by Kit Hallows
With the back of the place covered, I moved to the front rooms and rigged the windows with small explosive devices but left the front door untouched. Then I sat on the stairs and waited.
The late afternoon crept by. I ate a sandwich and watched the squirrels scuttling across the canopy of bare branches. A mangy fox tried to approach the house. He cautiously sniffed the air, then turned tail into the woods as soon as the squirrel started chattering.
It was almost six and dusk had begun to spread its eerie red glow over the sky when I heard the cars slowly rolling along the drive. Both of them were black and low slung, their windows tinted.
The first one stopped short of the parking lot.
My heart raced and a surge of adrenaline punched me in the gut. I held my gun firm and waited. The lead car switched off its lights and cut the engine, then the second one followed suit.
Finally, the doors opened and two women in long dark coats climbed out. They were young, perhaps in their early twenties. They gazed toward the Country Club and I flinched as one seemed to look directly at me. She turned to the witch beside her and muttered. They raised their hands into the air and bowed their heads.
Shit.
They were about to scan the building.
I cupped a crystal in my hands and tried to mask its glow as the magic surged through my palms. Then I closed my eyes, willed myself to be unseen, and projected a wall that would allow them to sense the ramshackle structure, yet no signs of life.
Silence fell. When I opened my eyes, the witches had lowered their arms and turned. One nodded to the other vehicle and its doors opened.
Elsbeth Wyght climbed out, along with the driver, a thickset woman with one hand concealed inside her coat.
Fear, fury and loathing shot through me. The bitch looked no different to the last time I'd seen her. Her long dark hair fell to her waist, framing her pale oval face, as she looked toward the building. Her eyes were little more than pools of shadows. I hated her, yet I couldn't deny the beauty that masked her icy cruel malevolence.
The witches approached in unison, their steps slow, confident, steady and not at all unlike the wolves.
I was about to position myself near the door when my eye caught an odd movement through a crack in the curtains. Someone was lurking near the forest, a small, fidgety figure.
Slowly, it became more substantial.
The boy.
He began to skip through the trees, whistling a simple, jaunty melody. He paused as the witches looked his way, held up his tiny pale hand, and waved.
Elsbeth Wyght was the first to start toward him and I could only watch in silence as he turned and ran off into the trees, his peals of laughter ringing out behind him. Wyght picked up her pace as the others took off after him.
No! I willed them to come back but they continued to weave their way through the woods. And soon they all vanished from view.
I leapt toward the front door and was about to throw it open, when a heavy thud came from the back of the building, followed by a blood-curdling roar of rage.
37
Another bellow thundered out from the rear of the building. Gun fire followed, and now the howl turned from fury to pain.
I pulled my sword and moved through the ballroom.
A troll stood in the shadows, a warty hand clutched to its side as thick blood leaked between its fingers. It held a short sword in its free hand, the blade serrated with a small barbed hook forged at the tip. The troll looked wild despite its bulky clothes. It glanced at me and growled. "What in the fuck are you doing in here?"
The ground shook as it thudded toward me and as I backed away the tripwire by the pool table unleashed the shadow bats. They assailed the beast, attaching themselves to its back, neck and face. Soon its whole head had been enveloped by their dark leathery wings.
I used the sword of intent to disarm the creature with a single swipe. Its hoarse howls were muffled by the swarm, even though they were already beginning to fade. The troll's pursuit was slow and sluggish. It floundered but the rage in its eyes was bright and menacing enough as it lunged at me.
End.
I thrust the sword into its chest. It grasped at the blade, its hands bloody and red as it tried to pull it free. I put all my strength behind the sword and held firm. After what seemed like an eternity, the troll shuddered, toppled into the pool table and slumped to the floor. The light in its eyes faded as I pulled the sword free and hurried outside.
Night was settling in. I threw my bag over my shoulder, grabbed my flashlight and ran toward the woods after Wyght.
There was no sign of her, or her coven. I grabbed two crystals to aid me in the search, but there were nothing to see. Not even a single track. "Impossible."
I strode further into the forest but the place seemed deserted. It was as if they'd vanished off the face of the Earth.
Something howled in the distance. A wolf? The hairs on the back of my neck rose. The growing darkness would give the beasts the advantage. I glanced around, scouring for the glow of their eyes, but for now I was alone.
It took a moment to realize I had absolutely no idea where I was. I pulled another crystal out, searched for my own footprints, and followed them back. Finally I emerged from the trees a few feet from the witches' cars. The doors were unlocked but both vehicles were empty, not one sign of life, just the faint smell of nail polish and leather.
I walked back through the trees to where I'd hidden my car, and climbed inside as the howling drew closer. I sat there, my mind whirring. A big part of me wanted to get back to the cabin, grab my things and get the hell out of Copperwood Falls. It felt like life was a lot safer back in the city, where I had control, or at least a semblance of it.
But I knew I wasn't going anywhere. Not until I'd caught that murderous bitch. But now, in order to get to her, I'd have to find the boy. But how? I thought about heading to the magical quarter. Someone had to know his secret. And more importantly, who he belonged to. He had the air of a familiar, not a master.
While I wasn't expecting to get an easy answer, I was at the stage where I wasn't above doing whatever it took to get what I needed.
I headed back into Copperwood Falls and parked outside the dilapidated house and waited for someone to pass through. And I waited, and waited, until finally a man headed towards the door. I was about to follow him when my phone rang, drawing his attention. Shit.
I glanced at the screen:
- Lily Embersen -
"Hey, Lily." I said, as the man hurried away, acting like he'd never intended to enter the building.
"I'm sorry for calling..."
She sounded low, drunk and in pain.
"Are you okay?"
"No." She sniffed and sighed, like she was fighting to keep her composure.
"What's wrong?"
Silence followed, as if she was trying to decide whether or not to answer me.
"Tell me, I might be able to help."
"It's Sebastian...we got into a bit of a fight." Her voice trailed off.
"Verbal or physical?"
"Both."
Rage flashed through me as I thought of her asshole brother, and the glowering looks he'd given me. I'd have probably done almost anything for a chance to knock his teeth down his throat, and it seemed like that opportunity had arrived. "Are you hurt?"
"Not really." She gave a short, high laugh. "I called because... because I didn't know who else to turn to."
"Where are you?"
"At home." Her voice broke and the sob she'd been holding back flooded out. "I...I don't know if he's going to come back. I've never seen him like this before. Please..."
I gazed at the dilapidated building. The man who'd been heading into the town's magical quarter was long gone and the street was totally deserted. "I'm on my way," I said as I started the car.
38
"Take the next left." The robotic voice was my only company in the dark, seemingly empty forest. I'd watched for the turn, only realizing
I'd passed it by when the GPS ordered me to turn back and take the next right. As soon as I did, its voice became a metallic scramble and the screen began to flicker.
I slowed as I spotted the narrow driveway and a wooden sign that read "Embersen House" in a large swirling font. I turned, following it deep into the woods until I reached a large wrought iron gate. I reached for the buzzer on the intercom, mindful of the dark forest looming behind me.
"Morgan?"
Her apprehension was palpable, even through the tinny speakers.
"Hi. Yes, it's me."
A low buzz issued, and the gate slowly swung open. I drove through onto a long narrow gravel track lined with rhododendrons and Douglas firs. Something about the place filled me with foreboding, but I shook it off as I sped on through the darkness.
The track ended in a wide sweeping arc before a tall, traditional manor house that wouldn't have looked out of place on the rolling green hills of England. I parked near a gushing fountain and jumped out of the car, tucking my sword below my coat as I bounded up the steps to the front door.
Lily looked small and frail as she stepped outside. She gave me a quick nervous smile and peered into the darkness behind me. A dark purple bruise bloomed just below her eye. "Thank you for coming."
"Where is he?" I glanced past her into a brightly lit hall filled with mahogany furniture and a sweeping formal staircase.
"He's gone." She clasped the hem of her shirt and smoothed it down. "I'm sorry for bothering you. It was silly of me, but I'm grateful you're here. Please, come in."
Despite its grand size, the place was warm and a scent of violets laced the air. I glanced up at the huge paintings that lined the walls. Most were portraits of joyless looking people but there were also several landscapes of Copperwood Falls, and the surrounding forested hillsides.
"How could he do that to you?" I asked, suppressing my rage as the light revealed the full extent of her injury. He must have hit her hard.
"He gets these moods sometimes. He's my brother and I love him but..." she smiled and shook her head. "Anyway, please, come through."
I followed her into a drawing room. Plush cream-colored drapes covered the windows, and tall well-stocked bookcases lined the walls. A fire roared in an enormous hearth and above it was the portrait of a haughty-looking man in a scarlet frock coat.
"My great grandfather," Lily said. "Apparently he was quite the terror in his day." She forced a smile. "Please, sit down while I fetch you a drink, it's the least I can do."
I didn't want a drink, I wanted to get back to my investigation and find out where in the hell Wyght had gone, but I couldn't leave. Not yet. Besides, if I was honest, I was more than a little flattered by her interest in a common serf like me.
"Thank you," I said as she returned with two small glasses filled with ruby red wine.
I took a sip. No, not wine, port. Hardly my go-to drink, but it was subtle, warming and as smooth as velvet. I took another sip. Yes, this was the good stuff.
"I-"
"Thank-"
We smiled awkwardly as our words collided.
"Thank you, for coming so quickly. I truly appreciate it." Lily's eyes sparkled by the light of the fire. She looked lovely in its soft glow, even with that bruise, erupting like a grey cloud against her porcelain skin...
Focus. "I'm happy to help. And I won't leave until I know you're safe. But I'll be heading back to the city soon. Do you have anyone else you can call if something like this happens again?"
"It's awkward. I've got plenty of friends and acquaintances, but I don't want them to know about this. They're already judgmental enough."
"Right." Her reason for calling me made perfect sense now. I took another sip of port, this one deeper than the last. It was tempting to stay for a while, but I needed to get back on track and find out what had happened to Wyght. At least once I'd dealt with Sebastian. "Are you sure he's gone?"
"No," Lily gave a sad, troubled smile.
I moved away from the fire. The room was starting to get hot. Stiflingly hot.
"Where do you think he-" My words trailed off as a wave of nausea swept over me and the room began to spin.
Fuck.
I glanced at the fine sediment in the bottom of the glass. "Why?" I asked, as the room lurched again.
"I'm sorry, Morgan."
I pulled my gun, but it tumbled from my fingers onto to the thick carpeted floor. "What the hell-" I staggered and lurched toward a wingback chair and tried to grasp hold but it slipped from my hand, and I fell.
The carpet filled my field of vision.
I mustered the will to look up, only to find Sebastian standing there with Lily. He looked down on me with his arm round her waist and a smug, contented grin on his chiseled face.
And behind them, I saw an open door leading into a wall of darkness.
The room lurched again, and I blacked out.
When I finally opened my eyes again, I saw a shape standing in the gloom of the doorway. A silhouette that somehow stood out from the murk.
The boy.
The demon.
He took a step toward me, his black glasses dancing with firelight. Then he smiled so wide it seemed it might crack his perfectly disguised face.
39
I awoke to impenetrable darkness. I flexed my hands and feet, expecting to find them bound, but they weren't. Slowly I stood, my head still sluggish from whatever drug Lily had spiked me with. My coordination was screwed and the gloom surrounding me seemed to spin, as if I were falling into an endless abyss.
As I crawled along the floor my fingers brushed something cold and smooth. Glass? I turned left, then right, and checked behind. Four walls. I struck a hand against one, producing a solid thump.
"Fuck." My voice sounded flat.
My coat, sword and gun were gone. I still had Hellwyn's necklace and the ring Willow had given me. It seemed they'd been deemed of little threat, which was accurate enough.
"Where are you?" I called as I pulled myself up to my feet. "Fucking cowards!"
A dim rectangle of light appeared in the darkness as a heavy steel door swung open. Lily emerged, followed by an obese man with greasy spiked hair and a butcher's apron complete with a belt of sheathed knives and a saw. One side of his head was shaved and a wormy blue vein threaded across his flabby scalp and stump-like neck. He said something to Lily, and I caught a glimpse of his filed, pointy, dank yellow teeth.
Lily flicked a switch and an overhead lamp came on, dowsing me in harsh white light. I was in a glass cell no more than ten feet square. It was completely empty, but for me. A row of similar cells stretched out on either side of mine in a long block and what lay behind them seemed to be little more than a solid black void.
I glanced up as Lily pushed a button on the tiny chrome remote in her hand and the glass wall before me slid open.
"What the hell have you done?" I strode toward her. She stepped back and the butcher reached for me with a great, meaty hand. There was an uncanny strength beneath his flab as he seized me and threw me to the ground. My skull struck the floor with a crack.
I blacked out for a moment, and when I came to, it was to find a meat cleaver poised at my throat.
"Don't fight, Morgan," Lily said. "It's futile."
"Where am I?"
"In our lab." She gave me a hard smile. "Which isn't unlike our facility under Old Lupine Hill. You know, the one littered with the dead bodies of our employees, and utterly stripped of its assets."
"Assets?" I barely managed to contain my rage and the only thing that kept me down was the cleaver at my jugular. "You mean the people you snatched off the streets and farmed?"
"People, assets, it's all the same." Lily's eyes had lost their sparkle. Now they were icy, and as hard as stone. "They have something we need, and we take it. Most were worthless loathsome individuals anyway. Junkies, itinerants and drifters. We're doing society a favor."
"You really believe that?"
Lily ignored th
e question as she continued. "But this lab is a bit more sophisticated than the one you emptied. This is where we bring our special projects. So you should feel privileged to be here." Her glare softened. "You know, I actually liked you. And if it wasn't for Sebastian... well, who knows how things might have gone."
"Just get to the point, Lily. What do you want?" I glanced to the steel door behind them. If I was quick, I could reach it.
"Tell me where our assets are."
"In the city, safe and secure. You won't get them back."
"I see. Well, I suppose it's lucky we have you then. Isn't it? I was impressed with what I saw when we first met. You're quite a fighter. I expect whatever we manage to squeeze out of you should make up for some of the assets we lost."
"I found the fang hidden near the tree," I tried to sit up but the butcher shoved me back down to the floor. "Is that what you used to summon the wolves?"
"Yes, and they played their part to perfection. I like to get the measure of the non-blinkereds who wander into my town. Assess their worth."
"So exactly how long have you been robbing people of their lives?"
"The Embersens have been purveyors of rare and exotic crystals for generations. Pretty much since our forefathers arrived in this country. Some traded in labor, others traded in goods. We traded in vitality."
"And clearly that doesn't bring you a scrap of shame."
"Why should it? If we didn't do it, someone else would."
"Do you know who I am?" I asked, as I stretched my legs and prepared to run.
"Morgan Rook," Lily said. "The Organization's number one agent. Turns out you've quite the reputation as a receptacle of dark energy."
"They'll come for me. And if you manage to survive that hellfire you'll be on your way to Stardim."
