by Steve McHugh
"But there's still something there, I assume."
A sly smile spread across Tommy's lips. "When she comes over, she tends to stay the night. We tell Kasey she sleeps in the spare room. Technically that's true. Well, apart from the sleep bit."
I poured myself a third glass. "So, what's it like having a child again?"
Tommy was thoughtful for a moment. "You know, I resented you for telling me I had to leave my family. I never got to see my wife or son again, never got to watch him grow up."
"I'm sorry." I remembered how heartbroken he'd been when he'd realised he could never go home. Never hold his family again.
"Not your fault. And you were right. If I'd gone home a werewolf, I would have been killed or gotten someone I cared about killed. I had to let them think me dead. And the fact that you provided them a good life went some way to help."
It had been a hard decision for him to make, although I made sure he received regular updates on how they were doing. His wife had been given enough money to buy a home and start a small farm, and his son ended up fighting the French. He managed to ransom off a wealthy French aristocrat, and made enough money to increase his mother's land tenfold. I made sure that a member of Avalon shadowed him wherever he went. Nothing bad befell him that could have been stopped. Tommy's son died as an old man, surrounded by wealth and people who cared deeply for him.
"I never realised how much I missed having children," Tommy said. "It makes me feel whole. Like there was always a part missing that I knew nothing about. It's hard to explain. Sorry."
I waved away his apologies. I'd never had children, not any that I was aware of anyway. Sixteen hundred years without a child isn't unheard off. Sorcerers weren’t exactly the most fertile of creatures, a side effect of the magic we wielded.
"Anything else you want to tell me? A secret family perhaps or maybe you're the king of a small country."
Tommy's laugh was deep and full of joy and alcohol. We'd managed to polish off the bottle of Scotch within a very short period of time. "No, I think I've told you everything. You'll have to come to Kasey's party, though. It'll be nice to have people there to talk to who are neither parents nor twelve."
That caused me to laugh. "I'll be honoured. What do twelve-year-old girls want as gifts?"
"What all women want," he said opening a second bottle of Scotch and polishing off his fifth or sixth triple measure. "Money."
That made us both laugh.
"So where did all this come from?" I asked with a wave of my hand.
"The father looking for his missing daughter was very wealthy and when I found his daughter safe and sound, he paid me a lot of money. More importantly, he put out a good word to a few people who were interested in having some security work. It all sort of snowballed from there. Now I don't even need to do anything. Most days I just make sure everything's ticking along. Although, once in a while I still like to get involved."
"Like today?"
"Yeah, that fucking sucked, didn't it?"
"You said it was going to get worse. How?"
Tommy sighed and re-filled his glass. "I was hoping to leave this until it was confirmed tomorrow."
A glare told him to get on with it.
"I recognised the girl in the basement. Or at least she looked like someone I'd met before. I don't remember the name, but I think she was the girlfriend of an LOA agent."
I knocked back the rest of my Scotch and hastily refilled it. "Shit."
"You see why I said it was going to get worse?"
"Does Olivia know?"
"I told her my thoughts, yes. We'll see if I was right, but I really hope I'm not."
Neither of us needed to say why the train of thought could only end badly. The murder of an agent's family member was almost as bad as killing an agent himself. The LOA would stop at nothing to find the culprit, no matter the cost. And Avalon would give them their full backing. Depending on who the killer was, and where they were, it could cause all sorts of problems, because I truly doubted that Neil was the only one involved in what had happened in that basement. The best that could be hoped for was that, if Tommy was right, the murderer had picked the victim at random.
We both sat in silence for some time, neither one of use willing to add fuel to the fire of what we were thinking. Eventually the Scotch overrode sense, and I told Tommy about what had happened between Sara and me at the clearing.
His response wasn't exactly unexpected.
"You're an idiot," he said calmly.
"No argument from me."
"She better not quit, or you owe me a competent assistant."
"If Sara quits, I'll do the damn job myself. She loves working for you; she won't leave without a fight."
"You're still a fucking idiot."
I shrugged. "Why did you keep Kasey from me? I've been back for a few months now, and this is the first I've heard of it."
"I hadn't seen you in ten years, and I wanted to be sure that the person I knew and the current one were the same. I wasn't about to put my daughter in any danger, so I had to wait until I knew I could still trust you."
I wasn't about to argue with a man who just wanted to protect his daughter.
After that, we settled into the comfortable conversation of two old friends, reminiscing about the past and discussing drink-induced topics.
I woke up on the one of Tommy's couches. Tiny slivers of sunshine made their way through the thick curtains and onto my face, causing me to blink and try to bat them away in my half-asleep stupor.
I glanced at my watch, which said it was nearly eight am. I had no idea what time I'd actually gotten to sleep but the bottles of Scotch, beer and vodka on the coffee table told their own story. I was very grateful that being a sorcerer meant having my magic heal me a lot quicker than a human ever could. It had removed the alcohol from my body and ensured I didn't have a hangover, so all I had to contend with was the horrible aftertaste and a desire to go back to sleep for a few hours.
Instead, I forced myself up and dragged myself into the kitchen. I had no idea where Tommy was. If he'd had any sense, probably back to his own bed. I rubbed my neck and rolled my head to unknot the muscles. The couch had been a comfortable seat, but not exactly the sleeping apparatus of choice.
I was still searching through the various cupboards when someone cleared their voice behind me. "Hi," I said after turning around to find Kasey standing in the doorway. She wore a blue school uniform and carried a green rucksack. She was the spitting image of Olivia.
"What are you looking for?" she asked.
"Tea," I said. "I know your dad drinks it, but I'm stuffed if I can find it anywhere."
She walked into the kitchen and over to the counter, where she opened the lid on a small ceramic pot. "Tea," she said with a flourish of her hands.
I smiled and grabbed one of the fragrant bags. White tea, he'd learned well from all the times I'd served it to him. I filled the kettle and put it on to boil as Kasey studied me. "Is there something you want to ask?" I wondered if maybe she was shy.
"You're here to stop more women from getting hurt, aren't you?"
"What do you mean?" I asked. "Where does your dad keep the honey?"
Kasey opened a nearby cupboard and passed me a jar of the orange nectar, which I placed beside the cup I'd taken from a wooden tree-like structure and dropped the tea-bag inside. I'd have preferred leaves, but I've been told I'm a fussy bastard when it comes to my tea.
"So?" Kasey asked with more than a little impatience as I filled the cup with freshly boiled water.
"Yes," I said. "I'm here to help your dad, and apparently your mum, too. We'll find anyone responsible, hopefully before anyone else gets hurts."
Kasey considered this for a second before nodding. "They don't think I know what's going on, but I watch the news and read the internet. They think I'm too young to understand."
I removed the bag from the tea and threw it into the bin. "They just want to protect you."
"From the truth?" Kasey raised her eyebrow in confusion.
I took a drink of my tea. "It's what adults do. If we told you about everything bad that happens it might scare you. And whether that annoys you or not, they'd rather you had some ignorance about how cruel the world can sometimes be."
"I understand that," she said firmly. "I just want them to be honest with me."
"I'll tell you what, you ask me what you want to know, and I'll answer as honestly as I can."
"I don't have anything right now," she said. "Can I come ask if I think of something?"
"Sure, not a problem."
Kasey walked to the doorway and turned back to me. "It's nice to meet you."
"You, too."
She paused for a heartbeat. "Dad says you're the scariest person he's ever met. But that you're a good guy. You don't look scary."
Her words caused me to laugh, but I had to think how best to answer. "I'm only scary to people who deserve it."
Apparently that was the answer she wanted to hear, as her attention was soon on the opening front door.
"Mum," she shouted and darted off toward the front door.
"Olivia," I said with a slight nod as she embraced her daughter.
"Nathan," she said, not exactly sounding happy about seeing me. "I assume you and Tommy spent the night getting drunk."
"Better than therapy," I pointed out, as Tommy made his way down the stairs wearing a clean, green shirt and faded jeans.
"Morning, all," he said far too cheerful for the amount of alcohol he'd consumed, which dwarfed my own intake. A werewolf's healing ability at work made even mine look stagnant in comparison.
"Morning, Dad," Kasey said with a slight glare. "I heard you both singing last night."
Tommy grinned. "Sorry, we were in sort of a groove."
Kasey rolled her eyes as only an eleven-year-old can, which caused Tommy to laugh. "Are you taking me to school today?" she asked her father.
"I am," Olivia said. "I don't know if I'll get chance to come over tonight, so I thought it'd be nice for me to take you."
Kasey beamed and went to hug her dad.
"See you tonight, Terror," he said as she pulled away.
Kasey stopped beside me on her way back to Olivia. "Please keep them safe," she whispered before running out of the door.
"I'll see you both soon," Olivia said with a scowl.
"I'm going to my place first," I said. "I need a shower and change of clothes."
Olivia passed me a notepad and pen which had been kept on a table near the front door. "Write the address down, I'll meet you both there."
I did as I was asked and Olivia took the paper, leaving without a word. "She's not happy," I said as the door closed.
Tommy shrugged. "I don't think she was expecting you to be here. She doesn't like showing a soft side in front of people who are working for her."
"I didn't realise I was working for her." I finished the rest of my tea and went to put the cup next to the sink. "Kasey asked me about the attacks."
"I figured she might. Olivia and I haven't really spoken about them with her. I've been actively trying to avoid it."
"I hope you don't mind. I wasn't really sure how to deal with it."
"It's fine, probably better coming from you than some friends at school. Besides I'd mentioned you to her."
"Yeah, the scariest man I've ever met bit. Thanks for that, nice way to terrify your child."
Tommy laughed. "She's always afraid I'm going to get hurt. I figured telling her I was working with you, and that you can be scary might alleviate her fear a little."
"I'm not really that scary am I?"
He laughed again. "I've seen you lose your temper. Remember Istanbul?"
"Ah, yeah. Well that was a special case."
"You burnt a mansion to the ground and killed a dozen very unpleasant men."
"They butchered women and children for profit. They deserved it."
Tommy raised his hands. "No argument from me. But that's only one of many occasions I can think of when I've been really glad that you're on my side."
I wanted a change of subject. "So, can we leave so that I can get a shower? I stink of booze and salt and vinegar crisps."
Tommy threw me my jacket and grabbed his keys from a bowl near the front door. "You're right, we'd better go before Olivia gets to your place first and breaks in thinking you're ignoring her."
I would have laughed if I didn't think he was being completely serious.
Chapter 8
I used to have a lovely penthouse in Winchester. Unfortunately, a complete psychopath forced me to blow it up as I escaped from his attempt to kill me and a girl I'd been asked to keep safe. Buying a new home had been high on my list of things to do, and I'd decided on purchasing something in a slightly quieter area. Preferably with less distance to fall if I had to jump out of the top floor. Hence, my current residence, which was a large two-story house in a secluded area inside the New Forest.
The thatch-roofed building had been built sometime in the late eighteenth century and then modified throughout the years to deal with a more modern lifestyle. The previous owners had built a two-story addition on the side of the property, giving me several extra rooms. They'd even tried to keep it in style with the rest of the house, although the lack of thatch on the newer portion was a bit of a giveaway.
The house came with a few dozen acres of land, most of which were littered with trees, and once I'd finished with it, an early warning system for anyone who might want to creep up on me. Minute cameras and sensors gave plenty of warning of visitors.
I rode my bike to the front gate and got off, pushing it open.
"Still in the dark ages," Tommy called from the truck with a laugh when I sat back on the bike.
I pushed up the face guard allowing me to speak clearly. "I'm just not lazy," I said and returned his smile with one of my own. He parked his truck in front of my double garage and turned off the engine, while I left my bike near the front door and removed my helmet.
"Looks like we beat Olivia here," Tommy said, glancing around.
"Probably a good thing," I said and unlocked the door, pushing it open as my alarm started to beep. I dashed over and entered the code, switching it off.
"You own a normal burglar alarm?" Tommy asked.
"You have twenty seconds to enter the code before all the doors and windows lock and gas is pumped into the building. It'll knock out a rhino in about half a minute. "
"Bloody hell, Nate."
When you've made as many enemies as I've managed to over the centuries, it paid to have a little security in place. "I got it from a friend, cost me a small fortune, but it's probably worth it. I'd rather not come home to any unpleasant surprises."
I told Tommy to make himself comfortable, which probably meant I'd find him eating his way through the contents of my fridge, and went for a shower. One of the reasons I'd bought the place was because of the large bathroom which the previous owners had installed in the extension. When I'd first read the words "wet room," I had no idea what to expect. And so was pleasantly surprised to find that it meant a bathroom with an open shower in the middle and drain in the floor. It was quite liberating to use, instead of standing in a little cubicle just so I could wake up and get clean.
Once I'd finished washing and put on a clean pair of dark blue jeans and an orange t-shirt, I made my way back to Tommy, expecting to find him gorging himself on the various pieces of meat that were in my fridge, cooked or otherwise. A werewolf's digestion was a scary thing.
Instead, I heard the raised voices before I'd entered the kitchen.
"What should I have done, Olivia?" Tommy asked. "Stopped her from looking at the internet, or maybe I should have rounded up all of her friends and forced them to never discuss the murders. They're all over the damn news. Kasey was going to find out about them somehow."
"But she shouldn't be exposed to this shit," Olivia retorted as I walked into the room. "You." She pointe
d at me and stormed over. "You told my little girl about these murders."
I shook my head. "First of all, Kasey asked me about someone hurting women. Secondly, Kasey already knew. She just wanted someone to be honest with her."
I walked past Olivia and grabbed one of the many slices of toast on a plate on my dining room table, which Tommy had probably made as a snack. The table sat near a pair of patio doors, which overlooked an expansive back garden. The garden was nice to look at, but of no interest to me in terms of actual gardening. Mowing the lawn every now and again, and picking the fruit off the apple and plum trees, was the extent of my green fingers.
"See," Tommy said, chewing absentmindedly on a piece of toast. He must have used an entire loaf of bread. "Now will you calm down? Kasey's a smart girl, and she's old enough to be aware of what's going on."
"Anyone feel like telling me what’s happening with the investigation?" I asked.
Olivia took point as I assumed she would. "As you know, I asked Tommy to look into Neil's accommodation. I was hoping to find something to at least warrant a further investigation. I don't like having people who committed the type of crimes he did walking free on my streets. But considering how he managed to get out of the Hole after such a short period of time, not to mention his sudden wealth, it’s clear he has some serious backing.
"In the past three weeks we've found four dead girls, five as of yesterday. They were human girls, with no discernible connection to anything that was supernatural. Thus, the human police took control of the investigation. That changed after the third crime when it became apparent that something more was going on, which we discovered by accident. Agents Greaves and Reid were contacted directly by someone who gave them directions to the third victim.
"As you may not know, Agent Greaves is a werewolf. He found that there was no trackable scent at the third crime scene. As of that murder, however, the LOA have taken over the case, allowing the human police to remain as the public face of the investigation for the duration of our involvement. The Detective Chief Inspector works for Avalon, and he was happy to take the press off our hands."
Avalon slotted their personnel into important positions in human affairs. They did it all the time, in all levels of government, both local and national, as well as the emergency services, press and anywhere else where humans might come into contact with Avalon on a regular basis. The personnel were nearly always humans, and rarely got discovered. Avalon had been doing it for thousands of years.
