Ghost Guard (22 page)

REV MASSAGED THE BRUISES on his knuckles, then the ones on his ribs. His whole body ached, head to toe, and he wanted just to be done with it and die again. Damn the risks. To hell with the possibility he’d never come back as a ghost.

“Did anyone get the number of that bus?” he moaned.

Ruby peeped meekly, asking what bus he was talking about. He rolled his eyes.

“We don’t have time
for jokes, Rev,” Morris helped him to his feet. “Abby needs our help.”

As
Morris spoke, his workstation buzzed with activity. The incoming message indicator lit up on the main screen, and the ID told them it was an urgent communique from Para-Intel. Morris stood still for a tense moment, considering the faces of his partners. Then he reached for the icon to accept the message. Rev intercepted his hand, shaking his head.

“Don’t answer. They’ll just tell us to stand down and let some clumsy special ops team handle it again. We all remember what happened last time…painfully.”

Ruby interjected with a flurry of clicks, pops, and whistles, the most frantic she’d ever sounded. Both Rev and Morris had a terrible time keeping up with her and deciphering her code. All they heard was her saying something about Brutus. Something bad.

“Wait
! Wait! Wait!” Rev held up his palms. “Slow down, Ruby. What’re you saying? What about Brutus?”

She stopped her tirade and huffed and puffed, a clear show of irritation, since they all knew ghosts didn’t need to breathe. Then she spat out another torrent in her own distinctive language. Clearly, over the garble of her normal manner of speaking, one phrase stood out over everything else:
Elyxa has him
.

“
Elyxa has Brutus? Great. Just great,” Rev stood. Putting weight on his mysteriously sore knee was excruciating, but he didn’t care. “Now what are we gonna do without our muscle?”

The message indicator pulsed again, a signal, constant and impossible to ignore, telling them
Mahoney wanted to talk. Rev pulled the plug on the whole system, powering down the computers and the monitors and everything else all at the same time.

“Hey!” Morris protested. Those machines were his babies.

“No more of your electronic doohickeys,” Rev announced. “They’re the reason why we’re in this mess to begin with.”

“I’m sorry you feel that way, Rev,” said Morris. He
’d been concealing something for quite a while, and now was the perfect time, if there ever was one, to unveil it. “Because we’re not going to get through this thing on just your charm and good looks. We need something powerful to go up against Elyxa and Aros and their ghostly thugs. We need a weapon strong enough to put the fear of expiration in the hearts of even the most powerful supernatural beings.”

“What are you talking about, Morris?” Rev demanded. Ruby was just as adamant for an explanation. They both had their suspicions, and it was eating at them.

“I’m talking about something I’ve created…or recreated. I’m sorry for being so surreptitious lately, but it was essential. We all thought Forsythe’s plans were totally destroyed, but—”

He revealed what he had tucked und
er his sleeve. A silver, sleek device the size and shape of a long-barreled pistol, with flashing LEDs and glossy curves that made it resemble a toy. But this was no toy. This was the machine Morris had been working on confidentially for days. The project he so covertly constructed in his spare time, hiding his work from the rest of the group whenever they came around, stealing a spare moment here and there to build and test and perfect. It was a labor of necessity, and Morris knew he needed to work privately otherwise his ghost teammates might not have understood. He was correct.             

“Remember the flash
drive Ruby took from Forsythe’s mansion? Turns out it had some backup files on it, plans for—”

“Morris!” Rev couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Is that what I think it is? Is that a—”

Before Rev could finish, Ruby plunged to their level and did it for him in her unique language:

“A Ghost Gun!”

“
SO THIS IS THE ONE?” Elyxa eyed the mortal up and down, saving a particularly long gaze for the face, lips, the curvature of the cheeks. “What does he see in you? What is it!”

Abby strained against the cords fastened tightly to her wrists and ankles. She wasn’t one to scare easily, though, inside, she wanted to
scream bloody murder. The power of this entity was immeasurable. It wasn’t a woman. She never would bring herself to call it a woman, no matter how delicate the features. She had an air of sophistication too. Something Abby never would have expected from such a vile and savage being. Her first encounter with Elyxa had been on a purely animalistic level. This one felt different. Elyxa exuded shrewdness and a female essence. She also reeked of desperation. Disquiet so profound, so deep-seated, Abby recognized it the second she saw it. Lust. Or love. Probably both, but mostly lust.

“What difference does it make?”
Aros strode across the hardwood floor. Abby recognized from the view they were in northeast Portland, in an estate with a rolling, lush garden. “To hell with Rev…let’s get on with this!”

Elyxa
flicked her arm, casting a silent and unseen wave of anger, so fast and strong it lifted Aros off the floor. He ceased his whining, wishing he hadn’t said what he’d just said. Elyxa had something in mind, and there was no stopping her. She let him drop to his feet, satisfied he was again in line with her scheme.

“You
should
be sorry you said that. And you should realize by now it’s foolish to go against me,” she faced Abby. “So should you.”

“I’m not against you,” Abby said calmly.

“Silence!” Elyxa cast her claws and a hot wind gripped Abby’s throat. “You can’t lie to me! You
are
against me! You and your Ghost Guard!”

“That’s because you fucking destroy ghosts,” Abby
managed to croak despite the psychic clamp on her larynx.

Elyxa
served up an innocent look.

“I do, don’t
I?” she relaxed the grip on Abby’s esophagus. “Anyway, that’s not what I’m talking about,” she moved closer and let her mind bore into Abby’s, offering the perfect image of that sexy beast Rev.

“Rev?”
Abby didn’t have to act this time. She was genuinely disinterested. “You can have him.”

Elyxa
stood straight, inhaling slowly, trying to conceal her shock. What was this human hiding? Abby, for her part, didn’t feel like she needed to hide anything.

“Don’t play games with me,”
Elyxa squinted. “I know you love him,” mentally, she reached into Abby again, digging into her thoughts, her emotions, places where mortals hide their true feelings. Even there, in the darkest, deepest recesses of Abby’s soul, she found the same message. Abby was telling the truth.

“Pry into my mind all you want,” Abby knew exactly what her captor was doing. “I’m serious. Rev means nothing to me.”

Elyxa backed up a step.

“Impossible,” she said to herself, then repeated louder. “This is impossible. I know you love him, no matter what kind of mortal mind tricks you’re playing. And I know
he
loves
you
,” again she studied Abby head to toe. Her dark, lustrous hair. “What is it? Why does he love you and not me? Is it because you’re a brunette? I can be a brunette,” she ran her fingers through her own golden tresses, staring at Abby’s face. It gave Abby the creeps. “It can’t be your looks…I’m much more beautiful.”

“
All right!” Abby shot her a glare. All-powerful or not, she wasn’t about to let someone talk to her that way. “Watch your mouth, bitch!”

Elyxa
gushed with rage, and let it explode from her fingertips, this time flaring with blazing light. Abby burst into pain, trying to reach for her throat, fighting to free herself from the death grip. No use. Elyxa possessed a greater power than Abby had ever seen in a being, living or dead. She surged with energy. Unstoppable. Unrelenting. Unyielding.

Aros
loved it.

“At last!” he
howled in delight. Finally, these damnable humans will be eliminated. His one true obstacle. No more looking over their shoulders. No more worrying about when and where Ghost Guard would show up next.

Elyxa
’s grip clamped tighter. Abby felt her bones on the verge of breaking. Time to pull out her big guns. Her mental musical barrage. She knew Elyxa couldn’t bear it. Abby pushed away the pain just for a second, long enough to imagine her favorite Queen tune…
We Will Rock You
. Her thoughts echoed with the beginning drumbeat, soon accompanied by Freddy Mercury’s commanding voice. Elyxa had no choice but to let her loose and reel away from the horrid sound. With the full force of the electric music blasting, Elyxa threw her hands over her ears and staggered back, cursing, shrieking, begging Abby to quit.

“Why should I?”

Elyxa collapsed into a lounge chair.

“You fight well, my dear…for a mortal,” she
giggled. “But not good enough. If what you say is true…and if you and Rev have no feelings for each other—”

“No feelings at all,” Abby asserted.

“Then I guess there’s no reason for him to come to your rescue.”

“No reason
whatsoever,” Abby gestured at her bound ankles and wrists. “And all of this was just a waste of time.”

“It might have been,”
Elyxa rose to her feet and snapped her fingers at Aros. “But I always make sure I have insurance,” Aros handed her a murky container the size of a mason jar. She wiped away some of the dust to reveal a dark, hazy interior, clouds of gray smoke circling clouds of black soot. “Maybe your friend Brutus can convince him to pay us a visit.”

“Brutus!” Abby shouted in horror. She knew the moment she laid eyes on the glass jar it was a spirit cask, and it looked strangely familiar. The thick pressed glass.
The intricate black metal mesh. It was the same cask Madam Dominika had used. Inside, Brutus was a genie sealed in a bottle, subjugated to the whims of a deranged master. He never liked to think in terms of defeat, but this was the closest he’d ever come. No will of his own. Weakened and wounded. The only shred of hope he had left was when he heard Abby’s voice.

“What have you done to
him!” Abby struggled against her restraints even more. “You better not hurt him or I’ll-I’ll—”

Elyxa
chuckled.

“You’ll do nothing. But your friends will, won’t they?” Abby looked away.
Elyxa didn’t need ESP to know what was on her mind. “I’m right. Rev might not come after you, but he most certainly will come to rescue
him
.”

EIGH
TEEN

REV FELT HIS ARM hair standing on end. Another indication he was better off dead. He’d never been scared or nervous or in any way reluctant on a mission in the past. Back then, he was already deceased. Now, with a heart beating in his chest for the first time in eight and a half decades, that old self-preservation mode kicked in. The last thing he wanted was to go back to the mistress of dead souls, the immortal enchantress—Elyxa.

It wasn’t her lethal power or her
uncommon acumen that had him frightened. That would have been bad enough. It was the fact that she had Abby now, and both of them together…well, that was a volatile mix. More than he cared to experience.

“Can’t this thing go any slower?” he sighed out the window, watching the world speed by, watching his life flash before his eyes.
He was so apathetic, he even let Morris drive the Phantom.

“What’re you saying?” Morris signaled, checked the mirror,
then made a quick lane change. “This is Abby and Brutus we’re talking about…Abby and Brutus!”

“I know, I know. We have to do this,” Rev fought away his
tension. “For Brutus.”

“
And
Abby,” Morris gave him a sideways look.

“I guess,” he sighed and
massaged his brow. “It just seems like she doesn’t even want me around her anymore. Everything I do is wrong lately. I don’t even think she wants me to rescue her.”

“
That’s just irrational, Rev. How can you think that? What’s happened between you two?” Morris broached the subject, the taboo Rev and Abby both refused to talk about.

“There
is
no us two,” he said unemotionally. “She rejected me. So just drop it.”

“Rev, I think we should talk about—”

“I said just drop it, Morris.”

“I won’t just drop it, Rev!” Morris was surprised by his own outburst. Rev, though, was more surprised. Morris cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, Rev. But this has to be said. Things
have gotten out of hand with you and Abby. When it was just harmless flirtation, it was…charming.”

“
Charming. Right,” Rev chuckled.

“That’s correct. It was charming. But that was then. Now, something’s changed. What’s happened
, Rev? What’d you do to her? Did you hurt her?”

Ruby
, a misty rubicund glow in the backseat, joined Morris in confronting Rev with the same accusing look.

“I didn’t do anything,” Rev
scoffed at the charge. “Why are you guys in such a lather?”

“Gee, I wonder,” Morris spoke for both of them. “It’s not like you have a stellar track record when it comes to women, you know?”

“Hey,” Rev protested, but not as much as he should have. Listlessly, he watched as the city streets went by in a blur. “I do what I have to do for the team. It’s always for the team. To get the job done. How many times do I have to say that?”

“I know, I know. It’s not just that, though,” Morris pointed out. “It’s the way you conduct yourself during off hours.”

“What is this, Big Brother? You watching me, Morris?”

“Hey, hey!”
Morris put up a palm. “I’m just going by what Abby has told me.”

“
Abby
told you?” he shook his head at the window. “Figures. She just can’t stop badmouthing me, can she?”

“It’s not like that, Rev. She confided in me because she has feelings for you.”

“The only feeling I get from her is the feeling that she wants to jump down my throat, pull out my heart, and eat it for breakfast. She’s a bearcat, pally.”

“That’s just Abby,” Morris navigated
the Phantom through the streets of East Portland with more than a little trepidation. “She’s frightened, so she puts up a defense. Trust me. She’s got it for you. Bad. Have you considered a different tactic?”

“What do you mean?”

“Have you thought about just being civil with her?”

“Of course I have. I’ve tried. God have I tried. It’s balled up, Morris.
Balled up. So let’s just forget about it and do our jobs.”

“Rev, you’re not going to deflect this yet again. This is serious. This…situation between you and Abby, it’s tearing Ghost Guard apart
.”

Rev wanted to fire back a pithy answer, refuting everything Morris was saying. However, he couldn’t come up with one good reason why his friend and fellow team member was mistaken. He had nothing.
Out of bullets. No witty comeback. So, relying on pure idiocy, he replied by saying, “Bullshit.”

“Bullshit?” Morris hated cussing, but in this case it had to be done. “Bullshit?”

“Okay, okay,” Rev rubbed his forehead again. “You can quit using dirty words, Morris. It just isn’t you.”

“Dammit
, Rev! Listen to me!” he shocked Rev into giving up his full attention. Ruby even shuddered a little. “This isn’t bull…this isn’t a joke. All of this, this whole situation we’re in, it’s a direct result of the problems you and Abby have brought to the team. I mean, why was she interviewing new ghosts to replace you?”

“Hello?
Earth to Morris? If you haven’t noticed, I’m not the same. I’m not a ghost anymore, and I’m-I’m worthless to the team.”

“Now
that’s
bullshit. And quite frankly, I’ve had enough of your complaining. You’re just making excuses to stop trying, and so has Abby. You both know Ghost Guard needs you now more than ever. And you both know you need each other. Why can’t either of you just acknowledge it…to yourselves and to each other? Maybe then we can get past it and get back to doing what we’re supposed to be doing, which is protecting spirits.”

Rev
thought about exploding on Morris again, telling him point by point where he was mistaken. The team’s problems had nothing to do with Rev and Abby’s extracurricular activities, or lack thereof. But, again, his chamber was empty. Instead, he stared out the window once more, wondering how Morris had gotten so smart about relationships when Rev had never seen him with a girl, or a guy for that matter.

“Listen, Rev.
I’m sorry,” Morris meant what he said. He had a hole in his heart at the way Rev was taking the news. “I shouldn’t have mentioned anything. Just forget about it.”

“No, Morris. You’re right. I’ve
balled up this whole thing up, and now two of our best friends are in danger. We’ve got to make this right. I’ve got to make this right. I just hope your plan works.”

“It’ll work,” Morris tilted the mirror and saw Ruby’s faint outline. “You ready, Ruby?”

She squeaked and whistled, saying she was all set.

“You’re sure about this, right?” Rev had no luck settling his nerves. God, he wished he was dead again. “I mean, don’t you think they’ve gotta be expecting us?”

“Exactly,” Morris smiled, turning the Phantom off Broadway and onto 22
nd
. “They not only expect us, they want us to come. It’s almost as if they’ve invited us. Elyxa has taken no psychic precautions to conceal where she’s located. Ruby had no problem uncovering the exact address. You could have found Elyxa too, if you weren’t, well, alive again.”

“Thanks for reminding me,” Rev slumped in his seat.

“The point is, we’ll use their arrogance against them,” Morris finished his thought.

Rev wasn’t too sure. Morris meant well. So did Ruby. They both had the best of intentions, but he felt Morris’s scheme was way too risky.
Using the ghost gun was way too risky. So, as soon as the Phantom slowed, Rev opened the door and stepped out. He had to sprint immediately in order to avoid planting his face on the pavement, and his newly reconstituted body did him no favors—stiff joints and sluggish muscles. Somehow he managed to stay on his feet. The Phantom screeched to a stop and Morris yelled at him to come back. Rev kept running. He knew what he had to do.