The Gift of Fury (3 page)

“He was expecting trouble” Hagan says “The three gents who kicked down his door while he was doing his magic thing didn’t expect me to be there. Two of them were pushovers, the other one was an ogre. He took a little longer to deal with.”

It must not have been a very good workout for him but the ogre concerns me. There aren’t too many of them around. They tend to shy away from big cities. The ones that call the cities their home are rough customers who lurk in the back alleys and seedier parts of town. They possess a wide range of magical powers for blending in with their surroundings. Most like playing at being gang leaders or hired muscle.

“After the ogre took off, Dorward told me to get out of there with the ring. I think he was afraid the police might confiscate it or something. He said you would take care of it.”

Hagan steps into the bar, not bothering to say good bye or say what I already know. Call him if I need him. It makes me feel better despite the vibes I keep getting from the ring and this whole deal. What the hell has Scott gotten himself into? Whatever is going on, I’m now involved in it.

Kara remains silent as I flag down a cab. Jake’s will be the perfect place to enjoy what’s left of my night and maybe have a few questions answered. If I’m going to play babysitter this thing, I want to know more about it. Only one person can help me with that.

Chapter Three

Jake’s manages to steal the attention and clientele from all the other bars along this stretch of Amsterdam Avenue. Its dark interior sports a younger crowd but the scenery is to die for. Not only are the bartenders extremely well endowed. They also know how to make a killer margarita. The lower level has a huge dance floor where a DJ works his magic. It even earns bonus points for its lounge where you can talk and enjoy the company of friends without losing your hearing.

Tuesday night is a quiet night. There is no line to get in or cover charge. It’s still pretty crowded but not crowded enough that I have to fight my way to the bar or battle for the attention of the bartender. All in all, it’s a good place to hang out in. Tonight, I have an ulterior motive for coming here. This is one of Nerva’s favorite hangouts. I can usually find her here, breaking hearts and stealing souls on the dance floor. She collects dance partners and playmates like young boys used to collect baseball cards, always increasing her collection while discarding or trading away the ones who no longer interest her. She says she is a vampire and I believe her.

I don’t deal much with vampires. It’s unhealthy to hang around anyone or thing that views you as a potential meal. I also steer clear of most lawyers and landlords for the same reason. Yes, vampires do exist. Don’t ask me how many there are. I couldn’t tell you. I’m not a great authority on them but I’ve had enough encounters with them to know a few things about them. First off, you have to forget about all that nonsense you might have seen in the movies or on television. Contrary to popular belief, most vampires don't dress in black capes and tuxedos or sound like Bela Lugosi. They may or may not fit the more fashionable stereotypes of handsome men and beautiful women dressed in stunning black outfits. They can look like anyone you might meet on the street and they dress to individual taste. A select few are blood drinkers but that isn't the norm. Simply put, a vampire is any being who draws life and energy from another living person. Every culture has stories about vampires and the undead, each one with different powers and abilities.

Some can feed from you without your ever knowing about it. These vampires will either feed off a lot of people at once, taking a little energy from each victim or they feed very slowly from a single person. Others can and will leave you bone tired or worse a burned out corpse to be found by the authorities. What they feed on also varies; some absorb what I like to call life energy through close, sometimes intimate contact while others feed off of emotions or even dreams. The few blood drinkers I’ve run into resemble the vampires most depicted by the media.

Each vampire also has some way or talent to make sure they can attract potential meals without much of a fuss. Many are extremely charismatic while others gravitate to professions and lifestyle where they can feed without attracting attention. There was a vampire I met in St. Louis who fed on grief; he worked as a funeral director. Are they alive, dead or something else? It depends on the vampire. Most of them are alive but not in the same way you and I are.

Nerva is more alive than anyone I know. Too bad, she isn’t here yet. It’s only a matter of time before she puts in an appearance. Waiting here for her is better than trying to chase her down. It gives me a chance to relax and digest everything Hagan told me. I do some of my best thinking in bars. The steady supply of alcohol helps. Despite the noise and crowds, I can turn my thoughts inward to solve a problem with the people and events around me to serve as inspiration.

I keep saying I’m no detective but I do have some experience when it comes to solving mysteries and problems. Everyone has their own style and way of doing things. I like to look at the facts and people involved to see how they fit. The trick is to answer the big questions. What happened and where? Who was involved and why? How did it happen? For problem solving, I add another question. What is the best way to solve this? Sometimes I have to answer a few smaller questions to get the answers to the bigger ones.

I think about everything I know about my friend. Scott isn’t stupid. He knows the ring is dangerous and he’s good enough at what he does not to take any chances. So why would he mess with the ring? Kara chimes in.

“
He had no choice.
”

That isn’t a comforting thought. It causes me to flag down the bartender to make sure my next margarita is given an extra topping of tequila. Scott had no choice. It might explain why the Bloodstone feels so tainted.

“
You should have kept it
” Kara says.

“
We’ve been through this before. It’s dangerous. I have no business carrying around something like this, let alone using it.
”

“
Scott felt you should otherwise you wouldn’t have it now.
”

Sometimes, there is no arguing with her. Hagan said Scott was worried about the police confiscating the ring. Why give it to me and not Sol or another sorcerer? There is a sense of satisfaction from across the link but no answer to my question. I’m missing something. I pull out the Bloodstone to take a better look at it. The antique gold ring was made for a man. When I gave the ring to Scott, he said it was made during the Victorian era but the stone was much older. Looking at it now, I wonder how much older. The dark green bloodstone mounted on the ring looks different, not like how I remembered it. The red drops of color are more prominent on the stone’s surface. I feel dirty just touching the thing. It is enough to make me shudder. Still it had to be done. Kara’s senses are better than mine or more accurately she knows what to look for since she is using my senses when we are linked this way. Whatever sensations I am getting from the ring are probably worse for her.

“
It’s gotten stronger.
”

I’ve known Kara long enough to catch the sense of worry and unease she is trying to hide from me. It’s been a little over an hour since Hagan gave me the ring. I can see why Scott was worried but why give it to me? I’ll have to ask him about it when I see him.

I put the ring away and try to forget about it. Kara relaxes a bit while I sip my drink. There is just enough salt around the rim of my glass to do my margarita justice then it’s time for another one. By the third, I’ve washed the ring’s feel from my memory.

I can almost feel Kara’s lips brush my cheek. “
So what do we do about it? It’s not safe for you to use.
”

“
I don’t want to use it,”
I take a deep breath, grateful the bar is smoke-free. “
I’ll talk to Sol and learn a little more about it. I want to take things slow till I know what I am dealing with.
”

I was going to say destroy it but I have no idea what might happen if I was able to do so. Destroying a powerful item like the Bloodstone could have serious repercussions. No, it is better to err on the side of caution. Kara breathes a sigh of relief. She was afraid I might do something rash. I don’t know why she thinks I need the thing. Whenever I ask her why, I never get a straight answer. Worse comes to worse, I could have someone drop it in the middle of the ocean.

***

It’s almost 2 am when Nerva finally arrives. A flicker of jealousy and wariness comes across the link from Kara as I catch her attention. The vampire rushes over and hugs me. During the brief moment of contact, Kara hisses spitefully. Nerva must have taken a tiny taste of me. As usual, I didn’t feel a thing. I’m too distracted by her presence.

“You’re looking good,” I say with a smile. It’s the truth. The tiny Brazilian bombshell is dressed to impress in a slinky black outfit and high heels. It shows off her body without being tight enough to interfere with dancing. She laughs as if she doesn’t have a care in the world. Nerva knows I’m fairly good at resisting her charms but I’m not immune to them. I don’t think any man could be. Its part of the game we play whenever we meet. Kara doesn’t like it and I can’t really blame her. The link has its downsides. She can tell I’m physically attracted to Nerva. I know it bothers her. Even a guardian angel no matter how patient and caring has her limits. She fumes in silence as Nerva’s teeth nip at my earlobe.

“Uh huh, you want me?”

Nerva doesn’t wait for an answer. She takes the drink out of my hand. Her tongue flicks out to lick the salt from the rim of my glass before drinking the rest of my margarita. Kara is beside herself with anger. I nearly forget why I wanted to speak to her. It wasn’t for a night of dancing and wild sex though the thought does cross my mind. That’s part of danger when dealing with Nerva. So far, I’ve managed to avoid that particular fate because no matter how much fun it would be, it’s not worth giving up what I have with Kara.

“I need to see Sol.”

Nerva nods slowly, releasing her hold on me. “Is he expecting you?”

I shake my head. Sol is a hard man to see but if anyone would know more about the ring, it would be him. Nerva acts as his personal secretary and sometime bodyguard. There are rumors their relationship is far from platonic. She knows I would only go through her if it was important. I could arrange a meet without her but it would take longer. That doesn’t stop her from enjoying herself at my expense. She sets the empty glass down and takes my hand, leading me onto the dance floor.

I do a lot of things well but dancing isn’t one of them. I’m good enough not to embarrass myself on most nights. Sometimes having a good partner can make you seem ten times worse or a hundred times better. With Nerva, it’s the latter. I follow her lead and the beat of the music. She’s having fun, Kara isn’t. After the third song, I feign tiredness and Nerva lets me get away with it.

I buy her a drink and start to fill her in on the details now that she is ready to listen. The news catches her by surprise, not the part about someone breaking into Scott’s apartment. By now, most of the major movers and shakers in the city should have heard about that. It’s the part about Hagan and the ring that blindsides her. I’m about to start rattling off more details that don’t interest her when she holds up a hand to silence me.

“He can see you the day after tomorrow around 4 pm. I’ll make the arrangements,” she says.

I smile, gratefully. I don’t have to say the next few words but I say them anyway. “Thanks, I owe you one.”

The way she licks her lips makes me wonder how she plans on collecting.

***

I spend the next hour watching Nerva dance while I start to sober up. It feels like I’m making progress. I decide to leave before last call is announced. I want to get in some practice time at the dojo so that means I can’t afford to stay out much later.

Outside, I nod to the bouncers then turn the corner. It’s a nice night for a walk and my apartment isn’t far. The exercise will do me some good. I am two blocks away from my building when it happens. Even though, it’s late there are plenty of people on the street. Like me, most of them are returning from a busy night on town. Unlike me, they only see two men step out of the coffee shop and walk in my direction.

One is tall and handsome with strong Germanic features. He could have been a model or a movie star with his good looks. His dark grey suit is tailored. The outfit would have put me back in debt. It was probably pocket change for him. I had never met the man before but I knew who he was. He made me feel uneasy, like I should know him from someplace other than television. His name is Meredith, Jack Meredith a high wheeling and dealing real estate developer who has been making waves recently. The same Jack Meredith I saw on the news earlier tonight.

To everyone else, the man next to him looked like a mook from a gangster film. To me, the grey-skinned humanoid crammed into a less than stylish suit looked like trouble. This had to be the ogre Hagan was talking about. It wasn’t the largest I had ever seen but big enough to be a problem if I had to fight him. At least, he wasn’t armed and from the way he moved, Hagan had put a hurting on him.

This can’t be a coincidence or anything good. Kara gives me some more bad news as I take a closer look at Meredith.

“
Careful, he’s a sorcerer.
”

Meredith looks and moves like a man half his age, far younger than he appears on television but still recognizable. It’s obvious he takes good care of himself. It could be a product of magic but I doubt it. He moves like a fighter, someone who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. The smile he favors me with is an empty thing lacking in warmth and friendship but it’s his eyes that worry me. I’m not a person; I’m an obstacle that is in his way.

“So you’re the one who got away,” He says more to himself than me.

I’m confused and I’m not the only one. Kara is also wondering about that remark. One of my teachers once told me no question is stupid, but this one sure does sound the part. “Have we met?”