“What would they want her to do?”
“I’ve witnessed the sort of thing she’s capable of. She can tamper with reality, you know. I think that most cartels would be interested in that. Then there’s her unique biology to consider. Her ability to heal or poison could be exploited, or studied, or both.”
“I don’t think Eerie would want to do any of that,” Alex said. “For anyone.”
“If Eerie were to decide to stay with me at the Far Shores, she would be free to do whatever she wanted. I plan to tell her as much at the first opportunity. What do you think she will say?”
“I think we need to talk about…”
“I don’t need your permission to ask your girlfriend anything. You don’t make decisions for her, and your relationship does not take precedence over ours,” Emily scoffed. “Eerie and I have known each other longer than you, and we are in the same club.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. Dammit. You know I didn’t.”
“I’m tired of giving you the benefit of the doubt,” Emily said. “You need to be more thoughtful, of your words and your actions. Please, for your own good, as well as mine.”
Alex nodded.
“I just want you to think about it, before you talk with Eerie. The two of you would be free to be together, at the Far Shores,” Emily said. “You’d have to help out, obviously, because everyone has to pull their own weight, but I’ve an open mind about how that could happen. Maybe you would prefer a future that involved doing something other than killing people?”
“What about Katya?”
“There is more than one way to move forward,” Emily said. “Maybe she would also prefer a future without murder? I could make that happen.”
His chance to reply was cut off by a knock at the door, and an apologetic servant who explained that their transportation was arranged, and that they were all to meet in a ballroom downstairs in a few minutes.
“I suppose we should get moving,” Emily said, gathering her things. “We don’t want to miss out on what happens next, I’m sure.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Alex said, following her out to the hall. “That was…that was a whole lot to take in. Can I have some time to think about it?”
“I think you’ll agree that I am extremely patient,” Emily said. “The question is how much patience you can expect from everyone else.”
***
“Everything is ready,” Adel said, wheezing slightly as he hurried into the room. “I double checked.”
“Okay,” Eerie said, not bothering to remove her headphones. “I’m starting, then.”
“I want to apologize again,” Adel said, smiling desperately at the back of her head. “I feel really bad about everything. I never meant to upset you.”
“Don’t worry,” Eerie said, keying in a command. “I’m used to it.”
“I still feel bad. I’m really sorry. Are you still angry at me?”
“I’m not angry,” Eerie said calmly, her eyes closed and her fingers hovering over the keyboard. “I’m just tired, and I thought better of you,” she said, resuming her work. “I thought you were cooler than that, Adel. That’s all.”
“No, come on, please…you have to let me…”
“I need to concentrate,” Eerie said. “Please?”
“Right, sure,” Adel muttered. “Of course.”
***
Emily seemed impressed by the technology at work on one side of the ballroom, hurrying to chat with the technicians as they tested the temporary apport station, but Alex was too caught up in his own thoughts to follow her.
He never even saw it coming.
Alice Gallow put her arm around his shoulders. She took a tight hold; any more pressure and it would have been a side headlock.
“Alex! I haven’t seen you in a long time, kid. How have you been?”
“Ah, Ms. Gallow! I’m, uh, I’m good. Listen…”
“The last time I saw you, let’s see,” Alice said. “Oh, yeah! You were being dragged off to the Outer Dark. I guess you’re back now. How was it?”
“What?”
“How was the Outer Dark, Alex?” Alice grinned at him. “Did you have a good time?”
“I had a bad time,” Alex mumbled. “Really bad.”
“What a drag. Did they turn you?”
“Turn? What do…oh! No, I mean, no. That’s not…”
“So, you aren’t Anathema?”
“N-no way! Not at all. I mean, I think maybe I’m a little bit vampire now, or something, because my eye is all fucked up, and my fingers…”
He trailed off when he noticed the way Alice was nodding at him.
“Anyway, it’s not like that,” he finished lamely. “I’m still just me.”
“That’s a little hard to believe when you show up at Emily Muir’s heel.”
“Oh. Yeah. That’s really hard to explain.”
“Find a way to explain it,” Alice commanded. “Right now.”
“Emily is way smarter than me,” Alex blurted out. “I haven’t slept in a long time, Ms. Gallow, and a lot has happened, and it’s been really hard to keep up.”
She squeezed his neck until the hold became very uncomfortable.
Then she relented and laughed.
“You are the strangest kid,” Alice said fondly. “Are you really gonna make me beat the shit of you, right here? Because I absolutely will do that.”
“I’d really prefer if you didn’t,” Alex said, trying vainly to escape her grasp. “I’ve got a really good explanation for everything.”
“I’m dying to hear it.”
“Please let him go,” Katya said. “I can explain everything, Ms. Gallow.”
“That’s not necessary,” Alice said, turning to face Katya, Alex still hooked beneath her arm. “Alex was just about to explain himself.”
“Let me do it,” Katya said. “To start with, I should probably apologize for…”
“Deserting?” Alice asked, grinning. “That’s what you did, Katya. You deserted.”
“There were extenuating circumstances.”
“I never wanted you,” Alice said. “A Black Sun assassin as an Auditor? The whole thing was ridiculous. You’re a concession to politics. I never thought you were cut out to be an Auditor.”
“That makes of two of us,” Katya said. “This wasn’t my idea.”
“Mine either,” Alice said. “You were useless from day one – the fuck do I need with an Operator who can only kill? – but that wasn’t the worst of it. I figured that if nothing else, as a combat veteran, I could count on you to look after the kids in the field until they learned the ropes. I thought you’d make yourself useful in some way, if only to pass the damn time. You decided to be a problem instead, a pain in my ass.”
“Just hear me out. We still want to be Auditors, Ms. Gallow. Well, I still do, and I think Alex does. He might. If you don’t choke him.”
“I don’t believe it,” Alice said. “You actually still want to be an Auditor?”
“Probably. If Alex does, then I do, too.”
“That’s news to me.”
“It was a very recent decision,” Katya explained. “It’s been crazy.”
“Why do you think I would want you?” Alice asked. “What possible use do you think that you have?”
“I kill people, Ms. Gallow, same as you,” Katya said tiredly. “We’re basically the same, when you think about it.”
“Is that so?” Alice’s eyes and smile both widened proportionately. “You’ll have to elaborate on that.”
“We are both broken apport technicians. We are meant to move things from place to place, Ms. Gallow, but that isn’t what we do. We don’t do transportation, we kill people.”
“Speak for yourself. The Auditors would never get anywhere if I didn’t move them around.”
“But that isn’t what you do. That’s a sideline at best, and a costly one. We all know that you lose your memory every time you do it,” Katya said, standing almost toe to toe wi
th the Chief Auditor. “That’s why Chike is an Auditor, so he can handle all the mundane transportation. I can’t move anything big or far, and you can’t move things regularly, or you’ll forget who you are.”
“You need to be careful,” Alice said cheerfully. “You aren’t in a position to be delivering criticism.”
“I’m not, I’m trying to explain.”
“You haven’t explained a thing. Why did you run off in the first place?”
“I had to save Alex,” Katya said, with a downcast look. “I had to at least try.”
“Why you, though? And why right that moment? We would have gone after him. We don’t just abandon Auditors in the field.”
“Save the propaganda,” Katya said. “I know what happened to Ms. Aoki. I had no assurance that you meant to do anything about Alex.”
“Why is this boy so important to you?” Alice asked, jerking Alex about by his neck.
“I don’t really know myself. I was very good friends with his sister, I guess.”
“He has a sister?”
“He did a long time ago,” Katya confirmed. “It’s very complicated.”
“I thought he killed his family in a fire,” Alice said doubtfully. “Isn’t that…?”
“No, that was all fake,” Katya said. “He just thinks – thought – that it happened.”
“His family is still alive, then?”
“No, they’re all dead. Killed off in a Black Sun purge.”
“Black Sun?” Alice’s expression soured. “Are you telling me that Alex is also part of your cartel?”
“Technically, yes,” Katya said, rubbing her temples. “He’s clueless, though.”
“So, Alex was born into the Black Sun,” Alice said. “But he’s not really a part of it. Do I have that right?”
“I think that may have changed recently, and some of that is my fault,” Katya admitted. “I told you it was complicated.”
“Are you really trying to convince me to have you back?” Alice asked. “All you’ve done so far is maybe persuade me to get rid of Alex, too. I was just angry before, but now I’m angry and confused.”
“Me too,” Katya said. “It is what it is.”
“On the list of dumb things people say, that’s got to be right up at the top,” Alice complained. “Do you have anything to say that might actually persuade me to take you back?”
“I guess I could try,” Katya said. “Let’s see. You’ve got a handful of Auditors left, most of them are rookies,” Katya said, ticking each point off with her fingers. “You said all I can do is kill people, but look around you, Ms. Gallow. Don’t you think a lot of people are going to need killing?”
“That’s a better argument.”
“I understand what no one else in your crew of Auditors understands,” Katya said, lowering her voice. “I know that sometimes innocent people have to die, and I can handle that. I’m sure that you can have any of your Auditors take their best shot at some Weir, but what happens when you need to deal with someone more sympathetic? You know as well as I do that this job isn’t all killing monsters.”
Alice grinned and clapped Katya on the shoulder.
“I always liked you, you know,” Alice said approvingly. “Right from the start.”
“I thought you always hated me. You told me you hated assassins, when I first showed up,” Katya said. “Just now you told me you never wanted me at all!”
“All of that is also true,” Alice said. “Those feelings are not mutually exclusive.”
“Ms. Gallow, you can strangle Alex if you want to, I don’t particularly care,” Hayley said, rushing over. “But you should probably know that I helped, too, just a little. I sent Derrida along with Katya, when she went after Alex, just to watch out, and…well, you know.”
Alice looked around in disbelief.
“Well, great! That’s just great to hear! Is there anything else?” Alice gave them a crazed smile. “Anyone else wanna fess up? Min-jun, you secretly aiding any shadowy organizations? You a fucking traitor, Grigori?”
“Not at all,” Grigori said, looking offended. “I live up to my obligations.”
“No, Ms. Gallow,” Min-jun said, keeping his distance. “You frighten me.”
“They make perfect sense!” Alice cried out, squeezing her arm tight around Alex’s neck. “Which makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with the three of you.”
“There’s no conspiracy, Ms. Gallow,” Katya assured her. “I wasn’t working for the Black Sun when I left, and Alex isn’t conspiring with the Anathema. It’s just that I joined this club, you see, and we…”
“Holy shit! What the hell is wrong with you? Who the fuck ran the Program when you kids went through it?”
“Ah, that would have been Ms. Aoki,” Katya admitted. “And also you.”
“I clearly did a shit job,” Alice declared. “You are all officially the worst Auditors ever.”
“We’re still Auditors, though?” Katya asked hopefully.
“I suppose,” Alice said. “I can’t really punish you if I’m not your boss, right?”
“That’s sort of good!” Katya said. “Will you let Alex go now?”
“Why not?” Alice dropped Alex to the floor, to gasp and rub his neck resentfully. “Since we’ve all decided to face up to our jobs and our responsibilities, right?”
“Actually, I was thinking,” Alex wheezed. “I might not want to…”
Katya kicked Alex.
“Like you said, Ms. Gallow,” Katya said. “We’re all ready to move on.”
“I’m not,” Alice said, grinning. “I want an explanation for all of this.”
“If you are all quite ready?” Anastasia glared. “It is nearly time for us all to be going.”
“This is not done,” Alice said. “We are going to continue this conversation back in Central.”
Katya nodded as she walked away, then helped Alex up.
“Well, that’s it,” Alex said. “We’re screwed.”
“Not necessarily,” Katya said. “We could get lucky. It’s Alice Gallow, remember? She might forget all about it.”
***
“If I could have just the briefest interval of your time before the apport, Lady Martynova,” Emily suggested, stepping deftly around Mai when the maid tried to intercept her. “I’m sure that you’d find it worth your while.”
Anastasia considered, eyeing the confrontation between Alex and Alice Gallow warily.
“I don’t see why not,” Anastasia said. “We have a few minutes.”
“Excellent! Why don’t you just send away the maids, and the vampires, and all the other hangers-on – no offense intended,” she said, giving Mai a pert smile. “This is not for everyone’s ears.”
Mai looked at Anastasia questioningly, and then left without a word, Lord Gao following her.
“It must be so much fun to be rich and powerful,” Emily said. “I envy you, Anastasia. I really do.”
“Are we still on a first name basis?” Anastasia considered it. “I’m pleased, if a bit surprised.”
“I don’t think you’ll like what I have to say all that much, but I don’t see any reason to be rude,” Emily said. “We’ve always gotten along, haven’t we?”
“I suppose that we have, though not everyone might look at it quite that way.”
“We have had our issues, haven’t we? I’m not talking about Alex, or any of that nonsense, obviously.” Emily leaned close, speaking in confidence. “I’m talking about my sister. Therese Muir. I’m certain you remember her.”
“Aha. I was expecting that this might come up.”
“Did you truly expect it? How thoughtful of you to consider my feelings! I wonder if you’ve become more empathetic, Anastasia. As a result of your recent experience with losing family, I mean. My condolences, by the way.”
“Thank you. I would offer my own to you as well, no matter how belated. I sincerely regret what happened with your sister. Therese attacked me, and I was left with few opti
ons,” Anastasia said. “She was extraordinarily dangerous.”
“To some, perhaps,” Emily said. “She was no danger to you.”
“I had no choice but to defend myself.”
“And in doing so, you revealed your protocol to a rogue intelligence agent,” Emily said. “You had to kill her to protect your secret. Who would give up such an advantage in a trivial encounter, after all the work you went through to conceal it? I quite understand your position. That doesn’t change my feelings on the matter.”
“I did not expect that it would,” Anastasia said stiffly. “I just thought that you should know there was no animosity on my part.”
“How very thoughtful of you, Anastasia,” Emily replied. “It’s nice to know that you hold me in such regard.”
“We have no time for games,” Anastasia said. “What do you want from me, Miss Muir?”
“Are we no longer on a first-name basis? Oh dear!” Emily laughed. “How quickly things fall apart. I have no intention of playing with you at all. I simply wanted you to know that I will have my revenge for the murder of my sister, Lady Martynova, whom I loved very much, and who did not deserve to die.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, and saddened by my role in it,” Anastasia said, tapping her umbrella against the floor. “That is all that I can offer.”
“Is it? Well, that’s nothing to worry over. I’ll take what I want.”
“If you want to fight, then I suggest you pick a different opponent.” Anastasia glared at Emily. “One more appropriate to your class and station.”
“Oh, please. I’m quite capable of handling you, or anyone else. I was not calling you out, here and now. My revenge will be elegant and cruel, just like you,” Emily proclaimed. “I just wanted you to know what is coming.”
“You seem to be taking this personally,” Anastasia observed. “That would be a mistake, Miss Muir.”
“Oh, but it is personal. You see, it is embarrassing to admit, but I really thought that we might become friends, Lady Martynova.” Emily glanced over at the increasingly heated encounter between Alice and Alex with a mixture of annoyance and apprehension. “Therese was my only sister, and the only person to try and protect me. If justice is impossible, then I think I still owe her some measure of vengeance.”
The Church of Sleep (Central Series Book 5) Page 43
