Endless

Loss and Revenge | Nick

Three days. Three days of knowing where she was and I'd turned into a wreck. It was ridiculous. Grumbling to myself in Russian, I slammed into my apartment. I lit up a smoke and took a long drag.

Poison.

From the first time I'd met her alone, I'd known she'd be the death of me. Did that keep me away? No. Of course not. I'd sought her out as if suddenly my addiction was to keep her alive and with me.

I rubbed my thumb over my brow, trying to decide on what to do next. Exhaustion weighed me down. Every work day reminded me of Alya. Especially with the press pushing to have her name revealed.

Then there was Romano, who was just a bit too sharp to buy my story of Ryan and me simply not getting along. He was pushing me for answers I couldn't give. After three days, I doubted he'd stop anytime soon.

A drink. I needed a drink.

Letting the cigarette hang from my lips, I trudged to the kitchen and poured myself a good measure of vodka. I downed it. Slowly, the thoughts buzzing in my skull like a million bees at least slowed slightly.

I took a moment to savor my cigarette, but the peace didn't last.

Alya alone in the hospital made me nervous. If she'd failed to shield her power, griffons would already be staking the place out to take her. Would Ryan be able to guard her all the time? No. He had duties. He couldn't stop taking morphine or the worst of the worst would find him. So if someone slipped past security, Alya might be dead by the time he checked up on her.

I couldn't let that happen.

I was half-way to the door before I made myself stop. If I showed up at the hospital, Alya would want to know why. Better if she didn't remember me. Better for her.

Better for me, too.

Her safety was more important. I'd find a way to keep watch at a distance.

"Stupid," I muttered and marched myself back to the kitchen for some more vodka. "She's shielding, you fool. If she wasn't, Ryan would already have had to deal with at least one griff coming to investigate."

Saying it out loud made me feel better. More like I was talking sense. I poured myself another drink. Strange, come to think of it. Ryan had kept both his names.

My cell went off, jarring me. Romano. I scowled and answered. "I'm not going out with you and Carla."

"She's dead."

Everything in me went cold. I couldn't breathe past the hollow ache settling in my chest.

"Who?" I forced out. I fucking knew who.

Romano sniffed, not deigning to answer the question. "A super-virus. Something real nasty, apparently." His sarcasm almost flew over my head. "Hey Parker, guess who signed the order for her immediate cremation?"

My grip on the phone tightened. "Ryan." If he killed her, I didn't give a fuck. He was dead.

"Yup. Suspicious as hell." Papers rustled in the background. "I'm checking out the records. Can't put my finger on it, but something is wrong with your school friend."

Oh yeah, there will be. But first, I needed to talk Romano down. This line of inquiry would get him killed.

"Romano." I used my best patronizing tone. "Do you think he crashed the plane?"

The rustling stopped. "No."

"Okay... Do you think he killed her?"

Romano actually thought it over. I could practically hear him turning the question about in his mind. "No."

"Then what?"

"I dunno," he muttered, sighing. Then he chuckled. I pictured him pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're right."

I hated myself for doing this. "You said you're going to take the night off. Do it."

"I will. Good night."

"Night."

After disconnecting the call, I went to my room. I took my service pistol from its holster and swapped it with one that couldn't be traced back to me. I usually slept with it under my pillow. It was loaded with silver bullets for exactly this sort of situation.

Ryan could own me when it came to fighting griffon against griffon. Luckily for me, this was revenge. I had no interest in playing fair. As tempting as it was to burn through the morphine in my system and fly to the hospital, I restrained the impulse. Ryan had given in to his addiction. If I approached without morphine, he'd sense me long before I was there. Not a good idea.

I didn't mind dying. I did mind failing.

So I drove.

I arrived at the hospital. Went to the front desk. The receptionist smiled exactly right. Not too bright in case I was a family member of someone about to die. Not too somber in case I was someone about to receive good news.

"Dr. Ryan, please."

The receptionist typed away on her computer. "Sorry, sir, but he's not on duty at the moment."

I grimaced. "Dang. I'm sorry I missed him. Do you have a number I can call?"

Her perfect little smile faded. "I'm sorry, but we're not allowed to give out personal details."

"Of course," I said. "Was worth a shot. Have a good night."

Well, fuck. This was inconvenient. Did I power up and track him down? I made my way back out the front door, trying to decide, but then it struck me. He'd come back to the hospital eventually. Even if only to cover his tracks so he couldn't be found.

I'd just make sure to be here when he did.

Eek! Looks like Ryan and Nick are going to have a serious issue, but what do you think happened to Aleria? 

Please remember to vote if you're enjoying the story. And do drop me a comment or two. I love them.