TEN
A loud crash woke Sebastian. He jolted upright in bed, grimacing at the pain in his arm and trying to get his bearings. Shaking his head, he reached for his gun at the same moment he heard footsteps thundering down the hall past his room. Fumbling into a pair of pants that were on the floor, he recognized Hans’s voice going past his door. He threw open his bedroom door and ran down the hall, quickly following the Guardians running into Alex’s room. Bursting in, he saw Russell in a wrestling match with a man he didn’t know on the floor. The Guardians raised their weapons, trying to get a clear shot. Russell saw them raise their guns and grunted, “No! No! Don’t shoot him!”
Sebastian had no idea what to think of that order, but he’d be damned if he was going to stand by and watch Russell get attacked by whoever this guy was. He jumped on the back of the man at the first opportunity, forcing his good arm around the guy’s neck. Taking advantage of the break, Russell rolled out of the fight. Meanwhile, the red-haired man in Sebastian’s arms flung curses and thrashed about. Sebastian’s injured arm grazed the ground, and he yelled out in pain. Russell placed his hands on his knees and tried to catch his breath. “Sweet Jupiter! He’s as strong as an ox!”
As the man started to wear down and thrash less, Sebastian grunted at Russell. “Who the devil is he?”
“Alex’s brother, Glen.”
Sebastian waited until Glen stopped trying to get out of the chokehold before he spoke into the man’s ear. “Listen, I’m gonna let you go now. Please don’t give the Guardians any reason to shoot you, ok?”
Sebastian waited until he got a nod from Glen before quickly releasing him and stepping back out of the line of fire. The Guardians kept their weapons locked on their target as Glen rolled into a sitting position, breathing heavily, glaring at Russell and Sebastian in turn. “What have you done to her?”
Russell shook his head, still breathing heavily. He looked at Sebastian. “I tried to tell him there was an accident, but he didn’t believe me. I called for Garrett with the button thingy, and he attacked me right after. Garrett walked in on this and called the Guardians.”
Sebastian snorted as he looked at Glen. “You really think incapacitating the people taking care of your sister is going to make her better?”
Glen glared at Sebastian, his face flushed with fury. “All I know,” he said, “is that your buddy here tells me she’s in a coma, and he can’t tell me why. Just it was an ‘accident’. Why the hell isn’t she in a hospital?”
Russell leaned back against the wall next to Alex’s bed. Sebastian approached Glen and offered him a hand, which he scowled at but took, rising to his feet. “Because your hospitals wouldn’t be able to help her.”
Glen shook his head, backing toward the bed. He turned and thrust a finger toward Russell. “Why the hell did he blindfold me on the way here? What are you people into?”
Russell spoke up from behind Glen, making him turn. “You’re lucky you’re even here. You’re the second guest we’ve ever had, and the first is right behind you.”
Glen gazed down at the bed where his sister lay. “Some way to treat your guests.”
Sebastian looked behind him to where the Guardians still stood on full alert. Hans raised his eyebrows at Sebastian. Sebastian shrugged, glancing at Glen. “You guys can bail. I’ll let you know if there’s trouble. I know you’ve got your hands full elsewhere.”
Hans gave a curt nod before the Guardians filed out of the room, the door clicking shut behind them. Sebastian looked back to where Glen stood. Taking a deep breath, he moved to the corner of the room where a mini-fridge sat. He pulled three bottles of water from within and tossed one at each of the two men in the room with him.
Glen opened the bottle warily, and Sebastian didn’t miss how he eyeballed the seal on the cap first. Thinking of what he had been up to less than a week before, Sebastian chuckled at the irony.
Glen’s head jerked up at the sound of laughter. Sebastian noted his expression and shook his head. “Never mind. It doesn’t have to do with this. Just remembering something.”
Glen looked down at Alex. “She asked for me?”
Russell approached his elbow. “It was of great importance to her. She wanted you here very badly. The coma set in right after.”
Glen shook his head and sat down in a chair next to the bed. His hands rubbed his face in frustration. “Please. Please tell me what happened.”
Russell shook his head and looked at Sebastian. Sebastian decided to hell with it.
“We’re immortal.”
Glen’s hands paused, and he brought his face up to glare at Sebastian while Russell’s mouth dropped in surprise. Sebastian just sighed and moved to stand on the other side of Alex’s bed.
Glen’s face turned red as he lifted himself to his feet. Russell moved behind him, defensively reaching for his gun. Sebastian raised a hand to ward Russell off and waited to see what Glen would do. “You drag me here, won’t tell me what’s wrong with my sister, and then make up some story…” Glen bit on his words, visibly trying to keep his temper in check. “What the hell is wrong with you people?”
Sebastian glanced at Russell, who shrugged. Sebastian looked back at Glen and considered him, pursing his lips. “If I can prove it to you beyond a shadow of a doubt will you shut up and listen?”
Russell looked as if he was going to object, but Sebastian shook his head briskly. Russell clamped his lips together, his eyes darting at Glen. Glen considered for a moment. “You’re all crazy aren’t you?”
Sebastian stood, planting his hands on his hips. “Yes or no?”
Glen shook his head. “You should all be locked up.”
Sebastian looked over at Russell, gesturing. “Russell, give him your gun.”
Russell shook his head. “This is crazy, Sebastian.”
Glen laughed, looked at Sebastian. “See? Even your buddy here thinks you’re crazy. Bunch of crack pots.”
Sebastian took his own gun and pulled out the magazine. He slipped out the bullets inside, replacing them with the old bullets that were still in his pants pocket. He held the reloaded gun out to Glen. “Go on. Take it.”
Glen eyed the gun, warily. “No.”
Sebastian sighed heavily, rolled his eyes, and then turned the gun on himself and shot himself in the chest. Glen jumped back and yelled as Sebastian’s body fell to the floor, blood splattering on the wall. “Sweet mother of God!”
Russell shook his head, groaning. “Sebastian, that’s gonna hurt like hell for days, man.”
Glen jumped back several paces when Sebastian’s voice answered from the floor on the other side of the bed. “I know, I know.”
Glen continued to back away, shaking his head, as Sebastian’s hand appeared and grasped the edge of the bed. His head soon followed, his face grimacing in pain. Glen looked over this shoulder at Russell, now only a pace behind him, then back at Sebastian. “What the…how the…?”
Russell shook his head. “Shit, Sebastian. He’s still not gonna believe you. Look at him.”
Sebastian stood up, blood all over his shirt. He glanced at Glen then raised his shirt up so Glen could see the hole in his chest from the bullet wound, which was slowly closing in on itself, bruises flowering out from the wound site. Glen’s mouth hung open as he shook his head. Sebastian walked slowly around the foot of Alex’s bed. “Is that how it is, Glen? You’re gonna fight like hell for your sister, and then when you find out the truth it’s too much for you? You can’t handle it?” Sebastian’s voice rose as he continued to approach Glen, who was steadily backing away. “You’re going to demand answers and when those answers aren’t good enough, ‘Oh, see ya later! Too much for me!’ Is that how it is?”
Glen shook his head. “I didn’t…you’re…”
Sebastian stopped suddenly, lifting his hands palm up. “Immortal...” Then he remembered Jeremy. “Mostly, anyway. I can’t help it. Your sister needs you. Can you face this?”
Glen swallowed, hard. His face was dangerously pale, his freckles standing out against his white skin. His eyes bugged out as he looked back and forth between Russell and Sebastian, who now stood side by side, awaiting Glen’s answer. Glen lifted a hand slowly as he struggled to steady himself. He walked around the perimeter of the room as he considered. “How did my sister get involved in all this?”
Russell sighed. “Your sister was an innocent bystander. Sebastian and another immortal were attacked the other night. She just happened to be there.”
Glen stopped. “She was attacked when she was near you and you guys think the best place for her to be is with you again?”
Sebastian shook his head. “Regular doctors wouldn’t know what to do for her. There were problems with…exposure to dangerous toxins. Your doctors wouldn’t even recognize them.”
Glen jerked his head toward where his sister lay. “What toxins?”
Russell grimaced, and Sebastian exhaled heavily. “My blood.”
Glen whipped around, incensed. “Your blood? You just shot yourself right next to her!”
Sebastian held up his hands. “No, no. Not just my blood. My blood actually has positive effect on mortals. It was the combination of my blood and the blood of my half-sister that caused the reaction.”
“Why were you both bleeding all over her?”
“Because we were being attacked. In protecting her, we accidentally hurt her. We had no idea it would happen.” Sebastian lowered his voice. “It was an accident. Honestly.”
Glen approached the bed. “And now she’s in a coma.”
Sebastian and Russell nodded, but it didn’t make a difference because Glen only had eyes for his sister. Glen lowered into the chair at Alex’s bedside, resting his forehead on his hands which he folded on her blankets. “What are you doing for her?”
Russell slowly approached the bed. “Garrett said he’s giving her another transfusion of mortal blood. The first transfusion actually went well, and she was getting better. He hopes a second transfusion will wipe out any trace of the exposure to Sebastian and Aspen’s blood.”
Glen nodded. “The only thing…” he turned to look at Sebastian. “The only thing saving you from a serious fight is you were being attacked when it happened.”
Sebastian sighed, lifting his hand to massage the bridge of his nose. “I know a lot of this doesn’t make sense, but you have to calm down and trust us. The only thing that might bring Alex through this is the knowledge someone is standing by her.”
Glen glanced at Sebastian before moving his hand to brush the hair from Alex’s brow. “Do you think she knows I’m here?” he asked.
Sebastian nodded. “Absolutely.”
Glen leaned down next to Alex’s ear. Taking a deep breath, he began to speak to Alex. “Hey, Sis. It’s your stupid brother. Listen, I’m here with Sebastian and Russell. They’re telling me a whole bunch of bullshit, but that doesn’t matter. They’re trying to help you. I’m not going to leave your side. I want you to know you’re going to get through this. If these wack jobs have been around as long as they think they have, they know a whole bunch of shit by now…” Russell snorted into his palm as he glanced over at Sebastian. “…and they’ve got a way to make you better. I’m going to sit right here and make sure they don’t fuck it up.” Glen’s voice cracked on the last word as his eyes filled. Shaking his head and closing his eyes, he lowered his voice as he pressed his lips to Alex’s hands, which he clutched in his own. He turned his head only slightly to indicate he was speaking to Sebastian. “Get out.”
Sebastian gave one curt nod before he and Russell left the room. Once out in the hall, the door closed behind them, and Russell let out a huge whoosh of air. “Holy shit, man. How did you pull that off?”
Sebastian grimaced at his messy shirt in disgust. “I figured the man had nothing to lose. The way he was taking you on? He was going to do whatever he had to do to save his sister, even if it was to listen to a bullshit story.”
“Too bad it’s not bullshit. Do you think Mom’s gonna kill you for saying something?”
Sebastian shook his head. “No. Things are changing. Mortals might actually be better allies than our half-brothers and sisters at this point. Come on, I need to change.”
They headed toward Sebastian’s room as Russell exhaled heavily. “I know. Can you believe Mars? I felt bad for Aspen. She was nearly wiped out by her own god.”
Sebastian grunted, noncommittally. He didn’t want to think about Aspen. He thrust open the door to his room, moving to the closet where a few changes of his clothes had been picked up from his apartment earlier by a Guardian. Russell stood, thinking. “I mean, how would you feel if you found out Psyche sent a demon to wipe out Aspen, knowing you were there?” Sebastian silently took his clothing from the wardrobe, saying nothing. Russell raised his eyebrows. “Sebastian?”
Sebastian yanked off his shirt, wincing as he moved too harshly. “What?” he spat out.
Russell took a couple of cautious steps toward Sebastian. “You don’t think … you know she wasn’t involved, right?”
Sebastian threw a shirt on the bed before moving to the sink in the corner bath. Over his shoulder came a non-committal grunt. “I don’t know what to think anymore.”
Russell approached the bathroom. “Wait a minute. She saved your ass. And Alex’s.”
Sebastian looked over from the sink where he was scrubbing the blood from his chest. “Oh yeah? How do you know? How do you know it wasn’t just part of the master plan? She was following me, you know.”
Russell leaned against the door jamb, evaluating his brother. “Did she tell you why?”
Sebastian just sighed, throwing a bloody washcloth into the laundry basket in the corner. “She said she was interested in the project.”
Russell raised his eyebrows. “Could be true, you know?”
“Well, could be true doesn’t seem to be strong enough conviction to me.”
“But thinking she interfered with her god’s plans for some higher agenda does?”
Sebastian shoved past Russell. “Listen, I don’t know. I don’t know how I feel about any of this.”
“You’re hurt.”
Sebastian snorted. “Hurt? By a Lead Arrow?”
Russell nodded. “Yeah.”
Sebastian raised his eyes at Russell. He wasn’t confessing that to anyone. Not even to Russell. “I just came to my senses is all.”
“Well, I’m not convinced she had anything to do with it. I think we should talk to her. Find out what else she knows. If she helps us, she might actually be telling the truth.”
Sebastian considered this, shrugging on his clean shirt. He delayed his response, staring out the window. “We cannot afford to make any mistakes. We’ve already got two mortals involved, and mortals haven’t been with us for many years. I’m not talking about selected mortals, like Garrett. I’m talking about pedestrian mortals. We’ve got Mars covering up shit. We’re holding a Lead Arrow and a god in our Temple for crimes we cannot prove. The whole system is shaky right now. Trusting the wrong person could be disastrous.”
Russell walked up to Sebastian, waiting until he looked up. “So we don’t trust her. But we have to talk to someone on their side that gives half a shit what we think. She’s the only Lead Arrow that would give us the time of day. Unless you want to start questioning Rogan?”
Sebastian snickered. Russell chuckled as Sebastian nodded his head. “Alright. We’ll talk to Aspen.” He twisted right and left, rolling his shoulders, checking the severity of the remaining damage from the bullet wound.
“Are you gonna need Garrett to look at that?”
Sebastian shook his head as they walked to the door. “Nah. The bullet went through, and it’s not like it has demon poison in it.” He looked at his arm. “I can’t believe how long it’s taking this to heal.”
“It’s only been a day.”
“Yeah, and I just healed from a bullet wound in fifteen minutes, but my arm still hurts. That’s ridiculous.”
They walked a few paces toward Aspen’s room. Just short of her closed door, Sebastian stopped. He paused before looking at Russell.
Russell tilted his head to the side. “What’s on your mind, bro?”
Sebastian exhaled. “I don’t want you to think I’m being an asshole about Aspen. Truth is, I was honestly shocked to find out Mars was involved. I never liked the rat bastard or really trusted him, but I never thought he’d go so far as to turn traitor on Mom.”
Russell nodded his head. “Take it out on all the Lead Arrows, spare no one scrutiny?”
“Right now the shoe fits. I’m just being careful.”
Russell nodded, understanding. Sebastian was always the more cautious of the two of them. They turned toward the door. “Look,” Russell said, pointing at the sliver of light under the door. “She’s already awake.”
“Well, it’s almost dawn by now,” Sebastian said, knocking gently. They waited, but heard nothing. Sebastian knocked again, louder. Turning the door handle, he called out as he pushed open the door. “Aspen?”
The door swung open to reveal a crisply made bed, a bare room, all of Aspen’s things gone. Sebastian moved to the closet then the chest of drawers, pulling open doors and cabinets, all empty. He grimly turned to study Russell. “Still think she’s innocent?”