Heroes of Falledge Book One: Black Hellebore (21 page)

Dr. Richards sneered. "The skull crushing part didn't convince you of that detail?"

Arrogant prick. Nicholas clenched his fists. He wanted to be anywhere else but here, at the doc's headquarters, with Julianna -- how had she managed to convince him to stay here? Oh yeah, because most likely, Skull Krusher would not relent until his target was dead, and his target sat in front of Nicholas.

At least, Nicholas hoped that was the case -- that the skeleton would come after Dr. Richards. Then he could crush Skull Krusher's skull.

"Anything else I should know?" Nicholas asked as the front door swung open.

As one, they looked over to see two men. Both were familiar to Nicholas, and he groaned inwardly when he recognized them as the goons who had blindfolded him on his visit to their boss.

"What do you want?" he growled.

They had been staring at the doctor and shifted to face him. "Stay out of this," the taller one said.

The more muscular one piped up, "We're not here for you."

Nicholas stepped forward. Dr. Richards stood behind him. "What do you want with him?"

"Doesn't concern you, so stay out of it," Height said.

Muscles pulled out a gun and aimed it at Nicholas' head. "Get out the way."

Nicholas cracked his neck both ways. He still didn't feel one hundred percent yet, but he was more than capable of taking care of these punks.

He held out his hands in a defenseless manner and walked forward.

Muscles gestured with his gun for Nicholas to move to the side. Instead, Nicholas yanked Muscles' gun away and pointed it at Height, who was now pointing his gun at the doctor.

Nicholas swept Muscles' legs out from under him and super-sped to Height's side. He slammed the gun on Height's temple. He collapsed.

By this time, Muscles climbed to his feet. He looked from Nicholas to the doctor, as if figuring what to do, and dove toward Richards. Nicholas reached the doctor first and found just enough time to brace his feet before Muscles shoved his body weight into Nicholas' gut.

Nicholas wrapped his arms around Muscles neck, lifted him, and threw him. Toward Julianna's desk. Crap.

Nicholas plucked him out of midair and elbowed the back of his head on his way to the ground. Both goons now lay unconscious.

He clapped imaginary dust from his hands and grinned at the doctor, whose jaw was hanging open.

"You're..."

"Incredible, I know. Why is the mob after you?"

The doctor shook his head, his mouth still open. "How did you... What are you?"

"Just your bodyguard, remember?" Nicholas walked back to Julianna's desk, found two handcuffs, and was securing the guys when she walked in. He raced over to her. "How did it go?" One look at her face and his heart sank. "What happened?"

She pressed a hand to his chest and marched past him. "Doctor Richards, I'm sorry..."

"The headquarters is destroyed. I'm not surprised."

"Vandalized, but still standing."

"So he got away then? I figured you and your people would be incompetent."

She stomped forward, hesitated by the unmoving bodies, and glanced back at Nicholas, who grinned sheepishly. Instead of looking happier, she looked even more despondent. "No, I mean, yes, he did get away, but that's not what I came here to tell you."

"Out with it. I'm getting hungry."

She breathed in deeply through her nose and exhaled loudly. "Doctor Richards, I'm sorry to inform you that your wife was murdered," she said in a rush.

He blinked a few times before sitting down in the chair he had slept in earlier. "Fiona? Dead? Did he do it?"

"I think so." Doubt and confusion filled her tone.

"Fiona..." He wiped his palms on his suit, stood, and walked toward the bathroom. "Excuse me..."

After the door closed behind him, Julianna remarked, "Didn't think he cared about anyone but himself."

"Still not sure he does. He didn't cry."

"Did you cry when you learned about Justina?" she asked quietly.

He walked over to her and entwined their fingers. "Not at first. You're right, crying doesn't measure grief. But there's a look in your eye, when you can't get over someone..." He was fumbling with his words, unable to quite capture the sentiment he was trying to express. "Forget it. I'm just talking nonsense."

"No, I know what you mean. You had that look when you came here." She closed the distance between them until her face came within a few inches of his.

It pained him to see the despair in her eyes. "Is it still there?"

Her eyes moved back and forth, examining his. After a long moment, she said, "No," in a whisper, as if afraid to say it.

"I see it in your eyes. For Falledge."

She winced, pulling back, and he regretted his words. "Help me get these guys into a holding cell before they wake up."

He sighed but complied, knowing it was better to do as she asked. At least for now.

*****

Julianna wished she had never climbed out of bed this morning. After securing the mobsters, Nick had checked the bathroom. The doctor had vanished. If he wanted to risk his life when Lewis was out there after him, and the mob, too, that was on him, not her.

Her head swam with all the information she and Nick just shared with each other. Lewis was the white figure she had seen, some kind of mutant skeleton with super strength.

"So Big Don wants the doc dead because he fired his son." Nick rubbed his scruffy chin.

"Yep."

"Wow, that guy knows what to do to top hit lists."

"You can say that again." It was almost ten at night now. Paradoxically, Julianna was too wired to even think about sleep, and yet her muscles and body craved it. "It's getting late. Are you going to head out tonight?"

"As the Black Hellebore? I'm thinking about it." Nick leaned back, his gaze on her, a smile curling his lips. She glanced away, embarrassed. This whole thing was getting ridiculous.

"Maybe you should..."

"Kiss you?" He leaned forward.

She shifted back into her seat so her spine became rigid against it. "Find Doctor Richards. If both Skull Krusher and the mob are after him, he needs protection."

"Why should we care? The guy's a jerk."

She gaped at him. "We're supposed to be the good guys, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, fight the good fight and all that." He rolled his eyes and looked away.

"Nick, I need to know if I can trust you, if I can count on you." She touched his knees.

"If you want me to track him down, I will. I'll even keep him alive. Just don't know why you want me to, that's all."

"Maybe he'll be able to figure out a way to transform Skull Krusher back into Lewis, or a way to kill him."

"So you aren't against killing now?"

"Not in this instance."

His eyes darkened for a second, and an uneasy silence enveloped the room. A few minutes later, Nick grabbed another slice of pizza. A drop of grease fell onto his plate, and she winced. Her diet was so poor lately. She had to start taking better care of herself.

Even the simple act of lifting and lowering a pizza slice made his muscles bulge. He ate heartily, enjoying himself, as if in his own little world where everything was safe. If only she could join him. Of course he felt safe, he had superpowers.

"You aren't completely super, are you?" she asked.

He popped the last bit of crust into his mouth. "Whatcha mean?" he asked around it.

"You disappeared for a week."

"To rest. Didn't Gavina tell you?"

She shook her head. "I know you. You wouldn't listen to me if I told you to cool it. There's something more... Oh my God."

"Julianna, don't freak out--"

"You'll die if you overdo it. Won't you? Won't you!" Her voice rose to a high-pitched shrill.

"I didn't want you to worry--"

"You think I'll only worry about you if I thought you might die? Nick, you were going after guys with guns and--"

"I guess now would be a bad time to tell you that the Big Don was trying to recruit me."

She thought her eyes were going to jump out of their sockets. "Excuse me?"

"Wants me to kill that blasted beast. Which I plan on doing eventually."

"Oh... I had forgotten about that." A lie. She still had nightmares about the feline monster.

"Listen, I don't think you should be alone tonight."

"Because I'm a woman who has no means to protect herself, or a town to protect, or know how to use a gun. Right. I was just fine before you came back to Falledge, Nick. In fact, the whole town was just fine. Everything went to hell after you returned."

"Hey, all of this," he waved his hands around, "isn't
my
doing. It's not fair to pin the blame on me."

"Look, if you want to run around my city and pretend to be one of the good guys, then you are actually going to be one of the good guys, and you're going to do what I say."

"Or else?"

"Or else I'll lock you up."

He stood, walked around the table, and leaned toward her, his hands on her thighs. "Your bars can't hold me."

His lips were inches from hers, so close she could practically feel them. It would be so easy to give in, so tempting to, and she even closed her eyes for a second. Then she pressed her hand to his chest and pushed him away. "Do we have a deal?"

He stood tall, his hazel eyes dark and glittering with fury. "I'll babysit the doc, fine, but I don't take orders from you."

Just like that, he was gone.

Julianna closed her eyes and sighed. What had she done? Pushing him away had seemed like a good idea. A working relationship had seemed ideal. Slowly she was beginning to realize that she couldn't do everything alone, not with work, not with her life. It wasn't that she couldn't take being alone anymore. She liked who she was when she was around Nick. Not when one or the other was trying to push them apart. When they lowered their guard and were just themselves, then they were both happy.

Like a couple in love, she realized. If she didn't stop pushing him away soon, he might stop coming back.

She stood and picked up the pizza box to throw it away. "I love you, Nick," she said, wishing she had the courage to tell him so.

A faint gust of wind blew about her, and she touched her right cheek. It was wet, as if someone had just kissed it.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Alan Richards climbed out of the police station's bathroom window. With his options narrowing by the second, he figured he had only a matter of time before the mob went after him again. Still, he'd hoped to be able to start selling his new product soon and buy Big Don's forgiveness.

So much for that.

He climbed into his car and drove to his headquarters, taking the long route to avoid seeing his house. Fiona. A beautiful woman. Any man would have been lucky to have her, but he had taken her for granted, as he had every aspect in his life. All that had ever mattered to him were numbers and formulas and chemicals. He tried to love her in his own way, but he knew it hadn't been enough for her. To think she died because of him made the loss even more tragic. He had abandoned her long before her death.

He pulled into his parking spot. It was a major risk to return here, with the police gone, but he hurried to the basement and opened the vault. Here was the only place he kept all of his secret formulas. He suspected his life would come to an end soon, and he would not have his life's work wasted.

He trusted only one person with this information.

An hour later, he arrived at Hunter Walter's house, having taken a rather indirect route in case anyone followed him. He resisted the urge to look over his shoulder as he jogged to the front door. Before he could knock, it opened, and a surprised Hunter greeted him. "Doctor Richards, how are--"

Alan pushed the door open farther and walked inside. "Can we talk?"

Hunter nodded. "Follow me. My sister and her kids are here. They came over for dinner."

A young girl ran by, followed by an even younger boy, both screaming.

A wave of relief washed over Alan. At least he and Fiona had had the sense to not start a family. They would have been motherless.

Probably orphaned, he thought sourly.

Hunter ushered him into the garage. "No one should bother us in here. What's going on? If you don't mind my saying so, you look like hell."

Alan blinked. Normally Hunter was never so forward. "I've made a lot of choices in my life, a lot of bad decisions, and they're finally coming back to haunt me." He thrust the red folder into Hunter's hand.

"I don't understand..."

"You will. When the time is right, you will." Alan stalked toward the garage door, opened it, and left without a backward glance, fearing this would be the last conversation he had with his brightest scientist. Hunter was just like him -- genius, driven, willing to sacrifice everything. He, of all people, deserved to have the torch passed on to him.

*****

It didn't take Nicholas long to track down the doctor. His super nose helped greatly, although it did make him feel like a dog. Not that he minded. Julianna might not be able to say it to his face yet, but she had finally admitted to herself how she felt about him. He'd overheard it. That was almost good enough for him.

The doc was filling up his car with gas at the pump where Nicholas had first spotted Julianna. As Dr. Richards climbed inside, Nicholas buckled himself into the passenger seat.

"Didn't think you could leave me that easily, did you?"

The doctor gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles white. "Get out."

"Where we going?"

"I said--"

"Or should I ask where are you running away to?"

"Look, I don't want any trouble, but..." The doc glanced over and made a face. "What are you wearing?"

Nicholas adjusted his mask. "Your bodyguard has a name." He grinned recklessly. "Black Hellebore."

"Don't expect me to call you that."

Shrugging, he twisted around to see that the back seat was covered with files and boxes. "Gonna take all your research to a new city?"