Death & Co.

by D. J. McCune

  Darian was glaring at them, no doubt convinced that they were still mocking him. Auntie Jo sighed. ‘I suppose I better offer an olive branch there …’ she muttered. She pasted a (slightly scary) smile onto her face and cleared her throat. ‘So, Darian, you must be very proud to have joined the Concilium. I heard you were the youngest ever Curator.’

  Darian narrowed his eyes, torn between his loathing of her and pride at his appointment. At last he gave a grudging nod. ‘I am honoured to serve.’

  Nathanial nodded. ‘You obviously have many talents,’ he said quietly but sincerely. ‘We wish you well.’ Darian bowed his head but didn’t make any attempt to hide the sneer on his handsome features.

  Heinrich was watching his latest Curator as he spoke. A flash of disappointment crossed his face. ‘Darian is young but he has a particular gift. He is a Seer.’

  There was a murmur around the table. Adam froze, feeling something icy grip his heart. He forced himself to take a deep breath. It didn’t mean anything. It was just a coincidence. The Concilium came to visit every year …

  Only Chloe looked confused. Heinrich smiled at her and explained, ‘As you may know a Seer is a Luman who can feel a death before it actually occurs. It is a rather rare gift. It allows a Luman to guide the soul with the greatest possible speed after death.’

  Chloe nodded and looked at Adam. ‘You used to be able to do that, didn’t you?’

  The icy grip tightened. Every eye in the room had suddenly turned towards him. He cleared his throat and tried to sound casual. ‘Yeah, but only when I was a little kid.’

  ‘We thought he had an illness,’ Nathanial said suddenly. ‘Then we realised what it was and we got quite excited for a while.’ He tried to smile but he couldn’t quite hide his disappointment.

  Elise was more forthcoming. ‘Such a shame he lost his gift! Adam does not have the natural ability of our other sons. It might have helped him.’ She gave an expressive shrug.

  Adam chewed doggedly through a mouthful of potato and tried to swallow his anger along with the food. His cheeks were burning. When he risked looking up Heinrich was still watching him. His face was kind. ‘It is a gift – but a burdensome one. You should rejoice that the Fates chose to remove it from you.’

  Nathanial nodded at Darian. ‘A burden indeed. Perhaps you have grown accustomed to it.’

  Darian’s lip curled. ‘I have never found it burdensome. It is an honour to be able to serve the Concilium, particularly where there has been wrongdoing.’ He smiled at Nathanial but it wasn’t a friendly smile. There was something malicious about it.

  Heinrich shifted in his chair, looking uncomfortable. ‘This is not a suitable conversation for the table. I do not wish to insult our hostess by giving less than my full attention to this delicious meal.’ He smiled at Elise.

  Elise smiled automatically but her eyes were like daggers when she turned to Darian. ‘What can you mean, “wrongdoing”?’

  Darian’s eyes darted from hers to Nathanial and back again. ‘I mean that there are Lumen who walk amongst us who choose to break our laws. It is my privilege to bring these people before the Curators for judgement.’

  Nathanial frowned. ‘They must be few and far between. I know that we are rarely troubled by rogue Lumen.’

  Darian sneered. ‘And yet you have such a Luman walking within your Kingdom as we speak!’

  Nathanial’s eyes narrowed. ‘There is no “rogue” within our ranks.’

  Darian smiled and his eyes glittered with triumph. ‘Then perhaps, High Luman, you can explain why someone is interfering with the Fates and saving human lives? And how we might find this Luman and give him his penalty – death!’

  Chapter 12

  Adam choked and spat a mouthful of spinach onto the pristine tablecloth. His eyes streamed tears and he managed to gasp, ‘Sorry … Wrong hole!’ between Auntie Jo’s vigorous thumps on his back. He couldn’t have looked more guilty if he had tried.

  Luckily the action at the other end of the table was keeping people occupied. There was uproar. Luc and Aron were sitting with their mouths hanging open. Nathanial was on his feet, face grim, while Elise – Elise, the perfect hostess! – was actually shouting at Darian in French! Adam blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating. The elderly Luman beside Luc was glaring at Darian through his bottle-thick glasses. ‘It is for the Chief Curator to raise these matters! Not you – and not here!’

  ‘Enough.’ Heinrich’s voice was quiet but there was something about him, a kind of force that brought everything to a standstill. ‘Darian, you have insulted your hosts. I must demand an apology.’

  Darian turned towards him, some of the satisfaction wiped off his face. ‘Apologise? I have done nothing wro—’

  ‘You will apologise to your hosts.’ There was a steely ring beneath Heinrich’s mild voice.

  Darian’s throat worked. For a moment he looked like he was swallowing glass. At last he composed himself and spoke in a dull tone, completely at odds with his glittering eyes. ‘The Chief Curator is of course in the right. If I have caused offence I can only apologise, especially to our hostess.’ He bowed his head at Elise. ‘These were not matters for the table.’ He looked up and Adam saw with surprise that there was something pleading in the way he looked at Elise. Darian seemed to shrink a little when she turned away, face frozen.

  Auntie Jo stood up. ‘I think we all need some pudding, don’t you?’ The women cleared the table and conversation slowly resumed but Adam’s head was spinning. He couldn’t think straight. Death penalty? Had he heard that right? He knew interfering with the Fates was forbidden but all he had wanted to do was save some lives. Now he was in danger of losing his own.

  Luc was watching him. He nudged Adam in the ribs and spoke softly. ‘Are you all right?’

  Adam nodded but couldn’t speak.

  Luc’s eyes narrowed and his face grew wary. He was obviously trying to sound casual but struggling. ‘You didn’t actually … do anything, did you? Anything stupid?’

  ‘Of course not!’ Adam snapped. ‘What do you think I did? I can hardly sort out dead people, never mind the ones who are still alive!’

  ‘Hmmm.’ Luc made a noncommittal sound. He seemed sceptical. Only Adam’s incompetence was saving him from suspicion. ‘No, I suppose not.’ He began talking to Aron but kept sneaking occasional glances in Adam’s direction.

  Adam managed to shovel a spoonful of pudding down his throat and passed the rest to Auntie Jo, who was eyeing it like a starving wolf. She ate it in a single gulp and sighed. ‘God, your mother drives me mad but she knows how to cook, I’ll give her that! Now if she could just quadruple her portion sizes …’

  Adam tried to smile but he felt sick. The minutes passed a heartbeat at a time until finally the table was cleared. The men would go upstairs to the drawing room for coffee and brandy while the women started tidying up. Adam could finally leave the table, find a dark corner and try to breathe again.

  He muttered an excuse and fled along the hall, slipping through the kitchen door and out into the garden. It was a bitterly cold night, the ground hard and frosty underfoot, air sharp and painful inside his nose. He watched his breath plume and thought fleetingly about the homeless man the night before.

  Adam kept walking until he reached the dog pen. Morty and Sam stood up and stretched as he approached, wagging their tails in greeting. He slipped in beside them and hugged them hard. They licked his cheeks and he felt the coldness on his skin once they moved away. The same coldness was creeping inside him – but this was different. This was fear.

  He tried to think straight. OK, he knew Lumen weren’t allowed to interfere with the Fates and he knew that any Luman who did so would be punished. The Fates weren’t exactly famous for their soft hearts. He just hadn’t expected the punishment to be the death penalty! He could kind of see the justice – a life for a life. By saving the car driver and the homeless guy Adam had robbed the Fates of two lives. It was lucky they could only kill him once.
>
  There was only one place where he could get answers. Part of him knew it was crazy even thinking about it while the Concilium were still there – but he was going to lose his mind if he had to make small talk with his future executioners. Plus he hated brandy. Only one book could tell him what tortures awaited him.

  Adam avoided the kitchen, knowing that his mother and Auntie Jo would probably be washing up. Slipping round the side of the house was a pain but he was able to sneak into the hall undetected. He pressed his ear to the study door but couldn’t hear a sound. Inching inside he was relieved to find the lamp already switched on.

  He had the room to himself. Adam scurried straight to the end of the bookcase and grabbed The Book of the Unknown Roads. A deep breath settled his stomach a little. Sometimes the book seemed almost alive and it didn’t respond well to nerves. He touched his keystone to the cover and closed his eyes, letting the leather covers rest in his palms, filling his mind with what he wanted to know. All he could do was hope that one of his ancestors had written about what happened to rogue Lumen.

  It soon became clear that he was going to be disappointed. The book did open at a recent page but the reference was too brief to be helpful. It simply said that the Concilium had the power of life and death over any Luman who broke the law. There was nothing concrete, just dark hints that it wouldn’t be pleasant.

  Adam tried again to focus his thoughts but again when the pages flickered he found only a short mention. Maybe his noble ancestors hadn’t been tempted to break any laws – and so had no interest in the consequences for those who did. Maybe Auntie Jo and he were the only black sheep in the family after all …

  He glanced at the door, torn between frustration and fear of getting caught. He could try flicking through the book but the pages weren’t always the same. There were thousands of years’ worth of wisdom crammed into a few hundred pages, information appearing and disappearing depending on the skill and need of the Luman reading it. He’d been lucky last time that the book responded to his Mortson blood and keystone – but the book could be capricious. Maybe it knew he wasn’t supposed to be reading it …

  There was a sudden clatter of footsteps on the stairs above and to Adam’s horror he heard Nathanial’s voice in the hall, calling to his mother in the kitchen. ‘Elise, I just need to have a quick word with Heinrich. We won’t be a moment.’

  For one awful second Adam thought he might actually be sick. He was about to get caught reading a book he wasn’t supposed to touch in a room he was banned from entering. Worse, he was going to get caught by a High Luman and Chief Curator. They would want to know what could have driven him to such extraordinary lengths and just maybe they would figure it out …

  He scrambled to his feet so quickly that his head swam but he managed to shove the book roughly back into the bookcase. ‘Sorry,’ he whispered, then felt faintly ridiculous. His eyes darted around the room, panic-stricken. He could slump on a chair and pretend he felt sick but Nathanial would be livid – and suspicious. They all knew not to come into the study without Nathanial’s express permission – which was going to make him even more furious when he caught Adam.

  At the last second Adam’s brain came out of its paralysis and made itself useful. On the back wall of the study there were two tall cupboards, built in with louvred doors. One of them was shelved and used as storage for extra books but the other was empty, apart from a few old overcoats and ceremonial capes. There wasn’t even time to think before Adam found himself scrambling inside – just as the study door swung open. He pulled the cupboard door closed behind him and held his breath.

  Heinrich entered first with Nathanial close on his heels. Through the slatted door Adam could just see that the Chief Curator was frowning. Nathanial closed the study door, not quite slamming it but sounding like he would quite like to. He rounded on Heinrich almost immediately. ‘Did you come here to ambush me?’ His face was pale and set.

  Heinrich put a gentle hand on his arm. ‘You know me better than that.’

  The affection in his voice took the fight out of Nathanial and he slumped into his chair, rubbing a weary hand across his eyes. ‘How did Darian end up on the Concilium? You must see that the man hates me!’

  Heinrich shifted uncomfortably. ‘He has talent but I fear … I fear we have made a mistake.’ He sighed. ‘I had hoped that time might have healed Darian’s wounds but perhaps I was too optimistic.’

  ‘But surely he cannot still hold a grudge after all these years?’ Nathanial sounded incredulous.

  Heinrich shrugged. ‘He believed that Elise was intended for him.’ Adam could see his father’s face change and Heinrich saw it too. ‘Do not blame yourself. Elise made her choice and she chose well.’

  Nathanial smiled faintly. ‘I still don’t know what she sees in me.’

  Heinrich snorted. ‘It is not our place to see inside a woman’s mind. There are mysteries which even we Lumen cannot illuminate!’

  Nathanial sighed. ‘Are Darian’s accusations even true? I know he’s a Seer but …’ He tailed off.

  ‘We don’t know. I simply hoped to mention our concerns so you could carry out your own investigation.’ Heinrich paused, picking his words carefully. ‘It is of course a serious allegation. It was not Darian’s place to raise the matter – but it would be remiss of me not to make you aware of it.’

  Nathanial looked bewildered. ‘But I cannot think of a single Luman who would be foolhardy enough to interfere with the Fates! We all took the oath! We all know the consequences of breaking the law!’

  ‘There was a report this week, from Africa. That Adam had been overheard arguing with you about …’ Heinrich paused and chose his words delicately. ‘About intervening in events.’

  Nathanial’s mouth dropped. ‘You aren’t suggesting that Adam had something to do with this?’ Behind the louvred door Adam stopped breathing. His heart was beating so loudly he couldn’t believe the men hadn’t rushed over and dragged him out.

  ‘Of course not,’ said Heinrich, finally showing a hint of impatience. In the cupboard Adam almost choked with relief. ‘He hasn’t even come of age yet – and frankly, he doesn’t seem to have inherited the Mortson talent for our work, if you will forgive me for saying so.’ He sighed. ‘None of us are saints, Nathanial. You were one of the youngest men ever to be made High Luman. People look at your position, your wife, your home with envy. Adam should have known better than to say what he said. People choose to take it as a sign that you are not keeping order in your own household. How then can you keep order in your Kingdom?’ He held up his hand as Nathanial started to protest. ‘My friend, I am only telling you what will be said. What has already been said.’

  Adam felt a great spear of guilt slip in between his ribs. His angry words were still fresh in his mind. He remembered the shock on Nathanial’s face and the contempt on Aron’s when he told them they had to do something to save the refugees. And now, too late, he remembered the Lumen approaching Nathanial to greet him – and how they had hurried away, embarrassed, when they had heard what Adam had said. He almost groaned.

  ‘I see,’ Nathanial said softly. He looked crushed but he stood up and bowed his head. ‘I will of course investigate. The Concilium will always have my full support.’

  Heinrich smiled and looked relieved. ‘Thank you. I know I can count on you.’ His smile wavered. ‘I’m getting old, Nathanial. Perhaps my judgement has erred but the other Curators voted for Darian. I did not wish to overrule them, especially when …’ He tailed off and took a deep breath. ‘My remaining time on the Concilium is short. My time here is short.’

  In the cupboard, Adam froze. Had he heard Heinrich correctly? Obviously he had, judging by the look of anguish on Nathanial’s face. ‘No!’

  Heinrich gave him an ironic smile. ‘My friend, you can safely assume that I know the signs.’ His smile faded and his jaw set. ‘So now you must do two things for me. Firstly, when my Light appears I want you to be the one to guide me and to receive my
Keystone.’

  Nathanial looked like a man standing in the middle of an earthquake or quicksand – as if the world he thought he knew was shifting beneath him far too fast. ‘This is too much to take in.’ He struggled to compose himself. ‘I will of course be honoured to guide you.’

  Adam’s eyes were wide in the darkness. He wasn’t supposed to be here and he definitely wasn’t supposed to know that Heinrich was dying. It made him feel weird and queasy. How odd would it be to know you were going to die? Lumen didn’t tend to get sick – they just kind of … stopped, like their battery had run out. No one knew for sure why but most Lumen thought it was something to do with the keystones and the protection they gave their owners.

  Guiding a Luman was a great honour, especially when they were important like Heinrich. Most of the wisdom in The Book of the Unknown Roads had been passed from one Luman to another as the deceased passed through his Light and returned briefly to hand over a freshly ‘charged’ Keystone. Why hadn’t Heinrich chosen one of his own family to do the job? A Keystone like that was worth a fortune; Adam’s own keystone was just a fragment of a Mortson stone, a literal chip off the block.

  Heinrich smiled. ‘And secondly, when I am gone I want you to take my place on the Concilium.’

  Nathanial stared at him. ‘You know I can’t do that.’

  Heinrich nodded. ‘And it is your very reluctance to join the Concilium that makes me think you must. Some Lumen wish to become Curators because they believe it will bring them power and status. If you join I know it will be because you wish to serve. I cannot think of any better reason. My Keystone will act as a bond of my wishes.’

  Nathanial shook his head. ‘Don’t ask me to do this, Heinrich. I have a family. They need me too.’

  ‘You have a chance to make our world a better place for your family. For everyone!’ The old man sounded excited. ‘It is time for change in our world, Nathanial. Before I go I want to bring a great storm! But when I am no longer here I need someone to continue my work.’ He saw the question on Nathanial’s face and laughed. ‘No, don’t ask me anything. I will not tell you. My plans are still brewing. But soon you will see the fruits of my labour and perhaps then you will want to keep my dream alive.’