Talisman (83 page)

I became increasingly alarmed as I listened to Mr. Riverside bossing around a man
who had just
SHOT ME
.  The next thing I knew, Harper Riverside had entered the study with Karl right on his heels.

Still oblivious to the fact that I was in the room,
let alone hunched over the desk and bleeding all over it, Harper Riverside continued to rant.

“Personally, I think there’s more going on here than meets the eye, so you’d better lawyer-up or get him on the phone now!
” Harper Riverside demanded.  “As far as I’m concerned, the sale’s a
done deal!
  The only way he’ll break it is
OVER MY DEAD BODY!”

After firing off his ultimatum, Harper Riverside finally
noticed me.

“
Shiloh Wallace?
   What on earth are
you
doing here?” he asked, puzzled by my presence.  Mr. Riverside became more than rattled when he noticed the blood pooling on top of the desk.  “Are you…
blee—bleeding?
” he stammered.  Harper Riverside turned to Karl.  “
WHAT HAPPENED TO HER?
”

Karl said nothing.  The next thing I knew, he was pulling something out of his jacket — and I was pretty sure it wasn’t his
cell phone.  As soon as Karl’s hand reappeared, he pointed his gun at Harper Riverside.

“
Wh—What
do you think
you’re doing?
” Harper Riverside gasped.

“
Breaking the
deal
,” Karl insisted with a shrug of his shoulders and a blasé grin, “in the manner that
you
specified.”  Within less than a second, a loud shot rang out and a stream of smoke rolled off the tip of the gun.

Wide-eyed, I watched
Harper Riverside fall to his death on the spot from one fatal shot, right between the eyes.  The appalling image triggered all the same emotions I felt on the night that I’d found Daddy in the bed of his truck.  In spite of all the clashes I’d ever had with the cocky quarterback, my heart instantly ached for Mike.

Karl
burst into laughter and looked at my shoulder.  “And you think you’ve got it bad,” he guffawed.  “At least he went quick.  I can’t say the same about
your father
.”

My feeble
frame trembled with rage as I tried desperately to compel him to let me go. Oddly, none of my attempts worked, which they should have.  After all, he was a stranger who meant absolutely
nothing
to me.

“When Lazarus found out your father held the title to Shiloh Ridge, he figured he could buy h
im off with a couple of million…But when your father refused,
repeatedly
, Lazarus suspected something,” Karl revealed.  “We went out to the mine and offered your father ten million in cold-hard cash and he
still
said ‘
no
’.  Lazarus was tired of wasting time and tried to compel him…
Oh
, you’re
familiar
with that,
aren’t you?
”

My glare intensified
while I listened intently to him rattle off the details about the night of my father’s death.

Karl
continued snidely, “
Sure you are
.  Well, anyway… Your father couldn’t be compelled.  No matter how hard Lazarus tried.”  He shook his head and sat down on the edge of the desk.  “That is, until we discovered
why
,” Karl added as he pulled my father’s diamond necklace out from underneath his shirt.

My e
yes exploded with fury.  I wanted to string the cold-hearted bastard up with it.  My fists clinched as a tear rolled down my cheek.  I could feel the sky outside churning, and the thunder’s formidable roar mimicked my emotions.

“That infuriated Lazarus. 
He knew the diamond was protecting his mind…
So
he poisoned him
.  Your father left him with no other choice.”  Karl shuddered and added, “That powder from his lapis lazuli is some wicked stuff. 
You’ll see
.  Lazarus has concocted a special brew just for you. I think it’s fitting you leave this earth…the same way your
daddy
did.”

I knew I was weak, and my mobility wa
s limited, but as soon at that Son-of-a-Bitch said “daddy”, every ounce of what little energy remained in me started to swell.   It was evident that the storm brewing in the sky outside was fueling my willpower.  Desperately, I attempted to summon a bolt of lightning straight through the roof.  It shook the house when it hit, and a loud
“boom”
pounded the room.  Karl jumped, but he was only startled by the sound.  The lightning hadn’t penetrated the house.  I tried it again, and again, feeling the surge of power taking a toll on my frail body. 
Nothing!
  Every attempt failed.  No matter how hard I tried!  I couldn’t understand why the lightning wouldn’t break through the daggone roof!

Karl laughed.  “I see why Lazarus wants that wand so bad.  You’re a
lively
little thing,” he remarked and then yanked me out of the chair.

Karl
’s face hardened into a scowl right before he backhanded me.  I felt every bit of it, too.  He used enough force to send my weakened body sideways, causing me to smash down hard onto the top of the desk.  Dazed, I caught a glimpse of a lamp that had been accidentally turned on when I’d knocked it onto the floor.  Then it hit me.

The coppe
r roof…It’s drawing the lightning and carrying the electricity away
.  As I focused on the illuminated light lying on the floor, suddenly a “bulb” turned on of my own.

Karl jerked me up
by my hair.  “Got any other tricks up your sleeve? 
Huh?
” he growled into my ear.  Then he slammed my face down against the hard mahogany desktop and raised his gun.  “I think I’d better plug you with a few more bullets before we leave to meet Lazarus…
just to be safe
.”

Without delay, I mustered all of my remaining energy and summoned one more bolt.  However this time, I concentrated on the electrical meter located on the side of the house. 
As soon as the bolt struck my mental target, all the lights in the room intensified and flickered.  I quickly extended my arm towards the illuminated light on the floor.  The lightning jumped from the lamp and landed in my eager hand. Swiftly, I grabbed Karl and shoved all the bolt’s voltage into his chest.  The force of the blast blew him straight across the room and right through the side of the brick house.  A cloud of dust was all that was left in the now, dimly lit room.  I’d blown the power.  The only light streaming into the study was from the hole in the side of the house, left by Karl.  I was extremely weak, but safe —
for now
.

I reached down to close Mr. Riverside’s eyes on my way out, respectfully.  Karl was lying on the ground outside
, reeking of burnt flesh.  I stared at the charred hole in his chest while I thought about how I’d struggled with the notion of taking someone’s life.  The idea that being a Talisman and knowing the Wand of Adamas was a weapon I’d be forced to use would ultimately turn me into a killer.  But at that moment, I realized that the gift I was given didn’t make me a killer —
they did
.  Karl, Lazarus, whomever wanted me dead, or coveted the wand.  Something that I felt was more a part of who I was than anything I’d ever known before.  I waited for the inevitable pang of guilt to strike like it always would, causing my nerves to twinge restlessly, my head to cloud, and my heart to weigh me down.  But to my surprise and sheer relief…it
never
came. As I gazed into Karl’s lifeless eyes, I realized — without a shadow of doubt in my mind —
Yeah, I can do this
.

I reached down and snatched my father’s diamond pendant
off his neck.  A small tear formed in my eye as I held it up to the sun.  I looked back down at the man on the ground.  Still extremely pissed, I took my foot and kicked him in his face.  I struggled to regain my footing.  I was really too weak to have done it, but I just
couldn’t resist
.  I tucked my father’s necklace securely in the pocket of my jacket as I staggered towards the dreaded iron fence.

Breaking in was a heck
of a lot easier than breaking out of the Riverside estate.  The iron bullet lodged in my shoulder had taken a gruesome toll on my body.  My exit was far less graceful than my entry.  Once I’d managed to get back over the daggone thing, I rose to my feet thinking,
Somehow I have to get back to the cave.  Tanner’s going to be sooo PISSED!

My speed was markedly slower
, and I struggled every step of the way.  Any attempt to rally some extra strength was met with more harrowing pain.  My endurance was fading with every passing second.  I had to stop several times to curb some of my exhaustion.  By the time I’d reached downtown Welch, I knew there wasn’t any way I could make it back to the cave in my present condition or at my current pace.  With two supernatural stalkers hunting me, I had to find some place to hide so I could contact Tanner and hopefully find something to use to dig out the bullet.  I didn’t know which one I was dreading more — removing it or
calling him
.

As I staggered
down Welch’s main street, I pulled the hood of my jacket over my head for some much-needed concealment.  I walked close to the buildings, ready to dart inside one of them if I happened to run into Lazarus or Ferrol.  With my head aimed at my feet, I used my peripheral vision to scan the street for any approaching threats.  Just as I lifted my head to check my location at the corner of McDowell and Wyoming Street, I ran into someone (injured shoulder first, of course) coming out of Rosemary’s Market & Pantry.

I
staggered backward and held my breath, trying to muzzle my scream from the intense shooting pain I’d received from the bump.  I secured the hood of my jacket and resumed my pace, focusing only on the ground in front of me.  Whomever I’d run into, the contents of their two grocery bags now littered the sidewalk.  I didn’t care about manners — not today, not right now — so I kept on walking.

“
Excuse me!
  How freakin’ rude!” a female called out.

The voice stopped me cold.  I would
know that bitchy tone anywhere. 
Katie
.  I turned around and knelt beside her, where she was gathering up her groceries from off the ground.

“Oh, don’t bother
NOW!  I’ve got it!
” Katie snapped, not even looking my way.  As soon as I reached over and placed a can of soup in one of the bags, she spotted my left hand, the one that donned the golden topaz ring.  Katie stared at my hand for a second and then dropped the groceries she was bagging.

“SHI!”
Katie cried out, just before she grabbed me.  Considering my injury, the hug was really too damn tight, but she wasn’t about to let go.

“
I’m so sorry, Shi!
  I shouldn’t have been so pissy about you not calling me this week.  I was a real bitch yesterday! I just missed my best friend.  I wanted to be there for you, and you wouldn’t let me! 
PLEASE
forgive me!
  You have to!”
Katie pleaded as she rocked me back and forth.

I was in so much pain from her pressing on my shoulder
that I couldn’t even speak.  It had taken my breath away.

Katie pulled away from me. 
“Shi? 
Shi?
What’s wrong?”  She looked curiously at the horrible expression on my face and then noticed me staring at her shirt.  She glanced down to find blood all over the right side of her pink blouse.  She gasped after realizing that it was coming from my shoulder.

“Shi, what happened to you?
!?” Katie screamed out.  “SHIT! You’re
bleeding!
”  She quickly covered her mouth to contain her gags.

I shushed her.  “Katie…
I need
help
.  I have to get out of here.”

Katie whipped
out her cell phone.  “You need an ambulance.”

I knocked the phone out of her hand.
  “NO!” I insisted.

Katie snatched up her phone.  “But you need
a doctor!”
she urged.

I put my hand over her cell to block h
er call.  “Are your parents…at the shop?” I asked, trying to talk through my pain.

“No,” Katie replied.
  “They went to Bluefield.  They won’t be back until around seven or eight tonight. 
Why?
”

“I need
to lie down.  Katie, just help me there. 
Please
don’t call an ambulance…
Please
…
Just trust me
,” I begged.

Katie was wrestling with what she should do —
Do what I asked or ignore my request
.  She let out a disgusted grunt as she threw her phone back in her purse.