Villainous by Matthew Cody

pulled her hand away from Daniel’s. He should’ve known not to try to quiet Mollie.
    “And what about you, Daniel?” said Plunkett. “What do you think?”
    Daniel thought for a minute. “Not your style,” he said.
    Plunkett nodded.
    “And you couldn’t have,” added Daniel. “You don’t have the power anymore.”
    “Yes, you saw to that,” said Plunkett quickly.
    He took a halting step toward them, and nearly lost his footing. The man with the neck tattoo offered him a steadying hand.
    “Thank you, Lawrence,” he said.
    Lawrence? The thug with the dragon crawling up his neck was named Lawrence?
    “Would you believe me,” said Plunkett, “if I told you that I really am glad to see you? That I’ve been both looking forward to this day and, to be perfectly frank, dreading it a little too.”
    “Would I believe you?” asked Daniel. “If I had any idea what you were talking about, no. I wouldn’t believe you.”
    “Understandable,” said Herman. “But still, I want you to know that my months at Mountain View, that time alone with my thoughts and … regrets, have changed me. For the better, I hope.”
    “He’s weirding me out,” whispered Mollie, but Daniel shushed her.
    “I’m an old man, kids,” said Plunkett. “And without the power of the Witch Fire pendant, I am finally looking at the inevitable—I will die soon. This cold, hard truth makes a man evaluate his life, the things he’s done.… I told you once, Daniel, that all I ever wanted was to keep this town safe. But I, ah, may have lost sight of that somewhere along the way.”
    “Wait a minute,” said Mollie. “Are you actually trying to apologize?”
    “Would you believe it?” asked Herman. “Could you believe it? Could you find it in your hearts to at least accept the possibility that I’ve seen how wrong I’ve been all these years? That an old man’s dying wish might at last be forgiveness?”
    Mollie glanced at Daniel, confused, but Daniel kept his eyes on Herman. He couldn’t say for sure, but from here it looked like those glassy eyes of his were wet with tears behind his shades. He was the picture of a broken old man, his walking stick quivering beneath the weight of his regret.
    “Could I believe it?” asked Daniel, and now he summoned up his courage and took a step closer, ignoring Mollie’s whispered warning not to. “No, Herman,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. See, I did learn one thing from you—the difference between the truth and a lie.”
    Plunkett’s pleading expression, the eyes brimming with tears—in a nanosecond they were gone, replaced by a sneering smile. “Well, at least our time together wasn’t a totally wasted effort,” said Herman as the mask of sadness slipped away from his face and his expression turned menacing. He shook off Lawrence’s hand and took another step toward Daniel, but Daniel didn’t retreat. The two old enemies were finally face to face, all pretense abandoned.
    “The truth is,” said Plunkett, softly enough to ensure only the three of them could hear, “I’d have Lawrence here tie the two of you up and drown you in the river like a sack of puppies before apologizing. I wasted everything on you, Daniel. I was foolish enough to think you’d see the truth of this place, the danger these children posed, but instead you’ve given us
this
.”
    Herman pulled back and swept his arm out toward the ruined school.
    “Are you saying that’s my fault?” asked Daniel, incredulous.
    “Boy, this is just the beginning,” said Herman, his voice rising again. “All that power in such young hands. Now unchecked, uncontrolled. A danger to us all!”
    “You’re lying,” said Daniel. “Just more lies.”
    “Not this time,” said Herman. “I thought you said you’d learned to tell the difference.”
    Plunkett turned his back on the two of them. “Come on, Lawrence. Let’s go survey the damage. No doubt the school will come calling for someone to pick up the