hope that the cops were okay with them shooting up a storefront, or they would have to disappear.
I put up my hand and coughed into the back of it, and then tensed to make my move. The fields picked that exact moment to jerk me around, and the overwhelming return of the vortex sent its own ribbon of dizzying sensations through my body. I stumbled and fell right into the open space between the two halves of the counter, the immenseness of the field feedback an immovable weight.
Then it was gone.
The gunfire had stopped.
It was as if everything had stopped.
I planted my hands and pushed myself to my knees, turning my head to look outside.
Three bodies lay on the pavement in riding jackets and jeans, blood pooling around their bald heads.
A fourth figure turned the corner and moved into the open doorway, blocking my view of them.
SIX
Red light. Green light.
He was dressed in a suit that was nice, but not too nice. It was a second or third tier designer, a thousand dollars at least, probably not much more. He was average height, average build, with an average face and a neatly trimmed beard. He was calm and collected, even as he stepped carefully over the broken glass and brownies that littered the floor between us.
"Conor," he said.
He knew who I was, too. So much for staying out of the spotlight. What had I done to deserve this?
I coughed again, and then grabbed the side of the counter. I tested it to make sure it wasn't too decimated to support me, using it to pull myself up to a stand. I could still feel the fields rocking and rolling, and I held my breath so I wouldn't puke all over Suit's suit.
He reached me and put out his hand, using it to wipe some dust and debris off the shoulder of my coat. "You look like shit."
"I get that a lot."
His laugh was annoying. Arrogant. "You would, wouldn't you. You're welcome, by the way." He motioned towards the stiffs outside, and then glanced down at the orc, whose blood was slowly running towards our feet. "A messy way to die."
I looked back at the body. The damage was more than even I could take. I leaned over and let myself vomit.
"I stopped by yesterday looking for you," Suit said, not at all disturbed by the pulp of the orc or the bloody mess of my expulsion. "We had a feeling you would be just about due for another hit of the medicine. Our calculations were slightly off."
How much did he know about me? How? Why? I didn't like it at all.
I straightened up again, sidestepping before I was standing in orc blood. He did the same. "We should make ourselves scarce before LE shows up."
"I've already taken care of the cops."
Damn. I was afraid of that.
"Which House?" I asked.
"Not a House, per se." Whatever the fuck that meant. "Not yet."
A House that wasn't a House? Could you like something less than not at all? I used my sleeve to wipe my mouth. "Whatever you're going to say, can you hold it for a minute? I came in with someone. I want to check on her."
He titled his head. "You already know she's dead."
I smiled. "Okay. I want to see if the meds I was buying are down there with the bodies."
"They aren't."
"How do you know?"
He shrugged. "Apparently, I know more about what's going on with you than you do. And I'm not even trying that hard. Still, I want you to trust me, so what say we take the walk together?"
He put his hand on my shoulder and guided me towards the back room. He managed to get past the orc in a series of smooth steps that left him clean and dry. I wasn't as graceful, winding up with some splatter on the bottom of my pant leg.
The stairs would normally have been hidden behind a false wall. The wall had been swung aside. Metal steps angled downward. The lights were still on, and the stink of death was rising up from the depths.
"How do you know so much about me?" I asked while we descended.
"It's my job to know."
"Was it expensive?"
He laughed. "Very. Don't get me wrong, necromancer. You weren't easy to catch up to. It took us almost six months to root you out."
Six months? That was about how long it had been since Red had screwed me over and left me high and dry.
We reached the