Sky Ghosts: All for One (Young Adult Urban Fantasy Adventure) (Sky Ghosts Series Book 1) (11 page)

He came to her bed and took a bedcover, folding it in half. As he covered her with it, a gust of wind broke into the room, making a loose lock of her hair fall into her eyes. Chad reached out mechanically to brush it back, but at the last moment he paused, and after a second he jammed his hand into his jeans pocket. He didn’t want to wake her up, because she really did seem not quite well that day, and there was a probable fight ahead, and it all was on her shoulders, really. They might have shared the task with Jane, but Pain was the one responsible for delivering them to the corporate apartment safe. Somehow only now, seeing her asleep, he felt the incredible chasm between her appearance and her power. The idea of her fighting someone like Marco or those thugs she finished off so easily in that alley just couldn’t fit into his head together with the sight of her, of these slim scarred arms and small heart-shaped face. And not only the skills and power didn’t go with her looks, but her whole personality, that determination and confidence with which she seemed to have found her place so easily among these people.

He watched her sleep for some time, hunching his shoulders as always when he got lost in thought, and then turned away and went to the wardrobe. Taking off his wet T-shirt and tossing it onto a chair, he opened the wardrobe and dug in for a fresh one. And just as his head disappeared behind the wardrobe door, Pain opened her eyes a little and looked at him, squinting at the light. She wasn’t fully asleep when he came in, and of course, she could hear the door open, and feel somebody’s presence in the room. She just never bothered showing that she was awake when she didn’t feel like it. She thought it was her sister, covering her with that plaid, but then she realized Jane wouldn’t stand in front of her for so long. For some time, while Chad was putting on another T-shirt and shaking his overlong hair out of the collar, she watched him silently and then closed her eyes and got back to sleep with a quiet sigh.

Chad picked up the wet shirt and brought it to the bathroom. Taking one last look at Pain, he came to the door and turned the knob. He wondered what sword-wielding girls dreamed of – could it ever be something pleasant? But that she would never tell, he guessed, closing the door behind him.

The same day at midnight, the four of them left their room. Everybody except for Pain had backpacks behind their backs, in which their clothes and bath kits were. Behind Pain’s back was her katana, so her things were in a bag that Dave was carrying in one of his hands. The girls were wearing their gear with loose black sweatsuits over it. Pain had to contrive to hide her sword beneath the sweatshirt, but she managed to do that by loosening her sheath straps a little. The guys had almost identical sweatsuits on them, only a few sizes bigger and without gear and weapons, of course.

Jane closed the door after they all came out and paused in the hallway to wait for Marco and Ryan. A minute passed, and Pain got impatient. She came to their door and knocked, leaning against it with one shoulder.

“Hello-ou!” she drawled in a cartoon voice. “Come out, my black princess! Isn’t your hair done yet? It’s time to go-o-ou!”

She jumped away from the door when it flew open, and Marco showed up at the threshold with a stern face, his frame blocking the light from the room.

“Not funny.”

Instead of a jacket, he wore a leather vest over a black long-sleeve and gear bottoms. Apparently, even at their magical sewing workshop it was too difficult to make such big jackets every time the previous one got ruined, Chad thought. Marco was fully armed, just like the sisters under their sweatshirts, and his short sword with a black hilt protruded from his waist sheath.

Ryan towered behind Marco, following him out of the room. His gear jacket and pants clung closely to his athletic body, making him look like a superhero from comics. He was wearing a black face mask, lowered to his chest now. Just like Jane, he had two swords at his belt, but his were thinner and longer. Ryan looked over the gathering with his watchful blue eyes without a word, as always.

“What’s with the arsenal? You’re only walking us through the tunnels.” Pain raised her eyebrows at Marco.

“We’ve got a job after that. You’re not the only one actually working here, you know,” Marco answered irritably, “Let’s go.”

He didn’t seem to be in his usual good mood. Chad was surprised when Pain didn’t say anything in return and just shrugged, following him to the elevator.

They got down to the first floor, where Peter was already waiting for them with Jerry perched on the security guard’s desk. Peter sat in the desk chair, a big map unfolded before him. The hall was empty at the moment – the Ghosts had left for patrols a few hours ago – and it was very quiet and peaceful down here, in the room full of moonlight and shadows. The guard stood beside his boss, turned away from them and looking through the glass doors. Dave noticed with astonishment that instead of a sword, which he got kind of used to during these few days, he had a heavy-looking axe at his belt. He swallowed hard. That definitely wasn’t a kind of thing he would want to see in operation.

Jerry raised his head when Pain came closer; the others stayed to wait by one of the walls, where the couches were.

“Hi,” Jerry said, his light eyes studying her from top to toe.

“Hi,” she replied flatly.

The guard turned his head and nodded, seeing her. Peter waved for her to come closer and take a look at the map. She leaned against the desk, peering into it obediently.

“Okay, here’s the route that you’re going to take…” he began, tracing his finger along the line.

Back there, Chad came to one of the black leather couches and flung himself onto it, taking off his backpack. He turned and saw Marco harass Dave in a corner a few steps away from him.

“I’m gonna miss you so much, little buddy!” Marco brushed off invisible tears from his face and patted Dave’s shoulder. When Dave only stared at him dubiously, he grabbed him in a deadly embrace with one mighty scarred arm. Chad wondered if it was his imagination or if he really heard Dave’s joints crunch. “How are you gonna do without me!” Marco wailed with fake sobs while Dave pushed him in the chest, trying to break free.

“Let go of me!” he muttered, his face pressed against Marco’s vest. “Chad, help me out here- ”

“Oh, how rude of me to forget the other little bro!” Marco boomed joyfully, dragging Dave with him as he reached Chad’s couch in two long strides.

Chad tried to object, warding him off with his hands, but Marco didn’t even notice. He seized Chad’s shirt – he was only able to gasp in surprise and protest – and hauled him off the couch, pressing him into his chest with the other arm. Chad gagged and choked, unable to breathe suddenly. Marco squeezed them both like plush toys, grinning at Jane while doing it.

“Leave them alone, Marco,” the girl pitied, sitting on another couch across the hall with her arms folded on her chest. “Better pray you see them alive again. And us, too, by the way,” she added with a sour grimace.

Marco put the guys down without looking at them, and they recoiled from him, catching their breaths.

“Right, sister. How could I forget about you in the first place!”

He advanced menacingly on her, and she jumped to her feet and backed to the exit doors.

“Don’t come near me.” She was retreating slowly in the direction of Pain, Peter, and Jerry, but Marco continued stalking her with a sneer. A couple more steps, and she walked into Pain, who stood leaning over the desk.

She whirled with a scowl and shot only one glare to Marco, making him freeze in his spot.

“Sit!” she commanded.

Marco flopped onto the closest couch mechanically, blinking at her with an angelic look. She stared at him for a moment with sizzling angry eyes and then returned her attention to the map.

He turned to Jane and grinned in a devilish way. With a sigh, she returned to the couches and sat as far from him as possible. Dave and Chad watched him cautiously now, leaning against the wall across the hall. Only Ryan didn’t have to bother: he stood in the middle of the hall like a statue, arms folded, only his chest rising and falling slowly.

Peter finished his explaining in ten minutes, and wishing them luck, walked them to the staircase that led to the ground floor. The six of them walked down the stairs and then through a heavy metal door. The ground floor looked like an empty parking lot, lit faintly by a number of lamps along the walls. Marco headed to the farthest corner, where a big opened hatch was visible, glowing yellow in the gray space.

He came up to it, peeked inside, and then skidded down the ladder quickly with the rest of them following him. Chad and Dave were surprised to see not some deserted basement, but a civilized room, which had a desk and a chair. A dark-haired guard sat behind the desk with a car-magazine in his hand. He glanced at them with lazy interest and then got back to his reading.

Marco greeted him with a short nod and reached the far wall. There was a thick wooden door which he opened with a creak, fishing a flashlight out of his breast pocket with the other hand while doing so. Dave pressed into his back, peering into the tunnel over his shoulder: it was dark, and the air there was chilly even at summer. A long black corridor about six feet wide and eight feet high stretched forward, its metal walls disappearing in the darkness where Marco’s flashlight wouldn’t reach. It looked creepy, Dave thought. There was no way he would go through a place like that if he had a choice.

“Curiosity, move along, your nose is about to pierce Times Square any moment now,” Pain muttered. “I wonder if there’s any bigger poking device in the world,” she added, slitting her eyes at him maliciously.

Dave blinked, realizing that Marco was already inside the tunnel, looking at him with expectation. He stepped forward, letting Ryan through the doorway so he could join Marco in the lead.

“Actually- ” Dave started, but Pain pushed him further into the tunnel, closing the heavy door behind them.

“Shut up and walk after Marco and Ryan,” she said flatly, pushing Chad to his side.

All of the Ghosts had flashlights in their hands, and they filled the tunnel space with their yellow light. Now it seemed narrower somehow, with its walls not being lost in the darkness anymore. Dave hurried after Marco, eager to get out of this place as soon as possible. Their guards were striding through it confidently, as if they knew all those turns and corners pretty well. Only a few times Marco asked Pain where to turn; she answered him with short instructions. No one seemed to be inclined to chat, and Dave had so many questions already, but he decided not to break the silence. He was sure Pain would just shut him up again.

He stopped counting turns after ten minutes, assuming it pointless. Aisle after aisle, they passed a countless number of identical mazelike corridors until they reached a dead end with a round manhole in the ceiling. Marco and Ryan stepped back, giving way to the girls.

“Good luck, sisters,” Marco said simply, following Pain with his eyes as she rose in the air and pushed at the cover.

“Thanks,” she dropped without looking down and shoved the lid out of the way. Then she darted back down, snatched Dave’s collar with her hand, and lifted him through the manhole.

Ryan watched her go and then glanced down at Jane.

“Be careful,” he said, his eyes serious. She saluted to him with a crooked smile and followed her sister, carrying Chad with her.

They ended up in a narrow, bad smelling alley between two buildings. There were no streetlights around, and the sisters turned off their flashlights quickly so they wouldn’t bring attention. A dim light was visible where the buildings ended, so they headed for it through almost utter darkness. When they came out, they saw a narrow, deserted street, lined with two rows of abandoned-looking low buildings.

“Walk behind me, no talking, no tripping, no falling, no drawing any attention,” Pain instructed strictly, leading them along the street according to the route. She turned to take a look at Dave and Chad. “Why do you think you’ve got those hoods?”

The guys shot her irritated looks, but raised their hoods, hiding their faces. Although Dave couldn’t keep silent, apparently.

“Why don’t you wear a hood?” he complained in a harsh whisper.

“It blocks my peripheral vision. I guess you don’t wanna catch a knife in your side?” She turned to him, raising her eyebrows. “Thought so. Anyway, just keep your mouths shut whatever happens.”

“But…” Dave started and broke off because Chad shoved him with his shoulder as they turned to an even narrower and dirtier street. This one was lined by ramshackle row houses.

Citizens were sleeping in their homes, and the only sound filling their ears was the systematic grinding of litter under their boots. They were going through the outskirts, making a detour around the thoroughly watched area of the city. The sisters hadn’t noticed any signs of tracking from the roofs, but it didn’t guarantee that Beasts hadn’t spotted them yet.

Nobody knew for sure how much time had passed, an hour or two, but the guys got pretty tired by the time they finally headed to the brightly lit area. They walked for ten more minutes until they reached the water and stopped at a building’s corner.

“See that skyscraper with the red light on top?” Pain said in a low voice, pointing at a dark silhouette of a building in the distance. “Our apartment is on the last floor, and we’re going to take off and cross the water on the maximum height. Be careful, Beasts are lurking everywhere around here, and each one of them has our group photo, printed at Eugene’s office and put into a nice frame.” She took Dave by the sleeve and pulled him sharply to the side so she could see Jane’s face. “Fly as high as you can so you don’t meet anyone in the air. We’re stopping near the roof, then we’re going to look for our window. Peter promised it would be open tonight,” Pain finished and switched her look to Dave after she got an agreeing nod from her sister.

“You… ” They were standing close to each other, so she had to crane her head back to look him in the eyes, but somehow she still managed to make him feel about two inches tall with that look. “In the air, you don’t get hysterical like before.” She arched her eyebrows with meaning. “You don’t scream, don’t thrash, don’t wave your arms and feet, some other parts of your body. Altogether, you don’t give yourself away in any way. Even if you’re dropped occasionally,” she finished with an indifferent shrug and reached up to grab Dave by the back of his shirt with her right hand.

“Hey, I got hands, you know? Or do you have to drag me around like a dog?” he protested and got a dubious look from her.

“At least you won’t slip out of my hands when you have a tantrum again,” she retorted.

“
I won’t!
I’ll be alright, okay? I just need something to hold on to,” he defended himself and stepped closer to her, his look skimming up and down her clothes for something suitable. Finally, he hemmed in a satisfied way, sliding his hand under her hoodie and belt with a smug face, and looked back up at her. “See?”

The look she gave him was pure steel.

“I’m about to strangle you any moment now,” she muttered through her teeth. “And we haven’t even got to the apartment… Fine, whatever.” She grabbed his arm, squeezing it so hard he yelped in surprise. “Let’s go!”

And then she shot upward, merging with the black sky in a blink of an eye. Dave didn’t make a sound this time, and Jane followed them with a bemused look before offering her gloved hand to Chad once again. He gripped it tightly, seizing her belt with the other one, and then they took off after Pain.