Niki Slobodian 03 - Before the Devil Knows You're Dead Read online

  “I've arranged for them to slumber. All of them. They won't be in my way.”

  “Sleep?” I said suddenly, surprising even myself. “Your answer was to put people to sleep?”

  “Can you not control her, Samael?” snapped Michael, suddenly irritated.

  “There are bombs going off out there,” I said. “Screaming and blasting and explosions that shake the walls. What happens when something hits a house full of sleeping people?”

  “That's not my department,” said Michael. “That's Samael's problem.”

  “We're not just something to be in your way,” I said, my heart racing. “We're people. We have dreams and hopes and you're in our world.”

  “We?” said Michael. “You hardly qualify as human anymore, I'm afraid.”

  I looked at my sister. “Stop this, won't you, Natalie?” I said. “You could go inside his head if you wanted to.” I crouched down next to her again and put my hands on her arms. It was the first time that while touching another person that I had not seen a series of flashing images. The dull flatness of Limbo neutralized my abilities, just like Sam had said. “Please, as my sister, try to see that this is crazy. People are dying.”

  She gazed at me for a moment. She put her face next to mine so her mouth was next to my ear. “I'm not really your sister,” she whispered.

  I recoiled as if she had hit me, and stared hard at her. “All those things you said. About Sasha. None of that was true?”

  “That part was true,” she said. “Sasha is my father. He's not yours.”

  A moment passed. Everyone was silent. Even the wind stopped blowing. I felt my heart beating, and I remembered to breathe. I blinked. “What did you say?” I said.

  She backed away from me, and when I tried to rise from my crouch I was too weak and fell back clumsily to sit on the ground. “Sasha isn't your father,” she said. I stared at her in shock as she turned to Raphael. “I'm hungry,” she said.

  “Later, child,” said Michael softly. Natalie was silent.

  I felt gentle hands on my shoulders. I looked to see Sam. He held out his hand and I took it. He put his other hand under my elbow and helped me up. My head swam. What the hell was happening? I didn't understand any more.

  “Why did you ask us to meet you here?” said Sam. All feeling had left my legs, and I leaned against him.

  “Just a little chat between brothers,” said Michael.

  “Just stop this, Michael,” said Sam. “Please.”

  “You want me to stop the war that you started,” said Michael. “All that time among humankind has weakened your mind, just like theirs. None of them want to take responsibility for their own actions, and they plead with others to ignore their actions and erase the consequences. You are just as pathetic as they are.”

  “If I could kill you here,” said Sam, “I would.”

  “You, kill?” said Michael. “Wasn't that another part of the agreement? You could live in the world only so long as you take no lives on your own.”

  “If I could, I would. And it would be worth it,” said Sam.

  “And a world with no Death?” said Michael. “What sort of world would that be?”

  “You know that I'm not involved in the actual dying,” said Sam. “I only usher them in the right direction. They would do just fine on their own.”

  “Don't be so sure,” said Michael.

  “You're not the Creator,” said Sam, suddenly angry. His voice rumbled in my ear where I leaned against him. “You never will be. You know nothing of the world. Of any of them. You're a selfish child.”

  Michael clucked his tongue. “Careful, Samael. Words are more powerful than we know. We're going now. So nice to see you again. It's been a pleasure.” He turned and began to walk away, back the way they had come.

  Sam pulled my arm gently, urging me the other way. I pulled it away from him, nearly falling over without his support. I fell against him. My head was swimming again. I didn't have the energy to fight. My voice rasped in my chest. I sobbed quietly against him for a moment but no tears or sound came out. I just shuddered violently against him. “Why?” I whispered, when I had caught my breath.

  Sam didn't answer. He put his arms around me and helped me walk. “I'm sorry, Niki,” he said.

  “Is it true?” I said, my voice a croak. “About Sasha. Is he my father?”

  “I don't know,” he said.

  I laughed and it hurt my throat. “I thought you knew everything.”

  “Not everything.”

  I passed out a few times on our return to the Deep Blue Sea. I awoke to the violent spinning and if there had been anything solid in me besides a few pretzels, I probably would have vomited. The second time we were just starting to slow down and I opened my eyes expecting to see total blackness. It was black, but there were shapes shifting around in the dark. Dark against dark, but they were there. Crawling and stalking against the sheer black background.

  Then we broke through and were standing in the Deep Blue Sea. I slumped against Sam on the verge of unconsciousness. “What were they?” I mumbled. “Those things in the dark.”

  “The reason you don't want to get stuck there,” said Sam. Gage looked relieved as he came forward to greet us, but I don't know what anyone said after that, because I couldn't hold on any longer.

  Three

  I slept. I dreamed I was burning and woke up in the corner, curled up on top of Gage's coat, with Sam's pinstripe suit jacket rolled up under my head. I sat up cautiously. I felt better. My head was clear and I wasn't nearly as weak. In fact, I felt damn strong. The odd hot sensation in my chest was still there, but it wasn't painful. I stood up, looking around. I heard Gage snoring, and saw him near the middle of the bar, and then saw Sam, resting on his back in our usual booth, his legs sticking out over the sides. I didn't see Janis anywhere.

  For a moment it was silent except for the sound of Gage snoring. Maybe the war was over. I listened hopefully for nearly a minute, my hopes rising every second, until another blast shook the bar and made glasses and bottles clink violently together. Sam stirred in his sleep. Bobby kept snoring. I sighed. Gathering up the jackets, a door caught my eye. It was around the corner from the bar. I was sure it had just been a wall before.

  I walked over, my bare feet making the floorboards creak. A restroom. I realized how badly I needed one. When had the Deep Blue Sea added a bathroom? Dropping the jackets on the floor I went in and closed the door. I relieved myself and washed my hands. I braced myself and looked in the mirror.

  I had caught a glimpse of my reflection on the napkin holder, but it was more shocking to look into the mirror and see someone else's face. My eyes, previously brown, were dark orbs. As I stood there blinking at myself, shadows moved within them. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing them back to normal, but when I opened them nothing had changed. Strange black eyes that I didn't recognize looked back at me from the mirror. I felt the heat inside of me lurch, and the black orbs changed to blinding white light. Like stars shining from my sockets. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I couldn't do anything about it, I told myself. Avoiding my reflection, I splashed cold water on my face and smoothed my hair. Feeling calmer, I opened the door and stepped out, back into the bar.

  Sam was sitting up, leaning against the wall. He nodded at me when he saw me. “That's interesting,” he said.

  I picked up the jackets from the floor and walked across, putting his in front of him. “What's interesting?” I said, sitting down.

  “I'm usually the only one that can change things around here,” he said. “This may take some getting used to.”

  “What, you mean I did that?” I said, waving toward the bathroom. “How?”

  He shrugged. “You have part of me inside you. The Deep Blue Sea is really just an extension.”

  “It's part of you?” I said.

  “Exactly,” he said.

  Gage sat up with a snort, looking wildly around. Spotting the bathroom, he went lumbering toward it.

/>   “Sam,” I said. “If what Michael said is true, and everyone is asleep, why isn't Bobby asleep? Why am I awake?”

  “I assume only the humans were affected,” said Sam. He rubbed his face. “You are not human.”

  “Great,” I said. “Not human. What the hell am I, then?”

  “You have angel eyes,” said Sam. “Sometimes. Other times, I haven't a clue. You are full of some great power. Don't worry, we'll find out.”

  “And Gage?”

  “He was here in the bar when they put everyone to sleep. The Deep Blue Sea would block any sort of magic coming from the outside.”

  “So the demons and angels are unaffected?”

  “Seems that way, doesn't it?” he said. Muffled screams and gunshots came from outside.

  “I didn't mean for this to happen,” I said.

  “Nor did I,” said Sam. “But all we can do now is try to stop it.”

  “If I were dead—”

  “Stop,” said Sam, throwing me a glare.

  “Hear me out,” I said. “Please.” Sam sighed and leaned his head against the wall. “If I were dead, would it stop the war? I mean, would Michael's followers stop fighting?”

  “I have not set foot in the Eternal City for thousands of years,” Sam said. “But what I have heard is just as Michael says. No one wants to follow Michael. He's a tyrant. They are starting to ask questions about the Creator. Many believe He is not dead, as Michael claims.”

  “Including you,” I said.

  “I have a unique experience. There is a balance in our worlds, in life and death. I can feel it. The longer the Creator has been gone, the more we have lost the balance. It is off kilter. It cannot be a coincidence. Humans evolving to develop all of these new abilities, the fighting of this war, and yet, I have never felt His death. The Creator. The force of Him leaving the physical world, that would knock over even me. The power would be enough to either end the worlds, or to restore the balance that has been moving further and further from its axis. I would know if the Creator were dead. He's not dead.”

  We were both silent for a moment. “I'm still processing this Creator stuff,” I said.

  “I told you there were things you were going to have to get used to,” he said.

  Gage came out of the washroom and looked around. “What, angels don't drink coffee?”

  Sam raised an eyebrow. “I may have some Kahlua behind the bar.”

  Gage looked at me. “You okay? Had me worried.”

  “I'm feeling better,” I said. “Much better, actually.”

  Gage sighed heavily, then came and sat next to me. “So what's the plan? We just gonna sit here until the world is destroyed?”

  “No,” said Sam. “I have a better idea.”

  The walls stopped shaking. I looked from Sam to Bobby. There was silence outside again. There was a muffled growl and the three of us jumped as something big hit the side of the building. There was a scream, then silence again.

  “That was different,” I said.

  There was a thud and the door shook on its hinges. I stood up and looked at the door, backing away from it. I reached for my Makarov, but found only clothing. I really wanted my gun again. Even if it couldn't help me, it made me feel that I had a little more control. The door shook again, as if someone were kicking it very hard, or throwing something very heavy against it. Gravel crunched as someone approached, then there was a sound of something being dragged across the ground. Sam and Gage moved up and stood on either side of me. Gage had his Casting book out and was flipping through the pages.

  There was the sound of creaking metal as the doorknob turned.

  “Should we be a little bit concerned here?” I said. My heart was beating fast. I felt the power inside me grow hotter. My vision grew white around the edges.

  “Perhaps,” said Sam. He put a hand on Gage's arm. “Let's not be hasty. It could be an ally. As far as I know, my enemies cannot see the bar. And the ones that can...well, they don't use the door.”

  “Way I heard it,” said Gage, “we ain't got no allies.”

  The door burst open to reveal a figure silhouetted against an electric sky. Crisscross bolts of purple lightning ran into and through each other, making a lattice across the heavens. The warehouses outside appeared to be gone, either blown to bits or burned to the ground. The figure in the doorway was tall and wide at the shoulders. With two points curling up out of his head.

  “Eli?” I said.

  Eli stepped inside, slamming the door behind him.

  “The world's falling in on itself out there,” he said, his voice hoarse and excited. As he came into the light I could see he was covered in silvery blood. His face had been recently burned and healed over.

  His broad grin faded when he saw my face. He blinked at me. “Niki? What's happened?” I shook my head. It was too much to explain. Eli looked at Sam. “What the hell did you do to her?”

  “She died,” said Gage. “Sam here thought it would be a good idea to bring Niki back from the dead.”

  “That's not allowed, is it?” said Eli.

  “Thus the war,” said Gage.

  “Do sit down, Mr. Cooper,” said Sam. “Would you care for a drink?”

  “Hell yeah, I'd care for a drink,” said Eli. “So all this,” he gestured behind him, “it's all because of you and Niki?”

  “It's not her fault,” said Sam irritably.

  “I was dead, now I'm alive. Get over it,” I said. “I burned to death, if you care to know. Michael used it as an excuse to start a war. Got it?”

  Eli grimaced. “Burned to death?”

  “Yes,” I said. “Now can we drop it?”

  He didn't drop it. “How did you burn to death?”

  “Angelwine,” said Sam. “She burned from the inside out. I was too late.”

  “Damn,” said Eli. “You okay, Nik?”

  “Would you be okay if you burned to death, then got to experience it all over again when you were brought back?”

  “Probably not,” said Eli.

  “Damn straight I'm not okay,” I said. “I'm a goddamn mess. I'm afraid this thing in my chest is going to burn me up all over again. It terrifies me.”

  “Thing in your chest?” said Eli.

  “Some shiny new power that I apparently have,” I said. “It feels like hell.”

  “I'm sorry, Nik,” said Eli, reaching across the table. “But I'm glad you're not dead. I'd miss the hell out of you.” He touched my hand. An image suddenly sprang to mind. A very old demon, wrinkled and withered, sitting at a long table, screaming at another demon. A flash and then I saw Eli's mother crying and gesturing at me like she was trying to tell me something. Another flash and I saw myself, before my eyes went funny, sitting on a car, with the neon sign for the Deep Blue Sea behind my head. I pulled my hand away quickly and it made a hissing noise as I rubbed it on my leg.

  Gage was sitting next to me. “What the hell was that?” he said.

  I looked at Eli. He was just as confused as everyone else staring at me.

  “I could really use a drink,” I said.

  “Aw, hell,” said Gage as everyone looked at him. “Where the hell is Janis?”

  “A very good question,” said Sam.

  Gage got up and walked over to the bar. I looked up to see Sam staring at me from across the table.

  “What's happened, Niki?” Sam said. Eli raised his eyebrows questioningly at me.

  “Do you know what I would like?” I said through gritted teeth.

  “What?” said Eli.

  “I would like everyone to stop staring at me like a goddamn freak for five minutes. Is that too much to ask?”

  “We are concerned for you,” said Sam.

  “Stop staring at me,” I said. “If I have something to say, I'll sure as hell say it.” Sam frowned at me and exhaled loudly through his nose, but didn't speak. “Eli,” I said. “What the hell is going on out there?”

  “War, ” he said, his eyes flashing with excitemen
t. It seemed like decades since he was a policeman and we lived together. He had been gentle, almost too gentle, and I had loved him for that. He was devastated when he shot a man in the line of duty, and he was broken up for weeks when the man later died. Now here he was a half-demon with goddamn horns coming out of his head, soaked in blood, excited at the prospect of more violence.

  “Michael said the people were all asleep,” said Sam. “Was he telling the truth?”

  “Oh yeah, they're asleep,” said Eli. “That's why I'm here.”

  “What do you mean?” I said.

  Gage came back and put our drinks on the table. Beer for himself and Eli, and amber liquid in a glass for Sam and me. He sat down next to me.

  “I came looking for you, Nik. I was hoping I'd find you here, but I wasn't sure. It's hit or miss with this place, you know?”

  “Why?” I said. I took a drink. It dampened the fire in my chest. Only a little, but it was noticeable.

  “It's Sofi,” he said. “I didn't know what to do.”

  “What do you mean?” I said. “She left the city to stay with Karen.”

  “She must have come back,” said Eli. “I went to your apartment to see if you were okay. After the war started, all the people had some spell cast over them. Everyone was asleep. It was damn creepy, I got to tell you. Whole houses and people just asleep where they were standing.”

  “Sofi,” I said. “What about Sofi?”

  “She's in your apartment,” said Eli. He shook his head. “I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if the Deep Blue Sea was even going to be here. And I didn't want to carry her through that.” He gestured toward the front door. “Did you see what I had to get through to even get to the door? She would have been killed for sure.”

  “So you just left her there?” I said.

  “I didn't have a choice,” said Eli.

  “We have to get her,” I said, looking at Sam. He frowned and looked down at his drink. “Sam? Please.” Despite the alcohol I could feel the flare of the heat in my chest.

  “Niki,” said Sam gently, looking up at me. He shook his head. “It's not that I don't want to help you. She is the woman that raised you and you love her. But if I go outside, it will give Michael what he wants.”