As I made my way up the spiral stairs, and along the balconies, I surveyed the cave-like rooms in the walls. Each was lit with either burning candles or chandeliers and each seemed to serve its own purpose. Some were for winding down with pillow-loaded sofas, some were for group get-togethers with tavern-style tables, others – I discovered after some investigation – were behind invisible sound-barrier curtains, and on the other side… a completely different theme and style of music. Ascension catered for all generations. The rockabilly room was like a time warp – and totally amazing.
Taking all of this in, I was halfway up the tower, just beyond the casino rooms, when I started to feel him. If I hadn’t indulged in so many of the mint-delicious, alcohol-fuelled drinks Zoe and Spence had kept handing me, I would have felt him sooner.
What’s he doing here?
I tapped a masked Grigori on the shoulder. She turned away from her conversation to look at me. She was wearing a tasselled red dress and had come out of the high-rollers room – one thing older Grigori were not short of was money.
‘Sorry, but do you know what’s up in the top rooms?’ I asked.
She winked. ‘Private parties, if you know what I mean, hon.’
I swallowed the lump in my throat. ‘Got it.’ I nodded, my smile fading. ‘Thanks.’ I moved back a few steps, or maybe stumbled, leaning over the railing and looking down at the dance floor.
Think.
If I knew Lincoln was here, it was only a matter of time before he felt me too.
Breathe. Think.
Maybe he was just hanging out with people from the Academy. Maybe they’d been hunting.
But why the private rooms?
The woman had made it clear the rooms were used for the kind of thing that would only break my heart to see. Not to mention my soul.
I had no claim on him.
Damn. I feel sick.
Lincoln had said himself; things with us hadn’t exactly helped him in the action department. What had I really expected? That he’d just wait forever? At best, if I charged up there, I was going to look like some kind of crazy stalker.
The room started to spin. I needed to make a decision. Up or down?
Down, down, down!
I started walking faster, even as I felt the spike in Lincoln’s power. He knew I was near and now he was moving, too.
Move, move!
I made it back to the dance floor and pushed through the people to find Spence and Zoe towards the back. Morgan and Max were nowhere in sight. I pulled Spence close.
‘Can you put us under a glamour?’ I asked, looking around frantically. ‘Lincoln’s here and we’re about to be busted.’
He was getting close. I could feel his agitation.
Spence shook his head, looking around too. ‘No. It’s against the rules. And this is not a place where it is good to break the rules.’
‘I think I see him,’ Zoe said. ‘Or at least, someone his size who’s almost at the bottom of the stairs and looking in our direction. He can’t see you yet through the mask and hair. But he could be here with anyone and if he spots you, we’re toast.’
We all knew that was only a matter of time.
I pushed Zoe towards the stairs. ‘Go, go, go!’
As we ran, I looked back over my shoulder and saw him on the opposite side of the dance floor. Although he was wearing a silver mask and his hair was dark and hanging to his shoulders, I’d know him anywhere and he was looking right at me, shaking his head. I couldn’t tell if he was angry or just disappointed with me. After all his praise earlier on… I’d gone and blown it. I closed my eyes briefly with regret.
‘Eden!’ Spence called out.
I leaped down the stairs and we ran past the doorwoman, throwing back our masks to her on the way.
Spence and Zoe were laughing, on a high from both the near-escape and the drinks, but all I could see was Lincoln’s eyes. We ran up the street at full speed, taking as many turns as possible, losing ourselves until, by luck, we stumbled onto a main road.
Spence slowed to a walk. ‘Well, there’s good news and bad news. The good: we’ve lost anyone who might have followed us. The bad: we just ran off all the alcohol.’
I rolled my eyes. ‘So sorry,’ I said, but my mind was still a livewire trying to work out what I was going to do. Should I race back to the Academy, jump into bed and feign ignorance? Should I confront Lincoln and ask what he was doing? Should I apologise? Get mad? Cry now or later?
Spence pointed to an all-night cafe. ‘Don’t beat yourself up. You can buy me cake to make–’
‘Stop!’ I said, grabbing his arm, trying to sift through the senses I was feeling.
Zoe and Spence froze.
All of my attention focused in on the café. ‘Exile,’ I said. Spence and Zoe had to concentrate for a little while to pick it up, too, but they both nodded.
I was getting good at using the senses. They were so overwhelming here I’d had to work at them. Suddenly I had a new appreciation for Rainer’s relentless tuition.
‘I recognise this… Roses and… spearmint …’ My forehead crinkled. I’d definitely sensed the combination before, but I couldn’t place it.
We moved back into the shadowed pavement opposite the cafe.
‘Any ideas?’ Spence asked. He already had his dagger out. And he was grinning. He’d formulated his plan quickly and it involved immediate confrontation.
‘Let’s wait here. He has to come out eventually and then we’ll see what we’re dealing with. If he’s one of Phoenix’s crew we may be able to follow him if we keep our guards up and stay back.’
Zoe looked between the cafe and us. ‘You know we’re gonna get nailed for this?’
‘Yep,’ I said. But we were already busted and at least this way we could actually be of use.
‘I’m in,’ Spence said.
Zoe nodded. ‘Me, too. Just making sure we’re all on the same page, people,’ she said, imitating Griffin.
Half an hour later the excitement had worn off and we were freezing cold, and still waiting for our exile to show himself.
My phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and looked at the screen.
‘Lincoln again?’ Spence asked, blowing into his hands.
I nodded. All three of us had been ignoring his several calls.
Spence dropped his head in his hands. ‘We’re in so much shit. Hate to say it, Eden, but maybe you should answer.’
I looked at the phone, my finger hovering over the accept button. Spence had a point but something told me to wait. Before I could make up my mind, the cafe door opened and out walked our exile.
‘Holy hell,’ Zoe whispered.
Yep. Holy hell.
I put my phone back in my pocket and prepared to follow. We’d just hit the jackpot.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
‘In His angels he found wickedness.’
Job 4:18
We didn’t need to tail Olivier – Phoenix’s second-in-charge – for long before we saw him stalk into another building, this one a residential block. Something twisted in my gut.
We deliberated over whether to follow him in, but decided to stay outside for now.
Minutes later, Olivier came back out, a child wearing blueand-white pyjamas in his arms, head resting on his shoulder as if he was sleeping. But we all saw the blood trickling down the side of the boy’s face.
‘Look,’ Zoe said, pointing up to the third floor of the building where smoke was billowing from a window.
I panicked. People were still inside the building! I prayed that the boy’s mother or father – destined Grigori only had one or the other – was still alive.
‘I’ll go,’ Zoe said, not hesitating. ‘You two follow Olivier.’
There was no time to delay. This shadowing mission had just turned into a rescue and none of us was about to turn our back on what needed to be done. This was what we were made for.
Zoe flew across the street and into the building while Spence and I
followed Olivier.
Olivier hailed a taxi and took off in the direction of Manhattan. We almost lost him while we waited for our own taxi, Spence all but hauling a woman, who was still paying, out of the first one we could find.
‘Follow that cab!’ Spence said to the driver, throwing all the money in his pocket at the taxi driver.
We leaned back as we headed over the bridge and into lower Manhattan. Spence looked positively exhilarated.
‘You’ve always wanted to say that, huh?’
‘Every man’s dream!’ he said, not taking his eyes off the taxi ahead.
While he kept watch I used the opportunity to text Lincoln the name of the street where we’d left Zoe and told him to send fire engines and a clean-up crew, just in case.
He texted back.
On the way. Where r u?
I chewed on my lip.
In taxi. Following Olivier. Don’t be mad.
Now wasn’t the time to lie.
Lincoln’s reply was instant.
NO! 2 dangerous! Wait for me and Griff.
DON’T follow on foot!
I showed the message to Spence without saying anything. This was his choice too.
‘If we wait, we’ll lose him.’ He kept his eyes on our target. ‘Eden, you need to decide. Are you going to be the Grigori everyone else tells you to be or the Grigori you know you are? He’s going to City Hall!’ He yelled the last part to the driver. ‘Look, I get my partner in a couple of months. I’m going to have to bring her into this messed-up world and hope she can survive. I’m scared shitless that I might let her down, or that she might get hurt, but this is what we do.’
Spence never talked about his partner-to-be. He wouldn’t even tell anyone her name. In case she decided not to embrace, he wanted to leave her with anonymity. He was good people.
My phone buzzed.
Violet?
It really was that simple to Spence. He was part of the Academy but he would not be defined by it. He had one objective and that was to be in the fight – to be Grigori.
I texted Lincoln.
He has a kid. Gotta go.
I shoved my phone back in my pocket. I felt it buzz again but ignored it.
‘Here, stop here!’ Spence instructed the driver. He pointed to Olivier who was now on foot and walking into a park. ‘City Hall Park. Are we following or not?’
I opened the door. ‘What do you think?’
He gave me a megawatt smile. ‘Never doubted you, Eden.’
‘Keep your guard up or he’ll sense us,’ I reminded Spence. He nodded and we let ourselves fall back as far as we could, just to be sure.
As Olivier walked through the park, past a water fountain, we hid in the bushes and I let my power flow from me to reveal what he was showing the rest of the world. He was hidden in a glamour. No normal humans could see the kid – not that there were many people around at this time.
‘He’s dressed himself in some kind of uniform.’
Spence nodded. ‘As one of the City Hall guards. He can go wherever he wants. Look, he’s heading down those stairs.’
‘Where do they go?’ I asked.
‘Not sure. There’s supposed to be some old subway station round here. It got shut down a while back – security risk or something.’
I could see why. Wherever Olivier was headed, it was right beneath City Hall.
Spence started looking around our immediate surroundings.
‘There,’ he said, pointing to a square metal manhole about fifteen metres away. ‘That would get us down in the area. Better than trying to follow him past the guards and into the unknown.’
‘Agreed.’
We moved out into the open, Spence putting a hand on my shoulder so he could glamour us both and keep us hidden. The large metal cover was locked in place with two padlocks.
I slipped my fingers beneath the edge of the cover until I had a good grip and glanced at Spence, making sure he was ready. We would have to move quickly.
He nodded, taking hold of the other side.
We yanked.
The padlocks snapped apart with our supernatural strength and the metal cover flew open. We slid down into the hole quickly, making as little noise as possible, easing the cover back into place above us.
Thankfully there was a ladder, but unfortunately there was no light, so we had to fumble our way blind until we hit a dimly lit junction. I pushed out my senses, looking for Olivier, and found myself pointing towards a brick wall.
‘I don’t know how we get there – but it’s like he’s inside the wall,’ I said, increasingly confused.
‘Power?’ Spence suggested.
I walked up to the wall and put my hand on it. It felt real and solid. I moved back a couple of steps. ‘Only one way to find out.’
Pushing out the power within me, my amethyst mist spread out, eagerly finding its way to the wall. The mist represented my will – an extension of my angelic side that I was still learning to master. Before our eyes, the wall dissolved, revealing a new passageway.
The power that had created this hidden tunnel was the work of exiles. And they’d been down here for a long time.
‘Son of a bitch,’ Spence whispered, obviously sensing the same thing. ‘They’ve got the run of the whole city down here.’
We walked through the passage, checking behind a number of doorways that led to more tunnels. ‘Oh man, right under the Academy’s nose.’
‘They don’t know about these?’
Spence shook his head in awe.
‘Maybe this isn’t something we should be the ones to tell them about,’ I added.
Spence lifted an eyebrow sarcastically. ‘You think?’
We both knew Josephine would not believe us. It also raised the question: Who was running this labyrinth? Lilith had only just returned to New York so it stood to reason another exile or group of exiles was responsible.
We followed the power trail along the tunnel, moving quickly and quietly until we came to an archway that opened into another wider tunnel, the ground lined with railway tracks and further up a raised platform. It must’ve been the abandoned subway station Spence had mentioned. Olivier’s towering silhouette was unmistakable.
‘We have to separate Olivier from the kid first …’ Spence started to say.
I nodded. Olivier could snap that boy’s neck faster than lightning. We were almost at the station and it was going to be hard to get closer to him without him sensing us.
Remaining on the tracks, we crouched below the edge of the deserted platform and watched Olivier pace back and forth. Dim lights revealed the station as quite beautiful – green-and-cream square tiling lined the curved tunnel walls, while the ceiling was decorated with leadlight glass patterns. A secret treasure beneath the city.
‘What’s he waiting for?’ Spence asked just as a breeze lifted a stray strand of hair around my face and my breath caught. I gripped his arm without realising.
‘Shit, Eden. Want to ease off a little?’ he whispered, trying to pull his arm away. But when I didn’t he put a hand on my shoulder. ‘What?’
Jasmine and musk. That’s what.
I felt the blood drain from my face. ‘Phoenix is coming,’ I hissed.
Olivier is waiting for Phoenix.
‘Well … That changes things. What now?’ Spence asked. It was obvious the two of us were not going to be able to take on the two of them and save the little boy – especially when Phoenix could take me out with a simple thought.
The wind picked up. We shuffled back into our hiding place, watching as Phoenix arrived.
He was in a fitted black suit and polished black shoes. His hair had grown longer and it still rippled in that way it did – something powerful emanating from every strand, roots so dark they were purple and some sparkling silver to give that opal effect. The result was as dazzling as ever. In spite of all logic, my heart started to thump in my ears.
Phoenix slid his hands into his pockets. His confidence was coming o
ff him in waves. I’d never seen him like this. So detached and yet… composed, with a rigid determination that frightened me even more than his usual arrogance and manipulative game-playing.
He looked Olivier up and down without even casting an eye in the direction of the still-unconscious boy.
He’s so cold.
Even after everything that had happened, I never would’ve believed Phoenix would be so devoid of emotion for a beaten child.
I was furious at his behaviour but it made me sad more than anything else. A tear formed in the corner of my eye.
Phoenix’s jaw seemed to tense and he tilted his head to the side as if he’d heard something.
I held my breath, realising my mistake. Time stood still.
Idiot!
Desperately, I tried to lock down my thoughts. But it was too late. I’d just sent him my own personal emo-signature. Phoenix knew I was there.
I braced for the attack… But it didn’t come. He simply turned his attention back to Olivier.
‘Any problems?’ Phoenix asked in a controlled tone.
Olivier grinned wickedly. ‘None. Left the kid’s place on fire. No one will track him.’
Phoenix nodded.
Why isn’t he telling Olivier I’m here?
Phoenix paced the platform, his steps crisp against the concrete. ‘I thought I told you not to beat the prisoners,’ he said calmly, still not even glancing towards the boy. Or me.
Olivier shrugged. ‘What do you care? We’re just going to execute them once she’s had her fun, anyway. She said she doesn’t care what we do to them as long as they’re still breathing. He’s still breathing.’
In a flash, Phoenix grabbed Olivier by the neck, single-handedly hoisting him up against a wall.
‘You answer to me!’ he growled.
‘I answer to the one who is going to cut down every human at the knees so they will forever know their place. That means, I answer to her,’ Olivier choked. Phoenix loosened his hold. ‘For now, anyway,’ Olivier continued. ‘This is all simply a means to an end. You forget, I am of the light.’
Endless: Violet Eden Chapters: Book Four Page 15
