HeroRising (23 page)

DeWinter raised a surprised brow. “What makes you say that?”

“A soldier follows orders. Only when it becomes personal,
strikes a nerve, does he disagree and fight. Smithwick has become personal. Why
is that? I do not sense it is about your pride at not being able to close this
case.”

The captain shifted in his seat. “He’s a bad man and needs
to be taken off the street.”

“I am not a child, Captain. You are asking me to commit a
crime. Why?”

He sighed and seemed to deflate in his seat like a party
balloon. The touch of gray in his hair seemed more pronounced as did the lines
around his mouth as he said, “Because I’m tired. I’m tired of adding another
name of a girl who has disappeared during a night out with her friends to the
long list of missing persons. I’m tired of having to tell another family
member, like my sister, that their boyfriend, husband, son, brother, died of an
overdose from drugs they bought from one of Smithwick’s dealers. I’m tired of
scraping another would-be thug off the street because they thought they could
run with the big man and failed. I am tired.”

“You get rid of Smithwick and another will take his place.
Men like him are like a hydra. Cut off one head and out sprout three more.”

“But
this
one will be gone.”

Bale shook his head. “I cannot do what you ask. My actions
have hurt Ari enough. I am to pay for my crimes, not commit new ones.”

“That’s noble. Misguided, but noble. Look, without your
confession, the DA has no solid evidence to prosecute you with. If I were to
have arrested you and you fought the charges, the only things they’d have is a
video feed without a clear shot of your face and eye witness accounts, which
are spotty at best. The case against you is weak. As I said, you’ll get a slap
on the wrist, maybe a spanking. If you really want to atone for your sins,
you’ll help me put an end to Smithwick.”

Damn it. Bale clenched his jaw against a scream. Why was it
that whenever he begged for punishment, his wish was never granted, yet when he
wanted nothing but peace, his world tumbled down in fire and brimstone?

If the captain was to be believed, the sacrifice of his
freedom would be minimal at best. And unfortunately for him, there was nothing
in DeWinter’s demeanor that suggested he wasn’t telling anything but the truth.
To prove his contrition to Ari, his gesture needed to be grand. He needed epic.

He needed to not break the law again.

“I cannot, Captain.” He placed his hand on his chest and
pressed against the ache. “I cannot hurt Ari.”

A flare of frustration whipped from DeWinter like a hot
lash. “Think of the girls you will be saving. The girls you have saved. Women
like Ari. Bale, why be the Claymore in the first place? Why have you been doing
what you have?”

“To protect those who cannot protect themselves.” The
response was so ingrained in his psyche, it came readily to his lips.

“And that’s what I’m asking you to do now.” He rose and
straightened his blazer. “I’ll give you some time to think it over. Help me
nail Smithwick, then the Claymore can disappear forever. If I don’t hear from
you by five tomorrow night, I’ll be right over at The Cavern and will arrest
you on sight.”

And with that, he left Bale alone to wallow in his
self-pity. This feeling of impotency made his blood boil over like an acidic
reaction, propelling him from the room as if shot from a cannon. He burst out
of the closest exit onto the street and ran. And ran. And ran. Screaming like a
siren as his rage consumed him to the point of violence. Only his unspoken vow
to Ari to do no harm kept him from tearing the nearest building down with his
bare hands.

How was he going to prove to Ari he could be a better man
and pay for his mistakes if no one allowed him to? The only person who had ever
come close to delivering the punishment he deserved had been Amaryllis—

Amaryllis.

He pulled up short as the tiniest flicker of hope sparked in
the darkness of his hearts.

Yes, his princess always knew what a person needed. She
helped him see the truth when he had come to take her life and punished him
accordingly. The tools still existed to help him again. Fortunately, he knew
who had access to those tools.

From his jacket pocket he withdrew his phone and found the
number for his potential savior. As the line rang, he held his breath. Thank
the Gods, there was a quick answer.

“Bale?”

“Jorges, I need your assistance. I need you to meet me at
The Cavern. Bring the chain.”

“The chain?”

“
The
chain.”

There was a long pause with only Jorges’ gentle breathing
disrupting the silence. His worry and curiosity reached across the distance as
he asked in a hushed voice, “Who’s it for?”

“Me.”

“What’s going on, Bale?”

“I will explain later.”

“Explain now.”

He grunted with frustration. “Ari knows everything. She’s
broken. I need to pay for my crimes and the police will not cooperate. I know
you have the chain and I know Amaryllis and Lucian will disagree with my wishes
if they know what I have planned. Please, help me, Jorges. You’re the only one
who can.”

He sighed loudly. “Okay. We’re just finishing up with
dinner. I can be there in half an hour.”

Relief made his knees buckle. “Thank you. Meet me in the
locker.”

“Damn, you are fighting some demons. See you there.”

He tapped the end of the phone against his forehead and
released a long breath. There was every possibility Jorges could expose his
plan to the princess, but he prayed the man understood his desperation and
allowed him the opportunity to make things right in his own way.

The skies split open and rain pelted the earth in a furious
waterfall. The deluge was either a sign that his soul would be cleansed or an
omen of ill yet to come. With his luck, both were possibilities.

When Jorges met him twenty-seven minutes later in the
basement far beneath the nightclub, the tension in his muscles began to abate.
Finally, salvation was within his grasp.

“Thank you, Jorges,” he said with a firm handshake.

He nodded. “I can’t pretend to know what you’re thinking,
but I know you’d rather cut off your nuts than ask for help, so I figured this
must be serious.”

“You would be correct.”

Jorges unlocked the door and pushed it open. “After you.”

The locker
was the affectionate term for the storage
unit in the basement of the nightclub. Cold, damp and with a single light bulb
for illumination, it was the room where spare furniture and decorations from
events past lived until called upon for service again. Since Jorges rarely
reused his ideas, very few people came down this hall, which made this the
perfect location for Bale’s purpose.

Jorges set down a leather bag and withdrew several yards of
thick chain. “How do you want to do this?”

Bale surveyed the room, up, down and all around until he
spotted a line of straight-back chairs hanging from a hook screwed into the
ceiling. “That might do.”

With Jorges’ help he moved the chairs. Once the task was
finished Bale nodded at the hook. “Hang on and see if it will hold your body
weight. If I try at full strength, I’ll rip it out of the ceiling.”

Jorges leapt into the air for the hook. He hung on for
fifteen seconds before dropping back to the ground. “Felt good. Not even a
squeak.”

“Good. Let’s do this.” He stripped off his shirt while
Jorges climbed onto a chair to secure the center of the chain to the hook.

“Arms up or down?”

“Up. I’m not doing this for comfort.”

Bale lifted his arms and Jorges wound the chain around each
wrist then pulled until his torso stretched out long before continuing to
spiral the ends of the chain around each arm. While Jorges finished wrapping
his legs, Bale felt the molybdenite leech the strength from his muscles. The
last time he had been bound in such a manner, he had been unconscious and
missed out on the rolling nausea and dizziness that came with losing his
powers. It was terrifying being parted with his ability to defend himself, but
the terror was nothing compared to the pain Ari felt when faced with who he
was. If it made the situation any better, he’d suffer the loss a million times
over.

“Is this what you wanted?” Jorges asked as he stepped back.

“Ya.”

“How long do you want me to wait before I tell Lucian and
Amaryllis?”

The question almost made him smile. At least Jorges was
granting him this small boon. “A year?”

“No.”

“A month.”

“We both know that’s not going to happen. I guess it will be
up to me to decide when you’ve had enough time to settle in before calling Mom
and Dad. The anticipation will be part of your self-inflicted punishment.”

“Thank you, Jorges,” he slurred as the effects of the chain
seeped into his bones. Fire bloomed in his shoulders as his body weight pulled
on the chains.

“Keep that in mind when Amaryllis lays into you. Good luck,
Bale.”

His eyelids grew heavy and his vision blurred as Jorges’
footsteps faded into the darkness. The descending silence went beyond the
absence of sound. Without his powers he no longer was able to sense emotions.
For the second time in his life he wasn’t bombarded by the constant noise of
living. No buzz, no hum. Absolute nothingness. Numb, as if dead.

After all he had done, death would be a reward he didn’t
deserve.

* * * * *

The sound of a whistling tea kettle roused Ari from her
nightmares. Bale had stood in her living room and calmly declared himself a
murderer. The image had been the most horrible thing she ever witnessed.

Wait. Tea kettle? Was Bale still in the apartment with her?

She sat up with a gasp and frowned when she realized she was
laid out on the couch. In the kitchen Amaryllis hummed while she poured boiling
water into two mugs.

“I was wondering how long you’d be asleep,” she said by way
of greeting.

Ari rubbed her cheek as if she could still fill the chilly
bathroom tile against her skin. “I’m so confused. Why are you here? How did I
get on the couch?”

“I carried you. And do you seriously have to ask as to why I
am here?”

“You carried me? But how…” The words died as Amaryllis came
into the living room with a knowing smile on her lips, as if it were no great
effort to have carried a grown woman across the room. “You’re like Bale, aren’t
you?”

“Meaning am I from another planet and have special powers?
Then yes.”

Well fuck. She sank into the cushions. “Is it true? Is what
he said true?”

“Well, I don’t know exactly what he told you, but judging by
the sobbing heap I saw in the hallway, I would say yes to that too.”

“Who was sobbing?” she asked and watched as Amaryllis set
one of the mugs on the coffee table.

“Bale. He was devastated by your reaction.”

“He’s killed people, Amaryllis. For money. How was I
supposed to react?”

“Just as you have. I was not belittling you for your
feelings, Ari. Believe me. Here, take this. It will help steady your nerves and
sooth your throat.” The scent of orange and cinnamon tickled her nose as
Amaryllis offered her a steaming mug.

“I don’t think I should,” she croaked and stuck her shaking
hands under her butt. “I’ll spill and burn myself.”

“Give me your hand.” She pulled at her wrist and guided her
fingers around the warm mug and held them with her own. “Wrap them around the
ceramic. Let the warmth seep into your hands and travel up your arms to your
heart. Breathe and know that all will be well.”

In the swirling depths of Amaryllis’ all seeing-eyes, Ari
desperately wanted to believe her, but the notion was impossible. “How can you
say that? What does that even mean? I can’t unlearn what I’ve learned.”
Distress made her voice squeak. “I am in love with a murderer. How sick does
that make me? I’m like those women who form fan clubs about mass murderers and
marry them in prison.”

“Don’t be so melodramatic. You are perfectly normal. You
fell in love with Bale as the man he is today, not the man from the past. And
the man you fear was only who he was for a brief moment in time and not who he
truly is.”

“You’re speaking in riddles to try to confuse me and make
this whole mess seem not that important.”

“No, I’m only trying to give you perspective. How would you
like it if I called you an adulterer because of your affair with that married
politician and treated you with disdain?”

She flinched as if slapped. “That’s not fair. I didn’t know
he was married, and I ended the relationship the second I found out.”

“But you were still involved with a married man and caused
anguish to his family. Ari, you cannot choose to live in shades of gray when it
suits your purposes. Now, Bale told you his story. Let me tell you mine. Settle
in,
lebshone
.” She sat beside her on the couch and covered both of their
laps with a fleece blanket. “When a kingdom is at war it affects everyone, no
matter their station, and there is no escape from its reach. Bale is a warrior.
Born to fight and protect and he is very good at it. That is why he was
selected to serve on my father’s guard.”

“Your father? Wait, the king?” Holy crap. “That means
you’re—”

“Was.” Her smile was bittersweet. “Was, darling. My father
was a king who came from a long, long, long line of kings. He was a good king
but also a very arrogant one. He was naïve about the lives of his people. My
mother did all she could to connect him with those they ruled, but she was female.
What do females know of politics and leadership? As I said, arrogant. The
people revolted, but those who led the revolution where no better than my
father and his lords. Lives were destroyed. Families torn apart, like Bale’s
and mine. For my protection I was sent to Earth. My exile was a blessing and a
curse. I knew I would never see my friends or family again but here I have so
many more freedoms than I did back on Skandavia. Earth is my home and I love it
here.”