Which, as it turned out, wasn’t very much.
I intercepted him in the middle of the living room floor and swept his legs out from underneath him. He landed on his right shoulder, hard enough to knock the air out of his lungs again. Before he could right himself, I unleashed a quick flurry of punches to his back and midsection. He grunted with each blow and curled in on himself like a dead spider.
“Nod if you understand me,” I said to Albert. “You’re done dealing with the heretics. You won’t give them any more information. If you do, I’ll come back.”
Albert nodded vigorously, his face smeared with spit and snot. I felt a little sick to my stomach at the sight of him and pushed that way down deep. These people were terrorists. The woman would’ve killed me if she’d had a chance. Albert had already killed plenty of people with what he’d told the heretics. He deserved what he got.
I repeated that again and again as I left his apartment and stepped through the portal waiting for me outside his door.
The Kiss
HAGAR AND THE ELDERS were beyond happy when I spilled the details, minus my new technique, of how I’d dealt with Albert and his unexpected bodyguard. If I’d felt uneasy about beating up an old man and his bodyguard, those feelings were banished by the praise heaped on me by my clan.
“Shame your handler didn’t know about the bodyguard,” Claude said to me just before they left, drawing a blush to Hagar’s cheeks. “I had my doubts about you, kid, but you’re all right. Stick with us, and we’ll save the damned world even if it doesn’t want to be saved.”
“Language,” Hirani called from the other side of the portal she’d opened in my kitchen.
“Right,” Claude said, a faint blush visible through his bushy sideburns. “Be seeing you, Jace.”
“Wait,” I almost shouted. “My mother—”
Hirani gave me a small, sad smile and crossed the room to stroke the back of my cheek with her left hand. A wave of warmth and calm spread through me at her touch. It was obviously a jinsei trick, and I didn’t care even a little. That simple gesture had made me feel good, down to my bones.
“We’re looking for her,” the elder said with a sincerity that touched me. Her eyes were misty with unshed tears, and her lips trembled as she spoke. “I, too, have lost ones I loved in this cold, dark world. I promise you we are doing everything we can with the resources we have available. When we find your mother, I will personally deliver the good news.”
“Time,” Elder Sanrin said drily. “Hirani is right, Jace. Finding your mother is a priority for us. For now, though, we must leave. I’m afraid we’re on a very tight schedule these days.”
“Hang in there, kid,” Claude said as he stepped through Hirani’s portal. “If anyone can find your mother, it’s Brand. I’ll kick his ass if he doesn’t.”
“Soon,” Hirani promised, and followed Claude and Sanrin through the portal.
The glowing gateway vanished.
Hagar surprised me by throwing her arms around my neck and squeezing me tight. She clung to me for a long moment, her shoulders shaking slightly. With a start, I realized she was crying.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, my voice muffled in the ruff of her Mohawk.
“I should have known,” she said shakily. “I was overconfident and didn’t think the guard routes would change. I should have anticipated it, I should have—”
“Hey, hey,” I said, rubbing my handler’s shoulders. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”
“But—”
“Stop.” I held Hagar at arm’s length, my hands on her shoulders. “You did everything you could. Focus on what we’re going to do, not what’s already happened.”
“Thank you.” Hagar blotted her tears on the dark sleeve of her robe. “I’m still new at this job. It’s been hard, but you’re the best field agent I could have hoped for.”
“You’re new?” I chuckled and felt my cheeks blush at her praise. “You can’t be as new as me. We’ll learn together, though, right?”
“I’ll do better,” she promised. “I want you to know you can trust me.”
“If anyone had told me last year that we’d be having this conversation...” I said with a grin. “The world is a weird place.”
Hagar laughed and shook her head.
“You really are doing the right thing here,” she said. “I know it can be confusing, and you feel like you’re in the dark most of the time. But you’ve got a gift, Jace. Let us help you use it.”
“Us?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “I thought you were just my handler.”
“Well, yes,” Hagar said with a smile. “And, no. That’s something else we’ll figure out as we go. Take it easy, Jace. I’ll see you sooner than you think.”
Just like that, Hagar walked out my front door and headed across the bridge. I crossed my fingers and offered up a short prayer to the Empyrean Flame that this would all make more sense someday. For the moment, I had to satisfy myself knowing that I was fighting for the good guys. Every mission I completed against the heretics was one less problem we’d have to deal with down the road, and one step closer to finding my mother.
That had to be good enough.
Despite that it had been dark in my target’s apartment, it wasn’t quite noon on Sunday afternoon at the School. I busied myself in the kitchen making a cup of coffee, hoping the simple ritual would take my mind off the last mission. Albert and his bodyguard had both gotten what they deserved. They’d known the risks when they threw in their lot with the heretics.
It was the image of my face I’d seen in the broken television glass that had stuck with me. That was what I’d become if I gave in to the urge, and every mission it got harder to hold back. I was on a very narrow path, just as
