After a block of free ride the Arrow's driver started going for an Uzi, but the Old One snarled at him. He kept his hands on the wheel and his eyes on the road for another block, then I jumped off and sprinted down an alley. Out on the far street, I cut toward the Fuchi tower and into the alley that hid my Fenris.
The Old One headed me straight for it, but I reex-erted control and stopped. I pulled the remote control from my pocket and disarmed the anti-theft device. Smiling, I took one step forward, then staggered and leaned heavily against the car as pain lanced from the wound through my chest. The world began to go dark at the edges.
Keep a clear head!
I can master this beast, Longtooth. I have watched you do it enough,the Old One said.
No chance.The Old One considers Vehicular Manslaughter a recreational activity.Just rest for a second, then I'll…
I heard a growl and it took me a moment to realize it wasn't from the Old One. I looked over and saw a huge animal at the mouth of the alley. The glow of street lamps traced the silvery claws mounted to the tops of its paws. Twin pistons hissed as the monster opened its jaw. I saw that its teeth had been replaced top and bottom with a razor-steel strip that included spikes where its canines had once been. And instead of eyes I saw two red starbursts that went nova as the thing looked at me.
Slowly I turned around and worked my away back around the edge of the Fenris. Looking at the chromed dog over the top of the car, I kind of wished I'd been driving a car big enough to wall off the alley.No, I had to go for fast and flashy. Val always said this car would get me killed.
The dog lowered its head and sniffed the ground. He took a step forward and the black fur on its spine came up. A shiver rippled through its muscles and shook it right down to its stubby tail.
The Old One growled a challenge and I couldn't stop him. I voiced the howl and the dog's head came up. I hoped, for a second, thatcanis chromus would run off, but it didn't.
It can smell Death on you, Longtooth. I am sorry.
The dog loped forward, then came straight for me.
I pushed myself back off the Fenris and hit the remote control. As the Hitachi hound leaped over the car's nose and landed on the roof, four chirps sounded. Before their echoes died, I hit the ground on my back and the Fenris' defense system kicked into overdrive.
I saw the dog in silhouette for a second before all its fur spontaneously combusted. It flashed over, blackening the chrome as the putrid gray cloud drifted up. Then I noticed that the red dots in the eyes had dilated to different sizes as the dog's muscles convulsed. Spraying battery juice and chips against the alley wall, the left side of its head suddenly exploded outward, spinning the cybermutt around and toppling it off by the passenger side of the car.
I lay back for a moment as a cough punched pain through my chest. Hitting the remote control again, I disarmed the Fenris and crawled toward it. I reached up for a door handle, but the trim burned me. I sank my right hand into the sleeve of my jacket and tried again, this time successfully prying the door open.
I started to pull myself into the Fenris and was far enough gone that I didn't even consider what I was doing to the interior. I did know I couldn't drive, but the eel phone would let me call Raven or Val or Stealth and get me some help. Bracing myself with my left arm against the floor, I straightened my legs and grabbed for the phone.
Selene's kick to the back of my knees dropped me to the ground. I twisted around and sat half-upright against the car. I hugged my left arm against the aching hole in my chest and looked up at her. I tried to say something smart, but a cough cut in and hijacked my throat.
'You did well, Mr. Kies. You should have died long before this.' She looked over the hood toward the steaming mound of dog flesh and metal over by the alley wall. 'And you cost me Cerberus. That wasn't nice.'
I half-smiled despite the rifle tucked under her arm. 'I suppose you know this means I probably won't be having dinner with you again.'
'That was a consideration,' she said and her smile made me remember why I'd wanted to have dinner with her in the first place. 'Had you been anyone else, I might have not decided to hunt you.' She licked her lips. 'Pursue, yes, but not hunt.'
My vision began to tunnel slowly. 'Lone Star has a file on your activities, you know.'
'No it doesn't, Mr. Kies. One of our board members is a major Lone Star stockholder.' Her rifle swung into line with my heart. I didn't care what Stealth thought, it didn't look much like a toy from my vantage point. 'The game is over.'
Selene crouched down and brushed hair away from my forehead. She dug her left hand into her jacket pocket, then brought out something that briefly flashed silver. Her hand returned to my head and I heard a click. Through the shadows I saw her draw away holding a lock of my hair. 'You make me glad I didn't get my bloodlock from Albion.'
The eel phone started to ring. 'Mind if I get that?' 'Go ahead, if you can,' she said as the world went dark. 'Even if help were on the way, you'd be dead before they found you.'
The sound of another bullet being jacket into the chamber of her rifle was the last thing I heard.
V
I discovered, upon wakening, that reincarnation had to be true.
I felt like a retread.
Fearing the worst, I opened my eyes and found myself lying in the bed I used at Raven's headquarters. I tried to take a normal breath but something tight was constricting my chest. Lifting the blankets I saw bandages wrapped around me. I also noticed an oxygen tube held tightly beneath my nose and a plasma bag running fluid in through the needle stuck into my right arm.
'It was clean, Wolf.'
I dropped the blankets and saw Raven standing in the doorway. He's taller than me, and broader, but not in a steroid mutant kind of way. He just looks tall and muscular, an Amerindian Hercules from the tips of his toes to the top of his head. He has the copper skin, long black hair, and high cheekbones to make the image stick, too.
In fact, only two things ruin it. The tips of his elven ears poke up through his hair, which is the only clue to his race. An elf built like Raven is decidedly rare, and Raven is rarer still. His eyes bear that out.
They always manage to look straight through me. They're dark, like chips of obsidian, but they have these funny lights in them. The best way to describe it is that he's got a bit of the aurora borealis trapped in there. The lights are blue and red and I like to think they flash in time with Raven's thoughts, which means they're always moving very fast.
I nodded and gave him a smile. 'Did you do your stuff to my ribs?'
He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the door jamb. 'The bullet had pulverized approximately twelve centimeters of rib and microperfo-rated your lung. You were in shock and were not stable, so I decided not to crack your chest. I was left no choice. I used magic to reinflate your lung and knit the bone shards back together. The IV is to get fluids back into you.' Color rioted through Raven's dark eyes. 'Your natural healing process is fast. You should feel better in a couple of days.'
Raven is the only other living person who knows all about the Old One, and the reference to my natural healing process told me the Old One had been at work. /will have you healthy soon, Longtooth. I did not need his help.
I threw the blankets off, then pulled the sheet around me and sat up. The room swam, but I steadied myself against the footboard before I could collapse. 'I have to get up, Doc. I know who killed Albion. I know why. Can't wait. More people will die.'
I felt his hands on my shoulders. 'Valerie traced your location after the Fenris sent a call out to inform us about the attempted theft. While I was trying to call you she learned you were dining with Selene Reece. The club tried to erase the record of the date, but she caught it. Reece has dropped off the edge of the earth. She'll lay low. We've got time to get you healthy.'
I shook my head. 'No, it's not just her. It's all of them. They've been taking turns.' I looked up into his eyes. 'They own a chunk of Lone Star. I need your help.'
I swear Raven looked back through my eyes and reached some sort of communion with the Old One. I felt the Wolf spirit's vitality surge through me. Doc took my right arm and eased the needle out of it. 'Whatever you need, my friend.'
'Good. First clothes, then back-up.' I smiled as I heard the Old One howl in my mind. 'Then it's our turn to
