Karma Patrol (35 page)

“And kidnapping, yeah,” he agreed. “I really thought that once Karma Division knew the shooter was a rogue prophet, they would be smart enough to tell you to turn off your locator, but apparently it didn’t occur to anyone. It’s strange to me that people who deal with Fate and Destiny on a daily basis can be so short-sighted.”

She shook her head, refusing to acknowledge the part she’d unwittingly played in the shootings by giving him such an easy target. “We trust our own,” she said instead, and he laughed.

“How’s that working out for you?” he taunted. “You walked straight into every trap I set for you, and no one from Destiny Division even came close to stopping me. Honestly, I thought it would be a lot harder to stop you from fulfilling your Destiny. You’ve been completely clueless the entire time, and it’s like my colleagues aren’t even trying. I’m disappointed in all of you, really.”

“What’s so bad about me becoming one of the Powers?” she asked, genuinely curious why he felt it would be such a disastrous outcome that it was worth killing a dozen people to keep her from doing it. “Someone has to do the job. If they picked me for it, at least I would do everything I could to make things run smoothly.”

“Of course you would, Jade. Your dedication to your work is already legendary, and you’ve only been an enforcer for a few years. That’s what they want: people who are willing to do whatever it takes to enforce the status quo. But haven’t you ever wondered
why
we’re supposed to enforce the status quo?”

That was one of the dumbest questions Jade had ever heard. “There has to be balance,” she informed him. It was something she’d learned as a child and practiced in her daily life ever since. “The good has to be rewarded and the bad has to be punished.”

“Or what?”

“Or chaos.” That was the greatest fear of every karmic account enforcer, the worst-case scenario that kept people like Jade up at night.

“What’s so bad about chaos?” he persisted, ignoring her incredulous expression. “What would be so bad about letting people decide on rewards and punishments for themselves, as a society, rather than having us do it behind their backs? We treat the Normals like children who can’t be trusted to make their own choices. Destiny Division treats its prophets the same way. Do you think I wanted any of this? Do you think any of us want to be driven insane to serve someone else’s agenda?”

“We treat Normals that way because they
are
children who can’t be trusted to make their own choices,” Jade snapped, ignoring what he’d said about Destiny Division. She couldn’t afford to start feeling sympathy for him, not while he was holding her at gunpoint and threatening her soulmate’s life. “Have you looked around this city recently? Have you seen the things people do when they think no one is looking, when they think they’re going to get away with it? For that matter, did you happen to look at yourself while you were on that killing spree? You murdered a dozen people because you knew you wouldn’t have to face any consequences. Did you think about what would happen to their families? To their friends? To all of the other people in the world whose lives they were supposed to touch before they died?”

“And what would have happened to those people if you’d become one of the Powers, Jade? You’re so obsessed with balance, with rewards and consequences. You would have done your best to turn them into babies, to micromanage their lives until free will became just an illusion. The Powers kill off the ones who are likely to make trouble, did you know that? That’s what the Diseases and Death Subdivision is for. I know you think they’ve got some super-secret Fate mandate that somehow makes it okay for them to kill children, but you’re wrong. Whenever there are children born who have a destiny that will eventually bring them into conflict with the Grand Plan, or an adult starts making free will choices that endanger something Destiny Division wants, DDS steps in and makes sure that cancer or pneumonia or the black plague solves the problem for them. Illness is their favorite way to thin the herd.”

Jade felt numb. She’d known that Destiny Division would kill to protect the Grand Plan, but she’d thought it was just a few isolated events, times when there was no other solution. If he was telling the truth, then the scale of the killings was horrific.

At least now she knew who her mother should have been mad at all of these years, she realized, thinking of the endless fights between her parents about patients dying before their time. The Powers had decided those people were too dangerous to leave alive.

“Without the Powers at the helm, steering the entire world into stagnation, at least the Normals will have a chance to become greater than you would have let them be. They’ll have the chance to make their own destinies, to succeed or fail without the crippling shackles of the Fate Divisions pulling them down.”

“If you think stopping me from becoming one of the Powers would change the world for the better, then why go to all of this trouble?” she asked, suddenly tired. “Why kill Shannon and the others? Why not just kill me first and be done with it?”

“Because there are so many of you, Jade. If I’d killed you, they would have just chosen another good little karma soldier to put in your place. Hell, the good little karma soldiers would be lining up for the job, especially considering the perks of having that special golden aura.”

“What?” She was lost again. “The golden aura—all it means is that you have a soulmate.”

“Is that what they’re telling the kids these days? Silly Jade. You got a soulmate for the same reason so many people with important destinies get one. Of course they give their little pet a beloved little pet of your own. It makes you happier and more dedicated to the cause. Wouldn’t you do anything for Fate now that it’s given you your very own soulmate to play with? Not to mention that it also gives them an easy way to control you if you start to cause trouble. Look at how easy it was for me to use him against you. They’ll do exactly the same thing if you ever step out of line.”

“You’re lying,” she said, but she couldn’t quite hide the uncertainty in her voice, and he smiled again.

“I’ll admit I had second thoughts about targeting you instead of one of the other candidates in Manhattan, mainly because it took them so
long
to give you your handsome prize. Most of the candidates get their soulmates early in life, but you weren’t supposed to meet yours for another six months. You’re welcome, by the way; I did the first shooting practically on his doorstep to make sure he would be involved in the investigation. That way, I knew you would meet him early. The only people who have to wait as long as you have for their soulmates are the true believers, the candidates that the Powers don’t expect will make any trouble. I would’ve preferred to target a troublemaker, but based on Destiny Division odds ratios, you’re the candidate most likely to make it into a position of Power.”

Her heart was pounding in her chest, a desperate rhythm that intensified every time she thought about the possibility that what he was saying was true. Were soulmates really so rare because they were only given to the people Fate needed to keep on a short leash? Had Luke only been given to her in order to use him against her if she made trouble?

“So that’s why you were targeting him,” she said finally, pushing her worries into the far corner of her mind. She could agonize over soulmates and destiny and the ethics of the Powers later, assuming she survived that long. “Because you thought shooting my soulmate was the fastest way to get my attention after I didn’t clue into your brilliant plan from the random shootings alone. I still don’t understand why you killed Shannon, though. Didn’t you think it might hurt your cause to murder my best friend?”

“I had no intention of killing Shannon,” he replied, and his expression was a mix of apology and delight. “That’s the beauty of chaos, Jade. Free will killed Shannon. She made a choice, and Destiny and Fate and Karma just sat there and watched it happen because they were powerless to stop it. She was trying to keep me from killing your soulmate—which I wouldn’t have done, by the way. The shooting at the police station was to draw you out, since I couldn’t very well make my point when you were holed up all snug in your little pet’s apartment. I knew you’d come if he was in danger. I needed to talk to you so I could open your eyes to the reality of the situation.”

“To what end?”

He smiled, the manic, unhinged grin of a madman. “To bring you over to our side.”

“If you think I’m ever going to be on your side, you’re even crazier than I thought.”

“Maybe you aren’t there yet, but I think eventually you will be. Even if you never agree with us, there will always be a little part of you that doesn’t agree with them either. I’ve gotten you to see at least that much.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

“Ah, but I have the luxury of certainty, Jade. I can see your Destiny, remember? A week ago, your path was gold—the color of the Powers. Now it’s the blinking blue error message that my division hates so much. Your Destiny has been interrupted. They’ll try to put you back on track, to get you back onto the same path they had planned for you before, but it will never suit you as well as it used to. A little part of you will always wonder about me, about why I felt so strongly that chaos would be preferable to ultimate control. You’re aware of Destiny Division’s plot to take over the Powers, and you’re smart enough to know how that would turn out for your own people, so you’ll do whatever you can to stop them. Sooner or later, you’ll start to change the system from the inside. It’s the only way we can win the war.”

“If I needed more proof that you were crazy—and I don’t, but if I did?—that would do it. There is no war!”

His lips drew back off his teeth in an expression that wasn’t quite a smile. “Of course there is. You just didn’t know you were fighting in it until today.”

There was a creak from the doorway, barely audible under normal circumstances but as loud as thunder in the charged silence of the room. Jade kept her weapon trained on the prophet, her trigger finger starting to tighten, but he beat her to it.

“You’re going to have to pick a side, Jade,” he told her, swinging his gun away from her and pointing it at his own head. “Choose wisely.”

The shot echoed through the room. Jade stumbled back in horror, nearly dropping her gun as the prophet’s blood and brain matter splattered across the room and he collapsed bonelessly to the floor. From the depths of her purse, her phone gave the all-clear chirp, the cheerful noise surreal in the gory aftermath of the prophet’s final act.

The door to the room slammed open and a flood of cops entered the room. “Put the gun down! Put it down!” yelled one of the SWAT officers, aiming a rifle at Jade. She gave him a blank look, her brain unable to process anything other than what she’d just witnessed. Before he could shoot her for not complying, Luke was there, shoving the barrel of the officer’s rifle down to point at the floor.

“Stand down!” he shouted, pushing past all of them to reach Jade. His hands covered hers, taking her gun, and she relinquished it without a fight. He passed it blindly behind his back, trusting that one of the other cops would take it from him. When someone did, he didn’t bother to check and see who it was, completely focused on her. “Are you okay? Jade, talk to me.”

She was trembling, he realized, her hands shaking in his. He pulled her into his embrace, holding her tightly against his chest. She was unresponsive for a long moment, and then she brought her hands up to clutch at the lapels of his jacket.

“Oh, God, Luke,” she breathed, and he nodded to himself as he pulled her closer. She’d manage to shake off her shock at the gory mess in front of them. Once he got her outside and away from all of this, she would be all right.

“It’s okay, babe. It’s okay. You’re safe.”

Her hands tightened on his jacket. “You’re hurt,” she began, and he shook his head.

“I’m fine,” he lied, kissing her temple.

The truth was that as soon as the threat had passed, his head had started to pound again. Their bond might have been willing to help him just long enough to ensure its own survival, but it wasn’t going to do him any extra favors.

“Just a bump on the head. What about you? Did he hurt you?”

She shook her head, hesitant. “No, he… all he did was talk.”

“Let’s get you out of here,” he told her, changing his hold on her to put one arm around her shoulders as he guided her past the SWAT team and uniformed officers. Normally they might have argued or insisted on speaking to her, but his expression made it clear that he would brook no dissension, so they were left alone as they headed toward the door.

Once they were downstairs and outside, in the chilly air with the sun streaming down through the wispy gray clouds, Jade seemed to recover from her dazed state. She straightened in his arms, glancing around as several uniformed officers approached them cautiously.

“Where’s Aaron?” she asked, realizing how abnormal it was for Luke to be here and his partner to be nowhere in sight, and he gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze.

“He was upstairs with SWAT.”

“I didn’t see him.”

“That’s all right,” he told her, his voice soft, before glancing up at the officers. “Guys, could you give us a minute?”

“The medics—” one of the officers began, but Luke quelled him with a sharp look.

“Give us a minute,” he repeated, not a question this time. The officers yielded, stepping back, and Luke leaned forward to whisper in her ear.

“I know it’s bad timing, babe, but twenty cops just heard that prophet talking to you about fate and destiny and free will, and they also heard you answering him. You can pass it off as just playing along with the nutjob, but that’s going to have to be your story from the first interview. If you try to change it later, they’ll be suspicious.”

She blinked up at him, and for a moment he wondered if she was still too shaken to pull off the lie, but then she nodded.

“Are you sure you aren’t hurt?” she pressed, clearly more focused on him than on the task at hand.

He smiled, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers.