29. CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 29
S he ran the three blocks to Taco Shots, burst past the dining area and through the kitchen, only to find the door to the hidden bar locked.
The main cook recognized her, so he didn’t exactly throw her out, but he was apologetic. “Sorry. Miss Margot went in a few minutes ago and locked the door behind her. If she’s not answering your knock, there’s nothing I can do.”
She banged a few more times, but there really was no point. Margot had crossed the portal, and nobody was on the other side of the door.
She fought back the urge to fall into a useless mass of fear and self-pity. It was fearless action that had gotten them out of the mess in the storage unit. Fearless action was needed now. There had to be a way to reach the other world.
Returning to the dining area of Taco Shots, she sank down behind a table to think. She still couldn’t reach Gideon telepathically, but in her earliest visions of their world, she’d somehow connected to Alana. Alana had seen through Lexi’s own eyes whenever a vision included Alana herself, and Alana had sensed what Lexi had been feeling and thinking in those moments. Maybe she could use that, even if just to alert Alana to danger.
She closed her eyes and asked for imminent visions of Alana, for anything significant to her life and their world .
She was viewing Alana’s face, the redhead’s eyes round with panic. “Please, let’s talk about this,” Alana begged of someone as she took a step forward toward something behind Lexi’s view. Vikkras pulled his wife back. Lexi did her best to allow her own fear and panic to remain evident for Alana to feel.
The images only ramped up Lexi’s fear, but she opened her eyes and prayed for it to work. Prayed that somehow Alana would realize her intent to warn her.
The door to the restaurant pulled open, a gust of cold air-conditioning racing past her on its way to the outside world. “Lexi, thank God you’re here. I got your message.” Matthew pulled her from her seat and drew her into a fast hug. “Come on.”
He led her back through the kitchen, unlocked the door to the club, and shut it behind them. Without pausing, he beelined to his office, and she followed fast on his heels.
“Gideon’s in trouble, Matthew. Right now. We have to get over there.”
Not bothering to sit, he bent over the computer that operated the portal music. His fingers flew over the keys before he stopped and looked up at her, his face red and sweaty. “So, your vision. You saw that it was…”
She swallowed and nodded. “Margot. Yes. It’s been Margot the whole time.”
His eyes narrowed and jaw muscles bulged behind clenched teeth. He took a deep breath as his nostrils flared. “I fucking knew it!” He grabbed a mug filled with writing utensils and other office supplies and threw it against a wall where it shattered, porcelain and pencils and paperclips scattering.
She jumped at the loud crash.
“I didn’t want to believe it and there was never any real evidence,” he said, “but I had a feeling something was off with her. That’s why I brought her into the business with me, so I could keep an eye on her. Lot of fucking good that did. On the Fourth of July, when I found out Benjamin was involved, I thought I’d been wrong.” He shoved his hands through his spikey hair. “Not.”
Lexi took his elbow and tugged him back to the computer. “Matthew, this isn’t the time. We need to cross over. Now.”
He nodded, typed something into the computer, and the music started. A moment later they shimmered into Gideon’s office, the quiet of the room emphasizing the emptiness of the big space, the absence of its owner.
She held back her rising panic as they burst through the door into the club proper, which was fairly deserted at early afternoon on a weekday. They looked around, and she wondered what their course of action should be, when a large man strode up to them.
“Mr. McCabe.” The stranger nodded at Matthew. “You’re no longer allowed to bring anyone across without prior explicit permission from the Council. I’ve not been made aware of any crossings scheduled for today.”
Matthew lifted a brow. “There’s now guards posted in the club? You’re watching the portal?”
The man dipped his chin and offered a short grunt in response. “You’ll need to return to your world at once.”
Across the room, the grand wooden doors opened, and Lexi locked worried eyes with Vikkras and Alana. Ignoring the guard, she ran to the middle of the club, embracing Alana immediately. “You got my message I take it?”
Alana’s porcelain face was paler than normal. “I hadn’t realized you did that on purpose. Clever. But yes, please tell us, what’s going on?”
The guard stepped up. “Ladies, I’m sorry, but she cannot be here,” he said, tilting his head toward Lexi.
Vik raised a placating hand. “Give us a moment, brother, please. ”
“I’ll have to alert the Council,” the man replied before marching off.
They watched him go before Lexi spoke again, her words coming in a rush. They had to find Margot before anyone else got in their way. “Gideon’s in trouble. Or, about to be.” She looked between Vik and Alana. “It’s the Prometheus Group. Someone’s about to pull a gun on him.”
Matt stepped forward. “Just say the words, Lexi. Not someone , it’s Margot. Margot’s about to pull a gun on him.”
Her friends lurched back in shock. “What? Where is he?”
“I don’t…. I didn’t notice…”
Vikkras placed a hand on her shoulder. “Look again, love. See if you can identify the setting.”
She nodded and closed her eyes, asking for images, forcing herself to look beyond the nightmarish picture of Gideon with a gun to his head, and to seek behind him.
Dark slatted wood and a high-beamed roof. Gideon’s back pressed against a chest level gate of some sort. Lexi reached out with more than her eyes, and caught the clean scent of hay, and the sound of… yes… a horse nickering. She forced her vision further to the side of Gideon’s frame and, oh, she’d know that beautiful face anywhere—Socrates shaking his head in distress, eyes wide as he huffed in fear behind his master.
“The mews! They’re in the mews.” She didn’t wait for a response as she started toward Club Deux Monde’s exit, knowing the other three followed closely behind.
As she burst through the doors outside, she nearly slammed into someone. “Damnit,” she said, stepping back from the tall dark-haired woman of about forty. Probably more like a hundred and forty, Lexi thought, irritated at being slowed down. She took a breath. “Excuse me.”
“Catherine,” Alana said as she came to a halt beside Lexi .
“Alana, Vikkras.” The woman looked more weary than angry. “I was just informed of an unscheduled cross—”
Vik cut her off. “It’s an emergency.”
“It’s life or death,” Lexi blurted, annoyed at having to explain anything to the stranger. She turned to Vikkras, her face pounding in fear and frustration. “Who is this? Why are we stopping for her?”
Vik released a heavy sigh. “This is Catherine Moss, Dean of the College of Psychic Arts and Mayor of Philadelphia. Catherine, Lexi Cross is Gideon’s woman. She’s a powerful precog and clairvoyant, and she’s just seen an incident involving the Prometheus Group. At the city mews right now. Catherine, we must go immediately.”
Lexi clenched her fists as the woman studied her for what seemed like an hour, though to be fair, Ms. Moss actually made a lightning fast decision.
“I’ve heard how powerful your talents are. Cross-world telepathy and clairvoyance is previously unheard of,” she said, nodding to Lexi in acknowledgment. “I’m glad you took the initiative to come warn us, Ms. Cross.”
Lexi offered her a relieved smile.
“My guard and I will follow you to the mews. Maybe we can help,” she continued as they hailed two carriages, Lexi and her friends piling into one, the Mayor and her guard in the other.
They sat in silence as the drivers sped to the stables. Alana sat across from her in their coach, not wasting time on the questions clearly showing on her face, her sea green eyes scanning Lexi’s body.
Still wearing the stupid blouse and skirt she’d put on for her interview, Lexi dropped her gaze and wiped at her bloody knees. Panic finally caught up with her and she ignored the tear dropping from her eye.
“We’ll find him.” Alana’s soothing voice made the merest dent in her fear, but Lexi appreciated the effort .
“It’s a question of how fast we find him, I’m afraid. We’ve already lost so much time.”
The carriages stopped in front of the stables and they all jumped out. One of several large mews in the city, this one had three big arches fronting the brick fa?ade. They entered the middle and closest one, long rows of stalls and flickering gas lamps spreading out before them. All was quiet except for the sounds of the horses and a couple birds winging through the rafters.
She knew the location of Socrates’ stall and picked up the pace. Her mouth opened to call for Gideon, but the guard placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. “Shh.” He shook his head, and moved to the front of their group, pulling a knife from his belt as he did so.
Five rows down the aisle and they heard the voices. Nothing from Gideon, but another man’s voice argued with a voice she knew well—a woman’s voice. They rounded a corner to the right and stopped up short.
Just as she’d seen in her visions, Gideon stood with his back to Socrates’ stall, a gun pressed tight to his temple. The man holding the gun wore a loose cotton shirt with rolled sleeves, suspenders, and leather pants, the clothing of this world. But his speech, demeanor, and the rectangular phone-shaped outline bulging in his pants pocket gave away the fact that he was from Lexi’s. Margot stood with hands on hips, face flushed and staring down the man.
Lexi took small relief that it was not Margot’s gun pressed to her lover’s head, but what did that mean? At some point her friend would be holding a pistol.
A heartbeat later and almost everyone spoke at once, shouting out names and questions.
Vikkras took one step forward, raising his palms. A rush of air blew through the aisle, quieting the chatter. He directed his attention to Gideon. “Care to fill us in on just what the bloody buggering hell is going on, brother? ”
Gideon kept a stoic attitude, but the way his muscles tensed and rippled beneath his shirt spoke of coiled rage. “I thought it a nice day for a ride, my friend. However, I appear to have wandered into an ambush.”
The stranger spoke. “Curiosity killed the cat, my friend . If you’d kept your nosey ways out of everyone’s business, we wouldn’t be standing here. How is it possible that you seem to know the activity of everyone in this backward-ass town so well a person can’t even take up residence without you knowing about it and questioning everything.”
Margot flung her arms up. “I told you we’d handle it some other way, Spencer. We could have moved you again, replaced you. What the fuck do you think is going to happen now?” She glanced around at everyone standing there. “You’re going to kill and hide the bodies of six additional people? For a bunch of sophisticated mega-corporations and governmental bodies, it’s astounding how you people manage to have one cock-up after another.” She glanced at Lexi before turning back to Spencer. “What do you plan to do now, huh?”
Lexi looked toward Gideon and found his gaze riveted to her face.
“ Hey, Heroine. Looks like you’re here to save the day again.”
Her eyes rounded. “Gideon? Can you hear me?”
“Yes, baby. Did you drop your mental wall? I’m so sorry, love. I didn’t mean to hurt you like that.”
“I never put up a wall. I thought you did. I left you alone these last weeks because I didn’t want to hurt you further.”
He shook his head, the corners of his eyes dropping. “I never put up a wall either. And I left you alone for the same reason. We must’ve been too upset for our link to connect across the universes. I would never have cut you off.”
Some of the tension in her shoulders relaxed, and her eyes grew wet with relief. He hadn’t disconnected on purpose. She wanted nothing more than to run to his arms as the arguing between Margot and the Prometheus Group’s man continued. “So, what do we do now? Can’t you just blow him away like you did at the storage unit?”
His lips pressed into a line. “Not with his gun up against my head like this. Even I’m not that fast.”
She glanced at his wrists and noted he hadn’t worn his crystals. Why would he bother when he thought he was just heading out for a pleasant ride?
He caught her thoughts. “ Without their prism focus, even if I was able to move without getting shot, we could end up with a stray bullet hitting someone else. I’m not ready to risk it yet. And right now, I’m hoping the guard you brought along doesn’t try anything with that knife. We need to keep Spencer calm. Something’s wrong with him.”
A rise in the volume of shouting grabbed her attention, and she saw what Gideon was referring to. The gunman was getting twitchy as Matthew and Margot began arguing.
Arms at her sides now, Margot turned her palms forward in supplication. “I never meant for any of this to happen. Yes, I admit it, Matthew. At first it was about money. I’d made some bad investments and was in trouble.”
He spread his arms, his brow rising. “Why didn’t you just ask me for help? You know I have the resources.”
She shook her head, her eyes growing glossy. “Because I was embarrassed. And I didn’t want to ask you—”
Lexi interrupted. “You didn’t want to ask a man for help.”
Matthew huffed and looked away. “I didn’t think I was just any man.”
Margot dipped her chin before continuing. “At first they told me they only wanted to observe the technologies of this world. They said they were going to record the portal music—that’s all—maybe talk to some people here who had abilities, convince them to teach their skills to people in our world. ”
Matt crossed his arms over his chest. “Just record the portal music? You didn’t think that in itself was enough of a problem?”
She ignored his comment. “When the Group realized these people weren’t likely to help, they came up with plan B, as it were.” She turned away from Matt and locked eyes with Lexi. “To just… take people. They started working on creating the capture devices at that point, and with the corporations involved and the money behind the project, it didn’t take them long.”
Gideon remained still and silent as Vikkras spoke in a soft tone. “And yet you still didn’t say anything to any of us. Still didn’t think it was becoming a bad idea?”
“I did balk then, yes. I told them I couldn’t help them anymore, wouldn’t help them. And they freaked. They worried I’d give them away, which I would have, of course,” she said, looking from one face to another, settling back on Lexi’s. “That’s when they started making threats. Either I did everything they asked of me and kept my mouth shut or they’d start hurting the people I cared about. They threatened my family, they threatened Matthew, they threatened you, Lex. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“Yeah, well, you saw how well that worked out.” Her hand automatically went to where the now-faded bruise had been on her forehead.
“Lex, I swear, it’s true I put the capture device on your sweater that first night. I figured you’d pop right home to our world and you’d be fine. I thought you’d get to understand the visions you’d been having, go home with a great story, and that would be the end of it. I didn’t plan on you falling in love and wanting to come back.” She glanced at Gideon, a small whimper escaping from her throat. “The second time, that was all Benjamin. You were never supposed to be involved again. I was shocked when I saw your face that night and learned what happened.”
Matthew paced as he spoke. “And still, you didn’t say anything. ”
Lexi sensed the gunman growing restless and confused. His gaze zigzagged between Margot and Matthew. The situation was going from critical to code blue.
“From then on they dictated every damn move I made. I started thinking it might be best if I stayed involved so I could keep an eye on what was going on.” Her movements became frantic, she made a half-step toward Lexi. “That’s why I encouraged you to stay away from Gideon, babydoll, to keep you safe.” She gestured toward Spencer. “I came here today to prevent him from—”
“Stop!” They all turned to Spencer, who still held the gun against Gideon’s temple. “Everyone just shut up.” Sweat formed on his brow and he wiped it with his free arm. His trigger hand was getting more and more twitchy, almost spastic.
“Um, hold up a sec,” Lexi said, all eyes pivoting to her. “How exactly has Spencer been staying full-time in this world? I mean, if you guys at PG have a secret way of easily transitioning someone to live full-time in this world, I’m totally down for an information trade of some sort.” She wasn’t exactly sure where her fa?ade of flippant nonchalance was coming from, but if flippant nonchalance would buy time to keep that gun from going off, she’d force her trembling limbs rock steady and give an Academy-worthy performance. “You can’t just be playing the music every four hours, can you? Cuz, boy, that would be tedious. Am I right?”
Margot’s brows pinched in confusion as her stare toggled between Spencer and Lexi. “Actually, yeah. He has been,” she said. “I suppose it must be tedious, but he’s getting paid well enough.”
With his free hand, Spencer whipped the phone out of his pocket. “No big deal. Got the music recorded right here. Just press play every four hours and keep on truckin’. The wonders of technology, bro.” He waggled the phone right up in Gideon’s face. “Technology.”
Lexi ignored the strain in Gideon’s demeanor as he tolerated his assailant’s actions, instead she noted the way Spencer’s eyes darted here and there, focusing on nothing in particular. The way his jaw muscles ground in jerky motions when he wasn’t talking.
“See, that’s the bitch of the thing though.” She crossed her arms under her breasts and cocked a hip, all while holding down the bile in her throat. Ignoring, too, what she assumed would be a look of condemnation from Catherine Moss over what the Mayor probably perceived as chumminess with Spencer. Damn, she deserved that Oscar statue. “You can’t play the music every four hours for very long before you start getting sick. I mean, really sick. Brain sick too, from what I’m told. And you’ve been here for what, Spencer, a few weeks? With the portal guarded now, you can’t even slip back and forth when you need to. You must be feeling a teeny bit out of sorts.”
Margot picked up the thread. “She’s right, Spence. You’re not thinking clearly right now. Maybe that’s why we’re in this mess? Maybe you’re a little confused? It’s okay. You just need some R&R back in our home world. Catch a few Eagles games on a nice big screen. Let’s take a breather and figure this out.”
His shoulders relaxed a tad as his eyes settled and held onto Margot, and Lexi thought maybe they’d pulled it off. If only he lowered that gun arm just a hair as his fried-to-a-crisp brain tried to work things out, Gideon could make a move.
No such luck. Having come to some muddled conclusion, he straightened his spine and pushed the gun harder into Gideon’s head.
“This is all fucking irrelevant and I’m done listening to this crap. We have a situation here. It should’ve been easy and done. Now I’m looking at seven fucking people I need out of my way. We’re going to do that right now and then you’re helping me get back home.” He lifted his chin toward Margot. “After that I don’t care what this crazy ass world does with the bodies or what they make of it all. I’m over and out. ”
He pulled back the hammer on the pistol and everyone shouted. Margot tugged her own revolver from the waist of her jeans beneath her loose shirt, and there was a collective gasp. With feet planted and two arms outstretched, she pointed at Spencer.
Alana stepped forward. Her face pale as flour, she raised trembling arms toward Spencer. Rooted in place and silent with fear until now, she’d finally found her voice. “Please wait, let’s talk about this. Wouldn’t you love to walk away, Spencer, and forget this place even exists? Go back to your friends and family with a clean conscience?”
Vikkras pulled her back, but her calming tone radiated from her words. For a fraction of a second the gunman’s shoulders relaxed, and he bent his elbow, lowering the pistol a little away from Gideon’s head.
And the world burst into action.
Gideon pulled away just as Margot shot and Spencer returned fire. The bullets had hardly left the barrels before Gideon released his power and tossed Spencer high into a brick wall where he slammed hard before sliding back to the ground. He landed on his back with a grotesque broken neck and a bright red spot blooming across his peasant shirt.
Lexi had no idea if Margot had a lucky shot or if her skill with weapons was yet another thing she’d kept secret, but she’d hit her mark straight in the heart. He’d likely been dead even before his poor fatigued brain hit the side of the mews.
The cacophony from people shouting, and the horses’ neighing and hooves stomping, became a muted backdrop to the ringing in her ears from the gunshots. Through the muffled noise she raced forward and into Gideon’s arms. Burying her face in his shoulder, she exhaled relief, then inhaled the earthy sage scent of him she’d been missing so much.
People scurried around her peripheral vision. She didn’t care, didn’t want to move ever again. But she lifted her head as the sound of Matthew calling her name crept into her bliss, demanding attention.
She peeked around Gideon’s shoulder toward Matthew’s voice. He knelt over Margot as she lay on the dusty ground. Spencer’s one shot had also found its mark, and Margot had a matching crimson bloom, hers spreading across her stomach.
Margot reached an arm toward Lexi, and Lexi went to her, her steps slow and unsure as she knelt by her friend. Now a stranger. A betrayer.
And a savior.
Margot opened her mouth and blood trickled out. She made a gurgling sound as she spoke. “I’m sorry. I’m… sorr…”
Across from Matthew, who knelt on Margot’s other side, Lexi took Margot’s hand. “Just an hour ago you told me to never put myself in harm’s way for a man. Now look at you, silly girl,” she said with the barest twitch of a smile, “you just went and put yourself in harm’s way for several men, and three women besides.”
Margot managed her own smile, grotesque with the blood smeared across her perfect teeth. “I was wrong, Lex. It’s worth it. Love is worth everything. I feel… I feel better now, you know? I’m not scared for the first time in my life.”
Lexi squeezed her eyes shut, but the tears pushed past her lids anyway. When she opened them again and wiped at the water, she looked up at Matthew who was doing the same. He reached a hand to wipe a strand of hair off Margot’s forehead and Margot turned and studied him, a serene expression on her face, before closing her eyes.
A shot of panic swept through her. “Margot?”
Her friend opened her eyes again, looking back at her with an expression of perfect clarity. “Go to Gideon, babydoll. Do the transition. Whatever happens, you have to try. ”
Lexi chanced a glance at Catherine Moss, who stood watching the scene, fresh tears marking her own cheeks. She nodded at Lexi, granting her invitation to stay in their world.
With failing strength, Margot squeezed Lexi’s hand. “Gideon. He’s,” she coughed, a few bits of red scattering on her cheek, “he’s your most important thing. The risk is worth it. The risk is love. Promise me you’ll try, Lex. Promise me.”
Lexi couldn’t speak, but she nodded.
Then Margot turned her head to Matthew and held his gaze as she passed.
Gideon knelt by the hearth in his bedroom, preparing the logs and kindling to start a blaze. Though a warm afternoon in late September, Lexi stood against a bedpost, arms wrapped around herself shivering. Definitely not from the temperature.
They’d come back to his home after leaving the stables. Alana and Vik promised to deal with Spencer and Margot’s bodies, everyone having decided it was best to take care of it in their world. Matthew returned home, a mess of a man. Then Lexi and Gideon bathed at his home, as her clothes were dirty and bloodied, and she now stood dressed in a pair of his pants and a white t-shirt, which hung baggy on her, creating the illusion of vulnerability.
Though her actions today had proven she was anything but vulnerable.
He lit the fire with a push of his hands and went to her. He ran his palms down her arms, and God did it feel good to be touching her. “You saved me again, sweetheart. I’ve got to stop asking it of you.”
She gave him a soft smile and melted into his arms. Still shivering, she spoke into his chest. “What do we do with Margot’s body?” She tilted her head up to him, and his soul dove straight into those sad cornflower blue eyes. “I mean, will you bury her? Will we have a… a service?”
He stroked her back. “Whatever you want, love.”
She pulled back and began to pace. “I don’t even know what to think, what to feel. Three hours ago, she was my best friend. Two hours ago, she was the worst kind of traitor. One hour ago, she laid down her life for me. She laid down her life for us .” She spun back toward him. Her lips pressed tight, but her eyes grew wet. “God, Gideon, I won’t ever have the chance to confront her about what she did. To hate her for it. To forgive her and love her for her final acts. What do I do with that?”
He took her hand and walked to the edge of his bed. He sat down and pulled her to stand in front of him, his hands on her hips. “You do all those things anyway. You sort through those feelings one at a time, in your own time. You rant and rave and write her letters. She’ll hear you. Or not. But you’ll deal with it all as if she were right here. And in time, you’ll find your healing balance.”
Lexi settled down in his lap, cupping his face and studying him. “Thank you.”
She slipped her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek to his, and after a moment her body relaxed. She found his lips with her own, parting for him, seeking his tongue. Heaven in her mouth, in her arms. God, he’d missed her. Missed her taste, her scent, her sweet little moans. Most of all he’d missed the calm she gave him, the laughter she brought him, the goddamn colors of life again. He slipped his hands through her hair, tilting her head and deepening the kiss. Maybe he’d never have to miss her again. Maybe Margot’s final words would…
He pulled back, catching his breath and staring into those eyes that so filled up his life.
And that was the thing. Life. Glorious, wonderful life.
“Sweetheart, about what Margot said, the promise she asked of you.” Those round sapphires remained relaxed at his words, lips parted. No anxiety. “I’m glad you didn’t make the promise.”
Now they rounded in shock. “What?”
He chuckled and stroked her cheek. “I’m not saying I don’t want you here with me. I’d give anything for that.” He continued to smile at her confused expression. “Anything, except your life. I get it now, Alexa Cross. Contrary to Margot’s words, I love you too much to risk your life.” She began to argue, and he swept a thumb across her lips to quiet her. “I’ve been selfish, fearing the pain of living without you here. But I realize now, I can do that if I must. I can go on with my life knowing you’re safe and happy and living to the fullest in your own world. You need to move forward, heal from everything that’s happened today and these last months. Find your balance again.”
“Gideon, no, I love you. I… I should risk it, like she said.”
“Sweetheart, you need distance and perspective. You need to feel your power in your own world first. Learn how strong you are in every setting. And if you ever get the vision of a successful transition process, and you still want to cross over, God, I’d be so thrilled to have you with me.”
Her voice dropped to a whisper. “And what if that vision never comes?”
Tears rolled down her face once more, and he wiped them away, so very tired of seeing those tracks on her cheeks. “Then you’ll stay in your world and live an amazing life. There’s been too much death already, Lex. Enough is enough. There’ll never be anyone else for me, but I’ll have my work here and my friends. And I’ll be loving you from my universe. Always.”
She pressed her forehead to his, clutching handfuls of his hair. “Gideon… ”
“I’m going to take you back to the portal, sweetheart. Go live your life, knowing how much I love you. Come back to me if you ever get the answer we need.”
They fell backward onto his bed, and had just enough time left for the most beautiful good-bye ever.