for a few seconds because I had no idea what my role was here, but with any other friend, I'd offer comfort. So I rested my hand gently on his head. His hair felt soft and cool beneath my palm, and he angled his face to stare at me. But he didn't move, and I didn't either, except to pet him as if he really
were
my cat. His eyes closed.

“You remind me of Sigyn.”

Since the name sounded familiar but I couldn't recall who that was, I said, “I'm sorry if you wanted me to kill you. I can't. Not without a reason. That would make
me
the monster.”

“Maybe I did, a little, because you can end the infinite. But I was more curious. Govannon gave you that blade for a reason. Now I begin to see why.”

“Huh?”

To my surprise, he remained quiescent beneath my stroking fingers. “Never mind. Just … do this a bit longer. And then, I'll fly away. The next time we meet, Edie Kramer, I will most likely break your heart … and I find myself unexpectedly regretful about that.”

“There's some time yet,” I said. “I haven't given up on that loophole. Now that my dad's safe, I'll focus all my energy on finding it.”

“Good luck,” the Harbinger said.

I thought he truly meant it. True to his word, he let me pet him for about five minutes, and then he bounded off my bed in a crackle of dark energy. There was a fresh wickedness about him, and I wondered if I was crazy for not taking the deal. Considering how he'd treated Aaron—
oh, shit. I have to apologize.

“I'm so sorry. I thought I was saving Aaron but, in the end, I got him killed.”

His tone was gentle. “I'm aware, Dwyer burned him up. Did you think I wouldn't know what became of my favorite pet? I always love what I hurt most, at least a little. And that's why you should fear me to your bones, pretty one. Because I rather adore you, and that ends badly for both of us.” He paused, gazing at me, until I shivered from the intensity of it. But he didn't try to make me come to him with that awful compulsion. “Right now I wish I had a name to give you. I'd like to hear you say it, just once.”

“You have like forty names.”

“Exactly,” he said with a melancholy smile. “And none of them are mine.”