14. Varak
CHAPTER 14
VARAK
T he message flashes on my beeper's tiny screen. 911 AILEEN. My hearts skip a beat.
"We'll have to continue this another time." I shake hands with the suits across the conference table, already heading for the door.
The elevator takes forever. Each floor ticks by slower than the last. I pull out my compad, ready to call the moment I hit the lobby.
And there she is. Leaning against my limo in that little black dress I bought her last week. Something's off.
"Hello, handsome."
"Aileen, we talked about using the emergency code-"
She presses against me, her perfume cloying and wrong. The scent hits my nose - acrid, chemical. Like burning plastic mixed with rotting fruit.
"I missed you." Her voice purrs but lacks Aileen's natural warmth. Her movements are too fluid, too calculated.
My stomach turns. This close, there's no mistaking that smell. Grolgath. The shape-stealing zealots who'd kill their own mothers if it served their goddess.
I keep my face neutral even as rage builds in my chest. This imposter wearing my Aileen's face means the real Aileen is in danger. Or worse.
"Is something wrong?" Not-Aileen tilts her head, studying me with eyes that are perfect copies but empty of the spark that makes them truly Aileen's.
"No." I force a smile. "Everything's fine."
I hold the door open for Not-Aileen, sliding in beside her. My finger finds the hidden panic button under the armrest. Three quick taps - our code for "Plan Echo."
"Where are we headed?" Not-Aileen's hand slides up my thigh. The touch makes my scales crawl under my holographic disguise.
"I know the perfect spot. Somewhere private."
The limo turns onto Lake Shore Drive, heading for the abandoned development project on the south side. No civilians, no collateral damage. Just me and this abomination wearing my Aileen's face.
"Private sounds perfect." Not-Aileen leans in close. That chemical stench grows stronger. "I've been thinking about getting you alone all day."
"Have you now?" I trace her jaw with my finger, fighting back the urge to snap her neck right here. Need to wait until Marcus is clear. Need to know where the real Aileen is first.
The fake's eyes light up with predatory glee. She thinks she has me right where she wants me. Her fingers drum against my chest in a gesture that's almost Aileen's, but not quite right.
"Oh yes. I have such plans for you tonight."
"As do I." I pull her closer, playing my part. "Such special plans."
The limo turns down the access road toward the construction site. Soon. Very soon this creature will learn exactly what happens to those who dare harm what's mine.
"Kiss me," Not-Aileen purrs, her lips seeking mine.
I capture her mouth, suppressing my revulsion at the taste - like licking a battery. Nothing like the sweet honey of my Aileen's kisses. This creature's movements are mechanical, rehearsed. No passion, no fire.
"I want to try something." I reach under the seat, pulling out the leather cuffs I usually save for much more pleasant activities. "Do you trust me?"
"Of course." Her smile doesn't reach her eyes.
The first cuff clicks around her wrist. Then the second. She doesn't resist - probably thinks this is foreplay. The rope comes next, weaving between the cuffs in an intricate pattern that would make escape impossible even for a shapeshifter.
"Kinky." She wiggles against the restraints. "I like this side of you."
My fingers brush her neck, finding the pressure point that would end her in seconds. Not yet. First, I need answers.
"Where is she?"
"Who?"
"If you've hurt her..." The words catch in my throat. The thought of my Aileen in pain, scared, alone - it tears at my hearts like razor wire.
Not-Aileen's skin ripples, a flash of green scales showing through. "I don't know what you mean."
The limo slows, gravel crunching under the tires. We've reached the construction site. Good. No witnesses, no interruptions.
"We'll see about that." I check the restraints one final time. "And pray to your goddess you're telling the truth. Because if anything's happened to my Aileen, there won't be enough of you left to fill a specimen jar."
Marcus guns the engine and peels away, leaving us alone in this concrete wasteland. Gravel crunches under my feet as I circle to the passenger door.
"Where is the real Aileen? I'm only going to ask nicely once."
"But I am the real Aileen!" Her voice quavers perfectly. "Baby, you're scaring me."
My hand shoots out, grabs her hair, and slams her face-first through the window. Glass shatters in a crystalline spray. The imposter writhes, whimpering in pain.
"Please..." She uses Aileen's voice, the one that makes my hearts ache. "You're hurting me. Why are you doing this?"
For a heartbeat, doubt creeps in. What if I'm wrong? What if this really is my Aileen?
Then I see it - her skin ripples, turning cerulean blue for just a split second before shifting back to Aileen's olive complexion. The sight makes my blood boil.
"I'm not going to fall for your tricks." My knuckles crack as I flex my fingers. "Tell me where the real Aileen is, or you will regret being alive."
The ropes fall away like water through a sieve. Not-Aileen's body twists impossibly, bones and joints bending in ways that make my stomach turn.
"You can't tie up a shapeshifter, you imbecile." Her skin ripples blue, hair blazing orange. She lunges at me with inhuman speed.
I dodge the first strike but her arm stretches like taffy, wrapping around my throat. My fist connects with her jaw - it's like punching wet clay. The impact leaves a crater in her face that fills back in instantly.
"Aileen. Faker. Aileen. Faker." The words spill from her mouth in a monotone loop, her voice distorting with each repetition.
I slam her against the wall but she flows around me like quicksilver. My claws tear through her flesh but the wounds seal instantly. She reforms behind me, that haunting chant growing louder.
"Aileen. Faker. Aileen. Faker."
Her fingers elongate into tentacles, wrapping around my arms and legs. I rip free only to have her body surge forward like a tidal wave. We crash through a half-finished wall in a shower of drywall and splinters.
"AILEEN. FAKER. AILEEN. FAKER."
The chant echoes off concrete walls as we grapple. Every blow I land just gets absorbed into her malleable form. She's everywhere at once - flowing, shifting, reforming. My training never covered anything like this.
Her face splits into a grotesque grin that stretches ear to ear. "AILEEN FAKER AILEEN FAKER AILEEN FAKER!"
I back away from her flailing limbs, leading her toward the steel skeleton of the unfinished building. The scaffolding rises like a metal mountain against the night sky.
"Come get me, you shape-stealing zealot."
Her body twists and flows as she pursues me up the girders. Each step takes us higher above Chicago's glittering streets. Wind whips at my clothes, the city spreading out beneath us like a carpet of stars.
"AILEEN FAKER AILEEN FAKER!"
Perfect. The thing's so focused on its prey, it doesn't notice the trap. We reach the highest platform, nothing but empty air between us and the ground far below.
"No more running?" Her grotesque grin stretches impossibly wide.
"No more running."
I lunge forward, my boot connecting with her chest. For a split second, triumph surges through me as she topples backward into open space.
Then I feel it - her arm stretching like rubber, wrapping around my waist. My victory turns to horror as she yanks me over the edge with her.
We plummet through the night air, the ground rushing up to meet us. Her tentacle-like limbs coil around me, trapping me in her embrace as we fall.
"You think you're tougher than me, gravity?" I snarl into the wind. "Not even Gravity can stop me from getting back to my love-"
The impact cuts off my words, not to mention my consciousness.