(10.3) Fired

Chapter 10, Part 3

The gunshots and shouting eventually died out. It wasn’t long after that I ran out of Ginger Snaps, the mist that had settled over my conscious thought lifting as the last chunk of her heart slid down my throat. As I snapped to, I began to register just what the hell happened.

I whirled around, looking for a way out. The fire that I started had spread to the ceiling now, chunks of melted plaster and burning insulation dripped and fell around me as I realized what I was going to have to do. Gathering my will, I held my hand at a wall of debris and fire that had once been the front door.

“Aethra Pul-” I stopped when a gunshot erupted. Apparently, the man I had sent to kill others had come to his senses. When I turned around, I found that he had taken his own life.

Beginning my spell again, I pointed at the wall and blew it apart. Dust and debris spilled into the empty street and I followed suit. When I was clear of the fire, I turned in time to see the building collapse. It didn’t seem right to me. It took a second to realize what was wrong. Usually, when you see buildings overrun with fire or collapsing, you hear people scream. This time, there was nothing. No sound beyond the crumbling of debris and the roar of the inferno.

“Damnit!” I screamed. “Sonuva bitch!” I had lost everything. My bag, my tickets, my weapons. All of it, gone in a blaze of glory. It wasn’t until I turned to leave and tripped that I realized that I had actually been standing next to the bag, my hasty exit having blown it into the middle of the street.

“Well things are looking up.” I said as I hefted it onto my shoulder. Now I could finally start getting my shit together. Formulate a plan to take out the heroes. It could also just order Angel to do it for me. That would make my job all the more easier.

“But first,” I said as I started down the street. “I need a nice long shower and some clean…Fuck!”

My shirt was covered in blood again. “It never rains…”