‘Are you serious?’ Olivia choked out a laugh. ‘You want to jump on the bed of one of the most famous and well-loved monarchs in British history? Why?’
‘Just for the hell of it,’ she shrugged. ‘When you’ve lived as long as I have, you take your amusements where you can find them. What do you say?’
‘I don’t know,’ Olivia eyed the huge, big bouncy looking bed. ‘That’s the Queen’s bed. Isn’t it illegal or sacrilegious or… something?’
‘Who’s going to know?’
‘It’s really juvenile,’ Olivia murmured as she stared at the soft looking bed.
‘Go on,’ Scarlett nudged her, ‘you know you want to…’
It was tempting, and stupid… and really, really childish, but as ludicrous as the idea was Olivia found herself wanting to do it. Just for one brief, irrational moment she wanted to forget about everything, being trapped in the past, being away from her husband and children, being the Guardian of the Hell dimensions. Sometimes it was all too much, and she just wanted to do something really dumb, and as dumb things went, this was the one least likely to land her in trouble.
‘Hmmmm…kay…’ she decided impulsively as she sniggered and placed the Hourglass down on a small, dark, wood colored nightstand. Gathering up her skirts she clambered onto the bed, with Scarlett beside her.
The mattress was even softer than she thought, giving way under her feet at she tried to avoid tripping on her skirts. Unable to help the laugh that escaped she gave an experimental jump. Scarlett laughed right along with her. The tension which had been so tightly etched into her features since the moment Olivia first met her, smoothed out for a brief moment as they both bounced and laughed until Olivia lost her balance and tumbled into Scarlett, sending them both crashing to the bed in helpless giggles.
‘If they could see us now,’ Olivia snorted, ‘a witch and an angel jumping on the bed like a pair of six-year-olds at a sleepover. Sounds like the opening line of a really bad joke.’
‘Sometimes you just need to lighten the mood,’ Scarlett lay beside Olivia as they both stared up at the ornate canopy. ‘I don’t know about you but I’m sick of everything right now. I feel like I’m being crushed under this great heavy weight and none of it is down to me. Everyone wants me dead…’
‘I don’t want you dead,’ Olivia murmured.
‘Thanks,’ Scarlett glanced at her in mock seriousness, ‘appreciate it.’
‘No problem,’ she grinned, ‘anyway you were saying, great weight, everyone wants you dead…’
‘It’s unfair,’ Scarlett sighed. ‘No one ever cared what I wanted or how I felt. If they’d just leave me alone, I’d be quite happy living as a hermit somewhere, staying out of everyone’s way, but instead…’
‘I know,’ Olivia agreed, ‘believe me I get it. I never asked for this either and now I’m the Guardian of the Hell dimensions…. Hey, wait a minute. If I’m in charge of all the Hell dimensions… doesn’t that make me like, the Queen of Hell?’
Scarlett let out a loud snort of laughter.
Suddenly they heard voices in the hallway, and both sat bolt upright.
‘Time to go,’ Olivia grabbed for the Hourglass as she jumped off the bed and fell on the floor with a heavy thud.
Scarlett slid down and tripped over Olivia’s skirt as she was trying to stand, sending her banging into the nightstand and they both started laughing again in a kind of hushed whisper, trying to be quiet and in no way succeeding.
Scarlett grabbed Olivia’s hand and yanked her to her feet. They both turned and looked as the door handle began to rattle. Olivia reached out and grabbed Scarlett’s arm and there was a sudden and intense swirl of violet smoke.
They stumbled slightly and looked up, finding themselves once again standing on the icy ground outside the heavy iron railings, looking into the palace courtyard.
Olivia and Scarlett turned to look at each other and started laughing all over again. That is until they heard a very loud, distinct throat clearing and the unmistakable metallic click of a gun trigger being cocked.
The laugher died on their lips as they stared at each other for a moment before slowly turning their heads to look behind them.
There were at least five or six huge men surrounding them, guns aimed directly at them and right there in the middle was Elias with a gun barrel pressed to his cheek.
A tall, elegant looking gentleman in a bowler hat stood behind Elias, his arms wrapped around him to prevent him from moving. In one hand he held a Webley revolver and in the other a shiny black cane with a silver pommel which was pressed to Elias’s chest.
Olivia and Scarlett turned and raised their hands.
‘I told you it never goes smoothly,’ Olivia whispered to Scarlett.
‘Mrs Beckett, I presume?’ the man in the bowler hat spoke.
‘And you are?’ Olivia raised a brow as she took in the situation.
‘Does it matter?’ he replied smoothly.
‘Just thought I’d ask your name before I turn you into a toad,’ she said with narrowed eyes.
‘Can you actually do that?’ Scarlett whispered out the side of her mouth.
Olivia shrugged.
‘Bower,’ the man replied in amusement, ‘Abraham Bower and I’ll be taking that off your hands,’ he inclined his head toward the Hourglass which Olivia was still holding in her hand.
‘No,’ Olivia scowled, ‘this is mine, get your own.’
‘Olivia,’ Scarlett hissed as her gaze locked on Bower’s wrist, which was exposed as he held the gun to Elias’s head.
Olivia’s eyes followed Scarlett’s line of vision until they landed on a very familiar symbol burned into his flesh.
‘Are you fucking kidding me?’ she hissed angrily, ‘Veritas? You’re fucking Veritas?’
Scarlett raised her brows slightly at Olivia’s outburst.
‘You’re like cockroaches, lift a rock and twenty of you scurry out from underneath,’ Olivia growled in disgust.
‘You’ve heard of us then?’ Mr Bower replied with interest.
‘You can wipe that smug look off your face,’ Olivia glared at him. ‘You have no idea who you’re dealing with.’
‘And who is that exactly?’ he lifted one brow condescendingly.
‘I’m your worst nightmare on a good day,’ she replied, ‘but it just so happens I’m really, really pissed at your organization right now, and unfortunately for you, you get to pay the price.’
‘Really?’ his mouth curved slowly as he glanced at the assembled men and his grip on Elias tightened, ‘because from where I’m standing, I hold all the cards.’
‘You could be holding your dick for all I care, and it wouldn’t make a difference.’
‘Americans,’ he turned his nose up in distaste, ‘so uncouth.’
‘Uh, Olivia,’ Scarlett murmured still holding her hands in the air, ‘we are in the middle of a hostage situation here.’
‘I’m afraid your friend is quite correct,’ Mr Bower replied as his dark gaze locked on Olivia. ‘This is a hostage situation as you so eloquently put it. I will be taking possession of De Pereda’s Hourglass and you madam, and your charming companion,’ his eyes flickered to Scarlett, ‘will be accompanying us. The head of our organization will be very interested to make your acquaintance.’
‘Faraday?’ Olivia scoffed dismissively. ‘He and I have nothing to say to each other.’
Mr Bower’s eyes widened slightly as if he were surprised that she seemed to know to whom he was referring. After all, only the most highly placed operatives within the Veritas knew of Mr Faraday.
‘Look, Mr Bower is it?’ her eyes narrowed as she fought back the wild whip of her temper. She could feel Manny on her shoulder, woken by her anger and frustration. Even though they couldn’t see him, she could feel him digging his claws into her skin, tense and restless, her mood feeding his. She’d have loved nothing better than releasing him and letting him burn their asses as they made a terrified run for it, but the f
act was, she couldn’t expose Manny to the Veritas at this point in time, not without significant repercussions.
Bower stared at Olivia as she fought to get her temper under control. Yes, the Veritas killed Mac. Yes, they also kidnapped her husband, but she couldn’t afford to alter the timeline any more than she already had, despite wanting to rip the smug man’s arms off and shove them down his throat.
‘I’m going to give you one chance and one only,’ her gaze dropped to Elias and then back to Bower, ‘to walk away.’
‘Or what?’
‘Things are going to get messy,’ her whiskey colored eyes blazed gold, and her fists clenched as her power pooled in her palms, tiny flickers of flame licking up her forearms.
Mr Bower stared at her hungrily, watching the fire she conjured without a single ritual or incantation. If he could bring such a woman, such a prize, to Faraday his ascension within the ranks of the Veritas was assured.
‘Don’t,’ she warned, her voice deepening with a strange echo, her dark hair glowing in the pale lamplight.
It was almost impossible to look away from her, like a moth to a flame. She was a creature of fire and ash; he could feel the power emanating from her, and he wanted it.
He licked his lips slowly.
‘Take them,’ he growled to his men.
One of them stepped forward holding a coiled length of rope, braided tightly with vines of a strange tiny little white flower.
‘Witch rope?’ Olivia laughed coldly. ‘If you come any closer, you’re going to be wearing it like a necktie.’
The man hesitated and glanced at Bower, who bared his teeth and hissed for him to take the woman.
Olivia’s skin began to glow, her fist tightening involuntarily around the Hourglass. She could feel the power flooding her body, the heady whip of power that could only come from wielding ancient magic. She glanced at the witch rope in the man’s hand as he approached and as she held up her hand the rope burst into flames and the man was flung several feet back, to land against the metal railing with a loud clang.
‘TAKE HER!’ Bower screeched.
‘NO!’ Elias used Bower’s momentary distraction to knock the gun away from his face. Lifting his elbow high he rammed it into Bower’s jaw, leaving him to stumble back a few paces.
He dived toward Olivia as Bower raised his gun and aimed. A loud shot rang out in the night air. Elias shoved Olivia out of the way and as he turned, he was knocked back and a slow dark stain began to spread across his waistcoat. He pressed his fingers to his chest and stared at the blood seeping between them.
‘NO!’ Olivia shouted, but as she reached for him the strangest thing happened.
Everything froze, Bower stood immobilized, his hand raised, the gun pointing at Elias. Elias was tilted at a strange angle, hanging in the air in the very act of toppling backward to the ground. Scarlett had turned and stood frozen as she watched the bullet hit Elias.
Olivia shifted, seemingly the only one aware of this strange moment. Everything seemed strangely out of focus and washed in a warm red and gold hue, like she was looking through a tinted lens.
The Hourglass in her hand grew warm and as she lifted it, her brow creased in confusion. She had not turned it, she’d not revealed the secret dials nor activated it in any way and yet before her confused eyes the sand in the bottom bulb of glass began to slowly flow upward in a thin whirling stream, defying gravity and as it did, the scene in front of her began to reverse in slow motion.
Elias ceased falling backward, instead straightening into a standing position. The bullet exited his chest and began to inch its way back through the air, backtracking along its original trajectory. The blood stain on Elias’s waistcoat receded and disappeared.
Suddenly everything burst back into life, the bizarre red and gold film across her eyes vanished and the cold air once again rushed against her face.
This time when the shot rang out and Elias shoved her out of the way, she grabbed hold of his arm and dragged him with her. The bullet grazed his arm instead of embedding itself in his chest and they tumbled to the ground. Olivia lost her grip on the Hourglass and it skidded across the icy ground as Bower’s men surged forward.
Olivia looked up in alarm but as she did, she saw a tiny but familiar figure step protectively in front of them.
Eve, the silent girl from the Drunken Duck; what the hell was she doing there? No longer wearing her tatty old headscarf, Eve’s hair fell almost to her buttocks in wild, white blonde ropes, her blue eyes glowing as she leaned forward and when she opened her mouth the sound that came out was like nothing Olivia had ever heard before.
It was a scream and a screech, strangely birdlike and yet human. The ground trembled and heaved as if caught in the throes of a violent earthquake. The air shimmered and rippled with a visible shockwave, vibrating so violently it threw Bower and his men to the ground.
Drawing in a breath Eve screamed again and the men writhed on the ground, their hands covering their ears as if the sound caused them intense pain and when they glared up at Eve all the tiny blood vessels in their eyes had burst, making them appear red.
Bower crawled through the wet, half melted snow, blood seeping from his ears, his eyes wild as he reached for the Hourglass. Wrapping his hand around it, he rapped his cane against the ground and disappeared.
‘NOOOO!’ Olivia reached for him, but it was too late he was gone, and the Hourglass with him.
‘OLIVIA!’ Scarlett cried out urgently, ‘GET US OUT OF HERE!’
Olivia’s eyes snapped to Scarlett and found her holding onto Eve protectively, her eyes wide and glassy with shock as one of Bower’s men was crawling across the ground reaching for his gun.
Olivia grabbed onto Elias’s hand and lunged for Scarlett who was holding onto Eve tightly and as a second gunshot rang through the air, they swirled in a cloud of violet smoke and disappeared.
It took Olivia a moment. She blinked against the bright light as her vision swam back into focus. It was then she became aware of the straw beneath her feet, and the scent of sawdust and peanuts. From somewhere behind her she could’ve sworn she heard the unmistakable trumpet of an elephant, but she couldn’t turn and look. Instead she found herself staring at the rows and rows of finely dressed spectators staring at her with wide eyes and open mouths.
It took a second longer to realize they were standing in the middle of the main tent of Madam Pearl’s circus. There was a man to her left, with neatly parted and oiled hair, and rouged cheeks. He wore an elegant back suit and white gloves, and in one hand he held a shiny top hat and in the other, by the scruff of its furry neck, a tiny white rabbit. He stared at Olivia and the others, his jaw hanging. The struggling rabbit slipped from his lax fingers and dropped to the ground. Sensing freedom it scampered across the wide performance circle they were currently standing in and burrowed under the wooden stands.
Olivia returned her attention to the people watching them in utter astonishment. There was complete silence.
Swallowing hard, Olivia gave a little hop and spread her arms wide.
‘TA-DAH!’ she gave an awkward smile.
They could’ve heard a pin drop.
Just when she thought they were completely screwed a slow clap began somewhere in the back stands. One by one it was taken up by the other audience members until they were stamping their feet, whistling loudly amidst the wild clapping.
Scarlett managed a slight curtsey and a small wave, before turning and hustling Eve toward the nearest exit. Olivia turned quickly to follow, as Elias covered their retreat with a wild flourish of his hat and an elaborate bow to thunderous applause.
15
‘Are you bloody mad?’ Pearl threw the heavy curtain aside and stormed into the tent her dark eyes blazing furiously, her pure white hair as wild as a banshee. ‘What the hell was you thinkin’?’
‘I’m so sorry Pearl,’ Scarlett apologized, ‘we didn’t intend…’
‘You used witch smoke in front of a crowd of
at least a hundred people. Do you ‘ave any idea what kind of damage control this means?’
‘Pearl,’ Olivia interjected, drawing her furious gaze away from Scarlett, ‘it was my fault… I…’
‘Of course it was your fuckin’ fault,’ she growled.
‘Now hold on a minute,’ Elias stepped in front of Olivia to protect her from the wild woman’s wrath.
Pearl’s eyes narrowed as they landed on Elias and she leaned in close, sniffing him suspiciously.
‘Another witch?’ she growled. ‘First I can’t lay my hands on one to save my soul, now I’m up to me ears in ‘em.’
‘I’m not…’
‘Course you are,’ she snapped, ‘and I’ll tell you another thing… I…’ she suddenly stopped dead in the middle of her sentence. Her back stiffened and her eyes widened as she slowly and painstakingly turned to stare directly at Eve. ‘Well, I’ll be damned,’ she whispered. ‘Ain’t supposed to be any of your kind left,’ she stepped toward Eve carefully so as to not startle her. ‘Yet ‘ere you are…’ she murmured in awe, ‘impossible girl.’
‘What the hell?’ Olivia muttered.
‘Pearl’s gift,’ Scarlett replied, ‘she’s a soul reader. She can instinctively tell what people are deep down in their souls. Cruel, kind, loving, evil, gifted and even more than that, she can tell exactly what their gifts are, even if they don’t know it themselves. How do you think she found so many magically gifted people and brought them together, here in her circus?’
‘Everyone in this circus is of magical descent?’ Elias suddenly realized, as he turned to Pearl. ‘And you exploit them for profit?’ he growled in disgust.
‘I give them protection,’ she snapped at Elias, her dark eyes fathomless. ‘I gave them a home… I gave them each other and taught them how to survive in a world that would see them burn if they knew the truth. So, don’t you dare stand in judgement of me… Logan Beckett…’
He flinched at the use of his birth name, not questioning how she knew it despite having never met him before.
‘That’s right,’ she continued, her voice low, ‘I see your soul. I see every scar and stain, and you, Witchfinder… are in no position to cast stones. No matter how far you think you’ve come, you still ‘ave further to go than you think. Redemption… don’t come cheap.’
Necropolis Page 19
