by J S Landor
‘Nooo!’ wailed Pi.
‘Anima …’ began Jago.
‘Stop. Please! Don’t unmake me. Not now, I –’
‘Animus …’
‘I’ll be good.’
‘Animal!’ Jago snatched back his hand as if tugging an invisible rope.
‘Aaaaa!’ Arching his spine in pain, Pi let out a bloodcurdling scream. As the noise echoed round the yard, he clutched at his throat. A ball of bright orange vapour had erupted from his mouth.
Jago inhaled deeply and the ball sped towards him, illuminating his face like a grisly waxwork. For one horrible moment Jack thought he was actually going to swallow the thing, but before it touched him he breathed out sharply. The orange ball sank to the ground, turning the soil black where it landed.
‘Tsche, tsche, tsche …’
Jack looked up to see the magpie racing towards him, claws outstretched. He ducked and felt Jago’s sleeve sweep over him. ‘Out of my sight!’ roared Jago, and a white light exploded from his hand.
The magpie careered into the sky, spinning and shrieking. Jack watched as it fought in vain to recover itself. When finally it disappeared beyond the ridges of clouds, he shuddered. ‘You – you took away his soul,’ he said.
‘What of it?’ Jago stood doubled over, panting. ‘Oh come on, don’t tell me you’re sorry. He was jealous and spiteful. We’re better off without him.’
He straightened up, gripping Jack’s shoulder for support. ‘Now then,’ he said, raking his long hair off his temples. ‘Let me fetch the mirror. That is why you’re here, isn’t it? We met for a reason, Jack. I think we can be of assistance to each other. Partners. After all, a new Magus needs instruction, does he not?’
He began walking towards the workshop.
‘Wait!’ Jack’s heart thumped. Charlie was still in there.
‘Well?’ As Jago turned on his heels, a slight breeze stirred his trench coat and a wisp of dust rose up from the blackened soil between them.
‘I, er …’
‘What is it? Spit it out.’
‘Alpha,’ said Jack. ‘Where is he?’
‘Why, here in the yard, of course. But you know that; he led you here.’
‘I need to see him.’
‘All in good time. He’ll come when I call.’
‘No. I need to see him now.’
Jago regarded him coolly, and the moment seemed to last an eternity before he said, ‘Very well, if you insist.’ With a flick of the wrist, he produced the whistle.
A vision flashed into Jack’s mind – a pit of some kind, small and suffocating. It was followed immediately by an insane high-pitched buzzing. The whistle sounded like a giant mosquito locked inside his skull.
A chain rattled behind him and he spun round.
‘Alpha!’
The wolf stood barely a yard away, tethered to the corner of the crusher. He’d been hiding beneath the machine all along. His great head drooped with exhaustion and long skeins of saliva hung from his jowls. He tried to move forwards, but the chain was already at full stretch and jerked him back.
Jack was at his side in an instant. ‘Easy, boy, it’s okay. I’m here.’ I made it, thanks to you, he added silently.
As he touched the ruff of fur on Alpha’s neck, the amber eyes closed and before Jack knew what he was doing his arm had stolen over Alpha’s shoulder. To his surprise, the full weight of the wolf’s body fell against him. Something was very wrong. His coat felt sticky as if covered in oil. Jack caught sight of his own fingers. They were red with blood.
‘What have you done to him?’ he cried. A deep cut extended several inches across the base of Alpha’s neck, and where the chain bit into it, the open wound oozed blood.
‘Alpha must know his place,’ said Jago. ‘I called him last night and he didn’t come.’
‘So you beat him!’
‘I will not be ignored, Jack. It was a lesson – three lashes of the strap, no more. Now move away. He isn’t a pet.’
As if to prove his point, Jago blew into the whistle again and Alpha cringed down on his belly, whining.
Jack’s eardrums buzzed painfully. This has gone far enough, he told the wolf. You did your best. He’s not going to change. I won’t let him hurt you any more.
The mark on his forefinger stung like never before. Without pausing to think, he reached out his hand and a white light flashed in front of him. The whistle flew from Jago’s grasp and he staggered backwards.
‘What the hell are you playing at?’
‘Let him go! You don’t own him. He wasn’t made for this and you know it!’
Alpha was on his feet once more, every muscle in his body quivering, his ears pricked towards the workshop door. Adrenalin pumping, Jack held his breath.
Right on cue, Charlie emerged.
‘Run!’ he yelled. ‘Charlie, get out of here!’
But Charlie didn’t appear to hear him. Either that or she had plans of her own, because she was hurrying between the mountains of cars towards them, her face alight with excitement.
‘How the devil –’ spluttered Jago. ‘Pah! Is this the best you can do, Jack? A slip of a girl …’
‘One true friend is all it takes,’ said Charlie. Jack saw the hint of a wink in her eye. ‘Tut, tut. Bin drinking, have we? Looks like world war three back there. What’s wrong? Run out of tricks? Guess you won’t be needing this, then.’
With a cheeky grin, Charlie produced the mirror from the back pocket of her jeans.
‘Why, you little –’ Jago’s rage exploded and he stormed towards her.
Charlie reacted quickly, dodging first one way, then the other. She managed to wrong-foot him and in the split second it took him to recover, she threw the mirror low and hard.
Alpha, who had been watching her every move, flung himself against the chain, eyes flashing. A rush of wind rumbled through the yard and the mirror soared upwards, turning over and over in the light. Jack’s mouth curled upwards too. The mixture of Charlie’s audacity and Alpha’s magic had produced the perfect result, delivering the mirror neatly into his outstretched hand.
‘Thanks!’ he called.
‘No problem!’ yelled Charlie who’d clambered onto the crusher and was tugging at the door of the Beetle. ‘Watch out!’
A blast of light zipped past Jack’s cheek and boomed against the side of a van. On turning, he saw Jago thundering towards him, his hand outstretched as if he meant to pluck out his heart. He hit the ground fast, rolling to one side. There was another ear-splitting crash and glass shattered over his head.
Covered in pieces of windscreen, he scrambled up.
‘Too slow, much too slow,’ roared Jago, raising his hand to deliver another blast.
This time he struck Jack squarely on the shoulder. First one foot, then the other left the ground, then his whole body twisted in the air. He crashed down, sprawling headlong into a pile of rusting hub caps.
For a moment he lay still, all the breath knocked out of him, conscious only of a splintering pain tearing down his right arm. He gripped the mirror tight, willing himself not to pass out. Its warmth radiated through his hand and he flexed his fingers. With a roar of effort, he sat up and met Jago’s next blow with one of his own.
The collision of wills produced an explosion that knocked them both sideways. Jago slammed into an oil drum, tipping it over, and Jack landed face down in the mud. Alpha lunged and turned desperate circles as a shower of sparks rained down.
‘That’s more like it!’ Blood streamed from Jago’s nose. ‘No point in being afraid, eh? I know the worst and, believe me, death is not the worst.’ He moved quickly to the crusher. ‘The worst is having to live when you have no family … or friends.’
He clapped his hands and the door of the Beetle slammed shut. A muffled cry came from inside as Charlie clambered acros
s the front seats and yanked helplessly at the handle.
‘Now then,’ said Jago, swaying slightly. ‘Like I said before we were so rudely interrupted, there’s a reason we met. We were meant to share the mirror – and its secrets. So why don’t you bring it here, hmm?’
His fist hovered over the button on the crusher’s control panel. ‘Well? What’s it to be, Jack? You have a choice. It’s quite straightforward. We can be partners … or enemies.’
Jack stared at him in dismay. Jago’s mouth was twisted in a strange kind of smile, as if he was actually pleased with the turn of events. He obviously expected to get his way. But what terrified Jack even more was that, in some dark corner of his mind, Jago still seemed to think he was in the right.
Nan’s dice swung furiously over Charlie who hammered on the window, shouting something he couldn’t hear. Why she’d got in the car was beyond him, but he had to get her out.
Thinking fast, his eyes flicked to Alpha. The wolf kept thrashing his head from side to side, snarling and pulling at the chain for all he was worth. ‘All right,’ he said abruptly. Suddenly there was no doubt about what he had to do. ‘You win. I’ll show you how it works.’
Jago’s eyes narrowed. ‘No games now. I want the truth. Or your precious ship goes down too, you hear me? Our little caper has made me a very rich man. And Pi’s nasty hacker friends have your virus ticking like a time bomb. If I vanish, who’s to stop them?’
Jack nodded slowly. It wasn’t a drunken threat. Jago had not only set in motion events that would cause untold misery, but he was also using them to cover his own back. His revenge was like a virus itself, spreading down the years and poisoning everyone – most of all, Jago himself.
‘You want the truth?’ The heat from the mirror intensified in Jack’s hand and a wind gathered about him, making the cars rattle. ‘The truth is, I’m still learning. But I know one thing. The magic is about trust. If you want it to work, you can’t force Alpha. You have to work with him. Let me show you.’
Kneeling down, he turned the mirror towards Alpha who instantly went quiet.
It’s time, Jack told him silently.
The wolf’s eyes flashed and a white hot beam poured out of the disc, hitting the chain close to his neck. As the metal links began to soften and stretch, he threw his body forward, clawing at the ground.
‘Why you lying little –’ All the confidence drained from Jago’s face. His fist smashed down on the control panel and, like a waking monster, the crusher screeched into action. The huge jaws yawned open, black diesel fumes billowed out and a terrified Charlie scuttled to the rear of the Beetle.
‘Alpha! Quick!’ screamed Jack. In less than a minute the car, with Charlie in it, would be pulverised beyond recognition. Snarling and tearing at the earth, the wolf pulled forwards with all his might. Go on, urged Jack, you can do it!
And then everything seemed to happen at once. As the chain broke, a bang like a gunshot reverberated around the yard. The car windscreen had exploded as one hundred tons of pressure closed down on the bonnet.
While Alpha bolted free, Jack sprinted for the machine. He saw Jago raise his hand and thought he meant to prevent him, then realised it was a defensive gesture. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Alpha crouched and ready to attack, teeth bared, ears laid flat.
‘Stay!’ roared Jago, backing away.
But he may as well have commanded the earth to stop turning. Alpha gave a low growl, the wind blew stronger and the tower of cars where Pi had made his stand rocked to and fro. No whistle, no chain, no fearful allegiance could hold Alpha now. He bounded forwards.
The noise of the crusher died.
Having stopped the machine, Jack raced from the control panel and hauled himself onto the platform. And that was when the dreadful yelling began. He wished he could plug his ears, because amidst the frenzy of snapping and snarling, he could hear Jago repeatedly calling his name. ‘Jack! Jaaaack!’ There was nothing he could do, even if he’d wanted to. He had Charlie to think about and Jago’s cruelty had pushed Alpha beyond the point of no return.
A metallic groaning thundered overhead and suddenly the sky seemed larger and the wind wilder. The tower of cars had begun to topple. As Jack circled the Beetle, frantically searching for a way in, the Seer in him flew fleetingly to Alpha. Run, he told him, run! Through a film of red, he caught a last glimpse of Jago as Alpha must be seeing him. His mouth hung oddly ajar and one eye stared up like a cloudy yellow marble.
There was a violent crash and the yard became a whirlwind of dust and flying debris.
‘Charlie!’ Jack screamed. He thumped the car in desperation. Its roof was crumpled like a paper bag, leaving no space in the seats below. The only part that remained intact was the tiny boot which contained the engine.
Yet it was from there that a faint thudding came. He hurriedly flipped the handle. As the lid sprang open, he saw that the engine had gone, every last bit of it removed for spares.
‘Charlie? Are you okay?’
Curled up in a tiny space with her arms cradling what looked like Nan’s two dice, Charlie whimpered, ‘No, I’m bloody not. Help!’
Jack leant further in. To his astonishment, the black and white fur in her arms moved. ‘I don’t believe it – you nutcase!’
‘Well, someone had to save him,’ said Charlie, handing over the wriggling ball of fur. ‘Come on, let’s get out of here!’
Blinking up at them both, Odin dug his claws into Jack’s shoulder and yowled his agreement.
Chapter 39
The lift bell gave a loud ding and several bright-faced nurses jumped smartly aside as Jack and Charlie stepped onto the third floor of Dunton General Hospital, a big glass-fronted building in the town centre. Tongues clucked around them. Feet shuffled past. Then seconds later the departing lift whisked upwards, filled with girlish laughter. Heads bowed together, Jack and Charlie walked briskly on, so engrossed in conversation they hadn’t noticed a soul.
Shadows flickered on the white walls and ceiling. No sooner had the merriment faded than another sort of clamouring began. Barely audible through the thick glass windows, a flock of seagulls dipped and dived, their calls quickening with excitement …
A full week had passed since the events at the scrapyard, during which time Jack and Charlie had only managed a few hurried phone calls. ‘Typical adults,’ Charlie had grumbled. Nothing was straightforward when they got involved. Being separated, after all they’d been through, had felt like the worst kind of punishment.
Desperate to trace Nan, they’d gone straight from Slater’s to Dunton police station, only to find themselves at the centre of a missing persons hunt. Mrs Day, Charlie’s mum, had wasted no time reporting her disappearance. And after dozens of unreturned calls to Nan, she’d given Jack’s details too. When the police finally realised his description matched the boy seen with Jago Flyn, all hell had broken loose. ‘Who is this stranger?’ Mrs Day had screamed. ‘What if the children have been abducted?’
Jack and Charlie couldn’t believe the fuss. Endless interviews followed until eventually Charlie was packed off home. Jack, meanwhile, went to stay with an elderly relative who lived a short bus ride from the hospital. Nan, to his immense relief, was alive, though seriously ill with a head injury.
It was Charlie’s first visit. At the sight of another red sign directing them to intensive care, she gave a little shudder. ‘So –’ she said quickly. ‘What about Osmaston Hall? Have they finished grilling you yet?’
‘Hard to say. I really hope so.’ Jack steered her clear of an oncoming trolley. ‘They’re tearing their hair out, but I don’t see how I can help any more.’
With no leads on the stolen millions, the police had questioned him long and hard. They knew he’d gone with Jago to sell the painting and met him later on the train. And he’d told them what he could about the boat trip and Charlie’s rescue mission. But his
statement had been jumbled and when he’d tried to warn them about the hackers, they hardly wrote anything down.
He knew they suspected it was only half the story. And they were right, of course. He’d said nothing about the mirror. Or Jago’s magical past. Or their fight at Slater’s. And he hadn’t even mentioned Pi, the real thief. What was the point? Pi had gone, Jago was dead and no one would have believed a single word. Especially when they hadn’t found the body.
Big squares of sunshine slanted along the corridor, making a pattern on the floor like a giant game of hopscotch. Avoiding the lines as usual, Jack bounced across them. ‘It’s weird,’ he said, pausing on one foot. ‘It comes and goes but I keep getting this funny feeling …’
‘Like what?’
Jack moved sideways and hopped two squares forward. ‘Dunno … it’s hard to explain.’
His shoulders hunched up. It was like a dark cloud had passed out of him. Somehow the emptiness he’d associated with losing his parents had gone and in its place something else had taken over. ‘It’s like …’ He struggled to find a word big enough. ‘Electricity. Sort of.’
‘That figures.’ Charlie stretched out her arms, walking along like Frankenstein. ‘Definitely a loose wire.’ She watched the black gym shoes make another manoeuvre. ‘People don’t run on electricity, donut. It’s hope. You’re getting on with life.’
‘Yeah, I guess. Except –’
The sunny squares on the floor flickered and danced.
Without warning, the sensation Jack had been trying to describe grew ten times stronger and he looked up. Above him, three seagulls fussed and squabbled at the windows, clipping the glass with their wings.
As he turned, they fell silent. Six beady eyes drew level with his, staring at him with such intensity that when the wind finally carried them off he was left with the strangest impression: it was like they wanted something.
‘You okay?’ Charlie gave him a nudge.
‘Uh-huh.’ Jack gazed after the birds, which had disappeared over the hospital roof.
