The Collected Christopher Connery (37 page)

As much as the thought hurt, Gail knew she had to prepare
herself for the worst. She might have to hurt or kill one of her best friends
and she had to be ready for that. She had to be ready for anything.

But when she had stepped into the garage, exactly fifteen
minutes after she and Nia had first parted, she was still brought to a shocked
stop by Xavier trying to force a weakly struggling Nia into his truck.

Be ready for anything.
Gail drew her gun, but
almost immediately holstered it again with a curse. Prepared for it or not,
there was no way Gail could shoot Xavier when he was struggling with Nia like
that, especially not with only pale magic light to see by. She was a good shot,
but she still might put a bullet in Nia by mistake.

Her eyes fell on Arthur’s overturned toolbox. Lunging for
it, she snatched the first thing her hand closed on, a hammer. She leapt at
Xavier and struck his leg with the flat of it. He stumbled, almost falling, and
Nia managed to tear herself away. She sat down hard on the cement floor, both
hands pressing to her throat.

Tossing the hammer aside, Gail pointed her gun at her
friend. “Xavier, stop this right now. I don’t want to shoot you, but I will if
I have to.”

Xavier turned toward the sound of her voice. His face was
crossed by shadow, making it impossible to read, and there was something
strange in how he held himself. He looked like a man sleepwalking, only half
there. He took a step toward Gail, but stumbled, landing on his hands and
knees.

Gail automatically reached out a hand to pull him up.
“Are you all right? What –”

Before she could reach him, Nia rose up behind him quick
as a lightning strike and brought the fallen hammer down on the back of his
head.

Skulls were quite a bit softer than concrete. Even so,
Nia had never hit anyone with a hammer before and only managed a glancing blow.
She drew back her arm for a second blow, but Gail caught her arm and yanked the
hammer from her hand.

“What the hell are you doing?” Gail shouted, throwing the
hammer away, before dropping down beside Mr. Rivers’ crumpled form. “Xavier,
can you here me? Hell, Nia, we could have –”

“It’s too late,” Nia was forced to admit softly. “Being
so close to Connery has increased the rate of influence.”

“Then get rid of Connery!”

“I tried. I couldn’t.”

Gail stared at her. “What?”

“Mister Rivers –
Xavier –
is still in there, but
only just. He must have been so afraid. That made it easy for Connery to – oh,
Gail, we’re too late!”

“It is not too late, we just have to get him away from –”

Metal scraped across the concrete. Gail turned her head
then threw herself back as Mr. Rivers swung the heavy wrench past her face.

Mr. Rivers staggered to his feet, swinging the wrench at
Gail, forcing her to stumble backwards as she struggled to get her gun from its
holster. She nearly had it, but the wrench was whistling towards her head.

Nia grabbed Gail’s coat and jerked her to the side. Gail
stumbled down on one knee. With savage speed, Mr. Rivers turned on Nia. She
threw up her arm to protect her face before the wrench smashed her to the
floor. She heard a sharp crack as the wrench slammed into her elbow. Her arm
exploded with pain. She tried to curl in on herself, but Mr. Rivers was
stepping on her chest, pressing down until her ribs screamed in protest.

She tried to fight, but even trying to move her arm
filled her head with agonizing red light. The concrete floor was hard and cold
and the gleam of magic light was growing dimmer.

Something suddenly gave way in her chest with a wet snap.
Perhaps she screamed, but she couldn’t hear it if she did. The red behind her
eyes faded toward black.

Gail, be careful.
Then the pain threw her down
into the protective well of gray oblivion.

Gail had come down hard on her left knee before Xavier
had beaten Nia to the floor, so for a few endless seconds, she could only
crouch, gripping her numb leg as Nia crumpled like a broken flower beneath
Xavier’s heel.

Blood ran fast from the shallow wound in Xavier’s head,
staining the white collar of his shirt, but that didn’t stop him from bearing
down on Nia’s chest until she choked out a weak wet scream. Then he bent low,
drawing the wrench back to crack her skull.

Gail tackled him.

They hit the concrete hard, sending another sickening
jolt through Gail’s leg. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she grabbed the
wrench from his hand. She threw the damn thing away and it clattered against
something on the other side of the garage.

Xavier’s movements had once again become clumsy and
halfhearted. His fingers slid over her throat like he wasn’t sure how to make
them latch on. Considering he had been quite capable of holding on to Nia
earlier, she hoped this meant Connery’s control was fraying a little.

“Xavier!” Gail grabbed his arms and held them hard
against the floor. “Damn it, Xavier, wake up!”

At the sound of his name, he froze and stared up at Gail
through wide clear eyes. Then he shuddered violently before fainting dead away.

Working in quick, automatic motions, all while ignoring
how very still Nia was, Gail dragged Xavier’s limp body across the garage until
it was as far from the Academy car as she could get it. She didn’t know whether
it would make any difference, but she wasn’t going to take the risk of not
trying. Using a coil of old rope she found in a corner, she tied him to the
pile of stacked firewood. It wouldn’t hold if he really started struggling, but
at least she’d hear him break free.

That done, she rushed back to Nia, who still lay on her
back, staring vacantly at the ceiling.

“Damn, damn, damn.” Gail hastily covered Nia’s nose and
mouth with her hand. Breathing. She was still breathing.

“Nia.” Gail gently pushed Nia’s hair back from her
forehead. “C’mon, you need to wake up and heal yourself now.”

Nia’s expression didn’t change.

Gail delicately felt across Nia’s chest and sides. At
least three broken ribs, she guessed, and her arm… Oh god, her poor arm was
twisted unnaturally by her side. Gail could see the gleam of bone poking from
the sleeve of her dress. “Damn it, princess, come on. I need you back here.”
She also needed Arthur, but she couldn’t leave Nia alone here. As gently as she
could, she slipped her arms under Nia and tried to lift her off of the floor.

With a sharp cry, Nia tried to twist away. Gail
immediately set her back down and took her face between her hands. She stared
down into Nia’s pain-wild eyes. “Nia, you need to heal yourself. Do you have
any spells done?”

Nia’s cries as had dissolved into weak whimpering sobs.
They made Gail’s heart hurt, but at least she was awake.

“Nia, where –”

Nia swallowed hard. “My coat.”

Gail rifled through Nia’s many pockets, coming up with
handfuls and handfuls of paper. Handfuls and handfuls of completely unlabeled
paper.

Cursing, she held them up to Nia. “Which one is it?”

“Show me –”

“No, that’ll take too long, what does it look like?”

“Complex. Three layers.” Nia shuddered, her eyes closing
tightly as tears ran down into her hair. “Centerpiece looks a bit – a bit like
a flower.”

They all look like fucking flowers.
But Gail tore
through the pile anyway, pulling aside any that came close to Nia’s
description. Then she held the winners in front of Nia’s eyes one by one.

“No. No.” A weak headshake and a pained swallow. “No, not
that one. Wait – no. That’s not it. It’s hard to see. It’s dark.”

You’re lying right under the light,
but Gail
forced down her fear and kept rushing through the spells.

“Wait,” Nia said suddenly. “Wait, yes, that’s it.”

“What do I do?” Gail asked, letting the rest of the
spells fall to the floor.

“Just put it here. I’ll – do the rest.”

“Will it be enough?” The piece of paper looked so small
against Nia’s battered chest.

“No, but it will – help.” Nia’s voice was getting weaker
and more ragged. “Hurry.”

“Okay, okay.” Gail took Nia’s hand and pressed it down
over the paper. “Do your stuff, princess.”

“Take your hand off.”

“But –”

“I can do it. Take your hand off.”

Gail reluctantly obeyed and Nia closed her eyes. As Gail
watched helplessly, Nia’s body jerked on the concrete floor. She could hear
Nia’s ribs creaking and popping as they healed and her arm – god, it was hard
to look at, the bones snapping together and digging back beneath the stitching
skin. Nia’s uninjured hand clawed at the concrete and tears soaked her cheeks,
but as suddenly as it had begun, it ended. Her eyes opened and found Gail’s.

Gail pressed her hand to Nia’s cold forehead. “Fuck, are
you okay?”

Nia just looked at her and for a moment, Gail feared she
had slipped back into shock. Then she smiled wryly. “I’m as okay as I can be,
under the circumstances.”

“That’s what I meant.” Gail helped Nia sit up, holding
her against her shoulder as she gently lifted Nia’s formerly shattered arm.
“How bad is it?”

Nia winced, but allowed Gail to bend and flex the limb.
“The arm is mostly healed. My ribs are still bruised, but it’s nothing
life-threatening.” She looked up at Gail. “Did he hurt you?”

Gail shook her head. “No. I think I managed to talk him
down a bit, but then he passed out. I’ve got him tied up over by the wood.”

“He listened to you?”

“He seemed to, for a second anyway.”

“Then maybe I was wrong, maybe –” Nia was interrupted by
a scraping cough.

Gail brushed her fingers across the dark bruises forming
on Nia’s throat. “You should do another spell. You look like shit.”

“That’s about how I feel.” Nia laughed quietly. “I’ll
finish up later. I’m already tired. I need the rest of my strength to heal Mr.
Rivers.” Her face crumpled a little as she leaned against Gail’s shoulder. “I’m
sorry. I shouldn’t have hit him. I was – I was afraid, but I only made it
worse.”

“Worse?” Gail had trouble imagining how this could be any
worse.

“I thought I could knock him out – knock them
both
out
– but I only allowed Connery to take full control. If he could still hear you
though, then maybe if we keep Mr. Rivers strong and aware, he will be able to
hold Connery off. There’s a chance, especially if Connery’s magic absorbs the
healing magic and shields Mr. Rivers.” She actually managed a grin. “Finally,
something Connery did may work slightly in our favor.”

A chance.
It wasn’t much, but it was something.
“Okay, but if he turns violent again…” Gail didn’t even want to finish the
sentence, but Nia knew what she meant.

“I’ll take care of it. You don’t need –”

“No. I’ll do it.”

“But –” Then Nia looked at Gail’s face and fell silent.
“Very – very well. Please help me get to Mr. Rivers.”

After making sure her gun was firmly in her holster, Gail
pulled Nia’s arm around her neck and carefully helped her stand. Nia’s breath
came short and fast as they hobbled across the garage. They had made it about
halfway when Arthur burst into the garage.

“What’s going on?” he demanded. “You told me to wait ten
minutes, Gail, and it’s been almost twenty. Did you –” He broke when he saw Nia
hanging like a busted marionette against Gail’s side.

“Explain to him, please,” Nia whispered into Gail’s ear
before pulling away and limping the rest of the way to Xavier.

Arthur strode after her. “Nia, what the hell happened?
Are you hurt?” He whirled on Gail when she caught hold of his arm. “Is she
hurt?”

All right, how can I make this sound less terrible
than it is.
“She was hurt, but she fixed it.”
Mostly.
“Connery – uh
– he…”
Fuck it. There’s no good way to put this.
“He possessed Xavier
and hit her with a wrench.”

“What?

“She hit him with a hammer too, but she’s fixing him up
now, so I guess they’re even.” She didn’t get to say more, because Arthur had
thrown off her hand and charged after his sister. “Well, my job here is done.”
Taking a second to rub her dry eyes, she hurried after the Graveses.  

“Are you sure you can help him?” Arthur was asking.

“I have to try. We have to try.” Nia looked her brother
in the eye. “Don’t we?”

Gail joined them, folding her arms. “I say we do, if
anyone wants my opinion.”

Taking a deep breath, Arthur ran a hand back through his
hair. “Yes, we have to try, but for hell’s sake, Nia, be careful.”

“I will.” Reaching out, Nia pressed a piece of paper to
the gash on Xavier’s head. It was hard to make out this far from the floating
magic light, but Gail thought she could see the wound closing up like a mouth
before her eyes.

When it was done, Nia’s arm dropped back to her side.
“That – that should do it.” Her breathing hitched and she wrapped her arms
tightly around her battered sides. “He should wake up – soon.”

Arthur put a hand on his sister’s shoulder. “Are you all
right?”

“I – yes. It’s just – I bruised my ribs a little. They –”
She bit her lip and squeezed herself harder. “They ache a little.”

“Oh, for hell’s sake, Nia. How could you –”

“All right,” said Gail, stepping in before another long
discussion could get underway.  “It’s obvious Nia needs to fix herself up
a bit more, but she has to get some goddamn rest first. You take her inside,
doc, and I’ll bring Xavier somewhere safe.”

“But –” said Arthur.

“Just do it, okay? We’re not going to make anything
better by sitting around with –” She gestured toward the Academy car which sat
like a hulking monster in the shadows “ – with him around.”

“I – Fine.” Arthur swallowed hard when he looked at
Xavier. “You’ll take care of him?”

“Yeah, he’ll be fine.”

After nodding once, then again as if he needed to
convince himself of his own thoughts, Arthur turned to Nia. “I’ll carry you.”

“I can walk.”

“Prove it then.”

For a moment, Nia just stayed where she was in stubborn
silence. Then she sighed and said, “Yes, all right.”

When Arthur knelt beside her, Nia wrapped her arms around
his neck and let him lift her off of the floor, making only the smallest of
pained noises as Arthur adjusted his grip. “Please be careful, detective,” she
said as she held tight to Arthur. “It’s impossible to know whether you’ll meet
Mr. Rivers or –”

“I know, go rest.”

Arthur walked slowly from the garage, stepping carefully
to avoid jarring Nia too much. “You’re heavy,” he informed her as they reached
the door.

“Pardon me,” she replied haughtily, “but if you’re going
to insist on playing the gentleman, you are not entitled to make any
deprecating comments.”

Their voices faded as they left the garage. Gail waited
until she could no longer hear them. Then she got down on her knees in front of
Xavier. He was no longer bleeding, but he was still out cold.

“Xavier?” She shook his broad shoulder gently. “Can you
hear me?”

Nothing. Good.

Moving quickly, she untied the ropes binding Xavier to the
woodpile then retied them around his body so tightly that he probably couldn’t
even have managed a shrug.

“I’m so sorry about this, Xavier, but we’ve got to be
careful.” She cast around for a way to move him and found an old wheelbarrow.
After a good bit of struggling – “Damn it, Xavier, you could stand to work out
a little less, you know?” – she dragged him into it.

When she was sure he wouldn’t fall out and hit his head
again, she pushed hard and rolled him toward the door. The wheels moved easily
over the smooth cement, but they caught and ground over the wet gravel outside.
More than once, she almost tipped Xavier on to the ground when her feet slipped
out from under her.

The rain was coming down hard now. In the distance, Gail
could hear the thunder rolling in and the lightning turned the horizon an ugly
boiled purple. Her heart beat faster, keeping time with the rain pounding on
the hood of her poncho. She had to hurry. Ducking her head to keep the rain out
of her eyes, she pushed harder, her arms shaking with the effort of keeping it
upright.

Getting as much purchase as she could against the wet
gravel, she drove on toward the candlelight gleaming faintly in the kitchen.
She didn’t know if bringing Xavier into the house was a good idea, given how weak
Nia was, but she couldn’t leave him in the garage, she couldn’t leave him in
the toolshed with that dead man leaking Connery’s magic like a broken tap, and
she couldn’t leave him out in the rain. Maybe she could take his truck and try
driving him somewhere, but despite the work Arthur had done on the engine, she
didn’t think the old rust bucket would make it far in this storm.

Lightning flashed bright enough to blind and the thunder
seemed to shake the world beneath her feet. The wheelbarrow caught on a stone
and lurched to the side. Cursing, she dropped to her knees and grabbed Xavier’s
head before it hit the ground. This wasn’t working. At this rate, she might
have to go ask doc for help.

One more try. She’d give it one more try. She grabbed the
ropes binding Xavier and pulled him back toward the wheelbarrow. “Come on,
Xavier, come on…” Her voice died in her throat as one of the thick old ropes
crumbled like dirt in her hand. Looking up, she saw Xavier –
no, Connery –
watching
her through bright, wide-awake eyes. He shrugged off of the rest of the
disintegrating ropes, then opened his hand and let the ashy remains of a piece
of paper flutter to the wet ground.

The he lunged.