Part 16 (1/2)
”Oh but you have!” Chuckling more to myself than anyone else. ”We took your silence as consent. Not to worry! We will make everything official on Kings Day after the first of the year.”
”Oh for G.o.ds sake will you guys stand and tell me what's going on?”
”By your command.” Rex intoned as he flopped into his seat breathing heavily. ”You are the new Gatekeeper, may you guide us wisely.”
”I will do my best.” he answered sheepishly.
”Care for a drink?” I asked as I patted him on the shoulder. ”I have an excellent bottle of rye whiskey I picked up just a few days ago.”
”Can you make it a double?” Nathan rubbed his head furiously.
Pouring a fresh drink for everyone we all toasted the new Gatekeeper. Rex and Zulu were quick to explain his duties, which made him pale as they got to some of the nastier bits. It wasn't long before everyone from my office stepped into the lobby to announce the new Gatekeeper to the waiting throng. Kings Day this year would be something to remember. The courts would be in full regalia lead by Comus through the streets of New Orleans as the Gatekeeper's t.i.tle would be officially cemented in ceremony, something that hadn't happened in nearly a hundred years.
Chapter 23.
It was just after dusk when the last of the court's delegates left the building. Still angry over our earlier conversation Katherine had taken the first opportunity to vacate the premises several hours earlier. Kira hated such gatherings and had excused herself to return to her duties, which meant she was willing to suffer through taking a second look at her new best friend Owen to escape the revelry. This gave me an opportunity to speak with Nicholas to see how he was holding up. He seemed like a good kid and the past couple days had to have been extremely hard on him. He entered my office door and nervously took a seat.
Each time his nerves got the better of him his foot to tap as he waited to see what might happen next. To his credit he tried to force himself still. ”You wanted to see me?”
His voice trembled as he spoke. I just couldn't tell if it was from anger or sadness. I didn't blame him for either emotion. He had been forced to watch his mother being butchered in front of him, and now was forced to deal with strangers as he tried to figure out his next step.
”I know it's hard but try and relax.” G.o.d that sounded weak and stupid even to me. How the h.e.l.l was he supposed to relax especially after the last few days. It wasn't as if he were on vacation.
He gave me one of those you have to be kidding looks. ”Yeah that's a lot easier said than done at this point.” He cracked his knuckles. ”I'd really like to get my hands on Smith truth be known.”
”That's a good sign...” Getting up I crossed the room and poured us both a gla.s.s of whiskey.
”What's a good sign?” He growled.
”Your p.i.s.sed!” Handing him his gla.s.s I took the seat opposite him as I relaxed. ”You should be. Thing is you want to do something about it and not wallow in self pity.”
He sniffed the tumbler before taking a swig. ”This is some good stuff.”
”It ought to be.” Raising my gla.s.s in toast. ”To vengeance! It isn't just for the lord anymore.”
That nearly made him laugh before he polished off the gla.s.s. It was a good thing I'd brought the bottle. ”So is that why I'm here? Vengeance?”
Pouring us both another gla.s.s I just didn't know where to start. ”Kira said you were pretty cut up...”
That made him smile as he grabbed his gla.s.s. ”So much for HIPPA laws I suppose...” He took a drought before sitting his gla.s.s aside and pulling up his s.h.i.+rt. He'd almost healed from his wounds. ”As I said before, I heal up quickly.”
Yeah too quickly to be anything natural! Unless he were more like me than I'd guessed. ”Has that always been the case?” Maybe Gullveig had succeeded in pa.s.sing along the nanites to the triplets somehow or maybe they'd been implanted with more of the infamous cane.
”I suppose it has. I'd always healed quickly but when I hit p.u.b.erty it seemed to hit overdrive.”
Pouring a third round I sat back and thought of the possibilities. ”Did anything other than p.u.b.erty happen around then?”
He pondered that as he sipped his drink and I practically saw the light bulb go off over his head. ”When I was twelve I went in for wrist surgery after I broke it playing ball.” Taking another long drink he nodded his head. ”Yeah it was after that things really kicked into high gear. I'd always attributed it to p.u.b.erty, but I'm betting you think the surgery had something to do with it.”
Standing I made my way back around the desk, opening the bottom drawer to pull out the evidence bag Pete had given me. ”I don't know what to think but he surgery may have sped things along.” Tossing the bag to Nicholas I asked. ”Ever seen anything like that before?”
He examined the bag closely. ”Do you mind if I take a closer look?”
”Knock yourself out.” Coming around I watched his face as he opened the bag, longingly looking at the bone. ”Have you seen this before?”
He shook his head slowly as if he were mesmerized by it. ”No, but there is something about it that calls to me. What is it?”
”Before I answer that we need to talk about your mother.”
He forced himself to put the bag in his lap as he tore his eyes off the small bone and tried to give me his full attention. ”What about her? Did you find the woman who murdered her?”
”Not yet but we're working on that even as we speak.”
Pulling my tablet off my desk I opened the file with several personal photo's we discovered on Creepy George's computer. Handing it to him, he gingerly took it and scanned through the photos. The two he seemed focused on were of Helena, Galvez, Smith and Creepy George all standing around holding Gullveig's cane, looking like the best of friends. The second one was a photo of his mother and Galvez holding both he and his brother as babies for a family photo. I felt bad for destroying the image he'd had of his mother but in this case it couldn't be helped. He took the news exceptionally well all things considered which made be a be concerned. If I'd thought he was angry before he was well beyond that petty emotion and was now numb. It barely phased him when he learned he was actually a triplet. I knew that at some point he would need to process this information and I could only hope he wouldn't break.
To make matters more complicated his brother was two floors below in the medical facility undergoing a second examination. Nicholas seemed torn between wanting to meet his brother and coming to terms with the fact his mother wasn't the woman he thought she was. He was surprisingly quick to connect the dots and figure out the woman who'd tortured him and killed his mother was his long lost sister. Honestly that last bit of information more than anything else seemed to turn his all consuming fury up to eleven. As he s.h.i.+fted in his chair the bone rolled out of the open bag which he quickly caught before it hit the floor.
The effect was nearly instantaneous. The long inactive nanites sprung to life as they melted into the palm of his hand. Within seconds nothing remained but his flesh of his palm. Nicholas grasped his arm as he fell to the floor convulsing. Rus.h.i.+ng to his side I held him still as I called for help. Kira was through the door almost instantly. ”What happened?”
Nicholas suddenly stopped thras.h.i.+ng as he fell unconscious. ”Long story short, that bone we recovered from Creepy George liquified and crawled inside of him!” I told Kira ”How the h.e.l.l can that even be possible?”
”I have a sneaking suspicion but I need you to examine him immediately, and yourself for that matter, and look for an implant like mine in the ear ca.n.a.ls.” Making him as comfortable as possible I called for a gurney to take him downstairs. ”It would seem that you two might have more in common that it would appear.”
”We need to talk about this after we get things settled.” Kira commanded as she waved in the nurse and two men carrying the stretcher. ”Also, Owen has asked to speak with you. Are you up for it after this?”
”Sure why not.” I answered. Watching Nicholas's unconscious form being loaded onto the stretcher I caught sight of my daughter eyeing him closely. ”Are you looking for something in particular?”
”Just trying to figure this whole thing out is all.” Her frustration at the situation was evident.
She told the nurse to keep an eye on Nicholas's vitals until she arrived, and waited for them to leave the room. Closing the door she wanted to know how it could be that he might have the same implants. It was only a theory but I told her what I knew, that both his parents were forced to insert the bones of a fallen royal that were covered in nanites under their flesh. Due to their exposure for several years prior to the birth of the children it was only a presumption that they too would inherit the nanites. Kira on the other hand would have inherited these traits from me but we wouldn't know if any of this was true until she completed the tests.
”Good luck with Owen. Maybe he will promise to sperm you too.” Kira rolled her eyes as she left the office.
My office door swung open a few minutes later as Owen slinked in before kicking my door shut behind him. His demeanor was more than a little insulting and presumptuous and downright arrogant. He eyed me with contempt as he oozed into the chair before kicking his feet up on my desk. He was a few inches shorter and several shades darker than Nicholas. They had similar features that would have been more p.r.o.nounced when they were younger, but as adults those features were muted with age.
”Would you mind taking your feet off my desk? I would really appreciate it.”
In response to my request he kicked off one of his penny loafers which skidded to a halt by my right hand. His cheeks flushed crimson as he sneered at me. ”Actually I do mind.” He leaned over and blew a snot rocket on my floor. ”What the h.e.l.l is this place? Are you in charge of this circus?”
”I suppose I am.” Eyeing his shoe that rested near my hand I had to resist the urge to return it to him hard and fast across his face. ”Why do you ask?”
”When can I go home?” He wiped his nose across his sleeve. ”I am tired of that dike poking and prodding me all hours of the day and night.”