How the Mighty Fall

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"I'm going to need your help," he said. Then he jumped out of the car and bee lined back to the other driver's door. He reached in through the window, grabbed the man's shirt with both hands, and yanked him out.

Astraea noted that she couldn't ever assume her next problem. After falling out of the car, she inched along the side. She hoped Phrixus would give her instructions on what to do. If he tried to bring up her incompetence later, she would remind him that he refused to train her.

"Here!" He shoved the man at her. "I'm getting the trunk!"

She held her breath as the guy ran at her shouting. Too late to block his blow, she absorbed the impact of his swing with what appeared to be a cane. Getting her hands on it and tugging, he lost his balance. He crumpled to the ground after a few punches to his torso. She cradled her fist close to her body and stared at his immobile form until the pain subsided.

Astraea watched as Phrixus popped open the trunk and immediately stumbled back from a swift kick to his ribs. While he regained footing and matched his breathing to compensate for the probable rib fractures, the man brandished a weapon she hadn't seen before. His calculated rush at Phrixus was met with a combination of leg-based moves that carefully avoided contact with the weapon. He managed to dislodge it from the hunter's possession. It clattered to the side of the road between the clashing pair and the unconscious accomplice.

"We're not going to pay the price for a mistake we didn't make." Phrixus had distanced himself to buy a minute to heal even slightly. He made sure his eyes didn't stray from the hunter to Astraea. If he didn't keep his attention, he would change targets.

She took painstakingly slow steps toward the weapon and was focused on not making a sound. Her eyes didn't stray from Phrixus and the hunter. It proved to be her gravest error when she was yanked to the ground by her ankle. She inhaled sharply. Instead of trying to escape the grip, she lifted her arms to prevent extensive damage.

When the driver stopped dragging her and let go of her ankle, she seethed. She got back on her feet and blacked out.

The next thing she remembered was walking to Phrixus, who was kneeling on the ground next to the hunter's battered and lifeless body. He had looked up at her, then collapsed. It took her some time to figure out how to carry him to his totaled car. Most of the trunk was smashed into the backseat and shattered glass decorated the area in a flurry of glitter.

After laying him on the passenger's seat of his car, she dragged the other driver's body next to the hunter's. Breathing heavily from the weight, she stood up and put her hands on her hips. Taking a moment to wipe the sweat beading on her forehead and assess her situation, she cursed to herself. Cleaning up the mess of three men made a difference in her feelings of killing her attacker now, but she couldn't put into words how.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket as she was searching for the car's keys through the window. She flinched, hit her head, wiped her hands on her jeans, and pulled out her phone to check it. A call. Astraea wasn't sure she should trust keeping it on, specifically since it was in the hands of their enemy. Shit. Well, Phrixus could deal with it later. "Hello?"

"Hey, Phrixus was supposed to call me. Are you guys still driving?"

Shit. "Oh hey Serena. We had some car trouble and have been waiting for it to be fixed. Phrixus is napping since he didn't get much sleep and doesn't trust me to drive his car." The lies felt bitter on her tongue the more effort she put into making them convincing. But the alternative consequences would be harder to swallow.

"Oh," came the relieved reply. "That sucks, but I'm glad nothing crazy happened. His luck has been pretty terrible without adding a bunch of other stuff, right? It's better that he has you now."

Astraea walked back to Phrixus's car and looked at him slumped against the seat. "You're right. I think we're good for each other too. Thank you for checking in. I'll make sure he talks to you when he can."

"Thanks, Ash. Bye." She let Serena hang up before turning off her phone and removing the SIM card.

Phrixus stirred but didn't wake up. She rolled her eyes. Of course he wouldn't force himself to stay conscious to deal with the aftermath appropriately. Meanwhile, she still hadn't gotten a full rest since hitting her head.

She walked back to the other car. Peering over the top to make sure the bodies were still nonthreatening, she ducked into the car. If there were any clues or salvageable parts, at least she could recover those properly. Shuffling loose papers and other trash for a few minutes amounted to nothing she identified as significant.

A cough she couldn't tell where it came from resulted in another head smack on the roof of the car. She rubbed her head as she stood up and smiled at Phrixus upright and lucid.

"Hey," she mumbled, walking toward him but making a point to not walk too fast. "How are you holding up?"

His eyes filled with disbelief. "How are you still alive?"

Her expression mimicked his. "What do you mean? You're the one who went through it."

Phrixus leaned against the side of the car. "Do you know what happened when you were trying to grab the scythe?"

"Wow, I forgot about that. That's what it's called? I hadn't seen one. Hmm, weird." She gave him space despite wanting to touch his face. "The guy grabbed my ankle. I blacked out after."

He started reaching out a hand like he needed proof she wasn't a figment of his imagination. Then he pulled away. "He used it on you," he whispered, looking at the ground like he was trying to determine what was real. "My vision timed out then. That doesn't make sense."

"Phrixus, what happened? Are you saying I died?" Dizziness and nausea hit her. The world was spinning.

He got up, put his hands on her shoulders, and guided her to the seat. "Alright, I think I got it. Maybe that weapon can only be used by hunters. So that guy couldn't kill you with it, and once I killed the hunter it probably returned to its celestial plane. Simple."

She couldn't wrap her mind around it, even with details floating in front of her face. "How are we getting home?" That word also felt strange on her tongue, since she realized they truly weren't safe anywhere, and his apartment wasn't also hers.

"Don't worry about it. I called someone right before I knocked out."

She blinked slowly at his nonchalance. "I'm sorry, but we're in the middle of a very incriminating scene. Who accepts that without penalty like arrest and conviction?"

Phrixus whistled lowly. "It's not without its costs. But there's definitely a market that includes bribery, blackmail, extortion, and a host of other things I don't want to get into right now. Luckily for us, nobody is going to take too much of an advantage because of this repeated situation." He gestured to the body pile she made and the sandwiched cars. "We'll be out of here soon."

"Aren't you upset about your car?" She imagined him yelling obscenities and throwing random objects in his reach in the outrage of losing his car.

He shrugged. "Yeah, maybe a little, but it did last longer than I thought. My expectations were really low where you were concerned."

Her thoughts went back to the mortal driver. "Do the hunters contract regular people?" Their existence wouldn't be as privileged information then.

Phrixus countered, "Who knows what they're capable of?"

Instead of gingerly touching his face, she wanted to punch him. She grit her teeth. "You're oddly calm about this."

"Just get ready for the clean up crew," he advised.

"In the meantime," she tried to say evenly, "you can inspect their vehicle for clues. You would be more likely to know what to look for rather than my inexperience." She laid back and closed her eyes. Her fists were clenched at her sides.

"Alright, one minute warning," she heard Phrixus say as he walked away. "They're almost here."