The Nephilim (28 page)

“You know he was never going to pay you, don't you? Benedict never pays anyone. He betrays instead. He sent you here to get caught.”

The last wasn't true. Benedict really had wanted them to kill him. He wouldn't have minded if they got caught, but not until after they'd murdered him. But sooner or later it would have been true. Once the thief no longer had any use for them. After all, he had no plans for splitting any of his gold with them. Or with anyone else.

“He wouldn't.”

But the man who said it was half out of it as he denied him. His mind was working almost on automatic. The other man was already unconscious. That didn't matter though. What mattered was that Garrick had Benedict's scent clean and sharp. And he knew it was fresh. He could almost see the factory in his thoughts, and he knew where it was. That was all he wanted.

After that he let the silence take hold as he waited for the police and planned his story for them. Something about staying in a cheap motel to avoid the press who were still camped outside his home. About having rushed to the bathroom the moment he'd heard the men at the lock, and then having to open fire as they realised he wasn't in the bed. That he had put the cushions in the bed because he had to sleep with his leg elevated. That he had not called the police immediately he'd heard them at the door because he'd left his phone on the other side of the room. And that one of the two would be assassins had told him that Benedict had paid them to kill him. That it was him who had tried and failed to kill him before. And where to find Benedict. It should work. After all both men were unconscious. Neither would be able to say the other hadn't said anything. And if he knew criminals and the complete lack of honour they had, each would shortly be trying to claim it was him that had volunteered the information. Whatever they needed to do to earn a shorter sentence.

Then it would be up to Garrick to send the police on their way to the factory. He doubted they would catch the thief. Benedict would have a back door already prepared. But the chances of him being able to escape with Katarinka in tow were small. Especially when he'd panicked and rushed to have him killed and would surely be even now sitting in his factory waiting for a phone call giving him the good news. He simply hadn't had the time to prepare as well as he normally did.

To add to his woes, in fleeing Benedict would leave behind more clues as to his plans. He would end up running through more of his associates, using up more money and resources, and no doubt a few more of his aliases would have been expended. 

But perhaps more importantly, he would be losing credibility. That would hurt him badly. Benedict could always draw top shelf associates because he had an established reputation as a successful bank robber. Even if too often his associates ended up in the slammer because of him. Most would assume that was just the hazard of the job. And Benedict was a successful thief and criminals valued that. They would willingly work with someone who had got away with his crimes. And most didn't know that so many of his confederates ended up in jail – let alone that it was because of him. But now he was being hunted. His operations were falling apart one by one. And he was being slowly turned from a successful thief into a fugitive living on borrowed time. No one would want to be near him. They wouldn't help him. They wouldn't deal with him. They would abandon him.

This, Garrick decided, had been a bad night for the thief. But as his hand dripped blood on to the carpet he wondered if it had really been such a good day for him? He also worried that it would turn out to be a very bad day for the kid.

He knew she would still be alive for the moment. Benedict hadn't gone to all that trouble to kidnap her simply to kill her. Her gift was valuable to him and he had plans for her. Or he had had plans until everything had fallen apart. Still even now he would be planning another burglary in which he would use her. That was his way. He always had back up plans and she made difficult robberies that much easier. Alternatively he could be planning on selling her. The girl was a key and she had value in certain circles. A lot of value. Killing her for the moment would be a mistake.

But when the police turned up in force? When Benedict realised he was going to lose her? Then her value to him became nothing. Worse, she was a witness against him. Garrick hated the thought of what Benedict might then do. But he knew it was a possibility that the kid wouldn't make it out alive. Unfortunately it was a certainty that she would be killed if he didn't try and rescue her. Benedict would kill her when he was done with her. And if she was sold to a syndicate they would do the same. Criminals were not good people. So he had to rescue her and hope she survived.

But the most terrible thing of all was that Garrick knew he had to make sure the thief escaped. He hated the idea. It ran against everything he believed in. Everything he lived for. But in the end the thief still had information. He had a sword dangling over the heads of the nephilim and Diogenes. And if he was caught he would use it. The only way they were safe from it was if he was in the wind but not clear. Then he would hold it back because it was a deterrent. Until he was free and clear and filthy rich it was Benedict's best weapon against the nephilim and he knew they were a danger to him. But it was also a weapon he couldn't use, because the instant he did, he no longer had any way of holding them back and he knew they would come for him. He certainly knew Garrick would come for him.

The situation reminded him of the cold war when America and Russia had played a game of détente with their nuclear weapons. Mutually assured destruction. While they each held weapons against the other's head they were, ironically enough, completely safe. No one could pull the trigger. But the instant one side no longer had reason to fear the other, everything fell to pieces. And in Benedict's case that could happen for one of two reasons. The first was if he got away. Found himself an island paradise beyond the reach of the law. Then he had nothing to fear from them and he would undoubtedly release whatever he had simply out of a sense of revenge. The second of course was if he was caught. Then again he would have nothing more to fear from them because he was already screwed.

The entire mess had become a giant twisted game of Russian Roulette. Or maybe a Mexican stand off. Both of them were holding weapons at each other's heads, and neither of them was able to pull the trigger. If Benedict was caught, the nephilim were exposed. So they couldn't let him be caught. But they couldn't let him go completely free either. Because then Benedict would pull the trigger. Meanwhile Garrick had to use all his skill to keep the ageing thief from either being caught or getting away. He needed him on the run and desperate – for as long as possible.

But it couldn't be forever. He knew that. This was a game that ultimately had to end. And when it did it would end badly. All Garrick could do was play for time and hope that some form of miracle happened.

The whole thing made Garrick sick. But more than that, it frightened him. There was so much riding on how well he played this game. So many lives were hanging in the balance.

It almost came as a relief when he heard the sirens outside and the sound of people in the hallway outside his room. When he could finally call out who he was and have the officers take his prisoners away. When he could go with them to the factory. Because if he could do nothing about the larger problem his people faced, at least he could try and rescue the girl. And maybe he could get his hand bandaged up.

Chapter Sixteen

Katz was still locked in her prison cell when she heard the sirens, and the sound filled her with hope. She didn't understand how, but somehow the police had found her.

Excited, she rushed to the window hoping to see a thousand police cars barrelling down the road to rescue her.

But there were only four. Still four, was better than nothing. It was a chance. Then someone inside the building started shooting at them and her excitement turned to terror. Katz hit the floor, hoping that nothing would come her way. But she knew it would. The police weren't going to just sit there and be shot at.

Soon enough her fears were proven correct as bullets started ripping through the walls. Apparently they weren't as tough as they had seemed. Not to bullets anyway. In fact the bullets were ripping holes in them. Each one as it crashed through the walls sent splinters flying everywhere and raised clouds of dust. Each one made her scream.  And if it was like this in her room, she couldn't imagine what it must be like down below where most of the bullets had to be heading.

She quickly found herself a spot in the corner of the room, as far away from the window as she could get, lay down, curled her knees up into her chest to make herself as small a target as she possibly could, and began praying to a God she had never believed in. And all the time she was also thinking – two gun fights in as many days? It just didn't seem fair. It wasn't fair.

Katz lay there on the floor for what seemed like ages while bullets whizzed back and forth. Every so often another cloud of wood dust would land on her while she wondered who would come through the door first for her. From the men on loudspeakers and the extra sirens she could hear, she guessed the police were gathering in numbers outside. They would surely win the battle in time. But Armando might try and grab her before they came through the doors. As Garrick had said, her gift made her valuable to him. But he had also said he would kill her if she gave him any trouble. And while this wasn't her doing, it was trouble. Then things started exploding and she forgot about him.

Someone was blowing up the building while she was still locked inside it! That wasn't good, and yet there was nothing she could do about it. She was still trapped. All she could do was pray harder. But then, when a couple of bullets ripped through the wall just a couple of feet above her head, she had another idea.

“
Cassie!”

Katz called for the angel instinctively, knowing that she alone could protect her and hoping that this time maybe she finally would. Now that her life was in absolute danger. Surely she wouldn't just let her die?

“No need to shout child.”

Katz nearly fainted when she saw the angel standing there in front of her. One moment there had been nothing there, the next Cassie was standing right in front of her.  And all without so much as a flicker of light or the slightest sound. She'd seen her do that before of course – just not when she'd wanted her to. But now she was here in answer to her prayers? Maybe she really was an angel!

Without thinking, Katz got up and ran for her. Moments later she was hugging her tightly and blubbering like a child. Doing all the things she should never do. And top of the list was hugging a woman who had crippled her. But at that moment she didn't care. She was far too frightened. All she wanted to do was escape this place and she started pleading with her to get her out of this death trap.

“You know I can't do that child.”

Cassie held her tight, almost like a mother, though far too stiffly. But her words made no sense. Cassie could easily bring her to safety. She should. They were like family. And anyway she was an angel. So why had she come if she wasn't going to save her? Katz let it all pour out as she stood there wrapped up in her arms. All of her fear and confusion and doubt wrapped up in two simple words.

“You can!”

“I can't. The rules forbid me to act save in a very few minor ways. I can't take you from this room because the others know you're locked in here. If you weren't here and there was no explanation as to how you escaped it might expose the truth. Miracles can only be very rare things.”

“I don't care!”

“But I do.” Cassie held her tight as she said it. Her words would have been more convincing if a bullet hadn't smashed through the window just then, spraying glass everywhere and causing Katz to scream.

“However,” continued Cassie, “I can help you to save yourself as long as no one sees me. And you might want to start that by moving to your left.
Right now!”

“Left?” Katz didn't understand but she quickly did as she was told, stepping to her side in perfect time with Cassie, almost as if they were dancing. Moments later a pair of bullets smashed up through the floor where she had just been standing, and she understood. The angel could guide her. If it was possible to survive in this hell hole, the angel could show her how to. What she didn't understand was why someone in the building below was shooting straight up. Still, that was for someone else to worry about.