Invincible

CHAPTER 15

It wasn’t every day you found out that you were destined to destroy the world. And as those words slammed into Nick, he felt as sluggish and lost as the people barely moving in the air around him. Like he was going in slow motion, attempting to catch up.

“What are you saying?” he asked Kody, trying to get a handle on this moment.

“It’s true, Nick. It’s why so many creatures are after you right now. If they can capture you while you’re weak, they can harness your powers and use them for their own gain.”

“I won’t let them do that.”

She inclined her head to him. “That’s what we’re here to ensure. Caleb and I are your protectors. He for your body and I for your mind.”

Huh? Other than the fact he was insane, there wasn’t anything wrong with his mind. Why would it need its own protector. “That doesn’t make sense.”

“Of course it does. Think about it for a second. Your goodness and your free will are all that keep you from breaking and becoming apathetic. You have to hold on to that part of yourself always.”

“And if I don’t?”

“You know the answer.”

He would kill everyone, and all the people around him would cease to exist. He shook his head. “I don’t think I like this. I don’t want this power. Take it away from me.”

“I can’t. No one can. And right now, you don’t have the power either. You’re just an embryo.”

Maybe there was time. Maybe …

“Then I won’t learn it.” If he never embraced his powers, they couldn’t be used by anyone, not even him. That should protect everyone.

Kody gave him no reprieve. “You have to. If you refuse, your hand will be forced one way or another, and everyone you love will pay the price. You have to become strong enough to protect yourself and those around you. It’s the only hope any of you have. It’s the only hope any of us have. Don’t you understand, Nick?”

“No. I don’t understand.” He felt like the entire world was caving in on him. He had a principal dying to send him to jail. A coach out to kill him. A boss who was an immortal vampire slayer. His two best friends were certifiable, and a pseudo girlfriend who’d just told him he was the ultimate bomb that would end the world.

I’m not old enough to cope with this.

He was just a kid.

Unable to breathe, he met Kody’s gaze. “I want to go back and be normal again. Forget all this. I want to spend mindless hours playing video games and—”

“Nick, you’ve never been irresponsible, and you know it.”

It was true. But …

He could learn. He was willing to.

Stop it. Since the moment he’d been born, he’d had to take care of his mother. Watch out for her.

And …

The spell on his classmates broke. In the blink of an eye, everything went back to normal with a loud, angry rush. None of them the wiser for the battle that had been fought right in the middle of them while they scurried along, trying to make class before the next bell. None of them seeing the remains that had already faded to nothing more than his bad memory.

Except him.

Nick knew, and he’d never be normal again.

It’s a lie. She’s messing with you.

But deep down inside, he knew better. This wasn’t a lie. It felt like the truth.

I won’t do it. I won’t.

You said that about stealing, and what are you doing?

Given the right stimulus, anyone was capable of anything. Bubba had hammered that thought into him repeatedly. Even Mother Teresa could be moved to violence if the right buttons were pushed.

Nick had never been too sure of that analogy, and yet …

“I need a break for minute.”

Kody moved toward him. “You want me to stop—?”

“No!” he snapped, terrified of what she might do. “I don’t want any kind of hocus-pocus or anything else. I just want to sit here for a minute and think.”

The bell sounded.

He needed to get to class and start his day. He had a list of things to steal for his coach.…

That was laughable, given everything else going on. “Can I be killed?” he asked her, wondering exactly who and what he was.

“Oh yeah.”

“What happens if I die?”

“Honestly, we’re not completely sure. Other than your father’s powers will continue to grow until—”

“Wh-wh-whoa-what? My father?”

She nodded. “Where do you think all of this came from? You were born to be your father’s replacement. Once you are safe, he will have to surrender.”

“Surrender or die?”

“If he doesn’t yield his title willingly, he will be killed.”

Well, that explained why the man hated him so badly. Why he couldn’t stand to even look at him. Out of everything else he’d learned, that actually made him feel a little better. For the first time in his life, he understood his father.

And …

“The stuff my dad told the police about demons attacking him—”

“All true, and those forces will now be after you, too.”

“Move, Gautier, you worthless hobo.” Stone shoved him hard as he passed by.

Nick started after him, only to find Kody in the way. “That’s the kind of reaction that will cause you to fail. It will lead your enemies to your door. Is Stone really worth that?”

No.

Maybe?

“What about my mom?”

“You already know the answer.”

He was her protector, too. Always the man of the house. “If I died—”

“Your father would have another child. That one won’t have your humanity. Your mother is what makes you special, Nick. Adarian’s next woman wouldn’t be her. His child wouldn’t be you. All of us are a culmination of vital parts of our parents and their pasts. A vital part of the circumstances we were raised with. Everything that happens to us, good and bad, leaves a lasting impression in our souls. You take one part of that out, and you can completely rewrite something crucial about us. By and large, we’re not shaped by the big things. It’s the little, day-to-day moments that make us who we are. Who we’re going to be.”

His head was pounding from trying to digest all of this.

“I’m so overwhelmed.”

“Most of us are, Nick. Even though we look calm and peaceful on the outside, most of us are barely hanging on by our fingernails. You know why Bubba watches Oprah every day?”

“He’s insane?”

She shook her head slowly. “It was his wife’s favorite show, and she died while watching it.”

That news floored him every bit as much as the news of who he really was. “Bubba was married?”

“Bubba was a father.”

He gaped. Bubba a dad? How was it possible he didn’t know this? “Did she leave him?”

“Not willingly. She was home sick from work, tending the baby when someone broke into their house and killed them. Bubba came home from work to find them, and he had a nervous breakdown shortly thereafter. He quit his high-tech, high-paying job and opened his store so that he could provide the world with the security and arms they needed to protect what they loved. It’s why he prowls the night, looking for other predators out to take innocent lives. It’s why he can’t sleep and why he seems so obsessed. He is.”

And that explained the free classes he taught at night on how to survive. The self-defense classes where he recruited as many women and kids as he could get. The reason why he kept everyone at a distance at times.

Everything made sense now.

Nick felt sick over what she described. “None of that was a small decision. It all looks pretty major from here.”

“You’re looking at the big picture that’s made up of tiny little dots. Like that painting of a picnic on the beach. From a distance, it looks like a well-defined picture, but up close you can see all the tiny pinpricks that give the bigger illusion. Bubba’s wife decided to leave work early and go straight home and not to the doctor. She decided to pick up their baby from the sitter and to wait to go to the grocery store for supplies. She’d asked Bubba to come home early, too, but he’d decided that he needed to work. Had just one of those tiny variables changed, his entire life would be completely different.”

“Or would it?”

Kody arched a brow.

“If she’d left the baby with its sitter, she’d still be dead. How would that change anything?”

“With an infant to feed, Bubba wouldn’t have dedicated himself to his store. He would have wrapped himself around the child, and that would be the focus of his world.”

“How do you know that?”

“Look in your heart, and you know the answer.”

He did, but he wasn’t ready to accept it yet.

Kody leaned forward to whisper in his ear. “Had you not gone to see your mother the night you were shot … had you headed home as you were supposed to after work, you wouldn’t have met Kyrian. Your mother would still be—”

“I get it.” Had he not stood up to Alan, Kyrian wouldn’t have saved his life either. Kyrian would have thrown him in with the rest of the riffraff.

One little decision.

One life-altering event.

“How will we ever know when those important moments come?”

“That’s why you have to learn your powers. You’ve heard the sayings, and they’re absolutely true. Forewarned is forearmed. Knowledge is power. By understanding the nuances of the world around you and how to survive the temptations, you can rule anything. Even yourself.”

“Master of my own destiny.”

“Precisely.”

“Master of your destiny, Mr. Gautier?” Mrs. Richardson mocked as she neared them. “The only thing you’re going to be master of is detention. You’re late. Both of you.” She handed them write-ups. “Now, get to class before Cinderella turns both of those into suspensions.”

Nick let out a frustrated breath. Beautiful.

Kody squeezed his hand. “You’ll be fine, Nick. You have me and Caleb here. We’re not leaving you.”

“You still haven’t told me what you are.”

“I’m your friend. That’s all that matters.”

It’s not the enemy from without who is the most lethal. He didn’t know why that thought went through his head, but it did. Was it his subconscious trying to tell him something?

Or was it more paranoia?

Why was life so dang hard? Why did every decision have to be rough? Unable to cope anymore, he headed for his classroom while he tried to sort through some of this.

But in the end, he kept coming back to the same questions. Could something that had been conceived of darkness ever be used for good? What made someone evil?

Was it their birth or their life?

Did they control the direction of their fate or did something else?

A guy could lose his mind trying to sort all that out. He definitely felt like he was going crazy. And all the while, he was gathering up items for a cause he knew was wrong. I’m making a bad decision.

But what choice did he really have?

He couldn’t go to jail, and he couldn’t let the coach continue to prey on people. Someone had to stop him. For now, he’d play along, and somehow he’d find the evidence he needed to put a stop to the coach’s corruption.

Then he’d find a way to stop his own.

At three o’clock, Nick was standing in Devus’s office, feeling even worse than he had felt that morning. He didn’t know why, but it was like he was selling out his brethren. Offering his classmates up for slaughter.

How stupid was that?

Yet he couldn’t shake the sensation.

“What do you have, Gautier?”

“Bad case of indigestion, sir,” he answered sarcastically. Something that didn’t endear him to Coach Predator.

“Should I call the principal, then?”

“No.” Nick emptied his pockets on the desk. He had the hairbrush, two writing samples from two students on his list, the scarf, and …

He hesitated with the class ring that Casey had given him after lunch—he’d told her to hold off on going after Kody’s necklace. She had no idea what a challenge that little bit was going to give her, and he didn’t want Kody to disembowel her in the hallway and make her another stain on the wall.

Nick looked down at the heavy ring in his hand that glinted in the dim light of the room. The bright stone in the center was as red as blood and surrounded by small diamonds that winked at him. Unlike the other items that he could write off his conscience, this one was definitely theft, and guilt tore at him. He felt like his dad, and he hated the coach most of all for giving him that sensation.

I won’t be that man.

But right now. In this one moment …

He was.

Wincing, Nick held it out. So much for Devus not wanting him to hand stuff to him during school hours.

Devus grinned as he palmed it. “Good boy. You’ve bought yourself a reprieve. Now, get out there and finish the list, or I will finish you.”

He took too much pleasure in causing pain. Like my father. The comparison really ate at him. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. In fifteen minutes, school would be out and he’d have to hustle to make it over to the St. Louis cemetery for his next lesson with Grim.

Nick turned to leave, but the coach stopped him. “Tell you what, Gautier. Why don’t you skip practice today and make sure that I have four more items in the morning?”

“Or what?” The coach’s tone had implied there was definitely an ultimatum in there.

“You’re a smart kid. I think you know the answer.”

I go to jail and die. “Can I ask a question?”

“What?”

“Why did you pick me for this?”

“You’re a pathetic waste with nothing to lose. If you died tomorrow, no one would even know you were gone.”

Nick ground his teeth. That wasn’t true. His mother’s life would be shattered. She’d never be the same. While the rest of the world would go on, she wouldn’t. He knew that. And in that moment, he fully realized something.

How many lives one life touched. Not always with a major impact, but in little ways.

If he died, Liza would have to unload her deliveries alone. Yes, she could do it without him, but she always claimed to enjoy spending a few minutes chatting with him while he did it. She looked forward to his visits. Mennie wouldn’t have anyone to take out her trash or clean the yard. Kyrian wouldn’t have someone who busted his chops, and Acheron wouldn’t have a human friend who knew all about his weirdness.

Not big things. It was the little things in life that really mattered.

He leaned forward over the desk. “There you’re wrong, Coach.”

The coach looked up with a smug sneer. “How so?”

Nick returned that sneer with a pompous smile he was sure set the coach’s ire on fire. “I assure you if your garbage men stopped picking up your trash, you’d miss them real fast and want them back. No life, no matter what you think, is insignificant. Everyone has a purpose. Even you.”

Devus sputtered while Nick turned around and left him to it. For the first time in his life, Nick felt like he was experiencing the real world for what it was. Like blinders had been ripped off his face and he saw the sunshine in all its natural glory.

Beautiful. Breathtaking.

And even though he wasn’t certain about his future, for this one moment in time, he was thrilled to be alive.

As soon as the bell sounded, Nick grabbed his backpack and headed for the cemetery to meet Grim. Kody and Caleb had pretty much avoided him after their morning encounter with the Fringe Guard. Kody seemed sad about it.

Caleb’s anger was so potent, it scared him.

There was something more going on with the demon than he was letting on. And since Nick couldn’t fight him without dying, he decided to leave the demon be until he came to terms with whatever was eating at him.

It didn’t take long to walk the handful of blocks up to the cemetery, which rested on the northwest side of the Quarter, one block outside of it between Conti Street and St. Louis on Basin. The white plaster walls that surrounded it spanned an entire block and shielded the massive city of the dead, where more than a hundred thousand former New Orleanians had been laid to rest. Some of the most notable people of the city were interred here.

Because New Orleans was so far below sea level that buried bodies had a nasty way of returning to the land of the living, the city had been forced to find another way to deal with the departed. Above ground tombs and mausoleums had been erected, which was what led to these areas being referred to as the cities of the dead. The grossest thing was that most of the tombs were shared spaces, usually with a single family, but sometimes with groups such as the massive Italian monument in the center. Once someone died, their remains were put on top of someone else who’d decomposed. It was why the city had a law that no tomb could be opened for a full year and a day—giving the bodies enough time to fully decay before the next one was added. He didn’t know what they did with someone if they needed a tomb before that time elapsed, and he didn’t want to know.

Some questions really didn’t need answering, and that was definitely one of them.

Shoving that thought away, he headed through the black iron gate that was opened so that tourists and tour groups as well as loved ones could access the cemetery during the daylight hours.

Honestly, the cemetery was beautiful in a creepy kind of way. The elaborate tombs and statues went off in every direction, some dwarfing him. While most were white, others were brightly colored, and all manner of images and wrought iron decorations had been used to add flavor and beauty to the crypts.

“Boo.”

Nick cursed as Grim appeared behind him and startled the crap out of him. “Don’t do that!”

“Jumpy, are we?”

“We are in a cemetery, you know.”

Grim laughed. “Of course I know. It’s one of my favorite places.”

“Yeah, well, not mine. I don’t make it a habit of spending a lot of time here. I figure since one day I’ll be a permanent resident, there’s no need to rush and visit it while I’m not.”

“I love the way you look at things, kid. Now follow me.”

Nick did until he noticed that Grim didn’t have a single shadow.

He had three.

“What the—?”

Grim paused to look at him over his shoulder. “What?”

Nick pointed to the shadows. “What’s up with you?”

“You know my friends. Pain and Suffering were on my nerves, so I relegated them to shadow status for the day.” He continued forward.

Nick wasn’t sure he liked that, but he knew better than to argue. Picking up the pace, he closed the distance between them. Grim didn’t stop again until he reached the far back end, where one of the sarcophagi reminded Nick of a table. Images of death and angels were carved all over the intricate stonework.

“I think this will do for our next lesson.” Grim skimmed his hand over the surface without touching it. A cloth appeared, shielding the blackened surface. “Much better.” He held his hand out to Nick. “Have you been practicing?”

“For all the good it hasn’t done me. Yeah.” He handed the pendulum and book to Grim.

“Have you made friends with the pendulum?”

“Kind of one-sided if you ask me, but yeah. I think so.”

Grim sighed irritably. “Fine. Today I wanted to show you how you can locate someone with your pendulum.”

“Wouldn’t calling them be easier?”

He passed a droll stare at him. “What if the phone doesn’t work, Nick? Or you don’t have their number. Better yet, what if you don’t really know who you’re hunting, but you still need to find them.”

“Why would I waste time hunting for someone I don’t know?”

Grim clenched his teeth. “Why would you waste time playing senseless video games for hours on end?”

“’Cause that’s fun.”

“And this can be lifesaving.”

Yeah, okay, that might be better than mastering Mario.

Maybe.

As Grim opened the book to a blank page, a tourist came around the corner and gasped, then quickly retreated. A devilish grin lit his face. “Hold that thought.”

Nick frowned as Death turned into a dark gray vapor and made a quick exit. A few seconds later, he heard a loud scream followed by the sound of running feet.

When Grim returned, he was beaming in satisfaction. “Aw, fear. How I love the fragrance.”

“You are so sick, Grim.”

“And one day, you will learn to take pleasure in the small things as well.”

Yeah, but after what he’d learned about himself today, he hoped it wasn’t from harming others. Even mildly.

“Now, where were we?”

“Finding lost things.”

“Yes, yes.” Grim returned, and a map of New Orleans appeared in the book.

“How do you get it to do that for you? Whenever I try something like that, it back-talks me.”

“Much like a child, the book knows it can get away with back-talking you. I have no love or tolerance for it. If it annoys me, I will burn it without reservation.”

Ah, intimidation did work. Who knew?

“Now,” Grim said, drawing his attention back to the map. “Tell me someone you’d like to find.”

Problem was, he knew where everyone lived who was important to him.

Everyone except Kody.

“Nekoda,” he said to the pendulum. “Show me where Nekoda is.”

Grim handed him the chain.

Nick hovered it over the map, and nothing happened. “This is a waste.”

“No. Learning is never a waste. What you’re doing right now is discovering how not to make a lightbulb.”

“Huh?”

Grim shook his head. “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Educate yourself, kid. All right, the pendulum isn’t working. Sometimes you need an accelerant to help it.”

“Like gasoline?”

“Yes, Nick. We’re going to set the book and your pendulum on fire and then use them ’cause we’re just that intelligent.”

“Knock the sarcasm, okay? I’ve had a really bad day.”

“You keep lipping off, and I can assure you it will get worse.”

Nick cleared his throat as he reminded himself this wasn’t someone he could be himself around. “Sorry. You were saying?”

“Do you have anything of Nekoda’s?”

“Uh, yeah. I have her Nintendo she lent me and a pencil. Why?”

“Do you have one with you?”

“Both.”

“Give me the Nintendo, since that is more uniquely hers. Whenever you’re doing something like this, you want an item that means something to the person you seek. Such things can tell you a lot and aid you immensely.”

Like his book and pendulum that Grim had told him to guard with his life …

Oh, no. A really bad feeling went through him.

Nick bit his lip as he balled the pendulum up in his hand. “You told me that things like that can be used to control someone, right?”

“Yes.”

“Can it do anything else?”

Grim nodded. “Lots of things.”

“Such as?”

Grim considered it a moment before he answered. “You can use it to bind them to a spell. Manipulate them. There are things you could do for good, such as help them with motivation or retrieve something else they’ve lost, but few entities do that. Usually it’s reserved for hurting someone. Why?”

“Because I think I finally understand what Devus is up to.”

“Who?”

“Never mind.” It still didn’t really make sense. Devus knew where everyone lived. All he had to do was access their student files.

Which meant Devus must be using the stolen items to control or manipulate them. But for what? The football team could be for the play-offs, but Kody and the ones not on the team …

Something wasn’t right. He needed more information.

“Are you paying attention, Nick?”

“Absolutely. Undivided. Lead on.”

Grim grimaced before he continued. “Okay, you can—”

“Can you use the item to test for something?”

“Stop interrupting me,” Grim snarled. “Or I will skin you.”

“Sorry … but can you?”

Grim let out a long-suffering sigh. “This is why I don’t have children and why I’ve spent eternity avoiding them at all costs.” He met Nick’s gaze. “Yes. You could use the item to test for something personal about the owner.”

“Like what?”

“Anything. Do they bake? Are they smart? Are they going to die for irritating me, et cetera.”

“Yeah, I don’t like that last one.”

“I really don’t care.” Grim picked up the Nintendo.

Nick’s phone started ringing.

Cursing, Grim glared at him.

“Sorry. I forgot to turn it to vibrate.” Nick looked down at the number. It was Mark. “Um. I need to take this call. Is that okay?”

“Oh, by all means. Go ahead and hold up Death for that. It’s such a smart move on your part.” That sarcasm was thickest of all.

Nick knew it was stupid to taunt the being, but …

He answered the phone.

“Where are you?” Mark asked.

“St. Louis Number One. Why?”

“I just remembered where I saw your coach. And boy, you ain’t gonna believe this one.”

And boy, if you don’t put that phone down, you’re not going to live to draw another breath.…