The Ancients: Book 3 in the Cedarstone Chronicles

by Sean Stone

  "So I'll be working for them," Charles muttered. There was little fight left in him, he knew that Richie wasn't going to change his mind.

  "It's about time you earned your place on the elders' council," Victor said, with the derisive drawl that he reserved for Charles. Victor had never like Charles. For that matter neither had Richie, but he was useful. Decades ago, Richie had wanted a mole on the town council. Charles had been a councillor at the time, this was before the days of Jonathan Langford, it was when his father Andrew Langford had been mayor. Richie had promised to turn Charles and make him a high ranking elder in exchange for his services. Once Charles had fulfilled his end of the deal Richie had lived up to his.

  "How's Isabella?" Richie asked Victor. He hadn't seen her since the night he'd snapped at her. The night he'd nearly got her captured by SIT. She'd spent more than enough time in activity as of late. First, William had arrested her and then the Aramaya family had taken her hostage. He should apologise for the way he'd treated her but she wouldn't come near him. He'd just been so angry over the Lydia situation. Lydia had avoided him since that night as well; it seemed that all the women in his life were avoiding him.

  "She's fine. A bit sullen but nothing a little time won't fix," Victor replied. "Time apart from you is best I think. Seeing you get close to Lydia is only making her feelings for you more obsessive."

  "I thought that after all this time she would finally have moved on. Especially after I'd been away for thirty years."

  "I thought the same. It's not the first time I've underestimated her," Victor said, letting out a small laugh.

  "Probably won't be the last," Richie said.

  "I still haven't picked up the slightest hint of Set in town," Victor said. Richie could see in his face that he was expecting a telling off.

  "Give up. Set will surface when he's ready. Besides, I have it on good authority that Nick is going to take on Osiris."

  "Do you think he can kill him?"

  Richie shrugged. "He already tried once and couldn't. He's smart enough not to walk into a fight he can't win twice. Either way, we lose a troublesome enemy."

  "Nick isn't our enemy," Victor said, reminding Richie that they had squared everything with Nick.

  "He will be once I kill James."

  Richie heard footsteps on the stairs leading down from the street and knew that Clara had arrived. As expected the door opened and Clara Winters strode into the club. Behind her were the two vampires who had been captured. They were still in cuffs—no doubt some kind of enchanted cuffs—and were being escorted by two other agents whom Richie did not recognise.

  "Good evening, Agent Winters," Richie said formally. "I'm glad to see that my people are unscathed." Although any injuries sustained would have healed by now, they were vampires after all.

  "We're the police, not savages," Clara replied.

  "I thought you weren't the police anymore?" Charles said smugly as if he'd got one up on her.

  "You know what I mean," Clara said.

  "Has the information I gave you been of any use?" Richie asked, referring to the names of the disciples he had provided last time Clara had visited.

  "Not as much as we'd hoped. We ran the names through the MI5 database but they didn't match to anything."

  "Hardly surprising. The Thirteen have gone to great lengths to stay under the radar," said Richie. Most people still thought of the Thirteen as a myth. Only those unfortunate enough to have encountered them in some way knew for sure that they were real.

  "Apparently so. We're working on finding out the name of the last disciple," Clara said. The one Lydia had not seen in the house.

  "And how is that going?" Richie asked keenly. It wouldn't hurt for him to know it too. He'd been intrigued ever since Lydia had given him the partial list.

  "Not so well."

  "Very well. So, you return our people, and we give you access to Charles," Richie said, gesturing at Charles. Charles shifted on the spot. He was an unimpressive man to look at and Richie wished that he'd not had him present. It would have been better just to give a phone number or something."

  Clara looked at Charles and then smiled, but it was more of a grimace. "And he's as useful as you said?"

  "More so than he looks," Victor replied for Richie.

  "Alright then." Clara nodded to her underlings and they freed the vampires from the cuffs and stepped back from them. The vampires crossed to Richie's side of the room, scowling all the while, and then turned to face their former captors. Charles reached into his pocket and handed Clara a slip of paper.

  "You can contact me using those. My phone number, email address and pager," he said.

  "You have a pager?" Clara asked in surprise. Nobody used pagers anymore.

  "Are we done?" Charles asked rudely.

  "I think so," Clara said.

  "One more thing," Richie said. He led Clara away from the others so they could speak privately. "I just want to give you a heads up, out of respect for our new friendship, that I'm going to take James Tenson prisoner." The first team he'd sent after Tenson had turned up dead surprisingly. He'd underestimated the man.

  "That's not a good idea. It would be better if you waited until we're ready to move against the Thirteen," said Clara. She sounded like Victor.

  "I know. But this can't wait. After what he did to William he can't be left to wander around free. I'm surprised you don't want his head."

  "About that." Clara looked about to make sure her team couldn't hear them. "I don't think James killed William. Jamal's story has some inconsistencies. I can't say anything yet, but will you hold off whilst I investigate? As soon as I know for sure who it was I'll tell you. You have my word."

  "It's been a while since I worked with a Winters you know. You're grandfather was an honourable man. I'll trust that you're the same. I'll hold off whilst you investigate, but don't take too long, Agent Winters," Richie warned.

  "I won't," she promised and then led her team out.

  *

  James had called Dean and explained that Nick had confined him to the house and he wouldn't be back for a while. He thought that Dean sounded concerned but that may have been wishful thinking. He wanted to tell Dean to stay inside and out of trouble, but it just didn't seem right. He hadn't been the boy's father for eight years and it seemed odd to start acting like it now. It would take time to make things feel natural. Luckily time was something James had plenty of.

  He was sitting on his bed looking down at his bracelet when Kristen came in. Dean hadn't noticed him wearing it back at the family house. James wondered if Dean would ask for it back when he did see it. It didn't really matter, it didn't need to be on James in order for James to use magic. It would weaken his magic the farther he was from the bracelet though and he wouldn't be able to add to it — not that he intended to. When all this was over he didn't plan on using magic anyway. He only needed it to stop the transformations once a month. All he wanted was a normal human existence. No werewolves, nor vampires and no magic.

  "Nick can be an arse sometimes. You shouldn't let it get to you," Kristen said. She sat down on the bed next to James.

  "I noticed," he murmured.

  "Don't take it personally. He doesn't mean anything by it. He's being working on this plan for about six hundred years. Now that it's finally coming to fruition he's terrified that something is going to fuck it up. You can understand that can't you?"

  James nodded. He could understand that. He'd waited for eight years to get his son back and now that it was happening he was terrified that he'd lose it all. He couldn't imagine what it would feel like if he'd been waiting for six hundred years. "I'm just sick of this house."

  "I know. We all are. But we won't be in it for much longer. Nick thinks Osiris will be ready soon and when he is, Nick will kill him."

  "If Nick has everything he needs then why doesn't he just go and kill Osiris now?" asked James.

  "Osiris isn't at full power. Nick is worried that if he kills him
now then he won't get all of his power and he needs it all to fight Kayla."

  "Right, and in the meantime, we have to stay here. Trapped in this sodding house," James said sulkily. He was sick of hearing about Nick's plans for Osiris and Kayla. He was starting to wonder if it had been worth joining the Thirteen after all. Then he remembered that he'd likely be dead if he hadn't. He had too many enemies in Cedarstone and Nick was the only one offering protection.

  "It's not that bad. There's plenty of things we can do in this house." She took his chin in her hand and gently turned him to face her. She stared at him with a sultry look in her eyes. He knew what that meant. He'd slept around enough to recognise the look of seduction. He wanted to kiss her. He wanted to give in to his carnal pleasures and take her right now. Over the weeks he'd spent with her he'd grown more and more fond of her. He'd fantasised about spending the night with her on countless occasions but he never once thought that she might feel the same. He decided to go for it and leaned in and kissed her. She was not a gentle kisser. She moved her lips with a rough forceful passion that he'd never felt before, not from any of the hookers he'd hired in the past. He loved it.

  No. Dean.

  He pulled back. If he got involved with Kristen now then it would make it all the more difficult to walk away once Nick's plan was complete. He wouldn't be able to walk away from Kristen if he allowed something to develop, and he doubted that Dean would be very accepting of his new choice of partner.

  "What's up?" Kristen asked, pulling his focus back to her. When he looked into her dark eyes his resistance subsided and he leaned in to kiss her again. She pushed him onto his back, ripped his clothes away and then climbed on top of him. She didn't allow him to take control once. She held him down, pinned against the mattress whilst she manoeuvred on top of him. Nothing she did was gentle, everything was rough, forceful, aggressive, but so full of passion that James could hardly take it. Of all the woman he'd been with, none of them compared to Kristen; not even his ex-wife. Every time he was about to orgasm she somehow knew and she stopped moving, forcing him to hold off. When she did finally let him release it he cried out so loud that the whole house must've heard. Then she rolled off him, pulled him into her arms, his head resting on her small, but firm breasts, and he went to sleep.

  *

  Clara was on her way into work Saturday morning. She'd spent the night before at home with Bianca. It was one of the nights that Jamal took to himself. One of those nights which he refused to tell Clara about. He said that everybody needed a little privacy and that was his. With each passing day, she became more suspicious of him. He was certainly hiding something. He lied about William's death. He reacted very angrily when Adam refused to share his plans with him. He didn't seem to like Clara investigating the identities of the Thirteen. And he kept disappearing on random nights. Luckily she had Kegan tailing him. So far he'd discovered nothing. Jamal went to work and he went home. That was it. He didn't seem to do anything else. But last night would prove to be different. Clara knew it, and she couldn't wait to hear what Kegan had found out.

  She parked her car and headed for the secret entrance to SIT. Just as she reached the door Jamal came out. He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to one side. His expression was serious.

  "Why do you have Kegan following me?" he demanded. Shit.

  "What do you mean?" she asked. She could already feel her cheeks burning.

  "Don't insult us both by playing stupid. I know you put him up to it. Tell me why?" Playing dumb wasn't go to work. Clara decided to change tactics.

  "You're hardly one to talk. How long did you have that tracking spell on me?" It was only after Nick's ritual in Thorndale a couple of weeks ago that Jamal had finally stopped tracking her.

  "I was following William's instructions. Are you telling me that Phil or Sidney ordered you to tail me?" Jamal asked. She'd never seen him act so coldly towards her before. It was frightening.

  "No," she admitted. "I was worried. You've been acting so off lately. You wouldn't tell me why. If you would just tell me what's going on maybe I could help you," she said. It was a rubbish lie, but with the right delivery, it might still convince him.

  "Clara." He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "There's nothing to tell you. I'm fine."

  "See. You're lying to me again. That's why I put a tail on you. I know something is wrong and it hurts that you won't just be honest with me." Emotional blackmail was usually a good way to get answers.

  "Alright. Alright. The truth is I'm scared."

  "Don't. Don't you dare give me shit about being scared for me again because I'm not buying it," she said.

  "I"m not scared for you. I'm scared for me. Nick is dangerous and he has twelve dangerous warlocks at his side. We're going against them and we could all end up dead. I don't want to die, Clara. That's why I've been acting off. Because I'm terrified." His voice cracked as he said the last few words and his face broke into one of fear.

  "Jamal." She reached up and stroked his cheek. You don't have to be afraid. I'm here for you just like you've been here for me. You must know that. Nick isn't going to kill either one of us."

  "I know. I know. I'm sorry. Look I've got to go. I've got an assignment. I'll see you later."

  "Okay." She kissed him quickly on the lips and then watched him go, all the while thinking about the lies he'd just told her. Now she was even more determined to figure out what he was hiding.

  Clara told Kegan to stop tailing Jamal; she didn't want him to get into any trouble and she could hardly explain to Phil that she was tailing her boyfriend and senior officer because he was acting off. She decided that if she couldn't tail him the old fashioned way then she'd do it his own way. A tracking spell. He'd left enough of his hairs about her bedroom for her to be able to use some in a spell. Once her shift finished she headed home with that one purpose in mind, but her plans were thrown completely when she got home to find Katrina sitting at her kitchen table with a large mug of tea. Bianca was next to her looking bewildered.

  "What's going on?" Clara asked as she edged into the room.

  "Katrina's here," Bianca said. Obviously Clara had already noticed that.

  "I'm sorry to surprise you like this but I thought this was the best place to come," Katrina said. She sounded distant. Her mind was somewhere else.

  "What do you mean?" Clara pulled at a chair and joined them at the table.

  "In all the time I've been with Alistair, there are certain things that he has taken measures to stop me from seeing. He's cast all sorts of spells, made me drink all kinds of potions. But today they all failed. I saw things that he would not want me to see. And I know that when he realises he will kill me. And he will realise. There is no keeping secrets from that man," Katrina said solemnly.

  "He wouldn't kill you, surely?" Clara said with surprise.

  "You asked me once, not too long ago, exactly what my relationship with Alistair was. I neglected to tell you then, but now, I think that I can."

  "Alright," Clara said. The way Katrina was talking was frightening Clara somewhat and a part of her didn't want to hear anymore.

  "My father was a seer. The first in our family. The power isn't always hereditary you see. It is rare that it is passed down. Alistair came across my father before he met my mother. He made sure that the power was passed down."

  "How?" Clara asked. She shared a look with Bianca. Her friend was as confused and afraid as she was. They'd both been there when Alistair had warned them to stay away and they both remembered how intimidating the old man was. In a way he scared Clara more than Nick did.

  "Spells. Potions. He even selected my mother. He told my father who to marry. Then after I was born Alistair told my father that if he didn't continue to work for him he would kill me. When I was six my parents finally found the courage to flee. We packed our bags and hit the road. Alistair found us. He took us home and told my parents never to do anything like that again. Then he took me home with him. He said that I wou
ld stay with him as a safeguard."

  "That's horrible," Bianca said, in a whisper.

  "Quite," Katrina replied. "As I got older he began using me to read the future for him. When I was twelve I demanded to go home. I said I would not work for him again until I was back with my parents. He took me home and he killed my mother in front of me. He just snapped his fingers and her heart exploded."

  Clara covered her mouth with her hand. She'd never imagined that the old man could be so terrible. He had a sinister side to him, but it didn't seem that bad.

  "He reminded me that I still had a father and then took me home with him again. My father died a few years later. He had a brain tumour that they discovered too late. I asked Alistair to cure him, but he said: "There is no need. I have you now." And he let him die. I refused to work for Alistair and for months he did nothing. Then one day he took me for a walk. I thought he was being nice at first. Allowing me out of the shop. But then it started. Every person we passed on the street just dropped dead. No warning. Nothing. One minute they were alive, the next they fell down dead. Even when I begged him to stop he wouldn't. After seventeen people died he finally took me home and told me that next time I disobeyed him it would be worse."

  "I am so sorry that happened to you," Clara said. She wished she could comfort the old lady in some way, but there was nothing she could do.

  "I wish, Clara, that that was where my story ended. But it goes on. You see Alistair relies on seers for his plans. He needs to know what will happen in the future. He needs to know what is happening all around him. He hates to be surprised."

  "Oh no," Clara knew where the story was going now.

  "He found me a partner. A young man. Knowing fully Alistair's intentions I spurned the boy at every opportunity. But the boy knew nothing of Alistair's cunning. He only knew that he liked me. And eventually, I liked him back. We had a child. A boy. Once Alistair had confirmed that the boy was a seer he killed my lover and sent my baby away. He said that if I did good work I would see him again. So I continued to work for Alistair. He allowed me to see my son once a month. After a while my visits got rarer. The last time I saw my son was… I can't even remember. Time is all muddled now. The problem with being a seer."