Strangeness and Charm cotf-3

by Mike Shevdon

  "Fionh," said Alex, turning to face her. "You're not taking me back. I won't go!"

  "Shut up, Alex. This is not about you," said Fionh. "You," she nodded towards Eve, "put down the arrow, drop the bag and any other weapons, place your hands high where we can see them."

  "You know these people?" said Eve, shoving Alex in the chest so that she staggered back against a desk. "You brought them here?"

  "No," said Alex. "They must have tracked us here. I didn't tell anyone, honestly."

  "In two," said Eve, quietly.

  "What?" said Alex. From her position she saw Chipper pretend to lift something from the desk, cradling it to him. Eve paused for just a second. Sparky was gripping the top of the monitor in front of him. There was a faint smell of electrical overheating. A wisp of smoke rose from the back of the monitor. Sparky nodded.

  "Don't try anything," said Fellstamp, "Or your friend will grow a new smile."

  "Two," said Eve.

  There was a blinding white flash from Sparky. In the after image burned into Alex's retina, long trails of jagged lightning forked out all around him. Fellstamp flew backwards, a bright arc lancing into his chest. To Alex, blinking through the green spots floating in front of her eyes, he seemed to float in the air as he sailed backwards, arms out-flung.

  Chipper made a gesture that looked to Alex like he was launching a grenade. A great gout of flame erupted in front of Fionh, the pulse of heat throwing Alex forward so she landed across one of the stupid office chairs and toppled sideways onto the floor.

  Her ears ringing from the twin detonations, Alex crawled to her knees, coughing at the bitter-tasting smoke that was roiling down around her. A high-pitched alarm was screeching. Emergency lighting flickered into dim illumination.

  Alex pulled herself up on the desk in time to see Fionh striding through the smoke towards Eve with a long straight blade held easily, but as she advanced her steps faltered. Fionh glanced down, suddenly unsure of her footing. Even as she hesitated, the floor appeared to ripple and bow underneath her. Carpet tiles up-ended into a dip in the floor which expanded, swallowing everything as it flowed outwards.

  Fionh leapt forwards, the ground under her sagging and collapsing, leaving her sprawled across the shifting carpet tiles as they were sucked inexorably into the slowly whirling vortex that had opened up in what had been a solid floor. It rippled like water, and sighed like sand. Fionh crawled forward while the floor slipped backwards into the dark hole that had opened up in the floor.

  "Die bitch!" said Eve.

  "No!" said Alex. "You mustn't!"

  Eve glanced at Alex and then stepped forward and slapped her, flat-handed, across the face. Alex staggered sideways at the force of the blow. Tears welled into her eyes.

  "Never!" Eve's eyes blazed with anger. "Never ever tell me what I can and cannot do!"

  Alex held her hand to her cheek where her cheek burned. "There are more of them," Alex blurted through the tears. "If you kill them they'll come with more, better armed, better prepared."

  "They'll have to find us first," said Eve. "Out!" she called to Sparky and Chipper. "Emergency exit. Now!" She grabbed Alex's hair, lifting it and pulling it back so that Alex's throat was exposed. In her hand, the tip of the silver arrow glinted menacingly.

  "Did you bring them here? Did you?" asked Eve.

  "No!" Alex gasped. "I swear."

  Eve paused, on the cusp of a decision. Alex readied herself, trying to think of something she could do, something she could say.

  Eve threw her forwards. "Go! Follow them down. I'll be right behind you."

  She pushed Alex towards the emergency exit. Alex stumbled forwards, her footing uncertain. The whole floor was shifting and bucking like it was a living thing. The foulsmelling smoke drifted around her, forming into drifts like ghosts in the still air. She glanced back. Outlined against the dull flicker of the flames, she could dimly see Eve's outline.

  It was too late to help anyone now.

  It was so rare to see people running in the courts that I couldn't help but follow the commotion down to the source, the room where the Ways converged, under the house.

  When I reached the room I couldn't quite believe what I found. Fionh was sprawled on the floor, covered in smears of dark soot, showing livid bruises and singed hair. Garvin was knelt beside her giving her water from a glass. I'd never seen Fionh look anything but crisp and business-like. It was a shock to see her in such disarray.

  Beside her, Fellstamp was laid with his head in the lap of one of the female stewards, his eyes closed. In normal circumstances he'd be enjoying that sort of attention, but he lay quite still, eyes closed. She held a cloth pressed to his forehead, murmuring down to him. There was an acrid smell of burning plastic and another smell I couldn't identify.

  People were bringing in bowls of warm water and blankets. They didn't seem to know what else to do.

  "What the hell happened to you?" I blurted out.

  Fionh pushed the glass away. "Your daughter and her friends, that's what."

  "Alex did this?" I was incredulous.

  "Her friends did. We underestimated them badly. They looked peaceful enough and we went in hard. Fellstamp took one of them hostage. We thought we had it under control but there was some sort of electrical discharge, I've never seen anything like it. It caught Fellstamp full in the chest. He hasn't moved since."

  "Perhaps it was an accident. They don't have much control."

  "You joke!" said Fionh. "While one of them was throwing fireballs at me, the other did something to the floor of the building. It was like quicksand, dragging me down."

  She coughed and Garvin gave her some more of the water. When she could speak again she continued.

  "The leader is a girl, not much older than Alex. She was carrying a bag slung across her chest and a metal arrow, it looked like silver. She had a book as well, but she put that in the bag as soon as she realised they weren't alone." She coughed again. "When the others had gone, she leaned down at the edge of the pit that was dragging me down. She watched me struggling as I was sliding slowly backwards. She didn't offer a hand, or even blink."

  Fionh's gaze turned inwards at the memory.

  "She said to pass on a message. She said not to come after them. She said if we did she would take a city and do the same with that as she was doing to me. She said she would drag all of it down and send it to hell, which was what it deserved. Then she stood up and walked away without a backward glance."

  "And you left Alex with these people?" I asked.

  "Your daughter?" She laughed without humour. "She's in on it — one of them, calm as you like. They had a bit of a tiff when the leader thought she'd given away their location, but she went with them all the same. She's one of them, Niall."

  "She can't be. Alex wouldn't associate with anyone like that," I protested

  "She's changed, Niall. She has tattoos all down her arms now, and wears her hair jet black. She probably calls herself Dementia or something."

  "She's just playing along with them."

  "No, Niall. She's one of them."

  Mullbrook arrived, bringing in two stewards with a makeshift stretcher made from a tabletop, which they guided down beside Fellstamp.

  "He hasn't moved since he was hit," said Fionh, watching them carefully lift him onto the low wooden platform. "I had to carry him down the Way."

  Naturally pale, his skin looked like it had been powdered white under the soot and the grime.

  "You need to rest," said Garvin. "When you feel up to it we'll get you cleaned up. You'll feel better when you've had some sleep."

  "I don't want sleep," she said. "I want revenge." She tried to push herself up, but Garvin rested his hand on her shoulder and gently pressed her back down.

  "That's why you're not going after them," Garvin said. "It'll take a cool head and careful planning. I'll take Amber and Tate. We'll do what needs to be done."

  "What about me?" I asked.

  Garvin looked up
at me. "My instructions will be to kill on sight. I don't think I can ask you to do that, Niall."

  He paused.

  "Not when it's your own daughter."

  SEVENTEEN

  "We've got to do something!" I paced up and down in front of Blackbird. "They're going to kill her."

  "They'll have to find her first," said Blackbird, reasonably.

  "They've already found them once. How long before they give themselves away? This time they won't give them chance to draw breath. They'll just kill them all and have done with it, Alex included."

  "I thought Alex didn't do anything?"

  "She didn't. It's guilt by association. And when I said that to Garvin, he said that she didn't lift a finger to help them either."

  "That's no reason to kill someone."

  "That's what I said, but you know what Garvin's like."

  "Indeed I do," she remarked, "he thinks he's judge, jury and high executioner, and unfortunately he's not disabused of that by the High Court."

  "I have to try and find her." I said. I found myself dry-washing my hands, and stuck them in my pockets to stop myself.

  "Where would you start? You've been looking for her for days and you haven't found her yet. For that matter, how did Fellstamp and Fionh find them?"

  "They were tipped off. Apparently the building where they were squatting is part of a territory given to one of the fey in Teoth's Court. They were spotted entering and leaving and a complaint was raised with the courts. Garvin realised who it was that was disregarding territorial boundaries…"

  "…and sent Fionh and Fellstamp in heavy-handed," Blackbird finished.

  "Apparently Fellstamp took one of them hostage — sounds like he picked the wrong one."

  "And that worked out well, didn't it?" she said. "How is he?"

  "His condition hasn't changed. Half the female stewards are walking around as if they're in mourning, and the other half are looking as if they've had a lucky escape."

  "He's such a rogue."

  "You're smiling. Don't tell me you're smitten too?"

  "You have to admit, he is very charming," said Blackbird, off-handedly.

  "Not at the moment, he's not."

  "He'll come around, you'll see." She could see I was worried about him.

  "I hope so. I don't know what Garvin will do if he doesn't pull through. He's very protective of his people."

  "Apart from you," she said.

  "The same with me. Up to a point."

  "Quite."

  "I only seem to cause him trouble," I admitted.

  "And that's your fault, is it? You do this deliberately?"

  "Of course not."

  "Then he can hardly punish you for it, can he?" she said.

  "It's not me he's punishing."

  "Isn't it? He must know how you feel about them going after Alex. She is your daughter."

  "He knows, but it doesn't change anything. He says she's brought it on herself."

  "The excuse of the despot throughout history — they brought it on themselves; they forced my hand; they made me do it."

  "I have to find her," I repeated.

  "Perhaps there is a way. You said that this girl had a silver arrow with her?"

  "Yes, and a book."

  "Then it's time we went to see Gregor again. We know they have a key and a feather. Perhaps he can shed some light on what they're doing, and from that we might be able to figure out where they are before Garvin does."

  Alex was backed against the wall in the alley. "I didn't tell them anything, I swear." She looked from Eve, to Sparky, to Chipper, and back to Eve. "You can tell I'm not lying, dammit!"

  Sparky rubbed his neck thoughtfully. "They found us somehow, didn't they? And I damned near got my throat slit."

  Alex folded her arms. "So you automatically blame me."

  "You knew them," said Eve. "None of the rest of us knew them."

  "They're Warders, I told you. Everyone at the courts knows them, at least by reputation," said Alex.

  "But you know them personally," said Eve.

  "My dad works with them. He's sort of in the same bit of the courts. They all work for Garvin."

  "And what does Garvin do?"

  "Garvin's freaky. He's not quite right up here." Alex tapped her temple. "He makes my flesh crawl."

  "But what does he do?" asked Eve.

  "I told you, he leads the Warders, and they do the bidding of the courts. It's all about who's top dog and who's allied to whoever. The Lords and Ladies have absolute power, and what they say goes, but they don't necessarily agree with each other. When I went to see Kimlesh, she told me that I could join the Nymphine Court, but that meant accepting the rules and abiding by her rulings, and in return, she'll defend me from the others."

  "So she decides where you live and what you do?" asked Eve.

  "No, not exactly. You can live wherever you like, but if you get into a dispute with another fey, maybe you take something that belongs to someone, then the court will rule. Maybe you get to keep it, or maybe you give it back. It stops them killing each other."

  "And all of them are members?" asked Eve.

  "Pretty much. Except for us. They don't really know what to do with us. We're not human and we're not fey. There's a big debate over whether half-breeds should be able to join."

  "But Kimlesh offered to let you join her court?" said Sparky.

  "The Nymphine court is the only one I can join because my elements are water and air. Kimlesh wants the half-breeds to join the courts. It's her choice who joins and who doesn't, so if I join, it tips the balance, see? She gets what she wants. But the others, Teoth, Krane, some of the others, they're not opening up. If I joined, it could force their hand, and they won't like that."

  "So you ran away," said Eve.

  "I was leaving anyway," said Alex.

  "And they're following you because they want you to join, or because they don't?" asked Eve.

  "Both, I guess. Kimlesh says I can join because there's a precedent. Yonna admitted Blackbird to the court of Fey'ree years ago, so it's been done before. There were others, but most of them died when the Seventh Court betrayed the courts and killed all the half-breeds they could find. There are supposed to be a few of the older ones dotted about, but most of them are in hiding."

  "So they're killing the half-breeds, even the ones that are part of the courts?" said Eve.

  "That's the Seventh Court, the Wraithkin. They're different. They don't like any of the half-breeds. They don't think we should exist."

  "But the Seventh Court are part of the courts?"

  "Yeah," said Alex, "I guess. They're the seventh one."

  "I still don't get how they found us," said Sparky.

  "They found us because they're hunting us," said Eve. "And if they catch us, they'll kill us."

  "I don't think Fellstamp would have hurt you," said Alex. "He's not like that really. He was just trying to take control."

  "They'll kill us when they find us," said Eve, "or they'll take us back to their courts and kill us there — if the Seventh Court don't kill us first."

  "It's not that clear cut," said Alex.

  "No," said Eve. "But it's what will happen. Whether it's an accident or on purpose, the outcome is the same. We can't afford for them to find us again. Take off your clothes."

  "My what?" said Alex.

  "Your clothes. Take them off," said Eve. Chipper smiled slightly. Sparky openly grinned.

  "No! I'm not stripping for you or anyone else."

  "They found you somehow, Alex. They did it once so they can do it again. They could be tracking you through your clothes, your jewellery, anything. You have to get rid of them."

  "I stole my clothes," said Alex. "Even my underwear is new."

  "Do you have anything from you past life?" asked Eve.

  "No," said Alex, putting her hand behind her back.

  They all heard the lie.

  "Give it to me," said Eve.

  "It's nothing. I
t's such a small thing. They can't be tracking me with that."

  "Give." Eve held her hand out.

  Alex shook her head, but Eve moved in swiftly, grabbing her hair and her arm, twisting her around and pressing her against the wall.

  "No! You can't have it! It's mine!"

  Alex balled her fist so that the ring was tight on her finger, but Eve twisted it behind her, pushing her into the wall and prying her fingers apart. The ring was stripped from Alex's finger.

  Alex screamed, "No! No! No! No!" She twisted and fought to get free.

  Eve tossed the ring to Chipper. "Stamp on it."

  Chipper caught it and put it carefully on the floor, resting it under his trainer and then leaned his weight on it, while Alex screamed in Eve's grip. The ring twisted and bent, then folded in half. He stomped on it twice for good measure, breaking it into two pieces. He picked up the pieces and threw them down the alley.

  Alex sobbed, taking great gulps of air and wailing.

  "Grow up, little girl," said Eve. "You have no family but us. You have no friends but us. We are everything you have and don't you forget it. When we change the world none of this will matter. Then you'll thank me."

  Eve let her go and Alex stumbled away, screaming abuse at those behind her, but knowing in her heart that she had nowhere else to go.

  • • • •

  "A library? Why does he want to meet in a library?" I asked Blackbird. "What's he going to do, stick a pin in an atlas? Borrow the Observer Book of Strange Rituals?"

  "It's not the sort of library that lends books."

  We were walking down Euston Road, the constant roar of motorbikes and the growl of taxis and buses almost drowning out our words as the traffic stop-started its way along one of London's busiest thoroughfares.

  "What's the point of a library that doesn't lend books?" I asked.

  "It's a hidden library," said Blackbird, "and it has a copy of almost every book that's ever been published, including some extremely rare volumes. When I spoke to Gregor on the phone he said to meet him here. He has a reader's ticket."

  "You need a ticket to read books?"

  "You do when they're as rare as these."