Harley Merlin and the Cult of Eris (Harley Merlin, #6)

I was sick in the head, but at least I knew that. Katherine was oblivious to the disease festering inside her. She called it power and aspiration instead. All my life, I’d backed her because I’d hoped it would bring us closer. That I’d have a freaking mother one day. The fact that she chose weaselly little Kenneth to end me spoke volumes. I’d known him before he went into foster care, and I’d hated him then, though slightly less than I hated him now. Her picking him for the job was almost more insulting than her actually wanting me dead.

Katherine had used me, and then some.

I got back up and wandered to the glass wall of the cell I’d been moved to after the attempted murder incident. Sitting in front of it, I stared out at the mass of cells identical to my own. I missed trees. I missed green things. I missed rain. I missed the sun. I missed air that hadn’t been recycled through a million magical pores. The view of guards and prisoners and chrome and glass was making me restless. I had books to read, but they didn’t appeal to me right now. I couldn’t focus. I was too worried about Katherine’s plan to read trite fiction, although Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption might have been inspiring.

I padded over to the small pile of books on my bolted-down table, just in case any Stephen King had slipped in. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a single escape-action thriller in the stack. I plucked the first one up anyway and flipped absently through the pages. I didn’t read a word. My mind was on Harley.

If she lets me help her, I know I can bring Katherine down. No one knew my mother better than me. She’d kept a ton of information from me, yeah, but I knew where she hid important things. I knew more secrets than she’d told me. I was clever like that. Plus, I knew the cult. I’d been there from the start, after all. I was even there when Katherine had Purged Naima. I had the knowhow; I just needed to get out of this box before it drove me nuts. I couldn’t sit here while Katherine kept winning.

A rush of cold air made me turn away from my book. My mouth hung open as I stared at three figures standing in the blind spot of my toilet area. Harley was crouched on the edge of the toilet, while Wade was perched on the cistern. There was another guy with them, much younger, who’d ducked down beside them.

As coolly as possible, I set the book down and walked behind the partition. Ducking out of view of the guards, I sat beside Harley on the toilet seat. “What the hell?”

“And here I was, thinking you’d be glad to see us,” Harley muttered.

“Are we going now?” I gaped at her. After so many letdowns, I hadn’t actually expected her to come for me. I guessed desperation made people do crazy things. Like break into Purgatory.

Harley nodded. “Just shut up for a second, and I’ll explain everything in a moment.” She took a small device out of her jacket pocket and pressed a button.

“What’s that?” I jabbed a finger at the device.

“It wipes the footage from your cameras and replaces it with a neutral loop of you, just before we showed up. It plays out as a projection on the glass, too.”

I smirked. “I have to get me one of those. Let’s get out of here.”

Harley crossed her arms. “Not so fast, pal. We need to strike a deal first.”

“Now?” I shot a look over my shoulder.

“This device will buy us plenty of time,” she replied, with a cutting smile. “Here are the terms: once we’re done getting my mom’s spirit out of the cult and Katherine has been brought down, you’ll be returned to Purgatory. From here, with the help of us and Alton, you’ll make your case for freedom, following the proper avenues. We’ll support your case and put forward some insanity defense, saying you were brainwashed or something. The Council knows what Katherine is capable of. We’ll help you walk free, the right way.”

Yeah, right. And I’ll get a gift-wrapped present from my mom on my birthday. “And I can expect a pristine character witness testimony from you?”

Wade scowled. “If you don’t screw us over, then yes. Or, rather, a terrible testimony about how unhinged you were when you did this stuff.”

“Secondly,” Harley continued, “Katherine can’t be allowed to survive. If we do this, we have to destroy her. No hesitations. It’s the only way we can end everything she’s caused and disband the Cult of Eris, too. Cut the head off, and the body dies.”

“I get the picture. Believe me, I’m good with it.”

“Thirdly, if I get even so much as a whiff that you’re trying to play us, then the whole deal is off. You’ll lose any privileges you’re getting out of this partnership, and my friend here will portal your ass straight back into this cell, with no hope of getting out again. Capiche?”

“Ah, so this is what it’s like to have a sister, huh? I heard sisters were bossy. They were right.”

Harley narrowed her eyes. “I mean it, Finch.”

“Geez, is joking around banned, too?” I held her gaze. “Look, you’ve got to understand something. I want Katherine dead as much as you do. We’re both looking to stop her. I’ve had a lot of time to think in this place, and it’s made me question my loyalties. I want her taken down. The end.”

Harley sighed. “All right. It’ll be the three of us going to the Cult of Eris—you, me, and Wade.”

“No, no, no. That won’t work,” I replied, waving a hand. “Two moles are already two moles too many. Any more than that and we’ll be found out, for sure. Besides, I’ve already got two identities in mind for you and me, and they’re perfect. Happy to toot my own horn on that. But I can’t think of a third. If your big old manfriend up there comes with us, he’ll get us killed.”

Harley turned to Wade. “He might be right. We might be pushing it if the three of us go. You heard what happened to the National Council agents. Plus, we don’t know how many… uh, things Krieger managed to get hold of.”

I eyed them both curiously. I wasn’t about to get killed just because my half-sister wanted to bring her bodyguard along. But it made me wonder what was going on between these two. A little fledgling romance, perhaps? From the way he was looking at her, it definitely seemed like it. My heart twisted unexpectedly. Adley used to look at me like that. And, if they didn’t listen, Wade would have to deal with Harley’s loss in the same way I’d dealt with Adley’s.

Wade shook his head slowly. “Then… I guess I’m not coming with you to the cult. I’m not happy about it, though.” He glared at me. “If anything happens to Harley, you can rest assured that I will come down on you so hard, you won’t know what hit you. I won’t show mercy.”

I waggled my fingers. “Ooh, I’m trembling in my boots. Where’d you get that line? Terminator? Braveheart? The Avengers? I’m dying to know.”

“You’ll be dying, for sure, if you hurt her in any way,” Wade shot back.

“Did the SDC give you guys a humor-ectomy or what?” I couldn’t help myself. The sincerity coming out of Wade was hilarious. I felt like I’d waltzed into some cheesy drama. Besides, I’d never been one to walk away from pushing someone’s buttons. It was one of the reasons Garrett and I had gotten along so well.

Speaking of which, there’s a guy I’d really like to make amends with. Garrett hadn’t deserved the betrayal. Even when he’d come to tell me about Adley, I could see how much I’d wounded him. And yet, he’d still come. He’d still thought it important that I knew what had happened. We’d talked about everything a little bit, when he’d come to see me, and I knew Garrett understood why I’d done what I’d done. Still, there had to be more I could do to fix things with the only friend I’d ever really had.

I looked to Harley. “Okay, I accept your terms. So what’s next?”





Five





Harley





“I’ve got some tricks to pull before we can go anywhere,” I said, keeping my eye on Finch. The portal had closed behind Jacob, but that didn’t mean Finch wouldn’t try something funny.