The Gift of Fury (21 page)

As I make my way over to the bar, I can understand her confusion and concern. Up close, the guy looks less than wholesome. He gives me the creeps and I don’t know a thing about him. It’s in his eyes and the way he carries himself. A kind of desperation that hinted at missed opportunities. He was at the end of his rope.

“
Be careful.
”

I nod, stopping short of him when I notice Hagan approaching. Somehow the big man must have known this guy was here. It’s more than I gave him credit for. I know he wants to handle this and that’s fine by me. This is no longer my problem. Still, I won’t run out on Wendy till I talk to her. It gives me the chance to watch how Hagan handles the situation. I admit I am curious about him. Kara seems to know or recognize him but she hasn’t told me anything about him. This will be a good time to learn a little more about him, just in case.

What little I can hear from the conversation is exactly what I expect.

“I don’t want any trouble,” the stalker says. Even if I didn’t know what was going on, I wouldn’t have believed him. He was up to something and trying to hide it. Hagan doesn’t buy it either. He places down enough money to cover the man’s drink and a tip for Wendy.

“You need to leave now.”

Hagan’s tone makes it clear this is not a request. It is an order and failure to comply will have dire consequences. The other man looks first to Wendy then to the patrons around him for support as he tries to talk his way out of this. I edge a little closer, placing myself next to Wendy though the bar still separates us. The motion isn’t lost on Hagan but he doesn’t take his gaze off of the man in front of him. Kara’s warning comes as a surprise.

“
He’s using some sort of magic item.
”

I don’t see or feel anything. That comes as no surprise. For a brief moment, I think Hagan is being too rough on the guy. He just wants to talk to Wendy. After all, it’s a free country. I’m probably not the only one who thinks so. The moment passes quickly and Kara breathes a sigh of relief. The fog clears as I realize what has happened.

“What the hell?”

I’m not the only one asking that question. Hagan must have felt something. Even though the magic is strong enough to bend the mind and will, there are no flashy effects to dilute its power. No wasted energy on special effects. Kara is quick to fill in the blanks for me.

“
You reflected the magic he was using against Wendy and Hagan.
”

“
I did what?
”

I don’t have time to ask for further clarification. Hagan is no dummy and he obviously has some experience with the supernatural, maybe more than me. His fist rockets forward into the creep’s face. So much for the art of conversation. Fortunately, violence is a universal language and Hagan appears to be well versed in its subtleties. I might have handled things differently but I’m not about to get in the way. I let Hagan do his job. He is the bouncer here. Anyway, it’s not smart to get involved in a bar fight even when you’re on the same side as the bouncer.

From the reaction of the bartenders, it’s not the first time a fight has happened here. They back away from the bar and out of reach of any patrons while one picks up a phone probably to call the police. The smarter patrons head for the door. I can understand their sentiment. Mistakes can happen and things can escalate out of control. Usually, if a bouncer has to lay his hands on someone, they would be escorted out and that would be that. This time things deviate from the script. All hell starts to break loose. Someone, maybe a friend of the guy throws a punch at Hagan. Another man reaches into his pocket for something. With a sick feeling, I realize the little talent Kara said I had just made this situation a lot uglier than it had to be. The magic had to go somewhere when I reflected it. In this case, it hit the people standing around me.

No other fight on this scale is as dangerous as a bar fight. We’re not talking about a scuffle where two patrons mix it up or a situation where a bouncer has to forcibly escort someone outside. It’s not the comedic sort of brawl you see on the old westerns. No, this is the ugly violent reality where everyone around you is a potential enemy in a room filled with all manner of weapons. I think about getting the hell out of there but I am partly to blame for this. I spare a quick glance at Hagan before moving to back him up. I pray the man who reached into his pocket doesn’t have a knife or a gun. For what it’s worth, my prayers are answered. Brass knuckles adorn his right hand. Plenty of people have died from blunt force trauma and I’m not confident of beating him in a head to head fight so I let him slip past me.

Hitting a man from behind is not particularly nice or heroic. It does fit with my “Keep Count Out of the Hospital” plan. It fits as well as the roll of quarters that happen to find their way into my hand. The blow lands heavily. My victim stumbles and falls to the sawdust covered floor. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t kick a man while he is down. It isn’t because of any misguided sense of honor. When one foot leaves the ground, it’s easier to fall or be tripped. I could take the high road and be a better man but I’ve always liked to give rather than receive. Anything this guy might want to give me after my sneak attack, I don’t want. A swift kick removes him and the brass knuckles from my growing list of things to worry about as more and more people get involved in the fight.

I put my back to the bar and stand by Hagan’s side. The lunatic is actually smiling amid this carnage. It’s like he is having the time of his life. Again, I have the image of a warrior from a bygone era ready to cut a swathe of destruction across a bloody battlefield. This time it is from Kara. I force it out of my mind and focus on the task at hand. I do what I can and play Gray Mouser to his Fafhrd. Though I lack the size, brute force and smash mouth style with which Hagan approaches this fiasco, I make up for it in skill and the willingness to look for the things he might miss. This arrangement makes life easier for Hagan, allowing him to deal with his numerous admirers. I lose track of time. My lungs are burning. I am not hurt or wounded. I don’t have a mark on me though my head begins to hurt. It takes me seconds to realize the pain isn’t from a blow I failed to dodge. It is coming from Kara screaming into my mind. Whatever she wants, it better be important.

“WHAT?” I yell.

Hagan doesn’t reply though he gives me a strange look. Kara reply is heated causing me to stop in my tracks. The big man saves me from getting my head bashed in by the guy I was fighting.

“
STOP HIM AND YOU STOP THIS!!
”

I wince as the image of the guy who started this fills my mind. Why the hell didn’t I think of that? I totally forgot about him and Kara when things escalated. I was so caught up in the moment I stopped thinking. That’s not good. If I’m going to be a paranormal investigator, I need to do better. As long as he’s in the picture, there is no way for us to win, not against these odds. I also realize no one is attacking me. Come to think of it, no one has attacked me unless I attacked them first. That and Hagan’s help has gone a long way towards keeping me in one piece.

I take a chance and shift my attention away from the fight. I find what and who I am looking for as a plan forms. He is busy mumbling to himself and concentrating on something in his hand. I wait for the right moment and Hagan gives it to me. He drops a biker wielding a length of chain, temporarily making a hole in the crowd pressing around us. I take it, ducking past Hagan and out of the fight. I ignore the stream of obscenities Hagan tosses my way. He probably thinks I am cutting and running. Hopefully, so does everyone else. No one stops me. I get out the door but I don’t stop running. I turn the corner and come in through the side door. It takes safer this way despite the extra time it takes me to get there. I don’t have to fight through a wall of people to get to him. It also has the benefit of surprise. Who know what other tricks he might have up his sleeve? The blow I deliver to the side of his head isn’t enough to knock him out. It does cause my quarters to go scattering about the bar as the roll finally comes apart in my hand. It does have the desired effect. His hold on the crowd breaks and they lose their willingness to fight.

I reach down and pry the pendant from his fingers while Hagan issues an ultimatum. The words carry though he doesn’t shout or scream.

“Anyone who doesn’t want a free trip to the hospital best leave now.”

To emphasis his words, Hagan picks up the length of chain one of his attackers tried to use on him with no success. It doesn’t take long for the bar to clear out. Those who were hurt are dragged out by friends or tossed out by Hagan. During which time I keep an eye on the guy.

“
He doesn’t have anything else.
”

I nod. Good but now there is a bigger problem. What do I do with this guy? All my thoughts and concerns from earlier come back to haunt me. It’s not like I can have him arrested or anything. He hasn’t done anything the police will believe. As it stands, he can have me arrested for assault. After the last person leaves, Hagan offers a suggestion. “Kill him.”

Is he kidding me? I look up and quickly decide he is serious. I can’t believe this. This isn’t the dark ages. You just don’t execute people at the drop of the hat and that’s exactly what this would be. If it was self-defense, I would have less of an issue especially if it was me being defended but this is murder. I look past him to the bartenders. All of them have disappeared except for Wendy. She stands there with her mouth hanging open in shock. She doesn’t believe this either.

Kara murmurs “
You can’t let him walk. If you do, he will come for you.
”

I frown. There is that. He’s afraid right now but fear goes hand in hand with hatred. Given a chance, he’ll try to repay me and Hagan back for this. It is the look he gives Wendy that makes me shudder. No, we can’t let him walk but there has to be another way.

“If you’re squeamish, take off and I’ll handle it.”

Can I let him kill this guy? Yes but I’m not going to. One of the most precious things we have is life. Yeah, I know you’ve heard it a thousand times. I’m not talking about his life. I could care less if he had some sort of fatal accident. After all the trouble he has caused, he deserves it. No, I’m talking about mine. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in jail. Even if we were to get away with it, what would that do to me? I’m not interested in finding out. This loser isn’t worth it. Killing is definitely something I’m not going to contemplate unless there are no other options.

“
There is another way,”
Kara says.

“Wait,” I say out loud while I direct the rest of my thoughts to Kara. “
What?
”

“
You can use the pendant to make him forget about all of this.
”

I smile, seeing where Kara is going with this. I hadn’t thought of that. Could it work? “
You mean I can erase his memory?
”

“
Yes. The magic of the pendant allows the holder to alter a person’s mind. You saw how it influenced everyone here.
”

I nod, turning back to Hagan and Wendy.

“This little snake is a mechanic, not a sorcerer. All his magic is from this little trinket, I pried out of his hands.”

Hagan believes me but it doesn’t change anything in his mind. “What’s to stop him from getting another one or something worse?”

I hold up the pendant to Hagan. “This. If he forgets about Wendy, magic and us, then the problem is solved.”

Wendy looks relieved. She loses that deer in the headlights look while Hagan seems satisfied. “Can you do it?”

“Yes and it’s a better than killing him.”

Hagan doesn’t agree with me but he doesn’t argue the point. I make a mental note to never get on this guy’s bad side while Kara guides me through what I need to do. It’s not easy. I take it slow and easy, keeping it simple.

“
That will do it. He will forget all about Wendy and magic as well as you and Hagan.
”

I nod. As an afterthought, I add a few suggestions of my own with the last of the pendant’s power. This guy needs help, so I tell him to go get some. Who knows? He might turn out the better for it. I also tell him to give a little to charity each year. Someone has to do it. It might as well be him. I would do it but I’m a little too selfish and cynical for that sort of thing.

It was a pretty nice piece of work for my first case.

***

“What about it?” I ask.

Hagan seems about to say something when someone bangs on the door to the apartment. It’s the sort of banging designed to get your attention, the kind that serves as a warning and prelude of things to come. Someone wants inside and they aren’t going to take no for an answer. We’re all on our feet in an instant. Someone outside yells “Open up! This is the police!”

Chapter Twenty Five

It’s always bad when the police are banging on your door. At that point, you don’t have a lot of options unless you’ve made extensive plans for just this sort of emergency. My friends react instinctively. They each pick the option that seems most logical to them. In this situation, all of their responses are correct and all of them are wrong.

Jennifer yells “Let me handle this” as she rushes into the room from the kitchen. It would be smart to follow her lead. As a DIA agent, she can smooth things over with the police. The downside is the time. While Jennifer straightens things out, the police would take everyone into custody. It would take her time to get us released, time we don’t have. The police’s arrival is no accident or coincidence. They were sent here either by Meredith or Fitzgerald. That means any delay works to their benefit and not ours.

Hagan’s reaction promises to save us a lot of time. His sword clears leather. He is ready to fight. Violence is something Hagan excels at. I’m confident in his abilities to take down whoever is on the other side of the door. Of course, fighting the police is never a good idea. It causes more problems than its worth. Even if you’re justified in defending yourself, you still have to answer for doing so. It’s not an option. These guys don’t deserve to be cut down by Hagan for doing their job.