The Invincible Arthur Gardner Novels & Stories

She looked cleaner, her face washed, wearing a borrowed tie-dye t-shirt that said "Make Love, Not War." "How long?" Jack asked. "Two days," Olivia handed him a slice of fruit. "You exhausted your core. The Tinker warned you about overusing the Hand." "We have Arthur?" "We do," Ben Carter's voice came from the command chair. "And boy, does he have stories. We thawed him out yesterday. He's... traumatized, but talking." "Where is he?" "In the server room, helping Gary decrypt Valerius's files. Turns out, Arthur built half the security protocols Valerius is using."

I took a breath, the scent of her—faint vanilla underlying the sharp smell of gun oil—anchoring me to the mission. ​"Two blocks," I rasped, forcing my focus back to the HUD. "The entrance is through an old silk press. If Arthur is still alive, he’ll be in the sub-basement." ​Arthur was a relic of a different era. He was a man who had once been the lead cryptographer for the Architects, a genius who had helped build the very foundations of the "Argus" AI—the global surveillance net that now hunted us. When the Architects tried to "retire" him with a bullet to the back of the head, he had vanished into the London underground, becoming a ghost-broker for anyone with enough gold to pay his price

I remember I hold his hand so tight, really tight ‘till I can feel the warmth of his palm. “Thank you so much,” I said to Arthur as I let go of our hands. The nurse has finished taking my blood and asked us to wait for the result later. Arthur takes me to the waiting room where the others wait for us. I see Kathy and Ted were having a little joke, Ted is a kind of a funny guy, he made jokes to lighten the mood. Anneth and Dave are starting to show interest in each other, are they gonna be a couple in this group though? And Ivan just sits there, listening to Kathy and Ted jokes. I don’t see Vincent around them. Ivan stood up to greet us. “You've done the test? I hope you feel alright” Ivan be

"Oh, Arthur certainly was using you, but not for me. Arthur is a fool. He’s been playing a dangerous double game, trying to find this ledger to destroy it and protect his precious, beautiful 'goddaughter' from the syndicate's wrath. He actually thinks he can save you. But unfortunately for him, my employers have decided Arthur has outlived his usefulness. Tonight, both of the Pendelton and Vance legacies end." ​Vivian’s mind reeled. Arthur wasn't trying to destroy her. He was trying to shield her from the very monsters who had murdered her father. The weight of her doubt vanished, replaced by a sudden, desperate longing for the man she had pushed away. ​"I don't think so, Victor." ​The voice

Sarah's heart sank as she saw Brie, Clara's assistant, and several other familiar faces. "You see, I've been playing a little game with you," Arthur said, his voice dripping with malice. "And now, it's time for the final act." Sarah felt a surge of fear as Arthur's henchmen moved to surround them. Luke stood tall, his eyes fixed on Arthur. "You're not going to get away with this," Luke said, his voice firm. Arthur laughed. "Oh, I think I will," he said. "You see, I have insurance. And with this insurance, I'll be able to walk away scot-free."

The windows were reinforced with ballistic glass; the garden was a minefield of motion sensors; and every servant in the house carried a sidearm beneath their starched white aprons. Ivy stared at the tea in front of her. The steam rose in a delicate, mocking curl. She hadn't spoken a word in three days. Not since the explosion in Sicily. Not since she had seen Dante swallowed by the churning, black throat of the sea. "You must eat, Ivy," Arthur said, his voice a smooth, oily purr. He sat across from her, looking younger, more vibrant. The "Reset" might have failed to wipe the world’s data, but it had successfully wiped his legal slate. With Dante presumed dead and the Moretti name branded as

not anymore. There was a loud bang and it took Evan some time to realize that it wasn't the gun that went off; rather, it was the door being burst open, stealing the hunter's attention and pausing the execution. Evan opened his eyes and looked at the door with curious hope and not a lot of expectance, but he smiled when he saw the man who stood in the doorway straight and proper, impeccably dressed in a three piece suit with a velvet top hat and a gold chained watch. It was Arthur.

“Really? Because Vanessa Sinclair is currently telling half the board she’s about to become Mrs. Adrian Wolfe.” Arthur sighed heavily and removed his glasses. “Sit down, son.” “I’ll stand.” Arthur studied him for a moment before speaking again. “You remember the night I nearly died.” Adrian’s jaw tightened. Of course he remembered. Five years ago. Kidney failure. Emergency transplant. “And you remember who saved me,” Arthur continued. Adrian’s voice was quieter now. “Mr. Hart.” Lydia’s father. Arthur nodded slowly. “None of the donors matched. We had already started preparing for dialysis.” He paused. “Then Mr. Hart stepped forward.”

He set it on the table and slid it towards Jack. Jack looked down at the business card and read the contents. Arthur Gibson. He'd heard that name before. Most would have. He worked for the Kingsley family in Omene. "I'm Arthur Gibson. You're the man they call Jack." Arthur stated rather simply. Jack looked at Arthur. His mind was asking a million questions a second. Why was Mr. Gibson here? Why was he looking for him? What could this man possibly want with a poor orphan like himself?

"If you ever speak her name again, I will personally see to it that your father’s firm loses every contract they have with the Garrison group. Do you understand me?" "You wouldn't," she breathed. "Try me," Arthur said. He turned back to the stage and raised his paddle. "Fifty thousand," he called out, bidding on a modern sculpture he hadn't even looked at. The auctioneer beamed. "Fifty thousand to Mr. Garrison! Do I hear sixty?" Arthur didn't wait for the final gavel. He turned and walked toward the exit, ignoring the confused looks from Marcus and his mother, who was standing across the room. He felt a sudden, suffocating need for air.