by Andy Hyland
The newer stuff she was crafting looked interesting, but for now I’d stick with the tried and trusted. A whole box of whizz-bangs were cached under the sofa – psychic shock grenades, great in a tight spot. A plastic bag of Silvian knots was under the sink – don’t ask me why, there was in all likelihood no logic behind it. They would prove very useful for what I had in mind.
What I had in mind was, in some ways, insanely stupid. Still, the slow and steady way, obeying everyone’s orders to stay away from things, hadn’t helped anyone so far. Clearly what was needed was a reckless disregard for rules and authority. Cometh the hour, cometh the man.
I could almost feel Becky’s smile on my back as I walked out, slamming the door behind me.
*
The burner phone in my apartment currently had four voicemail messages waiting to be picked up. Two from Ron, two from Kim, carefully alternated and at regular intervals. These guys were machines. I called Kim back. The phone barely rang before her happy, cheerful voice was on the line.
“Hey, Fred. I am so thrilled you called.” Not happy, apparently. Not even excited. Thrilled.
“Sorry it’s taken so long. You know what life’s like.”
“Oh, I know. But that’s part of what Trueflame is about. Getting perspective, setting priorities, the inner peace that comes when you join the struggle. Let’s get together really soon.”
“Well that’s what I’m calling about. When’s your next meeting? And where?”
She hesitated. “Well, there’s one tonight at eight, back at that hall in Hell’s Kitchen, but it’s…it’s complicated. Not for newbies. I don’t mean to sound sinister or secretive, but it would be a bit much for you to get your head round as a visitor. Hey, though,” she added, brightening up, “let’s have our own meeting –you, me and Ron. We can get you up to speed, sort out a meeting with David?”
“Sounds great. Tomorrow lunchtime, same coffee shop that we met in before?”
That was too much for her, and she became almost hysterically happy. Never before in my life has someone been so rapturously delighted at the thought of being able to sit down for a coffee with me. Whatever they were doing at Trueflame, it was seriously weakening their sense of perspective. Or maybe Trueflame attracted those sorts of people anyway.
I finally managed to end the call, and took a deep breath. That was exhausting. I checked the clock, which was now working again with its battery re-installed. Plenty of time to get ready, make all necessary preparations. Part of me felt I was letting down Julie with my impatience – she wanted the keep your distance thing enforced, wanted to use the dead drop at Benny’s. But time was ticking, people were dying, and I wanted my life and my girlfriend back. Game on.
They were due to meet at eight, so around five, long before anyone from Trueflame should have any business being at the hall, I broke in through a back window. Very discreetly of course – picked lock, carefully opened, re-sealed. No broken glass or anything blatantly obvious like that.
A quick reccy revealed that there was only one place they could be meeting in. Apart from the one main room, it was just bathrooms, cupboards and a small kitchen. The main room was a good size for a group discussion or a really small church service. Chairs were stacked to the side, along with trestle tables and a really old overhead projector.
What I was really after was a good observation spot. A small storage room was off to the side, but it was shallow and lacked cover. Anyone who opened it for whatever reason would spot me immediately. I racked my brain trying to think of what else would work. There was a suspended ceiling, but it looked too unsturdy to get into, and in any case was too high to reach.
It was going to have to be the cupboard, then. The choice made, I got to work. Three small holes created with a trusty old hand drill Zack got me for my birthday once. A quick check revealed that between them I had sight of most of the room. Then I rooted around in the kitchen, found some paper and a marker, and made an “OUT OF ORDER – DO NOT USE” sign, taping it to the cupboard door. Finally, I got inside and with the aid of some garden twine, the door handle, and some solid-looking shelving brackets, tied the door shut. It’s amazing how inventive you can be when you have absolutely no other choices available.
By the time all this was done and I’d settled in to wait, it was half six. As I stood there, the usual thoughts wandered through my mind. Why didn’t I grab a chair? Should I have brought some water? And then, because water had entered my mind, could I last all night without going to the bathroom?
Terminal boredom had set in before eight o’clock rolled round. With fifteen minutes to go, I heard the front door open and two guys I’d not seen before wandered in, pulling out chairs and creating a big happy group circle. Five minutes to go and it was filling up nicely. Ron and Kim were there, handing out plastic cups of water and juice – no expense spared for this little gang.
At one minute to eight, the main man arrived, Julie on his arm. I wasn’t overcome with the same mad jealousy as I’d experienced before, not now I was clued up on the state of affairs, but it still got to me that this idiot was doing something that kept us apart. David went round, solemnly shaking people’s hands, patting their shoulders, giving man-hugs to the more enthusiastic or those that were overcome by his very presence. In no time at all the seats were filled and all eyes were on Trueflame’s spiritual leader. Julie was on the opposite side of the circle, Ron and Kim much nearer. Clearly some sort of hierarchy going on.
I looked down at my stash of Silvian knots. Becky knew a few stealth casts, and somewhere around her apartment there were probably some amulets of invisibility or something equally helpful. But I didn’t have the week or more that it would take to sort and catalogue everything in that place. Possibly a job for Arabella at some point. It’d keep her occupied and out of harm’s way. Anyway, the best short-term option was the handful of knots that I’d stuffed into my pockets. I was physically out of view. I needed to stay psychically undetectable as well.
They lasted about fifteen minutes each. I had eight. Two hours. I’d thought that would be enough, but then I’d envisaged a situation where I could easily slip out unnoticed when I wanted to. Stuck in the cupboard, I was here for the duration.
As soon as David entered the room I twisted and activated the first knot. If anyone here was Aware in any way shape or form, it would be him. Bit of a risk, leaving it that late while others were milling around, but nobody had paid any attention to my hiding place, so my bet was paying off.
David stood up, facing the circle. “Friends,” he said warmly, arms raised in welcome. “Thank you for coming. This city needs you. I need you.”
“And we need you. We need each other,” they all said together.
“We come to strive.”
“We come to contend,” came the reply.
“We will be the beacon of light.”
“We will send our goodwill out into the night of the city.”
“So we will, my friends. So we will.” David sat down, and opened the satchel bag that he’d brought with him. “We face a new threat tonight, my brothers and sisters. He brandished a large black and white photo. Couldn’t see it from where I was – David more or less had his back to me. “She calls herself a spiritual healer, but she’s a witch, my friends, a black-hearted witch, plying her trade over on the piers. Oh, I know what’s going through your minds – the wizened green-skinned warty crones of the fairytales.” Small chuckles round the circle. “But this woman is more dangerous than anything you’ve ever come across. This woman would seduce you in every way imaginable, and take your very soul.” Shocked gasps replaced the chuckles.
“Let us send out the light,” Kim said.
“Yes, the light, send the light,” joined in other voices from round the circle. Julie was looking round, taking it all in, saying nothing. A good observer, but she’d have to get more involved if she wanted to allay suspicions for much longer.
“We will join hands,” David nodded. “We will
focus for the good of this place that is our home. We will send out our wishes, our hopes, our positivity. In this way we will send out our light into the darkness.”
Was this what I’d gone to all the trouble of securing a view for? Some hippy new-age mumbo jumbo load of crap? I shook my head. Must be more to it than that. Someone had placed Julie here for a reason. I might not like their way of doing things, but I severely doubted they’d misjudged things so completely.
David sat down, put the photo in the center of the circle formed by the chairs and took the hands of those either side of him. Everyone else did the same, forming a giant link of love, smiling at each other as they did so. I hate hippies. Then they bowed their heads. And absolutely nothing happened.
I checked my watch, and cracked the second Silvian knot into life. I’d have to be careful about this. Last thing I needed was to lose concentration and let one expire, leaving me completely open.
Staring out at them, I couldn’t detect any signs of movement or activity at all. Some of them looked asleep. Actually, some of them might have been. Looking round the circle, the closer people were to David, the less aware, the more unconscious they looked. Julie had her head bowed but was surreptitiously glancing round.
Time to get to the heart of things. I let my focus drift, losing my grip slightly on the world around and letting myself see the world beneath. The difference between the two was shocking. On the human level there was a happy circle of inactivity, but on the psychic plane something far more sinister was going on.
Chapter thirteen
David was a bright center of light in the room, a flame of psychic energy. Good job I’d thought of the Silvian knots – he must have a high sensitivity to anything that was even vaguely magical. No wonder I’d been told to keep my distance. He’d be onto me like a shot, possibly without trying.
Everyone else was dimmed, much darker than any living being should be. I looked at Kim, two places to David’s right. A soft mist was pouring off of her, like she was dissolving, almost. It rose slightly, then glided over to David, where he absorbed it. This was going on all round the circle, the most mist coming from those nearest to him. Only Julie was completely unaffected, undiminished, solid and real.
I stared hard at David. A lot of taking going on there, harvesting the energy of everyone around him, using them as a giant battery. But no sign at all of what he was doing with that energy. I quested closer, rolling out my senses, trying to establish his links to the other planes, what transfers and castings were happening. I edged too close and he physically flinched, opening his eyes and glancing around. That was as close as I dared get, and I found nothing. I withdrew, from then on keeping an eye on the time and cracking the knots when I needed to.
I was on knot number seven, five minutes from having to activate number eight, when David drew in a deep breath and sat upright. “I think that’ll have to do for tonight, friends. Don’t know about you, but I feel exhausted. We must have done some good work. Must have made a difference.”
The rest of them stirred back into life, stretching, some yawning. “That was wonderful,” gushed Ron. “We lit up this town.” A few others murmured their agreement.
Two by two they filed out, until only Kim and Julie were left. “David, can we…?” Kim asked, sounding worried.
“Of course. Julie, would you wait in the car please?” He passed her the keys and she left. “What is it, Kim? Tell me.”
Instead of answering, she reached up into her mouth and waggled at a back tooth, before pulling it out and showing it, covered in blood, to David. “That’s the third one this week. Two more are loose. I don’t know what’s happening. Am I ill? Are the forces…is the darkness attacking me?” These last words came out as a terrified whisper.
David placed his palm on her forehead, and the worry disappeared from her face. Anxious eyes glassed over, and her lips twisted in a faint smile. “Be calm, Kimberley. All is well. We must strive harder. We must give all that we have in the fight, and rejoice when it costs us dearly. Only through sacrifice can we know victory.” He removed her hand, and her eyes focused again. The smile remained on her lips. “All will be well.”
“All will be well,” she repeated.
“While you’re here, I have some concerns about Julie. I’m not able to reach her as I do you and the others. She’s pure, I’ve no doubt about that. But it’s possible she won’t be able to join us. Other arrangements may have to be made. Keep a close watch.”
“We will. And I’m very excited about Fred, a new recruit I’m meeting again for coffee tomorrow.”
“Good, good. We need all the fresh blood we can get to lend strength to the cause. Go in safety.”
As Kim left, something seemed to startle David. He pricked up his ears as if catching a faint noise. Just in time I remembered to twist the last Silvian knot. As soon as I did that, David relaxed, looking around curiously, but no longer concerned. He flicked the lights off on his way out. I gave it half an hour and left through the back door.
The streets were quiet. I headed west towards the river before turning north and calling Zack. He picked up on the second ring.
“Malachi? What’s up?”
“Need you to look into a possible shadow murder. We’re looking for a woman, plies her trade as a spiritual healer, some sort of business over on the piers.”
“That’s it?”
“All I’ve got. There was a photo, but I never got close enough to see it. Ask around, see if you can narrow it down to a few names.”
“You reckon we can help her?”
“If my theory’s right, she died less than an hour ago.”
“We’ve got a theory now?”
“It’s a work in progress. Excuse me, Zack. Looks like I have company.”
The woman was standing down a side road. Black leather, legs shoulder width apart, high heels. The hilts of two crossed swords rose above her shoulders, and long dark hair fell down to one side. Her eyes were a steely cold blue. I looked around. Two guys, the muscle, jeans and T-shirts, had moved up behind me. Two more stepped into view in front. “If you wanted to see me, you only had to ask nicely,” I said as coolly as I could manage. “Save the theatrics for someone who’s impressed by them.”
She walked forward, hips swinging. “This was my operation. There were very clear parameters. You butting in could have ruined weeks of work.”
“But it didn’t. Because I’ve been around the block a few times and I know what I’m doing.”
“You’re a liability. You’re out of control.”
“I can tell you what he’s doing.”
“We…” She trailed off.
“You have no idea, do you? Look, it was a good idea sending Julie in, I grant you. His Awareness is off the charts. If I hadn’t planned ahead he’d have smelt me from ten meters away, without even having to try.”
She nodded. “He’s extremely sensitive.”
“And Julie was unable to be affected by the mesmers and the draws that he’s using. That he’s using extensively and to the harm of everyone in that room but her.”
“Her immunity was something we’d relied on.”
“But the same thing that keeps her undercover and protected is the same thing that meant that she would never find out what it’s taken me two hours to put together. From inside a dark cupboard.”
She was close now. High, polished cheekbones and flawless skin. “I suppose you think I’m impressed by all this.”
“I don’t care if you’re impressed or not. I’m not asking you to applaud me. I’m asking you to keep out of my way.”
“Unacceptable. This is my operation.”
“People are dying.”
She sighed. “This is an extremely sensitive matter. We can’t simply…take him. There are obligations.”
“I repeat, people are dying. My people. My friends. If you won’t stop him, I will.”
I stepped aside, deciding it was time for a dramatic exit. She put her arm out, tap
ped my shoulder, and I stopped, paralyzed. “Vows have been made. There is no scope for retraction. If he is harmed in any way, then the price will be paid in blood. Yours. Your woman’s. Mine, most likely. You’re dealing in matters that are far above you.” I gurgled at her. “Oh go on then, speak.” She clicked her fingers and my jaw unfroze.
“Your methods aren’t working.”
“What would you suggest? I’m not permitted to take direct action.”
“Who’s giving the orders here? Sounds like you’re at his mercy.”
“Trust me, I’m as frustrated as you are.”
“I doubt it. Are you forbidding me from continuing here? Because at the moment I’m the only way of stopping him that you’ve got.”
She thought about it for a second, tapping her foot. “There are conditions. Firstly, he is not to be harmed. Not mentally, not physically, not psychically. He is untouchable.”
“How on earth do you think -”
“It is not negotiable. Secondly, his actions cannot become known, either to the Aware, the hellkind or the humans.”
“Bloody hell. You want me to do it blindfolded while I’m at it?”
“Don’t tempt me. This is the way it has to be. There are the terms, freely offered.”
“Freely offered and freely accepted,” I muttered.
She turned away and her spell broke. I could move again.
“He asks about you, you know.”
“Who?”
“Spare me. You know very well who. He asks from time to time and we tell him what we know.”
“And what does he say?”
She looked back over her shoulder. “Nothing. He says nothing.”
Then she was gone. They were all gone. I stood there for a while, looking out over the river. Thinking about all that moved under the surface that I’d never see or get to know about. And about how much that was like life up here.
“One other thing,” I called out. “I know you’re listening.”
“What?” she said, from my shoulder, her cold breath rippling across the back of my neck.
“Get Julie out of there. He’s twigged that he can’t control her. She’s done what she can. Not her fault your plan was flawed.”
