Dark Omega

CHAPTER 36 - LADY OF THE MANOR

Marcus sat back against the stainless steel. Of all the chairs he'd ever sat in, this one had to be the least comfortable. He looked down at the water bottle and cup sitting on the table. It's not only the furniture. The drinks are better too.

"Something funny? You're smiling," the girl with the chestnut hair and beautiful green eyes said.

Marcus shook his head. "It's nothing. I was thinking about Haides. He's got better chairs—and better drinks. In there, I mean," he added and pointed at the Maiden's head.

"You should smile more, Marcus. You've got a pretty smile. Makes you look less intimidating. More human. Makes me want to get to know you instead of running away."

"I'll take it under advisement," he replied and rose. "We're taking a break now."

"Are you leaving me alone, Marcus?" she replied. "With only the pervs in the security crypt to watch over me?"

Marcus glanced up at the three drones hovering overhead. They were watching, but discretely, as Marcus had ordered. He reached out with his mind, trying to locate Cerberus Kwame and his companion, but failed. The crypt is warded against telepathy, as it should be.

"I'm sure our watchers are perfect gentlemen. You did well enough last night. I think you can survive lunch on your own. It's not as if I can bring you on a date anyway."

"So, you do like me? You'd ask me on a date if you could?" Her voice was eager.

"Of course. If I could, I'd whisk you away from this hole and treat you to lunch."

"Liar," she said, smiling. "You'd whisk me away, but you'd tie me up and put me in some other dungeon."

"Some other time, Lizzie." Marcus turned and left the chimera alone in the camber, with only the drones for company. The massive door sealed firmly shut behind his back. It would not open to anybody else, not even another wielder of the Dark Omega.

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Marcus knew the Gatekeeper had been put there for a reason. He was guarding the Maiden's secrets, playing the part he'd been given. Not a real man, a psychic shadow, a mental copy of a long-dead person. But still, he's getting under my skin.

It wasn't that Haides was a murderous bastard—he was guilty as charged on both counts—because Marcus could work with such persons if need be. I'm no saint, for that matter. Marcus had killed many times in the line of duty. Most had been active recidivists—or guilty by association or negligence—but not all. A few innocents—if there was such a thing—had died along the way. Some had been collateral, unfortunate bystanders in a war they didn't even know about. Others had been put down to be sure the cancer of darkness had been well and truly cut away. When dealing with the taint of the Abyss, you had to be absolutely sure. Otherwise, it would return, ten times stronger than before. History had proved that, time and again. I will kill again. I will do what needs to be done. But I am a vessel for the Will of the Celestial Dragon. Haides murders for pleasure, caring nothing for the bigger picture. We're very different, him and me.

No, it wasn't the killings. It was Haides' flippant attitude towards everything that mattered. The Celestial Dragon, the vital work the Order did. The way he made fun of Marcus's efforts. Nothing was sacred to Haides. That's what grated. I need to find a way to get rid of him. Cut the gatekeeper out of the loop. He's driving me up the wall.

Marcus grudgingly admitted to himself that he was also way outside his comfort zone. In matters of the mind, it was usually Marcus that had the upper hand. To get to the Maiden's secrets, he had to remain in telepathic contact with Haides, an opponent that always tried to manipulate him—and sometimes succeeded. What did he call me? The Prodigal Prefect. I'll show him just how prodigal I can be.