The Peregrine suddenly realized that he’d been duped. He twisted, turning the barrel of the gun on Lady Death.
Lazarus had tensed, preparing for a potentially fatal shot to come from Lunt’s gun. Blood was flowing freely from his nose, but Lazarus was ignoring it. If he didn’t time his movements just so, he was about to die… and all that he’d accomplished with Assistance Unlimited was going to come to an end.
Lazarus caught Lunt’s eyes shift to something over his shoulder and he risked a glance, wanting to make sure that Devil Face wasn’t back in the fray. What he saw gave him pause: it was Lady Death, standing half in the shadows. Seeing her brought a bit of clarity to his mind — something about this situation did not feel right. The last time he’d checked on Lunt’s whereabouts, he’d been in Europe… how had he managed to spearhead this plan involving Devil Face? Especially since the murders began before Lunt ever came to Sovereign in pursuit of Lazarus? Had he just taken over a pre-existing plot of some kind? Or was all of this just a bizarre illusion perpetrated by Lady Death?
Narrowing his eyes and focusing all of his amazing willpower allowed Lazarus to suddenly see the truth: the man before him was not Wilhelm Lunt at all. He had been battling The Peregrine for the past several minutes, while his aides fought for their survival.
Just as The Peregrine turned his gun on Lady Death, Lazarus turned and jumped into the middle of the scene involving the zombies and the other members of Assistance Unlimited. Samantha’s body was covered with scratches and bruises. She was fighting bravely, but was unarmed and had been backed into a corner by two of the undead. They tugged at her hair and opened their mouths in an attempt to catch her tender flesh between their teeth. Lazarus unsheathed the dagger he kept on the calf of his left leg and drove the blade through the head of one of the monsters, freeing Samantha to dispatch the other by gripping its skull in her hands and repeatedly driving it into the wall. When the thing’s head had been reduced to a liquid pool of gore, Samantha shoved it away from her.
"Glad to have you back with us," she said with a smile. "I was wondering what was up with you and The Peregrine."
Lazarus removed his jacket and draped it around her shoulders. "A momentary lapse of rationality," he explained.
A gunshot rang out, sounding abnormally loud in the basement. All heads, even those of the remaining zombies, turned to see Lady Death stagger back. The bullet couldn’t really destroy her, but it was enough to ruin her tenuous hold on this plane. Her body shimmered, turning to thin trails of smoky vapor that eventually dissipated. Devil Face cried out, a mournful sound that spoke of dashed hopes and lost love.
The four remaining zombies seemed uncertain now, their hungers no longer enough to drive them forward. They became easy prey for Morgan, The Dark Gentleman, and Eun, the three men using differing means to dispose of the beasts: Morgan and The Dark Gentleman put bullets through their brains while Eun preferred bashing their skulls in.
In the aftermath, the heroes stood silently for a moment, lost in their own thoughts. When enough time had passed for everyone to feel like they’d regained their footing in the real world, it was Lazarus who spoke first. "We should tie up Phillips and call the authorities."
The Peregrine cleared his throat, gun still in hand. "I think we should kill him. He’s dangerous — and the police won’t believe half of the truth, even if we decide to tell them. With his money and clout, he might pay somebody off in this town and get off scot-free. The best way to deal with a rabid dog is to put him down."
"That’s not how I do things," Lazarus retorted. "I know that the justice system in Sovereign is corrupt, but we have to give it a chance to do the right thing."
The Peregrine’s fingers shifted on the gun he held and he knew that no one would be able to stop him if he chose to end Devil Face’s life here and now. But he liked Lazarus and didn’t want to test their friendship in that way. He holstered his weapon and nodded toward The Dark Gentleman. "Decided to add a masked man to your team, Lazarus?"
The Dark Gentleman smiled. "I’m just helping out."
The Peregrine watched as Lazarus used a thin, almost invisible cord to wrap up Devil Face’s hands. The killer was sobbing softly and put up no resistance. The cord was obviously of Gray’s own design and The Peregrine knew there was no chance of the villain escaping, even if he came to his senses and tried.
The members of Assistance Unlimited crowded around one another now, sharing their experiences. The men were anxious to know that Samantha was mostly unharmed and she was grateful that none of them mentioned the fact that they’d seen her naked.
The Peregrine slowly ascended the stairs, preferring not to say goodbye. He had forged some friendships here, but he had other places to be and he had never been good with partings. He noticed that The Dark Gentleman had the same idea. The young man was making his way to the stairs when The Peregrine stepped out onto the first floor and hurried out into the Sovereign City streets.
To The Peregrine’s surprise, the sun had come through the clouds. The darkness still clung to the edges of the sky, but it looked like they were being driven back by the rays of the sun. For a moment, The Peregrine thought he saw the face of Lady Death in one of the clouds but then it was gone, replaced by a beam of light that shot forth, like a spotlight.
For one day at least, the forces of good had won — and in a place like Sovereign, that was something to be proud of.
THE ADVENTURES OF LAZARUS GRAY, VOLUME 2:
DIE GLOCKE
DIE GLOCKE
Prologue
Igor Witkowski walked through the dimly lit corridors and wondered not for the first time how he had ended up here. A Catholic priest in Nazi Germany was not a good thing to be since the new regime was almost as harsh towards those of the true faith as it was to the Jews. Igor had seen his flock dwindle away to almost nothing, as Nazi pressures were continually ramped up. He had no idea how much worse it could get but he had inklings that it might be time for him to get out of the country.
But that might no longer be an option.
At just eleven o’clock, a persistent banging on his front door had woken Igor up. When he had gone to investigate, he’d come face to face with an S.S. Officer who had identified himself as Jakob Sporrenberg. The officer had ‘requested’ that Igor get dressed and accompany him to the Czech border. Knowing that it would not do to refuse, Igor had hurriedly gotten himself ready for the trip. He had hesitated before applying his clerical collar but had finally done so, preferring to go forth into the unknown with God on his side.
The journey had been mostly in silence and Igor had found himself wedged into the backseat of a military vehicle with Sporrenberg at his side. Two men, a driver and an armed guard, sat in the front.
Not knowing what else to do, Igor bided his time by mentally reciting several of his favorite passages from the Bible.
When they had finally reached their destination, Sporrenberg had exited the car first, holding open the door for Igor. He had gestured towards the squat, ugly little building that sat against a large mountain and said, “Welcome to Der Riese, Father.”