Chapter 12 #2
Rue, Bowie, and Lenore were setting frozen rolls found in the walk-in freezer onto baking sheets, far away enough that Ryker could keep them in his sights, but couldn’t overhear what they were talking about.
He and Uriel were basically just standing around, but since Ell hadn’t complained, Ryker wasn’t about to offer his assistance.
“Stories are always rooted in truth somewhere,” Uriel said. He was standing by the rectangular window, staring out at the fog. Fortunately, there weren’t many windows in the kitchen, and they’d moved one of the cabinets in front of a similar one on the other side of the space.
That just left the one he was peering out of, and the one over the sinks, but it was high enough they couldn’t reach it, and even though fog pressed against the glass, it didn’t give off the same creepy vibes that other views outside did.
Maybe whatever was out there wasn’t tall enough to see into it either.
“Mimics are well-known,” their friend continued when neither of them argued his point. “People have been afraid of voices in the dark for eons. The more familiar and recognizable they sound, the scarier.”
“Okay, sure,” Ellery conceded. “But you can’t really believe monsters have surrounded us?”
“Why not? They don’t need a reason.”
“Next you’re going to launch into a monologue about good versus evil.” He rolled his eyes and gave Ryker a look that screamed he thought his cousin was ridiculous.
“If I did, we wouldn’t be standing on the winning side of things,” Uriel stated. “Traditionally speaking, good triumphs in the end.”
“And our hearts are black,” Ellery waved him off and finished with the onions, slipping the diced pieces into a bowl, “Yeah, yeah. Well, unlike you, I don’t believe in ghosts or things that go bump in the night.
The only monsters that exist in this universe are people, same as you and me, and I’ve never met a person I couldn’t best.”
“Souvi Glass would beg to differ,” Ryker drawled, chuckling when Ellery dropped the onions into a preheated pan with more force than necessary. His humor didn’t last, however. “What if it’s not from our universe then? Would that be easier to believe?”
He tipped his head and considered. “Talking some Ares’ and Zar shit, but yeah, I suppose.”
Ares and Balthazar, two other Black Harts, could both see other worlds.
They put it more poetically than Ryker ever could—or that he’d ever bother trying to—but basically, they could peer between the veils separating one reality from another.
According to them, there were all types of unknown threats and beings existing on other planes of existence.
“Ares says ghosts are just glimpses into another reality,” he continued. “Lingering energy.”
“These aren’t ghosts,” Uriel replied confidently.
“No, but they’re still unclassified.”
“So let’s classify the motherfuckers.” Ellery shrugged when they both turned his way.
“What? Like you two weren’t thinking it.
We need to get out to the pool house anyway.
May as well make the most of our efforts and take one of those things down in the process.
Hell, once we get a good look at it, I bet we’ll find there’s a simple explanation. ”
“Such as?” Ryker asked.
“Are there any chemical powerplants around? Maybe they’re dumping their waste in the water and affecting the wildlife.” Ellery finished with the onions and then headed away, moving to the workers cooking the pasta without waiting for a response.
“He may be onto something,” Uriel surprised Ryker by saying.
“Not you too.”
“Anything is possible.”
Considering he was talking with someone who as of a week ago had fused with a piece of machinery and had spent the past three years living in a virtual reality…yeah, Ryker couldn’t rule anything out.
“They’re different sizes,” Uriel informed him then. “I’ve counted seven total so far, and that’s if I’m correct and there aren’t multiple of the same stature. If I am right, there are at least three that we should be able to overpower.”
Ryker shouldn’t be surprised that that’s what Uriel had been up to all this time. Or that the guy’s eyesight was so much more superior to the rest of them. “Describe it to me.”
“Most of them have the heft of a bear,” he explained. “But some are larger. I’ve seen them move onto their back legs as well. I don’t think they’re able to move as quickly when they do that, however. Could end up being a good thing when we encounter one.”
“Unless you plan on teaching it tricks, I’m not sure how we can get it to stand on two legs for us.”
“It’s just an observation.”
Ryker ran a hand through his dark hair, then scowled when he glanced over to Rue and saw Bowie’s arm around his shoulders.
It was tempting to order Rue over here, but he hadn’t made that deal so he could treat the other guy like a dog.
He’d done it so he could satisfy this burning desire once and for all.
The next time he found himself inside of him, Rue was going to be awake for it.
“Word of advice.” Uriel was watching Ryker when he turned back. “Don’t tell him about the plan. He won’t like it.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to disagree, but if he set his anger aside, Ryker knew that was true. Hell, Rue had been opposed to the idea of him going out there at all. There was no way he’d approve of him hunting a monster.
“We can either sit here and wait out the fog, or we can get answers,” Ryker said. “I vote for the latter.”
“I concur.” Uriel sighed heavily. “This world is very dull. I forgot how boring normal reality can be.”
He tensed. “Don’t say shit like that.”
“Be at ease. I have no intention of re-entering the game.”
Ryker wasn’t entirely convinced, but Ellery called out to Ishleen’s group then, telling them to bring over the meatballs, and he decided it wasn’t worth discussing now.
“Do you trust these people?” Uriel asked then.
“I don’t trust anyone but you guys.”
“Not even your stepbrother?”
“Especially not him.” Didn’t matter that Ryker now understood why Rue had run. Didn’t change the fact that he had, or the way it’d made Ryk feel all this time. Didn’t make up for the suffering he’d put him through. “Ryder is a fucking liar, by the way.”
“Oh?” Uriel quirked a brow.
“He made Rue think the two of them had hooked up, but that’s not the case.”
“You’re certain?”
“Yeah.” He held his friend’s gaze steadily. “Because I’m the one who fucked him the night Ryder claims to have.”
Uriel considered this new information and then grunted. “Asshole.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Yet you still want him back.”
“He’s my brother.” Ryker smirked, the look violent. “And I want to beat him up.”
Rue wasn’t the only one who had to make up for his deception. Ryder would pay, too. But that was a score to settle on another day. For now, they needed to focus on how they were going to get off this damn mountain first.