Broken Warrior

Little Bits of Madness

Eliza

My heart had leapt through my chest when I saw the third explosion from my window. I had been on the phone calling in more support, straining my eyesight to see what was happening amongst the shadows and flames when one of the vehicles had exploded again, or perhaps it was something else that had blown up, I didn't know.

One of the first things Mr. Alesky did afterwards was call me and tell me to pull everyone back. I wanted to demand to know if everyone was alright but I knew he needed me to follow his orders at that moment. So I spent the rest of the time making sure the other teams were heading back to the safety of Knight Corp, directing them around the street that had been under attack.

I counted the people who walked off the first two elevators and were immediately setting themselves to work, Alesky moving to his office and slamming the door shut behind him. Bryn saw my glare, must have noticed me silently looking for the last two who had yet to appear.

"Everyone is ok." The woman offered me a firm nod. "Ryker and Tim are coming up right away. None of our people were hurt, but someone just destroyed the Russians."

"Eliza. I need you to run interference for me." Carbry was back at his door, jaw clenched in an anger I didn't fully understand.

All his people were safe. Yes, there had been an attack, but I read more than dogged determination in his movements and glare. Something else had happened that I wasn't seeing, something more than an attack on people we had been ordered not to protect.

When I nodded, he continued, softly. "We had an unknown attacker. Their target seemed to be Yuri but quickly turned to me. It was expertly planned and well executed. We responded but not in time to save any lives."

And that was the statement I spent the next five minutes repeating on the phone as he returned to talk to someone else, presumably from the Head Order, while the team began setting up in the conference room.

As I was on the phone, I also ran a check on the team that was following Meriwa and Daryl away from the city and they reported no change from the rather uneventful trip the two mates were having. I pre-emptively put them on guard in case whatever had happened would extend to the two humans.

When the doors to the elevator opened to reveal Tim and Ryker, I relaxed a little bit more, until I saw the half dazed expression in Ryker's eyes and the concerned looks Tim was giving him. Even as I watched, talking on the phone to yet another contact from yet another order, I saw Ryker look longingly at his phone before putting it away untouched. He stopped in front of my desk as Tim walked to Alesky's office, and stated into the conference room like a warrior preparing to fight to the death.

I hung up the phone, standing and fighting the urge to reach out to the man. "Ryke..."

The scowl I received was darker than I had seen in a long time, a minefield of fury and self defence that Ryker was busy heaping up in his mind. It was enough to kill the words on my tongue and cause my heart to go out to him. What had happened out there? He opened his mouth to say something, probably particularly nasty, when Alesky's door opened once more.

Our boss stepped by Tim who tried to waylay him, and Carbry stalked towards Ryker, every ounce of muscle tense with fury. "I thought I was clear the last time you risked your life for me."

Ryker didn't balk, almost seemed to settle into himself a little bit more as he defiantly turned towards the vampire who could kill him without much effort, glaring daggers right back at Carbry. "She would have killed you. And everyone else."

"Who is she? She knew me, but I've never seen her before."

"She is a weapon. Forged for the Teutonic Knights to fight the scourge of Satan's filth from Earth." Ryker offered hollowly. "But I think you're wrong."