The Tower

The restaurant flooded in on Jade, and he pivoted to try to hold the scene together, to keep control of the surroundings. The Atlasias were split apart, people hustled at the bar, the waiters and bartenders clamored around noisily. The glow of cigarettes flicked through the air, and for a moment Jade saw only the cigarettes, tracing orange lines through the smoky air. The necklace around his neck felt like an albatross.

For the first time, Jade felt doubt lower, like a cloud, over his intentions. He couldn't do it. He couldn't risk the Atlasias like this, even to catch Allander. He knew something was wrong-in his gut, in his bones, in the raised hair on his arms he felt it. Then he realized. The top and bottom of the coat-closet door were both shut.

As Thomas placed his hand on the doorknob, Jade sprang forward shouting, "BACK OFF. IT'S NO GOOD." He wanted the Atlasias side by side, and he wanted himself in front of them. He ran toward them.

All the people in the restaurant turned to stare at Jade. He could have sworn the crowd took in a huge collective gasp of air. Then, they were still.

Thomas froze. He noticed a slight movement at his feet. Blood seeped slowly out from beneath the door, the edge of a growing pool. It rippled slightly, and as it reached his shoe, Thomas saw the reflection of the ceiling fan in its glassy surface. He released the doorknob, its click echoing through the silent restaurant.

He took a cautious step back and then the door swung open, crashing against the wall. A silver arc slashed through the air and a neat slit appeared across Thomas's tuxedo jacket and shirt. He stumbled back, a vacant look in his eyes, his hands clutching his chest. Blood oozed from beneath his fingers as he fell to his knees.

And then Allander was on him, an arm around his neck, a hand gripping the back of his head. Thomas felt the coldness of a blade at his throat, pushing the skin as far as it could go without breaking. He knew he was going to die.

How did I beget such a cursed thing? he thought.

Allander looked fiercely at Jade, warning him with his eyes.

Jade stopped in his tracks right beside Darby, feeling the backs of his knuckles brush her arm. They were about twenty feet from Allander, so close Jade could see him breathing. He fought every instinct in his body to hold his ground, lowering his Sig Sauer to his side. Allander made a jerking motion and Jade dropped the pistol to the floor. It bounced to his right. A full panic rattled through his body, but he forced himself to stay still.

He saw the smudges of dirt on Allander's chest and thighs. The crawl space, Jade thought. Allander had come up through the fucking floor. From the amount of blood on the floor by the closet, Jade was sure he'd killed the agent.

Travers was on the street, probably with an eye on the parking lot and the side alleys. Jade prayed that she'd notice the sudden stillness of the people in the restaurant.

Still on his knees, Thomas closed his eyes and listened to the silence of the room. Then the voice came, slicing the air like a sickle- the voice that he had carried in his head over the years, day and night. And now it was with him, inches from his ear. He could feel breath on his cheek, the exhaled air making the words sail tangibly across his face.

"You betrayed me. You betrayed me as father to the son who is father to the man. It was your responsibility as my father and keeper to protect me from trespasses, from things that go bump in the night, from the urges and yearnings of other grown men. You didn't fulfill your duty and I was sold at the ripe age of seven to a carnal circus.

"Perhaps you were just protecting your investment in Mother; I understand. But I've waited for years to stand before you not as equal but as superior, and I PASS MY JUDGMENT ON YOU!" Allander's voice rose to a yell, and he raked Thomas's head to the left, drawing the blade deftly to the right.

"WAIT!" Darby screamed.

Allander froze, the point of the knife sticking an inch and a half into Thomas's throat. A trickle of blood ran down the blade and dripped from his cuff as Allander held Thomas's lolling head in his arms.

Slowly, he faced his mother.

The restaurant was completely silent. Everyone was frozen, watching Allander with terror.

Darby looked at the blood and almost fainted. For a moment, she thought she had lost Thomas, but then she heard him emit a dry, rasping noise and she knew he was still drawing air.

Allander was planning to end her also, to drive the point of his blade through her rib cage, to stop at last the pulsing of her heart. What he couldn't possess, no one would. But the moment he saw her, he knew he would not be able to carry out his plan. He would surrender his due reward. Closing his eyes tightly for a moment, he thought of his impotence. His performance would not end as he had wished. His elaborate game, his mockery of the violence and psychology he had been forced to endure, seemed suddenly empty before his mother's eyes.