Phaze Fantasies Volume 4 Read online

  She sunk down into the covers and pulled his blanket over her head.

  He continued, “I have the utmost respect for you. I would like to think that I've earned yours. Respect and a healthy dose of lust have begun a good number of long lasting, satisfying marriages."

  She resisted the urge to punch him, but it was hard.

  "So, let me see if I get this. Respect plus lust equals a relationship?"

  "No, you're being contrary. It's a beginning."

  His words were sterner than his voice and he pulled her to him and snuggled her into the curve of his body.

  "Is it a good start?"

  There was a waver in his voice like a small boy.

  "Yes,” she whispered.

  * * * *

  Katerina's body heaved off the bed in a jolt of adrenaline.

  Doc had leapt out of bed, still fully clothed, and was already running out the door.

  "What? What?” All she knew was her dream was interrupted by a loud crash.

  "The labs! It came from the labs!” He disappeared and she heard him bound down the hall and then the stairs.

  The children started crying and others were making their way out of the rooms as she tried to calm them down and reassure them that the men had not come to take them away from her. Some of the older ones, Grant and Sioban, picked up the little ones and comforted them with hugs and whispers but as Kat counted heads one of the older children came up missing.

  Amy.

  Mathilde came up on her side and scooped up Nathaniel, kissing his tear streaked face and smoothing his hair. “It's all right. I'll watch them."

  Her understanding eyes met Kat's over Nate's sable head and Kat nodded.

  "Thank you.” She tugged on Jilly's braid and pulled her close for a hug. “You all listen to Mathilde while I go help Doc? I love you all, be good, I'll be right back."

  God bless her, Mathilde had it all under control.

  Kat pulled the blanket around her tighter, glad for his scent that calmed her, and started to follow, but stopped. “Mathilde? Where are the labs?"

  "Down the stairs at the end of the hall, through the kitchen and to the left of the pantry is another door. It will take you to the cellars where the lab is."

  Kat started to run.

  "Katerina!"

  Kat stopped and turned.

  "In the kitchen, on the left side of the door is an ironing cabinet. I have a shotgun in there. Take it with you."

  Kat nodded and flew to find Amy, grabbing the gun on the way like Mathilde told her to.

  When she burst through the doors she was glad she listened.

  He was so shocking she froze.

  His trousers were shredded, flapping off his legs in streamers. But that was all that was left of his human body. His once concave stomach was distended, not fully a spider abdomen, but bulbous, with coarse hairs sticking out of it, and all the way up his back. Spider legs, three on each side, had grown, making his shoulders hunched with joints. He still had his human arms, too, but they hung at his side like deflated balloons, flopping and boneless.

  A gut wrenching scream choked in the back of her throat, but the worst of him she had to turn away from.

  What must have once been a sweet face now had knots of scarred flesh covering it, spiking hairs growing like black spears. Fangs grew out of his cheeks, black and sleek. All of it was disgusting. The stuff of nightmares. But the most horrific were his eyes.

  All of them bulged out the top of his skull like obsidian marbles. His beautiful blue eyes looked out from below, where his nose once was.

  She could see Xavier in them. He was pleading with his eyes.

  * * * *

  Two decades of his research ... destroyed.

  Nothing could be left after a crash like that. Whether it was chemicals or not, nothing would be left.

  His feet hardly touched the treads as he flew down the stairs.

  He hit the custom four-inch iron reinforced door with both hands from the bottom stair, throwing it open. In the same moment, he became the center of attention.

  And that attention was a half human eight foot spider and its cornered prey.

  Xavier, who had Amy against a wall, fighting for her life.

  Behind him lay the ruins of the labs. The cage Xavier often used had been ripped from the wall and splintered like nothing more than pick up sticks and the anchoring cement wall was now small rocks on the floor.

  That cage had been anchored with six inch screws.

  Amy was smart. She'd grabbed a fire iron, positioning herself behind a tipped lab table. Every time Xavier got too close, she jabbed it at him. It didn't make him go away, but it kept him from killing her. Her face was dirty and tear-streaked, but underneath you could see her anger. It was what kept her alive.

  Doc's mind lightning fired through equations that could have led to this outcome. All of which equaled his argument with Xavier.

  He should have known how volatile the boy was and how he would react.

  "Xavier, let her go!"

  Xavier drew back and hissed.

  He didn't know how much of Xavier's humanity was left. What the boy understood of himself and his actions. By what he knew of Xavier's changes before, he lost more self awareness each time.

  A fist of anguish gripped him.

  Xavier had missed his last shot because Doc was too busy fucking Kat to remind him.

  "Xavier, back away."

  Amy jabbed at him with the iron.

  "No, Amy, don't enrage him, there might be something of Xavier left."

  "No, there's nothing. He attacked me when I told him I wouldn't marry him. And then he turned into this right in front of me!” She jabbed at him again.

  "Xavier, why didn't you go into the cage?” But he knew the answer. Why? Why prolong the inevitable? After Amy refused him, what was left for him to hold onto? Doc loved him, and there was the hope of a cure, but when that faith couldn't sustain you...

  Xavier drew back and tried to strike with a back leg, but Amy blocked him with the fire iron again.

  "I didn't want to hurt him.” Her voice was raw.

  "I may not have a choice."

  How do you kill your child? Which was exactly what Xavier was to him. Even though he'd turned, Doc saw in him all that he could be, and all that he would have been if he were healed.

  But what Doc didn't know was how much of Xavier's mind was left.

  Doc glanced to see if he could give the boy a shot, but his work was in shards on the slate floor, crunching under his feet.

  The steel locker that held what was left of the serum had been knocked over and ripped apart ... almost as if someone had chewed at it.

  Amy screamed and snapped his attention back to her. Xavier was taking swings, his eyes glowing and focused on her.

  Before Doc could always see the person in the Spider, there was always Xavier, the boy, in there somewhere. But now ... And it worried him, because if there was no humanity to reach out to?

  Katerina screamed as she stood in the doorway. She almost dropped the gun, but Doc lunged to grab it.

  "Amy, stop!” Kat ran up to Xavier and tried to attack him, but Doc grabbed a fistful of her nightgown and hauled her back.

  "I don't need you hurt, too."

  Xavier slashed out again, cuffing Amy in the head before she could block him.

  "Amy!” Kat leaned down and picked up a shard of glass, hurling it at Xavier.

  "Don't make him angrier!” Doc slapped her arm down.

  "You speak of him as if he's a person!"

  "I hope he still is in there somewhere.” But Doc hated his choices, and there were only two.

  Kill Xavier before he killed Amy, or kill him after he killed Amy.

  He raised the gun.

  Amy scrunched her eyes shut, with tears running like rivers down her face.

  He loaded the shell and focused on Xavier.

  Xavier heard the snaps and turned his head to look at him.

  Plea
se. If there was a God, please let this not happen. Maybe if Xavier could escape. To do what though, kill other people?

  Doc focused on him again and took a breath.

  First, do no harm.

  Go, Xavier, please go.

  The ounce of humanity left in the spider boy was a dim light in his multi-lensed eyes, once bright blue, now the target of the gun's crosshairs.

  "Xavier, I love you."

  Xavier reared on his back four legs and swiped at him as the gun went off.

  Kat screaming was the last thing he heard.

  Chapter Seven

  Kat's voice gave out the third time she screamed his name. She tried to swallow past her scraped throat, but the spit wouldn't make it down so she cleared her throat a little and tried again.

  Amy ran out of the room crying and Kat closed her eyes. Nice one. Really. Total loss of control was a great leadership quality. At least there was no blood. If there was blood gushing everywhere she would have lost it. When Michael, her oldest, got bloody noses the others laughed at her as she ran for the water closet. But Martin wasn't bleeding and she still lost it. He looked like he was sleeping except for the swelling and bruises forming around his eyes.

  She put her hand on his chest to make sure it rose and fell. When it did, it was a small relief, but they had more to do. Like catch Xavier. She gave his shoulder a little shake.

  "Martin, please wake up."

  "I would, but there's a banshee screaming and I'm afraid she's come for me."

  His voice was so low and cracked she had to lean in to hear him. “If you weren't hurt I'd hit you."

  "Your compassion is overwhelming."

  She brushed the dirt off his forehead. “You bring out the best in me."

  "Xavier?"

  "He left. I have no idea where to."

  He squeezed her hand. “Probably to the underworld in the tunnels."

  "Underworld?” It got worse?

  "There are colonies in the tunnels of Grand Central Station."

  "Oh. Is that why I see blinks of lights as the train goes through?"

  "Yes.” He closed his eyes. “Derwold sometimes finds clusters of bodies down there."

  Her chest squeezed. Those poor kids. It reminded her that they had a cause to fight for. And the first thing they had to do was get to what was left of her orchids, then fix this lab.

  "Speaking of Derwold, we should send for him. Maybe he can find traces of Xavier."

  He sat up and looked around him and Kat wanted to cry at the anguish on his face. All he worked for was lost. She couldn't imagine what work he'd been doing, but it must have been a lot because the room looked as if they were in the middle of a dump and there wasn't one glass test tube left whole. They would have to start all over again. Maybe this time she could help him.

  She heard running footsteps, and a second later Derwold stood in the doorway. How he knew or got there was a mystery for another day.

  "Doc, I think I found him!"

  Martin got up with a grimace, bracing himself on his knees and straightened slowly.

  "Everything all right? No broken bones?” She ran her hands down his muscled legs while she studied his face.

  "No, just sore.” Martin brushed himself off and started out the door. “Lets go then."

  "I should go check on Amy and the children first. You go on, I'll catch up."

  "I don't want you walking the tunnels by yourself. Come now or stay."

  She hesitated but gave in to the need to go make sure her brood was fine.

  "Go check. I have to see if there are any syringes left anyway.” He scanned the room, “which seems to be an exercise in futility."

  She picked her nightgown up, carefully stepping over the shards and splintered boards.

  "Kat, it would be one less thing I had to worry about, you being there. People have been known to disappear, and Derwold has evidence that some Scorpicos ... ah ... cocoon their prey."

  And that's all she needed to hear. Since the time she woke up with a Wolf Spider on her face, she'd hated spiders with a vengeance. Xavier, she'd made an exception for, but on the whole—no.

  But with as much relief at not having to go, she worried for Martin and Derwold.

  "I want a time you will be back. A precise time."

  "I don't know—we could search all day."

  "No. No—I will not sit here all day wondering if I've become a widow."

  "Five hours?"

  She raised her eyebrow. It struck fear into some of the children.

  "Three?"

  "Three. Exactly. I will start counting now."

  * * * *

  Doc and Derwold scoured the deserted tunnels of Grand Central Station for two and a half hours, thankful he wore his duster because the walls were a collection of molds, fungi and slime that were unclassified, he was sure.

  The light from the torches they brought evaporated into the blackness, and if you were searching for them, signs of the underworld were about. Not many, and not to the unaware eye, but they were there.

  Scratches on the walls in specific repetitive patterns which looked to be random, but were not. Trails of footsteps. Or spider steps. The slight indentations to the fine dust that created a trail that almost wasn't there.

  Most of the time when people looked for trails they concentrated on footprints in front of them. Spider prints were about six feet off to the side when they didn't walk the walls.

  Fissure cracks in the tiled walls needed to be checked for webbing.

  He should have known that this would have happened. He should have been ready with the shots before Xavier lost his temper completely. He should have found him right away after their argument and given him a higher dose knowing he wouldn't be able to control it this time. That his emotions and frailty couldn't hold it all together.

  He wished he could have told him he was sorry.

  For a few moments he thought a familiar look came into Xavier's soulless blue eyes. Almost a begging. But a begging for what? For a cure that might be years away? Or a quick death because he was so tired of fighting a lost cause. Doc couldn't do it.

  First, do no harm. Archaic, but the creed brought humanity to what was left of the medical profession.

  Maybe the more compassionate thing would be to help ease Xavier's pain. It was a moot subject now because Xavier was gone, and Doc didn't do a good job either way. He would think about it though in case he was ever in the position again.

  Derwold covered his mouth with his sleeve.

  "He ain't here."

  Doc pulled a bit of the inside of his shirt and wiped his face. “He's here, but too far gone."

  "Here.” Derwold took Kat's medallion out of his pocket and put it in Doc's hand. “This might bring you luck."

  He let the exhaustion and anguish fill his words. “There's a slight chance, too small to mention even, that he could return to his human form. Most likely not, but miracles have been known to happen. Still, it would take time, and a deathlike quiet. He would need to put himself in a deep sleep. Maybe hypnotize himself until his body would make the change back."

  "Do ya think if he does that he'll come back?"

  Thank you for the perfect lead-in, Derwold. “He's my son. He'll always be welcome in my house, no matter who I married."

  If Xavier was out there—and Doc was certain he was—at least Doc could help him this last bit.

  "We have to go. We've got a half hour to make it back before Kat sends out a search party and I'm sure she'll be in the lead. I can't have her in danger like that."

  Derwold grunted his assent and they began picking their way back through the black tubes when a leg fell in front of them.

  Doc jumped back and pulled out his shotgun. Derwold ran behind a half wall and cocked his gun.

  There was no protecting yourself in terrain like this. Behind you held more surprises than in front.

  After a thick moment of silence and nothing else happening, Doc waved Derwold forward and they both s
tarted out again, this time more carefully. Doc walked three feet around the leg, which looked like a chicken joint that had been hacked, all chunky meat and bone. Normally Derwold wouldn't hesitate to find cadavers in the tunnels, but this time was different. This time they both knew they were being watched, and that was a warning sign. One they had no problem listening to.

  "We'll keep looking. Once a month, we'll come back to check."

  Again, for their watchers benefit.

  Walking briskly towards the pinpoint of light on the horizon, Doc realized he was anxious to get home. Not because he was tired and wanted to relax, but that he had someone to go home to.

  And wasn't that a great feeling?

  * * * *

  It was three hours and fifteen minutes by the time they made it back, and when he opened the door to the manor Kat had all thirteen children in a row in the parlor to greet him. They were all ages, dressed as well as they could be and they'd all been bathed and their hair combed. The smallest ones faces were shining with pride and happiness, except for the one who hung on Kat's skirts. He looked as if he held a few trepidations.

  "You're late."

  Kat wore a dress Mathilde must have found in the house, but she looked beautiful.

  "My apologies."

  Kat nodded, the anxiety easing from around her eyes. “Xavier?"

  He shook his head. “As for now, no. But if he can turn ... I made sure he knew he could come back. Maybe by then I can find the solution."

  "We'll work hard. Maybe if I can get my orchids growing and you have a constant supply?"

  He scrubbed his face and sighed. “I would like to think so."

  "I would like to introduce you to our thirteen children.” She walked to the end of the line they formed and said, “As I say your name, please step forward."

  "Grant, Amy, Jordan, Maria, Jon Jon, Miranda, Eva, Sioban."

  All eight did as she'd asked and he was impressed.

  "Evan, James, Jared, Sophia and Nathaniel."

  Nathaniel didn't get on line, he still stood gripping Kat's skirts until Kat swung him up in her arms and settled him on her hip seating him there as she went on.

  "Hello, all. Welcome to your new home.” They were a force to be reckoned with. And so was their mother.