The Good,the Bad and the Uncanny

"You always were a closet drama queen, Walker. It doesn't have to end like this."

"Yes, it does."

I thought about it for a while and nodded slowly. "Yes; it does. You crossed the line."

"Two good men and true, who never could agree to disagree. And here we are, at the end of a very long road, standing on the edge of the pit. How very Nightside. So, what's it to be? My secret weapons against yours?"

"No," I said. "For all you've done, and for all that you meant to do, I'm going to beat you to death with my bare hands."

"Excellent," said Walker. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

I moved forward, and Walker came to meet me, drawing his long, narrow sword from where it lay hidden inside his umbrella. He threw the shell away, and I stopped abruptly. Walker smiled widely as he swept the long blade back and forth.

"Did I mention I was captain of the school fencing team? I had this lined with silver, John, just for you. No werewolf blood regenerations for you this time. My enemies stay dead."

"Good-bye, Walker," I said.

We went for each other like fighting dogs, as angry and vicious as only two old friends can be. I was young and fast and strong, but he had his blade, and his expertise, and a lifetime's hard-earned tricks and tactics. He stabbed and cut at me with his sword, and I evaded it, forcing my way closer. Again and again I went for him, and every time he drove me back, with blood streaming from cuts that wouldn't close. He cut chunks out of my reaching hands, and hacked at my arms when I lifted them to defend my throat or breast. Soon enough my white trench coat was soaked with blood. I was almost too angry to feel the pain, and what I did feel drove me on. I wasn't fighting for myself, but for Suzie, and for all my friends who would inevitably die at Walker's hands. At my hands, driven by his will. I thought of Suzie; and the blood and the pain didn't matter a damn.

We stamped back and forth on the edge of the pit, with me fighting to get to Walker, and him fighting to hold me off. But in the end, I was willing to die to bring him down, and he… was dying. He stumbled, just briefly, as he mistimed a lunge, and I hit him in the head. His foot turned under him, and he fell suddenly sideways into the pit. He reached out instinctively to me for help, and just as instinctively I lunged forward to grab his hand. But it was too late.

Walker fell into the pit. I knelt at the side, reaching helplessly after him. He didn't scream, didn't cry out, and in a moment he was gone. Nothing left but the darkness. I called after him, but there was no reply. He was gone. Swallowed up at last, by the dark.

ELEVEN

Bringing Them All Back Home I sat on the edge of the pit, my legs dangling over the impenetrable darkness. The cold wind was still blowing, ruffling my hair and striking tears from my eyes. I watched blood drops slowly form on the bottom edge of my trench coat, then fall into the pit. I felt tired, and hurt, and strangely numb. As though a major part of my life was finally over. For good or for bad, Walker had always been there in the background, defining my life by my resistance to everything he stood for. He protected me and threatened me, but he never once ignored me, like my father did. I could always depend on Walker… to be Walker. I'd gone out walking earlier in the night because I was unsure about my life, and now I had just destroyed the one sure thing in it. I'd wanted change, and now I had it. You should always be careful of wishing for things in the Nightside because you never know who might be listening. There was the slightest of sounds to my left, and when I looked around, there was Hadleigh, standing next to me.

"Hello, John. You look like shit."

"How the hell did you get here?"

He shrugged. "There are short cuts in reality if you know where to look."

"How did you know I was here?"

"I know what I need to know when I need to know it"

"That answer is getting really irritating."

"I know." He looked thoughtfully down into the pit, leaning dangerously far over. "So Walker's really gone, then?"

"Yes." I studied him thoughtfully. "Did you know this was going to happen?"

"Not as such. The future's not set in stone; there are many possible futures. Which one we end up in depends on the decisions we make. And you and Walker have always been very difficult to predict. You're hurt, John. Allow me."

He took a firm hold on my shoulder, and a sudden shock ran through me, like a bucket of cold water thrown right in my soul. I gasped, and the pain was gone; and I knew without having to check that all my wounds had been healed, all damage repaired. I scrambled up onto my feet, suddenly full of energy. Hadleigh chuckled briefly.

"You see, I'm not only here for the bad things in life."

I arched my back and stretched my arms, relishing the freedom from pain and tiredness. I didn't feel numb any more. I felt like kicking the whole damned world in the arse and making it take notice. I gave Hadleigh one of my best hard looks.

"What did you do to me? I'm not used to feeling this good. It feels… strange."

"Let's just say I jump-started you. The technicalities would only upset you."

"What is your job, exactly, Detective Inspectre?"

"I could tell you," said Hadleigh. "But then I'd have to haunt you. Some secrets ca

I looked down at my once-white trench coat, now tattered and torn and soaked with drying blood. I looked at Hadleigh. "Could you…?"

"No, I couldn't," Hadleigh said firmly. "I'm a healer, not a tailor."

We stood together for a moment, side by side, looking down into the pit. Walker was gone. Let the neon lights be dimmed and the traffic brought to a halt. Walker was gone, and we shall not see his like again. If we're lucky. After a while, I deliberately turned away from the pit and frowned at Hadleigh.

"You know where Tommy is, don't you? When Larry asked, you said, Closer than you think."

"Yes," Hadleigh said equably. "I know. I've known all along. But I had to wait until you and Walker had put an end to your business. That was more important. What just happened here will affect the Nightside for generations to come."

"How…?"

"Tommy is in no danger where he is. He's just… lost, and needs our help to find his way home. Come on; Larry's waiting. Impatiently, I have no doubt."

I looked down the mountain side, at the dark and angry jungle that covered its slopes. "You going to call one of Larry's limousines?"

"Oh," said Hadleigh, "I think we can do better than that."

He seemed to turn sideways, then keep on turning, and the sheer force of his u

"Nice trick. Could you teach me to do that?"

"Depends. How attached are you to your sanity?"

"We're still on speaking terms, which given my life is actually quite an achievement."

"Where the hell have you been?" demanded Larry, glaring at both of us. "I thought you were here to help find Tommy, Hadleigh, but all you've done so far is stand around looking enigmatic, then disappear after Taylor."

"Tommy's right here with you, in a sense," said Hadleigh. "It's time to bring him back. I had to wait for John to acquire the last necessary piece of the puzzle. You do have the Collector's device, don't you, John?"

I took it out of my coat. Larry regarded it dubiously, while Hadleigh nodded a bit smugly.