Chapter 8.11

  Tara shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat of the car. After the events of yesterday's battle, Raif made the decision to borrow one of the parked cars near their target's safe house. They might not be able to harm Clay or Joan while they are inside the safe house, but they also didn't want to let them get away.

  By staking out the office from a safe distance, Raif and Tara would be able to catch their targets by surprise as soon as they left the safety of their sanctuary. The task of staking out the office was much easier said than done. In the past 24 hours, Tara had come to have a great appreciation for the advancements made in automobile seat comfort since the 1930s. Compared to the soft car seats she had grown used to, her current seat felt much more like it belonged to that Flintstones car.

  If Clay had been around, he'd probably start a rant about how comfortable the car seats were in each of the Hanna-Barbera cartoons. Were the seats in the Mystery Machine more comfortable than the ones in Speed Buggy? Or maybe he'd rank the seats on each of the Wacky Races vehicles...

  She missed Clay.

  The battle yesterday was an eye opener. When Clay had discovered the bodies of the people she murdered in the last investigation, she was certain that Clay would turn on her. He realized Tara was a dangerous person, and would eliminate her before she could harm him or his beloved Joan. After finding Raif, he insisted her concerns were real. According to Raif, they wouldn't be safe until Clay and Joan were eliminated.

  Tara had gone into the battle prepared to do what was necessary. Raif was determined to finish the job, and she wasn't going to let him down. In her mind, she had prepared for a deadly confrontation. As soon as Clay saw her, he would attack. She was nothing more than a murderer in his eyes, so why would he hesitate to remove the threat of her existence. Letting her live would be like leaving a pizza next to a Mogwai after midnight, it would only result in needless suffering.

  To Tara's surprise, Clay did not attack her. His eyes weren't filled with hate or aggression, instead they reflected confusion and sadness. In that moment, her entire battle strategy went out the window, clouded by uncertainty. Before she knew it, she felt tears streaming down her cheeks. Was this really what she wanted?

  Stop that weak shit and attack already! Raif's world pushed her into action. She didn't have a choice, she owed Raif for everything he'd done for her over the years. She owed him for the unconditional love he'd given her, a love that she couldn't possibly earn from anyone else. Raif needed this encounter to end in Clay's death, he needed Tara to murder again, and it was her responsibility to see it through. She couldn't betray Raif after everything he sacrificed for her.

  She was too weak to attack him directly. Her heart ached at the thought of it, so she acted like a coward. She summoned two of her Groupies to fight on her behalf. It was an attack against Clay, even if it was merely an indirect one. That should have been enough to motivate Clay to attack her. If he turned on her with violence, that would be enough to push her to fight with her full strength against him. Not only did he abstain from attacking her, but he ordered Dalos to stop an attack that would have likely killed her.

  If he wouldn't willingly attack her, she would just have to trick him into attacking her. Even that much might be enough to force her unsteady hands into action. She couldn't let Raif down. So she hid herself in the fog and used an ability that she knew would have success, Cover Song. With that ability, she was able to perfectly replicate the voice of someone she had heard within the past 24 hours. She chose the one voice she knew would draw Clay's aggression, Raif.

  What's up, loser? Her mimicry was perfect.

  The response was nearly instant. Clay's form appeared through the fog, blindly closing the distance to his target. She had finally managed to draw his attack. Maybe now she could fight for real.

  There were two things she failed to anticipate. First, Tara did not predict the look of terror and regret in Clay's eyes when her form finally became visible through the fog. It was too late to stop his attack, but his eyes revealed a man whose will had been shattered. The second thing she failed to anticipate was the power of Clay's new weapon. She had only a moment between seeing his sorrowful eyes and deep unconsciousness.

  This would be the second time she had been completely incapacitated in battle in front of Clay. In the battle with the Alpha Tindalos Hound, she had used her One Hit Wonder ability on the Alpha, which had a side effect of completely incapacitating her until the end of combat. At that time, she had acted as an ally toward Clay, and she hoped he'd forgive her previous betrayal. This time, she was knocked unconscious in the midst of battle. She was clearly his enemy this time. So unlike the previous instance, this time he had no reason to let her live.

  When her eyes opened up hours later, she realized that once again Clay had refused to harm her defenseless body.

  Why? Why couldn't she make him hurt her?

  As Raif recounted the events at the end of the fight, he explained that he rushed in to save her before Clay could bring any more harm to her. Clay had been prepared to attack, but he saved her. She owed him because her weakness forced him to abandon a battle he would have otherwise won.

  Was that really what happened?

  Raif had her complete trust, she owed him everything. Yet, she found herself wavering. Instead of blind trust, she had to force herself to believe him. It made her feel dirty. She owed him, but she couldn't take him at his word. She was a disgrace.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "Fuckin' seats." Raif's annoyed voice cut through her internal conflict. "Couldn't you have found something that wasn't a complete piece of shit?!"

  "I'm sorry." It was her fault. She should have done better.

  "Just like you. You can't do anything right." He snarled back, disregarding her apology. Despite his irritation, his hand stroked her thigh. "I don't know why I put up with this shit."

  "You're right." Why did she always fail? Why couldn't she make Raif happy?

  The conversation would have continued if not for a certain individual making an appearance. From the door of the office, a blond haired woman in a sunflower patterned sundress stepped onto the sidewalk. Following at her heels was a familiar black translucent puppy.

  For a brief moment, the woman's gaze appeared to meet Tara's, but she showed no sign of recognition. Instead, she turned the other direction and casually made her way down the street.

  "It's just her and the dog?" Raif grinned at the opportunity to take advantage of their reduced numbers. "Let's follow and launch a surprise attack. No need for a fight if we can get them before they know what's happening."

  He quietly exited the car. Tara followed closely behind. Unlike Raif's resolve, Tara still struggled with her inner conflict.

  It was no secret that there was no love lost between Joan and Tara. No matter what Tara did, Joan would go out of her way to express her distrust. Tara understood that Joan had good reason to feel distrust toward her, but it also made her feelings about Joan much less conflicted than her feelings for Clay. Maybe she wouldn't let Raif down this time.

  The woman and puppy traveled a few blocks from the office before turning onto a side street. At the distance Raif and Tara trailed, they would need to be careful not to lose sight of her too long whenever she turned into a blind spot. In this case, they reestablished sight of their target the moment before she entered a building. Had they been slightly slower, she might have unknowingly evaded them.

  Upon inspection, the target had entered some sort of warehouse. Carefully stepping inside, Tara was surprised to find the building abandoned. There was nobody manning the desk just inside the door, and the warehouse itself was almost entirely empty.

  A more cautious person might take a moment to reflect on the situation. They might have questioned why their target had entered this building. Raif was too much of a narcissist to imagine himself getting caught in a trap, and Tara was too concerned about following Raif's direction to speak up.

  The pen lodged itself in Raif's neck the moment he rounded the corner to the main warehouse. His quick reflexes were the only reason it hadn't been a fatal blow. Raif immediately covered the hold in the side of his neck and created distance between himself and his attacker.

  "Fuckin' bitch!" Raif spat at the blond woman.

  "Dalos, get his legs." Joan's voice was chillingly calm. She casually stepped forward in pursuit of Raif while Dalos ripped into his right leg. The Tindalos Hound puppy repeated the process on Raif's left leg, leaving the man immobilized.

  "I'll fuckin' kill you!" His tough words were betrayed by the terror in his voice. In a matter of seconds, Raif's accumulated damage was severe. The pen-sized hole in his neck caused blood to gush between the fingers of his hand as he tried to minimize the loss. His legs, on the other hand, were a complete lost cause. Dalos had followed Joan's orders perfectly, making it impossible for the pink-haired punk to stand. Massive chunks were removed from each leg, exposing the bone beneath. The most Raif could do, was shuffle himself into a corner between two shelving units.

  Her legs moved out of obligation. In an instant, Tara positioned herself in front of Raif, standing directly between Raif and the two attackers.

  "Move. I'm not as naive as my pet." Joan's voice came out cold. Despite her words, she at least momentarily stopped her advance. "I had no intention of taking your life, but if I have no other choice..."

  "Don't kill him!" Her voice was desperate. The least she could do was be a shield. Even if it only delayed his death, she owed him that much. "I won't let you kill him."

  "Cute." Joan's voice held nothing but contempt. At that moment, she didn't see Raif or Tara as anything more than garbage. "Dalos, kill her."

  Tara's eyes shut tight, bracing for impact. In the moment before her eyes shut, she could see the deadly eldritch terror charging in her direction. She might have flinched, but she did not move from her position in front of Raif. Behind her, the man she guarded wept as a pool of yellow liquid surrounded him.

  Dalos' attack never came.

  "What do you think you're doing? I gave you an order." Joan's voice had lost some of its cool.

  The scene when Tara opened her eyes forced a surprised gasp from her lips.

  Instead of attacking, Dalos had positioned himself between Joan and Tara. Just like Tara was guarding Raif from harm, Dalos committed to protecting Tara. His terrifying teeth were barred, and an otherworldly growl resonated from his throat. Despite her direct order, Dalos was prepared to attack Joan if she brought any harm to Tara.

  Tara didn't understand.

  She couldn't understand. As long as she continued to protect Raif, as long as she sided with him, the reason behind Dalos' actions would remain a mystery.

  As surprising as Tara found Dalos' actions, nobody was more surprised that Joan. The usually calm woman was shaken. She had dropped the pen to her side, letting her shoulders sag in defeat. Her look of surprise was replaced with one of resignation.

  "You really won't move so I can finish off that thing behind you?" Joan's voice was almost pleading.

  "No. I won't let you hurt him." Her strength had returned, she realized that Joan wouldn't continue as long as Tara held her ground.

  "That's unfortunate." Joan responded before a sadness momentarily flashed in her eyes. "... And sad."

  "You're going to leave us be?" Tara asked, hoping for confirmation.

  "It seems your death would make him cry. Unlike you, I wouldn't do that to him." Joan's response hit Tara hard enough that she was fairly certain her sanity and willpower stats dropped. Seeing that her words had traction, Joan's confident coldness returned. "Stay away from us. Next time, I will kill both of you, even if it hurts him in the process."

  Tara was unable to respond. Her chest ached from Joan's verbal attack. Her inner turmoil had reached a fever pitch.

  "Why do you bother with Clay?" Joan gestured to the shell of a man hiding behind Tara. "You already have a man."

  "I..." Tara tried to respond, but found herself struggling to find the words.

  "Even if you lose this pile of trash... You should forget about Clay." Joan's worlds weren't a mere suggestion, they weren't even threatening. Tara couldn't place just what she felt behind Joan's worlds. Concern? Pity? Tara's confusion grew even more at Joan's next words. "Forget Clay, and find yourself a real man."

  The words seemed to fly in the face of everything Tara thought she knew about Joan and Joan's relationship with Clay. How could she say something with such a serious expression?

  "Come on, Dalos. Let's go check on your master." She turned on her heels and started to walk away. Dalos immediately relaxed and cheerfully followed Joan. "Knowing him, he's getting himself into some kind of trouble. I sure know how to pick 'em."

  Now alone, Tara fell to her knees, her legs were no longer able to support her.

  What had just happened?

  Something was wrong.

  The turmoil in her mind had finally cleared. Tara knew what she needed to do.